Happy New Years..a recap 2017

Happy New Years All ! this is a good time to recap our year...plants..business..family, we rejoice in it all. Before we get to some great pics, yup, we will be at Saturday Morning Market this weekend with our usual great stuff. And, we have to thank so many people that continue to support us, we could  not do this without you all so our hearts are so thankful for you all....

The original Armstrong Nursery family.....me and Mitch with Rickie Oliver, Rickie forever in our hearts...

Tilandsias..aka Air Plants..a customer favorite, and we are so grateful for the local growers that supply us with these beauties...

The joy of our home base at Saturday Morning Market, downtown St. Pete....it's  our store, so to speak of, and every Saturday we basically set up a garden center for 6 hours,and have all sorts of visitors ! This market is our heart, our home base for 15 years,, has given us so much, and for 8 months of the year, this is where our Saturdays are at....

Mini Succulents and Cacti, now a major part of our business, all hand picked after hours and hours at our trusted grower every week...we have a passion for these and they have truly been a wonder for gardeners of all ages...

On a personal note,  we lost 2 of our home kitties who have graced our lives for so long...





Baby Girl

Miss Lilly

And, we met a new friend, Miss Becky Blitch, with her trusted guide dog, Aki, who started a new part of her life, at Thrill Hill market, which Annie started, with her handcrafted arts..we love her, and she is our inspiration....Thrill Hill Market was started to give a voice to those who had a dream to make Art in their lives and enable them to grow their talents  and inspirations and make a living at it......Becky's talent has proved true and we are so happy she is able to continue working on her dream on her Etsy site as well as local shows, and her Artistic efforts continue to make an impact on so many lives. 

My personal talisman, "Breathe"...I keep it right by my side, to remind me everyday .....Becky hand lettered this on a piece of bark...a remarkable woman who inspires me every moment of the day...

This year, we've had other friends going through tough times, so we encouraged them, and are inspired by their resilience....

And we suffered the loss of Mitch's beloved brother (at left), Marshall, who bravely battled a great battle of cancer to the end, we will miss him so.

And as family goes on, Mitch's first great grand daughter, Charlotte Luna, has graced our lives this year,  a new beginning ....

We've had great plant festival shows where we could share them with family...

And others, when we exalted at the finish of them (Leu gardens in Orlando)

We were lucky to have some down time when on the road at a show, here in N.  Carolina, to spend some good time by a river and a fire...

We got to visit some of our favorite local grower friends, who we depend on to bring you goodies...

We battled a hurricane, putting all of our precious into the trailer, while...

While our neighbors (pictured here, Billy of "The Burg Restaurant" ) used our garden lattice to secure his windows..we all looked out after one another and were grateful that we came through with little damage.

We battled rainy days at market this past summer, when we really could not set up, and thus, no income that weekend so we got creative with the foods in our cabinets...

Had a blessed weekend at Green Thumb Festival in the Spring, these times are to truly rejoice...and get us through the summer...filling our cabinets  (see above)

Somehow, we still cling together, keeping our Little Nursery That Could going....through all the flowers, the plants, the work, the markets and the shows, the economy, the vehicle breakdowns,  and the weather that challenges us all,  with the help of our treasured crew of Susan, Larry and Jeremy, and the support of our customers, we are hanging in there....

Happy New Years All, we are grateful for our lives, and yours.