What do you get when you mix a green plaid dress, a 5-year-old who is filled with enthusiasm and a head full of curly hair enough to knock Shirley Temple off the charts? That would be young Molly Dustin, a kindergartner at Triadelphia Ridge Elementary who is quite simply in love with life. Molly, along with her pals Carly Angel, Sophia Salafia and Anami Patel, all fellow kindergartners in Linda Burke's class, just couldn't stop talking about her upcoming performance at Triadelphia Ridge Elementary's annual International Night.

The theme was global and the song for these 5-year-olds was "Hello from Around the World."

"Our costumes are green polka dots and there's going to be juice and cookies, too," Molly said.

She admitted that she and her classmates had practiced for six weeks and hoped to do their song just right. Audience members for the girls big number, which took place April 11, included Molly's parents Kim and Joey Dustin, along with Molly's siblings, Kate and Lily.

My 2-year-old grandson, Henry, doesn't just love tractors, he adores them. So much so, that just the sight of a John Deere or an Allis-Chalmers is enough to find him hyperventilating.

Of all weekends that I wish he had been visiting West Friendship, it was the second Saturday of April. Without fail, this is always the day when the usually quiet sounds of West Friendship are charged with the hum of mowers, leaf blowers, garden tillers and the roar of riding tractors.

I, myself, am among the cult of early April mower riders. Who needs therapy when one can elect to mow nearly three acres in blissful solitude.

The job takes close to five hours if I do it right. That's because I mow in second gear. Slow and sweet. Winter worries and woes just melt away. Regrets to T.S. Eliot. April isn't the cruelest month. It's the dearest.

Sixteen seventh-graders from Glenelg Country School presented their projects on homelessness before Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon April 18. The students, members of the Maryland Youth Partners in Change made the presentation in the Rotunda of Baltimore City Hall.

These students, under the guidance of Glenelg Country School's Community Service Director David Weeks, have been studying the issue of homelessness in monthly sessions since the beginning of the school year.

As part of their leadership and service learning partnership, the Glenelg Country School students teamed up with 16 students from the Barclay School, in Baltimore, to research their projects.

"These experiences will plant the seeds of compassion for those less fortunate than themselves," Weeks said.

"Don't forget," said Ellicott City Restoration Foundation President Ed Lilley. Don't forget to enter the organization's fourth annual photo contest. Ed and his staff are busy gathering entries for the foundations popular contest.

If you're an amateur shutterbug this contest is for you. The only rule is that the photograph has been taken within the confines of the historic Ellicott City district.

Categories include vintage, adult and junior. Entries are due by May 23 and may be delivered to the Howard County Tourism Office at 8267 Main St., in historic Ellicott City.

Entry forms are available at the tourism office. Winners will be announced June 6. All photos will be on display throughout the month of June in an exhibit at the Howard County Historical Society in Ellicott City.

For more information on this photo contest, call Lilley at 410-247-9252 or e-mail him at ecrfpres@aol.com.

This is the weekend when parents fill up their mini vans with loads of bargains acquired at the Howard County fairgrounds. This sale is so popular that for the first time ever, the organization is holding it for two days.

Where, but in West Friendship, can a browser find a sterling silver baby cup for less than $5? The annual Kids Nearly New Sale will be in full swing April 26, 8 a.m. to noon and April 27, 9 a.m. to noon. The indoor mammoth yard sale is dedicated to all things kid-sized.

From children's furniture, clothes and books to toys and baby gear, the bargains are as amazing as the amounts of gear provided by the dozens and dozens of vendors.

Questions on the sale? Call 410-823-6039 or e-mail inquiries to kidsnearlynewsale@aol.com.

The St. James United Methodist Church is holding its annual Spring Fling April 26, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Baked goods, craft vendors, flea market tables, sub sandwiches, plant and vegetable market packs and scads of activities for little ones. Flea market vendors are welcome to set up a table for a fee of $15. For information on the sale or requests for directions, call the church at 410-442-2020.

Whittaker's Flowers, in West Friendship, will be open for several weekends this spring with what Dennis Whittaker calls, "The best of the old and new."

The nursery has long been a mainstay for West Friendship gardeners, myself a loyal customer for 33 years. Native plants, vegetable packets, bedding plants and flowering planters are all for sale during weekends from now until May 26. The nursery is on Route 144 and is open on Saturdays and Sundays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Carole Kramer and her committee at Shepherd of the Glen Lutheran Church are seeking vendors for an outdoor flea market June 7.

Spaces are free for the flea market, but vendors must provide their own tables.

To register or to obtain more information on the 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. flea market, call Carole at 410-442-2475 or e-mail her at churchbooks@hotmail.com.

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