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Itā€™s definitely spring in my part of the world. Sunday we took a drive to see/share some of the wildflower glory. (Poppies and ā€œpopcorn,ā€ above. Wild poppies, California poppies, fiddleneck, and shooting stars, below.) Of course, the view is more impressive in person, but the blue sky and green hills are a welcome change from the drab of winter. Iā€™m ready for this new season, I just wish it lasted longer.

Oh, what a gift!

You may remember we celebrated my sonā€™s birthday last week. One of his presents was the brainchild of his girlfriend, Sarah. She tracked down a company selling ā€œLive Edge Redwood.ā€ (Slabs of redwood that include the bark.) She asked Paul if he could transform the raw wood into a dining table with two benches.

While not something heā€™d tackled before, Paul said heā€™d give it his best shot. A few days later, she delivered two very large, very heavy pieces of the same tree.

I was thrilled to be part of the transformation. While Paul was fabricating a base framework out of steel, I got to sand, apply polyurethane, sand, apply polyā€¦repeat. Paul also removed the bark, which looked cool but was fibrous and not practical for daily use.

The end result was pretty freaking awesome.

Sarah wanted her gift to be a surprise, so after she whisked JP off for a day of pampering, we delivered it and set it upā€”did I mention the table top weighs a ton?ā€”before they returned for a family party. Below, Sarah sees the end result of her commissioned piece for the first time. (Notice the unusual centerpiece? That, too, is a Paul Salonen creation made from the leftover pieces of the table legs. Itā€™s called ā€œThe Tipping Point.ā€)

Oh, what a gift! JPā€™s over-the-moon happy, and I know this one-of-a-kind table will be cherished forever.

Shot #2 ā€“ DONE! Paul, too!!!

Iā€™ve seen the hashtag #bulletproof online to indicate youā€™ve had both your vaccine shots. I wish I could say I feel bulletproof, but I donā€™t. What I feel is gratitude that Paul and I donā€™t have to worry about dying from this disease. But weā€™re not taking extreme risks. Weā€™ve never liked big crowds anyway and you wonā€™t find us rushing to a movie theater any time soon, but we are thinking about going out to dinner somewhere fun.

Also, Iā€™m super happy to say I booked an RV getaway for Spring Break. Itā€™s close enough for the kids to visit so we can explore more of the Gold Rush-era town of Angels Camp. I plan to do some research for my Whiskey Ridge series, but mostly Iā€™ll be readinā€™ and relaxinā€™!!

Last week's Q&A was:Ā Is the Easter bunny visiting your house this year?

More than half of those responding will be enjoying a visit from the Easter Bunny. I cherish wonderful memories of the big Easter parties at my late brother and sister-in-lawā€™s ranch. It doesnā€™t feel the same without themā€”plus, along came the pandemic, so we havenā€™t dialed in our new tradition. But egg hunts never go out of style when you have little kids around.

My two randomly selected winners this week are:

Elizabeth Jackson
and
Dawn Spellman

(Elizabeth and Dawn congrats. Please email me your pick of either a $5 Starbucks or a $5 Amazon gift card.)

Q&A

No question this week, but I will draw FOUR winning names from the last two weeks of entries and will announce the winners in my April 15/17 newsletter.

Stay well, my friends, and happy reading,

Deb

Next week: Spring break! I will be traveling, so no newsletter on April 8/10. See you on what used to be Tax Day with pics from Angels Camp.

PS: Fun surprise from Tule and my friend Melissa McClone. Three Love at the Chocolate Shop stories for just 99Ā¢. You canā€™t go wrong!

Download
THE PARKER FAMILY TRILOGY: Love at the Chocolate Shop
for only 99Ā¢ now!

Kindle | Apple Books | Nook | Kobo | Google Play

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Copyright Ā© 2021 Debra Salonen

www.debrasalonen.com

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