2/27/25 – Is it spring, or is it just a tease to remind us that Mother Nature has a mind of her own…

Hey there happy reader,

I’m back from a week in sunny Los Angeles, where thankfully, the air quality is back to normal “smog” terrible. The horrible fires in January left behind a large swath of devastation. Entire neighborhoods have been erased, but the rains that followed did wash away much of the smoke and ash. It was wonderful to be outside in the warm sunshine to celebrate our oldest grandson’s second birthday!

Sometimes I just marvel at a toddler’s capacity for imagination, sparked by a few simple toys. 

He was fascinated by this gift of a play set of pots and pans, mimicking the motions he’s seen both his parents use when making breakfast. We spent many happy hours “cooking” eggs and pancakes in his room!

We had so much fun pretending that I was inspired to bake with him, so we made challah together. 

He had such a blast mixing up the flour and eggs, then kneading the dough. Plus, he was thrilled with the result. Bonus? He ate it, which if you know anything about toddlers — they love a food for a day and the next day they refuse to eat it!

If you have a young child who would enjoy baking with you, the picture book “Challah Day” by Charlotte Offsay is a perfect gift. 

It offers beautiful illustrations of a family baking together and then enjoying the fruits of their labor. It has a recipe for challah in the back so you can try it for yourself. It’s a delicious activity, especially when you turn day old challah into French Toast!

Once I returned home, I was happily surprised to find that the weather was warm, and the sun was out. 

I know it’s just nature’s way of teasing me – it will get cold again. But for today, I took a long walk to enjoy the reprieve. Now I’m headed back to my desk and my work-in-progress, “The Stones.” I promise a fuller report on that and my preparation for my trip to Guatemala and Joyce Maynard’s writer’s intensive workshop next time.