There are days I look at the baskets of fruit on my counter and wonder if I accidentally opened a roadside fruit stand without realizing it. Living in Homestead means mangoes fall like rain in June, avocados grow big enough to feed a family of four, papayas show up overnight like uninvited guests, and lychees—well, those are the treats that make me forgive the rest of the chaos.
Mango season is its own holiday in this house. I’ve got mango bread in the oven, mango salsa in jars, and Ethan sticky from head to toe because he eats them like popsicles right off the pit. Josh swears he’s “helping” by taste-testing every recipe, but I know he’s just trying to avoid mowing the lawn. If you’ve never frozen cubes of mango for smoothies, do it. Trust me. In August, when the heat is unbearable, you’ll thank your past self for being smart.
Avocados are another story. These Florida avocados aren’t the dainty little Hass ones—they’re monsters. I mash them up for guacamole, slice them into salads, and sometimes just sprinkle with salt and lime and call it dinner. One tree can keep you swimming in guac for months. The trick is picking them before the raccoons get there first. Those furry bandits are fast.
Papayas are the easiest. Plant them once and suddenly you’ve got a jungle. I throw chunks into smoothies, bake them into muffins, and once, in desperation, made papaya dog treats because I couldn’t keep up. Lychees are more delicate, almost precious. Sweet, floral, and gone too soon. Ethan eats them by the handful, standing barefoot in the grass, spitting the seeds out like it’s a sport.
Some days the abundance feels overwhelming, like nature went a little overboard with generosity. But then I watch my kid bite into a mango with juice running down his arm, or Josh pulling avocados off the tree like treasure, and I realize this is the good kind of messy. The sticky-fingered, full-bellied, fruit-stained kind of messy. And honestly? I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
