Saturday Meanderings

 Hello Everyone! Hey! It's the first Saturday in September! And it's 90 degrees here in sunny north central Florida!  However, there are some clouds forming and we are supposed to get some rain later this afternoon. 

I will believe it when I see it. They keep telling us that rain is coming and then it goes completely around us, so we shall see. The forecast for next week also looks like rain every day, so I am hoping and praying that the dry spell is coming to an end and maybe Still Waters Pond will begin to fill up again in time for the Canada Geese to fly in! I actually saw and heard a flock fly over this morning, heading over to a bigger lake nearby...but that is the group that usually likes to come over to our pond in the fall/winter months for a while most every day, so I really hope they will still be able to do that!Speaking of the neighborhood, guess what happened yesterday??? Do you see it??? Yes, that is a U-Haul truck in the yard of the new house next door, finally! The house was actually sold a few months ago, and I've been watching and waiting ever since for someone to move in, and yesterday was the day!



I may not have noticed them over there except that we went outside on our front porch to help our son Benton load up my old green recliner to take to the church Thrift Store finally, and there they were!


And there goes Benton and hubby, taking the chair away! Oh, and btw, that little house right across the street now has people living in it as well. It sat empty for quite a while after an older man purchased it but he never moved in. Instead, he put it back up for sale. However, the house did not sell, and after a while I guess he decided to go ahead and move in there after all. We haven't had a chance to really talk to him, but he seems quiet and pleasant.


I actually got to meet the new neighbors on the side of us as they were leaving last night to take the UHaul truck back. I was out in the front yard watering the plants, and when they went by I waved first at the truck, and then at the car behind it. The man in the car pulled over and stopped and rolled down the window, and he said, "Hi! We're your new neighbors!" He actually had a young lady with him who he introduced as his daughter, and he said that it would be him, his daughter, and his elderly father all living in the house together. Oh, and yes, they do have dogs...3 to be exact, and also a house cat. Thankfully they already put up a fence in the back yard for the dogs, and when hubby went outside this morning to bring our garbage cans back in from the street, the dogs greeted him with some nice loud barks. From here it looks like they are big dogs, like maybe a German Shepherd type. Again, thankfully they have a fenced area in the back that is not actually connected to our property, and it appears they are house dogs, so hopefully they won't be outside barking all the time. And the man and his daughter seemed very friendly and pleasant, so here's hoping that my prayers have been answered for having some good neighbors finally!!


September is a good time to take walks and enjoy the early fall foliage and wildflowers that are still blooming. We went to our historic village walking trail yesterday morning and enjoyed seeing the sights along the way. September is also a good time to see butterflies it seems.



This is a Zebra Longwing butterfly, and I didn't know until now that it is the state butterfly of our state of Florida! Huh! I wonder how come I didn't know that???





Anyway, I was enjoying chasing it around these Firebush flowers . "Firebush is a perennial or semi-woody shrub that is known scientifically as Hamelia patens. Gardeners love firebush because it produces flowers from late spring until the first frost, and the bright red flowers attract hummingbirds and butterflies, including the zebra longwing and gulf fritillary butterflies. Song birds also like to feed on the berries."





All the while I was trying to capture pictures of that butterfly, I kept hearing a bird in the tree above me. Finally I looked up and saw this Mockingbird , who just so happens to be the State Bird of Florida! So how interesting to have the state butterfly and the state bird right there together at the same time!!!


Also right there in the same area was this beautiful Beautyberry bush. I think that may be what the Mockingbird was after, as they do love these berries. These berries can also be used to make a mosquito repellent! I have actually had some made from this, and it did work, but it is kind of a dark liquid that stains your skin, so I wasn't really too thrilled with putting it all over myself! LOL. The berries can also be used in jellies and wine, but again, I'm not really into anything quite this wild for my jelly. LOL.



I guess this post is becoming a nature class! LOL. That wasn't my intention, but I do like to identify the things I see for my own education and I figure you might like to know what these things are too! We are never too old to learn something new, right? Anyway, the next creature I saw was this Long-tailed Skipper butterfly. He was enjoying the nectar of some Lantana, which most likely is growing wild, although it may have been planted years ago around these lots that once had houses on them for a hundred years...

The Skipper was also enjoying the nectar of the Coral Vine flowers that were growing all over the same area.




I've shown you this same trunk of this palm tree before, and right now it is covered in coral vine. Earlier this year it had wisteria flowers, and then there was some Cat's Claw flowering vine on it after that. It is amazing to me how many different species of flowering vines can grow on this same tree trunk throughout the year!

The butterflies and birds weren't the only ones enjoying some nectar on this lovely fall day...(actually it is still officially late summer, but you know what I mean), any way...look at this bee! I am happy to see the bees on the flowers, but I just don't want to get too close!

I will close with these thoughts from Psalm 28 today...I am feeling much better these days, and so is my hubby.  Little by little we are regaining our strength and stamina and are looking forward to the beautiful fall days ahead where hopefully we can take more walks and get stronger day by day. We are very thankful to the Lord for helping us both through some difficult days this past summer and giving us a brighter hope for tomorrow. 

Psalm 28:6-7

"6 Blessed be the Lord,

Because He has heard the voice of my supplications!

7 The Lord is my strength and my shield;

My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped;

Therefore my heart greatly rejoices,

And with my song I will praise Him."

Amen!

P.S. 4:00 P.M.   It's RAINING!!! Praise the Lord!

Monday Monday

 Here it is Monday evening already.  So much has been going on I kind of got behind in reading and writing.  Thank you all for your kind words on my last few posts. You always know how to make me smile!  

Have any of you seen the two bright lights in the eastern skies early in the morning before dawn lately?  This was what we saw here yesterday morning...hubby woke me up to tell me about it around 5:15 a.m.  I was actually sleeping quite well, and to be honest I wasn't thrilled at first to be awakened so unexpectedly. 

I had to go out on the front porch in my nightie to take these photos.  Good thing it was dark.

Actually, he wanted me to see these lights because he thought they might be UFO's...so of course I had to look it up online to find out what they really could be...

https://www.youtube.com/live/D5LyCJAoDcg?si=UyDb8KrX0vdq_uIx is a good explanation.  It is Jupiter and Venus, and apparently tomorrow morning (August 12th) will be the final day to see them, and they will appear to be almost together (conjoined) as one.  If you have a telescope or a really good camera, set your alarm and get up and take some pictures for us, okay?  I tried to see them again this morning, but it was too cloudy to see much.

I was glad to be able to tell him they weren't UFO's.  I think he was disappointed. LOL.

Also we have had a lovely full moon this past week. I took this picture at the same time as the other pictures yesterday morning, but of course this was looking into the West, as the moon was setting over Still Waters Pond.  

So that was yesterday's big event, along with going to church, which is always a blessing.  If you want to hear the message and our choir's song, here it is. The music was recorded in February and shared again here since we are still off on our summer break from singing.  The song is "Be Thou My Vision", and the message is from John 15:1-17,"The Vine and The Branches".  It was a good message.

  So, what else is new?  Let me think...the good news is, we were able to get a copy of hubby's lab work from the tests he took last week at Quest, and from what we can tell everything looks very good.  His appointment with the neurologist isn't until next month, so I am glad we could see the results before then and know that there isn't anything terrible on it. We give thanks to the Lord for that good news. Still don't know exactly what is wrong, but hubby seems to be feeling a bit better day by day, so we will just be very thankful and trust God to take care of whatever it is.

Now, here's something you're going to probably go, What? You did What???  I'm sure most of you will remember my post not too long ago about getting a new chair/recliner. If not, here it is for your review.  We all oohed and aahed about the new chair, especially the wonderful feature of massage and heat. Yeah, I loved that part...it really was nice.  But what I never told you in subsequent posts was that the chair itself just wasn't all that comfortable.  I tried my best to make it work, but the upper part--the back of the chair, was built in such a way that it slanted back too far when in the upright position.  When I was sitting up straight I could not feel the chair on my back at all, and I had to put big pillows behind me to fill the gap. I tried my best to make it work, but except for when laying down in the reclining position, I could not get comfortable in that chair. I have back issues already, and that is why I needed the new chair in the first place. But, remember, I ordered it online, and I never actually sat in it before I got it! If I had sat in it beforehand, I would never have bought that chair!  

The good news was that I had 30 days to return the chair if it was unsatisfactory.  Of course, that meant that we had to take it to the nearest Home Depot and they would ship it back where it came from. So after a couple of weeks of trying to make it work, I finally decided that I could not live with that chair. It was causing me more problems than it was helping. I loved the massage and heat, but I couldn't stay in that position forever. So we made the decision to take it back to Home Depot and go look for another chair at a local furniture store. Thankfully our son has a truck and was willing and able to take it to the store for us.

I actually tried a couple of different furniture stores, and I literally sat in every single recliner they had...well, at least the ones in my pre-determined price range.  Sadly, neither store had any chairs with the wonderful massage feature at a price I could afford. The chair I had purchased online was a very good deal, and I soon discovered that I would not be able to replace it at that same price anywhere, so I had to pay a little more for a chair without the massage/heat feature, but one that was actually comfortable to sit in. That was the sacrifice I was willing to make in order to be comfortable.  I found the chair that was the best fit for me last week, and of course they had to actually order it instead of giving me the floor model.  Today was the day for it to arrive at the store.  We opted to pick it up ourselves rather than pay an additional $100.00 to have it delivered. Thankfully our son was willing to pick it up and brought it home and set it up for us today....and here it is:

(that's my OLD OLD green chair in the background. We haven't taken it to the thrift store yet, because we were waiting for this chair to arrive. Now it can go with my blessings!!)

This chair is very comfortable, and hugs my back in all the right places. No,  there's no massage/heat, but because the chair actually fits my body in all the right places, I don't need those features!  I am very pleased and thankful!!!  Oh, and the color of the chair is called "Recruit Fudge".  I can lay there and dream about the fudge that I'm not allowed to eat. LOL!

The moral of this story is don't ever order a piece of furniture that you need for comfort online, unless you can find a place to actually sit in the same chair somewhere first and make sure it is comfortable!  Thankfully Home Depot's online return policy was generous and we had no problems returning it and getting our money back. But what a hassle...especially for our son who has had to do all the manual labor in this situation. He sure is a good sport!!

Here's some words of wisdom for today from James 1:2-5

"2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 

3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 

4 But let patience have its perfect work, 

that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. 

5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, 

who gives to all liberally and without reproach, 

and it will be given to him."

Amen!

Have a blessed rest of your week!

Happy July and Thankful TUESDAY!

Swinging in to say Happy July! 

I wanted to start out with a thankful TUESDAY post today, instead of waiting for Thursday to express my thanks! As most of you know, we had been anticipating an important appointment with a specialist for my hubby today for several weeks. I had requested prayer both here and on Facebook and beyond, as we were quite concerned about the outcome. 

 To give a little history, a couple of months ago my hubby had a weak spell at church which seemed like it could've been a TIA or perhaps his heart or something...The doctor ordered several tests, including a CT Scan of the brain, which also led to having an MRI of the brain. The results showed a small growth in the "meninges" of the brain, also known as a "meningioma". This is in the lining on the outside of the brain, not actually in the brain, but it could grow and have an impact on the brain. They are usually benign, but not always. So you can imagine how concerned we have been about this prospect and the not knowing for sure what the prognosis would be. 

 Thankfully today the neurosurgeon was able to relieve our concerns. He took one look at the MRI pictures and said that this growth was very small and possibly very old and not really anything he would be concerned about. He sees no reason to do surgery or even a biopsy at this point, however he does want to see him back in 6 months to monitor it and make sure that it isn't growing, but he really doesn't expect that it will be a problem. However, regarding the symptoms that my husband has been experiencing...a lot of weakness and fatigue and some balance issues, the doctor said we should go back to our PCP doctor and have him pursue a different direction of tests to figure out where that is coming from...but as far as he's concerned, it's definitely NOT from the brain! So that was a huge relief!!! And we consider that a big answer to prayer. I think my hubby feels better already just knowing that there isn't anything seriously wrong in his brain!  And we have an appointment already set for next week with our PCP to discuss this and where to go from here...but with a much lighter heart and mind!

So thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers on our behalf! We are truly grateful for you and for this answer to prayer!

I must say, my heart and mind feels much freer and happier with that news...much like this young girl swinging under what appears to be an apple tree, although July is a bit early for apples...Maybe they are peaches or plums.  Either way, no matter, I LOVE the picture...and there's my kittie Blackie right there beside me, enjoying a beautiful summer day! I can well imagine myself right there...what a joyous feeling to be swinging without a 'care in the world'.  I know, we still have concerns, and there is still much to figure out, but I know God is in control and we do not need to fear the outcome.

Oh, there's Sunshine, pretending he's a zinnia in the zinnia garden! LOL.

At least he's not pretending to be a hummingbird as in this picture:

Who ME?

Not me...I'd never...

Well, maybe I'd better just lay down here and stay out of trouble...

Good Idea! LOL.

Okay, back to the July Calendar roll call...Here's the Teapot Calendar for July:

That is so pretty and elegant!

Maybe I've been going about it all wrong...LOL.  I just drink it to enjoy it.

This little child's teapot and cup and saucer remind me of that one above in the calendar, but on a smaller scale...(this actually belonged to my paternal grandmother!)

And this is another large teapot that I have that is very much like the one in the calendar...sadly this one has a hairline crack in the bottom so I can't use it, but it's too pretty to throw away...

Here's the Thomas Kinkade calendar for July...isn't it interesting? So much detail! Wow!

It says it's from San Francisco Lombard Street II.  I've never been to San Francisco, so maybe some of you who have been there could tell me if this is a real place! Certainly is amazing!

And last, but not least, the Susan Branch calendar for July has a delicious looking fruit salad, which sounds really refreshing and delightful!

And yes, let us know forget the 4th of July coming up this Friday...a day to celebrate our freedoms and give thanks to the Lord that we live in the "land of the free, and the home of the brave".  

May God truly continue to Bless America! I believe He is, even more than we can imagine, even with all of the bad stuff that goes on...God is still on the throne...our one true King of kings and LORD of lords.  

Psalm 33:12-22 NKJV

"12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,

The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.

13 The Lord looks from heaven;

He sees all the sons of men.

14 From the place of His dwelling He looks

On all the inhabitants of the earth;

15 He fashions their hearts individually;

He considers all their works.

16 No king is saved by the multitude of an army;

A mighty man is not delivered by great strength.

17 A horse is a vain hope for safety;

Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.

18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him,

On those who hope in His mercy,

19 To deliver their soul from death,

And to keep them alive in famine.

20 Our soul waits for the Lord;

He is our help and our shield.

21 For our heart shall rejoice in Him,

Because we have trusted in His holy name.

22 Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us,

Just as we hope in You."

Yes, I can totally agree and shout out those last few verses today...especially verse 21...by faith we can say "for our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name..."  We have confidence in God that He will indeed give us reason to continue to rejoice in Him. Amen.

Friday Foto Friends and Much Thankfulness

 First of all, thank you all for your prayers and kind comments regarding our cousin in California who had to evacuate due to the horrific fires in that area.  Praise God, yes! Their home was spared and apparently most of their neighborhood was also spared. They are back home now and they even have power, which was surprising. However, they cannot drink the water due to pollution.  They said that several streets over from them were not as fortunate as they were.  Not only is there devastation all around, the smoke is everywhere and they probably shouldn't be breathing that air, so please continue to pray for them and the many others who are dealing with much much worse.  Before this happened they had already planned on putting their home up for sale this month as her husband has just retired from many years of working for the Rose Bowl Parade.  They are hoping to move to the mountains of north Georgia to get totally away from California, but now I can imagine that selling their home is not going to be so easy as before, so their future is up in the air. So please pray for God to give them direction about what they are to do next.  Thank you.

Back on the home front, Thankfully the only fires we are seeing are the beautiful "fires" of sunrise and sunsets. Although there have been some "controlled burns" going on in the forests nearby and we can smell smoke and see it in the distance, but thankfully it is controlled, and doing controlled burns regularly actually helps prevent forest fires and wildfires from ever happening. I am thankful that here in Florida we have very careful management of our forests.  Yes, we've had our share of forest fires throughout the years and some have even been way too close for comfort, but when there is careful planning and management from the forestry service and our state government, it helps to protect us from the kind of devastation they are seeing in California. Our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to those who are suffering loss, and also to the heroic first responders who are risking their own lives to save others. May God protect them and keep them as safe as possible under these circumstances.

This was our beautiful sunrise a couple of mornings ago:

It was 32 degrees, and there was frost on the ground, so I risked "frostbite" to go outside and put the flag out and take these pictures. I hope you appreciate my sacrifice! LOL.  I know many of you are enduring MUCH colder temperatures than this, and my thoughts and prayers are also with those who may be "snowed in" with all the heavy snowfalls that are happening up north, and some even in the deep south. Please stay safe and hopefully you don't have to go anywhere when the roads are still bad.

I thought these clouds were especially interesting...

So back inside I am finally in the process of taking down the Christmas tree and all other decor. It's a slow process. I have to work around other appointments and activities and also giving my back time to rest in between projects.  Right now I am still enjoying the tree with just the lights. But as soon as I finish this post and we have breakfast, etc., I will be back at it, removing the lights and getting things finally put away hopefully, barring unforeseen circumstances.

I like the way the lights are reflecting on the white board we put under the tree this year to set up the train and village on. Yes, putting away the village was somewhat of an ordeal, getting down on the floor and scooting around from one building to another and packing everything up, but it's done now, thankfully.  Hubby did help me as much as he could, but he's no better than I am about being able to get down on the floor and do these things.  We may have to figure out a different plan for next year...

Here's the scene right now as I write.  Hubby is having his morning coffee and patiently waiting on me to finish writing so we can get on with the "program".  It's still dark outside, so the blinds are closed...also to help keep the cold air from seeping in around the cracks.

Now, here's a lovely scene I wouldn't mind sitting in!  Yes, another calendar!  I finally got a calendar for my bathroom. I had to order it online because there were none that I liked left at Walmart and none at all at the Dollar General. Usually someone gives me one more calendar for Christmas, but not this year, and there were no freebies being handed out anywhere either, so I had points on Amazon that I could use up and this was virtually free! This one has quiet and peaceful scenes on it that I am sure I will enjoy sharing with you each month when I do the monthly "calendar roll call".

Yes, I like to hang a calendar in my bathroom, and it is placed where I can read it while I "rest upon my throne". LOL (TMI?)  It helps me to contemplate our schedule for the day/week/month and keep track of important dates. Before the month is over, I am certain there will be a lot more written on that calendar.  We also keep one in hubby's bathroom for the same reason, so he knows what's going on each day. Hey, it works for us!

While I was putting up the calendar and taking a picture of it, I accidentally took a picture of my cane that sits right there below it!  Our friend Sandra over at "MadSnapper" had recently posted a picture of a cane, and so I guess my cane wanted some recognition as well.  I've written about the history of this very special cane before HERE, so you may have already seen it, but apparently it needed to be seen again.  I keep it handy in that particular spot in case I need help getting up off of the throne, and also it serves as a way to reach the door knob in case I was in too big of a hurry to shut the door behind me! LOL.  Okay, that's enough TMI for this morning! 

Okay, breakfast is over and done. We had some poppin' fresh cinnamon buns with orange icing on them and an omelet with bits of bacon, cheese and chopped fresh spinach inside. It was good, and now I am ready to face the day and get that job of "undecorating" finished. I want to get it all done today so that Benton can help John put it all back in the shed tomorrow when he comes over to take him to lunch! 

Now, you may ask why is he coming to take him to lunch? What about you?   Well, that's another story...tomorrow, and I keep saying, "Lord willing and the creek don't rise!", I will be traveling to a city a little over an hour's drive away to meet up with some of our wonderful blogging sisters!  We've had this planned for a little while, and of course we never know from one day to the next what might be going on by the time a day comes, but it looks like it's really going to happen!  Terri, from Your Friend From Florida, Linda, from Just Simply Linda, and Barbara, from My Journal Memories, and me from you know where, will all be converging upon a Bob Evans restaurant for lunch and wonderful conversation and laughter and hopefully some good pictures to share with you when it's over with!  I am very excited to be able to go and meet up with them, and just pray that we all have a good day for doing just that. Terri has to travel the farthest, and then me, and then Barbara and Linda both live in the city where we are meeting, so just pray for traveling mercies and good health for all of us!

Meanwhile, good son Benton said he would take his Dad out to lunch since Rose has to work and he'll be on his own anyway! So that will be nice for both of them too.

With all of this frigid weather we've been having this week, (low 30's to high in the 50's...that's cold for us Floridians), I haven't been doing much outside. But one day we saw some different kind of ducks swimming around pretty fast in Still Waters Pond, and so I tried to get some pictures, but they were too fast for me.  Here's what I got:

Now, if you can figure out what kind of ducks these are, you're a better woman/man than me! LOL.

Actually, in this picture, I can barely make out the color and markings of a Wood Duck, but I'm really not sure.

But in my pursuit of following the ducks around the bend (where they immediately flew away from so I couldn't see them anymore!), I discovered the Canada Geese hiding out in the little cove/canal by the island:

Yes, they are both there. This is the same area where they built their nest last year, so I am hoping they will try again this year, and pray for better results. Last year something happened and their eggs did not produce any baby geese.  

When they saw me watching them, they immediately swam to meet each other...

All the while making some soft sounds to reassure one another that they are safe...

  

Aren't they a beautiful couple?   And so I left them there before they got too nervous and flew away.

Yesterday the Sand Hill Crane Family flew in for a treat, and after we gave them a little bit of bird seed to keep them going in this cold weather, they moved on in search of better things...

As I close this post today, I want to share this prayer from portions of Psalm 10 on behalf of those who are suffering in California and also we should not forget the folks in the mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee, who are still homeless and in need of so much help, as well as the families of those who were struck down so mercilessly in New Orleans on New Year's Eve...and so many others dealing with wars and all kinds of terror in this world today...

Psalm 10:12-14

12 

12 Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God.

Do not forget the helpless.

14 But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted;

you consider their grief and take it in hand.

The victims commit themselves to you;

you are the helper of the fatherless."

"16 The Lord is King for ever and ever;

the nations will perish from his land.

17 You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted;

you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,

18 defending the fatherless and the oppressed,

so that mere earthly mortals

will never again strike terror."

Amen.