Peace on Earth

 

Our 2020 Annual Letter to All

      Once again, it's that time of year to greet you from sometimes sunny, sometimes cloudy Fernandina Beach, Amelia Island, Florida. This is where we offer family highlights of the past year. May you find more pleasure than we did as you digest our happenings.  Here goes:

And that's our news. Anyway, have a wonderful  2021 and may it offer a few more delights to share.

Much love to the world,

Jane Marie 

P.S.  I almost forgot.  Mother cut Father's hair in the parking lot during an oil change and, one day, we all watched Father's toenails grow.

Hollywood Hearts: What Christmas Movie Does This Represent?

Spoiler Alert <----  You'll discover who the owner of the cane is if you click on the link to see the final scene in this fun and touching 1947 American classic, black and white, Christmas movie.  If you get the chance, watch it for the first time or revisit it.  Find it online to buy or rent and perhaps for free on Turner Classic Movies. 

 

Scroll down for the answer.

Merry Christmas from our home to yours!

P.S. Tie a festive bow on a cane in your house and ask folks if they know its connection to Christmas. 🎄

ANSWER:

 "Miracle on 34th Street"

Goodbye Lie's Sugar and Spice Nuts Recipe

      Make your own Sugar & Spice Nuts which are featured in e-book or paperback version of The Goodbye Lie, set on Amelia Island, Florida in 1882 - where Little House on the Prairie meets Gone With The Wind …

Turn to page 158 of this romantic period suspense novel to read about the Fort Clinch Dance where these delights are served.  Festive, they make any occasion even more special. 

You'll need:

12 ounces whole pecans (almonds or unsalted walnuts will work, too)

2 cup sugar

1 cup water

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

grated rind of two oranges

pinch of cloves

Mix all the ingredients in a heavy skillet.  Simmer over medium-high heat.  Stir constantly for 5 minutes or until the water evaporates.  Pour the nuts onto 2 cookie sheets treated with non-stick spray.  With a fork, separate them quickly and let cool.  Sugared nuts may be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer or kept at room temperature about 2 weeks. Odds are they won't last long!

Merry Christmas from the Critter Crew 

and 

Jane Marie

Critter photo curtesy of Barbra Boutin LLC

  Big Fish Real Estate Services

850 597-0080

Timeless Snowman Craft Plus The Goodbye Lie Diaries - Breelan and Nora

Present Day

Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida

    Meet my  Snowman.  He's a happy fellow I created years ago.  He decided to resurface in the attic and so I thought I'd share him with you.  Easy to create, he would be flattered if you made a replica of him. When you do, please share a photo of your snowman so we can all see his new relatives!:

You'll Need:

8 1/2 inch Hurricane Glass (available at craft and hardware stores or online)

Alcohol to clean any oils off the hurricane glass so the paint will adhere

White spray or liquid paint meant for glass (read the label to be sure)

Colorful sock for hat

Pompom and Christmas trim for the hat

Black paint

Orange paint

Light blue paint for snowflake decoration

Small paint brush

Pencil for decorative snowflake dots

     Wipe the hurricane glass down with alcohol.  Let dry.  Outdoors or in a ventilated area, cover the outside of the hurricane glass with white spray paint or use a paint brush. (Oh, try painting the inside of the glass white, but decorate the outside with the face.  It might end up adding visual depth.) Paint the face as pictured or your own version. Make the mouth with the eraser end of a pencil dipped in black paint.  If you don't reload the pencil eraser with paint, as you dab on the glass, the dots will diminish in size! (Practice on a scrap of paper first.)  Using the tiny end of a paintbrush or some other small dully pointed object, dip it in the light blue paint and dab on the the snowflakes. When dry, top with a sock, adding the trim with hot glue.   

Merry Christmas!

P.S. Do not put a burning candle inside.  A battery powered flickering candle would be pretty and you can also set your Snowman on a decorative plate.  He or she, if yours is a girl, will like that.

************

The Goodbye Lie Diaries

Late 1800s

Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida 

Breelan Dunnigan and Nora  discuss Jane Marie's Snowman while looking for shark teeth on the beach:

Breelan Dunnigan

Breelan: Have you heard about Jane Marie making a snowman out of one of those glass hurricane  globes?

Nora: No, I haven't.  It sounds lovely.

Breelan:  I don't believe I would use the word lovely.  It's more ... ah ... whimsical.

Nora:  Oh, I like that better.  The only reason I said lovely is because mother is constantly trying to get me to talk more formal-like.  Her latest obsession, you know.

Breelan: Well then, when you're around her, describe everything as superb, delightful, excellent, magnificent, exceptional, admirable ... Oh, say sterling, too.  A week of highfalutin talk like that  and even Aunt Noreena, oh, sorry, that's what Peeper calls your mother as you know, well, even Aunt Noreen will feel the strain of the pretense and go back to normal talk.

Nora Duffy

Nora: That's an outstanding observance, my esteemed cousin.  I shall endeavor to do preciesely as you advocate.  

Breelan:  You are so silly, Nora.

Nora:  Yes, I am, Bree.  That's why you like me so much. Now tell me about this glass snowman.

After explaining the process, Breelan said, "We have so many old oil lamps in the barn, no one will miss them.  We can make early Christmas presents for our mothers and a few for our daddies' offices and one for the little house for Peeper.   You know how much she treasures any handmade anything from her grands.

Nora: She still has the pot holder or what's left of it I wove when I was seven, the one with the charred corner where it fell on the stove and caught fire.  

Breelan: That's our Peeper. Everyone loves Peep because she loves everyone.

Nora: Almost.  Then there's my mother...

 Read all about the lives and passionate loves of the Dunnigan men and women of Amelia Island's Goodbye Lie series.  Their deeds and misdeeds will sometimes surprise you, shock you,  and bring you to laughter and tears, just like real life.

E-books and Paperbacks available here:

                          Amelia Island's Goodbye Lie series

 

Apple Butter Smoothie Discovery Plus A Goodbye Lie Excerpt and Recipe with Miss Ella

 There I was, in search of fruit of some sort for a smoothie. All I had on hand was one still to be ripened banana.  Hmm.  Perhaps applesauce?  That might work. Then I thought, how about grape jelly?  There's fruit in jelly, right?  Alas, there was no grape or strawberry or raspberry jelly or jam in the fridge.  My husband, Brucie, has a habit of polishing off household foodstuffs and neglecting to add those items to the shopping list for replacement.  Grrrrr.  I digress. So, along those lines,  I saw the brand new jar of apple butter in the cupboard.  Why not?  Let me tell you, it was very good!  Here is a list of estimated amounts of the ingredients I used.  You'll have to make yours to taste, but do give it a try.

JMM's Apple Butter Smoothie  

3/4 cup of non-fat plain yogurt

4 heaping teaspoons of your favorite brand of apple butter

1/2 cup no fat milk

1/2 a tray of ice cubes

Blend and enjoy any time of the year.

Enjoy! - Jane Marie

***

Excerpt from Goodbye Lie concerning Apple Butter:

     Turning to leave the barn Miss Ella asked, "How did you happen to come home so early today? It's just now five o'clock. Are things going well in the world of architecture?" Michael knows supper is always served at six, she thought, unless there's a potluck meal at church or some other social event. Then again, it could be his already bulging belly demands an earlier feeding. 

     "What's the use of being the boss, if I can't play a little hooky with my baby here?" His tone was short. This was certainly one of his hungry moods coming on.   

     "I'll see if I can't hurry up your dinner, Michael."

     "What? You mean it'll be a while?"

   "Yes, darling," she responded in as sarcastic a voice as his question deserved. "If you'd listen to your wife occasionally, you'd hear her say she has a few things to do besides following the timetable of her husband's stomach."

     He reacted with a snort.

    "Today, as substitute choir mistress, I was called upon to make last minute changes in this Sunday's schedule of hymns because Miss Bayer is out of town visiting her grandfather and Mrs. Lingenfelter is having her baby."

     Her husband grumbled in disgust. Unable to stay cross with him for long, she offered, "If you'll give me ten minutes, I'll pull some cornbread from the oven and slather it with apple butter for you to nibble on. That should tide you over for a bit until I'm sure the soup is done."

     "You know how I hate it if the beans are the least bit hard," he cautioned.

     "We only hate the devil," Marie announced.

    "Yes, baby girl. That's right. See there, Michael. It's true what they say about little pitchers having big ears and our little pitcher hears everything. Don't think she doesn't."

    Michael replaced his grimace with a smile and kissed his youngest child on the cheek.

MISS ELLA

     Miss Ella shook her head at her sometimes moody, but very wonderful husband, thinking how lucky she was to have him. Back inside the aromatic kitchen, she checked the steeping jelly kettle of peaches, stirred the pot of salt pork and bean soup, and cleared a spot for the hot cornbread among the fresh radishes and onions. It had been such a peaceful afternoon. Too peaceful, she realized. 

     Where was Jack Patrick? Her only son, age eight, was usually so noisy she knew his whereabouts every minute. She left the kitchen, went down the long hall past the stairs, and entered the front parlor to find her mother, Hettie Eckert, known to all as Grammy. Grammy was swaying in her rocker, intently working on a braided rag rug, and there was Jack Patrick, sneaking up from behind, scissors in hand, about to cut the soft wild-hair wispies from his sainted grandmother's head! 

     "Jack Patrick!" yelped his mother. 

     Calmly placing the shears back in the sewing basket, he stated, "Mama, I hope lightning flies through the window and kills the cat. I'm innocent!" 

     She knew exactly how innocent he was. She allowed the boy to dash out the front door before he caught her laughing.

***

Amelia Island's Goodbye Lie series

 Ebooks and paperbacks HERE

*Miss Ella's Apple Butter Recipe

You'll need:

• 4 cups unsweetened applesauce (made from cored apples that have been slowly cooked to reduce them to pulp or purchased applesauce)

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 teaspoons cinnamon

• Nutmeg to taste (use sparingly)

• Cloves to taste (use sparingly)                                                   

Combine the ingredients and bring them to a boil.

Reduce the heat and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.  

Spice to taste.

Serve on warm cornbread, muffies or bread.

Makes five cups.



*Miss Ella is the matriarch of the Dunnigan family. Loving, intelligent and married to Michael, she is the mother of four and known for her cooking, roses and general kindness toward everyone. 

Toss or Treasure It? plus Goodbye Lie Diaries - Miss Ella

     There are two kinds of folks. Those who look at the roses pictured above and say something like, "Why do you keep those old dead flowers?"  Then there are those, like me, who say something like, "I adore dried flowers.  Their muted shadow of what once was brilliant color can't dim the memories they hold."  What do you see?  Dead or dried flowers?  Trash or wonder at the beautiful sentiment they represent? - jmm

The Goodbye Lie Diaries - Miss Ella Dunnigan

   (*Miss Ella is the beloved matriarch of the Dunnigans in the historical romance/suspense Goodbye Lie series set on Amelia Island, Florida.  Wise, patient, kind and a wonderful cook, she leads her bunch, including her husband, Michael, toward and to the real treasures of life, family.) 

Buy e-books or paperbacks from The Goodbye Lie series here

 

*Miss Ella

Circa late 1800s

Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida

Miss Ella writes:

     Dear Jane Marie,

        Being a rosarian, I agree when you say roses or any flower for that matter, in a dried state, evoke sweet memories.  There is many a book in which I have pressed my flowers. With the art of living occupying my time, I readily admit to a gentle thrill upon discovering a dried blossom between the pages of a beloved novel or book of verse. It is then I visit the memory the faded bloom evokes. Such a sweet blessing this is.

                                                           With regards of great warmth,

                                                                                  Ella

Buy e-books or paperbacks from The Goodbye Lie series here

      

The Reader's Motto

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

+

  

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC

 Bookworms

 Aerate 

The Mind 

     -jmm  

Easy Halloween Costume!

Boo!  

I found this picture amongst the rubble of files in my laptop.  I'd forgotten about it.  We all dressed as scarecrows once upon a time when I held the monthly Bunko party at my house.   

Easy costume  to make!

Find a plaid or stripped shirt of some sort.  The one I'm wearing I found in the back of my hubby's closet.  A flannel shirt would work well, too.  I tied a multi-colored raffia bow at the neck.  Add jeans or bib overalls.  Tie a rope around your waist.  Decorate a straw hat with artificial flowers, birds, fruits or veggies or the real thing if you have them.  If you have tan raffia, you can hang it from under the hat to look like hair.  One of the other ladies did this and it was very cute.  I wore my hair in pigtails and added burgundy wire ribbon to each to make big bows.  Then I put on some bright lipstick and, using brown eyeliner, I outlined my mouth. A few more strokes and you can see the stitching onto my cheeks and around my eyes.  Such fun, it didn't cost me any money because I had everything around the house.  This costume works for every member of the family, too! 

 Happy Halloween!    - jmm

 

Rodent Ready

      Another find!: Twitter.com, November 25, 2019, Brian Roemmele@BrianRoemmele - In Brian's tweet, I read the margin line on notebook paper was originally put there to give rodents (a problem back when) a place to gnaw.  If the author kept his or her cursive within the center of the paper, leaving this wide margin, the hope was the rats would stay on their side of the line and not chew into the handwritten material. Thank you, Brian.  These are the things that happily clog my mind!  -jmm

P.S. Photo curtsey of Bob Harkins, proud owner of the pictured rodents from A Bag of Rats given to him by his niece, Ava. Thank you, Bob and Ava.  I can't present such wonderment to the world without you! 🤗🤗🤗

Late Afternoon on Amelia Island - Goodbye Lie Diaries - Carolena

This is where we live and The Goodbye Lie series is set, sans the modern boardwalk. 

 I took the picture from that beachside boardwalk. Generations of fictional and nonfictional folk 

have been blessed to see similar views. 

 Can't get much prettier than this!

***

Carolena Dunnigan

Goodbye Lie Diaries

Entry by Carolena Dunnigan 

 

 Late 1800s

 Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida

     Carolena writes: My stars, but that is a beautiful picture, Jane Marie. Oh, to have the ability to catch moments of time as you do with your camera. I am trying to talk our father, Michael, into buying one of those new Kodak box-looking cameras I saw in our Florida Mirror newspaper. I am sure we would all willingly gather to have our pictures made.  To our mother's chagrin, Daddy rarely says no to his children's wants.  I have only begun persuading him.  Poor darling. I can be a dog with a bone when I want something, now can't I?

Carolena Dunnigan is the featured player in Amelia Island's Velvet Undertow, set in 1889 Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida.  Judgemental, with a quick temper, she is the interior designer for yachts and ships in the family's Aqua Verde Passenger Line.  Commissioned to build a yacht for a world famous conductor, Paulo Alontti, deceit reigns, taking the family into the horrors of the great Johnstown, Pennsylvania flood.  One reader wrote: I can smell the flood waters! This is all part of Jane Marie Malcolm's Goodbye Lie historical mystery/romance series.

The Goodbye Lie - A Quote

Leona wanted him in her bed with all the fury
 and power he possessed. - The Goodbye Lie

 

A Victorian Romance Series 

on 

Amelia Island, Florida

🌹🌹🌹 The Goodbye Lie Series

E-books and Paperbacks HERE 

follow the lure, the love, the legend ...

HE

SHE

Cheese Crisps - Yummo!

Cheese Crisp with home grown tomatoes!!!

     Once upon a time, I was making a toasted cheese sandwich on our George Foreman grill.  I laid down the bread and cheese and closed the lid, soon realizing I had forgotten to add the top slice of bread.  Yikes, thought I!  I will never get off the burned cheese directly  in contact with the lid.  "Freak not, lest ye be freaked!" (JMM original)  The grill is non-stick coated, for true!

     With the love of cheese always in my mental meal plan, I remembered we had dined at a fancy restaurant many years ago.  They served some sort of cheesy rounds sprinkled with black pepper.  They were crunchy, too.  I have always wanted to recreate them. Bravely, I sprinkled a very thin layer of shredded sharp cheese on the ungreased Georgie grill. You may also lay down two cheddar pre-sliced squares.  Pluging it in, I closed the lid, waiting 30 seconds. I peeked. The melted cheese needed a bit more heat to turn it golden brown. Adding another 20 seconds or so, I unplugged the grill, opened the lid, sprinkled on a dash of garlic powder and black pepper and waited for my creation to cool.  Just like the lid, the cheese crisp lifted easily and I placed it on a sterile white plate for pure clean contrast. 

     Now, the edges were crispy and so was the center, as desired.  Sometimes, if the sprinkled cheese is a bit thicker in the middle, the center may be a bit rubbery.  So matter, the taste is grand.  Give it a try.

     Disclaimer:  My cheese did not stick on my grill.  I hope yours won't either.  🤞

     Enjoy! - jmm   

melting cheese on the non-stick grill 

(That is not black pepper.  

The tiny bubbles from the melted cheese popped.)

Let a Brooch Tell Your Story plus Goodbye Lie Diaries - Breelan

     Good friend Donna Crocker  gave me the bejewel-ed purse and heavenly angel brooches pictured here because she knows I will wear them.  

     There are so many reasons to accessorize with a brooch. With their intricate design, they often tell a tale, mood, feeling or belief.  They sparkle.  They are functional with regard to securing a scarf.  They are decorative and frequently glorify nature, flowers, birds and animals.  They are usually delicate in weight and make a good gift for mailing. They might represent a special occasion or achievement. They can be handed down through generations as a keepsake or token of love. Whether rhinestones or diamonds, wear these treasures or make a framed collage. They are meant to be shared and seen for everyone to appreciate their art. 

     Thank you, Donna.  -jmm, present day, Amelia Island, Florida

The Goodbye Lie Diaries 

Circa late 1800s

Amelia Island, Florida

Breelan Dunnigan writes: Jane Marie, did I tell you I once discovered a small horseshoe shaped brooch with a tiny gold heart on it inside my writing notebook? What a grand surprise it was. I will oft times wear it in the hope someone will slip and tell me it was their doing.  Of course, Waite is not very pleased when he sees it because he swears it is not from him. He must be telling the truth or else he would not wear that grim face when we speak of it.  He is silly jealous sometimes.  For  all we are aware, it could be from my mother or father, wishing me good fortune when I entered that short story contest.  I did find it about that same time. Or, it could be from a hopeful suitor.  Admittedly, I have been gifted with some lovely and some unual surprises from men, but we'll save those details for another time.                      

     Fall is in the air. Mother's wild red roses are glorious, their scent filling the air the moment you step through the back screen door. May they still be available as cuttings to grow your own in your time. Until our next correspondence, Breelan   

  

*****    

 

⮜   Breelan Dunnigan is the heroine in The Goodbye Lie , the first novel in the historical fiction romance series set on Amelia Island, Florida in the late 1800s. Each of the books features an adult sibling in the Irish American family.  Follow their deeds and misdeeds continued on this blog in The Goodbye Diaries as you read the other novels, Amelia Island's Velvet Undertow and Amelia Island's Mark of a Man. (available in ebook and paperback) Enjoy!

Amelia Island's Goodbye Lie - In a Seashell*

  *In a Seashell, In a Nutshell - get it?  We live on Amelia Island, Florida with lots of water and sand and shells and so does the Dunnigan family featured in The Goodbye Lie Series,  circa the late 1800s.  Available in ebook and paperback HERE. Come dip your toes in our sea!

Jane Marie's Old Hollywood Faves

Dear Friends,

     Between reading the books in a romance series like ... ummm ... say The Goodbye Lie series, you may want to watch something on TV where the storyline isn't filled with explosions, drug dealers and expletives.  Enter:  Jane Marie's Old Hollywood Faves (1915 to 1963).  Since I write love stories,  I am a self-recognized expert when it comes to romantic films from that Golden Age of Hollywood you always hear about.  

     As Bruce, my husband, says, "Just because it's old, that doesn't mean it's good." He's right.  When it comes to my list, though, I can vouch for all these movies.  If you like tasteful romance with a heartfelt story, you will enjoy them. 

     Warning! You may shed a tear or two during some, but we all know a good cry can be a wonderful release.  If you don't understand that last sentence, may I suggest you tune into another episode of My Mother the Car. (Yes, that was a real television show once upon a time.)

      I have turned many onto these 20th century films.  Pay attention to the wonderful clothes, style and backgrounds plus the dialogue. Often, too, there are objects or decor supporting the plot and mood of a scene.  Fun stuff!

     Search the internet, YouTube, Netflix, Turner Classic Movies and so many other places to find these delights, many at no cost.    

     Finally, in no particular order, here are:

Jane Marie's Top 

Old Hollywood Faves

Back Street - 1961, Susan Hayward and John Gavin, heavy drama, color 💔😭

Now, Voyager - 1942, Bette Davis and Paul Henreid, drama, black and white 💘 😢

An Affair to Remember - 1957, Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr (pronounced Car), light-hearted to dramatic, color 😍😢

Pillow Talk - 1959, Doris Day and Rock Hudson,  cute comedy, color  😍

Gone With The Wind - 1939, Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh, circa the American Civil War, drama, color 💚💕

Houseboat - 1958, Cary Grant and Sohpia Loren, comedy, color  😍

Gilda - 1946, Rita Hayworth and Glen Ford, heavy drama, black and white, wow story! 💓😥💚😠

Singin' in the Rain- 1952, Gene Kelly and Debbie Renyolds, romantic musical, color 🎵😘

North by Northwest - 1959, Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint, sophisticated romance/ mystery/suspense (directed by Alfred Hitchcock) 😲💕

All That Heaven Allows - 1955, Rock Hudson and Jane Wyman, drama, color 💕

The Enchanted Cottage - 1945, sweet drama, black and white 😌💕

Bonus Fave

The Quiet Man - 1952,  John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, charming, mostly lighthearted, family favorite, color 😍

Honorable Mention

Move Over, Darling - 1964, Doris Day and James Garner, romantic comedy 😍

Magnificent Obsession - 1954, Rock Hudson and Jane Wyman, drama 💘😢 

Mogambo - 1953, Clark Gable, Ava Gardner and Grace Kelly, drama in untamed Africa 💚

1940s Jane Marie image 

sent in by

Jessica R. from Dallas, Texas,

 a reader who knows I have a passion for Old Hollywood. She found my picture online and turned back time.  Far too flattering, but so much fun.  Thank you, Jessica! 

Pure Romance - Bass and Treble Couplers - Plus Amelia Island's Velvet Undertow Excerpt

     My sweet friend, Debbie Mahon, sent me a simple muted-toned photo of roses on a piano.  She said it reminded her of me.  I loved it.  (I don't know where she found it, but I will credit the photographer if I find out.)   Roses and music are the ideal combination for romance.  And since I write The Goodbye Lie series of romance novels, I was, of course, inspired to take my own picture, as seen above.  Pink roses and our antique (working!) pump organ say romance, at least in my book. Sorry, I had to add that cliché. Then I zoomed in on the picture to see if the round labeled white stops you pull out to change the sound while playing are readable.  They are and that's when I realized how the two stops I use most are the bass coupler and treble coupler. They were already pulled out when I took the shot and it came to me that the stops represent the male and female in my stories.  How much fun is it to discover romance in unexpected places?

The Goodbye Lie series

 available in E-books and Paperbacks

     The photo below is the original shot I snapped showing the pump organ music "Mosquite Waltz" which is featured as the backdrop on Amelia Island's Velvet Undertow front cover.

 

🎵 Listen to Mosquito Waltz here,

Amelia Island's Velvet Undertow cover sheet music as played on the the pictured pump organ above 

by Linda Plumlee Riley.

May it transport you back to 1889 where you can join the Dunnigan family and experience all

shades of their antics ...

From the cover above:

Witnessing the unthinkable, Carolena Dunnigan's secure life on Amelia Island, Florida turns to ashes.  Determined to save her siblings, she fleas to Charleston, South Carolina for work.  Unholy entanglements and revolting revelations drive her to Pennsylvania and the devastating Johnstown Flood of 1889.  It scours away secrets of the past, but will anyone survive this powerful undertow of shock and struggle?

***

     Excerpt: An earth-shaking roar in the distance drew louder.  And louder still.  The only other sound every man, woman and child in the town could hear was his or her own heart.  Instinctively, each knew the time of their passing had come.

     A living, seething, tumbling mountain of debris headed for them.  It toppled trees, houses, and buildings like so many dominoes.  Friends, animals,  the spring-sprouted blades of grass, all life itself, disappeared into the churn.  Nothing was spared.

***

Known to her fans as Gracious Jane Marie of GraciousJaneMarie.com, Jane Marie Malcolm celebrates HEART & HOME with roses, recipes and romance.  She is the creator of Martha Bear's world of silly stories for the entire family at MarthaBear.com and continues work on future novels and shorter delights to entice her diverse legion of readers.  

Save the Tomatoes

     I have grown two tomato plants from seed.  With Tropical Storm Isaias headed up the east coast of Florida, going past Amelia Island where we are, I am afraid the wind might knock them over. They are staked and tied with two bricks holding down a tomato cage. Still, to be on the safe side, I dragged the trash and recycling cans near them as a barrier. Not pretty, but it can't hurt. Right?  

Be well and safe everyone. -jmm