Saturday Meanderings

I have missed writing to you these last few weeks. Technological problems are fixed on my website so we are back in business. Happy Saturday and thank you for joining me for Saturday Meanderings~where we discuss all good and exciting things!

Fun New Finds

Eufy Plug-In Lights

Our home is a two story house, with all the bedrooms on the second level. Navigating downstairs in the middle of the night feels treacherous to me. By the time I find the light switch in the hall, I am precariously close to the top step of the staircase.

Recommended by Annie from Most Lovely Things, these little lights can plug in anywhere. They are bright enough to light a path for you. There are four in an order. Illumination occurs when there isn’t enough ambient light. Their small size doesn’t obstruct the second outlet.

With one placed at the top of the stairs and one in the front hall, they provide the perfect amount of glare free light. It feels so much safer now without being too bright. You can find them on Amazon here.

Orchid Pot

I am always in search of items that are pink toned to go in the dining room. You can find blue and white just about anywhere, but it is so much harder to find pottery with these softer colors.

This coral orchid pot from Dear Keaton is just so pretty. Even though I am beyond the stage of adding more things to my home, this purchase did not disappoint. It is the perfect size for my dining room mantel and the orchid fits into it very nicely. BTW, it is a faux orchid!

I don’t recall who turned me onto Dear Keaton. Their style is a bit more contemporary than mine, but they do have some unique pieces. Check them out here.

Updates!

Pizza from Italy

We are experimenting with the Talia de Napoli pizzas from Italy (see blog post here). Now I did master the cook time (10 minutes in our convection oven). By adding some additional tomato sauce (I prefer my homemade one), freshly grated mozzarella, Parmesan cheese, and a few slices of pepperoni, this is now our favorite pizza. My husband likes sausage on his (not mine). Here is the link to Talia de Napoli. Nothing like a pizza made in Naples, Italy to have on hand in your freezer.

Foster Dog Update

A few weeks ago our daughter had a foster dog, Peaches. Peaches, now Freckles, is living with our wonderful neighbors, David and Nancy. She is literally right next door. Freckles hit the jackpot as she is loving her new home and her sister, Luna. Don’t you love a happy ending?

Gardening

I have a dilemma. For quite some time now, I am battling worms in my geraniums. They bore holes into the young blossoms, destroying their ability to bloom. Literally, I hand pick these creepy worms off the flowers. Some plants are worse than others.

We have several huge pots of geraniums located on the front porch. It is so time consuming to search all blossoms and squish the predators. Does anyone know how to get rid of these pests? We have tried sprays to no avail. Help, please!

The tulips are just now blooming in the bulb garden. This bright, cheerful red flower, coupled with the purple hyacinths, is a joy to behold. To see the entire bulb garden in bloom last year, click here.

Right now I am harvesting all the greens in the garden. The minute the temperature goes up, the lettuces bolt and become bitter. Last week our temperatures were in the 80s and this week it is chilly and in the 50s. Typical strange spring weather.

Just want to share with you a view of my garden from a different perspective. The flower garden in the foreground is abundant with petunias and nasturtiums. Hollyhocks are wildly growing everywhere. Inside the picket fence is my vegetable garden and the sweet building beyond is the hen house.

In the Kitchen

We are still plowing through all our citrus and will need to glean our trees very soon. The new blossoms are filling the air with the most heavenly scent. In the meantime, I made another Candied Orange Olive Oil Cake with Cornmeal and Rum. This cake is divine. There is something about the dense texture that reminds me of a peasant type cake.

You may recall I did make this for the first time in 2018 for a luncheon with friends. See that post here. This recipe is a good use of our oranges and kumquats and I do want to make it again before the season is over. Recipe is from The Kitchen McCabe and can be found here.

Fortunately, my friend, Donna gave me a bag of Meyer Lemons so another batch of marmalade is complete. Fresh bread with marmalade~it doesn’t get much better than that! To see the recipe, click here. I cannot rave enough about this marmalade.

At the top of the post is a picture of my homemade crackers/flatbread. Here is another recipe I just love and use often. Rolling fresh edible flowers in the dough makes them extra special. For the recipe and tutorial, see the post here.

Well, that wraps it up for another Saturday. I hope everyone is happy and healthy as it appears the world is slowly opening up again. Hope you have a relaxing weekend!

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