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Get Outside and Ride a Bike for Exercise and Fun. The other day Lee and I dusted our bikes off, put some air in the tires, and hopped on for a ride around the community. We waited till around 7 pm, as the sun was dropping in the sky, and the community was settling in for the evening. We enjoyed a beautiful sky and mother nature treated us to a lovely tropical sunset over the golf course. I am not a golfer, but Lee is, and after witnessing a stunning sunset over the course, I can see the attraction of playing a sport in a natural setting surrounded by ponds, oak trees, and birdlife. We watched a few hawks swoop down to catch their last meal of the day, caught a few deer trotting thru the fairway, and saw quite a few splashes in the ponds. Could have been fish or could have been a gator, but whatever it was, this tranquil scene made for an enjoyable Solivita evening social distancing on our bikes.

Recently I ran a report of 2020 Home Sales for the first 6 months of this year vs the same time frame for 2019 and found that sales are truly trending up in Polk County. Not only has the number of sold single family units increased substantially, but prices are trending up too; it seems that at this time COVID-19 has not infected the housing market.

Our pre-owned home inventory in Solivita continues to remain low in a fast- moving market. The Solivita builders are still busy constructing new homes, and we estimate that the builders will continue to build in Solivita for another 1.5 years, before our community is completely built out. The new models are lovely, and the builders are offering good incentives to buyers. If you are into buying a new home, now is the time to start looking around. I do love the new builds, and some buyers only look to purchase a new home, but do not be deceived, the pre-owned homes in the well-established neighborhoods of Solivita hold lots of charm, are modern, most are open plan design PLUS the older builds are beautifully landscaped too. Solivita has lots to offer residents. You can start your day with a swim in any of our 14 pools, enjoy a cup of coffee or a bite to eat with friends at the bistro, take a class in the afternoon, or play a round of tennis, golf, or pickleball. When you buy a residence in Solivita you are not only buying a home; but you are buying a lifestyle too. Our community is active, socially responsible, and a secure, friendly place to live. You can shoot hoops, grow veggies in the community garden, or garden in your own backyard. Take a ride in your golf cart to one of our state-of the-art exercise facilities complete with licensed personal trainers or spend some time at our spa. Solivita has something to offer everyone. If your interests lean toward quiet pursuits, visit the computer lab or the Solivita Lending Library, join one of our book clubs, learn a new language, or sign up for a class, learn sculpture, watercolor painting, how to quilt, or enjoy one of the many lecture series offered by Lifestyles. There is so much to do here, you can be busy all the time or not busy at all. The choice is yours. Once you live in Solivita, you can join a club, sign up for an exercise class, or just enjoy a walk around our tree lined, beautifully landscaped community. Solivita is social, the perfect place to make and enjoy friends, or share time with family in a safe, peaceful community life surrounded by the beauty of Central Florida. Look around our website and see for yourself the benefits of Life in Solivita. Call to schedule an appointment, one of our realtors will be happy to give you a tour and show you how good life in Solivita can be.

Swimming is a really good idea, especially as the temps are keeping us good and toasty in Central Florida. Whenever I think it is too hot, I call my NY friends and hear that the temps are about the same there, but the AC in most NYC homes is not as efficient as our AC in Solivita. So, a walk to the pool, followed by an early morning swim, before the sun is too high in the sky, is the perfect start to a day in Solivita during the pandemic. Certainly, a better start to the day than taking the subway to the YMCA, or walking to the corner to catch the express bus to the city to get to work. Every day in Solivita is a good day, even these days. We are all finding ways to enjoy the peace and beauty of our community and I invite you to come to Solivita and experience our community for yourself and be SOLIVITA STRONG with us.

Whatever you are doing to get through the long COVID-19 Days, may you be blessed with sunshine and hope…..We will get through this!

Are you tired of working in the house, why not love your landscape and make a few changes to your garden? We are lucky in Solivita, our HOA and landscapers take care of the mundane landscaping chores, by maintaining our lawns, trimming our trees and bushes, chipping and edging our planting beds, and shaping our landscape; but as a homeowner we can plant, decorate and make easy, pleasing changes to our landscape. Recently, with friends, we designed a small garden patio and now enjoy morning coffee in our new garden while the sounds of our new fountain bubble away. It is pleasant, easy to maintain, and a new space to visit with neighbors and friends as they stroll by on their daily walks. Plus, we have found our new garden space to not only be a great spot for our enjoyment, but an enhancement to our property value as well. Seems like this garden improvement is a WIN, WIN for us.

At my mom’s house, we all went to work and added a few colorful flowers, some attractive pots, removed a few bushes, and added solar lights. All in a day’s work, and now not only is her landscape colorful, but her pathways shine brightly in the evening too. All Small changes that have a huge impact.

Lake Lotus Park is a one mile easy walk on the Raised Boardwalk. This park is in the City of Altamonte Springs and is a well-maintained nature preserve. About 35 miles from Solivita, the park has a diverse bird population, lots of water views and plenty of well shaded areas. The total area is approximately 150 acres and includes 120 acres of woods and wetlands. The city of Altamonte Springs purchased this property to maintain the unique ecosystem and has preserved the area from developers. This park is a treasure and makes for a nice morning walk. This park is open Thursday to Sundays. A great way to spend a morning or an afternoon!

Remember the Drive-In Movies of your Youth?. I remember them fondly, my Mom and Dad would pack a cooler, put us in our PJ’s and load us up in our Chevy Wagon for a family night of fun. I can still feel the anticipation, Mom would let us choose our snacks and our drinks, she would make sandwiches, pack blankets and pillows, and together we would drive to the local theater. Our Drive-In Theatre was the Route 46 Drive-In, only one mile from our home, and it was a night we always looked forward to. Now that I look back on those evenings, I see the method to my parent’s madness was not to entertain us, but rather to get us to go to sleep so they could enjoy a movie in peace. It worked, we had fun, and were asleep about the time the skies darkened, and mom and dad’s plan of a quiet evening came together. With COVID-19, it seems like now is the perfect time to revisit an old favorite activity.

I hear that the Silver Moon Drive-In Theatre is the perfect, safe, evening out. You can visit the Silver Moon Theater at 4100 New Tampa Highway in Lakeland or visit their website at http://www.silvermoondrivein.com/ Enjoy a movie, purchase a few VERY INEXPENSIVE snacks, and have a fun night out while social distancing, just remember to bring the bug spray. The Drive-In, so I’ve heard, is quite busy, but a fun night out in the safety of your own CHEVY?! I think this OLD IDEA may be catching on. Florida has quite a few Drive-In Theatres in Operation, but the closest one to Solivita is the Silver Moon Drive In Lakeland. If you are up for a bit more of a drive, visit the Ocala Drive-In or the Fun Lan Drive-In in Tampa.

Last week we enjoyed most of our meals chilled or room temperature. Easy to make, easy clean-up and a good meal on a hot day.

Mexican Shrimp, Perfect dinner for two

1 Pound Large Shrimp, shelled and deveined with tails removed.
Kosher Salt
½ TSP baking soda
6 TBSP fresh lime juice (about 8 or 9 limes)
2 TBSP Fresh Orange Juice
1 Cup diced onion
¾ cups tomato puree
½ cup ketchup
3 TBSP chopped cilantro
1 Jalapeno or Serrano Pepper, stemmed, seeded, and finely diced
1 Avocado
Hot Sauce, if you like it spicy

In a large bowl, toss shrimp with 1 tsp kosher salt and baking soda until evenly coated. Transfer to the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
In a medium bowl, stir together 4 TBSP lime juice with onion, tomato puree, ketchup, cilantro, orange juice and the jalapeno.
In a medium pot, combine 2 Qts of cold water with remaining 2 TBSP lime juice and 1 TSP Kosher salt. Add shrimp, set over medium high heat, and cook, stir occasionally, water temperature should be 170F on an instant read thermometer, and shrimp are just cooked through.
Drain cooked shrimp, rinse under cold running water, and drain well. Cut shrimp into ½ inch pieces. Add shrimp to bowl with sauce and toss to combine. Taste. Add more lime juice, salt and if you like it hot a bit of hot sauce..
Serve with butter lettuce, sliced Avocado and lime wedges.

“Staying Home, Hiding in the house under my blanket, Socially Distancing, Isolating myself in the Cool of our Air Conditioned Home, Ordering Groceries on line and eating way too much, Shopping on Amazon, Reading Book after Book, Binge watching the news until I couldn’t stand it one more minute, now watching endless reruns of Gilligan’s Island and Green Acres, Cleaning everything, dusting, endlessly washing floors, counters, and clothing, painting the house inside and out, planting a garden, tending my orchids, knitting, sewing, sleeping, baking, enjoying many rides in my golf cart and walks through every neighborhood in town”. Just when we thought it would be safe to dip our toes back into life in Florida, seems the virus has another idea. Cases are again climbing, so it may be time to Wash Your Hands, Reread this paragraph and Repeat. Whatever you do, please do it safely.

Everyone I spoke to agrees, and you know how hard it is to get everyone to agree to anything, but everyone did agree that living in Solivita through the Pandemic has been a positive experience. Of course, everyone is worried and stressed but all agree We are in a beautiful, peaceful community with no need to risk our health. We have lots of lovely places to walk, we can play golf, swim, work out, garden, and visit our neighbors at a safe distance. We have friends and family in NY and NJ and they all agree “they have been through the ringer”. One of our friends lives near George Washington Cemetery in Paramus, NJ and said there were so many freshly dug graves, it was impossible to drive past the gates without crying.

In our Solivita Bubble we remain safe and life has been good. We too are wearing masks, endlessly washing our hands, our counters, our doorknobs, and socially distancing; but our neighbors are finding great ways to still be social. Small Groups of friends and neighbors gather for parties in their driveways, on their front lawns and in their outdoor lanais. We have friends who pack their picnic baskets and meet on their golf carts in the Solivita Park to catch up with each other and enjoy the beauty of our environment. Solivita is blessed with beautiful lakes and ponds, conservation areas and abundant wildlife. Recently a flock of peacocks joined our large and beautiful Solivita bird population. They are a beautiful sight and, as a Solivita Resident of 20 years, a sight I have not enjoyed here before. Although we are not sure if our new peacock residents are here to stay or just passing by, they surely are a welcome addition to our community.

The Solivita Realtors have kept busy, home sales are brisk. We are all wearing masks when out working, and our office is open by appointment only. We are showing homes while following the Rules set forth by the CDC, plus showing homes virtually. We are finding lots of buyers and sellers are happily embracing Virtual Technology and grateful that we offer this safe plan. If you are looking for a home, or looking to sell your home, now is the time. Inventory is low and demand is high. Lots of folks have decided to leave the large cities and relocate to suburban areas in advance of the next wave of Corona Virus; all this is helping to drive sales. Call one of our Realtors today to find your slice of Paradise and join us in the Safety and Beauty of Solivita.

Amazing. When the Coronavirus started we all braced for a slow-down in our housing market, but the reverse has occurred. Homes are selling briskly in Solivita. We did a highly unscientific survey of our current sales and find that many of our sales are being generated by folks moving down from the big cities. In the winter months it is typical for us to see sales spike as snow and ice storms ravage the northeast and mid-west, but this year we are seeing an exodus from the big cities, Indianapolis, NYC, Milwaukee, Boston, and Hartford to name a few. We are happy to welcome all our new neighbors to Solivita, a beautiful, safe community in Central Florida. We are here to respond to any questions or concerns you may have and as always happy to assist you with selling or buying a new home. We have nine licensed realtors, all living in Solivita, ready to assist you.

Lee and I use them in everything from Salads to Chilled Soups to Drinks. Below is one of the latest drinks we are brewing up and enjoying. This is the easiest recipe we have ever published, leaving no excuse not to make this one.

Strawberry Liqueur Recipe

2 Pound Strawberries, cleaned and sliced

2 Cups Vodka, Your Favorite Brand

1 Cup Sugar

1 Cup Water

To make this Delicious Summer Liqueur or Strawberry Vodka follow the below instructions.

In a large jar that closes tightly add the sliced strawberries and cover with the vodka. Stir to combine. Place in a dark cupboard or closet for 20 days (or less if you can’t wait), remember to twirl the jar to mix every two days. Lee and I have whipped this up in as quickly as 10 days, but the longer the fruit infuses the more strawberry flavor will develop.

After 20 days has passed, make the syrup. In a medium pot add the sugar and water. Heat over medium heat until the mixture boils, stir often, and once boiling lower the heat and cook for 8 – 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely.

Strain the alcohol from the strawberries into a clean jar or bottle with a tightfitting lid. Dispose of the strawberries. Add the cooled syrup and stir to combine. Close the jar and refrigerate before serving. This can also be stored in the freezer.

The flavor profiles can be changed simply by reducing the sugar content. If you do not make the simple syrup, you will have Strawberry Vodka, Also Delicious. We add a squeeze of lime and enjoy the Strawberry Vodka over ice or mixed with some club soda. This makes a refreshing summer drink on a hot day.

We serve the liqueur at the end of a meal in the summer months. If you are into cream desert drinks, add a touch of milk or cream to a shaker, mix the Liqueur and pour into a glass and serve over ice. We Hope you Enjoy this simple summer taste from our table to yours. We are at the end Florida’s Strawberry Season, but Blueberries are tumbling into our markets now. It is Time to experiment, I will let you know how it all turns out. To be continued…….