2026 Goals - October Update

October!  Pumpkin everything!  Apple everything!  Hot Apple Cider!  Hay Rides!

What are you looking forward to this summer?

1) Lose 25 pounds.  Gain 10% muscle mass.

I changed this goal over the summer.  I am concentrating more on gaining muscle and worrying less about the stress of losing weight.  For right now, that goal is gaining 7 pounds of muscle by the end of the year.  

As of this writing, I have gained 2 pounds of muscle.  That 2 pounds took way longer to earn than I thought it would.  I'd like to think I will gain 5 more pounds of muscle by the end of the year, but at this point, any amount of increased muscle mass is a win!

2) Visit 1 new to me state.

Hawaii

We thought about visiting a new to us state this fall, but we are going to take a staycation.  Everything is so expensive.  Once we worked out the cost of hotels, airfare, car rental, etc, it was difficult to justify the expense for just 5 days.

3)  3 repairs/improvements to the house.

Project #1: Add surge protectors to the heat pumps and the house.  It's not a sexy fix, but it will definitely keep the heat pumps around for a longer period of time!  We've noticed an increase in the number of power surges we've had lately. The newer HVAC systems are very sensitive to power surges and they can damage the equipment. Honestly, who wants to spend to replace an HVAC system?  They are not cheap. I want them to last as long as possible.

Project #2: We are getting the basement waterproofed.  We've had leaks in the basement for a while now.  We currently have standing water in one corner. The contractor who remodeled the main floor was supposed to fix that, but ended up not doing it.  So now, another not so sexy fix.  But, it's important to the overall health of the house! 

Project #3: New storm doors for the front and basement doors.  Finally! An aesthetic repair!

4) 40 Bags in 40 Days Challenge

It's been a while since I've done this.  You get 40 bags or boxes of stuff out of your house over the 40 days of Lent.  I did NOT get 40 boxes out over the course of Lent.  I got rid of 6 boxes.

I'm beginning to realize that I did this a little backwards.  My goal is to empty out the storage unit - and I'm making excellent progress on this particular project.  Once I get everything out of the storage unit and really begin purging things, then I will get the 40 boxes (and then some) out of the house!

Boxes out of the house during March: 6

Boxes out of the house during April: 4

Boxes out of the house during May: 2

Boxes out of the house during June: 6

Boxes out of the house during July and August: 21

Boxes out of the house during September: 34

Total to date: 55

5) Organize old correspondence/letters

I found a treasure trove of old letters and notes from high school.  I have them in a box to sort through next month.  The bigger question is - what gets kept and what gets thrown out?  Do I really want to save any evidence of high school me?  Most likely, NO.

On the other hand... I was given a box of old papers from a historical organization that I volunteer with to organize.  I was in my happy place, organizing that mess!  Many of the documents were of historical value, and there were a lot of photographs.  The photographs have been placed into acid free albums and labeled to the best of my ability.  The documents were sorted and organized into binders in acid free pages.  The next step - for someone else - is to digitize those documents so that back up copies exist somewhere.

Update on this: the letters are somewhat sorted.  I thought I would put them in binders and shove them away somewhere.  Some of them have been organized and put into binders.  This is a much bigger task than I originally anticipated.  I'm not certain I'm going to get this finished this year.  This might be a 2027 project.

6) Big backyard garden project.

I want to put in some sort of shelter for the local pollinators.  I've been searching through the garden catalogs for just the right thing.  I saw something when we were in England a couple of years ago that really tickled my fancy!  I have thoughts.  I just need to make some things happen!

I found the first part of my thoughts on this while in Old Ellicott City last month.  Once the weather cools down a little bit, we're going to look at finding a way to install this in the backyard.

7) Finish the cross stitch project I've been working on for 3+ years.

This is finished! Well over 3 years after I started, the project is finally finished!  I need to block this out and get it professionally framed later this year.  

From the end of February.

End of March

Finished!

8) Transfer Dad's slides to digital.

See my post here about transferring the slides!

9) Put those images into an album.

See my post here about the album.

10) Fill my America 250 Passport with lots of stamps!

No stamps this month. I've got a plan to get some more stamps next month!

11) Clear out the storage unit.

Done and done.  4 years after we started clearing out the house to get "a little" work done, we moved most of our possessions out to a storage unit.  And now, almost 2 years after the work was finished and we moved back into our house, we finally got all of the detritus out of the storage unit. Much of what was left went directly to the dump.  Rodents had been all over what was left, and there was mouse excrement everywhere.  It's all gone now. 

Being perfectly honest - there is still some stuff laying around on the carport.  Okay, a lot of stuff.  And no porch pirates have bothered to relieve us of our miscellaneous junk.  

As of October, this pile is mostly gone.  I have a handful of stuff that I want to make go away by the end of the year. The middle child will be home this month, and I've got plans for him to help me get rid of the last of the things.

12)  Do one totally irresponsible and fun thing each month! 

I took one of my Fridays off and went down to have lunch with my oldest son.  We enjoyed tacos al fresco. After I left his house, I ventured over to a Spice Store, where I picked up some desperately needed spices.  I stopped in at a park on the way home and moseyed around the flower garden before heading home.

13) Go see Falling Water. (Frank Lloyd Wright) 

This is a Bucket List item. Time is ticking down on getting this done in 2026...

14) Visit 12 new to me bakeries.

I'm falling behind on this.  I need to put in a concerted effort to rectify this sad situation!

        1) Eli Mochi Donut

        2) The Reister's Daughter

        3) Leonard's Bakery (Honolulu)

        4) Tour les Jours

        5) Paris Baguette

        6) The Bake Shop - Williamsburg, VA

        7) Raleigh Tavern Bakery - Williamsburg, VA- not new to me - it's a lifelong favorite!

2026 Goals - September Update

How is it already September?  How did this happen?  

BTW, Happy Birthday to my sister!

1) Lose 25 pounds.  Gain 10% muscle mass.

I changed this goal last month.  I am concentrating more on gaining muscle and worrying less about the stress of losing weight.  For right now, that goal is gaining 7 pounds of muscle by the end of the year.  

2) Visit 1 new to me state.

Hawaii

We thought about visiting a new to us state this fall, but we are going to take a staycation.  Prices are up everywhere.  Once we worked out the cost of hotels, airfare, car rental, etc, it was difficult to justify the expense for just 5 days.

3)  3 repairs/improvements to the house.

Project #1: Add surge protectors to the heat pumps and the house.  It's not a sexy fix, but it will definitely keep the heat pumps around for a longer period of time!  We've noticed an increase in the number of power surges we've had lately. The newer HVAC systems are very sensitive to power surges and they can damage the equipment. Honestly, who wants to spend to replace an HVAC system?  They are not cheap. I want them to last as long as possible.

Project #2: We are getting the basement waterproofed.  We've had leaks in the basement for a while now.  We currently have standing water in one corner. The contractor who remodeled the main floor was supposed to fix that, but ended up not doing it.  So now, another not so sexy fix.  But, it's important to the overall health of the house! 

4) 40 Bags in 40 Days Challenge

It's been a while since I've done this.  You get 40 bags or boxes of stuff out of your house over the 40 days of Lent.  I did NOT get 40 boxes out over the course of Lent.  I got rid of 6 boxes.

I'm beginning to realize that I did this a little backwards.  My goal is to empty out the storage unit - and I'm making excellent progress on this particular project.  Once I get everything out of the storage unit and really begin purging things, then I will get the 40 boxes (and then some) out of the house!

Boxes out of the house during March: 6

Boxes out of the house during April: 4

Boxes out of the house during May: 2

Boxes out of the house during June: 6

Boxes out of the house during July and August: 21

Total to date: 39

Just 1 more box to go.  One of those is a box of shredding, waiting for shred day at our local library this fall.  Seriously, I've got a LOT more stuff that will leave this house over the next few months.  I think I'm going to keep tracking this number through the end of the year.  It reminds me that I am accomplishing things!  (Even when it doesn't feel like I'm doing anything!)

5) Organize old correspondence/letters

I found a treasure trove of old letters and notes from high school.  I have them in a box to sort through next month.  The bigger question is - what gets kept and what gets thrown out?  Do I really want to save any evidence of high school me?  Most likely, NO.

On the other hand... I was given a box of old papers from a historical organization that I volunteer with to organize.  I was in my happy place, organizing that mess!  Many of the documents were of historical value, and there were a lot of photographs.  The photographs have been placed into acid free albums and labeled to the best of my ability.  The documents were sorted and organized into binders in acid free pages.  The next step - for someone else - is to digitize those documents so that back up copies exist somewhere.

Update on this: the letters are somewhat sorted.  I thought I would put them in binders and shove them away somewhere.  Some of them have been organized and put into binders.  This is a much bigger task than I originally anticipated.  I'm not certain I'm going to get this finished this year.  This might be a 2027 project.

6) Big backyard garden project.

I want to put in some sort of shelter for the local pollinators.  I've been searching through the garden catalogs for just the right thing.  I saw something when we were in England a couple of years ago that really tickled my fancy!  I have thoughts.  I just need to make some things happen!

I found the first part of my thoughts on this while in Old Ellicott City last month.  Once the weather cools down a little bit, we're going to look at finding a way to install this in the backyard.

7) Finish the cross stitch project I've been working on for 3+ years.

This is finished! Well over 3 years after I started, the project is finally finished!  I need to block this out and get it professionally framed later this year.  

From the end of February.

End of March

Finished!

8) Transfer Dad's slides to digital.

See my post here about transferring the slides!

9) Put those images into an album.

See my post here about the album.

10) Fill my America 250 Passport with lots of stamps!

Gettysburg - the Battlefields and the National Cemetery.

We went and heard the Lincoln Brigade play taps as the sun went down one Friday night.  No, I didn't take any pictures.  The moment felt sacred, and I wanted to be present.

11) Clear out the storage unit.

Done and done.  4 years after we started clearing out the house to get "a little" work done, we moved most of our possessions out to a storage unit.  And now, almost 2 years after the work was finished and we moved back into our house, we finally got all of the detritus out of the storage unit. Much of what was left went directly to the dump.  Rodents had been all over what was left, and there was mouse excrement everywhere.  It's all gone now. 

Being perfectly honest - there is still some stuff laying around on the carport.  Okay, a lot of stuff.  And no porch pirates have bothered to relieve us of our miscellaneous junk.

12)  Do one totally irresponsible and fun thing each month! 

I took a basket weaving class!  Oh my goodness, that was so much fun!  

13) Go see Falling Water. (Frank Lloyd Wright) 

This is a Bucket List item. 

14) Visit 12 new to me bakeries.

I think I'm falling behind on this.  I need to put in a concerted effort to rectify this sad situation!

        1) Eli Mochi Donut

        2) The Reister's Daughter

        3) Leonard's Bakery (Honolulu)

        4) Tour les Jours

        5) Paris Baguette

        6) The Bake Shop - Williamsburg, VA

        7) Raleigh Tavern Bakery - Williamsburg, VA- not new to me - it's a lifelong favorite!

2026 Goals - June Update

Are you ready for summer?  I am.  It's been very chilly here in the Mid-Atlantic this month.  We're also in the throes of a drought, with voluntary water restrictions having just been announced. The hot weather won't help with the drought, but it will somewhat improve my outlook on life!

This has been a busy month of getting ready for summer at work.  There are a lot of pieces that needed to fall into place in a very short amount of time.  As I sit here writing this, I'm still biting my nails, hoping that the last few pieces come together in the next 5 days.

1) Lose 25 pounds.  Gain 10% muscle mass.

I'm realizing that I need to amend this goal.  As I've been working out and lifting at the gym on a regular basis, I find that I am not losing weight. I'm gaining.  I went to the trainers at the gym, and they showed me how to use the In Body machine on  my own.  Not only does it measure your weight, it measures your body fat and muscle mass.   So while I have not lost weight on the scale, I have lost fat and gained muscle.  That really is the goal.  It also tells you just how much visceral fat you are holding onto.  It's probably the single most effective tool in the gym for getting an accurate measurement of your health.  Fortunately, the app had my results from my last In Body test in September - so I was able to compare progress over the past 9 months. I am very proud of the effort that I have put in!  At this point, I want to gain 10% more muscle mass than I currently have.  I'm also hoping to lose some visceral fat while I'm at it. Now that I'm certified to use the In Body by myself, I plan on checking in once a month.  That 10% goal is starting now - in June.  

2) Visit 1 new to me state.

Hawaii

I'd love to visit another new to me state this fall!

We have a destination in mind!  We need to make some reservations soon.

3)  3 repairs/improvements to the house.

Project #1: Add surge protectors to the heat pumps and the house.  It's not a sexy fix, but it will definitely keep the heat pumps around for a longer period of time!  We've noticed an increase in the number of power surges we've had lately. The newer HVAC systems are very sensitive to power surges and they can damage the equipment. Honestly, who wants to spend to replace an HVAC system?  They are not cheap. I want them to last as long as possible.

4) 40 Bags in 40 Days Challenge

It's been a while since I've done this.  You get 40 bags or boxes of stuff out of your house over the 40 days of Lent.  I did NOT get 40 boxes out over the course of Lent.  I got rid of 6 boxes.

I'm beginning to realize that I did this a little backwards.  My goal is to empty out the storage unit - and I'm making excellent progress on this particular project.  Once I get everything out of the storage unit and really begin purging things, then I will get the 40 boxes (and then some) out of the house!

Boxes out of the house during March: 6

Boxes out of the house during April: 4

Boxes out of the house during May: 2

Total to date: 12 boxes

5) Organize old correspondence/letters

I found a treasure trove of old letters and notes from high school.  I have them in a box to sort through next month.  The bigger question is - what gets kept and what gets thrown out?  Do I really want to save any evidence of high school me?  Most likely, NO.

On the other hand... I was given a box of old papers from a historical organization that I volunteer with to organize.  I was in my happy place, organizing that mess!  Many of the documents were of historical value, and there were a lot of photographs.  The photographs have been placed into acid free albums and labeled to the best of my ability.  The documents were sorted and organized into binders in acid free pages.  The next step - for someone else - is to digitize those documents so that back up copies exist somewhere.

Update on this: the letters are somewhat sorted.  I thought I would put them in binders and shove them away somewhere.  Some of them have been organized and put into binders.  This is a much bigger task than I originally anticipated.

6) Big backyard garden project.

I want to put in some sort of shelter for the local pollinators.  I've been searching through the garden catalogs for just the right thing.  I saw something when we were in England a couple of years ago that really tickled my fancy!  I have thoughts.  I just need to make some things happen!

7) Finish the cross stitch project I've been working on for 3+ years.

This is finished! Well over 3 years after I started, the project is finally finished!  I need to block this out and get it professionally framed later this year.  I finally got around to blocking this project, and I dropped it off at the framing store on Friday!  Finally done!

From the end of February.

End of March

Finished!

8) Transfer Dad's slides to digital.

See my post here about transferring the slides!

9) Put those images into an album.

See my post here about the album.

10) Fill my America 250 Passport with lots of stamps!

We ventured out to Fort Frederick State Park.  While it was a site of importance in the French and Indian Wars, as well as the Revolutionary War, they did not have any stamps or stickers that I could place in my passport.  I know that I can buy these things online from independent retailers, but I really want my money to support my state parks.  We have several stops planned to historic sites next month!  I'm looking forward to exploring some new to me places!

11) Clear out the storage unit.

Done and done.  4 years after we started clearing out the house to get "a little" work done, we moved most of our possessions out to a storage unit.  And now, almost 2 years after the work was finished and we moved back into our house, we finally got all of the detritus out of the storage unit. Much of what was left went directly to the dump.  Rodents had been all over what was left, and there was mouse excrement everywhere.  It's all gone now.  Now, we can get to work on getting 40 boxes of junk sorted and out of the house.

12)  Do one totally irresponsible and fun thing each month! 

13) Go see Falling Water. (Frank Lloyd Wright) 

This is a Bucket List item. 

14) Visit 12 new to me bakeries.

        1) Eli Mochi Donut

        2) The Reister's Daughter

        3) Leonard's Bakery (Honolulu)

        4) Tour les Jours

        5) Paris Baguette

2026 Goals - May Update

This has been a busy month.  The husband had cataract surgery on both eyes this month.  The surgeries were a week apart.  He is seeing so much better now.  Even better, for the first time since he was 10 years old, he is able to see long distance without his glasses. He wasn't able to drive for a while during the recovery.  And he hadn't been able to drive at night for a while.  All in all - I'm really glad that everything is over, and he is on the road to recovery.  

At the end of the month, I went to a crop in Delaware where I found myself catching up on the many photos that I had converted from Dad's slides at the Preservation Station in Baltimore County.  I feel like I have accomplished many of my goals! 

1) Lose 25 pounds.

Weight Lost This Month:  1 pounds

Total Weight Lost to Date: 4 pounds.

Slowly making progress! They say that slow weight loss is sustainable weight loss. I sure hope so.

2) Visit 1 new to me state.

Hawaii

I'd love to visit another new to me state this fall!

3)  3 repairs/improvements to the house.

Project #1: Add surge protectors to the heat pumps and the house.  It's not a sexy fix, but it will definitely keep the heat pumps around for a longer period of time!  We've noticed an increase in the number of power surges we've had lateley. The newer HVAC systems are very sensitive to power surges and they can damage the equipment. Honestly, who wants to spend to replace an HVAC system?  They are not cheap.

4) 40 Bags in 40 Days Challenge

It's been a while since I've done this.  You get 40 bags or boxes of stuff out of your house over the 40 days of Lent.  I did NOT get 40 boxes out over the course of Lent.  I got rid of 6 boxes.

I'm beginning to realize that I did this a little backwards.  My goal is to empty out the storage unit - and I'm making excellent progress on this particular project.  Once I get everything out of the storage unit and really begin purging things, then I will get the 40 boxes (and then some) out of the house!

Boxes out of the house during March: 6

Boxes out of the house during April: 4

Total to date: 10 boxes

5) Organize old correspondence/letters

I found a treasure trove of old letters and notes from high school.  I have them in a box to sort through next month.  The bigger question is - what gets kept and what gets thrown out?  Do I really want to save any evidence of high school me?  Most likely, NO.

On the other hand... I was given a box of old papers from a historical organization that I volunteer with to organize.  I was in my happy place, organizing that mess!  Many of the documents were of historical value, and there were a lot of photographs.  The photographs have been placed into acid free albums and labeled to the best of my ability.  The documents were sorted and organized into binders in acid free pages.  The next step - for someone else - is to digitize those documents so that back up copies exist somewhere.

6) Big backyard garden project.

I want to put in some sort of shelter for the local pollinators.  I've been searching through the garden catalogs for something.  I saw something when we were in England a couple of years ago that really tickled my fancy!  I have thoughts.  I just need to make some things happen!

7) Finish the cross stitch project I've been working on for 3+ years.

This is finished! Well over 3 years after I started, the project is finally finished!  I need to block this out and get it professionally framed later this year.  

From the end of February.

End of March

Finished!

8) Transfer Dad's slides to digital.

See my post here about transferring the slides!

9) Put those images into an album.

See my post here about the album.

10) Fill my America 250 Passport with lots of stamps!

I made it into Washington DC earlier this month and walked around the National Mall.  I added several stamps to my passport!

11) Clear out the storage unit.

Almost.  Husband can't haul out the last of the trash until his doctor gives the go-ahead after his cataract surgery.  We are literally 2 dump runs away from being finished.

 

12)  Do one totally irresponsible and fun thing each month! 

When I went scrapbooking with my friend - I count that entire weekend as irresponsible!  On the way down, I stopped at several places that were of personal interest to me.  Barnes and Noble.  A new to me library branch.  The outlet malls at Rehoboth.  The beach, the boardwalk.

Oh, let's not forget the food!  Crabby Dicks. Panera.  Agave.  Fishers Popcorn.  We ate well!

13) Go see Falling Water. (Frank Lloyd Wright) 

This is a Bucket List item. 

14) Visit 12 new to me bakeries.

        1) Eli Mochi Donut

        2) The Reister's Daughter

        3) Leonard's Bakery (Honolulu)

        4) Tour les Jours

Dad's Slides

 This has been a journey, ya'll.

To recap: 

I hadn't seen Dad's slides in years.  (Like 40).   Dad passed away 20 years ago.  

I also hadn't heard from my step-mother since Dad passed away in spite of numerous attempts to contact her.

During the pandemic, I received a phone call from my step mother to come and get his "stuff".  As soon as the travel restrictions were lifted, I drove up and picked them up.  Among the many things in the stash that she gave me was a treasure trove of slides.

I converted the slides to digital at the public library.

And then, finally!  I went to a scrapbooking retreat this past weekend in Delaware.  It took 4 days, but the pictures are finally ensconce in an album.  Everything is labeled, events are journaled, and I added funny family anecdotes as I went along.  It's a work of art. I am so happy to have this invaluable memory of my growing up years!

The mess at my table.  I am not a "clean" crafter.  I make a huge mess.  That's why I pay for a table at a retreat.  I have a dedicated table for several days and I can make as much of a mess as I want.

Look at the quality of these pictures!  These are from Ft. Sumter.  We traveled there on vacation in 1975. I will say - Dad was pretty consistent about the quality of the film he used.  He was a Kodak man.  Most of the photos were on Kodak film, and they are well preserved.  Across the board, I did not find myself adjusting the colors.  I thought the colors had held up well over time.  There were several sets of slides on other rolls of film.  Some of them had deteriorated so much, they were just blank slides.  There were a handful I was able to save with extensive digital editing.

I got home yesterday and didn't really know what to do with myself.  This has been an all-consuming project for the last 6 years. I'm glad it's finished.  But I feel slightly adrift now... 

2026 Goals

I feel like I've hit my stride in accomplishing goals!  I don't think I'm going to get 40 boxes out of the house before Easter.  I will get them all out sometime after Easter.  How long after Easter is the big question.

1) Lose 25 pounds.

Weight Lost This Month:  2 pounds

Total Weight Lost to Date: 3 pounds.

Slowly making progress!

2) Visit 1 new to me state.

Hawaii

I'd love to visit another new to me state this fall!

3)  3 repairs/improvements to the house.

Project #1: Add surge protectors to the heat pumps.  It's not a sexy fix, but it will definitely keep the heat pumps around for a longer period of time!  Honestly, who wants to spend to replace an HVAC system?  They are not cheap.

4) 40 Bags in 40 Days Challenge

It's been a while since I've done this.  You get 40 bags or boxes of stuff out of your house over the 40 days of Lent.

Progress as of today: 6 boxes

Easter is in a few days.  I honestly don't think I'm going to get all of this finished before Easter.  I'll still be plugging away on this for a while.

5) Organize old correspondence/letters

I found a treasure trove of old letters and notes from high school.  I have them in a box to sort through next month.  The bigger question is - what gets kept and what gets thrown out?  Do I really want to save any evidence of high school me?  Most likely, NO.

On the other hand... I was given a box of old papers from a historical organization that I volunteer with to organize.  I was in my happy place, organizing that mess!  Many of the documents were of historical value, and there were a lot of photographs.  The photographs have been placed into acid free albums and labeled to the best of my ability.  The documents were sorted and organized into binders in acid free pages.  The next step - for someone else - is to digitize those documents so that back up copies exist somewhere.

6) Big backyard garden project.

I want to put in some sort of shelter for the local pollinators.  I've been searching through the garden catalogs for something.  I saw something when we were in England a couple of years ago that really tickled my fancy!

7) Finish the cross stitch project I've been working on for 3+ years.

Slowly but surely, progress is being made!

From the end of February.

End of March

8) Transfer Dad's slides to digital.

See my post here about transferring the slides!

9) Put those images into an album.

These have been printed out and are awaiting a home.  I am going to a crop later this month.  Getting this finished is my goal for this crop!  I need to buy an album to put them in.  Add that to the list of things I need to do....

10) Fill my America 250 Passport with lots of stamps!

My National Parks Passport got many new stamps while we were in Hawaii.  Sadly, my America 250 pass needs stamps.  

11) Clear out the storage unit.

The things I have found in that storage unit.  The invitations to my high school graduation.  Extra copies of our wedding invitations, the RSVP's.  My Brownie Friendship Book from the 1970's!!!  So much junk.  Why did we hold onto it all?  

I sorted it all once before I added it to the storage unit.  I've been sorting it again before it comes back into the house. And I know I'll eventually sort it again when we go to refinish the basement.

12)  Do one totally irresponsible and fun thing each month! 

I had a dentist appointment earlier this month.  The appointment was at 2.  I took the rest of the afternoon off.  What did I do?

Went to the dentist.  No cavities!

Got a haircut! 

Called a friend to see if she was free and we had an early dinner together.

ALSO - on the first day of spring, I went to Rita's to get my free Italian Ice.  Happy Spring!

13) Go see Falling Water. (Frank Lloyd Wright) 

This is a Bucket List item. 

14) Visit 12 new to me bakeries.

        1) Eli Mochi Donut

        2) The Reister's Daughter

        3) Leonard's Bakery (Honolulu)

Leonard's Bakery

 Malasadas.  They should be called a gift from the Hawaiian Gods to humanity.  These wonderful Portuguese doughnut without a hole are filled with a delightful creme. I know that they sound like Boston Creme donuts, but let me assure you that a Boston Creme can't hold a candle to the light fluffiness of a Malasada. 

Malasadas were on my must try list for Hawaii.  We went to Leonard's Bakery.  Leonard's is the Original Malasada Bakery.  They began making Malasadas on Shrove Tuesday in 1953, and now they make them every single day.  

And the fillings?  Absolutely amazing. I tried several different fillings - Dobash, Haupia, and Pineapple.  Trust me when I tell you that they were absolutely amazing.

Leonard's offers so many other pastries.  I never got around to trying anything else because Malasadas were so high on my list.   

5/5, would recommend Leonard's Bakery to anyone who is passing through O'ahu!

Malasadas, fresh out of the fryer!

The famous pink box!

 

Visit One New to Me State

Let's hop into the Way Back Machine.  When I was in Fourth Grade, my teacher held a six-week unit on Hawaii.  We ended the unit with a "traditional" luau.  I put "traditional" in parenthesis because when you've got a bunch of hyperactive 9 year olds in the middle of Ohio dancing the hula in cut-up trash bags, there's only so much "tradition" that you can claim.  We learned about the Hawaiian Royal Family.  Polynesian Culture.  The volcanoes.  The Black Sand Beaches.  Pearl Harbor.  Riding the Waves.  What it means when someone says "surf's up".  I really wanted to go!  

Time has a way of marching ever steadily onward.  Life happens.  And now, it is many, many years later. And I finally got to go!  Two weeks of bliss in Hawaii!  I have a few pictures and other things to share with you over the next few days.  

I'll start with a few of my favorites. We were on both O'ahu and Ha'waii.  We spent a week on each island and explored everything.  It was magical!

Another beautiful stream.

Akaka Falls.

So peaceful! 

Love these flowers.

A chick and her mama!  They are everywhere and they are beautiful!

 

My Goals and Resolutions for 2026

Three months in, and progress is being made!  It feels like no progress has been made until I look back at this list and realize that somethings have actually been accomplished.  This is why I like to keep track of my goals publicly.  I do a better job of meeting my goals if I actually put them out into the wild.  It's also really nice to be able to look back and realize that I've made progress!

One last note - I'm proofreading this on Sunday night, setting this to publish on Monday morning.  The cat is sitting next to me, gently nudging me out of her space on the sofa.  She's switching her tail at me, hitting my elbow every couple of minutes, reminding me that I need to go to bed.  10:30 is her bedtime, too.  I know Hermie, I know.  I shall publish and give you your sofa back.  I want to make some formatting changes on this post, but I do have to get up and go to work in the morning.  I will change the formatting for the April post.

1) Lose 25 pounds.

Weight Lost This Month: None. Hey, I was on vacation.  I ate a lot of new to me food. I gained no weight!  But now, it's time to get serious about this. 24 pounds to go. By the end of this year.  

Total Weight Lost to Date: 1 pound.

2) Visit 1 new to me state.

Hawaii!  I'll share photos next week!

3)  3 repairs/improvements to the house.

Where do I start?  There are many choices.

4) 40 Bags in 40 Days Challenge

It's been a while since I've done this.  You get 40 bags or boxes of stuff out of your house over the 40 days of Lent.

Progress as of today: 4 boxes out of the house.  FOUR!!!

36 more boxes to go.  Sigh....

5) Organize old correspondence/letters

I found a treasure trove of old letters and notes from high school.  I have them in a box to sort through next month.  The bigger question is - what gets kept and what gets thrown out?  Do I really want to save any evidence of high school me?  Most likely, NO.

6) Big backyard garden project.

No progress on this.  

7) Finish the cross stitch project I've been working on for 3+ years.

Slowly but surely, progress is being made!

8) Transfer Dad's slides to digital.

See my post here about transferring the slides!

9) Put those images into an album.

These have been printed out and are awaiting a home.  I am going to a crop next month.  Getting this finished is my goal for this crop!  Oh.... I need to buy an album to put them in.  Add that to the list of things I need to do.

10) Fill my America 250 Passport with lots of stamps!

11) Clear out the storage unit.

We are working on it.  I have emptied many boxes this winter.  At this point, we are thinking we will just bring everything home and stack it up on the carport and sort through it all as the weather warms up.

12)  Do one totally irresponsible and fun thing each month! 

I didn't actually do anything irresponsible in February.  It was just so cold for the Mid-Atlantic, and the snow had frozen into that nasty, hard icy mess that we've been calling "snowcrete".  There's been nowhere to go that wasn't a frozen wasteland.  We went on vacation with the family.  Does that count?

13) Go see Falling Water. (Frank Lloyd Wright) 

This is a Bucket List item. 

14) Visit 12 new to me bakeries.

        1) Eli Mochi Donut

        2) The Reister's Daughter

The Reister's Daughter

 It's been cold.  Very cold.  So very cold in Maryland.  One cold Friday when I was off work, I stopped by The Reister's Daughter for a cup of coffee and a sandwich.  Located on Main Street in Reisterstown, this little coffee shop has become a community hub.  The building itself is considered to be a Historic Building, The Beckley House.  This building was built in 1779.  It is one of the oldest surviving buildings in Reisterstown.  Walking into the cafe, located on the first floor of the building, is walking into a juxtaposition of time and place.  

I had the best Egg Salad Sandwich I've had in a very long time.  And a Biscoff Latte.  I ran into a friend who lives in the area, and we sat and caught up for a while. We watched the kids leaving school and laughed a lot!

Drink Specials:

When I left, I stopped and picked up some Banana Pudding and a Vegan Red Velvet Bundt cake.  They were so very, very good. 

Red Velvet (vegan) Bundt Cake

Banana Pudding!

It was a perfect way to spend a very cold day!

Website for the Reister's Daughter: https://thereistersdaughter.com/