My Photo Diary: March

So how was your March?

Mine was kind of "dullsville," honestly, and I'm looking forward to April.

I hope wherever you are, winter grays are starting to be replaced with spring greenery. We've had boat-loads of rain the past few days, and even some "wintry mix," so I am in need of some blue skies and warmer temperatures.

I've been brushing up on my photo-a-day skills, so that I'll be ready for "Show Us Your April," the project that my friend Claire, from a little CLAIREification and I are collaborating on. Are you ready to join us?

The gist of it is that you take a photo every day for the month of April...create a post about it, and then link up with us between May 1 and 7. Check here for more info. 

Or, better yet, let me show you my March, and you'll get the idea! 

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March 1

Bought a new bird feeder today. It didn't take long for word to spread that there was a new "all you can eat" place in town.

March 2
Sunday papers and coffee. Simple pleasures.

March 3

Seeds are here. Spring must not be far behind. Is it? IS it???

March 4
Morning sunlight in the bathroom. 

March 5
Man cannot live on bread alone...but I can. 

March 6
Passing by The Ansonia (Upper West Side, Manhattan), home to many celebrities...en route to dinner with friends. 

 

March 7 
The cardinal rules. 

March 8
Springing forward.

March 9

"Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy." 55 degrees and sunny...first time on my deck since fall.  

March 10

What's this??? Daffodils! The very first sign of Spring that I've seen! #feelingencouraged

March 11

Mr. Goo Shoes found money tucked into an old photo album in the basement today. The story is worthy of its own post. 

March 12

Spring...on a New York City street corner (Lexington and 78th Street), passed on my way to a doctor appointment. 

March 13

The snow is finally almost all melted. Sadie is a happy girl.

March 14

Dear Deer, I always get excited to see you when you come to visit our backyard, but can you please not make a smorgasboard of our bushes? 

March 15

Haven't been to Harvest on Hudson, one of our favorite restaurants, since we held Junior Goo Shoes' Bar Mitzvah party there in October 2012. Happy to be back for dinner with our good friends (the ones with the beautiful garden). What could be better? Desserts all around!

Clockwise from top left: NY Cheesecake; Coconut Panna cotta; Cannoli & Cookie Board; Lime Sorbet

March 16

Prepping Tomato, Basil & Kale Frittata for brunch today.

March 17

Happy St. Patrick's Day Bagels!

March 18
What's wrong with this picture? Shopping at Lord & Taylor's on 5th Ave. in New York City, and leaving without a single purchase! That's what's wrong! 

March 19
Now that the lake at the park is mostly unfrozen, the geese have returned for a little "r and r."

March 20
Mr. Goo Shoes and I took our first-ever Yoga class. It kind of ruins the mood to take a picture of yourself during class, so this will have to do. Namaste.



March 21
Winter's swan song -- and the first day spring -- is a good day for a walk in the park.

March 22
Bought the Waterlogue ap today. I snapped this on a street corner in Amsterdam three years ago. Just call me Toody Van Goo.  

March 23
Breakfast New York style...Bialy with nova and a shmear.




March 24
Having a good hair day. Yes, that IS news. 

   
March 25
If you want to torture me, put a bowl of mac and cheese in front of me, and remind me of my cholesterol numbers. This was Junior Goo Shoe's dinner; sadly, not mine. 

March 26
"Be vewwy, vewwy quiet...I'm hunting wabbits." (Elmer Fudd).

March 27
Mr. Goo Shoes has been hanging out upside down in the basement on his new inversion table. It's really helping his back! Sadie likes to keep him company.

March 28
Driving into NYC for lunch on a rainy day; stopped at a light on Broadway and 44th St.  

March 29
I'm a little behind in my magazine reading.

 


March 30
I made my own pizza from scratch today... well, almost. OK, the crust was frozen, but I did the rest. That counts.

March 31 
Dinner in NYC tonight with girlfriends is the perfect way to end the month! Not the best photo, but it does convey the spirit of the evening. Cheers! (PS - I am the hand on the far left).

Don't forget to start snapping your photos for the month of April, so you can join Claire at a little CLAIREification and me for our "Show Us Your April" photo diary.

Go ahead...take your first photo right now, just to get started!

See you on May 1 for the link-up!

Linking With:Wow Us Wednesdays

In My World: Random Stuff

Just a few random thoughts on this rainy Friday.

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In the Park:
Raise your hands if you used to play this game...

Duck...Duck...GOOSE!

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In My Lap:
Sweet Sadie-Girl likes to sit on my lap and rest her head on my computer while I'm working. 

I guess that makes her a lap(top) dog. 




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In The Newspaper:
Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch bought a 6850-square foot penthouse apartment in NYC that cost $43 million. You heard me...$43 million!

It wasn't big enough, so he bought the entire 57th floor below it, to combine them. Total cost? $57 million.  Let me say that again.

$57 million. 

Would have made for a pretty good episode on Hou$e Hunter$ Bazillionaire$, don't you think? 

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In My Archives:
Four years ago today, we were in St. Maarten with our friends whom we had met in Aruba the year before...enjoying the sunset at the marina in Marigot...and stuffing our faces with the best profiteroles in the entire world.  

The. Entire. World. 

Hmmmm...maybe I should have shown the profiteroles picture.

OK, you twisted my arm. Here they are in all their chocolate splendor.

And that's the way the profiter rolls!

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(Only) In New York City:
There's a new ATM in town. In this one, you put money into it...and out comes a cupcake (Hopefully not through a thin slot)! It's open 24/7, so you can head out in your jammies in the middle of the night, and satisfy your cravings. The Cupcake ATM is on 61st and Lexington, holds 750 freshly-baked cupcakes ($4.50 each), and  -- get this -- you can even buy two mini cupcakes for your dog!

Now that's what I call a "dangerous" neighborhood.

Photo Courtesy of Aunt Goo Shoes

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Linking with:
Nancy at Random 5 Friday

The Bahai Gardens

Has the start of spring turned your thoughts to gardening?

Yeah, me, too.  

I'm chomping at the bit to turn a little nook in my backyard into a "secret" garden.  Thing is, I'm not a gardener. I really have no idea what I'm doing, but that doesn't stop me from trying. I've been pinning photos onto my "Garden Nook" inspiration board on Pinterest all winter long.

When I was going through my photos yesterday, I came across these, of the Bahai Gardens... which are, oh, just a tad bigger than my little nook, and they are hardly a "secret." 

In fact, they are one of the most holy places for people of the Bahai faith, many of whom try to visit this site at least once in their lifetime.

We were fortunate to have visited the Bahai Gardens in December 2012. 

These magnificent terraced gardens are located in Haifa, Israel, and span from down near Haifa Bay, all the way up to Mount Carmel.

 
I hadn't heard of the Bahai religion until we visited the gardens. The central message of the Bahai faith is Unity. The founder of this world-wide religion, Bahá’u’lláh wrote...

"The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens."

I like that sentiment.  

One of the three entrances is at the top of the mount, through these beautiful gates. 

We had a spectacular view of the gardens and all the way down to Haifa Bay.

It was very overcast, and even rained a bit. I can only imagine how beautiful it is on a bright and sunny day.

I wonder what Junior Goo Shoes was thinking at this very moment. I'd like to think he was enthralled with the scenery, but he was probably thinking about which X-Box game to get next.





We didn't have time to walk all the way down.  That would have been nice, but then we'd have to walk all the way up.

Never mind, then.
 

The Shrine of the Bab is where the remains of the founder of the Bahai faith is buried. I would have liked to have seen it close up, but we were on a tight schedule.

The Bahai Gardens were the only site we saw while we were in Haifa...except for this magnificent view from our hotel room at sunrise...

And the same view at night...

What beautiful gardens have you visited? Have they inspired you in any way in your own garden?

LINKING WITH:

Oh The Places I've Been
Home Sweet Home
Best of the Weekend 
Be Inspired 
A Bouquet of Talent
Sunday Showcase
Mosaic Monday
Metamorphosis Monday 
Our World Tuesday 
Tweak it Tuesday 
The Scoop
Wow Us Wednesday 
A Return To Loveliness 
Weekend Travel Inspiration