Strawberry Season in Florida

The best time to visit Florida is strawberry season...right now.  Strawberries are $12.00 a flat and the weather is perfect.  It is an unbelievably beautiful day.  Not too hot.  Not too cold.  Low humidity. Perrrrr~fect.

I will be comfort fooding myself with strawberries as I sort through books.  Decluttering books is painfully sad work for a book lover.  The project will be made tolerable with freshly picked strawberries (and maybe a sprinkle pinch of refined white sugar...shhhhh).

It's a berry sweet life I live. Especially in March in Florida for a strawberry lover.

So grateful for this pretty little berry that brings me so much joy.  It's the little things, right?

What are you doing today?  Tell me!  :) 

I have been working on building a Strawberry Recipe board on Pinterest.   

Do you have a favorite Strawberry recipe?  

I think my favorite would be my mom's strawberry pie.  

How about you?       

Choose Joy!!!  

Be inspired.

Be kind.

Encourage one another. 

Decorating My Mom's room

Over on my Facebook ("Like" and holla), my friends are trying to help me choose bedding for my mother.  She'll be moved here with us by March 17th.  I'm leaving for DFW on March 3rd to help her wrap up all the final chapters of her life in Dallas, Texas.  Good riddance, I say, but the grieving process is powerfully painful for her.  

I have my heart set on this one I found at Pottery Barn.  I know my mother would probably like it, but it could be too bold for her.  Then again, she's 66 and I think she needs to do some bold things and have some bold designs around her.  Besides, it's goooooorgeous!!!  Gorgeous. Gorgeous. Gorgeous. (say that 3 times fast).  I think it's unusual, but still gloriously sweet, charming and classy (dare I say "fun"??).  Wouldn't you wake up happy every day covered with this throughout the night?  (Or would you wake up feeling like a bird pooped all over you.  LOL).

To me this speaks "FRESH", "JOY", "HAPPINESS", "BLISS" and I want her to have all this in her new life.

Next: 

Greenland Home Butterflies Bonus Quilt Set, Full/Queen.   This is the one I have a feeling she would prefer.   And it's also the one which has received the most votes.  Her favorite color is coral and she loves nature.  She loves birds, gardening, plants, & butterflies.  Flora and Fauna. This is her taste exactly and I don't dislike it.  I think it's very, very pretty.  I could totally see her in this and I know she would be happy with it.  I just wonder if it's the change I hope for her.  But maybe she doesn't need any more change.  Maybe I should just go with what would make her happy.  Hmmmmmm.....

I am a very indecisive person.  I could go back and forth over this for months.  Right now, I'm sick of thinking about things.  I just want a decision made and let's roll with it.  Let's go.  Move on.  On to the next life altering decision.

My mom is a big bird watcher and nature lover as I mentioned.  I cleaned her window today (see below) and I hope to attach a bird feeder to it.  Or maybe one of these bird nest boxes.  I've always wanted to try this and see how it went.  Do you have experience with these?  Share, if you do.

Coveside Window Nest Box.  

Such a sweet, interesting idea.  We have nesting birds all over our house usually in May and June.  

Aspects Window Cafe Hopper. For this, I can't wait.  I have only been wanting these for years now.  I hope they really work. I think one in her window where she can wake up to the happy birds every day will be nice.  The birds are VERY active in the backyard early in the morning.  Also, her room is on the second floor, and I am certain the cat won't get up there and eat the birds.  :(

Speaking of birds, I don't own a Birds Of Florida Field Guide, so I'm going to get one for her and set it on her bed. National Audubon Society Field Guide to Florida seems like an all purpose must.  Why have I not bought one yet? And I'm going to get A Pocket Guide for her purse, because she'll love it. My mom is a big nerd. She'll eat this stuff up.  I know she will enjoy getting to know our birds here, although I still think Texas birds sing prettier.  But that's just me.

I've wanted to get some windchimes for a long time too.  My mom and Mozart have the same birthday, January 27th.  Did you know they even make things like this??? Mozart Windchimes  Are you serious?  I'm anxious to hear it.  This is happening:

Woodstock Chimes of Mozart - Medium

My idea is to give her a sanctuary, where she can walk into this bedroom and collapse with relief.  Then after she is well rested, she can begin her Florida / Bird Watching retirement.  :)  I hope she feels surprised and blessed.  It does seem like I am shopping for myself, LOL, but I know what she likes and we tend to like the some of the same things, in general.

Moving on...

This is the space I'm working with.  I hope you can see my vision for what I'm trying to accomplish:

This will be her view.  This is a north facing window.  I love this room because it doesn't allow the hot Florida sun during the summer, and since we don't have cold winters, this room never gets too chilly.  Perfect.  She'll have this back yard all pretty with butterfly attracting plants by next year.  My sad little patch of garden out there should already be planted.  I can't wait to get going when we return.  

Oh my goodness, did I forget to show you?  I found these at Webster Flea Market here in Florida for basically nothing!!!  SCORE.  Holy cow, I love them!!  I love "bluebird" anything.  My mom will adore them.  

***Thrifting Tip:  When you find a SET of lamps you like, or love....buy them.  Finding a set of lamps is rare.  Grab them.  You can always repaint them.  

My sad little backyard.  I bet those of you who are still covered with snow up north think this yard is beautiful.  Look!  Green grass!!!  

On the other side of those trees are pastures and citrus groves for 15 miles all the way to Dade City, FL. You should be at our house when the orange trees are blooming.  It's like heaven when the breeze is blowing the purfume across our yard.   

Lots of nature out here.

Well.  Here is the blank slate bedroom.  We are going to paint it cream with a teeny tiny bit of rose in it.  Basically a bisque I guess with more pink than yellow.  Clear as mud?  LOL  I'll show you when it's up.  That dresser was found on the street.  We are going to fix it up.  It's in great condition.  We won't keep the iron bed.  I'll probably stick in the garden, or maybe I'll sell it.  Ugh.  Just one more thing to figure out.  

This bedroom is probably 13 x 13, maybe bigger.  She'll have this and she'll also have a sitting room, which is our library.  I'm giving her the book room for her TV and computer area.  She'll have her own bathroom too.  It's all coming together.  It's actually very overwhelming and hasn't been pleasant.  Breaking up her home, saying good bye to her other children and grandchildren has been more than she can bear.  

I think it's been painful for everyone.  *sigh*  

Well.  Onward.  

I hope good things for my mom and my family.  

How have you dealt with aging parents?  Do you have words of wisdom for me?  I would enjoy your feedback and I am interested in dialogue on this subject.  

Let me hear from you!  

You can find me here as well:

My Facebook Minions

Where I Tweet Nerd stuff, but mostly useless stuff.

Instagram ~ Where I share way too many dog photos no one cares about

OH.

And one more thing.  

The Amazon links in this post are affiliate links.  

Just so you know. :)

Thank you very, very, very much for your support.  

I'm always grateful.

Blessings and Favor.

Choose Joy.  

Olivia is super stoked to have a new person in the house to dote on her and scratch her belly.  

Charlie cares too.  

#notreally

Sharing with 

The Dedicated House ~ Anything Blue Friday

A Delightsome Life ~ Home and Garden Thursday

Jann Olson ~ Share Your Cup Thursday

Winter Garden ~ Void, but not for long

May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us-yes, establish the work of our hands. ~ Psalm 90:17

 Last year we had a wonderful winter garden.  This year, not so much. 

We are preparing the soil for planting now. 

We can't garden in the summer here.  We garden, fall, winter and spring. 

Summer gardening in Florida is a no-go.   

 

Aren't winter yards sad sometimes?  What does yours look like? 

Is it covered with snow?

Grateful for a son who worked in the garden without being nagged.  What a sweet boy. 

You will eat the fruit of your labor;

blessings and prosperity will be yours. ~ Psalm 128:2

 

Blessings to you.

Be a blessing to others.



 

The Last Rose of the Season

 

 

“Hold everything in your hands lightly, otherwise

it hurts when God pries your fingers open.”  

 

~ Corrie Ten Boom ~



Of course a Texan living in Florida is going to have a Yellow Rose bush in her back yard. 

My last rose of the season I think.  She smells sooooooo good. 

Sharing with :

 

Simple Things Sunday at Simple as That



Green Tomato Relish ~ Or Chow Chow

This is a continuation of a previous post. 

Green Tomato Relish Part 1 

Thought maybe I would just go ahead and share the recipe: 

This is my mother-in-law's recipe. 

It tastes good with everything

but my favorite way to eat it is with a spoon.  :) 

I especially like it with fish. 

It looks so pretty in a jar, doesn't it? 

Here is the recipe....
I have cut it in half before and even into 1/4ths when I didn't have enough green tomatoes. 

8 qts. green tomatoes cut into 1/4ths
7 onions
5 hot peppers
2 cups of sugar
1/4 cupt salt
4 cups vinegar

Put in pan.  Stir and bring to a boil.  Put in jars and seal. 

Sharing this with:
Coastal Charm Nifty Thrifty Tuesday (lots of good stuff over here)

Northern Cottage Party Time

Cedar Hill Ranch and the Cowgirl-up-linky-party

Tuesdays Treasures at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Ivy and Elephants and What's It Wednesday

Cozy Home Party at Cozy Home Scenes

Rock-n-Share-19 at The Shady Porch
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Choose Joy

Be blessed and be a blessing

"Oh, what I wouldn't give for a plate of fried green tomatoes like we used to have at the cafe. Ooh!" ~ Ninny Threadgoode, Fried Green Tomatoes

Poo says find a lap and get petted. 

Green Tomatoes from our Winter Garden

Here is a glimpse of the winter garden we keep in Florida. 

We learned the hard way, summer gardens here are futile with the heat, fungus and bugs. 

 We stick with fall, winter and spring gardening.  :) 

A hard freeze was coming January 3rd of this year.   We had to pick all the tomatoes quickly. 

My husband made the Salsa.

 I made the Green Tomato Relish. 

The Green Tomato Relish

is my mother-in-law's recipe and I had JUST FOUND IT!!! 

I thought it was lost forever. 

Such a blessing to find something you thought was lost.

Visit Little Red House and see all the lovely Mosaics

people create using their gorgeous photography. 

Recipe posted here

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Choose Joy! 

Have a blessed week. 

"If each man could have his own house, a large garden to cultivate and healthy surroundings - then, I thought, there will be for them a better opportunity of a happy family life."
~ George Cadbury

Tasha says go outside and smell things. 

Sun Tea in the South

Good morning from Florida.

My son's chore everday is to make the sun tea. When he forgets, we really miss it at dinner and he gets a good brow beating.

This gallon pitcher with the strawberries belonged to my mother-in-law.  I love seeing it out in the garden working for us now.  It was a cookie jar.  Cookies don't last long enough around here to be put in a jar, so it's perfect for our sun tea.

Make sure your jar is sterile. I prefer a glass container like this Bormioli Rocco Frigoverre Jug pitcher without a spigot.  Bacteria can be an issue if your pitcher is dirty or your tea gets old. Don't make more than you can drink in a day. We drink so much tea, leftovers aren't a problem. When we do have leftover tea, I just throw it in the garden as soil loves the sugar.  Acid from the tea is good for acid loving plants as well.  

We live in the south, so naturally there's gobs of sugar in my Mother-In-Law's tea.  When I make my tea with fruit or spice flavored herbal teas, I feel less need for sweetener and enjoy drinking really cold unsweetened tea.  Make what you prefer.  

Here is how I make mine:

• Use a very, very clean, sterile, glass gallon jar (I don't like plastic).  You can buy a new one, or use recycled pickle jars from Sams or Cosco.  They are easier to find in the summer.  
• You can use tap water, or distilled.  I'm fine using my tap water, but if you feel more comfortable, bottled is fine.  
• I use 5 family sized black tea bags (use 4 for weaker or 6 for stronger tea).
• On occasion, I additionally will use 1 or 2 Fruity Herbal or Spice Teas. Experiment and use what you like.  I love peach or raspberry.  My grandmother always put mint in hers.
• Cover with a lid or plastic wrap.
• Let it sit for at least 5 hours in full sun.  If it sits all day, it can get bitter.  5 hours is sufficient on a sunny day.  
• When you feel it's done, I add 1 cup of sugar.  My mother-in-law added 1 1/2 cups of sugar (basically making tea flavored syrup...LOL).  Everyone, especially the kids, love it this sweet.  I like mine just a pinch less sweet or unsweetened.  
• Put it in the ice box immediately.  Keep chilled.
• I think most people would say it will keep at least 2 days, but I just throw mine out.  Fresh tea just taste better every day and there is less risk of bacteria growth.  

If you have any questions, feel free to ask.  

I'm happy to answer. 

Pick some of your green tomatoes and make a favorite family recipe, Chow Chow.

Do you have a favorite brand of tea?  
Do you put baking soda in your tea?  
Comment below and share your tea memories with me. 

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"Ecstacy is a glass full of tea and a piece of sugar in the mouth."

~ Alexander Puskin~

"Talk and tea is his specialty," said Giles. "He has come along inside....We'll see if tea and buns can make the world a better place."
~ The Wind in the Willows

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Be blessed and Be a blessing!

May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, 
for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains."

2 Timothy 1:16

**Yes it's true, I am an Amazon affiliate. I make only pennies (um, not even that yet) with every purchase you make. Thank you so, so much for supporting my little blog here. I'm trying to help my darling boy attend an expensive private college as debt free as possible. Thanks again. (((hugs)))**

Grandma's Moss Roses

My Mother-in-law had planters around her pool full of flowers every summer. She liked to grow Moss Roses. We got one of her vintage planters, which I just love, except it has a nice big crack down the side of it. Oh well. It's still pretty and usable. Now mind you, it came to our house empty...just a plain old pot with a crack. I put one of the plants we received from her funeral in it, but it died this winter (ok, I probably killed it...ugh). If you want a house plant to live, don't give it to me. :)

It's been on the back porch this spring...just a pot with dirt...sitting there waiting for me to do something with it. A few weeks ago, something started growing in it. I thought it was a weed, although a pretty little weed and decided to let it grow to see what it would turn out to be.

Low and behold, I went outside Mother's Day morning and found a Moss Rose in bloom. Holy Cow...ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? Mother's Day...of all the days of the year, it could bloom, it bloomed on Mother's Day?!!! The more I thought about it, the more impressed I was. I decided she came to see us, to tell us she loved us. Logically, she probably didn't...it was just God showing us a sweet bit of grace and tender love on this special, yet difficult day.

The facts are that the pot came to our home empty and out of no where, a year and a half later, a Moss Rose bloomed on Mother's Day. I figure maybe a seed was trapped in the crack or something and finally took root. Who knows....but I'm not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth. It was the sweetest thing that has happened to us in a long time.

 

I don't believe in coincidences.

My hero, Fred Sanford

At least I've got good taste...in trash. I know good trash when I see it and I'm not too proud to stop and pick it up. I love antiques and vintage things, but I'm super, super, super cheap. FREE from a generous trash can is the BEST price. Score!!

 

It was trash night over by Tom Daniels Elementary in Kerrville, Texas. I talked my friend into driving around with me. It was so much fun laughing with her (she's been my best friend since 6th grade), digging through "safe" trash. We didn't touch anything that looked scary....ewwww.

Funny thing about this fan. I have wanted one for years and years but was too cheap to buy one. I saw one at an estate sale last year and it was marked ridiculously low. Someone grabbed it before I could. Snap! (Look out....cat fight at the estate sale....no, not really, I would never do that...really!) A cheaper one will come my way, I just KNOW it. Hahaha...well I found this one. I'll make my husband clean it up. I doubt we can get it to work. Anyhoo...I was stoked when I found it.

 

 

No needlepoint goes to the landfill on my watch. This was on a chair and the chair was beyond salvageable, so I pulled the seat off. Don't know what I'll do with this yet, but it will become something pretty in our home, I'm thinking maybe a pillow or I'll frame it.

Big huge enamelware bowl. The apple in there is a large Granny Smith. It was filthy but cleaned up perfectly and sparkly and shiny. Yes!!

 

I love, love, love vintage garden stuff. I haven't figured out what I'm going to do with this rake piece yet. My immediate thought was to use it in a window treatment I need. Now I'm changing my mind. Hmmmm... Check out those cool pots in the background! One almost looks like a turnip. LOL I love the green one the most though. Pot with the green chipped paint....I LOVE YOU!!!

James 1: 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above

Matthew 7:11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

Psalm 34:10 …But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.

Hooches and Smugs!!

(((Group Hug)))