Wednesday, February 9, 2022

Good morning. After yesterday‘s rain, it was lovely to open the curtains this morning and see sunshine. It’s still cold, by Florida standards, but having the sunshine really helps. I was talking with Diane this morning and she, like me, doesn’t remember a winter like this in the sunshine state ! But, when you think of it, there is no normal anywhere this year. 🙄

Yesterday, we headed out at 11 o’clock for Mark‘s doctor appointment and to run errands. We took the dogs with us for a little adventure. That was a very short adventure as we got to the top of our road and it was blocked with an accident. One old truck had driven into the ditch and the road was totally blocked with a police car and a tow truck. It was closed up for quite some time so Mark rescheduled his appointment for today and we turned around for home. Anyway, the night before there had been a four car wreck at that intersection. It seems to me it’s time to petition for a traffic light.  Maybe it’s serendipity that I am now on the HOA board. Ha ha. 

So, today, we had plans to go out for lunch and run errands but with it being sunny Mark would like to work on Da Mounty. Apparently it has sprung an antifreeze leak. Of course that would happen, as soon as I ordered new headlights for it. That’s life.

All the better to see you with 🤣 The headlights look nice. 

Mz Bee wasn’t well today … possibly upset tummy from a potato added to her food a couple of days ago. Markymark ran over with rice for Mark to cook for her. (Nice neighbors!) He stayed for a front porch visit. Lani came home shortly and we called her over for a drink. They’re lots of fun. 

Tonight we snuggled in with a fire and TV. 🥰

Monday, February 7, 2022

It’s been a great birthday 🥳 … 

Lunch together at Longhorn Steakhouse in The Villages with the family! 

The two Vikings shared a good laugh

Sunbeams on the girls … Kris worked the selfie stick! Not too bad except he said “where’s my teeth?” 😂

I had birthday cards by mail, email and messages from far and wide. A FaceTime call from Rick M … a call from Pam S … Facebook greetings; all in all I’m very lucky. Thank you all for your wishes. 😘

Sunday, February 6, 2022

Good afternoon! It’s been a welcome change to relax a bit this morning and not rush out. 😂 Mark cooked breakfast while I dusted the house. When he went grocery shopping I washed the floors. Now it’s time to chill out. 😅

Mark hung the old iron piece above the big mirror! I love it. (You can’t see the blinds in the picture but it’s a similar pattern.) 

Sue has an old silver bowl that was our mother’s. I think it was an appreciation gift from the Yacht Club ladies auxiliary. The fruit bowl maintained its gleam over the years until it met with the Chinese drywall!!! The poor bowl turned black overnight! Both Mark and I worked on it the last couple of days … The first thing we tried was wrapping it tightly in aluminum foil, and then into a pot of boiling water with baking soda. It’s soaked in there for an hour and when we peeled the foil wrap off, much of the black tarnish came off with the foil.  We did that two more times attempting to get more and more of the tarnish off. The next thing we tried was buffing it with a silver polishing cloth. That couldn’t touch the tarnish. Then, we tried the trick with vinegar, baking soda and lukewarm water.  The bowl soaked for three hours, but really nothing else came off. So, after hand polishing again and getting nowhere, I got out my industrial silver cleaner that I use for jewelry. I painted it on with a toothbrush, and scrubbed it in with Mr. clean Magic eraser. That got the rest of the black off. However, as it turns out, it is not a sterling silver bowl at all.  Ha ha Ha. It is called super fine silver and it is a plating. I think what the Chinese drywall chemical reaction did was eat through some of the plating. Anyway, the bowl is clean, silver colored and shiny in some areas and Diller and others. However, it is far more beautiful than before! Sue liked the bowl and wasn’t about to part with it … that’s OK, we all know it’s 50 some years old. I will ask Sue to take a picture of it when she gets the fruit back in it on her kitchen table. (The funny thing is, mom would have said “oh, throw the darn thing out.”) 😂

We were both so tired this afternoon, we sat down at 2 o’clock and fell asleep until 415. That was quite the Rip van Winkle nap. 😴 

Saturday, February 5, 2022

Good morning. Just dropped two eBay items at the post office and are heading to the villages to finish up the laundry room cabinets today. There are a few odds and ends to be done as well, and we need to wrap it up as Sue and Wayne will be arriving with the dogs later today. We’ve gotten a lot done in five days of work. The place looks pretty shipshape.

Updated laundry room … bit of cussing when another “box” wasn’t right. Between the 2 bad boxes came one perfect cabinet. 😅 Good job Mark! 

Matchy-matchy … plenty of storage for food pantry items, dog stuff and cleaning supplies! 

The living room furniture was touched up and the coffee table decorated … maybe a few bits from our place made it over to TV. 😊

The entryway has a beaded garland added for sparkle … hope it meets owner approval. 🥰

The kitchen granite was polished … cabinets got a touch-up. 

Nice big bright kitchen! 

After the laundry room was done we talked to K’s … use the old cabinets for seldom used appliances in the garage. Mark and I hauled them about … need to be bracketed for safety before they’re filled up.

The two boxes on top will be reassembled and moved to the right side, stacked. It’s getting organized … Wayne’s been working in there!

Back home Mark unloaded the tools and my paints before we started dinner and catching up on the dreaded laundry. 

Did I mention the huge flock of white pelicans wintering at The Villages? Genuine snow birds. 😂

That’s it. We’re exhausted. 

Thursday, February 3, 2022

It’s 6:30 … dinner’s done, the doggies are walked and we’re ready to relax! It was an early start … up at 5:30 and off to the K’s to paint the fascia before eaves troughs are installed. (Rain is moving in Saturday so Mark has much to do. Half the job was done today.) 

I puttered at K’s polishing granite counters, touching up nicks on the front door, patching and painting bits in the laundry room … at least 4 hours. We’ll be done by Saturday … then to catch up at home. 😂

Mark painting outside the kitchen window. 

Watched a few golfers strut their stuff while we ate power bars for lunch. 

Mark’s going to need a soak in that nice spa when he’s done! 😅 

Wednesday February 2nd, 2022

Yeah, it’s the wee hours here … everyone’s sleeping and I’m planning to … crank the music and work on my big painting!  (Well, after 9 o’clock!) 😂

No laundry … no dusting … just painting! It’s my birthday month. 

Tuesday, February 1, 2022

Well it’s 8 o’clock and we’re just relaxing with a drink after a busy day at the K’s. 

Big boy Robbie tried to snuggle ip on this tiny Shih Tzu’s bed. 😂 (Don’t worry … the K’s dogs weren’t home.) 

Mark and I got a lot done today … laundry room cabinets installed, pictures and mirrors hung, boxes opened and sorted, you know, moving in. 😊 

The touch-up painting has gone very well … no need to paint the interior at this time. 👍🏻 Any nicks and scratches from moving have been fixed and the place shines! They’ll be happy when they walk in next time. 

Left to accomplish … another laundry room cabinet, wire shelves, set up the spa maintenance schedule, tweak a few decor bits, touch up the front door paint, paint the soffits and mulch the rose garden. Easy-peasy! 🙃

Workin’ on the laundry room!

Tonight, Sue and Wayne are out with friends at Bella Roma for dinner. apparently, they ran out of spoons … 

Wayne, Bert and Joan … fun times! 

That’s it for today!