Springtime in Central Florida

It is springtime. I love to wake up early and work on my garden. I can spend an hour watering and pruning, and wondering where all the fruit is. Technically, it is my second year as a gardener.

Central Florida weather has been super dry; we've only had a few actual rain days this whole year. The grass and many trees are dry or look dead. Granted, the air is moist at night, and in the morning the top layer of soil is wet, but we've yet to have real downpours, though I know they are coming. 

NATURE AROUND ME

Flowers on the blueberry bush

Each morning is wet with dew; hence, I love my rainboots!

I happen to love frogs, too, and they are everywhere!

And I love the moon, of course, no matter where I live.

This is "the forest" in my front yard. 

WE HAVE CHICKS

We bought eight one-week old chicks, but today they are five or six weeks old. The are so big and have most of their feathers. Since the weather is consistently over 55 degrees -- if we can finish the coop this weekend -- they will be ready to move from the brooder in the sunroom to their new home outside. Yay! They are going stir crazy! 

An Easter-egger

Watching Eva do algebra. Fun.

The coop is almost finished. It has a run, and we are going to add a larger second run. We also need to add hardware cloth around the perimeter to keep out predators.

Unfortunately, one of the Rhode Islanders was crippled. We tried some remedies, but they did not help. Then I looked around for an animal rescue, and I found a vet who worked with a local rescue that would take our little girl -- so long as I gave up my parental rights. I was so sad to let her go, but caring for her was time consuming and I was grateful to find someone who would at least try to care for her. 

MORE WILD ANIMAL KINGDOM EVENTS

My son with a gecko on his back.

This happened in my front yard. Yikes! 

WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING

Strawberry Festival (exactly one year later). We stood in this same spot for another picture.

Dragged my family to an antiquarian book fair in Tampa. Didn't buy any books. 😩

My girls and I went to see Shen Yun, finally, in Lakeland. At first I was apprehensive because I was not in favor of supporting anything from China. Then I learned that Shen Yun is about China BEFORE COMMUNISM. Even Shen Yun isn't permitted to perform in China. The show was unique and artistic, though it had an Eastern religious message, which felt almost like Jehovah's Witness meets Seventh Day Adventist. There was even a skit about the Communist government killing people and harvesting their organs. Very interesting, and certainly entertaining. 

One day we went strawberry picking.

First beach day of the year - Coquina Beach.

Apparently there were waves due to rain in the Gulf. 

And that has been our springtime, so far.

One Year in Florida Today!

Yes, today is one year since landing in Florida. 

The night before we arrived in Plant City, our final destination, we stopped in Pensacola. After dragging all of our bags and valuable items from the van into our hotel room, and securing Dodger in his pen, we walked across the street to a Cracker Barrel. We were so exhausted and hungry. Our waitress was super friendly and sweet. At the end of our meal she made conversation with us and asked us where we were traveling. 

My husband, laughing, told her we just moved to Florida. "OH, from where?" she asked excitedly. And Gil, not wanting to spoil her excitement, sheepishly eked out, "California." 

Recognizing his shame, she quietly leaned in and replied, "You're on the run; I get it." Then she welcomed us to freedom. 

This month has seen a lot of changes. Yesterday I had to turn in the key to the rental house, and I felt a little sad about saying goodbye to the place that was such a blessing to us. It truly was God's timing that we ended up there, and now that part of our lives was over. 

Last weekend we helped move our oldest son into his new house in Port Charlotte, Florida. He had been renting a place in Venice, which was up in March; and again, in God's timing, found a house that was right for him and took the opportunity. Again, I felt a little sad about his moving further away, but mom's have to let these things go. 

On a fun note: Governor DeSantis is having a rally at my son's work today, and he gets to hear him speak. 

And finally, I'm disappointed in myself for not stopping to enjoy what is before me. One thing I loved about my life in California was that it was pretty easy. We hiked a lot and I stopped to enjoy the dry brush and sporadic wild flowers, the dead trees and rocks. Occasionally there was a trickle of a stream. I admired the peace of nature, even if it was brown and the same everywhere. It was still peaceful. 

But now, now that I am surrounded by ABUNDANT LIVING NATURE EVERYWHERE, I haven't taken time to soak it in as I should. I practically live in Jurassic Park. The sounds of exotic birds are everywhere, and everything is super size. Sadly, I have not taken pictures of all that is around me, and mostly because I haven't stopped to admire it. But I'm working on it. 

Thus, I do not have much to share. But this is what I have: 

My husband and the kids are building a chicken coop. 

There are frogs everywhere. I must check my rain boots in the morning before I put them on just to make sure I don't squish anyone. 

This beautiful creature was on my car. 

Oh, this cracks me up. There are many of these things on power lines above, and I don't know what they are; but they remind me of the covid virus emoji. 

Here is what it looks like most mornings from my front porch: 

And here is the chicken coop painted: 

I am mostly doing gardening for therapeutic reasons (see, I'm not alone), but in the end I hope to produce food. This is a blueberry bush:

Jalapenos: 

I live in the strawberry capital of the United States. I should be able to grow strawberries: 

Squash:

Oranges:

A variety of veggie seedlings. I need to move those into larger pots now:

My garden for now, but we hope to expand this if the experiment works:

My herbs:

And another way to grow from seed:

So we've been here a year. Would any of us return to California? No. No way! Especially not the High Desert. I am grateful that God answered our prayers -- multiply prayers -- to remove us, our kids, and to let me be here to care for my dad.

Granted, it has been tough on the soul. I miss my church family and my church and the kids miss their friends. I also miss my granddaughter. And I miss the dry weather in California. Getting used to the smell of mildew is trying. I don't miss the daily wind in the desert. It is calm here. If you see a breeze, you think: Oh, it's windy today. 

The winter, being the last season to experience, so far is the best. We wear shorts and tank tops most days. Sometimes you need a sweatshirt, but not past 11AM. We had one day of 30 degree weather on Christmas night. Brrr. We actually put the heat on. But I'm not looking forward to the wild weather again, in spring, summer, and early fall. I do not like it. 

Living in rural America is awesome. People practice self-sufficiency by nature. It's common sense. No one is waiting for government to do something for them; in fact, the least governmental intrusion the better. And while everyone has no trespassing signs on their property, these are the friendliest, most inviting neighbors we've every met. We've only been here 2.5 months in our new house, and we have been introduced to five neighbors. One only owns the lot next door, and yet he still came over to speak to me. 

Here in rural Florida, property owners burn their own yard waste in unattended huge bonfires. That would never happen in California. Not only because of the wind and dry conditions, but the government would never trust humans to do it safely. Only vagrants are permitted to light fires. Property owners? Not so much. 

And my husband and I are blown away by the efficiency of government, when necessary. Everything thus far has been quick and simple. Frankly, California is a mess. I am so sorry, but I do not think there is any hope for that mess. Such a waste. If Florida adopts the policies of the West, it will all be lost. 

I hope to take more pictures of my experience of this beautiful place. Hope to. And if my son adds any pictures of the rally with Governor DeSantis, I will share here, too. 

First Christmas/New Years in Florida in a New House

In November, the contract closed on the house one day before Thanksgiving. Initially I thought we should wait until Nutcracker and Christmas were over before we started the arduous task of moving in (which was only twenty minutes from the rental house). 

In the meanwhile, we visited the house almost daily to paint and clean it ceiling to floor, and to install new blinds. Every trip we made, we loaded up the vehicles, little by little, and brought boxes of our things over to the house.

Before we knew it, we changed our mind and wanted to spend Christmas there. The most official items to drive over would be the beds because once they were at the new house, there was no sleeping in the rental again. 

A week before Christmas, we were officially moved in. YAY!

Even my oldest came to help paint, and of course Dodger joined us. 

Therefore, the Friday after Nutcracker, and one week before Christmas, we rented a U-Haul and brought all of the beds and furniture over to the house. But before this day, the kids decorated for Christmas; therefore, before we even had the furniture in the house, they set up the tree and stockings. 

The CRAZY time before moving in...

And so we spent our first Christmas in Florida...at my brother's, in Nokomis. LOL. But the week before everyone came up to our new house to celebrate Sophia's 18th birthday. 

But New Year's Eve we went to bed early, and woke up at midnight to the lovely sound of firearms. (It happened in California, too. Doesn't matter if guns are restricted or not. People love to shoot at midnight.)

P.S. I am late posting this, but I am doing it now before I post my one-year in Florida post, which is coming up in a few weeks! We have been so busy-busy-busy. Every Saturday it's something else, and we still are not done. Therefore, I really have no pictures to show of our first couple of months in the new house. Technically, we are not even moved out of the rental. 

I'll be back in a few weeks. 

To be continued...

First Nutcracker Performance in Florida

My girls have been performing in the Nutcracker for seven years? Maybe this was their eighth? When they looked for a dance studio here in Florida, it was imperative that the studio have a Nutcracker performance. And when they auditioned for the Dance Arts (like company) at this current studio, they did not know they were officially auditioning for this year's Nutcracker, too. They were used to a separate audition with call backs and then a big official announcement regarding who was cast as what. 

But this studio did not do that, and there was no major announcement. When my 17-year old found out that she was cast as snow queen via an email with all the cast assignments, she was shocked. After all, the studio had only seen her dance en pointe three separate occasions. She also was cast as waltz soloist and French back. 

It seemed to me -- after years of being intentionally overlooked and unfairly forgotten by the previous studio, and still persevering, doing her best in the roles she was cast while they placed certain mediocre girls ahead of her because of favoritism, not merit -- God saw what she had endured and He blessed her. And with His grace, He provided this opportunity for her. It was a blessing to finally see her in roles she was totally capable of. At least this studio considered merit as a requirement. 

In addition, my 14-year old was cast in waltz and Russian back. She was also cast as a butterfly, which was her first performance en pointe. She said she was nervous about it, but she did very well.  

Eva, first time performing en pointe:

Sophia as snow queen:

Sophia leaping, during waltz:

Sophia (far R.):

Sophia (2nd from L.):

My 14-year old (L.) suspended in the air, during waltz:

After the show, with guest dancers, Cavalier and Sugar Plum:

Backstage waiting their turn:

We're so very grateful for this dance studio. I told my girls that this was a lesson in perseverance and patience, while maintaining a good heart attitude through injustice (no matter how insignificant). 

We don't know what God is doing, but we know that He sees everything; He is just; and He brings blessings in His time according to His purpose and will, for His glory and our good.

It was worth the wait.

  And that's a wrap.