SLOW BURN.

WHO: elena & OPEN.

"It's why I choose to only garden herbs and maybe a few vegetables, if I'm lucky," Libby explained, smiling as she turned her attention over to Elena. Libby was enjoying the cool feel of her hands in the soil. She had worked indoors for so many years now, she had almost forgotten the earthy pleasure of playing in the dirt, making mud pies, not caring if your clothes and skin were caked with it and not going back inside until your parents made you. Of course, she was able to leave whenever she wanted to now that she was a full fledged adult. "I really like being able to feel like I'm part of Merrock whenever I come here. Plus, it's nice to be able to see the progress of your plot as time goes." There was something rewarding about being able to eat what you grew. Even if it was in the form of basil leaves and tomatoes in Libby's case. "And I really like that the community garden provides food and convocation and a sense of ownership to the town, you know? That it helps the less fortunate in the area. And provides something that the youths in the town could maybe get invested in, to keep them from getting into trouble. A win-win all around, in all honesty."

"Especially this spring -- it feels like winter stretched on a little too long this year, you know?" And still was, in fact. He knew that eventually warmer, nicer weather would come, that they would be in the thick of spring and wouldn't even remember this stretch of cold weather, but they weren't there yet. "I've been thinking of doing some work to my townhouse, updating the bedroom a little bit, it's gotten… stale, so if you end up getting a call from me, you'll know why." Given how much he had worked with Libby, he knew her taste, and knew that she knew his taste, which absolutely helped the situation. "I run into that a lot, too. Whenever we show houses, there's always that one person who takes the laissez faire, nonchalant attitude of, 'it's just a place to sleep and eat,' and then down the line they end up wanting to resell, wanting to find something else, or I get the 'hey, do you know a good designer?' call," he grinned at that, gesturing to her across the table, "which is when I send them your way."

"It felt like we actually got a true winter this year," Libby replied, smiling over at the older man. "That damn groundhog really did wish us another six weeks of winter." Not that she was complaining, of course. Libby loved being able to use her fireplace and stretch out her winter wardrobe for as long as she could. "Got it," she winked, "it's always fun to spruce up some things a bit. Especially a bedroom. It's one of the rooms that is always being used. And it can get boring if it's been the same for so long," Libby replied. "I have a bad habit of changing my bedroom according to the seasons. New wallpaper. decor... the whole nine yards. But it's always fun to change it up." Libby finished off her chocolate cake, wiping the crumbs off of the corner of her mouth. "I think good design and decor make a house into a home," she responded. A smile appeared on her lips once more when she listened to the other as she spoke. "And I am thankful for that! It's really interesting just how much you can change a room or a house by making a few tweaks. Adding color to a room that's white and sterile or rearranging a kitchen to fit a family's needs."

See, that's what I'm telling myself, too. I kept sighing dramatically every time Cordelia found something new, but then I stopped at Collab on my way home the other day and this sweet old lady was selling crocheted baby hats with rabbit ears on them and… now he has more outfits to choose from, I guess. We'll be at the egg hunt, too, the girls are very excited to get their picture taken with the bunny, and the boys are very excited to help Ro get a prize egg. Like a month old baby can eat chocolate. He's good! Settling in well, entirely loved up and spoiled every day. We're very slowly finding our routine, I'm getting back to work, you know how that goes.

It's never ending, isn't it? I'm obsessed with anything cute, but when it's small and baby-sized as well? I'm even more head over heels. The egg hunt was fun. I think it was more fun for me than it was for Madelyn. But I'm just soaking in all the moments before she gets any bigger. I'm glad to hear it! I'm sure there's enough love to go around in your guys' household. I bet you're glad to be back and getting into your work again. Any fun projects you're working on?

"I might have to get on that, then," Bryan nodded. "Interesting. I know sourdough is already hard enough to work with. Keeping that starter happy and fed is something I struggled with in school." He smiled. "It actually turned out nicely. Made for some great appetizers. I made a dip to go along with it and it paired up perfectly," he picked up one of the baskets of blueberries. "I've made blueberry muffins though, but I'm sure most people have. And blueberry lemon pound bread. Do you have a favorite one using the fresh fruits?"

"Hop to it, Lawrence," spoke Libby, tapping on her wrist, winking at Bryan. "That's the one thing that's been the hardest for me. Remembering to feed my starter," she noted. "Oh, yeah? I'll have to try it out sometime. Especially if there is dip involved," Libby commented. "True, that's one of the most popular ones to make with blueberries." Libby pondered on his question for a moment before speaking up once more. "Being from Georgia originally, I think my favorite is peach cobbler. And add some vanilla ice cream on that? It's chef's kiss."

WHO: rafael & @libbystcwart

"So good! This time of year, this is the golden time. People are starting to wipe off the winter blues and think of the warmer months and what they want to do with their homes. It's great," she replied, before putting her fork that had chocolate cake on it in her mouth. It was nice to be able to sit down with Rafael, whether it was to chat about work or just pick his brain. He was someone that she looked up to. "A lot of people don't know what they like, or sometimes they think that a house is a place where you sleep and eat and keep your stuff, not something you worry about the look of. But it's so much more than that," she added. "I mean, it's one of the spaces you spend the most time in so why not make it reflect something that's true to you and intentional, you know?"

Make me feel a little better here... does Madelyn have a thousand bunny outfits for Easter? Between Cordelia and the girls, I feel like Ronan is going to have three outfits for each fluffy Easter animal -- lambs, bunnies, baby chicks, ducks, it's endless. Does Madelyn spend her Easter looking as fashion forward as this little dude will? @libbystcwart

So, I may or may not have gone overboard this year and gotten one too many outfits for Easter. But hey, most of them are from Etsy or boutiques here so I feel a little better about it as I'm supporting small businesses. I'm hoping one can make its debut at the egg hunt tomorrow! How's the little one doing, by the way? Is everyone settling in well with the newest member of the Newman clan?

"Personally, I prefer sourdough. Unless you'll make the cinnamon rolls a, uh, not a very sweet version of a cinnamon roll," Sam replied, chuckling. He didn't find himself at Farmer's Market that often. Most of the time opting to just go to the Little Corner Market for things because he could get a lot in one trip. But, with what had been going on in town lately, he found himself wanting to show support more towards the locals. Besides, the fruits and vegetables here somehow looks a lot more fresh. "How big of a batch are we talking about here?" he asked.

"Is there such thing as a not very sweet cinnamon roll?" Libby asked, lips pursed as she contemplated the idea. She considered this proposal, pretending to weigh her options before making a decision. "But sourdough it is!" Libby added a couple more containers of blueberries to her basket, even adding some blueberry jam for good measure. "Well, I've made ten loaves at once before. But that was for a bake sale and not really for personal use," she added, "I can make you however much you want. My treat."

Jayla always enjoyed a trip to the farmer's market, especially as the seasons changed. There was nothing like seeing what new offerings came it. She was checking out some veggies at the next stand over when she heard Libby's question about blueberry baked goods. "Cinnamon rolls feel very fall to me, so I would say sourdough. But that is simply my personal preference," she ultimately responded after having pondered the question for a second.

"Oof, you do have a good point. Cinnamon rolls do seem to be in the cozy category of the fall season," Libby nodded thoughtfully, a smile creeping onto her face. "Plus I've kind of been on a sourdough kick lately." Libby's basket grew heavier with produce she absolutely didn't need but couldn't resist. "Have you found anything exciting yet?"

The Farmer's Market was a place that Bryan always made sure to stop by when he had the extra time--being a chef, it was always important to have fresh ingredients for both home and the food truck. He was looking over one of the tables and glanced over, smiling at Libby. "Blueberry sourdough sounds great, actually," he nodded towards her. "I don't think I have come across that combination before," he added with a smile. "I've never made blueberry sourdough. The most adventurous I've gone with it is with garlic and pepper," he said. "But now that you've colored me curious, I really want to know how this turns out."

"It's been all over my TikTok recently and I'm delusional enough to think I can attempt it," admitted Libby, returning the smile. "I've seen tons of videos of people making their own sourdough and I've become obsessed with doing it myself. But it's been testing my patience," she added. Libby's brows rose as she listened to Bryan talk, adding garlic and pepper sourdough to her list. "Ooooh, how did that turn out? I've made jalapeño sourdough before, but not that combination," Libby asked. It sounded like a good duo in her mind. "Me too. It's kind of the perfect spring recipe if you think about it. I'd just have to pull it off."