SUNDAYS WITH CELIA VOL 105
Welcome to Sundays With Celia Vol 104 and Happy Easter Sunday! Thank you for taking a few minutes out of your Easter Sunday to spend it with me.
More than just the Coronavirus has kept us around the house lately. A 5-day-long Spring storm hit California and dumped a lot of snow on us, making it difficult to go out for our evening walks. But, as a result our state is no longer in draught conditions, our lake is overflowing, and we got a lot of exercise shoveling.
In last weeks Sunday With Celia Vol 104 I took you on a tour of the inside of our home. Today I thought I’d show you the exterior. Here’s the fountain in our entry courtyard which no longer functions as a bird bath or watering hole.
This is our back terrace where snow blankets the bird bath and iron garden chair.
And here’s what that same chair looked like a day earlier.
The tree in the photo below was just beginning to blossom when snow hit. Losing buds on trees is definitely one of the disadvantages of these spring snow showers.
We won’t be dining alfresco just yet.
This is our forested backyard where we have a ring of tree-stump stools around a table.
And this is the area where we held our son’s wedding reception on a warm summer’s evening. That snow covered table held the wedding cake.
You can just barely make out my greenhouse in the photo below. That’s an elderberry tree in the foreground.
And here is where tomato vines grow during summer. I’ve enjoyed this late snowfall but I really am ready for things to warm up.
My home is currently on the market. Visit the listing by clicking here.
Looking Back On Sunday
In case you missed it, I published a post earlier this week entitled, The Perks of Cold Brew Coffee. This popular new method has many advantages. Read all about it by clicking here.
I also gave you lots of advice for today, Easter, in this post entitled All The Easter Inspiration You’ll Need. It’s not too late to check out the post for a last minute Easter recipe, egg decorating ideas or table-setting inspiration.
A Quarantine Seder Dinner
My son and his partner prepared a Seder Dinner on Wednesday night, the first night of Passover. They prepared these yummy looking “Quarantini Cocktails” complete with the cutest “Quarantini Time” cocktail napkins. I thought that was simply perfect! The napkins are available from this vendor on Etsy.
The best part of their Quarantine Seder Meal was the fact that they packed up an entire meal for a Jewish friend who lives alone.
What a beautiful example of sharing and caring during a time when so many are in need of thoughtfulness from others.
Shedding Tears But Staying Positive
It occurred to me that I don’t think I’ve ever cried more tears consistently for days and weeks on end then I have since this pandemic began. I have a habit of turning on the Today’s Show in the morning while I make my coffee. Every morning I listen to so many touching stories about how Covid-19 is affecting countless lives across the world. And I shed a lot of tears. Then each evening as I prepare dinner, I find myself wiping away tears as I watch the evening news, with yet more heart rendering stories. This is an example of something I saw on the Today’s Show that brought me to tears.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g64Poeasv6U
5 Tips For Finding Happiness
Despite these news stories making me emotional, I consider myself to be a happy person. It helps that I’ve worked from home for nearly 2 decades, as has my husband. So being confined to home with him is nothing new for us. And not all the news brings tears. This week I heard Dr. Happiness, Yale Professor Dr Laurie Santos, (who developed the most popular course in the history of the university, a Happiness class) talk about how to stay happy while quarantined. She had 5 Tips for elevating our mood:
5 Tips
- Deep Breath from the belly – Breath in deeply then exhale slowly to deactivate the sympathetic nervous system.
- Do an Act of Kindness – This difficult period in time should not be all self-care. Be other-oriented to elevate our own mood.
- Focus on What You Can Control – Take action on ourselves by controlling what we are putting into our bodies. Eat healthy. Exercise. Sleep. This helps the mind & body.
- Focus on Your Blessings – Find things to be grateful for.
- Laugh
Andrea Bocelli Concert Today
Andrea Bocelli is here to make your Easter Sunday more uplifting with “a message of love, healing and hope” as the world grapples with this global health crisis. The Italian opera legend will give a solo concert Sunday in the historic Duomo cathedral in Milan, Italy, and it will be live-streamed exclusively on Bocelli’s YouTube channel. The cathedral is closed to the public amid the coronavirus pandemic, so Bocelli will perform to an empty venue. “Bocelli: Music for Hope” is scheduled to take place at 7 p.m. in Italy, which is 10 a.m. Pacific time.
Calling All Downton Abbey Fans
Today is a BIG day for all Julian Fellows and Downton Abbey fans. Fellowes’s novel Belgravia has been made into a show for ITV in the U.K., and will also air on EPIX in the U.S. beginning today. EPIX gives you instant access to hit movies and TV series, no cable required. It costs $5.99/month. I guess I’ll be signing up, as I hear Belgravia is destined to be every bit as good as Downton Abbey was.
I do hope you will find lots of ways to enjoy today. Thank you ever-so-much for dropping in.
So there you have it: SUNDAYS WITH CELIA VOL 105
Thanks so much for dropping in!
Express Yourself!
No blog post is truly complete without a word from you. I’d be so delighted if you’d leave a comment below.
All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Unless otherwise noted, all photos are the original property of Celia Becker @ www.AfterOrangeCounty.com and may not be reproduced without specific permission. This blog post contains affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. It’s what helps to make this blog possible. Thanks very much for your support.
