Hodgepodge Time!!

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 343

Joyce has given us a Hodgepodge of questions to answer today and then hosts a link-up on her blog From This Side of the Pond.  Visit Joyce and all the other Hodgepodgers HERE!   Thank you, Joyce!

1. Are you currently operating at 100% capacity? If not, what % are you? What's keeping you there? I am operating at 100% retirement capacity! LOL!  What keeps me there is all the fun we are having, oh, and not having to rise at 5:00 a.m.

2.  Have you done your taxes? Joe did them.  Planned/booked a summer holiday? Planned and booked a long weekend at the beach with family. Thought about or started your 'spring cleaning'?  Nope.  Besides what's listed here, tell us one task that needs doing before spring rolls around.  I need to purge my closet of work clothes I won’t wear anymore.  Soon.

3. What's a favorite food from your part of the country? Fresh seafood.

4. This isn't a leap year, but let's run with it anyway...look before you leap, a leap of faith, grow by leaps and bounds, leap to conclusions, leap at the opportunity...which phrase might best be applied to your life currently (or recently)?  Gosh, none of those really applies.  I’ll pick ‘leap at the opportunity’.  Explain.  We are always ready for a new adventure or get-together with friends and neighbors.

5. As the month draws to a close list five fun and/or fabulous things (large or small) you noticed or experienced in February. 

1) A visit from my BFF Karen and her hubby Lee!! 

2) The EAGLES won the Super Bowl!! 

3) We had a fun trip to Mazzaro’s Italian Market with neighbors! 

4) We celebrated our first anniversary in our new home!  

5) We got to meet blogging friend Barb and her Beloved!! Lovely, genuine, dear people, and again it felt like we had known each other for years (and we have!!)!  Visit Barb at Sweet Tea & Sandals – click HERE!

6. Insert your own random thought here. Just another word or two about our blogging circle here.  I feel so blessed to have met so many of you in person and hope to continue meeting more of you!! It really does feel like we have known each other for years.  This platform allows us to share our lives (ups and downs), our faith and our prayer concerns so that when we do meet in person, the friendship is already solid. It’s hard to describe until it happens. Blogger provides a real community for us. It really is a blessing!

Thanks for your visit!  Thanks to Joyce for this week’s questions.  Next week we will be on our own on Wednesday, but she will be back just before St. Paddy’s Day.  Peace & hugs!

Tickled Tuesday...

There is a certain amount of wisdom here...

We are off to Ocala for lunch with Sweet Tea & Sandals Barb and her Beloved!!  Prayers for safe travels are appreciated!

Thanks for your visit!  Peace & hugs!

Weekend Recap on Monday...

Happy Monday, all.  We are off to the farm today.  Joe's client is going away for a few days so we had to adjust our days to visit.  It will probably throw off my entire week because I will be thinking today is Wednesday. Does that happen to you when your usual schedule gets out of whack?

Last Thursday ended up being a 'free' day because my lunch with a former co-worker got canceled. The Museum's The Gala was Saturday night and Diana needed to stay at work, so we will have to reschedule soon.

Friday, Joe and I decided to go on a little adventure.  We had heard of a historic hotel down in Avon Park, FL that we decided to find. They serve a fish buffet on Fridays, so off we went!  It took about 50 minutes to get there, but the drive was easy.  We were surprised that Avon Park was bigger than we expected. There are around 10,000 residents and it is the oldest town in Highland County.

The Jacaranda Hotel was very interesting.  The buffet left a little to be desired but we enjoyed it and we would go back someday.

 I don't know if these folks visited the Jacaranda, but

the pictures were on the wall.

This MAY be a Jacaranda tree that was in a courtyard there.

It wasn't blooming and I can't tell a weed from a flower, so this is a guess.

It was lovely, whatever it is.

On the way home, we went right past my alma mater, Warner University, located in Lake Wales, FL.  I went 'back to school' and finally received my Bachelor's Degree at age 50.  I hadn't been back to the campus since graduation so it was fun to drive through and see some of the changes in 16 years, including the name change from Warner Southern College to Warner University.  It is a private Christian University and it growing!

I was asked to give the commencement Call To Worship.

Anyway, that was a fun side-trip on Friday. It was a fun day for both of us.  Friday evening we went up to the Clubhouse to play Nickels. There were 18 of us so we had two tables. Always fun!!

Saturday was busy.  We needed to go to the bank before it closed and we also wanted to run by the Museum to see the decorations for The Gala.  This is the first Gala I missed in 20 years.  The decorations weren't done yet, but we could see the theme (Paris) and I know it was beautiful by 6:00 p.m.

Saturday evening we went out to dinner with our wonderful Canadian neighbors, Jill and Murray. They invited us to their house after dinner, for dessert.  Jill served apple turnovers and ice cream. Delicious! It was a fun evening and we are so blessed with good neighbors!

Sunday was laundry day. No pictures of that!  Helen and Cheryl came by for a little while. It was good catching up with them.  I made some pizzelles. That was it for the weekend!

Tonight we are having a little dinner party with two couples.  Anne and Paul from across the street, and Joan and Jim.  I'm making fajitas, yellow rice & black beans, and all the trimmings. I purchased Flan at Publix for dessert (and pizzelles).  It should be a fun evening.

Tomorrow we are meeting blogging friend Barb and her Beloved up in Ocala for lunch!! I am so excited to meet yet another blogging friend!!  This is such a wonderful group of friends here and meeting face-to-face is always special. There will be pictures from both of us, I'm sure!

Wishing you a good week!! Thanks for your visit!  Peace & hugs.

Sunday Blessings!!

Thanks for your visit!  Have a blessed Sunday dear friends!  Peace & hugs!

Saturday 9 Time...

The Love Club

Welcome to Saturday: 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love memes, however, and here is today's meme!

The Love Club (2013)
   
Unfamiliar with this week's song. Hear it here.

1) Lorde has said this song is about a time when she fell into "a bad crowd." Her high-maintenance new friends were all about their romantic dramas and it overwhelmed her. Have you ever had a friend who was just too much work?  Yes, indeed. It was a long time ago and I have no idea where she is now. I try to avoid high-maintenance connections now.

2) She sings that she longs to be alone. Where do you go when you want peace and quiet?  My kitchen, early in the morning before Joe joins me for breakfast. It is my morning devotion and prayer time. When I don't get it, my day is sometimes more unsettled. 

3) Lorde credits her mother for encouraging her verbal skills. "Mum" let her join a theater class when she was just 5 and was always giving her books. Tell us about an encouraging, understanding adult who assisted you when you were growing up.  I have to say my parents and especially my mom. Blessed that way!

4) Lorde is not the only celebrity from her class at Belmont School in Auckland, New Zealand. Olympian Eliza McCartney was a classmate who went on to win a bronze medal in Rio for the pole vault. Did you participate in any sports in high school? Yes. I ran track.  I was also on the girls' basketball team for a brief season (hated girls' half-court rules basketball).  Marching band was my passion back then.

6) Lorde wrote music for one of the Hunger Games soundtracks. Have you seen any of the Hunger Games movies, or read any of the books?  Yes, I read all the books and have seen the movies.  As usual, the books are better (but the movies are good).

7) Her favorite candy is Peanut M&Ms. Do you prefer Milk Chocolate, Peanut, Almond, Mint or Crispy M&Ms?  I prefer the peanut M&Ms but will not turn down any of them! LOL

8) When Lorde was on stage at Lollapalooza, a sudden storm interrupted her set. The music festival was evacuated and her performance was canceled. Can you think of a time when the weather had a major impact on your plans?  Yes indeed. Hurricane Irma most recently.

9) Random question: Please complete this sentence -- Before I leave the house, I always check for my phone and lock the door.

Thanks so much to Crazy Sam for this week's Saturday 9!!  You can join the fun HERE!

Happy weekend, Y'all!  Thanks for your visit.  Peace & hugs!

Friday Foto Friends Time!

Friday means linking up with Deb at Breathing In Grace for her Friday Foto Friends!  You can join us by clicking HERE!  Thanks for hosting us every week, Deb!!

Joe and I headed south to "the farm" on Wednesday.  It was a glorious day and I was happy to be along this week since I missed last week.

The owner texted us that the Cowboys were working the cattle and we should be ready for more gates to open and close and to watch for the cattle on the lane. 

It is always fun to see the cattle up close and personal!!

This girl (yes, a girl with horns) didn't like us intruding!

The horses were in a different pasture and I couldn't get close to them because of the double fence. They are way out there...

I did get my dog fix!  Both Tex and Roho got some love from me and these two little pups were having too much fun!!  The Doxie is visiting while his owner is on vacation.  Fun stuff and I got my face licked by both of them!!

That's all I have for today's link-up. Wishing you all a good weekend ahead! Peace & hugs!

Thankful Thursday!

On Thursday, I link up with Rebecca Jo at Knit By God's Hand for her Thankful Thursday linky.  Join in HERE!!

My post is really simple today. I am thankful for this Florida sky, the Florida sunshine, and our amazing temperatures in the high 80s.  It's February!

Thanks for your visit today!  Please visit Rebecca Jo's blog! It is always fun!  Peace & hugs!

An Inspiring Hodgepodge...

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 342

It’s Wednesday and time for Joyce’s weekly Hodgepodge!  She gives us the questions to answer and we link back HERE to join all the other Hodgepodgers!  Thanks, Joyce!!

         1. Where do you go when you need some inspiration?  The obvious answer (for me) is the Bible for soulful inspiration but I must admit that I would go to Pinterest.com first for crafty inspiration and to All Recipes.com for cooking inspiration.

2. What's under your bed? Besides cat hair tumbleweeds, I keep wrapping paper and gift bags in an under-the-bed storage tub under there.

3. Thursday, February 22nd is National Chili Day, National Margarita Day, and National Cook a Sweet Potato Day. Of the three which would you most like to celebrate?  Ha.  I asked Joe and he didn’t hesitate with his Margarita Day answer, followed by chili.  He does not like sweet potatoes.  Is that likely?  None of those are likely for Thursday.

4. What are you 'snowed under' with right now? You know what?  I’m not snowed under by anything right now!  Life is good! Praise God!

5. Tell us three to five things that make you feel balanced? My faith in Jesus; my husband Joe; our beautiful family; our pets; and our new home and community. It’s a big lovely picture!!

6. Insert your own random thought here. Even though our weather is beautiful year-round, we still love to see Spring arrive with blooming trees!  Excuse the glare from my windshield.  The pink blossoms are also beautiful everywhere.

Thanks for your visit today!  Thanks again to Joyce for the fun!  Peace & hugs!

Tickled Tuesday Time...

I am tickled to see trees in bloom!!

Sorry for the glare taken through my windshield.

This made me giggle! Hope it tickles you too!

Thanks for your visit! Happy Tuesday!  Peace & hugs!!

Weekend Recap on Monday, February 18, 2018...

We had a mildly busy weekend which was nice between two much busier weeks

Backing up to last Thursday, I already posted that Joe went to the farm by himself because his client changed the day and we couldn't cancel a couple of other things that were already scheduled for Thursday.  I had a productive day, though, making some chicken soup and blueberry muffins that I shared with our neighbors across the street.  Anne had knee surgery on Friday so they had something to eat without going out for takeout or having to cook.  It is a blessing to have wonderful friends and neighbors who believe in 'do unto others'.  This is a great community.

Friday I had lunch with my lunch-bunch girlfriends.  Heather and Terry couldn't make it this time, but Melody drove down from Citrus Springs (nearly 3 hours!) to have lunch with us!  It is always good to catch up with these women who have been friends for years. They are so strong and I am blessed to have them in my life.

Shirley, me, Cindee, and Melody.

Friday - and Anne's surgery went well, praise God.  We went to the clubhouse to play Nickels Friday evening and her hubby Paul was there. He said she is doing well enough that he could get out for a couple of hours. Good news!

Saturday allowed us to sleep late.  I did laundry, made some pizzelles, took a dozen across the street to share with Anne.  She looks great and is doing well.  We had the annual (though our first) Spaghetti Dinner/Valentine's Day celebration at the Clubhouse.  Members of the home owner's association got to eat for free!  We just had to take our own tableware and beverage.  Awhile back, we purchased some inexpensive plates and cutlery from Target to use during our potlucks and HOA dinners. I have a basket that works well for toting our supplies.  I got ours ready and set it on the table.  This is what happened...

Thankfully there is a cover over the dishes.  Vinny slept there all afternoon. Crazy cat!!

 The event was well attended, with over 160 people there!

 Our friend, Theresa came with us.  Her hubby Al had to work late.

She took a take-out dinner home for him.

 Me and Theresa

 Spaghetti with meat sauce and plain (??) bread.
We had salad too, but I didn't get a photo of the salad.

Joe is the pasta expert and he said it was "okay".

I thought it was okay too and could have had seconds! LOL

 Strawberries and ice cream for dessert. Mine was half gone

when I remember to take a picture! Ha!

(It is strawberry season here in central FL.)

Lakeland has a high school for the visual and performing arts.

(Harrison School for the Arts)

After dinner, the Satin Dolls came to sing a few songs for us!!

It was a great treat and they are quite good!  

I took this video... hope it opens!

Satin Dolls Singing

It was a very nice evening!!

Sunday was another day for sleeping late.  We had a late breakfast and then left for the Greek Festival at St. Sofia Greek Orthodox Church in Winter Haven.  We have seen it advertised for a few years and finally got the date noted and planned for. We arrived around 11:30 to a nearly empty parking lot, the smell of food cooking and Greek music piped through several speakers.  We paid $2.00 each to enter, were directed with signs to an area where there were five or six tents set up with vendors selling goods.  Only one tent had a few hand-made items.  We were really disappointed.  That was it. There were two areas where you could get food. One was inside the social hall and the other in a tent outside. That was it.  We weren't ready for lunch so we just left.  Very disappointed.  Not sure what we expected, but it was certainly more than what we found.  

It was a beautiful day (look at that sky) and Joe and I did get out of the house for awhile.  We went to the north end of Lakeland and shared a sub from Jersey Mike's.  We hadn't tried them before and were happy with lunch so the day was not all a bust!!

We ordered Chinese for dinner and while we were waiting for the delivery, Al and Theresa popped in for a while.  They walk most evenings and came our way last night. It is always entertaining when Al shows up!!  They only stayed about 30 minutes and left before our food arrived.

We have been marathon watching a Netflix series called The Doctor Blake Mysteries.  Pretty good.  Australia, after WWII. 

That's it for the weekend.  I am going to Ladies Coffee this morning and then have lunch with one of my former co-workers/friend, Marilyn.  We are trying a new BBQ place that just opened, called MOJO BBQ.  I'm sure it will be good!  Joe has a dermatology appointment this afternoon.  Happy Monday!

Thanks for your visit!!  Peace & hugs.