~Happy St. Patricks Day~

"Men are like bagpipes - no sound comes from them until they are full." Happy St. Paddy's Day, Irish or not! It was indeed a memorable one here in Upstate New York. We celebrated the day with about a foot of new snow to dig out from. It seemed that we would not have any real snow this year until the Valentines Day Blizzard. Now most of us do wish for snow on a holiday, but by the time we get to these two, we are hoping more for Spring! After the digging out, Tim put together a wonderful Irish meal with his special corned beef and a loaf of soda bread that he made using his Grandmother's recipe. Of course no St. Paddy's day would be complete without green beer. Not being a beer drinker myself~ my ginger ale was green instead.

The doll pictured is Tim's Grandmother, Maggie Byrne. She came from Ireland by ship with her husband Andy to make a new life in America. This doll is my tribute to her as well as to her family. The family has received me with open arms.. and good Irish humor ~ I am blessed to call them dear to me.

The week started out so warm and Spring like~ and then ended with a snowstorm. It was not too good for those making syrup, but hopefully this was but a wee setback. I'm anxious for the syrup jug to be full again. My cousins Mike and Laurie have been making syrup for twenty years now and they have about 2500 taps that keep their family busy. My girls love to stop in and see them at the sugar house and then in the summer at the local fair. A small piece of maple candy is such a treat every year and brings back with it memories of childhood winters spent here.

The days are getting longer, the Robins starting to appear. If you listen carefully, you can hear a Red Winged Blackbird calling for a mate. The new snow melt in the days ahead and the days will be greener. The St. Paddy's Day celebration draws to a close but gives encouragement that Spring and all of it's wonders awaits us.

“May the road rise up to meet you, may the wind be ever at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face and the rain fall softly on your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the hollow of his hand.”