Beauty and Danger

So, while Jim was away we had a stormy night.  As usual I decided to go out to the pool deck and bring in the cushions so they didn't get too wet.  Yes, I know they are all weather fabric, but still.  As I brought them to the house I bent over and next to our grill was a strange looking web and the silhouette of a large spider.  I decided to investigate further- for those who don't know me I just love science and nature!  I brought a flashlight and shone it on the large spider.  Wow, was I not prepared for what I saw.  There she was in all her large, black, scary glory.  Our resident black widow.  My mom was watching the whole thing, saying "that's not a black widow'.  Well, Jim got some spider killer yesterday while he was home and we decided to see just how it worked.  I hadn't see the widow since that rainy night.  But I was convinced she was still around.  Apparently under and behind grills is a very popular place for them to build their webs.  We did a lot of spraying and then went to bed.  Sure enough next morning we were about to go for a swim.  When I went over to investigate she was laying on the ground in front of the grill- belly up.  Luckily I didn't reach for it because when we got some tweezers to pick her up, she was still slightly alive! Yikes!  She's dead now, but still in a glass out back and out of reach.  I just can't feel safe just tossing it in the grass somewhere.  What if the kitties decided she looked interesting.  One widow gone, but certainly not forgotten.

This beautiful tree is one of three bottle-brush trees in absolute full bloom in our yard right now.  Right next to her is a Mango tree with actual mangoes growing.  I am so very, very excited as one of my favorite fruits is Mango!!!!!  Also in our mango tree is a birds nest.  I'm not sure who, if anyone, is using it at the moment, but it was someone's home at some point.

We've been enjoying our strong and spicy home grown arugula.  Unfortunately I haven't been able to locate more plants- and we need MORE!  Jim would argue with that, but not the

 rest of the family!!!  I decided to try seeds instead and had some help from Abby.  She decided to pour them all in at once.  Alas, this is what we have- an arugula forest!

Catching Up

Just doing a bit of spring cleaning here.  I have been inundated with a sundry house chores and the care of a 2yr. old the past few months.  The house is coming along nicely.  We are about 60% furnished and decorated.  The main repairs and immediate necessary changes have been made.  Now, is the time for enjoying the fruits of our labor.

I have been working on and off with a wonderful lady, Annmarie Loveridge, the how-to-gardener.  She is a South Florida expert on native and indigenous plants.  Annmarie is teaching us about the myriad of wonderful living things on our property and we are also working closely to make some exciting upgrades!

We've had some exciting moments here this winter.  We had a fly-over of the Goodyear blimp during the week of the Honda Classic, we had a full double rainbow, a sick and nearly dead cat come back to life (we will be renaming him Lazarus), the discovery of some very cool aquatic frogs that seem to love our pool, visits from our friends the Wilders, and from my sister Lisa, a family photo shoot, gallbladder surgery, and my perfection of the cherry pie!

Jim waited an awfully long time to begin the 2012 Nationwide Tour season.  And with 4 events in the books he sits at 50th on the money list and moving up each week!  The best part moving forward is that we can put away his passport as the international travel should be over for a while, phew!

With other golf related news, Jim recently qualified for the Shell Houston Open this past week.  What an amazing experience.  He shot a 5 under 67 on Monday to put himself in a tie for the final qualifying spot with four other golfers.  After just one playoff hole Monday night just Jim and one other remained.  They played two additional holes Monday before having to suspend play for darkness.  Jim prevailed Tuesday morning on the 3rd hole to secure the final spot!  He had a wonderful tournament littered with rain delays, great play, and crazy schedules!  The final result was a T14, his best PGA Tour finish yet.  My favorite part of the whole day was a short spot that NBC Sports does- the Lexus breakthrough performer of the week.  Jim was the lucky man featured, with many nice highlights and great commentary!!!  Now, it's back to the Nationwide Tour for the Hermans this week with the Soboba Classic in San Jacinto CA.

I have also been enjoying some wonderful times with my Stella & Dot ladies!  Just yesterday I did a fabulous trunk show for my good friend and Nail Stylist, Kelly Miller.  She was a generous and well prepared hostess!  What a blast it was to meet so many of her friends, co-workers, and other clients.  The best part is that Kelly chose St. Jude's Children's Hospital for her charity and was able to raise $125 and counting from the trunk show.  For those of you in the dark about this, I have decided to share my proceeds from trunk shows with a charity or organization of the hostess choice.  It's been a great way to give back and makes the beautiful jewelry and all the fun that goes with a trunk show that much more rewarding.  Also, for the month of April, Stella & Dot is contributing 20% of the sale of their Sole Bracelet and their Shine Bracelet, to Autism Speaks!