What a glorious spring morning.  I woke to the music of the birds singing and the creek gurgling.  The last couple of weeks have been pretty exciting at Plain & Fancy starting on Easter.  The kids, grandkids and my parents came to dinner.  The grandkids then stayed the rest of the week.  We got to go to Elephant Rock State Park and Johnson Shut-ins.  We spent hours climbing the rocks.  And the kids enjoyed the Johnson Shut-ins, but didn’t stay in the cold river water long.  Tom opened our pool.  At 65 degrees it was a little chilly for the adults, but the grandkids went in almost everyday.  

Easter Sunday also brought some ”old” guests that we hadn’t seen for almost two years, Bill and Alicia.   Al came in for the meeting the next day.  We hope all goes well with their business and we will see them a lot this coming year.

In the middle of Easter week, my parents moved into the Cottage at the Low Water Bridge while their home is being built next door to the bed and breakfast.  We still have two other cottages that are available this season that are children and pet friendly.  View the website at www.missouricottages.com.

And most exciting (for Erin, anyway) Andy proposed!  They stayed Saturday and Sunday nights with us.  They visited all the usual sites as well as Tiemann Shut-ins, Millstream Gardens, Taum Sauk Mountain.  But, it was Sunday at Johnson Shut-ins that Andy asked Erin to be his bride.  She wore a beautiful ring to breakfast Monday morning.

Late Monday afternoon Tom and I were taking a breather on the patio, when someone pulls into the drive, acting as though he knows where he is going.  I immediately get up, thinking that I had forgotten a reservation, and walk toward the car.  The couple getting out of the car were looking for a room for the night.  Charmain and Philip were from Ireland!  They were such delightful (or, should I say lovely?) people; they stayed with us a couple of nights.  Their daughter is an exchange student at Cape, she was having a series of exams and they decided to explore the area for a couple of days and then go back and visit more with her before their return trip home to County Down.

This reminded me of my favorite hospitality scripture verse:  “Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!”  Hebrews 13:2

Hoping to see you this spring where the birds sing, the creek gurgles and couples get engaged~Brenda