It’s officially spring and the first day that all of my girls have been back to in person school in over a year! When the pandemic first hit, it was hard to imagine it lasting longer than two weeks. Then, for a long time this fall, it seemed like this day would never come. My kids were stressed, I was stressed and we were all worried about what we were missing out on and if we would ever catch up and get back to normal. There were entire weeks this fall that felt long and lonely and bleak.

Now, as I sit alone in my kitchen for the first time in a year, and the sun is out and the house is quiet and empty except for me and Mr. Trucks, I almost don’t know what to do with myself. I thought I would be rejoicing and getting a manicure while having a mimosa and watching a show and going to Target alone, but instead, I’m in my very quiet house, almost wishing that the kids were back. We have gotten so much closer as a family during this time, and I think we’ve all enjoyed slowing down and having more time to be creative at home. Yesterday we took the kids for a hike and beach walk and then had a fun lunch and it was wonderful to be outside and be together and have nothing else to do on a nice spring day. That said, I’m so happy for the kids to be with their friends, albeit in a distanced and masked kind of way, and I’m realizing that a solo Target run sounds pretty good right about now! So maybe this hybrid school thing will work out…

Plus, I have a lot of reading to do! I definitely want to check out the article on Prince William that Dinah has linked below-it sounds like a such good read, and I’m very into her suggestion to fill the house with flowers and plants-that sounds like just the kind of cheerful thing to do for spring. -Eloise

What We’re Reading and Watching

• I read The Project by Courtney Summers this week and it was the kind of suspenseful but not too creepy book that I couldn’t wait to get to the bottom of. Lo was in a terrible car accident the killed both her parents when she was thirteen and left a long scar running down her face. When she woke up after the accidents her adoring older sister, Bea, had left her to join a religious group and cut all contact. Now, Lo is an adult, working for a newspaper and dreaming of being a reporter. When she witness a terrible accident, it brings all of her old feelings to the surface and she’s determined to find her sister and confront the religious group that she thinks is cult, along with it’s charismatic leader. This is one of the books that Dinah featured here in her new releases post, which is full of great ideas. - E

• I’ve also been sucked into a series of light Regency novels by Clare Darcy. The books are named after their heroines, like Elyza or Cressida. I don’t know what it is about plucky twenty-somethings ladies in Regency England, but I’m loving them when I want something super light and cheerful, where everyone ends up married and with a title, living on a large country estate. -E

• The Sunday Times did an amazing profile on Prince William. It talks about how he insisted on taking his time to work in the real world before becoming a full-time working royal, how he navigates being a husband and father, the issues and passions that drive him and what kind of King he will be one day. We’ve been hearing so much drama from the royals lately, it’s nice to read something positive about their future and path forward. - D

• I just started reading When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole, a thriller that centers around a gentrifying neighborhood in Brooklyn, switching perspectives between a Black woman who grew up there, and a white man who recently moved there. I haven’t gotten to the thriller part of it yet, but am already very sucked into this changing neighborhood and the lives of the two narrators. I will share more thoughts when I finish it! - D

What We’re Buying

• I just ordered this fun eyelet top puff sleeve top from The Gap and I’m wearing under a blazer today because I just want to dress like it’s spring even thought the temperature is not making that easy.- E

• We are both obsessing over all of the “nap dress” knock offs that are everywhere, even though it isn’t quite maxi dress weather! Old Navy has two super cute ones that we are eyeing.

• I still can’t stop buying plants and flowers - this week’s big purchase was massive amounts of daffodils! I put them in bright blue vase that belonged to our grandmother and it’s been the cheeriest pop of spring. - D

What We’re Making

• The other night, I wanted Mexican food with a twist, so I decided to try the Half Baked Harvest Cool Ranch Chicken Tostadillas. I could honestly have skipped the cool ranch seasoning, and it was extremely messy to eat, but Chad and I loved it. It’s kind of like a very crispy quesadilla with a taco on top. Definitely not a dinner party food, but very fun to eat while sitting at the kitchen counter with guacamole and a Corona. -E

• Last week we had a very rainy, cold night and I made one of my winter favorites, Ina Garten’s Weeknight Bolognese, for dinner. This is the yummiest, and honestly a pretty easy recipe that seems harder than it is. Pro tip - as with many of her recipes, there is SO MUCH sauce - you can definitely add in more pasta than the recipe suggests and still have a good noodle to sauce ratio. - D