Don’t you just love it? The flowers are blooming. People are wearing their lighter weight clothes in spring colors. The sunshine is warm. And my white car is now yellow. Ahhh, spring. Makes you want to have a cookout. Don’t you just love the smell of a cookout? Sitting outside, soaking in the sun, laughing with friends, listening to music … I’m ready. I think I’ll cook out this weekend.

And you know what happens in the spring? Prom. Yes it is that time of year again. Prom season. My son will be turning 18 in two weeks and a week after his birthday is his prom. And I must say that he has a beautiful date for his school prom. Allen doesn’t look too shabby in his tux either, I must say.

And speaking of prom … Last year the Friends of the Library had a huge Prom Fashion Show and sold prom dresses. Well this year we only received 35 to 40 prom dresses. This amount isn’t enough to have another prom show, so we have given the dresses to Repeat Performance in downtown Lumberton across from the fountain to sell for us. Stop by when you get a chance and look at these beautiful dresses. Purchase one so that you can help raise money for the Friends of the Library. Money raised by the Friends help the library purchase things that are not covered by our budget. We thank you for your support.

United Way Day of Caring is May 12 and we need volunteers. There are all sorts of things you can volunteer for, such as planting flowers at Hospice House, painting a fence or planting flowers at the Boys and Girls Club, a knit-in where people get together to knit caps and blankets for preemie babies, building wheelchair ramps, collecting food to provide lunches for children who do not get a nutritious meal at home and for the food pantry at the Robeson County Church and Community Center. If you can help in any way, please contact me or United Way and sign up! Thanks!

Coming up this week at the library: on Thursday at the Pembroke Library, the Teen Book Club will discuss the “Lightning Thief” by Rick Riordan at 6:30 p.m. Don’t forget we still have story times going on at all of the locations across the county. See our website for each location and time.

My son Allen has been rehearsing for the Mulan play, which will be performed at the Carolina Civic Center Friday through Sunday. He is providing the comic relief in the play — you know how funny he can be. Please come by and watch this fantastic children’s play with about 40 local kids performing in it. It should be great.

I would like to thank the following people for making donations to the library recently: Christine Oxendine, Jonnie Mae Brown, and Dorothy Powers. Your generosity is truly appreciated.

— Tina Stepp is the director at the Robeson County Public Library and can be reached at (910) 738-4859 or tstepp@robesoncountylibrary.org.