Sunday Morning-Feb. 1st

Well January went out like a lamb here in warm sunny Florida despite some early morning chill which did require a little heat for an hour or two. By late afternoon we had the windows and doors open and most everyone was in shorts. I started the day much like everyday with a roll out around 6 and then a few quiet moments before a lite breakfast and a ride out to the rec on my bike for a couple hours of pickle ball. This would be our last Saturday morning for inside play as the youth basket ball league would have the gym; but if we want we can move outside where there is a court available that has been lined with permanent markings. The weather by this time of the year is usually pretty decent so outside play may become an option on Saturday mornings; however we will still have our 5 days a week in the morning in the gym for play. There was a huge crowd today with 3 courts in action and 10 or so waiting to get on. I managed to stay on the courts most of the morning and had a nice workout despite changing partners after every win.

I stopped off at the library to return some reads before heading home to piddle around in the garden. I cut 4 heads of broccoli which were really large for the evening supper which fed us all and just a smidgen leftover. The different taste of home grown is so down right apparent and I wonder why. It must be the storage of the heads after they are cut as these fresh harvested were just so mellow and sweet. We really put on the feed bag with oven taters' sliced like huge french fries but rolled in olive oil and fresh parsley and rosemary then baked in the oven. I did brats on the grill until the juices were squirting out the sides and they were tucked into a bakery bun and topped with sauteed onions and red and green peppers. A fresh garden salad accompanied all of that as well with homemade Greek dressing. Nancy topped off the meal with a sliced peach and blueberry cobbler with vanilla ice cream on top. I passed on the buns and ice cream but everything else was a melt in your mouth meal.

The kiddos ran and played outside a couple hours before we ate as they hadn't been together since Christmas. Boy did they play hard. After the cleanup we settled into a game of Bauderdash and Bob and his kiddos took off for Brandon around 9ish after all of the kiddos had baths and showers. He was winning with the game half way completed as he had nearly an hour drive. Little Eliza Faye finally gave in to sleep past her bedtime as well and then we played until nearly 10 with Tyler winning in the end with some pretty crazy answers. Betsy and Braden took GG home and once more the house was quiet and a hot shower was calling my name as well. It was after 11 before I crawled into bed and Nancy was still piddling around putting the house back in order.

We celebrated Bobby's 34th birthday and a great time was had by all. Little Eliza ran with the big kids in her new shoes and they seemed to enjoy her in their games as well. The food was incredibly delicious and so simple to make except for the oven taters which required a little prep. The cobbler was a standout with that combination as well. Today, we head out this morning for Element Church in Tampa to gather with others to worship our LORD. We need to bring back his lordship for this nation before we are completely overrun by the evils of these radical Islamist's who are steadily getting a foot hold in our land. Christians need to make a stand for the good of our nation and for the safety of our children and grandchildren. We need new leadership especially in the government whose job is to keep us safe for foreign invaders. I'm not sure why or how we have let our guard down but in the name of political correctness we sure have. The atrocities by this ideology doesn't seem to bother our media or our leaders. We now have several training camps of these radicals within our country who want to cause death and destruction to us and our way of life. Wake up America, LATER