Lavender

This lovely flower is more than pretty...It has a balancing, calming effect and can be used many ways in our daily life.

I use it in a spray bottle, about 10 drops of oil and 2 oz of water.  Air freshener or perfume...you choose! The scent alone will calm you.

You can also use it to help you sleep.  A couple drops on your pillow will relax you and assure you of a good nights sleep.  It eases stress and depression, just place a couple drops in your tea or water.

Did you know that Lavender can heal cuts?  Next time you have a cut or bug bite apply a drop or two of oil and see how quickly it heals.  You'll also smell good too!  

Diffusing it makes your home smell wonderful!  I like to use it in the afternoon.  Of course if used in the evening before bedtime it should bring you a sense of well being.

If you need  Lavender Oil or a diffuser just let me know.

More Cold Weather

Are you tired of the cold weather?  It seems the whole country has experienced colder temperatures this winter and I really can't complain.  Obviously we have to use the furnace more, wear socks and long pants, cover the tropical plants when freeze warnings come along.  Oh, we had to dig out our heavy coats too!  But no snow or temperatures that can't be handled.  Every now and then we grumble about staying inside to stay warm....but even that is minor compared to the northern tier of states.

This picture is from a year ago and I hope it makes you smile. As we travel from place to place to occupy our days we are treated to various farm fields being harvested (cabbage, cauliflower, leafy greens) and planted.  This winter weather brings us more rain than snow and the evidence is seen in the newly planted fields.  A year ago we marveled at spring unfolding and I'm looking forward to seeing that again. 

Last November I bought myself a Fitbit Zip and it's fun to watch my steps add up each day.  But I am not active enough to make 10,000 a day!  If you have one let's link up online!  Maybe competition will help motivate me.

I've seen some Robins this past week, does that mean Spring is on the way?  What's the weather like where you are?  Another cold blast is headed out way...I guess I better put my socks on!

47 days

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• 1128 hours
• 47 days
• 6 weeks (rounded down)

Day Trip and Body Scrub

Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day. But it was to cold for us to do anything outside so we drove into Jacksonville for lunch and shopping.  

We tried a new place for lunch and while the food was good we were not impressed by the service.  I never did find out what kind of drinks they had even though there was a bar.  Our waiter just didn't appear to be interested in serving us.  Tablecloths and napkins were on all the tables.  Those already dining looked like office workers.  Groups of 5 or more at some tables.  We chose water to drink. We both had wraps that came with fries and slaw.  

After lunch we made a stop at Ace Hardware for some birdseed and free popcorn.  I looked around the garden center but left empty handed.  Our cold weather has me thinking about flowers and veggies...but our home isn't a greenhouse so I'll have to wait for warmer weather

Next stop was Whole Foods Market.  Didn't buy a lot, spending under $30 but it's fun going and seeing all the goodies I could buy!

We next headed for the Town Center shopping mall.  Only stopped in one store, REI. Jim is looking for a new jacket and while he tried on many he left empty handed.  He says he now knows what he's looking for and will keep an eye out for sales and bargains.

One more stop at Starbucks for coffee and we were soon on our way home.

In the winter do you find your skin to be dull?  Could be you need to remove the dead skin that we humans shed from time to time.  A good way to do this is with a body scrub that also babies your skin.  Coconut oil is the latest product to hit the beauty and cooking scene and I must say as a body oil it's wonderful.  Soaks right in with no greasy residue.

If you bathe in the mornings a refreshing oil like lemon or peppermint would be good.  For nighttime bathing use lavender.  Or choose one that suits your personal mood!

All of these oils can be purchased here Young Living Essential Oils

Brown Sugar and Coconut oil Body Scrub

Ingredients
1 1/4 cups of brown or raw sugar
6-8 tablespoons of organic unrefined coconut oil
15-20 drops essential oil of your choosing 
4 (4 oz) ball jelly jars

If your coconut oil is solid at room temperature, briefly warm just enough to aid in the melting the process. Then in a small bowl combine your coconut oil and brown sugar, blending well enough to eliminate any lumps. Then add your essential oil to the mixture drop by drop, being sure to blend mix after each addition. Once mixed, scrub should be placed in an airtight container or jelly jar and used within six months. 

Apply your scrub to moistened skin, being sure to massage it in using circular motions, then wash.

Makes a wonderful gift when placed in a decorative container!

If you try this,let me know how you like it!

I won! and we visit El Galeon

I enter contests all the time and several times a year I win something.  This time I won just for posting on Facebook.  I love dates and Medjooldates is a favorite of mine.  I only wish I could order all the time but traveling puts a crimp in that.  

I just received this gold tin of luscious, ooey, gooey dates!  It's all I can do to limit myself to one or two a day.  If you like dates and need some, consider ordering from these fine people!  You won't be disappointed

Last Sunday the four of us, Kathy, John, Jim and I drove over to St Augustine to meet up with Sonsearae and Chris. It's Sonsearae's Birthday week and we got them started with the fun and festivities.  

We met them at the Columbia Restaurant, where we've eaten a few times but it was the first time for the others.  We've never been disappointed in the food and this time was no different.

After lunch we walked over to the Marina to visit El Galeon.

"Step back in time aboard El Galeón, a unique replica of the 16th Century Spanish galleon."  

El Galeon is the larger of these two ships

This little guy was staying on one of the boats in the marina

This egret is sporting some breeding plumage and wasn't having much luck finding his lunch

It's not possible to show you how impressive this ship is and I've only included a few pictures for you to see

Chris and Sonsearae

It was a breezy, cool day and I think everyone had a good time.  If you are in this area the ship is wonderful to explore.

After we left the ship we headed to a coffee shop for a much needed rest.  After this repast we all headed out.  We returned home while Sonsearae and Chris spent the night.  Monday they headed to Orlando and Disney World.  It is her Birthday week!

Monday Jim worked and while he was home for lunch, our washing machine came home!  He and Don wrestled the beastie into the house, hooked it up and lo and behold it works!  Apparently during one of the repairs a wire was nicked or loosened which was causing it to act up. Two months without it and I can truthfully say I'm a happy camper!

Jim is making a list of items we need to get done before we leave.....

52 days

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• 1270 hours (rounded down)
• 52 days (rounded down)
• 7 weeks (rounded down)

The Silver Paws for Love Program

Have you heard of this program? I think it's wonderful and for anyone willing to adopt an older dog please check this out if you are in the Sonoma California area.

Paws for Love


"Silver Paws for Love" provides financial assistance to seniors 55 and older who adopt a pet 6 years and older, from Sonoma Co. Animal Care & Control, Petaluma Animal Services Foundation, or Windsor's Green Dog Rescue Project. 

And if you're not ready to adopt or not in the area, consider donating. 

I read about this on another Blog RV Sue. Isn't it wonderful to get ideas, tips and information from people all over the country?

55 days

• 4,790,729 seconds
• 79,845 minutes (rounded down)
• 1330 hours (rounded down)
• 55 days (rounded down)
• 7 weeks (rounded down)

Essential Oils

For Christmas Jim gave me a box of goodies that contained essential oils and diffuser from Young Living.  All of it combined made up a kit to become a distributor.

So, I chose to become one.  I've always liked and used essential oils and I'm learning that some can be used for better health.

I've been using my oils daily on my body (health, we'll see where this takes me!) and in the air.  I must say our home smells nice with peppermint wafting through the air right now!

I will share with you from time to time ways to use these oils.  If you're interested in learning more or purchasing, just let me know!

Basil Essential Oil

for ear infection

Method:
Put a drop of oil on your finger and rub it inside of the ear. 

Rub it all around the outside of the ear also. 

You can put a few drops on cotton ball and place the cotton ball just inside the opening of the ear. (But never apply/drop oil directly inside the ear!) 

 Do this every few hours, and for a few days after, to make sure the infection is completely gone.


Note: This is safe for children...just be sure to use with a carrier oil like jojoba, olive oil etc

Winter has come to Welaka

First off let me apologize for these pictures.  For some reason Picassa won't allow me to upload using the 'blog this' tab.  I get 'service unavailable error 503'. If you know how I can fix this, let me know.

Last Sunday we sat outdoors and enjoyed the wildlife feeding at our hanging feeders.

The Squirrels are amusing but won't let the birds land to feed

Not sure what this little guy in the center of the picture is, but there is a flock of them that come by daily.  Only a couple inches big and fast!

See the notch in the tray?  Jim managed to hit it with his sling shot!  Not sure if it was marble or steel shot but it scared the squirrel....but not for long...

My patio plants are colorful!

This black cat belongs to one of our neighbors and his entertainment is chasing the squirrels and annoying Boo.  When Boo spots him he barks up a storm to let me know we have an intruder!

While watching these critters we enjoyed a cold beer.  Mine was Thomas Creed, Up the Creek...unbeknownst to me this beer is 12.5% alcohol!  My nose and lips were getting numb when I checked the bottle for alcohol content.  Reminded me of margaritas at Jorge's!

Because of this beer, I didn't feel like fixing dinner so we walked over to Shrimps R Us for dinner.  It was beginning to cool off and I'm glad I brought my jacket.

For our evening entertainment we watched Downton Abby, thus our Sunday ended.

Monday brought rain the beginning of the cold front that gave us winter.  Jim worked all day and as the temperature dropped I got the plants all covered and bedded down for the freezing temperatures.  Jim put water in the fresh water tank and we used the pump...or so we thought.  Not sure what happened but the pump sounded funny...and during the night the hot water tank emptied and now it doesn't work along with the pump.  We can heat the water on gas but not electric.

Boy did it get cold!  Not sure about the freeze watch but with clear skies the chill factor was enough for us.  

Tuesday we headed into St Augustine to replace our Soda Stream canister and get another soda mix for Jim.  Then we went in search of a place to have lunch.  We heard Caps on the Water was good so we went in search of it up the A1A.  Found it!  We wended our way through a nice neighborhood and found it located on the intracoastal waterway....but it was closed! As we got back on A1A we noticed on the sign that it would reopen on January 22!  I guess we'll have to wait to see if it's any good.

So we still needed some lunch and stopped at The Reef Restaurant, right on the Atlantic ocean.  We enjoyed a lovely lunch overlooking the crashing waves.  Hard to believe it was only 34 degrees outside. Of course, once we stepped outside, wham!

We made it home and Boo was glad to see us. We watched NCIS and the new show that followed it

Once again freezing temperatures were predicted so we left the plants covered and left water running in the kitchen sink.  We stayed nice and warm under the duvet after setting the furnace at 50 degrees.  It did come on, so I guess it got cold.

Wednesday I took some laundry down to wash and stopped by to see Kathy and John...we decided on this cloudy day we needed to find a mall in Ocala so we could walk and keep from being so bored in this nasty weather.   I put my clothes in the dryer,Jim put away whatever it was he was working on and within an hour we were on the road!

The drive is nice but not much to see driving through the Ocala Forest.  We chatted, discussing various trips we've made over the years and our mishaps while camping.  Once we got into Ocala I think we were all hungry so food was our first option.  We finally stopped at Harry's Seafood Bar and Grille. Right in the town center.  Christmas decorations we still up and on every corner of the square there was a painted pony.

Couldn't help but notice the Mardi Gras beads as soon as we stepped inside. Then looking around the decor was like New Orleans!  We've been to one before in Tallahassee with Sonsearae and Chris.

And the menu!  It was hard to restrain from ordering everything!  If you like Cajun food and come across this restaurant give it a try.  I gar-ron-tee you won't be disappointed.  When we left we made a stop at Starbucks for coffee.

The drive back was looong! Not really but we were tired and ready to get home. We arrived just before it got pitch dark.  Once again Boo was happy to see us

During the night I heard some rain and once again our day was overcast and yucky.  The rain only lasted during the morning and around lunch time Jim took two loads of laundry to be washed.  We've spent most of the day just sitting....around 1500 we took Boo for a walk.  Although not cold, it was windy so we didn't go all the way down to the river

Sure hope this stretch of winter is over...

65 days

• 5,624,578 seconds
• 93,742 minutes (rounded down)
• 1562 hours (rounded down)
• 65 days (rounded down)
• 9 weeks (rounded down)

Wet Day

How was your evening last night?  Did you party?  Share time with friends and family?  Or was it just the two of you ringing in the new year?

We had a grand party that all residents were invited to and some friends and relatives of the owners.  We all gathered around the bar at the pool and the fire pit for an evening of meat, meat, meat and more meat.  There were also some dishes that were made with meat.  I did find some raw veggies to eat along with some black olives and crackers.  Not sure how much was left over but there was enough food to feed the town of Welaka! Oh, there was also wine of which I had a few glasses.

We left around 2000 and spent the rest of the evening just watching TV and we were in bed at our usual time of 2200.  The new year arrived with very little fan fare here!

I'm not sure when the rain started during the night.  But it woke me shortly after 0700.  Not a bad sound and it sure beats an alarm clock!   As I type this it's still raining.  A slow steady rain all day.  

Jim took some laundry down and washed it.  Bringing it home to dry saves a bit.  I'm not sure what we've spent in laundry fees.  But we've spent a small fortune in pee pads for Boo!  Apparently the needed motor for the wash machine is on back order and it will be awhile before we have the washer fixed.  Jim has written Whirlpool but so far no response.  At this point I'm pretty sure I won't buy another Whirlpool washing machine!

We spent the bulk of the day on our computers and watching TV.  Jim did the dishes twice, not sure if it was from boredom or to warm his hands.

I now am deep into my new essential oils and loving the smells wafting through the house.  Young Living is the company that I'm now a part of.  Let me know if you're interested!

72 days

• 6,304,285 seconds
• 105,071 minutes (rounded down)
• 1751 hours (rounded down)
• 72 days (rounded down)
• 10 weeks (rounded down)