Spring is always a welcome site as I know it’s time to work the garden soil prepping it for another growing season. This spring has been a bit different though. As I’m sitting here tonight, I’m listening to the rain bounce on the window outside. And soon, that rain will turn to snow, covering my pretty green lawn that I just saw a matter of hours ago. Here in Colorado, we’re on our fourth week in a row of snow showers. I love the moisture – which is so badly needed – but where was all of this white stuff in January?

Throughout the past few weeks, I’ve been able to carve out a day or two of nice weather to prepare the yard and garden boxes. I cleaned up plants and trimmed shrubs, and we added 15 new bags of dirt to our raised boxes that settled throughout the winter. Fertilizer went down, the sprinkler system was started up and the lawn mower has made it’s return.

Over the weekend I made trips to two local greenhouses to fill my cart with cool-season vegetables to plant. Four varieties of onions, broccoli, asparagus, potatoes and three types of lettuce found their homes nestled into a warm bed of soil. Within a matter of weeks, I’ll fill the rest of the boxes with zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes, bell peppers and corn. Then I’ll step back and wait for them to bask in the Colorado sunshine (I know it’s coming!) and produce a bounty of fresh veggies.

Yep, I know spring is coming. We just have to wait for this latest snow to soak in.

When planning my weekly menu, I found myself digging into my old recipe box. You know the type – cute little wooden box, alphabetical letters and a hodgepodge of clippings that have made their way from old magazines and newspapers into a collection that has evolved through the years. Some recipes are old, others are family favorites and some are from recent finds that have gotten a “thumbs up” from the hubby.

Neatly tucked behind the S, I came across a recipe from my past for Cranberry Scones. Now this isn’t just any recipe I  stumbled upon, as this one has traveled the miles.

As a junior in college, I was given an incredible opportunity to travel with a choir from the Panhandle of Nebraska to tour England, Scotland and Wales. Our adventure started in London where we traveled the narrow streets to take in sights such as Trafalgar Square, St. Paul’s Cathedral, The Tower of London and Buckingham Palace. Performances throughout the English and Wales countryside taught me a greater appreciation for music.

But it was the English lifestyle that captured my attention. Traveling through many rural villages gave me a glimpse of a simpler life, one where the hectic lifestyle I’m often accustomed to didn’t exist. There were often village centers with shopping and tourism, but it was the strolls through rolling countryside cottages that lead me to discover some of the most unique shops and characters.
I can’t recall the exact location, but somewhere in the Lakes Region of northern England I came across a little bakery that beckoned me to explore. Along one wall were old cabinets filled with collections of delectable treats, most of which I’ve probably never seen since. Old family recipes passed down through the ages made for a fascinating conversation with the shop owner. Now I’m a person who typically seeks out the sweet chocolate treats, but something that day drew me into a Cranberry Scone. Lightly sweetened and shaped like a drop biscuit, the texture of oatmeal, the crunch of almonds and the sweetness of the cranberries just drew me in. It turns out scones are pretty popular in England, often gracing tea time as a lightly sweetened treat. I gained so many experiences from that trip and memories that will carry with me. But I also brought back that scone recipe that the shop owner shared with me as a way to always bake up a little treat from Britain. Try them for yourself!

Cranberry Scones

1/3 cup softened butter
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup oatmeal
3 tablespoons sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup craisins
1/4 cup slivered almonds
4 to 6 tablespoons half and half
save: 1 egg, beaten

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut butter into flour, oatmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in egg, craisins, almonds and just enough half and half so dough leaves side of bowl. Knead dough on floured surface 10 times of so. Drop by the large spoonful onto an ungreased baking sheet. Brush with egg. Bake 10 to 12 minutes until golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to wire rack to cool.

Growing up in North Dakota, we lived on the ice from late fall through early spring. Being that far now, winters started much earlier and last much later. It was life as we knew it; and I LOVED IT!

All three of us kids had our own ice skates, as did our parents. And most days after school we walked the one block to the indoor skating rink in our tiny town that was always full of kids utilizing the ice for open skates or hockey leagues. My little brother was the skating professional among us and represented the family proud on his hockey team. For me, it was a fun sport and a time to hang out with friends. Sure there will spills and falls, but there was also hot chocolate that made it all feel better.

When our family left North Dakota for the wide-open lands (and windy!) of Wyoming, that ended our days of ice skating. That was 1993.

Fast forward to 2013 – yeah, 20 years later! – and I finally got back on skates. And we weren’t in North Dakota this time, instead we hit the ice in my brothers new stompin’ grounds in Pittsburgh. My ankles were a bit wobbly and my body entirely unsteady, but I made it a few laps around the rink.

We even got my 3-year-old niece out on the ice with us. She was a big scared, uncertain of the blades on her feet and freezing, which you could hear from her teeth chattering against the cold. But she battled on and made it two laps with us before I caught my skate on the ice and feel flat on my face! Needless to say, that was the end of her skating too. At least for that trip.

Even with a bruised knee after the trip, I had a blast getting back out on the ice. Next trip though, maybe I need to find one of those kiddy walkers and stick with my niece.

I’ve been a quilter since age 13, so my stash of leftover fabrics had begun to take over my crafting corners. In one bag was red and blues from a patriotic wall hanging I made my mother years ago, while another included scraps of yellow from a bright and cheery quilt I made my nephew. Every piece of fabric evoked another memory, but together those patterns and colors gave me a vision for patchwork pillows that would make perfect gifts.

Being the only girl, my niece got all the flowery and sparkly fabrics. Yellow flowers with pink centers, purple butterflies and yellow stars made for the perfect girly pillow that matches her princess room.

My oldest nephew has a room covered in camouflage so the green fabrics, complete with a few authentic camouflage patterns, resulted in a pillow that will blend into his surroundings. My twin nephews got a blue and red pillow that they put to use the first night they got them as they snuggled into bed.

Wrapped up with bows, the pillows turned into a great handcrafted gift that they now have to make new memories. As I look forward to 2013, I need to brainstorm some new crafting projects. How do you plan to be creative this year?