I don’t know of anyone who is not eager for Spring! Hopefully that big snow of last week was the last gasp of winter. Now we need some good spring rain to come through and get the earth to growing. While Sunday, the 20th, is the official “First Day of Spring,” the Full Moon on Friday night is the “Worm Moon” that really kicks off the Spring season.

I believe in miracles, I truly do. And I believe miracles happen all around us, every day, in many ways.

* We recently made a quick trip to Texas to watch our 9-year-old granddaughter play basketball in a tournament. We had been wanting to go watch Karsyn play, but it had not worked out during their regular season. The opportunity to attend the season-ending tournament, when her team was the number one seed, provided the hope of seeing her play more than one game—if they won the first game. They did win their first game, which was the first game of the day at 8:am. Their second game wasn’t until 2:pm, so that gave us time to go back to the house, get some good food into everybody’s tummys (hence a stop at the donut shop!), and have a little break before the next game. But Karsyn’s team didn’t play as well the second game so that ended the tournament for them, which was fine with our grandkids because that meant we had the rest of the day to goof off. The only problem was, it was way too cold to be outdoors. Too cold... in Texas? It was not only cold, but we had a blizzard for an hour or so with huge, fluffy snowflakes. With the ground being too warm to capture snow, there was no accumulation. But things truly are bigger in Texas... those were the biggest snowflakes I’ve ever seen!

There are just too many yummy desserts to sample in two weeks, so I simply had to split them up over three weeks. Bear with me as we go back for thirds of “The Best Dessert in Every State.” OHIO: Buckeyes.

If you were with me last week, we made it through the first 18 states, alphabetically, and their best dessert, as determined by Taste Of Home magazine. I kind of overdid my space last week, so I think it will just be easier to split these up over another week or two. I would really have you in sugar overload in just one week!

I recently ran across a list of “The Best Dessert In Every State,” and I thought it very interesting, but now I think a National Dessert Tour is in order! These winners were somehow determined by editorial staff at “Taste of Home” magazine. I sure wish they would have called me to help decide. They wouldn’t even need to pay me, except in sweets!

It’s a lot easier to talk the talk than it is to walk the talk. Generally we might have a lot to say about an issue or an action, but until we put our shoes on and actually do what we are talking about, our words can be pretty hollow. If we don’t prove it by our actions, we don’t truly mean it.

I am continuing this week with just a few more of the 455 new words added to Merriam-Webster Dictionary. You needn’t worry... I won’t mention the whole lot of 455! But before I review the words, I asked the folks at Merriam-Webster: How does Merriam-Webster decide what words to include in the Dictionary? And they said: This is one of the questions Merriam-Webster editors are most often asked. The answer is simple: usage. To decide which words to include in the dictionary and to determine what they mean, Merriam-Webster editors study the language as it’s used. They carefully monitor which words people use most often and how they use them. So keep that in mind as we take a look at some of the words that you may or may not have heard in conversation.

New words to add to your language I always enjoy seeing what the new words are that will be added to our dictionaries. In its 2022 edition, Merriam-Webster (MW) has added 455 new words and definitions! Wow! Some are slang terms, while others are words that seem like they should have been added long ago.

While every new day should be celebrated — if only for the sheer privilege of waking up to see it — there are some days that are even more special than you might know. For example, I hope you all spent some time just this Tuesday, the 11th, cleaning off your desk, as it was “National Clean Off Your Desk Day!” I tossed a few loose paper clips in the container where they belong and placed a half-dozen ink pens in the cup where they should be when not in use.