SWEETNESS

One of the best things about March is that it's strawberry season! Bill and I will be cutting these up;

 some for eating fresh and some right to the freezer.

After a bit of rain the orange amaryllis throughout the yard are almost done but look at this almost the best for last! So delicate and pretty.  I hope this one spreads like the orange ones have.

And it's never too late to enjoy a good Shamrock 

or even a whole pot of them! 

 And while puttering yesterday, I finished the leader fabrics-cutting them down in size and serging the ends so they won't ravel. Then I applied the double stick tape to each of the metal bars so that I could attach each leader fabric.

  It felt good to get that completed.

SPRING!

 After thunderstorms last night, we took a refreshing walk this morning, since morning strength is the best. The azaleas are in full bloom and these are my favorites.

Some of the loquat trees are producing fruit; they are hard and green as they ripen...

...and here they are orange, soft, and delicious.

On our way to smell the orange trees, we spotted this little guy and had to find out who he was. He is an eight-spotted forester moth. He is one of many pollinators we've seen this spring.

This is me all of the rest of the time! My hand is doing well; the pain is a little bit more than I expected. PT is this afternoon and I will let you know tomorrow how it goes! I am curious to see what is underneath all of these bandages and I hope to get my first peek while I am there.

KNITTING

Another pair of mitts, yarn is Capretta from KnitPicks in Blush colorway. Very soft and warm.

I've been enjoying knitting a hat again-thanks for the inspiration Dee and Nancy and Alycia and Betsy!

Lion Brand hand-dyed worsted.

 Our Florida avocados are back in season!  These are large-5" long and 3 1/2" wide!  They are sweeter than Has and very, very good!  We will be enjoying them on our salads for months now!

A FULL DAY!

A new bowl is at work--this is from the old grapefruit tree, so it is a special piece of wood.  I am making a square bowl from this one.  I have my box of finishing equipment ready to use.  The bowl will be turned now and the front hollowed out. 

 It will be done soon since it is small.  

My neighbor called to say, if I wanted, I could go and pick some Muscadine grapes!  Yes!  Even though Bill put a fence around my plant-something got in  and ate them all!  Millie's vines are close to her house so maybe that keeps them safe.  But I have a ton of them to make into jellie!  I can't wait!

These were also ready-Sand Pears-they are hard even when ripe, you can't eat the skin but I found that when I peel the skin, and cook down the fruit, it makes delicious pear sauce.  We eat it like applesauce.  Yum.

 And then I completed the Jar Collection quilt top--all stitched and pressed!  I  have started a second one, too!   

Mushrooms and Blooms

My mushroom garden grows!  Note to self, when you make a short mushroom, it will be hard to reach in the small space to sand and polish! lo

(these are probably shitake mushrooms)

That's okay, the next mushroom will be tall and thin!  

We took a ride tin the golf cart so I could comb the woods for fallen branches for new mushrooms and snowmen.  

I'm glad to say, there is plenty to play with-

I have a wonderful supply and will get to learn what wood is which color!

This little branch is Live Oak.

The pond area took a hard hit from the freeze this week-see the banana grove?  Sad brown instead of lush green. 

 Yes, it will recover but it is sad to see it blighted like this! 

 In the foreground, it is a rubber tree plant that also took a serious hit.  

But there is one plant that likes a few cold nights--Ruby Red Grapefruits!  We shared one today and I am very happy to report that they are delicious!  I will take a pic of the inside next time-

I ate it before I thought of sharing the gorgeous color! lol

I did decide what to do in the border for the Christmas Hunter Star quilt--holly and berries!  

The middle is still a big question mark....  

I did add another star block.  

I will leave you with some plants that flourish in the cold snaps that might happen in our winters--Camellias!  

This is much redder than it shows here 

but it is a double, double and is a very large full bloom!

This pink is very large but mostly flat not thick like the red ones!

And the whites are bloom perfections;  don't you agree!?

For those of you in the northern regions, 

I will try to keep you updated with color in my yard!

 

Patches of One Kind and Another!

My Mom sent me a pile of these 4" sample squares recently.

They were from KeepSake Quilting a long time ago.

I had fun separating them into piles of like colors,

And then  into 4 patches! 

It will be an enjoyable endeavor to add to each day!

See what is ready for picking out back-

don't be distracted by the grapevines which are trying to take over!  

It is an elderberry patch!  

We have two rather large patches with lots of berries,

and lots more coming!

I want to learn how to make some syrup--

I guess there is some kitchen work ahead for me

over the next few weeks!

Avocado Anyone?!

This is a Florida avocado;  it has a smooth, thin skin and is much larger than the 

California avocado most people buy.  

We love to eat these in slices in salads, of course, 

but also as is in a snack! 

What else looks very much like the color of the avocado fruit?  My wool!

When I carded it up-by random handfuls;  I didn't feel like separating it or sorting it not even a little!

I grabbed handfuls and teased them open (dyeing condenses the fibers)

 and ran them through the carder. 

 I was pleased the color didn't look like brown mud which I was afraid it would.

And spinning it up-which is lovely doing the supported long draw in a woolen preparation this time instead of the short forward worsted spinning I did for the Masham wool for the last pound of wool!

This will be a much lighter and bouncier skein of yarn! 

 So far, so good!

From the agony of defeat to the thrill of victory--

nothing like a good spin!

Oh, and for some outdoor entertainment-pulling my husband out of a ditch!
He decided to do a bit of mowing with the tractor-one handed, says he!
And look where it got him!

He hooks up the chain and I roll down the truck window and listen to his commands!

I had him out of trouble in no time.

I have been pulling him out of 'tricky' situations for more than 46 years!

Did I mention he has been going stir crazy after this fourth surgery?!

Prickly Yarn and Prickly Plants

 I am down with a cold (and  miserable sinus pressure!) 

so I was down literally as much as possible yesterday!  

A little of this was accomplished--I worked on the pink dishcloth earlier in the day 

and when the UPS man came, he brought the newest Sugar 'n Cream cotton yarn. 

 It has a lengthy stretch of plain cotton and then an equally long length of  a 'scrubby'  section!

  It was interesting to knit with and I really like the results!  

I cast on 36 stitches with #6 needles and knit until the cloth was square.

I have three of these growing on three separate plants!

It takes six months for the fruit to mature enough to pick-that's a long time, isn't it?!

Did you know that pineapples are actually bromeliads?!

And you know it is almost May when the prickly pear cactus blooms!

In a Jam!

                                

 Here's proof that I do occasionally spend time in the kitchen!

This is a pan of Muscadine grapes that have simmered for an hour.

My neighbor, Millie, called to say she had some grapes ready that she wasn't going to get to herself;

did I want them?!  

She had made some jelly last year and gave me a jar which I thoroughly enjoyed;

 so I was very happy to make some for myself this year!

Bill went right over to pick them for me and I filled the house with such a delicious aroma 

as they cooked down.

I then ran them through the sieve to capture all of the juice.

After a ton of sugar (yikes, I didn't have the low sugar certo so this will be a rare treat!!)

I  had a pot of boiling and wondrous smelling jelly!

I did keep out one jar to put in the fridge for sampling right away-

Ethan and I gave it a go after dinner on some toast!  Oh, yum....

And in honor of feline fridays....

Every morning after breakfast when I make the beds, this is the body I disrupt in Ethan's bed! 

I get the punk eye because he knows I don't give any quarter-

no mercy no matter 

how sweet you think you are! 

 It's time for beds to be made!

(Call me hard-hearted but if I waited for him,

 I would get to make the bed

in time for Ethan to nap!

He does come back and lay down after it is made up proper!)

Tranquility

Now this is a sight to feast your eyes on;

  our pond is full and the water lilies are making a come back!

The pineapple ripened-the one we grew ourselves! 

Might I say, it was beyond superb!

And new yarn on the needles-a revisit to the Silver Leaves Shawl!

Sand Pear Sauce

These are NOT Bartlett pears....these are Sand Pears.

They are ready to be picked;  Millie has a tree and graciously shares it with me.

You can't eat these fresh from the tree;  it is like biting into wood-hard and grainy. 

The peel feels like sand is under his skin.  They are hard and never soften until they are over-ripe and rotten.  It was hard to make friends with this fruit until I learned how to use them!

You cut off the top and bottom and peel the skin off and cut the sides from the core... 

...a lot of times, 

So that you have a nice pile of chunks, 

You place them in a pan with a little water and sugar and simmer like you would for fresh applesauce... 

You will end up with a delightful pear-ish tasting sauce that is delicious warm or cold!

Nice to enjoy a regional harvest!

What fresh fruit are you enjoying now?