My New Spring Photos For My Roku TV Backdrops

 

                                                    Photo by Gary Bendig
 

No, this is a new post and not a replay from my old blog.  Surprise!  My Roku large screen TV has a backdrops function. If you're not familiar with that, it's a photo shown on the screen when the TV is on but you're not actively watching.  You know, these smart TVs will ask you if you're still watching when you're in the middle of a long movie. You haven't touched the remote or made a change.  If you don't reply, you can be bounced.  This happens to me on streaming TV, which I watch a lot. I run to the bathroom or kitchen and sometimes come back to a backdrop photo.  Oh, well.  

 

                                                 Photo by Gary Bendig on Unsplash                                                     My favorite backdrop year round! 

 

I take time each season to select new photos appropriate for the time. (You can tell I'm not overworked in my retirement.)  I went through holiday winter photos and then just winter photos.  I know that we're still in the midst of a cold winter. Boy, do I know.  It went to 28 degrees F last night. I'm sitting here in sweatpants, sweat shirt, fuzzy socks, plus a cover on my legs.  Yes, I'm fine and cozy. You couldn't blast me out of my place today.  There were light snow flurries on the Gulf coast of central Florida in the early hours of this morning!

  

 

 

                                   Photos via Facebook, creator unknown
 

 

 

                                                    Photo by Daniil Silantev on Unsplash

 

For fun, I need some spring inspiration. Enough of the beautiful snow scenes, elk photos, white owl close-ups, arctic fox in the snow portraits. I need pretty spring to get me through  the current winter weather.  I didn't move to Florida in the 1970s for snow. I choose spring photos from the selection offered by Roku. They tell you the name of each photographer. I did an online search for them, and every one of them has an account at Unsplash! That's where Roku got them for free, and you can too.  Therefore, I will credit photographer and you can find them on Unsplash.  The nice thing about Unsplash, like Pixabay and Pexels, it is free to join and is a community of creative people who like to photograph the world.

 

Here are my favorite choices as of today, Sunday, February 1st for the coming few months:

 

                                                                Photo by Andy He

 

 
 

 I must admit, flowering tree blossoms are my favorite photos for spring, especially cherry blossoms in  all that pink loveliness.

 

                                                    Photo by Crystal Kay
 

 

                                                        Photo by Mark Tegethoff

 

Let's not forget the beautiful spring flowers pushing up from the ground. 

 

                                                  Photo by Christiana Bohorquez

 

 

                                                Photo by Marivi Pazos

 

 

I just love the idea of folks around the world taking photos and sharing them with us.

 

 

                                                         Photo by Sam Carter

 

She has a sweet face, doesn't she (he?).

 

 

                                                            Photo by Pedro Sanz

 

 

                                                     Photo by Yusheng Deng

 

 

Lambs and other baby animals are cute.

 

 

                                             Photo by Erik Jan Leusink

 

 

                                             Photo by Svetozar Cenisev

 

 

 Isn't he cute with his rump in the air on the budding tree?

 

 

                                                            Photo by Peter Muscutt

 

The last photo of the day takes us back to green grass and trees with leaves.  This photo is the only one that isn't on Unsplash.  Peter Muscutt has an Unsplash account but the photo is not included in it.  I found it on his Pexel account, go figure. I hope you have a good week no matter the weather.  

Until we talk again, I'm your friend Carol, living on a lake in central Florida.

 

 

 

 

                                                                            This post was shared on these fabulous link parties!

 

 

 

 

Top 50 Most Viewed Posts & Pages on Comfortspringstation.com in 2025

  

   

 I blogged with WordPress for over 13 years at www.comfortspringstation.com.  Just last week, I set up my new blog here on Blogspot.  My old site will only continue to be live only until March. My goal is to post the most popular posts from Comfort Spring to Carol On The Lake.  I wrote over a 1000 posts on that blog, and I certainly don't need to bring all of them over to my new one. 

Since my old blog, www.comfortspringstation.com was a WordPress.org website, I had several plugins that gave me lots of information. A very important plugin is Jetpack. It provides protection, stats, and other functions. At the beginning of every month, I'd get a report from Jetpack on the visits to the blog by day, week, month.  You can modify and search for a 12-month report, a report from the start of the year until now, and other interesting subjects like leading referrers.

In 2025, www.comfortspringstation.com had 146,841 views with 114,493 individual visitors. 

 The statistics from Jetpack were:

Top 50 Most Viewed Posts on 

www.comfortspringstation.com in 2025

1.   Cheesy Broccoli Potato Bake                                         10,626
2.   Roasted Potatoes & Spinach                                           6,600
3.   All I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten                  5,189
4.   Fast Meal of Linguine With Red Clam Sauce                  4,688
5.   Easy Cucumber & Onion Salad                                       4,601
6.   Summer Squash Quiche With Thyme                             4,359 
7.   Sweet Potato Apple Cranberry Bake                               3,648 
8.   Green Avocado & Spinach Smoothie                              3,271  
9.   How To Create An Entryway                                           2,615 
10.   Fast & Filling Meals                                                         2,531 
11.  Slow Cooker Black-Eyed Peas With Greens & Ham       2,467
12.  Fall Apple Cinnamon Infused Water                                 2,325  
13.  Pan Seared Tilapia                                                           2,222
14.  Chicken Avocado Salad With Citrus Chipotle Dressing   2,200
15.  Steamed Salmon in Aluminum Foil                                  2,175
16.  Slow Cooker Stewed Chicken                                          2,112 
17.   Pork Chops in Garlic Mushroom Sauce                         1,818  
18.   Bacon & Cheese Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes                   1,810   
19.   Slow Cooker Roast Beef With Apples & Onions           1,743  
20.   Welcome Home Printable for Spring and Summer       1,675
21.   Slow Cooker Pork & Sauerkraut                                   1,633 
22.   Kale, Apple & Feta Salad                                             1,625    
23.   Best Low-Fat Spinach Dip Recipe                               1,614  
24.   Crunchy Apple Salsa                                                   1,608 
25.   Peach Cole Slaw                                                         1,555  
26.   Quinoa Brown Rice Southwest Bowl                           1,455 
27.   Raspberry Baby Greens Salad                                   1,344 
28.   The Many Colors of Tropical Hibiscus                        1,321 
29.   6 Tips to Style a Picture Ledge                                   1,298 
30.   Winter Salad With Fruit & Poppy Seed Dressing       1,174 
31.   Easy Black Bean Dip                                                  1,160 
32.   Green Smoothie With Cucumber, Celery & Pear       1,042 
33.   Fresh Succotash                                                           935 
34.  Mango Bliss Frozen Smoothie                                      924 
35.  Pineapple Cucumber Salad                                          918
36.  Roasted Butternut Squash with Onion & Spinach        860 
37.  Ginger Garlic Vegetable Stir Fry                                  852 
38. "May the road rise" Irish Blessing                                 835 
39.  Healthy Chicken Breakfast Sausage                           728 
40.  Crock Pot Mushroom Lentil Barley Stew                     709 
41.  Best Healthy Tri-Color Sweet Cole Slaw Mayo-Free   709 
42.  Cheesy Ham & Asparagus Casserole                         672  
43.  Green Bean Salad With Tomatoes, Olives & Feta       628 
44.  Savoy Cabbage Soup                                                  627 
45.  Ideas For A Backyard Shady Spot                               598 
46.  Slow Cooker Ham                                                        555
47.  Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff                                 548
48.  Easy Cast Iron Skillet Fruit Cobbler                             505
49.  Deviled Easter Chick Eggs                                          494 
50.  Cucumber, Corn, Black Bean & Avocado Salad         494

 

 You will notice in the top 7 posts, 6 of them have links and have already been published on the blog. I apologize for so many posts in the last week.  At first, I thought I should add these to the new blog right away, but that's not a fun nor practical way to share them.  I put up the 6 from the top of the most visited posts list. I will add the others in the future. I like to blog on Monday about whatever is on my mind or happening. I'll sprinkle these mostly top recipes in the future posts on Mondays & Tuesdays.  As I publish or schedule from the list, I'll add a new link to this post. I'll feature this post for the first year. Let's see how many actually are published. 

 

Update 2/9/26

I have written and scheduled all but 5 posts of the top 50.  I should easily  finish writing and scheduling the 50 in the next week.

On Thursdays, I usually post nature photos. I like to participate in Yogi's Den's link party, Sky Watch Friday on Thursday afternoons.  The quality of photography is outstanding, and I do love looking at the sky.  Whether blue skies, dark winter clouds, sunrise, or sunset, I like them all.

 That is my plan for my blog. It's a similar pattern of posts as Comfort Spring, but I did lots more posts there.   I hope you drop by and visit me here at Carol on the Lake, and I'll drop by and visit you on yours if you have one. Have a great week and STAY WARM!   The weather is terrible! 

 

 

 

 This post was shared on these fabulous link parties!

 

 

 

Slow Cooker Stewed Chicken

 

          

                            

                     Originally published on comfortspringstation.com on 3/4/24 

                                            #16 in post visits in 2025!

                                  

January is a cold month even here in Florida.  Cold weather always makes me crave comfort food filled with vegetables, broth, and protein.  I just love a single pot meal.  Today I’m using a crockpot to make stewed chicken.  If you are wondering what the difference is between chicken soup and chicken stew, the main difference is the amount of liquid versus the ingredients.  In soup your ingredients are usually floating in the broth while the hearty stew is filled with chunks of vegetables and meat with some broth.  Often when I plan on making chicken soup, it is in reality a stew.

 

 

The necessary ingredients are probably in most kitchens already: onions, carrots, celery, potatoes, and frozen green peas or green beans. You can add both the beans and peas if you like. If you wish to add corn or peppers, feel free to adjust to your taste or what you already have.  My mother always served her stews over rice and I continue to do that. It is optional of course. Take 10 to 15 minutes to put everything in the slow cooker but the frozen peas/beans, turn it on low, and come back 30 minutes before the stew is cooked to add the frozen veggies. Some people like to use chunks of boneless, skinless chicken, but I like to use skinless chicken with the bones.  I think it adds flavor to the dish. You may serve it without thickening it or add a corn starch and broth mix at the end. Cooking time depends on your crock pot as some pots cook faster than others.  Cook time is between 6 to 7 hours.  I always say make it your own recipe with the changes you like.  This dish can be frozen, but let it cool to room temperature before freezing.  To reheat place in a pot on low on your stove top. I personally don't like to freeze food with cooked potatoes in them. Freezing pretty much destroys what I like about potatoes. I'd remove the potatoes before freezing.

 

Slow Cooker Stewed Chicken

Use organic when available. Serves 6  Prep: 15 minutes Cook time: 6.5 hours

  

Ingredients

• 3-4 lb skinless chicken breasts or thighs
• 2 medium sweet onions diced
• 3 celery stalks diced and a few celery leaves
• 4 carrots peeled and sliced
• 2 large peeled potatoes cut into chunks
• 1 cup frozen green peas, green beans, or vegetable mix
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp ground garlic
• 2 tsp fresh rosemary
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tbsp optional: corn starch

Instructions

• Place onions, carrots, potatoes, and seasonings in bottom of slow cooker
• Stir to combine
• Season chicken with salt and pepper
• Place on top of vegetables
• Pour chicken broth over chicken
• Place lid on cooker and cook for 6 hours
• Add frozen peas/beans/corn 30 minutes before stew is ready
• If desired, remove chicken from crock pot and remove bone and shred or cut into chunks
• Remove bay leaf
• Optional: To thicken, use corn starch with 1 tablespoon of chicken stock from pot and whisk until smooth
• Add corn starch mix to pot and mix into stew
• Cook on high with lid off for 30 minutes for stew to thicken
• Serve with crusty bread or rolls

 

  

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

                                This post was shared on these fabulous link parties!

Sweet Potato Apple Cranberry Bake

 

                                           Published on comfortspringstation.com on 9/2/20

                                                            #7 in post visits in 2025!  

 Today's recipe is a fast and easy side dish with great nutritional value.  It has such a great autumn taste with sweet potatoes, apple, and cranberries. Another tasty option is to add a handful of nuts - pecans are wonderful in it. Even though this is the perfect fall holiday dish, I eat it often throughout the year with frozen or re-hydrated dried cranberries.  I’ve even used frozen sweet potato cubes and that worked.  I would never use anything but a fresh apple for best flavor and nutrition.  I try to eat a lot of color and this dish is a perfect example.   

  Sweet Potato Apple Cranberry BakeUse organic when available. Serves 4 15 prep   45 minutes cook  Total 1 hr   Ingredients 2 large sweet potatoes peeled & cubed1 large tart apple seeded & cubed (peeled if desired)1/2 cup fresh, frozen, or re-hydrated dried cranberries2 T olive oil1 t cinnamon1/4 c maple syrup or agave nectar2 T butter or margarine optional hand full of chopped pecans  Instructions Preheat oven to 350 F (176 C)Oil or spray baking dishPlace sweet potato, apple, cranberries & nuts if using in bowlAdd oil, maple syrup, and cinnamon to bowlMix well to coat ingredientsSpoon mixture into prepared baking dishPlace 2 slices of butter or margarine on top of mixtureCover dishBake 45 minutes  & serve warm  Enjoy!   

                                   This post was shared on these fabulous link parties.  

All I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

 

 

o

Originally posted on comfortspringstation.com on 12/29/15. 

Updated post on 12/28/18.   

#3 most popular post in 2025    

Written more than 25 years ago, Robert Fulghum’s best-selling book of essays, All I Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten, still speaks to millions of readers today. I discovered his ideas some years ago during a conference. I made an 8″ x 11″ sheet with this essay, laminated it, and added a magnet. I have had it on my refrigerator ever since.

I periodically re-read the words and am always touched by his wisdom. Today, I share this essay with you. It is nearing the end of the year, and as we consider changes or resolutions to improve our lives, I suggest we all contemplate these simple truths. If each of us cleans up our own messes, lives a balanced life, and sticks together, consider how much happier our families, communities, nations, and world would be.

 You can still get this 2015 free printable: 

 

 

                                                                   Download

 Quote:

All I really need to know about how to live and what to do and how to be I learned in kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school mountain, but there in the sand pile at school.

These are the things I learned:

• Share everything.
• Play fair.
• Don’t hit people.
• Put things back where you found them.
• Clean up your own mess.
• Don’t take things that aren’t yours.
• Say you’re sorry when you hurt somebody.
• Wash your hands before you eat.
• Flush.
• Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
• Live a balanced life – learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.
• Take a nap every afternoon.
• When you go out in the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands and stick together.
• Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: the roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.
• Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup – they all die. So do we.
• And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned – the biggest word of all – LOOK.

 Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. The Golden Rule and love and basic sanitation. Ecology and politics and equality and sane living.

Take any one of those items and extrapolate it into sophisticated adult terms and apply it to your family life or your work or government or your world and it holds true and clear and firm. Think what a better world it would be if we all – the whole world – had cookies and milk at about 3 o’clock in the afternoon and then lay down with our blankies for a nap. Or if all governments had as a basic policy to always put things back where they found them and to clean up their own mess.

 And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out in the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.

  

Over the years, I’ve made 2 versions of the quote. The first version was first shared in 2015 (above). I’ve developed a new version which I hope you like. This is more colorful with leaves and flowers. It is sized 8.5″ x 11″.

 

 

 

Download

 

 

I made a larger 11″ x 14″ version for an easier to read copy.

  

Download

 

 

As with all my printables, they are for your personal use.   Please do not post these images on your own site unless you link back here.

 

 

                                                                        This post was shared on these fabulous link parties!

 

 

 

 

 

Roasted Potatoes & Spinach

 

                                 Originally published on comfortspringstation.com on 3/4/24 

                                            #2 in post visits in 2025!

 

I love a side dish that includes fresh greens. It not only has a great flavor, but also ups the nutrition. Today’s recipe is roasted potatoes mingled with fresh spinach in a sauce of garlic, butter, and fresh rosemary. You can finish with a good shredded hard cheese like Parmesan or Pecorino if you like.

 

 

 

 

Roasted Potatoes & Spinach

Roasted potatoes mingle with fresh spinach in a sauce of garlic, butter, salt and fresh rosemary

Use organic when available. Serves 4

Ingredients

• 12 small potatoes quartered
• 4 tbsp butter or margarine
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tbsp fresh rosemary chopped
• 2 cups fresh spinach
• salt and pepper to taste
• optional shredded cheese like Parmesan

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C)
• Place potatoes in a single layer in oven-proof casserole dish
• Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat
• Add garlic, and cook for a minute until starts to brown
• Stir in rosemary and cook just until fragrant
• Pour sauce over potatoes
• Season with salt and pepper
• Roast uncovered in oven for about 30 minutes until potatoes are fork tender
• Remove from oven and toss with spinach and grated cheese if using
• Return to oven for 1 to 2 minutes until spinach has wilted

Enjoy!

  

 

 

 

 

Please see my Link Parties page for the parties where this post was shared.