Friday, November 30, 2018

Good morning. I woke at 5 o’clock and decided to hop in the shower and get my hair washed. Now I have the TV to myself, the fireplace is going and I’m enjoying my Sunkist orange. Ahhh. 😉

Plans for today include a shuffleboard tournament, riding the 7 miles of trails and then a meet and greet at the clubhouse.

The trails run alongside canals and ponds. Nice and shady. The kids loved it. 

At 5 o’clock we went to happy hour ... sat with Brenda, Mark, Lisa and Bill (new members.) They came as visitors last trip and bought a Class A Allegro at the rally. Fun people. Dinner was served at 6 ... salad, Baked Ziti and meatballs, garlic bread and peach cobbler. 👍🏻 

Karen and Pete were too busy to sit but popped by our table a few times. Entertainment was Vegas McGraw ... very good show. Linda C. was her usual crazy self and added to the show! 😂

Brenda & Mark watching the show. 

We came home for the dogs at 9:20 and then went to a bonfire a few doors down. It was a fun day. 

Thursday, November 29, 2018

Hey, we made it! It’s cold here too, just 55F.  We arrived about 1130, got checked into our site and picked up the golf cart, took the kids for a long ride. This place is huge. And the lot sizes for the RVs are very generous.

About 3 o’clock Richard and Mitzy dropped in for a visit. We are all going to Harry’s New Orleans seafood Grill for dinner tonight.

We sat with Dennis and his wife Missy. and had a lot of laughs at dinner. We traded RV adventures, as they have become known. Dinner was good, large portions too. Now, we’re headed back to the RV park for a little more partying. Downtown Lakeland is quite beautiful. It’s actually very large and all the downtown was nicely decorated. 

We walked over to see Karen and Pete’s new Cedar Creek Silverback ... very nice, and had a drink with them. 

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

Good morning sunshine. The cold front moved in ...

My recliner is full of lap warmers! Haha. 

Mark walked the dogs very early this morning and it was just 40°. Believe me, we felt it. Later on, we were off to Mark’s doctor appointment in the Villages. He dropped me at Steinmart where I had a blast looking around for an hour and a half. And yes, I bought three bags full. 🎅🏼

Funny enough, when Mark walked BZ this morning she pooped a piece of green plastic. Now why on earth couldn’t she have pooped this green plastic TWO days ago? That would have saved us $225 at the vet! 🙄 

Our tinman, Tom from Simplex stopped over today to take pictures of our RV port and boathouse for another client. He measured for a (golf cart) cover attached to our front patio. We’re only dreaming at this point ... still negotiating to get our house roof repaired - after Hurricane Irma 14 months ago! 

Tomorrow, we’re going to Lakeland, Florida for three nights for another VIP Rally. 😜

With news about kidnappings everyday we were happy to see a deterrent ...

😂

Tuesday, November 27, 2018

Good morning. Why am I up so dang early? Well, it’s a good time for snuggling with Robbie and watching Telly. Mz Bee went back to her bed ... guess she’s not a fan of Modern Family. 😁

About 1015 I got a phone call from Randy. He was at the store, hobby lobby, looking to buy museum putty, but couldn’t find it. Apparently he had staff all over the store looking for it and one man said “I think this is what you are looking for, mounting putty.”

My kitchen countertop at the exact moment! 👀

I had just been tidying up my work desk and wrote on an empty spool of chain “hobby lobby” to buy some next time there! 

The coincidence continued as Randy was standing in that very aisle where the chain is located. (And yes, museum putty is the same as mounting putty.) 😂

This afternoon, we had our annual doctor appointments. All is well, no major changes. It’s going to be quite chilly tonight, so we’re relaxing at home watching TV and eating some comfort food.

Monday, November 26, 2018

Good evening. The blog has been acting up most of the day. I finally shut my phone down, rebooted and voilà, here we are.

It was a hectic day around here. At 2:30 we took Miss BZ to the vet for an x-ray. We were very concerned that she has been throwing up a little bit of vile bile every few days, first thing in the morning. As it turned out, her system is all clear of debris, but she does have gas. Now we never have any notice of any, but you can plainly see it in her system. Rather than give her a medication, the vet suggested we stop all processed treats and only give her our home cooked food. So, tonight is the first night without Milo’s chicken meatballs. It’s going to be a ruff ruff evening. Aroooo 😢

This evening, we went for Mexican food with Rose and Jim to downtown Eustis. It was really good food ... but pouring rain when we left the restaurant. You see, there’s a cold front moving in from the northwest. Tomorrow is expected to be 40° cooler than today! Oh brrrr. 😜 Rose and Jim came in for a couple of drinks afterwords, but mainly to visit with the doggies. They sure miss their little Jazzy who passed away earlier this year.

Sue and Wayne met with Pat and Derrick for Italian dinner. Otherwise a quiet, relaxing evening. 

More tomorrow. 

Sunday, November 25, 2018

Good morning. I was up at 4:15 with Mark. He and Lew went hunting in the Ocala forest. It was very foggy when they left. 

So, being up so early, I thought I would get some Christmas wrapping done. Now, I am out of wrapping paper and must go shopping, again. 🙄

Happy 18th anniversary to Diane and Kris! 

Today I’m planning decor for next year’s Christmas tree and doing paperwork. Oh yes, it’s true about the tree. 😜

Mark arrived home from hunting about 1130. We sorted things out and then went Christmas shopping. Now, I am at home with a muddle of a mess while he has gone grocery shopping. 

Marky-Mark called to say that Lani’s dad had passed away over Thanksgiving. She is now in Florida packing up things and bringing them to the house near us. Mark ran over to help move a washer and dryer. He’s such a good guy. ❤️

Randy & Dawn spent their afternoon at the Hideaway watching football. They needed a break after working hard on Friday and then having the granddaughters on Saturday for a sleepover. Company arrives at their house next Friday. 

Saturday, November 24, 2018

Good afternoon! We’re back home after a fun weekend learning the RV systems, enjoying Thanksgiving Day at Diane & Kris’s, Black Friday shopping with Sue & Wayne, Karen & Pete’s visit and dinner at The Bistro.  

We left at 10:15 and arrived home at 11 ... unloaded and had the laundry started by 11:30. Schweet. Our next trip is Thursday for 3 nights at the GRW VIP Christmas rally in Lakeland. 🎅🏼🤶 

Mark managed a little shut eye before starting a couple of the jobs deemed necessary after our maiden RV trip. Believe it or not, one of the most important ones was to move the toilet paper holder. Ha ha ha. No one needs an armrest in the bathroom. No one! 🤨

Kris was well-gloved for anything! 🦃

Susan and Wayne left about 1130 heading for Stuart to spend the night. They will be back here for about six nights over Christmas. Fun! 

Ed, Diane and Cindy 🍁

Sue with Julius ... SHP on the rug. 

Imitating Sue ... don’t take my picture! 😂

Wayne’s pictures ...

Percheron horses?

Beautiful weather all 3 days!

I was happy to see our Grand Junction found a new owner! Maybe they’ll bring it to campouts!

That was our day! Ta Ta 

Friday, November 23, 2018

Good morning. We awoke to beautiful sunshine and Greenmeadows all around us. It looks like a delightful day coming up. 

Today, I am going shopping with Sue and Wayne at Bealls. Oh boy, the crowds are going to be crazy. 

Tonight, the whole gang minus Randy & Dawn but plus Karen & Pete are going to The Bistro for dinner. There’s entertainment, but we’ll of course have happy hour here before we go.

Well, I FINISHED our Christmas shopping today. Schweet. This week it’ll get wrapped then I can think about some possible baking! 

Sunset at the RV Park. 

Excellent dinner at The Bistro! 

Lots of fun! 

THANKSGIVING 2018

Good morning! We woke to 58F in the rig ... we forgot to set the furnace before bedtime. Ha! Mark turned the propane on and I figured out the control panel. Voila! Heat. After breakfast, we tidied up, turned on TV and watched Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade and wrote a list of “things” we need to buy. 

Bee and Robs are watching for horses with Marky. It’s lovely ... cloudy and 68F; cooler than usual. 👍🏻

It’s 4 o’clock, we followed Sue and Wayne on a merry  maze over to Diane and Kris’s house for dinner. Kris’s niece, Cindy and her husband Ed joined us all for dinner. Kris did a great job of getting dinner prepared, with many varied dishes. Dawn brought a corn casserole her very popular crab dip. Sue & Wayne brought a sliced salami and we, an apple cranberry salsa with corn chips. Everything was delicious. When Kris put the food out Diane asked where were the potatoes? He got a shocked look on his face as he had forgotten totally about doing potatoes! Haha. NO COMPLAINTS! 😜

Cindy and Diane

Dawn and Randy

KRIS showing off his pearl inlaid salad servers! 

After dinner, we played Jeff Foxworthy‘s game, relative insanity. The answers were hilarious. In the end, Wayne was the winner. 

Giving thanks for family and good times on Thanksgiving. 

Wednesday, November 21, 2018

Good morning y’all. Since we were up and ready a little earlier than we thought, we left home about 930. Sue and Wayne were also ready early and they met us at 441. Our GPS wasn’t giving very good directions today so it’s a good thing we did back up with the cell phone. 🙄 Wayne remembered where the RV Park was so we followed them. Where in Site 9, a very roomy back in. It took us a little while to set up as everything is unfamiliar at this point.

At noon, we went to the bistro Café for lunch. Sue, Mark and I all had burgers, huge burgers with delicious twisty fries. Wayne was good ... he had a berry salad, but then ate some of Sue’s burger and fries. We were all so full we could hardly walk.  OMG. 

Here we are leaving home this morning. 👍🏻

After lunch, Sue and Wayne went to do a home review for Shih Tzu rescue. Mark and I figured out more of “the buttons and remotes” in the RV. Ha ha. More batteries are needed. Tonight, Wayne is cooking brats on the grill, we are taking potato salad and then they are coming here for drinks afterwards. That way, all the doggies get some visiting time. 🐾💕

Tuesday, November 20, 2018

Good morning. We were both up at 6 o’clock raring to go. Ah, but go where? I guess tomorrow and our maiden RV trip can’t come soon enough. Ha ha ha ha. So, after breakfast, we loaded up the RV and now Mark is putting the new stair tread covers on.

Nancy stopped by for a visit and a peek at the new rig while I was loading in the groceries. She was ready to move in! 😜

Karen and Pete plan to come by the RV park on Friday for a visit. 

Tonight we’re meeting at Hurricane’s for dinner.  Well, we forgot to take a picture at the restaurant but all the meals were great, Randy and I had shrimp that were “yuge!” Many laughs!

Back home, Mark and I sat on the front porch with a nightcap while he enjoyed a cigar. The doggies enjoyed their frosty paws. Tomorrow, we’re off to Grand  Oaks RV Park.

Monday, November 19, 2018

Good morning! Our front door’s open to the world and the dogs are loving it! (Us too!) I hear the Cardinals at the feeder ... cheep cheep. Haha, maybe the birds are commenting on the quality of the birdseed? Cheap cheap? 😂

Yesterday, we visited Pat and Ken for happy hour. We think he’s doing pretty good, so far. It’s just a week since he had surgery, he’s walking with a walker, and pretty much sleeping in the recliner. His doctor recommended the recliner to keep the leg at the correct angle. Every doctor is different. His doctor told him that the knee replacement is set at a bit of a bend and it will gradually wear into straight as your leg muscles get stronger.

Ken, 1 week after total knee replacement. 👍🏻 Keep it movin’ man. (Ha! Saw Pat in action ... he’d best do for himself, she’s not a nurse!) 😱

We pulled our new rig out today, getting ready for a TG 3 night sleepover. There are many things to learn and to check out on the inside ... like raising the TV? Sheet size on guest bed? A/C settings ... and the like. 

Sue and Wayne arrived at fisherman‘s Cove Rv Park about 330. After much discussion between the Hideaway, Fishcamp and Tiki West, we are all meeting at Tiki West for dinner at 6. 

Randy & Dawn did their workouts at the Y and will be meeting us there tonight too! PARTAY! 

Tiki West’s food was good and we had a great time! I tried the Lobster MAC & Cheese ... VERY good. I’d order it again! 

Sunday, November 18, 2018

Good morning. There’s nothing like a sunshiny Sunday when you open the front door to the world. Three different kinds of birds were in the feeder this morning. I swear one was a chickadee, but the yellow a little faded. Could it be that time of year? Another was our Waxwing that has another unusual call, and of course our resident Cardinals. Robbie and BZ enjoyed sitting at the doorway watching them! 

Mark left for the woods about 5 AM,  his happy hunting grounds! Lew was taking Lynn to urgent care for a check up on her burns so he couldn’t go with Mark. Between you and me, if there’s a slightest chill in the air (below 70°) Lew is cold. Marines tough! 😜

This evening, we went to visit Pats and Ken. Ken looks terrific after his knee surgery last Monday. We think he is progressing very well 👍🏻! Just as we were getting ready to leave, Nancy and Kachina arrived. 

Back home, the pups were happy to see us,  they ate dinner and Mark has pasta on for us! 👍🏻

Sue and Wayne had a dinner out in Stuart ... it looks like a gorgeous place ...

Nice!

They had a table on the patio! 👍🏻 

We’ll see them Monday! 

Saturday, November 17, 2018

Good morning y’all ... Mark’s off to the forest for his R ‘n R, alone. Lew was hauled to Daytona Beach last night to see Mannheim Steamroller and didn’t get home til 2 am. 

Me? Well I couldn’t get back to sleep after hearing Mark’s alarm so ... it’s Ancient Aliens 👽 time. 😜

Today, I need a few things at Hobby Lobby ... and they’re not open Sunday. It’ll be busy! 

Mark needed a few things at the grocery store so came along with me. I wondered why he was taking the scenic route around Lake Eustis until he drove to JoAnn Fabrics to drop me off! Haha ... he swore I said JoAnn Fabrics and I know what I said. 🙄 After a few more minutes we got to Hobby Lobby. 😁 I did quite well ... bought 3 Christmas gifts and a few odds n ends. 👍🏻 Mark tried Aldi for grocery but needed a quarter for a shopping cart and said f**k it and drove to Winn Dixie across from JoAnn Fabrics. 

It was a nice and cool 72° when we sat out front for happy hour. The dogs had their frosty paws while we had our glass of wine.

Cooking pasta ... 

Tonight we’re watching Ancient Aliens about the Apis bulls. Interesting. Tomorrow we’re invited to Pat & Ken’s for happy hour. Ken had surgery last Monday, a knee replacement. That said he won’t be drinking as he is taking drugs for pain, so more wine for us. 😁

Tonight, Sue and Wayne have gone to the yacht club for a party. They plan to arrive in Tavares on Monday afternoon with their coach. 👍🏻 Soup hopes that we can go to the Hideaway that evening.

Friday, November 16, 2018

Good morning 🌞 ... the news is all about snow and rough travel today. Wow, it’s sure nice to live in Florida right now. 🌴 (We remember the stress of getting about in that weather.) it was a chilly 59° this morning so Mark put on socks with his shorts. That’s his winter as we intend to get. 😜

It’s housekeeping day here and I’m finishing up a few Christmas decorating details. It always takes a day or two of looking at things and moving them about to get it all just right. It’s wonderful that Diane and Kris to Thanksgiving. What a relief that is to Mark and I. Ha ha. Holidays in the USA are about three weeks apart ... unlike Canada celebrating Thanksgiving in October. 

Tonight we’re meeting Karen and Pete plus their son Chris for dinner. It’ll be fun to catch up with them. They got a new 5th wheel last Monday ... don’t know what model yet but it’s a Cedar Creek Silverback. 

Well, we met for dinner and terrific food. The restaurant was packed and the orders were a little slow coming out, but that was fine with us. We were in no hurry. After dinner, we came home for Key-lime pie for dessert. It was a fun night.

Rick M says a blog needs a picture or he doesn’t post it. OK, so my want random into my Photos and this is what you’ll get.

Mark and Gavin playing cards last summer. ❤️

OK, so that’s it I’m going to bed. 😜

Thursday, November 15, 2018

Good morning. There’s nothing that can get you out of bed quicker than a retching dog! Poor BeeZee. I couldn’t find any evidence ... we’re watching for a small piece of green rubber from this ... 

Don’t buy it! The idea is good, but it’s not strong enough for Scotties! BeeZee took a chomp out of it within 5 minutes! (Mark thinks feeding Bee raw carrots is the culprit!) Maybe?

BeeZee’s on the left 😟 ... Robbie’s on the right. 😁

So it was a busy day for us both. Mark and Lew had a morning in the woods, hunting. Although they saw a few doe, they mostly spent their time blazing some new trails. 😜 This afternoon he worked at Marky Mark’s a few hours. 

After my “work” I took some eBay sales to the post office, did shopping and took the kids for a ride on The Caddy. With the cooler weather there were dogs, cats and people around. The Scotties had fun barking! 😂

Yesterday Rick M sent me an email ... and now I know what I want for Christmas ...

Yup, Santa 🎅🏼 ... I want a BAD ASS for Christmas. 🎄

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

Good afternoon. Yes, it’s been another busy day. Mark had errands to run, and packages to take to the post office while I photographed and listed more eBay items. We’ve had two more sales today, so it’s kind of fun again.

Mark is cooking creamy baked ziti tonight plus mushrooms, an interesting salad and some special garlic rolls on the Pizzazz. We sure use that appliance often. (Thanks again Jim, we really do enjoy it.) The champagne is chilling and it will soon be partay time.

Hard to believe it’s nearly the middle of November. The weather is still beautiful here, and we’re hoping we get a cold front by Friday or Saturday. That helps us to be more in the mood for the holidays.

Friday night, we are planning to meet with Karen & Pete and their son Chris for dinner, somewhere. 

Happy Happy ❤️

Well, we had a fun time tonight. We heard the stories of their weekend and, quite obviously they had a great time. Traffic was heavy ... it’s very busy in that area. They managed to do a little shopping and ate out every night.

Suevand Wayne had an evening at the yacht club. I’m sure there was dancing involved. I was trying to find the picture they sent me of the boat tied up at theirbdock, but I could not find it. Drat. Randy would have loved to see it. 

That’s it. Mark and Lew are going hunting tomorrow, so he’s off to bed early. 

Tuesday, November 13, 2018

With Lunch just finished, it’s nearly time for me to go to game day at Anita’s.  Let’s see what everyone thinks of my new game ... Relative Insanity. 

Mark ran the errands this morning - 5 stops in all. eBay has been more active lately so a trip to the post office was needed. I made 10 more car charms to list tomorrow ... at $5 plus shipping of $3.50 they sell. At $6.95 with free shipping, no sale! 🙃 Go figure, huh?

Well ... my new game was a huge it. We played til nearly 4:30. Plenty of laughs, especially when Shari discovered that Carol’s T-Shirt was on inside out. 😅 Well she whipped it off, flipped it around and redressed. We also noticed she had GLITTER on her face. Haha ... the stories were flying. Haha. 

Back home, Mark and I putted around with the dogs on The Caddy. It’s been a beautiful day. 

Cousin Alex, pictured below 

now works for The Institute for Historical Arts ... and was in a movie The Outlaw King, a sequel to Braveheart. It’s on Netflix. 

Monday, November 12, 2018

Good afternoon. Today got away on us. I was up in the middle of the night for an hour and a half and then Mark was up from 4 o’clock on. This time change has us both rattled. Ha ha ha ha. I’ve noted several friends on Facebook upset with the time change to. Now to years ago, we Floridians elected to stay with daylight savings time year-round. Because Florida is into time zones, it had to go through Congress. Well, it will probably never happen the way Congress works. 🙄

Mark worked at Marky Mark‘s today taking down a dangerous dead tree branch that was hanging over the greenhouse. A couple of glass panels are broken, likely from falling debris. Now, with the branch down, Mark can do the repairs necessary. I’ve been commissioned to paint his mid century modern fireplace Orange! There’s a cold front coming for the weekend, so I will save that for a Saturday afternoon job. 

I phoned Lynn today and she is doing great. Her hand is very blistered, but she has had no pain whatsoever after the morphine shots last night! Amazing. She credits a burn cream that they put on her at urgent care. She’s happy she can sit and play her games online! Lew has been commissioned to do the housekeeping and dishes. 😜

Mark filled the spa today! Yay! By tomorrow night I’ll be soaking. 😁 I’ve had some incredibly achy joints with all these weather fronts moving about. Advil tonight! 

RanDawn arrived home about 7:30 from their weekend away. They’re coming here Wednesday for dinner so we’ll hear all about their fun!

Sunday, November 11, 2018

Good morning. It’s Veterans Day here in the USA, Remembrance Day in Canada & England, Anzac Day in Australia and NZ, Armistice Day in Belgium and Volkstrauertag in Germany. Whatever the name, it’s a day for remembering The anniversary of the signing of the armistice, which ended the World War I hostilities between the allied nations in Germany in 1918.

Unfortunately, our President Trump looked foolish arriving late and missing Saturday’s 100th anniversary memorial in France due to rain. 🙄 What a buffoon! 

Today, our friend Lynn had a kitchen accident. (I told her it’s too dangerous in there for us gals!) 😜 

She took a pan of bacon out of the oven and the grease spilt on her hand and both feet. 🤕 Lew called 911 ... they assisted but suggested he take her to Urgent Care as the Paramedics thought 1st degree burns but it’s unfortunately 1st and 2nd. OMG, poor Lynn. They gave her a shot of morphine ... then 2 more. She had picked up more pain meds and was going straight to bed when we saw her at 6:45. 😢

Randy & Dawn are still in Charleston. When we talked to them today they were out shopping. We invited them to come here Wednesday to celebrate their anniversary with us. Mark plans to cook baked Ziti and we’ll have a salad and, of course, champagne. They drive home tomorrow. 

Mark and I had plans to go out for dinner tonight, but ended up doing a late grocery shopping and decided on pizza at home with drinks on our front porch. It’s such beautiful weather, we just had to sit outside and enjoy conversation. 

That’s it. He’s sawing logs in front of the TV while I finish this and go back to the porch to enjoy the night air. (It’s 73F.) 🌴 

Saturday, November 10, 2018

Good morning. I heard Mark leave about 4:45 to go hunting with Lew and Benn. After tossing around for a few minutes I decided to get up and watch the rest of Ancient Aliens saved from last night. Mz Bee is up for that ... up on my lap. 💕🐾 

Whatever the fellows see in the woods today they will be enjoying themselves as it has cooled down considerably. Ha ... well it’s 69F going to ...  

This morning I decided it was time to review our coverages on all the vehicles. We have our insurance coverage with Good Sam covering the Dodge, Kia, Mountaineer and the new Brookstone. It was a good half hour on the phone, but I manage to save about $240 a year. I’m sure there’s more savings to be had and I will review it again in March when renewing. The agent mentioned that rates are expected to drop in Florida and 2019. (?) Anyway, it’s one of those things that should be done every couple of years as the rates tend to creep up and changes get made without your authorization. I’m just saying ... keep an eye on your coverages. 

Today is baby Matt’s 30th Birthday! 

Hahaha ... 

The new Harbor Shores HOA newsletter came out today. Here’s my ‘Spotlight On’ article ...