A Little Bit of Nature to Start off the New Year

Happy 1st Saturday of the New Year!  It's a beautiful day here...breezy and sunny, with the hope of some rain tonight!! Keep Praying!  Speaking of rain and our "Still NO Waters Pond", this was the scene that greeted us early this morning:

It was quite unusual to see all these different species of water birds out on the dry pond together this morning! From left to right there were Canadian Geese, a Great White Egret, Sand Hill Crane, a Little Blue Heron that I almost didn't see because he's so small, another Canadian Goose  and a Great Blue Heron, and the other Sand Hill Crane! Normally they are rivals for any space on the pond, but today they are sharing what little bits of water rivulets they can find among the grasses and mud!

It really was quite a scene!!  We haven't seen any Canadian Geese all fall, which is unusual, but because the pond is so dry they haven't been landing here. So it was a surprise to see three of them out there today.  They didn't stay a long time, but it was a joy to see them at all!

You can see how pathetically dry the pond is.  It really is heart breaking.

But still they came and stayed a while and must've found something interesting out there to eat...and they weren't fighting over it either!

In this picture below, if you look way back in the back on that fallen tree, there are actually two of those pesky Muscovy Ducks sitting back there!  They didn't try to join the party of the other birds, however. Maybe they know they aren't welcome...

Hi Mr. Goose! I'm sorry there's no water for you to swim in right now.  

Still, I think these pictures are interesting as they foraged for whatever food they could find...

Looks like something must've gotten their attention! They are all facing the same way!

Except for Mr. Goose...something else has his attention:

I think these are his two lady friends...

Well, everyone is back to doing their own thing again...but wasn't it nice to see them all being cooperative with each other for a while? Gives us hope for our world in 2026...

Now, switching gears for a minute to a new location... Remember when I showed you these pictures HERE at the Kenwood Boat Ramp in October?

Well, we took a little ride down there this morning, and THIS is what it looks like now!

I don't think they need to worry about hitting any manatees in that water now...

However, don't be alarmed. This is NOT because of the drought!  This waterway is connected to a large dam and reservoir, and they do a "drawdown" of the water every few years to help restore the waters. Here is a link to more information: Rodman Reservoir Drawdown 2025

Even though we knew this was happening, it was still quite a shock to us to see it like this...

This is a close up of the area at the end of that canal above, which was a big lake before and a great place for fishing before the drawdown:

If you really want to know more about the controversy surrounding this place, here is an interesting article that gives you more information than you probably really want to know, but for some you may find it interesting: https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/12/11/rodman-drawdown-exposes-the-beauty-of-floridas-lost-springs/   That particular article doesn't paint our Governor in a very favorable light, and I must say on this subject I tend to agree with them, but in everything else he's been a remarkable Governor. Of course, I don't know all the ins and outs of this whole subject, but I would like to see the Ocklawaha River restored to its original beauty and place.  When man starts messing with nature, a lot of natural beauty is destroyed.  But that's all I will say on that subject. It will be interesting to see what develops on this subject in the future. 

I will close this post with this Psalm...I was going to just quote a few verses, but they are all so good I decided to include the whole thing. It just seems appropriate for all we are facing in this day and time.

Psalm 33

"1 Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous;

it is fitting for the upright to praise him.

2 Praise the Lord with the harp;

make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.

3 Sing to him a new song;

play skillfully, and shout for joy.

4 For the word of the Lord is right and true;

he is faithful in all he does.

5 The Lord loves righteousness and justice;

the earth is full of his unfailing love.

6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,

their starry host by the breath of his mouth.

7 He gathers the waters of the sea into jars;

he puts the deep into storehouses.

8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;

let all the people of the world revere him.

9 For he spoke, and it came to be;

he commanded, and it stood firm.

10 The Lord foils the plans of the nations;

he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.

11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever,

the purposes of his heart through all generations.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,

the people he chose for his inheritance.

13 From heaven the Lord looks down

and sees all mankind;

14 from his dwelling place he watches

all who live on earth—

15 he who forms the hearts of all,

who considers everything they do.

16 No king is saved by the size of his army;

no warrior escapes by his great strength.

17 A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;

despite all its great strength it cannot save.

18 But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,

on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,

19 to deliver them from death

and keep them alive in famine.

20 We wait in hope for the Lord;

he is our help and our shield.

21 In him our hearts rejoice,

for we trust in his holy name.

22 May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,

even as we put our hope in you."

Amen!

Oh, one more thing...thank you to all who commented on my previous post HERE. Some wondered about the Black Eyed Peas that we ate, and I should've said that what I made was called "Hoppin' John", which is a recipe that adds a few things to the black eyed peas to make them more tasty.  Here is a recipe I found online that is pretty similar to how I made mine, except I cheated and used canned Blackeyed Peas, so I didn't have to soak them and cook them all day.  Other than that, I did add the onions, green peppers and celery and some smoked ham, plus some seasonings to give it a little more flavor. We don't eat a lot of hot spicy foods, so my seasonings were pretty mild (not cajun, like this recipe).  Just a little garlic and a slight bit of cayenne pepper along with salt and black pepper. Everyone's tastes are different, so some make like it with a bit more "heat" than we do.  And we served it over white rice, but any other rice is fine too. It was very good!

Hoppin' John Recipe for New Year's

Happy New Year's again dear friends!!  

Thursday Thankfulness and Friday Foto Friends

 It's that week in between Christmas and New Years Day, when we try to play catch up on the "normal stuff" after the Christmas rush and activities, and prepare our minds and hearts and bodies for whatever may lie ahead in the New Year.  2023 is soon becoming a "Closed Door", and 2024 is now an "Open Window", with a brand new blank slate waiting to be filled with whatever adventures God has in store for us.  Peering through the window right now I can't see too far ahead.  There's still a kind of a veil between now and then...

Scenes from my walk to the shore of Still Waters Pond through the woodsy veil.

But soon the veil will begin to open and we will be able to see what new adventures await us...

(I enjoyed a little walk down through the woods to the pond...the foliage is dying out and it is easier to get through now without having so many branches and vines in the way)

Still a little challenging, but isn't that the way life is?  There will always be challenges in our pathway, but "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13

Much better view!

Looking around in another direction, toward the little island in Still Waters Pond:

 One of my favorite Scripture passages for the New Year:

Isaiah 43: 18-19

18 "Do not remember the former things,

Nor consider the things of old.

19 Behold, I will do a new thing,

Now it shall spring forth;

Shall you not know it?

I will even make a road in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert."

Today was rather cloudy all day, with intermittent bouts of light rain. It was in the low 60's most of the day, but cooler weather is on its way. The next few days will see lows in the low 40's/high 30's and highs in the 50's and low 60's.  So for us here in Florida, winter is upon us.  It seems as though the birds are well aware that change is on the way. There was a LOT of bird activity out on the feeders and in the trees around us. Here's a few of the visitors we had today:

Mr. and Mrs. Bluebird stop by periodically to check on things at "their spring and summer home".  They seem to still lay claim to this house even though they are not staying in it during the winter.  But whenever any other bird shows any interest in it they somehow swoop in from somewhere and drive them off...

Like this unsuspecting Carolina Chickadee. He likes to poke his head in the house and look around once in a while,

 but the Bluebirds always manage to drive him away pretty quick...

It's like they are standing guard over the house from somewhere in the treetops even though they don't need it right now...but they are not about to rent it out to "strangers".

I don't know if you can see him or not, but there is a "Yellow-Rumped Warbler" in that tree below. How do I know? Because I can see the yellow spot on his rump!  Look very closely:

Mr. Bluebird is checking things out in the house...making sure there are no squatters inside.

Mr. and Mrs. Bluebird are having a conversation about their house...

After a while they took off for wherever they are roosting in the trees in the meantime.

Sometime later there was another visitor coming by to check out the house:

A female Red-Bellied Woodpecker must have heard the news that this house was vacant and came to see for herself:

She seemed to like the roof top patio...

But soon she noticed there were some juicy bugs on that pine tree just beyond, so she decided to go check that out:

She inspected the trunk up and down and I am sure she found some good afternoon snacks...

After her snack she also took off for other trees in other places around the pond...

And Mr. Carolina Chickadee flew back in for a short visit before he took off again also...

There were other birds flying in and out all afternoon, like Cardinals and Doves and Tufted Titmouse, but these were the only ones that I managed to get pictures of. Otherwise I wouldn't have gotten anything else done today!  

So, what else did I do? Not really a whole lot.  Well, this morning we drove into town to Walmart so I could do some shopping for our upcoming weekend family Christmas event here on Saturday. Just as I was finishing up our shopping I got a text from my sister that if at all possible it would be better for everyone else there if we could do it on Monday, New Year's Day, instead of Saturday.  So I checked with our family members on this end, and it appears that will be okay for them, so the "party" has been moved to Monday!  Thankfully the food I bought will keep until then.  We will be doing mostly things like finger foods and veggie and/or fruit platters, Charcuterie style, if you know what that means.  It's a new term that I've been learning about in the past year.  I am anxious to use one of my Christmas gifts:

"Bless the food before us, the family beside us, & the love between us".
Amen!

Isn't it beautiful?  It was a gift from Benton and Rose, and no, they didn't make it. (I asked that question right off, LOL). It really is amazing, and it will be such a joy to use! I intend to put crackers around the edges in that indented area, and cheeses/sliced summer sausage in the middle. 

And now that we will be gathering on New Year's Day I guess we will have to have some black-eyed peas too...it's a southern tradition.  So I will probably make the usual "Hoppin' John"., which has the black eyed peas and rice combined. Now that I think of it, we probably need some Collard Greens and Cornbread as well. Might as well do it up right.  LOL.  So much for simple "finger food" and platters,  etc.  But it will all be fun and good...it always is when family and friends gather in love and harmony.

We will also be celebrating Rose's birthday on Saturday, but that will just be the immediate family. We plan to go out to eat...Rose's choice...so we shall see what she decides!

I guess that's enough for today's Thursday Thankfulness post, which is also for tomorrow's Friday Foto Friends. Maybe I didn't say what all I was thankful for...but if you read between the lines I think you can see that I am very thankful for all of the above events and people and God's creation all around us. I am also thankful that our family has made it safely through 2023, even with a few health issues here and there, but we are arriving on the doorstep of 2024 with renewed health and strength and so much to be thankful for! God has been very kind and good to us and we are very thankful indeed.

I'll try to check back in after our Saturday event and then again after our Monday event.  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!