De Leon Springs Daycation

Every so often a gal needs a day off....not to hang around the house and do laundry, shopping, cleaning...no, that's work....a "get in the car and go somewhere with the hubby for fun" day off. April 16 was our anniversary and we planned a little trip to Daytona but as luck would have it, I got sick and the furthest I got from the house was Walmart to pick up something for my cough. Awww.....
A couple of days later I heard about this fabulous restaurant in an old sugar mill that was first built in the 1800's....pre Civil War. The more they spoke about the history of the place the more I had to see it. The sugar mill is part of a state park...a springs....and that was all I had to go on. After a little investigating I found it...De Leon Springs on the east part of Florida near Ormond Beach, about 120 miles from home.

 Surprisingly, when I told the hubby about it he said he heard of it, too. The trip was on. A little bit of a ride but it was a beautiful day.....perfect for getting away from the everyday things at home.
The restaurant is built in the old sugar mill. The tables are long tables with a griddle in the middle so a person can cook their own All-You-Can-Eat pancakes...their special recipe. In fact, you get 2 pitchers of pancake batter....an Early American and a more modern recipe, both with oatmeal and I forget what else....both made amazing pancakes. They even have gluten free batter, too.

Sugar Mill History

Florida was inhabited by these tribes before the arrival of the Spanish. 

The Fountain of Youth Springs Tour was docked and ready.We missed the boat tour (they only schedule until 1PM) so we rented a paddle boat to work off a little bit of those pancakes. 

The hubby doing the old man thing....relaxing under one of our beautiful live oak trees. 

Ruins of the original Sugar Mill. This area was where the cane was boiled down for syrup.

Check out the big pot. 

The park rangers had a special turtle program for the kids. 

Here's a few pictures of our trip down the river.

Blue heron. Florida is a great place for bird watching.

Bee and Butterfly Garden....I had to check this out to see what I could grow in mine. They have beautiful fennel growing....big bulbs with huge feathery soft fern-like leaves. I planted fennel seeds as soon as I got home. 

A great day taking the road less traveled. There is so much to do in Florida....much more than the Mouse House or Universal....and not too far from those places. Costs a lot less and less crowded. Very worth the trip. 

Post by Eileen Patterson....GoofingOff

Make a Dog Bed from an Old Sweatshirt

Fred in "Fred's Bed"

 Not too long ago I went to a festival and saw some adorable dog beds made from old sweaters. Great idea....except I don't have any old sweaters to use for such an endeavor. I do, however, have a bunch of sweatshirts that had seen better days. I was planning to cut them up and make a throw for the couch when I thought "why not a dog bed?" So that's what I did.

First, I sewed across the neck of the sweatshirt. Next, I sewed across the shirt from armhole to armhole, creating a tube. I filled the tube with fiberfill and sewed the cuffs together. The body of the sweatshirt was next. I filled that with fiberfill, too. That made a cushy bed. 

Yes, my sweatshirt is yucky, tacky, and whatever, but it has my scent.....and Fred likes that. I told him it was Fred's Bed and he loved it.....I think....

Cost.....fiberfill about 1/2 of a bag...bag costs about $6 at Walmart.

Old sweatshirt.....$1 if you have to buy it at a thrift shop

thread.

Cheap, easy, and one less thing in the landfill. 

Post by Eileen Patterson....forever GoofingOff.

How to Make a Bird Feeder with a Repurposed Plate Tutorial

I love yard sales, sort of. I love to look for treasures under piles of junk and sometimes I do pretty good....then there are other times that I think "you should have stayed home...you have more money than sense." Sound familiar? The other day I stopped at a friend's yard sale and she had a deal for me. A bunch of stuff....Some of it looked good, a lot looked like the first stop was the dump but I bought it anyway. No, she didn't twist my arm....In fact, her yard sales are pretty good with incredible antiques, this stuff was being sold for a friend....Anyway, I bought it. All 4 boxes.

I found this incredible vintage plate among the items. Lovely. Very pretty with Asian styling. See the chip? I didn't at first. I would have kicked myself in the butt but I haven't done yoga in a while and am not as flexible as I once was. 

Made in Japan....Woo Hoo. Then I examined it....a chip on one side. Ugh....What to do with it? Too pretty to throw out. Hmmm......A bird feeder for the front porch! 

I've had plenty of bird feeders over the years but most get chewed up be squirrels or just fall apart from age and the weather. The plate has 2 holes on each side of it....perfect! Into the studio it went (I feel like the professor on Gilligan's Island in there....lots of stuff to make anything with).  I found my fishing line and strung some beads for a little bit of flash. 

Voila! A bird feeder! Hopefully the cardinals and wren we have in this area won't mind the chip.....And one less thing going to the dump.  Now to keep Mr.Ted away from it while the birds are noshing a bit of seed.

Post by Eileen Patterson.....always GoofingOff.