Wednesday Morning -last day of 2014

Well as always as we tend to grow "long in the tooth" we ask ourselves "where did this time or year go"? Yikes seems like yesterday we were welcoming in a new year and here we go again doing the same again tonight, oh well. I hope this new year brings some joy to those who have said good-bye forever to family, friends and loved ones. I still feel hollow at times for those whom we have know and who left this life, our friendship and closeness to a better place in Heaven. In reality that is the goal of us all at the end of our time here on earth.

Well Tuesday started out much the usual with a roll out around 6 or a little before. The day turned out to be a wet and soggy day with much needed rain. Despite all of my daily watering a steady light rain was much needed by the garden and it did that most of the day and evening. The temps finally dropped a few degrees so we cut the a/c off again and hopefully stay off until around March or April, wishful thinking. I headed out to the rec on my bike after a few quiet moments and a lite breakfast of oatmeal, cinnamon and honey in a light drizzle. We had 2 courts in action and once again I could wring the sweat out of my shirt. Wow what a work out for 2 hours with non stop action. Afterwards I made a quick stop at the library for a couple new reads before heading on home in a light rain.

There was no need to do anything outside so I read for an hour until Nancy got back from her workout on the treadmill at the rec. She was heading in as I was heading out for home. When she got back we cleaned up and headed out to Sam's Club for a gas up at 2.15 a gallon then for some goodies for tonight's get together at the Botbyl's along with Patrick and Kathryn. We then made a Publix and Aldi stops on the way home and once more filled up the larder(cabinets and fridge). Amy came around 1, so we could watch Eliza Faye while she took Ava and Sam for dental appointments. The flossing paid off as neither of them had any cavities for a change, that was fantastic news. Little Eliza Faye charmed us for an hour until she gave into a nap, wow does she ever fight sleep. Finally she took a nap on Nancy lap and we managed to get her in a bed without waking up. That was a first because the minute you lay her down it's like she has a button somewhere that awakens her. She still hasn't completely got use to walking alone but will sometime in the next few weeks be walking and running all before her first birthday in January.

I read the rest of the afternoon and then after Amy picked up Eliza we settled into speaking with our "mountain mom, Helen". Her son Rick and a friend had been with her the past week and they had a wonderful time together eating, visiting family and old familiar places in the Winston-Salem area where he grew up. He lives just a few minutes near us here in Florida. It was great to hear of the fun time she had with them and how the weather wasn't to bad. A year or so ago he nearly got snowed in when a really heavy snow fell over the Christmas holidays while he was there.

 I sliced the leftover rib roast into small size bites and with sauteed green pepper and onions we made fajitas, replete with sour cream and hot sauce. I had just enough Swiss chard(not cooked) from last nights supper that we cooked up for a very delicious and healthy meal, yikes was that ever tasty. Nancy will use the rib roast bones which are frozen for some good beef barley vegetable soup on what we hope will be a cool day sometime in the near future. At least cool enough to turn the a/c off. After the cleanup we headed out to watch a little of Fox News and saw where the aircraft that disappeared from the skies was found with several bodies floating in the ocean. That area of the world has had it's share of unusual occurrence with planes and I wonder if there is some illegal or unethical activity that is taking place there.

I found a college football between Georgia and Louisville on the tube and it was rather interesting at first but the Bulldogs prevailed at the end. It was close to 11 when I said good-night and lights out. Well I hope all of you who read these daily posting enjoy them. I live such a mundane life to most but I'm hopeful that our way of life will prevail at best. The love of my family,country and GOD was once the norm for many who call America home but somehow we have been influenced by a few non conformists to change all of what use to be traditional values and mores. What use to be bad is now good, what use to be respected is disrespected and I could go on and on about the many changes that have so recently occurred. I must say our POTUS has made true his pledge to drastically change America and he is successful in making us weak within. There is success in dividing a country instead of uniting us against those who want to destroy our way of life. I read a little about his fathers hatred for American and what he felt was colonialism of the nations of Africa. I'm amazed others are unaware the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Hopefully we will wake up with this next bunch of legislators and start to undo some of the strife that has been started by this administration. Although I will hold my opinion for now as I'm disgusted with career politicians who are self serving, LATER

Tuesday Morning

Well Monday started out much the usual for me as I rolled out around 6' ish to start the day. There was a little fog in the air but just a very pleasant spring like morning with temps in the upper 60's and by late afternoon close to the 80 mark but with some humidity. That of course means the a/c is back on, oh well, it sure beats the weather in Kansas where it's below freezing for Tyler's family. After my few quiet moments and a bowl of oatmeal I got ready to ride out to the rec on my bike for some 2 plus hours of pickle ball and then a couple games of ping pong to fill in as a fourth before heading home.

It was just such a beautiful morning after the fog burned off that I stayed outside and hand watered the garden despite the sweat soaked shirt. Nancy was at the doctor's getting an ultrasound on her thyroid and then making an appointment with a heart specialist for her once again fluttering heart. She had a very bad attack on Sunday afternoon where she became faint from the rapid heart beat as the blood wasn't getting to her upper body and head. The pulse was so rapid and out of control that we both got quite concerned. After a few moments it went back to normal and she felt fine but we need to know what causes this sudden attack especially if this occurs while driving. We have to meet with a heart doctor who's specialty is this type of symptom on Friday in Clearwater.

Well Amy and the kiddos came for lunch and stayed most of the afternoon. Eliza is taking a few more steps alone and hopefully will soon stop crawling. She is such a cutie and always has a smile for me except when she needs a nap and is fighting taking one. She is much like her mother who didn't want to miss the going on's. We both layed down with her singing our sleepy song but she wanted no part of that scenario until Amy came back from shopping and let her nurse. She then fell asleep for a short nap. Ava and Sam continue to grow and Sam is really starting to shoot up tall. Ava is getting very good on the piano reading and playing music. We went to their house for a supper of stuffed bell peppers with orzo and feta cheese , yikes was that ever delicious. I pulled and chopped a nice mess of Swiss chard and brought a salad from the garden as well. The fresh greens are so good and coming in regularly.

We stayed until nearly 8 o'clock before heading home where we settled into our respective channel changer. Nancy surfs in the living room and I in the bedroom after my hot shower. I watched the Lightning beat a good Toronto Maple Leaf hockey team after being down by 2 goals. We are tops in our division and finally bringing some fame to Tampa in at least one sports franchise. Hockey is one of those spectator sports that is constant action and its easy to follow the puck on TV. The rules aren't that difficult either. These players are real athletes as they are constantly up and down the ice while taking some really horrific body shots. Just trying to skate is a chore for me let alone someone trying to knock you down and then trying to swing a stick hitting a small round piece of plastic into a small goal, yikes!! That was about it for the day as I soon was sporting some horizontal around 11, LATER

Monday Morning

Well Sunday found us with just another gorgeous day weather wise as temps reached near 80 degrees with bright sunshine and little humidity. The garden loves these cool nights and warm days and so do we except we put the a/c back on as one of us gets hot or cold quickly, oh well such is life in Florida.

I started the day with a 6'ish roll out. We weren't having a gathering at Element Church so we decided to visit SFBC our old church with daughter Amy and her family for the 9:30 service. We were welcomed warmly with hugs and handshakes and questioned if we were coming back into their fold. We informed all that it was one of those Sunday's when Element doesn't meet so we wanted to worship with our old family. It's nice to know you are still regarded warmly and not forgotten as so many churches do with parishioners who move on. Afterwards Tyler and I headed to Tampa with Patrick and his daughter Lauren for the football game. I had been blessed with 4 top tickets for the BUCS game from our neighbor Carol who received the tickets from a client. These tickets were on the 50 yard line and with padded seats, cup holders and in the shade and access to the finer areas of the stadium, WOW what a nice venue. I would never pay what these tickets cost for a super bowl contender let alone to see a team that was the worst in all of the NFL, but thousands of folks did because the stadium had a rather large crowd and was close to capacity.

The game saw the BUCS leading for most of the game until the last couple minutes when they did the usual amateur plays and turned the ball over to the Saints and lost the game once again for a dismal 2-14 season. We are guaranteed the top draft pick because of this lowly record. We desperately need a quarterback or a couple linemen to protect the quarterback as we have two of the top receivers in all of football. Well we had a grand time despite losing in the final moments once again and this stadium is one of the tops in all of football as well. It did take some time to get back onto the interstate due to the large crowds but going to an NFL game was worth it. It seems my second choice of teams in our division the Panthers with be in the playoffs with a 6-10 record as they annihilated the Falcons. They have been playing decent football so maybe they have chance. Our division was once the toughest in all of football but is now relegated to being the least successful and the easiest to beat on Sunday, oh well!

Tyler and I got back to Seminole after dropping Patrick and Lauren off before dark and he once again made a couple quick adjustments to my computer so that I now can send pics with emails on my gmail account and in the meantime I'm backing up my pics and data with this Seagate UBS drive, wow am I learning a lot but retaining very little as I'm constantly needing him to sort out these little quirts. Nancy had made a zucchini pie for lunch with Amy and the kiddos so I had a couple slices for supper before heading in to watch the late SNF game. The Steers were beating the Bengals and of course will be in the playoffs. The Steelers was one of the two teams the BUCS beat this year and very convincingly at that, oh well!!! I never finished the game as the sandman calleth, LATER

Sunday Morning

Well Saturday was a day that saw plenty of emotions. We attended a funeral for a neighbor lady and then learned of a death in the family of a nearly about to be born little boy, yikes I dread days like this and yet we are are going to be the cause of others to mourn us when our time comes to pass on from this life.

The day started with a 7' ish roll out. Initially I was going to go to the rec for some work out but decided to skip it due to keeping my reserve built up as Nancy and all of the grand kids have a cold or the runny nose. I don't know if she is contagious but decided to skip the hard sweaty activity besides we needed to be ready to head out for the funeral service by 11. After our quiet times and a bowl of oatmeal with cinnamon and honey I headed outside to harvest lettuces, kale, spinach, beet greens and some cabbage leaves for a large garden salad. I even found a couple radishes big enough to eat as well. After cleaning the produce and breaking it up for the salad spinner to get the excess water out I headed out to hand water the gardens.

We headed to Grace Fellowship church in Largo for the funeral of our once neighbor Bonnie Sova. Bonnie suffered a horrible illness called Lou Gehrig's disease for the past couple years and this illness from what I understand is replete with severe pain and complete loss of all physical bodily functions. She was a great lady and a nurse with two daughters and two grandsons. We were the same age. She and her family moved out of the 'hood about 11 years ago after their girls married and left home. We saw several familiar faces at the service and learned that Al Ruschel from Bay News 9 is the music director at Grace. He sang a beautiful song and we spoke with him briefly after the service. I mentioned that we spend part of the year in N.C. and he mentioned he has a son who is a doctor that lives in the Morganton area of N.C. and that he was on his way there after the service.

Well the service was nearly 2 hours long and we skipped the meal on the grounds afterwards and came home to finish the pasta fagioli soup from Christmas. We settled into relaxing and of course Nancy went on Facebook only to learn the daughter of her first cousin suffered a horrific loss on Christmas Day. The daughter was to deliver her first child, a boy within the next few days when a routine ultrasound detected no heartbeat. The doctors induced her to deliver the baby and the cord was wrapped so tight around his neck that it caused him to suffocate in the womb. What a tragedy and at a time when there is usually such joy. Our hearts go out to the family as everyone is just devastated. This would have been her cousins first grand child as well.

Amy called and we decided to meet up with them at the Olive Garden for supper in Largo. They were taking a meal to their pastors daughter and husband who just delivered a baby girl on Christmas Day. We dined out with them and then they headed out with the take out meal for the new family. We settled or I settled into some football before hitting the showers and eventually watching the Lightning win in hockey over the N.C. Hurricanes 2-1. Today was a day of many highs and lows but the lows left us grasping for the answers to the why's and what for's, especially with the death of an unborn child, LATER

Saturday Morning

Well Friday turned out to be a very nice day. The temps were moderate with just enough chill in the air to keep the windows open after a somewhat chilly start. After sleeping in until after 7 we did our respective quiet times and then finished the breakfast casserole from our Christmas morning feast, wow it tasted just as good if not better. After the cleanup I headed out to check on the gardens and do some hand watering then decided to mow up the oak leaves that covered the yards. I gathered nearly 2 trash cans full of the brown leaves then decided to reduce them down by mowing over then a few times while in a pile. That act pulverized the leaves to about 1/2 of a can which I then placed around my new lettuce seedlings. By reducing the leaves to just small parts they break down so much quicker to compost and the worms can run them through their digestive tracts which creates the best compost ever and makes for great soil for growing.

That kept me busy up to lunch time. The Ross Family came for leftovers for lunch and we had a good visit. We chowed down on salad, pasta fagioli soup and some dips. I'm still staying away from as much bread, crackers and chips as possible along with any and all desserts. Eliza was so cute and we watched her take several steps on her own without holding on. She will be walking consistently before New Years Day is my guess. Tyler has my laptop up and running but there are a few glitches with photo uploading to our Facebook page as we are having to relearn how to do that. After they left I took down the tubs from the attic and we took down the Christmas tree and packed away all of the ornaments for another year. With my help it only took a couple hours including vacuuming and moving the furniture back into place. Wow the living room looks so bare now but at least there is a little more room to maneuver. Amy was cleaning some of the older toys from her house and brought them over for the kids to play with here. The spare bedroom is now officially a toy room. I think she too went home and took down her tree as well which will give Ava and Sam more room to play their Wii they got for Christmas.

We decided since we ate such a variety of leftovers for lunch we would just eat a frozen pizza doctored up with fresh mushrooms for supper. We read for a while before eating and then gave our neighbor Carol Heckman a call to see if they wanted to play any games. Her daughter Toni and Mark are visiting from Michigan and have been here a week and we haven't really visited. We use to be close friends before they moved back north. Well we walked across the street around 7 and played a game of Phase 10 and while it was close to the very end Mark survived and won despite me having the lowest score. It was after 9 when we finished. We caught up on all that's been going on with their family as they to are grand parents. Our kids use to play with their kids when they lived across the street even though their girls were a few years older. We headed across the street for the hot showers and a little of Gold Rush and the bush folks in Alaska before lights outs at 11, LATER

The day after Christmas-Friday Morning

Well what a busy day of gourmet dining that started with a roll out around 7'ish after a late night on Wednesday. We slept in for a change and the flannel sheets helped to keep the bed snugly. The rain had stopped but it was still overcast and the temps had dropped down into the high 50's by early morning. There was just enough chill in the air to not notice the humidity and it stayed that way for most of the day with maybe a high of 65. We had the doors and windows open for fresh air.

We had a house full of family coming around 10 for breakfast. Nancy had a delicious ham, cheese and crusty bread on top egg casserole along with a skillet of hash brown 'taters and biscuits while Amy made the cheese blintz's this year and brought fresh orange juice. Wow what a feast. We called neighbor Dan to come down a get a couple plates for him, Carol and Jesse as we always had them for breakfast on Christmas morning and the night before,but they were under the weather this year and didn't want to infect us so they missed both get together's. Bobby got here alone just before 10 and we started to work on the garnish for the roast that would go in the oven at 3 PM.

I harvested fresh thyme and rosemary from the garden and we also used garlic brought back from cabin patch for the roast. I bought a 5 bone 14 pound standing rib roast and it was warming up to room temperature with the mixture atop to gradually seep into the meat from the top down and to place a nice crust on top when placed in the hot 500 degree oven and then immediately turned down to 350 for the next 3 hours. Wow that piece of meat was cooked to perfection, medium rare after letting it set for about 30 minutes after taking it from the oven. Bobby also did the smashed taters with Gorgonzola cheese and the gravy was gourmet as well with Dijon mustard and fresh mushrooms. We had fresh carrots and Brussels sprouts as well with crusty bread and then cherry pie, a pastry and chocolate moose tarts for dessert. I passed on all the sweet dishes and stayed away from the taters except for a taste. It was difficult to pass up especially with all of the delicious looking dishes but if I'm ever going to reduce this spare tire today was the perfect start which was a strain on my will power; but I prevailed.

I almost forgot to mention all of the eating took place after our kids came with their kids around 3 PM and we took pictures before we let them open their gifts. Wow they did cooperate the best they could as it was difficult due to their excitement. Little Eliza Faye was so funny as we watched her right in there with the big kids in the gift openings. Well grandma Nancy out did her self once again with several gifts for each child and now its buy double for both the boys and girls.They all loaded up with shopping bags of toys and a few clothes. The girls were in their glory as they were into making crafts on the kitchen table and the boys were running their monster trucks over every available space through out the house. Eliza Faye was right in there with them and at times slowed them down with her curiosity as to what they were doing.

I finally had to dispose of my old robe which I had for nearly 40 years or more; of course I had only worn it when the morning temps were cold in the house but many Christmas's were on film with me wearing that robe I had before Nancy and I were married. That was the big laugh of the day as Amy saw me once a couple weeks ago with the old robe on with the hem falling down and a rip under the arm, so she gave me a beautiful blue Izod robe and immediately I tossed the old one(which was to everyone's surprise as I like old things). Anyhow the gift giving was complete and the trash bag was full of wrapping paper and bows. The kiddos were buzzing around with their toys so we broke out a good bottle of vino which helped to calm the situation until we ate around 6'ish.

The GAB(Betsy) came around 5 'ish and then Braden came around 7:30 as he had to work the emergency room during the day. We sent plates home for Gus and Garrett and then we worked on the cleanup. Tyler wanted to use china and so we had to hand wash it ahead of the meal and then again afterwards. That was the first time we had used the china in many years and it made for a festive setting as well. After the kiddos were all bathed with their pj's on everyone decided it was time to head for their houses. We were initially going to play a new game we received but we were all worn out by the kiddos and our full tummy's so we decided another time and day. I was so sleepy at 9:30 after they left I could barely keep my eyes open so it was horizontal lab for me before 10, LATER

   

Christmas Morning 2014

Well Wednesday was one of those never sit still or down for most of the day even up until after midnight. Wow what a busy day and one where we loved up on many folks with hugs and well wishes for Christmas. The elbow had quite a workout as well with the many gastronomic delights later in the evening as many gathered at our house after the church service for delicious soups, dips, cheeses and finger foods until nearly midnight. Kathryn and Amy brought tons of goodies as well to compliment Nancy's dishes. We had lots leftover for another day.

The morning started with me up around 6'ish which is much the usual as I did my quiet moments to reflect and give thanks before heading out to the rec on my bike for 2 hours of pickle ball. Yikes what a workout and I could wring the sweat from my shirt as I headed for home. It is unseasonably warm with temps in the middle 70's to start the day and muggy as humidity has entered the scene. The a/c is running once again in December. After checking on the garden I decided it needed a hand watering despite the overcast skies with the promise of rain. My garden soil is so sandy and drains quite well despite all of the compost. We finally got some of the wet stuff just about the time we headed out with Patrick and Kathryn for Element Church in Tampa.

Well I got a surprise from our new neighbor who purchased the house next door while we were gone this summer to the mountains. She is a single mom with a teenage son and has a couple older children and who is also a grandmother. Well we befriended her with cookies and baked goodies from time to time and yesterday she knocked on the door and inquired if I liked football; of course I informed her I did so she presented me with 4 tickets to the Bucs vs Saints game on Sunday with a parking pass included. These were given to her by one of her doctor clients who for some reason decided not to go and see the Bucs in their last home game. It's been a horrible season this year as with most of the teams in our division. The chance to see any pro game was just up my ally as its been several years since I last attended one of their games. I had a little difficulty at first finding 3 others to go with me as both son Bobby and neighbor Dan were already booked for other activities; however son in law Tyler, Patrick and his daughter Lauren will be attending with me for what we hope will be a good game for the season finale. Just the opportunity to see a pro game live will make for an experience as Tyler has never been to a pro game. The seats look to be awesome as well as they are way out of our price range which include a buffet with the ticket holder, yikes!!!

We attended the candle light service at Element to a packed house and it was a mixture of contemporary as well as many of old hymns done in an upbeat fashion. We were inspired by the huge crowd and saw many old familiar faces as well and the message brought in the service is Jesus is still alive in our hearts. Nancy had a reading part in the service and she was as nervous as a new bride but she did fine and no one knew her knees were shaking but me. We headed out by 8 PM to our house in Seminole and met up with Amy and her family as well as a couple they invited who lives next door to them with their teenage son. Mike, Esther and Allen are from Cuba and we were greatly impressed with their sociability and friendliness. They attended the church service with Amy and Tyler at SFBC after an invite. I don't believe they attend church anywhere so who knows we may have planted a seed in their lives. Their 15 year old son was born here in America and he is very out going and respectful and when he learned I had served in the air force he thanked me for my service. What other 15 year old would do that?

Well the kiddos fell asleep while we talked and visited as it was past their bedtime before we decided to call it a night. The conversations where varied and there was never a dull moment until they all headed out. We cleaned up and I vacuumed before turning in. Nancy was putting all the Christmas gifts for the kiddos under the tree as she loves this part of the Christmas season. Today will be another big day of eating delights with a breakfast casserole, hash browns and other goodies around 10 o'clock when Bobby comes from Tampa and Amy and her family. The Botbyl's cancelled out due to sickness which will be the first in several years we haven't had them to eat with us on Christmas eve and for breakfast. Bobby will come back later in the day with Annsley and Gabriel as we will celebrate opening gifts with the kiddos and a standing rib roast dinner. Nancy's sister Betsy will come later as well with her family to eat supper with us, LATER

Wednesday Morning Christmas Eve 2014

Well I must say it's so nice to have your computer back in working order with a few new updates and I'm indebted to my only son in law Tyler for his willingness to tackle my IT messes and for his knowledge of that world. It's amazing to watch him as he opens and closes systems not only on the laptop but on the Ipad as well. Anyhow I'm back in business with my posts and for those of you who read my daily ramble I'm not one who likes to disappoint.

I started the day much the usual with a 6' ish roll out. These new flannel sheets are conducive to great sleep but wouldn't you know it, it's been so warm we have the a/c on. Those couple of days when the heat was on has passed us by for now and my garden is thriving with these warm nights. We did get some rain which has helped with the 2 a day watering's. The 1/2 runner green beans are sending out runners and will soon be climbing the back fence as well as has the sugar peas which are climbing the chain link. I'm a little disappointed in the radishes as they have beautiful tops but no radish on the bottom. I must have sowed them in the wrong sign of the moon( I know many don't believe the moon signs have anything to do with good harvests but this in one vegetable that proves it does). The carrots are showing great tops as well and hopefully they will good bottoms.

I have blooms on the tomato and hot pepper plants and the Swiss chard is ready for another cutting but will have to wait until next week as we have big meals plans the next day or so. I will head to Publix for a standing rib roast today that will feed 10-12 people. So that will be probably be 5 to 6 ribs. We will have that along with some of Bob's specialty 'taters and all of the other fixin's for Christmas supper but tonight after the service at Element Church in Tampa we will have 2 kinds of soups, smokies, dips and spreads as well as salsa and concasio. Yikes I will really have to be careful as I think I'm reducing the spare tire. So far I didn't eat any cookies or cakes or cinnamon and sugar coated pecans which are or was one of my most favorite sweet things and no breads or anything with white flour in the mix. I haven't even had a beer in the last week either but I do still have my glass of red wine before supper each day when possible. I feel as if I've lost maybe and ounce or two but I really feel good with eating smaller portions and just one helping.

Christmas morning we have most of the same gang that will be here tonight again for a breakfast of egg and ham casserole, cheese blintz's, fruit salad and of course hash browns and biscuits. This will be another meal which I must be careful with as I'm customarily eating some of everything. It's difficult to pick and choose when it's all so down right delicious; at least we won't eat until mid morning so I can make 2 meals out of the one sitting and then supper will probably be later in the evening as well. Well as you can tell we will be eating "high on the hog" that's a country saying from way back when I was a kid the next couple of days with family, friends and neighbors as we celebrate the birth of our savior, Jesus. Hopefully all of you will be with someone you care about this time of the year. Speaking of year in just another week we will enter into 2015, wow where did 2014 go and so fast. It seems the more mature or older for some the time just fly's by and when we were kids it seemed to move at a snails pace, oh well!!!

We had the 3 Ross kiddos here for most of the day and the two older ones, Ava and Sam are so excited and full of anticipation for Christmas morning. Little Eliza Faye is such a cutie with her new hair style and just melts your heart with her smile and at times can show an attitude as well. She still hasn't put all of her steps together yet but it won't be long and then she will get to where she wants to much quicker. She is one tough little gal as the older ones wrestle with her and she loves it while we are constantly reminding the others to be gentle; but not her as she is right in the mix and never cries or complains when they rough house, LATER

Tuesday Evening

Well I must say a couple years ago I would never have thought I could do with out a computer and access to the Internet but for the past couple of days I've been somewhat lost without it as my son in law Tyler has backed up all of my files and pictures with a USB drive then wiped my laptop completely clean of any files and re installed all of the programs using my original disc's for the set up of Windows 7. Somehow I downloaded a virus from someones post's or website and it was directly messing with my operations especially the posting and downloading of pictures. I'm back with my rambles and pictures of what's going on in my life and the legacy I want to leave for my grand children in the posting of my rambling of everyday occurrences.

Monday was much the usual after the great children's musical Sunday night at Element Church in Tampa. We saw our Annsley sing a solo and Gabe singing in the program that at times had us in stitches with humor and other times very solemn as they told the story of Jesus's birth in both songs and play acting. Nancy made a couple dozen cupcakes for the occasion as the children had an ice cream and cake social afterwards. We headed out afterwards for the long drive to Indian Rocks Beach for an open house with our dear friends Kathryn and Patrick. We met several of their closet friends and enjoyed some good finger food before heading for home around 11'ish.

Sunday found me once more disillusioned with the poor play of our football team the Bucs who is vying for the worse record in all of football this season with only 2 wins. We will see who they draft this next year as they need so many key players especially at the quarterback position. Oh well only another week do we have to suffer through watching them play and what's really unusual is our division which use to be the best in the NFL is now also the worst in all of football.

Monday found me up an ready for another day around 6'ish. After a few quiet moments and a lite breakfast I headed out on my bike to the rec for nearly 2 full hours of pickle ball. We had 2 courts in action with a couple waiting to get on. My shirt was wringing wet with sweat if that is a good indicator of the workout. I stopped off at the library for a couple new reads and a couple new CD'S to play on my Bose. I picked up a Jim Reeves and Roger Whitaker album and wow are they ever wonderful and of course my all time favorite clarinet player Acker Bilk with his famous instrumental Stranger on the Shore. I have always loved this piece of music and Amy and I danced to it at her wedding.

Monday evening found us riding with the Ross's to largo Central Park to view the Christmas lights after supper. That place was jammed packed with folks at 8 PM in the evening in the 70's degree temps. Wow, we have the a/c back on and today Tuesday it was down right hot with high winds and humidity. It's supposed to cool down to the the 60's for Christmas day. The garden is loving this high humidity and somewhat cloudy days since we got the storm on Sunday evening. There were several folks struck by lightning at the Bucs game on Sunday with one still in critical condition at the hospital. Such a shame to encounter such misfortune as watching a poorly performing team on the field and then get hit by lightning afterwards, oh well.

Tuesday found us much the usual except for my morning posts. After my quiet time and a lite breakfast I headed out for the rec on my bike for almost another 2 hours of pickle ball. The play once again was fast and the wet shirts were in abundance as well. Tomorrow (wed) will be the last day of pickle ball until Saturday as the rec is closed for 2 days and then the same schedule is the same for next week as well.

Amy and the kiddos, all three of them came for lunch and then a neighbor boy who is Ava's age came over to play and they are are so excited that Christmas is just 2 days away, yikes they are so hyper and just full of energy. Little Eliza Faye is starting to show her attitude of disapproval for certain things by throwing herself backwards that its almost comical. Today she did that with me when she first arrived so I let her lay on the floor and walked away. Well that seems to be the response that changed her 'tude for the rest of the day. She does loves for me to dance with her to the Bose music.

Tyler fixed my laptop and we are back in business for now and so happy to be back on the web. It's almost like you have lost a family member when it's not operating properly, luckily for us he knows all the nuances on how to correct most if not all problems with computers. That was about it for the day and so I will be back on the early morning ramble posts starting in the AM. Nancy made a huge pot of pasta fagioli soup for our Christmas eve get together and so that's what we ate for supper, delicious, LATER    

Sunday Morning 4 Days before Christmas 2014

Well Saturday turned out to be a non stop day as we were busy from nearly sun up and until late into the evening. We started the day with a 6' ish roll out to nice temps once again. After my usual quiet moments and a lite breakfast I pedaled out to the rec for some 2 hours of pickle ball which is an open day for all players. We had a few of the advanced but mostly the intermediates but some of them have really improved their games and we had some great play. I never sat down or lost a game for over an hour as we split the winners and then paired up with a new partner. We had 3 courts in action and about 6 waiting to get on the court through out the morning. I made a quick stop at the library for a new read before heading home after the workout.

Nancy said that Amy called and if I was bored they were doing some yard work and my presence would be greatly appreciated; so after watering my garden I had a quick lunch about 11:30 and loaded up some tools and headed over. Tyler is always ready to help me with my computer problems and updates so I figured it was only fair for me to help him with some yard work. As a matter of fact we are going to save my programs on a thumb drive and then completely rebuild my laptop in the next couple days as I have major virus which is disrupting our ability to post pictures and view videos and causing some programs to act weird.

We sawed down and then worked up a small tree as well as digging out of the ground a huge dying succulent bush as well as removing several shrubs and plants. We filled several of their trash cans as well as several cans loaned to us by the neighbors. That kept us busy for a couple hours in the sunlight which was rather warm or down right hot. We both had soaked shirts by the time we finished. Next time we want to work in the back yard and get it cleaned up.

We were watching the kiddo's for supper and the evening as Amy and Tyler attended a deacon Christmas party and then afterwards a movie. I grilled chicken legs which has become a favorite for all three of the kiddo's; even little Eliza loved the meat as I cut it off the bone into small pieces for her. We had black beans and Jasmine rice as well as some broccoli and salad to complete the meal.The kiddo's can now put away the chow with Sam eating 3 legs. Nancy gave them each a cupcake for dessert as she had made some for the Christmas party at church tonight and the recipe made more than she anticipated. I finally gave away the rest of the Christmas cookies to our neighbor as well as a couple cupcakes. I must say nary a one crossed my lips and I'm thrilled I had the will power to resist those delicious delights.

Well today is the gathering at Element Church in Tampa and then again this evening for the children's musical program. We will travel close to 200 miles today as we make 2 trips there and then later in the evening we will head over to Patrick and Kathryn's place on the Indian Rocks Beach for their annual open house which will feature some superb finger foods and visit with some of their closest friends. We are honored to be friends with such a generous and loving couple who are followers of CHRIST. We have become great friends and look forward to many more years of sharing some summers and house church meetings together. We are planning a trip out west this next summer along with other friends in our house church from Element, LATER    Here are Nancy's cupcakes for the children at Element after the musical tonight in lieu of a birthday cake.

Saturday Morning

Well Friday was a bit chilly to start the day with temps somewhere around the low 50's which eventually gave way to the middle 60's with lots of sunshine by late afternoon. We spent the morning after our usual routines at Keswick Christian School where Ava and Sam were performing in their respective school Christmas programs; Ava's at 8:30 and Sam's at 10:30. In between programs we made a Walmart run which was located less than a mile away. I missed all of my pickle ball today but hope to make in this morning(Sat) for a workout.

Ava's is such a beauty and has a sweet kindred spirit about her but both she and Sam can get a little hyper at times especially with the addition of sugar from grandma Nancy's cookies. She and Sam helped to cut out and decorate sugar cookies for most of the afternoon. Amy and the kiddos came for lunch and later the cookie making began as they saw pictures of  Annsley and Gabe last week helping Nancy cut out and decorate cookies. Well I must say they had a grand time showing off their artist ability and of course eating several as well. I helped with the dish washing and clean up but stayed away from any of their art pieces entering my stomach. So far I haven't eaten a single Christmas cookie and while the spare tire is still there I actually feel better while refraining from the white sugar and flour.

The kiddos had a grand time and even little Eliza Faye had a cookie or two before the icing and sprinkles were applied. She and I played while Ava and Sam were making cookies and she is almost at the stage where she will begin taking more than one step at a time; but for now she likes walking while holding onto something. After they left we mopped and vacuumed the kitchen floor as sprinkles were in abundance and then we chilled for an hour or so before starting supper. I did eat some of Amy's leftover delicious potato casserole along with fresh broccoli and a slice of ham. We are trying to cut down on our portions as well in hope's we can reduce our spare tire's. That casserole was the first real carb's I've eaten in the past couple days but it was so tasty.

I somewhere picked up a virus in my computer and while it's still letting me onto all of my favorites I'm unable to download any pictures or videos from Internet. Tyler came by and found a major virus in the system so when I get my backup drive from Amazon we will completely rebuild my laptop from scratch. He such a knowledgeable person when it comes to computers and we are grateful for his indulgence toward us and our lack of computer skills. Well, while we were at Walmart(in between school programs) we found flannel sheets and purchased a set for our Florida bed. Wow did we ever sleep well last night despite the temps not really being that cold outside; but the warm feeling associated with those sheets are awesome and so conducive to sleep. We have been having to run the heat each morning to take the chill out of the house for an hour or so and then by mid morning the bright sunshine warms the outside air, LATER  Here are a few pics from their school program.

 

Friday Morning

Well Thursday was much the usual with a 6 ish roll out to start the day. It was a bit nippy as I rode out to the rec after my normal routines but the sun was out and the skies were clear and by late afternoon once more we had the doors and windows open. We had a good crowd of advanced pickle ball players with a new player who is the ping pong champion in the area. He had a great game with some unbelievable shots and I had the privilege to play with him and against him several times through out the morning. After nearly 2 hours and a wet shirt I headed out for home.

I hand watered and then fed many of my seedlings as well as harvested lettuces, kale, beet greens and some basil for a large garden salad. Amy came with the kiddos a little after 12 for lunch. Little Eliza Faye was her charming self and we watched her take a couple steps on her own without holding on. Hopefully she will continue to venture into this new area of maturing. We played in the toy room after lunch where she jabbered about the toys and danced to some of the musical ones. She is such a sweet baby and Sam while being a little rough at times just adores her as well. She never cries or fusses when he is wrestling or rough housing with her on the floor.

Well after they left to pick up Ava at school I read for most of the afternoon right up to supper time. I've stayed away from the carb's especially those Christmas cookies and now Nancy has just about given them all away. Patrick and Kathryn came by last evening and she loaded them up with a huge plateful plus they ate several while we played a couple games of Euchre of which the guys won 2 in a row for a change. Aunt Betsy came by on her way home from work and took a huge bag of them home as well.

Well that was about it for Thursday with not much new or exciting happening. Today Friday I'm skipping pickle ball and we are going to Ava and Sam's school Christmas program at 8:30 in the morning, yikes that is early! LATER

Thursday Morning

Well I must say after a rather mundane day the evening was anything but that as we went to our team leaders in Amway folk's place in Sarasota for the annual Christmas Party. It was like being entertained at a Hollywood film set on location for the movie Gone With The Wind. This home looks and feels almost unreal for its beauty and grandeur and the owners are super hosts and very unpretentious. Wow, what a magnificent place of beauty and this 3 story building looks just like the mansion in that movie with huge white columns and also somewhat like Monticello with the promenades down each wing leading out to other buildings. The veranda encloses the whole house and is accessible from each bedroom on the second story that has a bathroom for each bedroom as well. Never have I ever been in such a beautifully constructed home that is is use daily and decorated to the nines, WOW!!!

We started the day with the usual roll out around 6'ish and after my quiet time and a lite breakfast I pedaled out to the rec on my bike for a couple hours of pickle ball. I'm finally getting my stamina back up to par and hopefully that will help with slimming down to 180 pounds once again and just maybe flatten out this spare tire or at least deflate it a little. Last nights indulgence in the delicious cuisine prepared by their chef and friend and our son Bobby at the party didn't help with that objective but oh my what fine eatin'. There were two kinds of pastas with homemade sauces; one a marina(red) and the other a pesto(green) sauce made with fresh basil and spinach. These entrees were served with grilled sausages and chicken breasts. (Sorry, I digressed for a moment about last evenings momentous party atmosphere.)

After the workout and a stop off at the library for a couple new reads from a unique author, Ron Rash who writes about the Appalachia era;  I headed home to piddle around outside in the garden until Amy and the kiddos came for lunch. GG flew out early in the morning to spend a couple weeks in Michigan with son Eric's family and she got there safely. We will miss her during this holiday period. I made a guacamole and then we ate some of the leftover pork roast dinner including the sauerkraut which is quickly becoming one of my favorite dishes. After the clean up Eliza and Sam and I retired to the toy room where we played for the next hour or so while Amy ran errands. Eliza stands alone and walks while holding on but hasn't quite got the courage of walking alone down yet. She is such a smiley baby except when put in her car seat or the high chair and then she stiffens up and protests this restraint of holding her; she is such a free spirit.

After they left for the day I read until it was time to get ready and head out with neighbors Dan and Carol who are also Amway IBO's as are we. We traveled the hour and half ride across the Skyway Bridge to south Sarasota. There were probably 25 to 30 other IBO's there and after mingling we learned most of these folks are Christ followers and many still are active pastors in the area. Amway is a secondary interest for them as it is for us. We love the products offered by the company. Our hosts is the daughter of the owners of this palatial home, who travel world wide promoting Christianity. They are motivational speakers as well promoting this very successful company which has done a radical change from earlier periods when the leadership was less than honorable and the company received the dubious distinction of selling memberships instead of promoting first rate products of which we use several.

It was close to 11 when we got back to Seminole and then it was time for some shut eye. We commented we could put our whole house in one of the upstairs bedroom in the Gone with the Wind mansion, LATER    

Wednesday Morning

Well Tuesday was almost perfect weather wise. Except for the early morning fog which really was a blessing because the grass and gardens needed that moisture. Water dripped from the big oak leaves until nearly noon before the sun dried things out. I was able to mow the yards and not get completely covered by the dust because of the moisture; actually I mowed up 2 large trash cans of oak leaves and then mulched my garden plants with them. The sun came out around lunchtime and we probably reached the middle 70's by late afternoon with the windows and doors open.

The day started much the usual with a 6'ish roll out for me. Nancy lingered a little longer. After my quiet time and the posting of this ramble I ate a lite breakfast before heading out on my bike to the rec in the fog for some 2 hours of pickle ball. It was advanced players day only so we had 2 courts in action with lots of wet shirts. I'm still about 10 pounds overweight for what I set up for myself, so I've passed on all of those sweet smelling Christmas cookies Nancy has been making the past 3 to 4 days. I think I counted 8 or 9 different ones that she has made. Last evening we decided it was time to pass them out to our 5 surrounding neighbors, mailman, garbage man and now she takes some to our dentist's office and of course some go to Bobby and Amy's houses. This is Nancy's project and she loves to bake and then give then out at this time of the year. The grand kids love it when she bakes.

After pickle ball I headed home to work outside in the yard and gardens. Everything looks great but of course I'm watering everyday and some times twice a day. The mulched leaves help with holding the moisture in this sandy soil. I picked a nice mess of collards for supper. I like this new way of preparing them without having to cook them for hours. I just take out the stem and cut them into small pieces and put them in a skillet with some water and butter and sauteed them for about 30 minutes or less. Wow were they ever delicious and so good for you, an along with some Jasmine rice we called that our supper.

Amy, GG and the kiddos came for lunch and we dined on some honey baked ham Amy had leftover from her Christmas party along with some salad. I must say the smells coming from our kitchen made it difficult to pass on those beautiful cookies. Sam has been eating my share and watching grandma make the cookies as well as helping to decorate them. I've been entertaining Eliza while the girls and Sam are busy in the kitchen. We have been playing our Bose and Sam loves the Star War theme soundtrack and we have grown fond to the Dances with Wolves soundtrack. What awesome sounds come from that music machine.

Well Amy dropped Eliza off as they headed to a dinner party at church for the family. She was so cute as we played and loved up on her and then she fell asleep in Nancy's arms. She loves the Santa figures on the entertainment center and I would hold her up and let her hold the littlest ones. She would look into your eyes and give the biggest grin and just melt your heart. Amy came back a little after 8 as she needed to get Ava and Sam really for school tomorrow. Well after they left I settled into the Fox News channel on the happenings in the world and was disgusted with the news of 140 or so innocent school kids being slaughtered by the radical muslims in Pakistan and our POTUS is once more off to Hawaii for a couple weeks of vacation. Seems to me he has been on a vacation his whole term. We need some leadership before we are fighting a war in our streets. He has racially divided us, stood up for our enemies abroad and made them into victims and now is turning the police into the problem while canonizing criminals. I must say he is drastically or fundamentally changing America as he promised and to those who fell for his rhetoric; I hope you now see the damage he is doing to our culture, LATER

Here are a look at some of those gastronomic delights that I so far have passed on..It's not been easy to do so!!!! The pork roast was from Monday nights supper with the family.

Tuesday Morning

Well Monday after a chilly start really warmed up to the lower 70's. We had the windows and doors open by late evening and with the house full of company(family) we turned the fans on as well. It wasn't stuffy enough for the a/c but getting close as the inside temp reached the middle 70's. The afternoon was just beautiful short sleeve weather. Nancy had been making Christmas cookies all day long and then put a pork roast in the oven around 3 for a 6 o'clock supper time. The smells were delicious.

I started the day with the usual 6'ish routines and then headed out for the rec on my bike for close to two hours of pickle ball play. We only had enough players for 2 courts in action but the play was good and very competitive and by 10 I was whipped and had a wet shirt. I then stopped off at the library for a new read before heading home to hand water the gardens. Amy had called and wanted to drop Eliza Faye off while she shopped so I stopped and took over watching her as Nancy had the kitchen in a tizzy with Christmas cookie baking. I think she made at least 3 different ones today and already had 2 others completed. This operation gets bigger each year and so do I after sampling them but this year I told myself I wasn't eating any of them and so far I've stuck to my word. While all of them are my favorites it will take some will power to pass them up.

Eliza and I danced to music and played in the toy room for over 2 hours and finally I got her to take a small nap. She is so dog gone cute and you just want to hug her so tightly. She is standing alone and will take one step but them goes down on her knees to crawl when she wants to go some where else. After lunch I took her outside and walked in the sunshine and she loved that. We watched the squirrels digging in my garden and she makes this high pitch squeal when she wants to get your attention. Amy brought GG and Sam so we all had a lunch of leftover meatloaf sandwiches which were very tasty.

After they left  I read for awhile then helped with cleaning up the kitchen before heading out to piddle around in the garden. I headed out to pick GG up around 4'ish and bring her home for supper and present exchanging. The pork roast was delicious along with a kielbasa and hot dogs cooked in the juices of the sauerkraut that Nancy added about an hour before we ate. Yikes the smells were awesome to your taste buds and when applied over some smashed taters you began to salivate. There was crusty bread and then cookies for dessert all of which I had a hard time passing up; but did. After the clean up we watched the kiddos as Amy and Tyler did some Santa Claus shopping until nearly 10'ish. The kiddos finally succumbed to sleep and were all sacked out on the couches. I was fighting it as well by the time they left around 11'ish for their beds. I had a hot shower and was soon a sleep shortly after as well, LATER

Monday Morning

Well Sunday turned out to be a very nice day weather wise and the opportunity to worship was ideal as well at both Element in Tampa and at SFBC in Seminole as we watched Ava and Sam participate in the children's musical. Both were spectacular as Ava had a lead role role in many of the scenarios and little Sam was as cute as could be as he and another boy scampered across the stage and down the isle as runaway raccoon's while waving to the crowd. That drew many laughs and ahh's.

We started the day with cool temps in the 40's which finally gave way to the upper 60's by late afternoon with lots of bright sunshine. The heat has been on during the night but the garden just loves this cooler weather all except for my basil which I have to put up for the night. We headed out around 9'ish carpooling with Dan to Element. Once again the crowd is mainly the core group but the service was awesome with a very dramatic scene by one of our young ladies who did a soliloquy of Mary while holding baby Jesus just after his birth. Wow what an awesome job she did which had many in the crowd in tears including us. She was awesome and set the stage for celebrating Christmas and its true meaning. What talent we have in this body of believers.


We ate a frozen pizza doctored up with fresh mushrooms and a garden salad for lunch. That held us the rest of the day except for a few snacks we did after the children's musical. We brought GG along so she could see her talented great grand children and she really enjoyed the show as well as the social afterwards. We were back home by 8:30 and I tuned into some real football after watching the hapless Bucs blow another halftime lead with the Panthers in Charlotte.

Well we are celebrating our Christmas dinner and present sharing with GG tonight (monday) as she leaves for 2 weeks or so for Michigan where she will spend the holidays with Eric and family. Nancy will be back at the cookie baking and making today as she has already made several kinds. I'm trying to stay firm in not eating any and have managed to stay away from my favorite buckeye's which are presently in the freezer. What a draw they have on your psyche or rather your taste buds but they are loaded with fat I certainly don't need. Last week I played pickle ball 6 days and while I had great workouts and lost lots of sweat the spare tire did not go down in size so now I must keep my elbow from bending towards my mouth especially with these cookies, LATER.. Here are a few pics from the musical last night with our precious Ava as the lead singer and Sam as the scampering raccoon. The 3 wise men were the church staff and they were a hoot which brought lots of laughter.

Sunday Morning

Well there was white ice everywhere this Saturday morning in usually warm sunny Florida. It didn't last long and most of it was on the roof top of houses in the 'hood. We were spared due to the big oaks so my garden was spared from the killer ice, but it was a rather cool ride out to the rec on my bike. By late afternoon I was once more in short pants and t-shirts as the temps dramatically raised with the brilliant sunshine and blue skies.

After the cold start for Saturday morning we had the heat on for awhile but eventually had the door open later on in the day. I did about an hour of continuous play as the winners split and stayed on the pickle ball court with a new partner. Wow what a workout and I had a wet shirt by the time I left around 10'ish. I stopped off at the library to pick up another read for the weekend and found another great author, Ron Rash. I can read just a few paragraphs in a book and then I can tell if I want to read his works. He writes about Appalachia and reminds me of John Steinback with his great descriptions of that era and their hard times. I found several reads by him on the Internet and I'm excited to get started on his books. He is much like author Rick Bragg who writes a lot of non-fiction about his family and their hard times growing up in that era.

Amy called and needed help with transporting tables and chairs from church to their house for their Sunday School Christmas party. After a lunch of left overs we got ready and headed out to Sams to gas up at $2.36 and stock up on goodies for Monday nights supper. We are celebrating Christmas with GG early as she leaves for Michigan on Wednesday until after the new year. We purchased a whole pork loin with the bone-in for roasts and chops. It weighed over 30 pounds so we won't need any pork for awhile but the bone-in makes all the difference in taste when roasted or grilled. Unfortunately they only sell it in whole loins but at a very reasonable price of less than 2 bucks a pound and the butcher cut it for us as well. We got 4 roasts and several packs of inch thick chops for the grill at a later date. The freezer once more is slowly filling up.

I worked outside in short sleeves in the garden the rest of the afternoon until nearly dark when the temps began to drop rapidly. I fed all of my new seedlings of which they are putting on another new leaf and then picked my Swiss chard as GG invited us for a supper of meat loaf. We brought the chard of which she loves as much as we do and also sweet taters. We had a mice mess which cooks down to practically nothing. It is much like spinach when cooked but oh the flavor is awesome. After supper we headed home around 6:30 and Nancy wanted to start wrapping the many presents that have our closets stuffed full, yikes what a haul our kids and grand kids will take home with them on Christmas.

I tuned into the UFC program(much like boxing only bloodier) and watched some fighting much like the bare knuckle fights of yesteryear, except these fighters and can kick you also. It was hard to sleep through any of these matches as the action was non stop. I did manage to calm down a little afterwards by reading before lights out at 11'ish, LATER  Nancy took a few pics of the garden. If you notice the lettuce looks a little sparce it's because I've harvested the outer leaves twice already for salads as well as the kale and beet greens. I keep them picked down while the center of the plants continue to put on new leaves. We have already had a mess of the collards which I do the same thing which guarantees continued good eatin'.

A Chilly Saturday Morning in Florida

Well Friday stayed overcast with a coldness in the air despite the temps being somewhere around the 50's for the day. Sort of reminded me of those cold days we encountered in the mountains when we never saw the sun. By late evening we saw a few shadows and by night fall it was crisp and cold.

Not much happened today as it was much the usual with pickle ball in the morning while Nancy was at her Friday morning Bible study, Amy and the kiddos came for lunch along with GG. I picked and cleaned lots of lettuce, beet greens and kale and then made a huge salad to take with us to Dan and Carol's for a birthday supper for him. Dan finally reached the 60 mark; welcome to the club with Patrick and I. Nancy ran around with GG shopping while I spent the afternoon reading and doing little chores.

Dan had grilled filet mignon's to perfection and Kathryn brought twice baked tater's as well as dips and Nancy had a huge pot of broccoli and Carol made a delicious peach pie; so we feasted and then sat around a talked until after 9'ish. Patrick is having some inter ear difficulties which is resulting in vertigo or dizziness so he wasn't up to snuff. We laughed and cut up and celebrated Danny Boy finally hitting the 60 mark where Patrick and I have been for quite some time. I only have one more year there and then it's the big 70 for me; these young kids I associate with, oh well your only as old as you act and I'm a long way from there.

That was about it for the day so it was hot shower before a few chapters of a new book and then lights out, LATER

Friday Morning

Well Thursday really turned out to be one of those days that you choose to live in Florida during the winter. After a high 40's start it reached the low 70's by late afternoon with tons of sunshine but a breeze arrived mid-afternoon which kept the humidity away and made it short sleeve weather.

I started the day with a 6 'ish roll out and after my usual routines I got ready to head out to the rec for close to 2 hours of pickle ball play. We had only advanced players for our 2 hour slot then the intermediates filled the gym. This time of the year we have lots of snow birds who wonder into the gym and play the game. Some are very good players who play up north and some are just learning which allows for us(the advanced players) to have certain time slots. Our Rec is very accommodating in that regard and only occasionally do we get a player who doesn't meet up to our style of play. We probably have the best over all group of A Players in the county as several of our group go to other rec's when we have open days of play and do judge our personnel regularly.

After the workout which gave me another wet shirt and tired body I stopped off at the library for a new read I had on order before heading home to hand water the garden. I had a 11:30 dental appointment to replace the temporary crown on a molar that went south last summer and to have my choppers cleaned. This dentist and his staff are like old friends as well and never have I received such competent care. He is a little pricey but when you compare to other dentist we have used over the years he is excellent in not only procedures but absolutely painless and friendly. He actually becomes your friend as well as does his staff. That kept me busy for an hour and half as they removed the temporary crown made templates for the new gold crusted molar and then Lori our once neighbor took me in for a cleaning.

I stopped off at Home Depot on the way home for some composted cow manure, spinach and basil seedlings and some miracle grow. After a bowl of left over Zuppa soup I played and loved up on Sam and Eliza. She gets excited when I come around and is just so smiley. What sweetheart's she and Sam are. After they left to pick up Ava at school I headed out to the gardens and got a bed ready to transplant the spinach seedlings as well as moved the basil into a larger pot. I placed some of the compost around my tomato plants as well as the sugar peas. They are really starting to climb the chain link fence and one of the tomato plants have blossom buds.

Nancy fixed fresh green beans with cut up chicken breasts in a white sauce which we put over Jasmine rice for supper much like beef and beans only we used chicken instead. Delicious with a little soy sauce and sprinkled fresh thyme on top of mine. I love the flavor of thyme and try to use it as much as possible as well as fresh rosemary. Both of those herbs are doing great in the garden but for some reason when I separated the basil plant into individual pots it did OK for awhile but quickly the leaves started to turn yellow and a couple died, so I'm going to leave these plants together in one pot and then I can bring it in the garage on cold nights. Basil does not like cold temps.

Well after the clean up from supper I tuned into the Fox News and got a perspective of what is happening in the world with honest reporting. I find it hard to believe there are still those in the media who give this corrupt administration and its leadership the all clear to continue without accountability and transparency. I find no other media outlet that is fair and balanced, oh well. We are still being fed the "kool aid" when it comes to safe guarding our country as well as getting to the bottom of the scandals this POTUS has put the country in while he "fundamentally changes the country" which is his words, that he and few sycophants are doing their best to accomplish. God help US(A).

I headed for the hot shower then watched the Lightning beat a good Hurricane team from N.C. in hockey before reading until lights out around 11, LATER  

Thursday Morning

Well it is a bit nippy here in the usual hot and humid sunny Florida. At least today we had plenty of sunshine and it did warm up from the low 40's to the middle 60's by late afternoon; however the breeze kept it on the long sleeve side of warm. We are back into our routine for a couple days with a 6'ish roll out for me to start the day then after a few quiet moments to honor my Creator and give thanks and the posting of this ramble I got ready to head out to the rec for some nearly 2 hours of pickle ball.

Today was an open day so we had a few of the intermediates but only a handful of the advanced show; still we had 2 courts in action with a couple waiting to get on. There were lots of gals today and a few I had played tournaments with so the action was steady and consistent which allowed me to take it easy at times. I had a good workout but no wet shirt if that is an indicator of the level of play. Afterwards I headed home to work in the gardens. I weeded and hoed around the radishes and carrots in the side yard as well as fed the new seedlings with some miracle grow. Nancy had taken her mother, GG for a doctors appointment on her hearing as of lately she has been having trouble hearing and adjusting her aids.

Amy came with the kiddos around noon and we fired up the oven for a couple of frozen pizzas of which I sliced up a box of mushrooms to add to the one with pepperoni, yikes was that ever good. Nancy and GG showed up just as the pies were ready to come out of the oven. Sam and Eliza entertained us for a couple hours before they headed out to pick up Ava at school. We turned on the Bose for them and she loves to move to the music sound and looks with awe at the sounds coming from the box. We are still in awe to the sounds coming from it as well.

Since we or I ate heavy for lunch I decided to just have a salad for supper and Nancy added a baked sweet tater to her plate as well as a salad. We were having house church at 6:30 at the Botbyl's and there is always some kind of dip and or dessert. Nancy brought vanilla ice cream to go on top of the pecan crusted brownies and while I didn't want to indulge Carol had already made up the portions so I indulged. We had a good meeting that lasted until after 9 o'clock. Afterwards it was a hot shower and then curl up with a book during the commercials for Fox News. Once again I'm so alarmed with the idiocy of the leaders in our government that I'm thinking they are selling us down the river to our enemies, LATER

Wednesday Morning in a chilly Florida

Well Tuesday was somewhat less exciting than on Monday when we opened our Bose Music System but none the less we got back to seeing and loving up on our smiley grand daughter Eliza Faye and grand son Sam. The weather while having lots more sunshine today was a bit on the nippy side with temps in the middle 60's for the high. The stiff breeze made it feel even colder.

I started the day with a 6'ish roll out while Nancy slept in. After my usual quiet time and posting of this ramble I got ready to ride out to the rec on my bike, yikes the wind blowing from the north made for a chilly if not just down right cold ride. We had a full crowd of advanced pickle ball players and when I bowed out after an hour and half of continuous hard play my shirt was soaked. I think I will keep that much time as my norm as the last half hour leaves me to worn down to do much of anything else for the day. We had some awesome play through out the morning with long rallies.

I headed home bundled up because of the wet shirt and the cold wind blowing as I certainly don't want to entertain that congestion in both my head and chest again. I changed clothes immediately to some dry warm ones before venturing out to hand water the gardens. Amy had dropped Eliza off while she shopped and ran errands and little Eliza was all smiles and hugs for me. She has such a sweet personality and smiles constantly to when given attention. I made a guacamole for lunch and along with some ham lunch meat we ate when Amy got back to our house.

After the kiddos left for the day to pick up Ava at school Nancy and I chilled reading and listening to our Bose. Wow what awesome sounds come from this little box and we played some music for Eliza and she to was enthralled by the music while doing her little dance movements. She is too cute and loves to be cuddled. Well that was about it for the afternoon as we both read and lazied around until it was time for a supper of black beans over Jasmine rice and a garden salad. Today was one of our meatless supper days. After the cleanup I settled into the Boze until O'Reilly came on the tube at 8 PM. Wow, those who were voted out by the people in the last election are throwing the country to our enemies as they released a report only to make America look bad and which most of it was unsubstantiated or at the very least political in nature. I'm disgusted with those who call themselves Democrats as well as a few Republicans in the congress. What happened to what's best for the American people and keeping us safe from those who are killing us and want to kill us. I disagree with those who release classified info to make others look bad at the expense of the country. I say use any and all methods to acquire intelligence of our enemies no matter how we acquire the info needed to save our lives, LATER

And update on my post about the Bogo's from our team leaders with Amway. That period of time to purchase bogo's will end today on the 10th; whereas I reported it would last through the whole month, sorry about that error but you still have today the 10th until midnight to purchase any item in the catalog and receive another like it for free.