Audrey Hepburn said, To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.   image courtesy of Jan Canty via Unsplash The time to sow our seeds is almost upon us. Whether you're a raised bed veggie gardener or container gardener who loves flowers or full-on farmer, welcome to spring ! My rose bushes in the yard already have leaves and are growing new limbs. So, they should be covered in blooms before the end of April. Earlier in the month when we had warm temps, I added some liquid fertilizer to the soil in my empty containers. Before sowing my seeds, I'll mix the soil up a bit to make sure I'm planting in loose soil to allow for root growth, and I'll add more of my Miracle Gro liquid fertilizer when I plant my seeds or repot my flowers. If you've been following me for the past few years, you know I'm a [mostly] container gardener. I tried growing some veggies last year in my containers with little success. This year, I'm going back to all flowers, and I'm look...

I've watched many videos about using clear glue as faux water. Everyone talks about how pretty this is once it dries. They will say, "This doesn't dry right away, so you have plenty of time to rearrange your dried flowers until you're satisfied." BUT no one tells you how long the glue takes to dry. So, I'm here to share an experiment I'm trying, using clear glue as faux water.  First of all, most people use Elmer's clear glue. I used the Dollar Tree Jot 4 oz. clear glue for my experiment. Either way, Google search AI reports that glue, such as Elmer's glue will take longer to dry with a deep pour. Apparently, 4 oz. is a deep pour. Because my first pour, which used the entire 4 oz., isn't showing any signs of drying soon. All other glue brands take just as long and cost much more.  For beter results, Google AI and Reddit forum users recommend a shallow pour. So, pour a shallow layer, allow to dry, add another shallow layer and allow to dry. Con...

Two dreams I had around Easter 2015 started me on a journey to write a very important book that I feel very strongly that God wanted me to write. But before I could start writing it, I had to start studying the Bible more in depth, especially a certain book of the Bible, study about certain people in that book, and I took Bible study courses for about three years, earning multiple certificates from Christian Leaders Institute. Finally, about two years ago, I was able to successfully begin my writing journey. Prior to that, before the self-study, courses, life experiences that definitely (and ironically) go along with this book, and lots of prayer to discover what the message was really supposed to be about, writing was unsuccessful several times. And as all of you understand, life throws occasional, if not frequent, challenges at us. So, the journey was real , for sure. And along the way, I wrote a few free books and recipes for you all as well just so I would have a finished product...

Jitterbug Cell Phone Call to Lively I hope you all have a wonderful weekend planned for yourselves. Today, I want to share an experience that may be helpful for you. We recently purchased a Lively Jitterbug Smart 4 cell phone for my parents.  And I think I'll start my review with the phone call I made to Lively to ask a question before purchasing. I can't remember what that question was now. 😄But during that phone conversation, I explained to the representative that my parents are in a nursing home and they had requested to have a phone. And that my husband wants to retire soon, so their phone prices and plans looked more affordable than anyone else's. Plus the Jitterbug has attractive features for much-older seniors. After some back and forth, he convinced me to buy an open box Smart 4 Jitterbug for a much reduced price. We have the option to return the phone for just the cost of a $10 restocking fee if it doesn't work out. So, if you are looking at a phone option fo...

First Sign of Spring It's just past mid-February and a black-capped Carolina chickadee has been visiting our backyard. They have been absent all winter. So, today , I'm excited to announce that spring is around the corner. I haven't seen the groundhogs in the neighbors' yard to ask them, but the chickadee sighting and the fact that it was chasing one of our male cardinals means the mating season (a.k.a spring) is on its way, and the smaller chickadee is trying to clear the backyard for his mate and their spring arrivals. Silly bird. I guess he hasn't heard that we welcome all birds.  image courtesy of  Meagan-Joy Huggard via Unsplash Bird Lovers What about you? Are your spring and summer avian visitors starting to arrive? Is there more chirping in your backyard? If so, go take a peek and see which ones have made an early arrival. Since more cold weather may be around a bit longer, and there may be a lack of food preferences for another month or so, place some fruit...

Gut health (more like a gut cleansing for a more favorable term) is another area I feel needs my attention. Exercise, drinking more water, drinking hot green tea, and eating more fiber, fruits, vegetables, seed, and nuts (the omega 3 oils in walnuts, in particular, supposedly line the intestines, making the passing of waste easier; of course, this advice is only for those who don't have nut allergies ) are a few of the obvious things that I have been doing daily since the beginning of the year. Because last year was so busy, I completely ignored this area of my life. And I was becoming very uncomfortable. But the thing that has helped me the most - and it actually started helping me within a couple of days - was generic psyllium fiber supplement powder (better known as Metamucil). The generic brands work just as well as Metamucil, but they cost so much less.  Anyway, the other routines still weren't helping me after a month of doing them, so I started using only one tablespoo...

Hi everyone! I hope you're doing well and thinking about self-care for yourself. I started 2026 tired - no, exhausted. As I've mentioned in previous posts, 2025 was jam-packed with doctor's visits for my husband, son, and self on top of checking on my 80-year-old mother and 83 year-old father who are both in the nursing home, completely helpless, unable to walk, each with their own type of dementia, you get the idea. And we can't forget the housework, deep cleaning efforts, daily meals, washing dishes daily, 2 - 3 laundry days a week, making weekly grocery lists, large biweekly grocery visits, alternating small biweekly grocery visits, books that need to be written. I'll admit, housework, grocery visits, and walking in and out of doctor's visits (parking far distances from the large buildings full of offices), and other shopping was my only exercise. Which was a lot and I felt like it was enough. Albeit, my heels started hurting in 2025, and my knees, hips, and...