What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?

What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?
Remember: "When God closes a door, He always opens a window!" You never know what might be out there waiting for you!

Wednesday, May 4, 2022

Wednesday Treasures?

 I honestly don't have anything in particular to share today. I missed the Tuesday 4 meme yesterday about going to the seashore.  I had a busy day and really didn't have time to focus on it and couldn't think of anything clever to say anyway. Ever have days like that?  I don't even think I have any new pictures to share with you since my Monday post. So why am I here?  I don't know...just thought I should check in before you think I've checked out...LOL.  

Right now I am waiting for some Blueberry Bran Muffins (Click HERE for recipe) to come out of the oven. I can smell them baking and they smell SO good. I have my extra timer sitting here beside me so I can hear it when they are done. If I rely on the timer on my stove, I most likely will not hear it from where I am now and the muffins will get "overdone".  So I must pay attention...

Well, they're done already!!   Just gotta let them cool for a spell while I write to you...


I went outside to check on my own blueberries...I found one to eat right off the bush:


And these are on a different bush, but not quite ripe yet.
We planted several blueberry bushes last spring, in hopes that this year we would have plenty of our own blueberries to eat. However, I apparently didn't fertilize them enough or give them enough water or something, because they haven't produced much.  


Thankfully, we have a very large blueberry farm here in our town and the berries are ripe right now, so I was able to go get some from them the other day to have enough for eating and baking, etc. I may go back and get some more today. There is nothing quite as good as fresh blueberries right from the bush!  And they are huge! And so sweet and juicy!

Here's all I have left of the 2 lbs. I bought last week:
I've been eating them with cantaloupe, on my yogurt and granola, and just at random. They are SO good. Yes, I must add that to the list of "things to do" today...


 (a little later)  And so we did make the trip about two miles south of town to the blueberry farm...

And we were met with a sign on the door that says they are now closed for the 2022 season, and they will see us next year!  What???? How did I miss that?  I thought they'd be going on longer than that!!  Well, "snooze, you lose", as they say.  I guess I missed the first part of the season and didn't realize it had already been going on for a while. Well, doggone it! Now we won't have anymore really FRESH blueberries to eat!!!! I'm rather bummed, can you tell?

Oh well, back to where I was when I started this post over three hours ago...

Speaking of "overdone".  Yesterday was a busy day, as I said. We started the morning out with me having to go the Dr. office to do labs.  That was uneventful enough, thankfully, and then we went out to breakfast at our local "greasy spoon", "Nana's".  It's one of those small local cafe's where you can get a good breakfast or lunch pretty inexpensively, and it's always good. It's not fancy by any means, but the service is good and the people are very accommodating.  I had a wonderful breakfast of one huge blueberry pancake (they actually used the fresh blueberries from that blueberry farm!), bacon, scrambled eggs and hash browns!  (I didn't take any pictures! But it was sure good!) However, that filled me up so much that we didn't need any lunch and also I totally forgot about laying something out to cook for supper.  Well, hubby to rescue...he said he'd go pick up a rotisserie chicken at the grocery store. Sounded good to me. However, when we opened up that chicken, it was the most pathetic looking thing I'd ever seen! I'd say it was about the size of a small pigeon instead of a chicken. The legs were so puny and the wings were so skinny I doubt that chicken could have even run or flown to get away! But worse than that, it was so OVERCOOKED it was totally inedible.  We couldn't find enough edible meat on that carcass to even fill one sandwich if you wanted to, nor would you want to, it was so dry and overdone! I felt really bad because our son Scott came home from work pretty tired, hot, and hungry after working out in the heat all day, and he certainly deserved a good supper!  Thankfully, he's a very talented cook as well, and found some leftover ham in the fridge that was still good (but we were getting tired of eating ham), and made himself a wonderful quesadilla with that. I had baked some potatoes and made a salad, and hubby and I weren't really that hungry, so we just ate the baked potatoes and salad and we were happy. But you can bet I called the manager of that store and told him all about that pathetic overcooked scrawny chicken in as nice of terms as I could manage. He said to come in and get our money back or a new chicken anytime.  I said we'd take the money, thank you.  And so we did that today after our disappointing trip to the closed Blueberry Farm. No problem. Got our money back and hopefully someone had a chat with the deli people about how to properly cook a rotisserie chicken! IF I ever buy another one there, you can bet it will be inspected before it leaves the store!

Okay, let's end this rambling post up on a more pleasant note!

I've been trying to get some decent pictures of this pretty red male Cardinal for a while. He's so quick to get a seed and fly away that I rarely can grab my camera in time.

But today he cooperated a little longer than usual, but I still had to be quick!

He's much more vibrantly red in person...but I noticed something odd about him. He seems to be missing his longer tail feathers!  

There...he turned around and gave me a closer look! Sure enough, he's missing quite a few feathers, but he seems to fly just fine. I don't want to think about what might have happened to cause that problem...but he seems to have survived whatever it was and is managing life just fine without them!
Must be a lesson there for us somewhere...

Meanwhile, I've been enjoying the beautiful magnolia tree across the street from us. It is in full bloom right now, and the blossoms are so large and gorgeous!


I actually picked this one this morning and put it in a glass bowl of water, and within an hour or so this is how it looked:

I was enjoying it sitting on my kitchen counter, but soon realized that the exquisite fragrance of this blossom was a bit overpowering and was contributing to my headache (which is much better, BTW, praise God, but I don't want to put it to the test too much...) and so, the magnolia blossom was relegated to the back porch table, where I can see it without having to smell it...

Is anyone else fragrance sensitive like this? I can't be in the room with gardenias, Easter Lilies, or other strong flowers or else I will get a powerful headache...
However, that was not the source of my headache that I've been having. We moved the pot of Easter Lilies to the back porch as soon as it started having more than one blossom at a time on it.


I am very thankful to be feeling much better and give thanks to God for His guidance and healing touch.
The issue is not totally gone, but it's manageable, and I am indeed most grateful.

Well friends, I guess I should wind this up. It's now lunch time.
What treasures did I share today for my Wednesday Treasures?
Well, treasures aren't always "things" we have in our china cupboards or other material items.
They are the delights we find in God's creation...the birds, the flowers, the berries...the little lessons we learn from nature about adapting to difficult situations and still flying high...
Even when things don't go as planned or hoped, we learn to "make lemonade" out of lemons and carry on. 

John 10:10
"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."

Yes, there are always those out there who want to steal our joy or cause disappointments or even try to "clip our wings" so we can't fly high, but Jesus reminds us that He came to give us life, and to have it more abundantly.  Regardless of our frustrations, disappointments, and even our "injuries" in life, through Christ we have hope, peace, and yes, even joy in the abundant life that He gives us when we put our trust in Him. That's the treasure I have that I want to share with you today.
Amen.




33 comments:

  1. You know, I always think you're talking to me in regard to those Biblical truths, smiles. I am glad you are feeling much better my friend, been keeping you in prayer. I am sorry the blueberry place is closed, how sad (I love blueberries). Smiles

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    1. Well, Linda, to be honest, I don't single out people in my writing...this morning when I started to write I had no idea where this post would lead. I just commit it to the Lord and let HIM do the writing and the leading. Sometimes I go down a lot of little piggy trails until I get to the place where He is leading me...but isn't that just like life? We often wander around in our own thoughts and plans and schemes and dreams, and He allows us our freedom to explore, but when He's ready for us to get serious about life, He zeroes right in on the main theme and real purpose for our journey. I'm so glad He does that for me and for you, aren't you? He knows what each one of us needs and exactly how to get our attention. So keep flying, my friend. God's got you covered!!!!

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  2. Pam: I enjoyed reading about your blueberries. We get them at the store. I use them in muffins. I put some on top of my glue-free blueberry waffles. They are scrumptious. We are postponing Mother's Day at least one week. The interesting thing is all three of us agreed to this and had thought about it before anyone voiced it.

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    1. How are you all feeling? You must be better, I hope. Yes, it seems as though Mother's Day is coming up on us really too soon this year! I was surprised to realize it is going to be this Sunday. I kind of like your idea of waiting a week, but then again, we probably wouldn't be any better prepared then than we are this week, so may as well get it over with! LOL. I don't know that we have any major plans anyway. I just hope whatever it is doesn't involve a rotisserie chicken! LOL. Have a blessed week my friend.

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  3. Oh, those muffins look wonderful! Treasures, indeed!
    I'm so sorry you missed out -- both on the fresh berries AND that grotesque rotisserie chicken. While in Arizona, Tom and I loved going for breakfast at places like Nana's. Can't put my finger on it, but they possess a certain atmosphere big chain restaurants just can't rival.
    Please don't ever hesitate to post because you don't think you have anything clever to share. Any time I 'see' Closed Doors, Open Windows in my reader, it's cause to smile.

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    1. Thank you, Myra! The muffins were delicious. I am sorry too that I won't be getting any more of those FRESH blueberries. However, I realized that I still have a bag or two in my freezer from LAST year's crop! I guess I need to use them up sometime...but they just aren't quite the same as FRESH! And yes, we enjoy going to Nana's usually after church with our church friends. The waitresses know us all and bring our drinks w/o asking what we want, and usually know exactly what we are going to order before we do. LOL. I like to keep them on their toes and order something different every time. LOL. You are very sweet to smile at my silly posts. Well, I know they aren't really silly, but sometimes they might seem so. Thankfully God know how to pull something valuable out them so they aren't a total waste of time. That's the real treasure! His extra little something valuable...yep! That's it. Have a blessed and wonderful week.

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  4. Lots of stuff in this post, Pam, especially when you started out that you didn't have much to post about. The muffins looked good and there's nothing as good as something cooking in the kitchen. Ours today is a crockpot meal and this is the second time this week I've pulled ours out of the pantry, so it's a good thing and even better is that like earlier this week we will have leftovers, cook once and eat twice! Too bad that deli chicken was so pathetic, but good for you in letting the store manager know because wasting $ is never good. That certainly was a colorful male cardinal and it means he's looking for a mate, too bad about his tail feathers. Yes, I have the same issue with strong smells, but mine is more perfume than flowers.

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    1. I wonder what your crockpot meal is going to be? I am bad about not planning ahead very well for our meals. I ought to use my crockpot more often, but that requires planning ahead and having things thawed out in time to put them on to cook in the morning. Tonight we are having a pork loin roast that is still thawing on the counter. I think it's about ready to put in the oven by 3:00, at least that's my plan. If it's not ready, well, it's back to plan B. There's still leftover ham in the fridge. LOL. I also cannot tolerate strong perfumes. They give me a terrible headache and nausea, so I try to stay away from them and people who wear them. Nothing worse than a hug from someone who is drenched in perfume...and then you have to wear it the rest of the day too! That used to happen at the office where I worked (in a church). People were so friendly and wanted to give hugs, but there were certain ones that I could literally smell coming before they came in the door and I usually found a way to run to the bathroom or avoid them somehow...LOL. Now that I'm retired I don't have such encounters quite as often. Crazy, huh? I know. Okay, I hope you have a blessed and wonderful rest of your week. Can't wait to hear what's cooking in that crockpot?!!

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  5. Having Jesus as our Savior, Lord and Friend - that is the greatest treasure of all by far, Pamela! I love the photos you shared here and am so glad the headaches are winding down. Like you, I can't be around flowers with an overpowering fragrance - gives me a headache, too!
    Blessings!

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    1. Yes, Jesus is the greatest "treasure" of all!! Without Him, nothing else would matter. Thank you for your kind words. I am feeling better than before, and am so thankful. And I see we agree on the flowers, etc. too. It's a real problem for many people. I can't even stand to walk down the detergent aisle in the grocery store. It is way too strong for me.

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  6. I'm glad you sat down in faith, and wrote what came into your heart, I always enjoy your posts too. The muffins look yummy. Our blueberries don't ripen until July here in New York, we have a place just down the road too. Strawberries in June, can't wait. That chicken, harrumph, that's too bad. It's good to let the store know so they can be more careful. Have a good evening!

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    1. Thank you so much. Sometimes I just have to sit down and get quiet before the Lord and let Him guide my thoughts and fingers on the keys. He always has something He wants me to say...I just have to listen and pay attention to the message that is coming out of whatever is going on in and around me at the time. He often surprises me with what it is. It's for me as much as it is for others. Oh, you are blessed to still have blueberries and strawberries to look forward to this summer! We get ours here in the spring and then they are gone and we have to rely on the store-bought ones that are never as good as the fresh. Oh well, it was good while it lasted! I meant to buy some to freeze like I did last year. I just got off in my timing this year. Hope you have a blessed and wonderful rest of your week. Thank you for visiting.

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  7. Oh boy - no blueberries and a puny chicken!! What a disappointing day:) Fresh blueberry muffins should do the trick! And a visit from Mr. Cardinal! Hope the rest of week has a few less "disappointments"!

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    1. Thank you, Jennifer! Yeah, the blueberries being gone already was a bummer! I meant to get some to freeze for future muffins/pies/etc. I just got off in my timing I guess. I didn't realize they must have opened up earlier last month. Oh well...life goes on. And yes, Mr. Cardinal is a beauty, even if he IS missing his tail feathers. He has a lady friend who doesn't seem to mind at all. LOL>

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  8. You can bet that if I lived closer, I would have invited myself over to test one of those muffins. Now, if I had been there I might have seen and gotten a picture of that beautiful Cardinal. That bird is on my list to try to capture a picture this year.

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    1. Well, come on and have some muffins with me! Just let me know when you are coming and I will find some blueberries somewhere to make some muffins!! And yes, I wish you could see our Cardinal. The female is around also, and there are others. They nest here in the area and we see them quite a bit around this time. Seems like after the Bluebirds left the Cardinals came in. I hope you can see one there someday!!

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  9. That cardinal is beautiful and man, I love magnolias. I am sensitive to scents. I can't wear perfumes or go in stores to shop that have a lot of scent going on. Kirkland's comes to mind. I haven't been shopping pretty much other than the grocery store in a long time though. A quick trip into somewhere to get just what I need.
    I hope ---pray you continue to mend.

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    1. Oh, you and I are alike about shopping! I don't do any more shopping than absolutely necessary, and yes, those highly scented places are too much for me. And I cannot tolerate scented candles at all. And please don't use those scented plugins for air fresheners! Those are deadly for me! (well, almost...they do give me a powerful headache). Weird, but that's just the way it is and I know we aren't the only ones. Thank you for your prayers.

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  10. Sorry about blueberries and chicken…hope u feel better…prayers…also for Eukraine.

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    1. Thank you, Brenda. I am doing better than I was a week ago. I am very thankful. And yes, we continue to pray for Ukraine and all those affected by this war every day. Too many lives lost and families uprooted. It is a terrible thing.

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  11. Yes, I am super sensitive to fragrant flowers. They give me headaches!! Gardenias, lilies, honeysuckle, etc. Funny, but roses are okay and carnations are okay. Some perfumes make me sick, too. Sorry about your blueberries being out of season now. It is Georgia peach season and I've been hankering' for some fresh peaches. May be looking for them this weekend! Love & hugs!

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    1. OH, I'd sure love some fresh peaches! That would help take the sting out of no more fresh blueberries! I must be on the lookout for them. Yeah, Roses are fine for me too, and lavender fragrance is about the only fragrance in soap or lotions I can stand, but only if it is true lavender and not these real perfumy ones with other additives. Carnations...well, not in abundance. Scents didn't bother me when I was young, but over the years they sure have become a problem. Maybe it's a hormonal (or lack of hormones) thing. LOL. Hope you can find some peaches.

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  12. Oh, those blueberries! You are making me anxious for our season in July and August. My stepdad has several bushes that in good years produce a LOT of berries. Most years he and mom fill one freezer completely, allow me to pick all I want and even invite a few others to pick. Not bad for about 10 bushes! Yes, I'm the same way about strong floral scents. It doesn't even have to be actual flowers. I can't stand floral candles or perfumes, either. Church used to kill me, but women must not wear perfume like they used to because I rarely notice any scents these days. I love your scripture and thoughts today. That's a lesson I learned over the last few years. My yearly words have been "abide," "abundantly," and this year "dance." We have been talking about this same thing in my small group, too. This trusting in God and even giving thanks in ALL circumstances, even the painful ones, because if God has allowed it He is either testing us or training us for something that is coming. We never know how He will use the circumstances of our lives. Thank you for confirming. I love when God shows that He has His children on the same page at the same time.

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    1. Thank you, Stacy. Yes, learning to 'abide' in God's love and plan for our lives is not always easy, especially when it seems as though things are going wrong. But when we learn to trust Him no matter what, we soon can see that "silver lining" around the clouds and realize that God is with us and will never leave us, and He is preparing us for heaven someday. Meanwhile, yes, "dance" in the joy of being His beloved children. Oh I hope your parents' blueberries are full and delicious this year! I may have to come and pick some! LOL. Have a blessed and beautiful weekend.

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  13. Happy May to you! I'm still on a blogging break but I infrequently check out and comment on a blog here and there. Your muffins made me very hungry and it's very late here. I'm so tired I should go to sleep but I want to read a bit before then. I'm sorry about your rotisserie chicken but it's good you will get your money back. Whenever I buy rotisserie chicken here I can see what it looks like through the plastic bag or plastic "windows" in the paper box. Do yours come in a totally covered box? It's a good thing your son can cook and is quite creative about it. I like a guy who can fend for himself in the kitchen :-) Have an awesome weekend coming up Pam.

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    1. So good to hear from you Penny! I hope you are enjoying your blogging "break", and that you are getting lots of things done! We miss you, so I hope you'll be back soon, or when you are ready. Re: the rotisserie chicken. Yes, it does come with a plastic top, etc., but my husband went to pick it up and really didn't look at it that closely. It was supper time and he was hungry and he probably just grabbed whatever was there. When I get one I always inspect it more closely, but even then, it is sometimes difficult to tell just how "well done" it might be. Plus, they had not written the time on the label when it was finished cooking. They are supposed to do that so you know how long it was sitting there. Good lesson learned...we probably won't be buying any more of those there, or at least not until I've thoroughly inspected it! We don't do that very often anyway, but once in a while it does make a quick meal in a hurry on a busy day. I must learn to plan our meals better so that doesn't happen. I hope you are enjoying springtime and warmer weather. It's already very warm here and I wish we could escape to the mountains! LOL. Have a blessed and beautiful rest of your week. Thank you for popping in for a visit!

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    2. Hi again Pam. I am getting a lot done while on blogging break. Truthfully I am exhausted with all the work I've been doing because I had set end of April as my deadline to accomplish certain things but there was far more than I realized that needed doing. I'm still going and my new deadline is end of Sunday. I know that not everything will be completed but I am determined to get the bulk of it done. After that there will still be fine tuning needed but I will have least cleared decades of paperwork. Then I'll need a rest for awhile and back to blogging. Believe it or not it is still cold here. I can't remember a year quite like it though my brother tells me it was just two years ago when we had a very cold June. He might be right but this the first year I remember where we only had 2 warmer days since January. In other years we often have very warm and sunny, dry weather for a few days as early as February though it doesn't last until May. This year all we've had is rain. I'm hoping when it finally warms up that it won't go crazy like last year with the extreme heat and wildfires though I do appreciate that climate change is fully here. I hope you enjoy your time of blogging. I look forward to returning when I'm able. God bless.

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  14. The best fried chicken in Pierce County is from the Chesters inside the United Market gas station on Hwy 84. It is SO tasty and never over done. I tell them all the time how good it is. Steve calls it Gas Station Chicken. *giggle*
    We live in an area that has Blueberry farms and native blueberries. Our soil is very acidic and we are growing domestic and native. They are yummy. My favorite smell and flavor is apple though. There's an Apple Store in the Texas Hill Country that we love to visit. I just want to build a home next door so I can smell those baked apples all day long. Guess I'd get tired of it then though.
    I'm glad you're feeling better. And I hope this comment goes through.
    Love & Blessings.
    Sparky xx

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    1. Yes, your comment came through. I'm just late getting around to reading and approving, etc. sorry for the delay. I may have to come up and get some of that fried chicken! And some blueberries! Are yours ripe yet? Oh, those baked apples would smell good. I can stand those kinds of smells just fine!! I hope you are having a good day. Sorry I'm late in "releasing you" from the "captcha".

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  15. I like that the plant made a special blueberry just for you. 😊

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    1. Ha Ha! yes, I think God knew I needed it right then!

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