Such a beautiful wedding in Texas where we danced the night away under the stars. Before the wedding we had a great family day too. Lubbock, Texas, the bride’s hometown and my nephew’s adopted home did not disappoint. Family time is the best time, and we enjoyed every minute. Texas forever.
Do you ever have one of those days where you think to yourself this is my favorite day ever? I had one of those days on Thursday morning with my volunteer group. We usually do quite hard work; removing invasive species, weeding, trimming and planting. But this particular morning was different. In order to impress the judges for America In Bloom (Venice is a finalist for an award) we got creative in a small city park area we have adopted and became artists using all natural materials.
The showpiece is the arbor we built with bamboo and grapevine. But, there are also areas landscaped with real creativity using bamboo and palm fronds, hanging art made with sticks, grapevine and seashells and an interactive fairy garden under a big tree where children who visit can use their imagination too.
All in all it was a experience that stretched some artistic muscles I have not used in awhile while at the same time helping make an outdoor area in my city even more beautiful. Hope you think it is pretty cool too.
Have a great weekend!
It was a lovely, Florida style Easter weekend with a lot of time spent outside in the sunshine. We had our annual Good Friday with friends, attending Stations of the Cross first, followed by visits to a few outdoor bars. There was a lot of Easter prep on Saturday getting ready for dinner. Even Easter mass was held on an outdoor patio on a beautiful morning and it was a nice early start to the day. My mother in law came for dinner and because of all the prep Saturday, it came together nicely and I was happy with my traditional menu including a few twists from new recipes. The Strawberry Shortcake Trifle I made for dessert was delicious. After dinner we took a drive to the beach and had a cocktail at Sharky’s with a beautiful view of the Gulf.
I hope you had a sunshiny Easter too!
Last Friday was a beautiful, but windy day for our latest bike adventure. We headed about 45 minutes south to Gasparilla Island and Boca Grande with 3 other couples; a trip we last took in 2020 right before Covid shut us down. It felt great to be back.
It’s a beautiful spot and a wonderful place to bike. The mode of transportation on the island is primarily golf carts and bikes, so no traffic worries. There are paved bike paths from one end to the other and it is fun to head to the restaurant on the most southern tip. We take our time and stop along the way at the famous lighthouse and the pretty beaches. The wind made for some big waves, which is always fun to see in the gulf.
We parked our bikes had a great lunch, right on the water at South Beach Bar and Grill. My margarita sure tasted good after the pedaling. We headed back to town, riding against the wind and after that workout, treated ourselves to ice cream before we loaded up the bikes.
I am not a fan of riding a bike on busy roads, but this kind of Florida biking, right along the gulf coast, is the best.
Happy Monday!
These muffins would be a great addition to a special occasion Easter breakfast/buffet or because they are so simple to make, you can keep the ingredients in your pantry for a great afternoon snack for the kids or for you with coffee or tea.
Two things drew me to this recipe; the pineapple flavor because I live in Florida and also because I love to try anything with two or three ingredients. My thoughts on baking are I will bake from scratch, but why not try the semi homemade way if it tastes good.
These are so quick and easy to make, delightfully moist and have a subtle pineapple flavor. When I make them again, I would probably add some diced fresh pineapple to add a little something extra. Shredded coconut would be a delicious addition too. One of my favorite things when I go to Key West are the pineapple pancakes at Blue Heaven. These give me that flavor vibe and bring my favorite Florida spot right to my kitchen.
The recipe can be found at Mix and Match Mama here.
Happy Monday!
