Snow Day!

I know this is probably silly of me.   But I am excited about having a snow day today.

I know.....This is year #3 for me of retirement and school closings do not affect me any more, other than being glad if Megan and Hilary don't have to be out on the roads and the kids get to stay home too1

But usually on the called Snow Days, our life goes on as usual.  We still do what we usually do.  We go places we usually go.  If we don't want to go somewhere, we don't.  If there is an appointment, we change it.  No biggie. 

But by the same token, there isn't the little thrill of  being able to sleep in, to do something that we usually don't have time for because we arebn't usually home, or the knowledge that no, really, we don't have to go anywhere.

And that is what I was feeling last night.  Snow days for everything.  Businesses closed.  Then the unthinkable -  no mail delivery today!  It is SO cold that NO ONE should be out and about.  And I was thinking --- yes!  Sleeping in (like we can't do that ever???) and drinking hot tea.  Reading all day.  Starting a new puzzle.  Reading more.

A snow day!

But there is a little apprehension too.

New house so we don't know the little idiosyncracies that come with it.  The creaks.  The sounds.  The furnace.  The pipes.  What do we need to do to prepare?  To keep things moving along as normal?

When I woke up at 6:30, Gary was downstairs, watching tv.  He wanted to be sure the furnace was working properly.  I know....it is different than at the other house where we knew the sounds and how to set the thermostat to keep it warm.

Water is dripping in the upstairs sink.  I know that is different too.  We have different locations of pipes and different water sources.  First time for sub-zero temps in the new house.

The electricity.  No one on tv or on FB posts have really said too much about loss of power.  We have lost it once;  a few weeks ago it was off for about an hour.  But losing power today would be scary.  And how could the linemen get here and work outside to fix it?  Our little gas fireplace probably wouldn't do much to help alleviate the cold that would descend on the house.  We would have to try to get to Hilary's where they are burning wood in their fireplace.

But I don't want to think about that.  I don't want to be an adult today. 

I just want to enjoy the Snow Day.  Read.  Start a new puzzle.  Take a nap.  Watch some tv.  Fix a cup of hot tea.  Read some more!

The End of the Trip - Day #15 January 28, 2019

All good things come to an end, don't they?  We wouldn't appreciate vacations if we didn't have to come home once in a while, right?  Why am I typing all of these questions?  Who knows?

Anyway....Monday (yesterday) was the day we flew home.

We packed up everything Sunday evening, loaded most of the suitcases into the car, went for dinner at a Brewhouse I wanted to try, and went to bed early, like 8:00 p.m.  The alarm on my phone was set for 2, the one on the clock by the bed for 2:10.  I later changed the phone alarm to 2:15.  I mean, it sounded good to get an extra 15 minutes of sleep, even though I wasn't sleeping at all!

I went to sleep well, but I was awake before midnight--and I mean WIDE awake.  Gary was sleeping, so at least one of us was getting some rest.  I tossed and turned, checked FB, maybe dozed off and on (more awake than anything else) and finally just waited for the alarm to go off.

It was a good thing I hadn't needed to rely on the clock alarm because that thing was pathetic.  I barely heard a little beep...beep...beep...beep before I shut it off.  Then when the phone alarm jarred the silence in the room, I knew it was time to hop out of bed and into the shower.  After showers, dressing, eating a cookie, carefully packing the rest of the items into the two remaining suitcases, we double checked the rooms again and walked out, leaving the keys on the dining room table.

The resort was very quiet at 3:30 in the morning. Plus there was very little traffic.  It was no trouble, no wait to pull out onto Palm Parkway.  We didn't encounter much traffic until we were driving east to the airport and even that was minimal.

Returning the rental car was easy enough. An old guy was lining up returned cars and said the guy would be checking them in later and would send us a receipt in our email (still haven't seen it!).

Next we went into the ticket counters and found that there were lots of people, the kiosks for baggage tags were not working yet, and there were no customer service people behind the counters. It was 4:00.  

Finally a guy came in from the outside check-in and offered to check out bags for us.  He also said he worked for tips which we think was a ruse but we did tip him.  He printed us new boarding passes also.

We were pre-TSA so we didn't have to stand in line and go through the extensive screening.  That was the quickest we have ever gone through the process. Once again my knee set off the sensors.

After we rode on the monorail to the terminal, we stopped at Mc Donalds for a sausage McMuffin, hash browns, and a diet coke.  We had to wait for about an hour to board the plane.  Gary upgraded us so we could have seats closer to the front and could get off the plane more quickly because at that time we didn't know the distance between the gates of where we landing in Atlanta and where we would have to board the plane to Indianapolis and we had just 15 minutes from landing time to boarding time.

The plane to Atlanta was FULLL---very full to the point that there were NO seats available to anyone else and all of the bins were full with carry-ons.  The flight was short, but the plane was also noisy when it took off---noisier than any other I had flown on. Funny thing is....when we landed, the people who were supposed to stay on the plane for the next leg of the flight to Cleveland were asked to move to a different plane.  Hmmmmm....

As we sat and waited for to board the plane to Indianapolis we chatted with three Purdue students who were traveling home from a sorority meeting in North Carolina.  They were hoping for a snow day at some point (and they are getting their wish tomorrow!).  One was from Greenwood and an engineering major.  Another was from the Chicago area and majoring in something strange,  that neither Gary nor I could remember.  The third was napping and not communicating well, but her friends said she was a pre-pharmacy major.  All sophomores.

The flight to Indianapolis was good---and short!  An hour at the most.  I told Gary that it makes so much more sense to just fly to Florida when we go---two hours in the air and that is it. Of course there is time to be at the airport and go through security and board and get off of the planes.  But still.  When we look at driving time of 15 hours versus two hours in the air?  No contest.

After we landed and picked up our luggage, we hopped on the shuttle to Economy parking.  The driver was SO nice, so accommodating, so helpful.  We loaded everything into the Escape, paid the fee, and were on our way north.  We noticed that the snow had melted, the roads were fine, and the temps were in the high 30s.

We stopped at Cracker Barrel at the Whitestown exit for lunch.  I had grilled chicken fingers, sweet baby carrots, hash brown casserole, and fried apples with two biscuits.  Gary ordered fried chicken fingers, fries, cole slaw, and fried apples with biscuits.  We were very thirsty since we drained glasses of iced tea (me) and Diet Pepsi (him) 

After we pulled in the drive and parked in the garage, we unloaded everything, unpacked, and started laundry.  We did wash some things in the condos but the bulk of the clothes we took still needed to be washed. 

After a quick nap in the recliner, we went to Hilary and Blaine's for dinner and to take the things we purchased for the kids while we were in Florida.  Landon really liked the Nike shirt and the Lego set that was a new one at the Lego Store at Disney Springs.  Tessa got a drawstring bag from Rainforest filled with tops, including a couple with Minnie Mouse on the fronts.  And Owen?  He needed a new Woody that would speak when the string on his back was pulled. And he got one!  We had to search for him but we finally found him at a toy store that used to have tons of pieces for Mr. Potato Head (but it doesn't have that anymore).  He also got a couple of shirts.  The chicken and rice soup was excellent and the cornbread yummy.

It was SO good to sleep in our own bed last night.  Even though it was cold, the temp in the bedroom was hovering around  72* - heat rises, right?

The trip was a good one.  We had a good time. It was good to get away and do some things that we wanted to do---and we didn't have to do something or anything if we didn't want to. 

But there really is no place like home, and it is good to be here again.

And no...I was not sad that we were not going to the house in Pulaski either!

January 27, 2019. Day #14 of the Florida Trip

No kidding!  Last week at this time I was excited because we had a whole week left here.  Then BOOM!  Gone!  Not sure what happened to the time, but it sped by even faster than the first week.

And...I checked the floor numbers in the elevator.  No floor 13.

I was up early this morning, before 6 a.m. Actually, to be sure that I checked in for our places in line for our flights tomorrow.  It worked well.  Leaving Orlando we have spots at the beginning of B and  in Atlanta at the end of A.   I was awake for a hike, then went back to sleep for a couple of hours,

I awoke at 9 and reminded Gary that we wanted to go to the Premium Outlets when they opened at 10.  Quick showers and dressing, then off we went in the rain.  We were able to park in the same area as we did last Monday.  We walked to the Vra Bradley store and purchased another iPad sleeve and a cosmetic bag with a handle for me and a hanging cosmetic bag and an iPad sleeve for Hilary.  Her cosmetic bag was on the 70% off clearance table so she a good deal on both of her items.

We decided to go out for breakfast for one of our two meals today.  We tried Perkins but the customers were lined up out the door, so we left and went to Shoneys.  Not as long of a wait.  I had an omelette, hash browns, and a biscuit.  Gary had pancakes and sausage.

Back at the room for the afternoon.  I tried to print the boarding passes but there were no available computers in the business center, so we checked out a movie.  Daddy's Home 2. A comedy.  It was not very realistic but it was good for some laughs.  After that I worked on the daily devotions, Gary took a nap, then we started to sort through things to pack.

i feturned the movie and once again, no free computers so back to the room I went.

After reading for a while and Gary watching more tv, we changed to go out for dinner.  Gary took two suitcases out to the car so we wouldn't need a cart tomorrow.  I tried again to print the boarding passes.  Success!!

I wanted to eat at BJ's Brewhouse so that is where we went for dinner.  I ordered a sirloin with broccoli and salad.  Gary had a chicken breast with mashed potatoes and green beans.  He ordered a Michelle Ultra and I had a sangria of some sort.  Our bill was higher than most of our meals, but the food was good.  The restaurant wasn't very crowded.  Maybe because of the rai ?  Maybe because getting into it and out is difficult?  Not sure but there weren't too many people there.

Another stop for gas since we have to return the car with a full tank, and we were back at the resort.

Everything is packed except toiletry items. We have a few things to eat this evening.  I want to go to bed early since the alarm will be set for 2 a.m.

Blaine called this evening and wanted to know our schedule for tomorrow.  They invited us for dinner tomorrow evening.  Megan is bringing the kids for dinner at our house on Friday.  I think they have missed us!  Good thing we haven't planned to be gone more than two weeks!

It was a good grip, but next year we will do things a little differently.  Hopefully the weather will cooperate a little more too!

Florida Trip Day #13 January 26, 2019

The resort does not have a room 13.  As we were walking down the hall to the condo, I was counting off room....0919. 0917. 0915.  0911.  Wait what happened to 0913?   Not here.  We are in 0911, which Gary said is really 13. Not for me!  I keep forgetting to check the numbers in the elevator and see if there is a 13th floor.  Bet there isn't!

Another somewhat lazy day.  This is getting to be a bad habit.  I woke up around 8:30 or so.  Gary was already awake and in the living room watching tv.

One of my big fears was that after I retired, I would want to lie around all day, not get dressed unless I had to, and just do. Toning constructive but be a slug.  Greta often teases me about that...sitting around in my jammies and watching tv all day.  

But that hasn't happened.  I was in the habit of showering and getting ready for the day as soon as I woke up, just because we never knew what was going to happen, who was going to call, when someone was going to stop by, or when I would need to go somewhere and I wanted to be ready.

Well this week has kicked that all to pieces.

I was I. The shower around 1:00 and ready to leave a little after 2.  That's terrible!  But as Gary said, we needed time to just relax, to do nothing, and to not have a schedule.  I know that.  But it is hard for me, and already I feel like I want to be a slug when we get home...and I know that can't happen.

I finished my book Sold on a Monday this morning.  When I read the epilogue, I found out that the author had been inspired to write the story based on a picture she had seen in the Valparaiso Vidette-Messenger years ago.  That rang a bell because my college roommate Terri Ahlberg was from Valpo and received that newspaper in our shared mailbox.  The family name was Chalicoux which rang a bell also since I had at least one student at West Central with that last name.  Interesting.

Breakfast for me was just a cup of hot tea and two mini chocolate donuts.  We went to Chuy's for a late lunch.

The GPS took us on Turkey Lake to the restaurant which actually was an easy drive.  We avoided all of the International  Drive stop lights, the traffic around the Convention Center, and people walking.  We parked in the same lot that we did yesterday since the restaurant was a few doors down fromRed Robin.

Lunch was really good, especially the chips and the creamy jalapeño dip.  I had the Lite Plate Special #9.  Gary ordered a numbered special also, but I am not sure what it included.  He did like it.

We stopped at Walmart on the drive back.  We intended to pick up another box of band aids for my finger and a couple of luggage tags.  By the time we went through the check out line we had a few bananas, a frozen pizza, a box of dozen chicken, and several pieces of clothing for Tessa and Lynnlee, and a shirt for Owen. Can't help it...we saw some cute things for the kids!

When we returned to the resort, I went to the business center to check out movies to rent.  We just watched Three Billboards, which was really good, except I didn't like the way it ended.

Dinner was the pizza, Gary ate the chicken too, an oatmeal cookie, and a Klondike bar.

Cristy sent a note with the funeral arrangements.  She also asked Gary to be a pall bearer.  So sad.

It will be an alarm at 6 in the morning so I can check in and obtain of place in line for boarding on Monday morning.  Then we are going out for breakfast and to the outlet mall when it opens.  We need to pack tomorrow also and Gary wants to load some things in to the car so we will be ready to go.

This has been a. Good trip, but I think both of us are ready to go home and see the kids, plus sleep I in Our own bed.

Twelfth Day in Florida - January 25, 2019

It really doesn't seem like we have been here for 12 days.  Just two more full days and then we fly home to frigid temperatures and mounds of snow.

I have been having some rough nights since we moved to Parc Soleil.  The bed just isn't as comfortable, and the comforter seems heavy and hot to me.  I have been waking up around 1:30 or 2:00 and can't go cpback to sleep because I am just hot. Last night was one of those nights.  I had read for a while, then I went to bed late, I thought.  I was hoping I would just sleep through, but no.  I was awake again around 2:30, then up for an hour or so,  I returned to bed, but somehow I ended up lying on the couch.  Gary found me ther and made me go back to bed around 5:30.  I woke up again around 10. I hope I sleep better tonight.  This is just not good.

So because I slept so late, I ate two bowls of Special K around 11. We watched The Price Is Right, then finally decided to shower and get dressed for the day.  Everything seemed late for the rest of the day.

We drove along International drive, past the Convention Center, and past Pointe Orlando, looking at restaurants to see what interested us for a late lunch.  We ended up at Red Robin, not exactly a place we never go, but one that we don't visit too often.  We ordered pretzel bites (not too good) and cheeseburger and salad for me and clucks and fries for Gary.  They were rather skimpy on the fries and Gary had to ask for seconds on those.

Then we drove to Bss Pro Shop and looked around there.  I found a longer light gray top to go with leggings on sale, plus a fleece jacket for only $19.99 so I bought those.  Gary got a shirt on sale and a duffel bag to put our purchases in for the trip home.

Our drive back to the resort was a different way and eventually took us to Turkey Lake Road.

Most of the evening was spent watching tv and reading.  I am engrossed in the book Sold on Monday.  We took a break and returned to IHOP.  Gary had chicken and mashed potatoes and corn with a salad and I had the all-you-can-eat pancakes only because they were cheaper than the regular pancakes.

Back at the resort for the rest of the evening for tv, reading, a glass of wine, and hopefully a better nights sleep than I have been experiencing.

Florida Trip Day #11. January 24, 2019

Yesterday we went to Disney Springs to see "A Star Is Born."  I loved it!  Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper were great,  and I really like Sam Elliott.  The only thing I didn't like was the language.  Too many f-  words sprinkled throughout the dialogue.  Maybe "sprinkled" is the wrong word because at times that word was predominant.

It was the first time we had been to that part of the theatre at Disney Springs and it was really nice.  Big screen, big theatre, comfy seats.

Instead of walking around for a bit and grabbing something to eat there, we decided to go to Outback since we had a gift card to use.  On the drive there we changed to visiting Freddie's Steakburgers across from Tuscany again.  The burgers were good, the shoestring fries were great, and the price was right.  Both of our meals totaled less than $20. My burger was so hot!  It was great!  I told Gary it is becoming one of my favorite places to eat in Orlando and it will definitely be one to hit when we return,

That brings us to Thursday.  Today.

Breakfast was fruit and muffins again.  At least I can stick to my WW points well for at least one meal.

After showers and cleaning up a little, we left for the area by Kohls.  Today was our cleaning day at the condo.  We went to the Regal Cinemas at The Loop because we were familiar with that area and because we planned to see Bohemian Rhapsody.  When we walked to the window and looked at the movies showing there, guess which one was missing?  Yep.  I read the schedule wrong.  BR is playing several places but not at that particular theatre.  So we had to make a quick decision.  What to see instead since we were already there?  We settled on "Replicas."

We were two of five people who watched the movie at that time.  Two people sat several rows behind us and one lone person sat on the front row.  From the very beginning of the show I know I wouldn't like it that much.  Why? Because my eyes clamped shut in the first three minutes.  Plus I knew there would be an accident to kill the main characters' wife and children and I don't like to watch things like that.  So for much of the movie, my eyes were shut.  I followed the gist of the movie and did watch parts of it, but for the most part, my eyes were closed.

After the movie we went to Johhny Rockets which was next to the theatre.  I ordered a cheeseburger and a side salad.  Gary had a double cheeseburger and fries.  Not as good as Freddie's last night, and the price was higher too, but it was good.  Funny thing...when we went into the restrooms after the movie, we ran into the other two people who watched Replicas with us.  Then we went to Johnny Rockets and standing in line in front of us for a table?   The same couple.

Back to the resort.  We changed into shorts and went to the pool to sit in the sun.  The temp was 77* and since the forecast is bleak temp wise for the next few days, we needed to take advantage of it.

It was funny...as soon as the sun disappeared behind the tall building, the people started to gather their towels and swim bags and small children and disappeared into their respective condos.

Later we might go out for dinner.  Where? Maybe IHOP.  Maybe Outback.  We have gift cards for both.

ETA:  IHOP! And I ordered something off the senior menu!  2x2x2. Scrambled eggs with cheese, bacon, pancakes. It was good too!

Sad news though...Hilary called to see if we had seen Cristy's post on FB. Her dad Bud Krohn Jr. Died.  He and Gary had been good friends for more than 50 years.

January 23,2019. Day #10. Florida Trip

it seems strange to be gone from home for this long.  I think 12 days has been our max before.  We still have four more full days here and then one day to return home again.

Last night was definitely not a sleeping well night.  I was up, down, hot, cold, restless, irritated, sleepy,  wide awake.  So far I haven't crashed yet today.  Checking my Fitbit, though, showed lots of restlessness until around 5 this morning, then I slept for a couple of hours.  Not enough!

Breakfast this morning was on the. Aldo,y.  I had fruit and yogurt plus an orange cranberry muffin we decided that we would not feel comfortable having the kiddos stay at this resort.  The pool and the water slide are cool, but there is nothing to keep one of the munchkins from climbing over the railings on the balcony and plummeting to the ground or rooftop below.  We are on the 9th floor and looking over to Tower 2 with the balconies on floors 15 or higher just scares me to death.  On the very top floor there is no cover on the balcony either.  Just hanging out  there in the air!

After I finished the daily devotions and read a bit, we drove to Olive Garden for lunch.  I ordered chicken picatta which had Parmesan zucchini slices and salad.  Gary had chicken parm and salad.  We thought we had a gift card, but it held only 33 cents so it wasn't good for much!

We returned to the resort, changed clothes, and sat by the pool in the sun for a couple of hours.  I always think we need to be doing something.  I guess that comes from traveling so much with Karen and Clay and we are always on the move wherever we go.  Blaine and Hilary don't sit around ,Ush either, even at home.  They are always doing something or going into town.  I know if the weather were better and it was warm like it should be, we would be sitting by the pool and I would read and people watch while Gary took naps.  But  doing that has not happened because of the cooler weather. Thus, I feel like I have to find activities to keep us busy and out of the condo.  After all, we can watch tv at home.  Why do we need to watch tv here?

Back in the room again, we changed back into our other clothes.  "A Star Is Born" is still playing at the theatre at Downtown Disney so we are going to see that tonight, then stopping somewhere for a late dinner.

Florida Trip - Day #9. January 22, 2019

What a fun day!

After breakfast and getting ready for the day, we took off for an hour and a half drive to Tampa.  We were meeting Gin and Bob, a friend from DWLZ and her husband.

Gary doesn't like driving where he doesn't know where he is going.  This is stressful for me because he expects me to know where we are going, even if I have never been there before.  It is doubly bad if the trip is one I want to take and he doesn't.  So when the GPS told us to "proceed to the route" in the middle of her directions, everything went downhill.  I had no idea where we were to meet them except someplace near the aquarium.  Gin gave  me no specific name of a restaurant or a place to meet.  Just park in a parking garage near the ports and they would meet us.

Pretty specific, huh?

So I was near tears.  No. I was crying.  Gary was mad and not talking to me.  He didn't know these people, and I had never met these people, so what the heck were we doing in Tampa, not knowing where we were going?

Finally we parked in a parking garage, short term, not the long term cruise parking.  We walked to a place that had restaurants and overlooked the water where the cruise ships pulled out.  After we waited for about 45 mnutes and I had been texting Gin, we met up with them.

They picked a place to eat which had us walking to a restaurant.  Bob thought he knew where we were going, but after walking over a bridge toward a residential area, we back tracked and went to a River Walk which is where Gin wanted us to go in the first place.  We did learn that Derek Jeter lives in the section we had been heading over the bridge.

The name of the restaurant was the Columbia Cafe and Gin said it was one of the oldest restaurants in Tampa.  They are famous for their 1905 Salad and Cuban sandwiches.  There was a special on the menu for a half salad and a half Cuban so that is what all four of us ordered.  The salad was impressive.  It was all iceberg lettuce, plus ham and tomatoes, Swiss cheese, and grated Parmesan, plus homemade mixed dressing and some green olives.  The waitress mixed it in a big bowl at the table, then divided it between our four plates.  It really was delicious, and it was nice to have a salad without any of the fancy greens that are so popular now.

After lunch we walked on the River Walk which was really interesting.  They pointed out various hotels, a convention center where the Republican Convention had been held, told us about the various water taxis and streetcar systems, and explained the Gasparilla Festival which begins this weekend.

I had never met Gin in person even though we have been friends on Dotti's for probably 15 years.  I was shocked that she remembers so much about my posts and knew so much about my life.  She knew all of the grandchildren by name.  She remembered that my dad had gone on an honor flight before he died.  She mentioned how bad she felt when Gary's folks then my mom all died within months of each other.  I felt bad that I couldn't remember as much about her in return, but I did remember enough to continue conversations.

It was a good afternoon, and I am very glad we went to meet them.  It was fun to see Tampa through someone who lives there.  It was also good to put a face with a name and to meet her husband too.

When we returned, we sat for a while I. The condo, watched some tv, then went downstairs to the restaurant for dinner.  I ordered a chicken Alfredo flatbread and a bowl of French onion soup.  The flatbread would have been enough!  Gary ordered the fish and chips.  He had a beer and I ordered a strawberry margarita.

When we returned to the room, my legs really hurt from walking so much. Nearly 10,000 steps today!   I read my devotions, read my book for a while, commented on the OBS posts on FB, and went to bed after taking some Tylenol.  I woke up in a sweat, and the sheets were wet, so I decided to get up and write the blog post while the events were somewhat fresh in my mind.

Halfway Point- Day #8. January 21, 2019

Today was the Big Move!  We packed up our stuff at Tuscan and moved to Parc Soleil.  Why? Because we could have only one week on the promotional package at one place and even though we were going to use our points, there was no room there for another full week.  Nor was there room at Sea World where our ownership is.  So we had to move to Parc Soleil.  Gary was excited to see what the rooms and the set up of the towers were like.  Me? Not so much.  I felt comfortable there and at Sea World.  I like comfort.  What can I say?

For breakfast we ate the rest of the donut holes and the fruit (melon, pineapple, and apple slices).  We didn't have too much to pack up from the fridge and freezer, so that was good.  We didn't pack the purchases we had made...just kept them in the bags.  It seems like we will have plenty of room to stow the items in my suitcases and backpack for the trip home.

After we checked out before 10, we learned online that the outlet mall didn't open until 10 so we had about 20 mi Utes to kill.  We drove ther, which took all of three mi Utes, and sat in the parking lot u til opening time.

My mission was to find a pair of gray slip on flats at Skechers that did not cost $70.  Success!  The pair I bought was about half that.  They were running a special of buy a pair and get the second one half off.  I did find a pair of black tennis shoes with pink laces and  soles, but I really didn't want to buy another pair of shoes, even though it would have been a good deal.  We left and just walked around, and then I spotted a Vera Bradley store.  Lo and behold....50% off and then another 30% off!! That was better than Michigan City and Sevierville!

I found a purse I liked, which was what I was looking for at Sevierville and couldn't find.  Then I found an iPad cover to march my new bag and my cross body purse plus a series of three cosmetic bags to go with my tall tote that I took to Gatlinburg.  Gary picked up another pill case, and on second thought, I probably should have gotten another one for me. Another iPad cover would have been nice too...and the prices were right.

We decided to return to Longhorn for lunch.  I wanted a salad and I like theirs with the grilled chicken and fruit.  Our waiter was very personable which made up for the one at Red Lobster last night.  Gary had a chicken sandwich and very hot fries.  It was a good lunch.

At Parc Soleil the room wasn't ready yet, so we sat by the pool for about an hour.  The sun was warm, but there was a cool breeze.  Some people were sunbathing but only one person braved the water in the pool.  A few more were in later--we could see from our room.  Just a little chilly today for swimming.

There is a parking garage here and we parked on the second floor.  Our condo is on the 9th floor.  One difference is that the halls look like hotel floors.  There are no outside entrances to the rooms as there are at Sea World and Tuscany.

The arrangement of the condo is deferent as well as the decor, which is to be expected.  It is comfortable, and nice, but there are several things I don't like.

One is the lack of drawer space.  There is a cabinet under the tv in the bedroom but the doors slide and the interiors are very small.  There is a lot of empty space beneath them that could have been used for a dresser.  The only space for clothes in the bedroom is in the bedside tables.  Gary told me I could use both of them if I wanted to and he put his clothes in the drawers in the cabinet under the television in the living room.

The drawer space in the bathroom is non-existent. Ther is an open area under the double sinks, but no spdrawers,  Ndola he area is full of towels, the hair dryer, and extra toilet paper and Kleenex.

The living room and kitchen plus dining area is open concept and spacious, but there is also lots of dead space where another cabinet could be placed which would give more room for storage to the guests.

I do like the French doors between the bedroom and the living room.  The balcony is very nice, large, and spacious, and includes a nice chaise and a table and four chairs.  If it were warmer I could see myself reading out there in the sunshine.

The shower is huge!  There is a very large shower head plus a hand held head as well.  The tub is a little strange.  We weren't sure how the water came into it.  When Gary turned the faucet on, which was on a wall next to one end of the tub, the water came pouring for a spout in the ceiling above the opposite end of the tub.  It's a good thing I wasn't Lea I got over the tub in that spot.  My head would have been wet!

After we u packed our clothes and the food we brought along, Gary took a nap and I worked on my daily devotions and listened to the first video for the OBS which started today.

We hadn't been out to the John Young area, other than to go to Kohls which was at the other end of it, so that is where we headed for dinner.  We decided to eat at the Denny's Diner that we had gone to one time when we flew in really late and had nowhere to eat.  It had been the only place open.  We both ordered omelette S and they were really good.  The price was right too!   After we ordered my phone rang.  It was Hilary and the kids, face timing us.  Owen wanted to se Papaw and when Hilary asked him who I was, he said Nana.  Guess I will have to start answering to a new name when we return home!

Since there was a Walmart close by, we stopped there for groceries.  The place was packed, and the    lines were slow.  We picked up mainly breakfast items.

Back to the condo...and Siri took us a different way which was much quicker than the original route.  Groceries were put away.  I am ready for bed.  Another tired day but we really didn't do anything too strenuous.

Tomorrow we plan to go to Tampa.  Maybe.  Plans always subject to change!

January 20, 2019. Day #7 in Florida

Today is the half-way point.  Today is the last day we will spend in Tuscany Village.  Tomorrow we pack up and move to Parc Soleil.

I thought yesterday was a lazy day!  Today beat that one to pieces.

I slept until 8:00 this morning.  Then after breakfast I was tired and lay on the bed, only to fall asleep again and sleep for two more hours.  I'm not sure what was wrong, but I just felt exhausted.  I still do.  Maybe the stress, what little I have had lately, is evaporating and I am catching up on lost sleep.  I know I haven't been lying awake for a couple of hours each night this week like I had been at home.

Breakfast for me was the last chocolate chip muffin and some fruit.  Lunch was the last Lean Cuisine meal and a breadstick from Flippers.

I stayed in my pajamas until I had to take a shower to get ready for the Ball Brothers concert.

I also completed the daily devotion this morning, then read the first chapter in the Lysa Terkeurst book for the OBS which starts tomorrow.  I am just not sure about this book.  It is one I really didn't want to read.  I usually like her books and I have enjoyed her Bible studies in the past, but I know she wrote this one after she discovered her husband was cheating on her and after she was diagnosed with breast cancer.  I am not looking forward to this book.  But maybe this is something I really need to read.  Maybe the devil is planting the negative seeds in my brain to keep me from reading it?  That could be.  I'll give it a try and see what happens.  But the first chapter didn't do much for me,

We watched the first half of the New Orleans Saints/Los Angeles Rams football game and when we left at halftime, the Saints were ahead.  I am not sure what happened, but the Saints lost and the fans on FB were not happy about it.  They felt the game was stolen by the officials and bad calls were made.

We left at 4:45 for the concert which began at 6.  It was supposed to be a 40-45 minutes drive.  When we arrived in Winter Haven at the church, the parking lot was full.  We finally parked in a parking lot at a small plaza next to the church.  The sanctuary was packed as well, plus chairs were set up in the lobby and they were full also.  Finally we were led to seats in the choir loft, the "Amen" section as they called it, and that is where we sat for the entire concert.  The music was great and I enjoyed listening to them, but I missed seeing heir faces and expressions as they sang. After the concert, I really wanted a picture.  The ones Gary took were not good, and DanieL and the new guy were barely visible in them.  But Andrew took a selfie with just me and him, plus Daniel photo-bombing in the back left corner.  That would have to do!

We drove back to Orlando and had dinner at Red Lobster.  I had the three shrimp platter which shrimp linguine, shrimp scampi, and fried shrimp, plus broccoli and salad.  Gary had the pick three shrimp with two orders of fried shrimp and popcorn shrimp plus fries and slaw.  Our waiter was quirky. He tried to get us to order a large dinner and split it between us but we didn't do that.

I am not sure why, maybe because I was hungry, but I developed headache after the concert.  I haven't had a headache for a long time, and it hasn't gone away yet.

Tomorrow we pack up and move to the other resort.  Part two of the vacation awaits!

January 19, 2019. Orlando Trip - Day #6

Kind of  a lazy day today.

My Fitbit showed over 8 hours of sleep last night.  I should have been well-rested but it didn't stop the need for an afternoon nap.

Breakfast was big today. We finished the eggs since Gary scrambled what was left and split them between us.  He added some sausage links and a hash brown square for each of us.  I heated a chocolate chip muffin in the microwave and drank a glass of OJ and Diet Dew.

I spent most of the morning posting in our forum about the daily doting, then catching up on coloring three days of illustrations I had missed.  I talked to Hilary for a bit and she told me about Landon's wrestling meet last night and how Owen had lost Woody's  hat and through the Papaw had it.  Later Gary talked to Landon who told him all about his experiences with wrestling.  I miss them.

We walked around the perimeter of the property and ended up by the pool.  We decided to have lunch  on the patio there.  Since I spotted fish tacos on the menu, that was my choice along with a fruit cup.  Gary had a grilled Cuban sandwich and fries.  The pool was much busier than it had been a few days ago when it was much cooler.  A trivia game was going on.  If we had played, we would have won because the winning number was only 5 and we knew many more than that! It was all music and Gary knew most of the answers to the 20 questions.

This afternoon we stayed in the condo.  Gary watched the Purdue/IU game.  Go Boilers!  I sat on the balcony and read more of my book The Wife Between Us.  This is when the urge to nap overcame me!  Also we had a text from Matt with a picture of the puzzle Cooper had put together.  We could see Lynnlee in the picture, sitting on her mommy's lap.  I miss the kids!

Before we left for dinner, Blaine called.  He had stopped by the house and checked the gas tank and went in to see if the furnace was working ok.  He said our drive was blown shut.  Side note: I saw on the White County Scanner FB page that it took a lady four hours to get from the Indianapolis airport to Monticello.  She had flown home from Orlando today.  Hope it's not that bad when we get home on the 24th!

Dinner tonight was at Flippers.  The traffic to get there was horrible!  It was as bad as the traffic in the summer or during spring break time.  The restaurant wasn't crowded though.  We ordered breadsticks and drinks to start, then I ordered a pasta dish and Gary had a sandwich.  The drinks came.  Then the pasta and sandwich.  No breadsticks.  We mentioned it to the gal who brought our food.  She apologized and said she would put the order in and we wouldn't be charged.  Then a manager came over and apologized again and asked if we wanted to eat the breadsticks there or get them to go.  We decided to take them with us.    Our meal tonight was relatively cheap compared to others this trip!

Back to the condo!  Each of us ate a breadstick while they were still hot.  I think Gary had two!  Now it's Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune time.  Back to reading my book.

A lazy day but I am so glad we are here to relax in 80* weather rather than be stuck inside, looking at the snow blowing and listening to the ice pinging on the metal roof.

Day #5 in Orlando - January 18, 2019

I awoke early, around 6 a.m., and couldn't sleep, so I started my day on the couch, reading The Wife Between Us on my Nook.  I was hungry so I snacked on some thin crackers.  After Gary woke up, I ate the fruit and yogurt parfait and he had cereal.

The plan for today was to stop at the outlets to check the Skechers store and go to Disney Springs to walk around.  Part of that happened.

Our first stop at Disney Springs was at the Disney store.  The Woody that Owen had been playing with that had a pull string had worn out and he needed another one.  Do you think we could find one in the Disney store?  No. Besides that the interior of the store had changed so much since we were there last year.  We gave up in there and walked to the store where we had found all of the pieces for Mr. potato Head a few years ago.  Well, all of that was gone, but there were lots of stuffed animals and figures and lo and behold we found a Woody!  I also found a perfect stuffed Goofy to sit on my side of the bed.

Lunch was at the Rainforest Cafe.  We were disappointed in our table...I really dislike sitting at a small table for two when there are many empty four-person tables available.  Plus the view from our table was very limited too and it was hard to see much of the decor except for the fish in the aquarium,

The gift shop however did offer some bargains.  There were several clearance items, including some shirts featuring frogs.  Hilary declined our offer to bring one home for her!  We each bought a shirt, hen we found two drawstring back sacks and bought one for each of the little girls.

Our next stop was at the Lego store. Hopefully we can find room in the suitcases for the snowplow for Cooper and the combine and semi for Landon.

After we walked the length of the area and checked out the movie selections at the theatre, we decided to leave. We do like Disney Springs ,ICU better than City Walk at Universal!  Plus there is no charge to park in the garage!

Back to The Loop we went.  We were just a little late for the beginning of the movie..  Jennifer Looez in  The Second Act. I liked it.  Leah Remini was good in it and I liked the role Treat Williams played (even though I didn't recognize him!).

Next was a stop at Walmart.  It is the first time we ever saw a liquor store attached to the Walmart! I never saw an interior door from the grocery area to the liquor store, so I guess the only entrance was from the outside.  But man!  Fruit is expensive here!  Grapes were $2.99 a pound and a large container of strawberries was over $7.

We did buy more 2-liter bottles, another bottle of Tylenol PM, some cheese and crackers,  and some additives for bottled water.  Plus we found a cute t-shirt with Minnie Mouse for Tessa and a cute shorts outfit for Lynnlee.

Dinner was in the condo tonight!  We bought a bag of popcorn shrimp and a bag of corn to pop in the microwave.  We added a couple of hash  brown squares.  Much more relaxing and much cheaper than eating out again today.

Megan called while we were eating.  Owen was at their house while everyone else was at the wrestling meet.  It was good to talk to him and Cooper and to listen to Lynnlee making some noise.  I. Is the kids!  But I am not missing the cold weather and the forecast of snow, ice, and wind.  It's nice to be enjoying the 70s and sunshine !

Day #4 in Florida - January 17, 2019

We started today with Gary stating that he didn't want to have to get up and go someplace anymore on this trip!  Lol. It turned out to be a fun day!

Breakfast in the condo this morning.  Special K and a chocolate chip muffin for me.  Something similar for Gary.    The weather was supposed to be nice, but after being cold last night, I wasn't taking any chances so I wore my long-sleeved Purdue  shirt and jeans and took both my new jacket and the heavier jacket from home.

We drove to the Kennedy Space Center on the east coast.  We had purchased our tickets at the concierge desk yesterday so we had to go to Will Call for the actual tickets.  We had to pay an extra $10 to park which was better than the fee at Universal!  The guy we talked to last night recommended the bus tour at Kennedy so we did that first.

The building we visited was amazing.  The rockets were huge, bigger than we could have imagined.  All of the exhibits were interesting and kind of mind-blowing, at least for me!  I was really impressed.

We decided to eat lunch at the cafe in that building.  We both had chicken fingers baskets which included four pieces of chicken and hot fries.  I dipped mine in honey mustard...Gary had BBQ sauce for his.  We added a Diet Pepsi for each of us.

After lunch we continued through the exhibits.  As the bus driver said, there is no way to exit the buildings except through the gift shop!  We looked around in this one and I picked up three ornaments and a refrigerator magnet.  Then I stood in line...for..ev..er.  There was a group of middle school aged kids with their mothers ahead of me.  The kids kept jumping in and out of the line to the cash register, grabbing things like candy bars and bottles of water, then returning them, then placing them on the counter, then grabbing them again.  When I was one person away from check out, the mother asked about exchanging an item for something else and the clerk said it was possible to do that.  She proceeded to leave the line while her child was checking out, then returning as her child finished and wanted to exchange a necklace for a sweatshirt.  Then man behind me was livid. I wasn't too happy either.  When we finally left the gift shop, the same group of kids and the moms were lining up for the next bus back to the visitors center.  We were in the midst of them.  One of the mothers suggested  that we go ahead of all of them..THANK GOODNESS!  They all did board the same bus, but we didn't have to sit by any of them.  Afterwards I thought we must have appeared to be the cranky old couple that was not tolerant of kids, but these kids (and their mothers) seemed to be very loud, inconsiderate, and rude.  We were not the only people who were annoyed by them.

After we returned to the visitors center, we went into the building which housed the  Apollo program.  That place was amazing also.  I was so impressed with the video presentation, then the curtain opened and we were able to see and walk next to one of shuttles...Atlantis.  Wow!  The entire exhibit was incredible.

At the end of that building (before the gift shop!)  was a tribute to those who lost their lives in the Challenger and the Columbia.  Very sad.  Very thoughtful.

As we left the space center, another couple took our picture in front of the NASA globe and we returned the favor. They were traveling with an older couple who I assumed was a set of parents.

We headed south to Cape Canaveral, which I didn't even realize was an actual town, and it blended into Cocoa Beach.  We were looking for a place to eat.  We finally ended up at Pig And Whistle Irish Pub.  The clientele was older; in fact,  we were probably the youngest people in there.  The wait staff was excellent, and the food was hot and served quickly.  I ordered grilled shrimp, Caesar salad, a Diet Pepsi, and a glass of rose wine. Gary ordered fried cod and fries and a Diet Pepsi.  At the end we ordered the biggest pretzel I have even been served with hot caramel sauce in which to dip it.  The salt on the pretzel added a lot to the taste and the pretzel itself was hot also.  So yummy!  For me the entire dining experience was great, and if we were ever to return to Cocoa Beach, I would want to dine there again,

A little over an hours drive and we were back at the condo again.  The housekeeping staff had changed the sheets and switched out the towels.

What a day!  Oh yes...during dinner we had a FaceTime call.  It turns out that Hilary and Blaine went to our house today to put some things in the barn,  Owen was upset that papaw wasn't there and was screaming and crying and wanting to go into the house to see him..  Thus, the FaceTime with the kids this evening.  When I shared that with Gary...what a big smile.  He misses his buddy.

Watching tv now, then reading some.  Not sure what the plans are for tomorrow but there will be no alarm set.

Third Day in Florida...January 16, 2019

I am stil catching up on sleep evidently!  The Fitbit showed 8 hours 52 minutes of sleep last night.  I was up once for a potty run, but asleep the rest of that time.  Hope the bed is still comfy for the next few nights.  Being well-rested is a good thing!

Breakfast this morning...scrambled eggs with ham, a hash brown square and a chocolate chip muffin.

I finished my daily devotions, read a bit, colored in my devotions book, and now I need to make my way to the shower to get ready for the rest of the day.  Lots of sunshine out there.

Continued......

Lunch was in today.  We had picked up a couple of meals at Publix so we had those.  Gary's was country fried chicken and mine was a chicken and peach mix over rice.  I had some melon with it also.

We intended to go for a walk around the resort, but we didn't even make it to the sidewalk and I discovered that the new jacket I bought at Kohls yesterday still had the security fastener on it.  We tried to remove it ourselves but to no avail.  So I found the receipt and retrieved the tag from the wastebasket, and off we went to Kobls.  When we walked in, the buzzer didn't trip nor had it when we left the store yesterday. The clerk said it must have been faulty.  She removed it and we were on our way again.

Funny thing is...the gps took us one way to Kohls from the resort and a different way back to the resort from Kobls.

After we returned, we resumed the walk around the resort.  No one was in the pool area.  Too cold.  We checked out the fitness center and I rode the bike for a few minutes.  When we went into the clubhouse,Mae asked for some info about the Kennedy Space Center because we wanted to visit it.  We chatted with a guy for a while about cruises, met the girlfriend of at I, whom we worked with yesterday, and finally talked to the concierge who was able to sell us discount tickets for the space center to be used tomorrow.

We returned to the condo to change clothes, then left for Universal.  My gosh... Parking was $25!  We declined the offer of Prime Parking for $35 but when we saw that we were being parked in the furthest garage, ET 465, we started to regret not spending the extra $10.  It was a long walk past empty levels of parking garage to get to City Walk.  We had to go through a security checkpoint before we could get in.

Plans to dine a Jimmy Buffets's Mararitaville were dashed when the workers told the couple waiting in front of us that they were closed.  So we walked around the Hard Rock and ate there.  I ordered a cheeseburger and fries with a glass of water.  Gary had a BBQ pork sandwich with fries and a Diet Pepsi. There was a shift chmage so our waitress left and a waiter took her place.

After we finished, we walked to the box office for Blue Man Group to get our tickets from the voucher we received at our owners meeting,  since we had 90 minutes to kill, we walked around, checked out the stores for a sweatshirt since I was so cold, sat on a bench, and finally ended up in Hard Rock store just to keep warm until showtime.

We were upgraded to the Poncho section, so our seats were three rows back from the stage.  I wasn't sure what to expect but it was a good show.  We wore our ponchos, but they were really unnecessary. I was a little nervous with the audience participation but it turned out all right too.

The walk back to the parking garage seemed to take an eternity, and there were just a few cars left in that entire section,  the drive back to the condo was short it seemed.  The parking lot was full!  We didn't realize there were so many people here.

I am really tired.  Maybe it's because my Fitbit logged 12,165 steps today!  New high!

I need a othe good nights sleep to prepare for a busy day tomorrow.

Florida Trip Day 2.

January 15, 2019

After a wonderful nights sleep, we were ready to go today! No kidding...the bed was great.  I was a little leery about how I would sleep since I had a two hour nap earlier, but I woke up just once and went back to sleep immediately.  Gary said he slept well too. I hope that continue uses and wasn't just a signal that we were exhausted after the lack of sleep the night before.

Breakfast - Special K and a muffin for me.  Same for Gary  except he added a couple of mini chocolate covered donuts. I was full which helped me to avoid the donuts at the Owners Update meeting that we went to.

Once again I proclaimed loudly that we would not update, we would not be sucked into any hing which required us to spend money, but once again I was wrong.  Tim was our agent and we had worked with him before.  Actually what was presented to us was a good deal and will allow us to use our points more wisely and give us a few more perks.  I still feel like we shouldn't have purchased again, but I am not in a panic, and I didn't protest too much while we were discussing it. It will give us more to work with for Disney trips in 2020 which is what we need.

After that we had a late lunch at Longhorn down the street from the Outlet mall.  I ordered my usual. The steak was a little too pink for me, but it was still good.  We asked for another loaf of bread so we could bring the rest of it back and use it for a sandwich for Gary tonight.

Next we drive to an area close to Kississimee to find a Kobls.  They did have the gray shoes I wanted in my size even but I didn't eat to pay $70 for them so they are still at the store.  I did find a black sweater and Gary found a sweatshirt type thing, both on sale, so we bought those.

In that same complex we found a movie theatre.  We bought tickets and went in to see "The Upside." It was really a good movie, and I liked the story plus the actors and the roles they played.  It was based on a true story.  The ending just came...I wasn't ready for the story to end but it did!

Now sitting in the condo, watching our usual Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune.  Exciting evening of reading and good sleep await!

Florida Trip January 14, 2019

Here we are in Florida!

Kind of a spur of the moment trip but not really.  We had mentioned it, then it really sounded like a good idea, so we planned it.

Part of me was hesitant.  I really like the winter months and staying at home, reading, sewing, sleeping in late, staying up late.  But I also like to go places.  I was thinking that we need to take advantage of the opportunities when they come, travel now while we can and while we have the money to do so, and enjoy it.  So here we are.

Since our flight left at 6:15 a.m., we had to be at the airport early.  And since the roads were bad, we had to allow extra time for slick surfaces and then fog.  We were up at 1:30 a.m. And on the road before 3.

Other than having to wait in the shuttle shelter for about 10 minutes, the check in process was relatively easy.  No problems with the shuttle, or the luggage, or the TSA process.  For the first time my knee did not set off the sensors.

As we were walking to our gate, we  saw Joey  Sheppard who was flying to North Carolina for his work.  It was good to see him and chat for a while.

We were so tired that both of us slept on the flight to Ft. Lauderdale.  Neither of us heard the requests for drinks nor did we receive the little bags of pretzels!  The flight was uneventful...I guess...since we slept through most of it!

As we were waiting for the plane to Orlando, we stopped at a shop for a snack since neither of us had eaten anything.  A fruit and cheese and crackers package, an energy bar, and a bottle of water totaled $14!  Good thing we weren't planning a whole meal there!   We did walk past the Landshark and had to laugh about our experience there last  March.

The flight to Orlando was quick...less than an hour.  Once again, a smooth flight.  By the time we stopped at the restroom, caught the monorail to the terminal, and went to the baggage claim, most of the luggage had already been claimed and our three were easy to spot.

Rental car pick up was next.  Another smooth process.  We are driving a Nissan this time.

Our first week is at the Tuscany resort.  We stayed here several years ago, but in a different building.  I was surprised that the layout of our condo is the same as the recent ones at the Sea World resort.  The decor is different but the layout is the same as the time we were here with Megan and Matt at the other place.  Next week we will stay at the newer resort so it will be interesting to see how that one is similar.

Next stop was the Publix across the street.  We were disappointed that the prices on fresh fruit were so high.  We need to check out some other stores because I really like fresh fruit as a snack but I don't want to pay $3 a pound for grapes or $4.50 for a small container of berries.

After we put the groceries away, we went to a place called Freddie's Steakburgers.  It was set up like a diner, ordering at the counter, and listening for our number to be called so we could pick up our food.  We both ordered double cheeseburgers with pickles, mustard, and onions.  They came with shoestring French fries and a drink.  The burgers were really good, and I tried a special sauce to dip the fries in,

A nap was in order after that.  I covered up with a blanket from the closet and slept for over two hours!  I was so tired!  When I woke up and checked the living room, Gary was sound asleep on the couch.  Getting up at 1:30 and flying on two different planes and checking in to a new home away from home and getting groceries took a toll on us!

This evening I spent time in my pjs. We watched tv.  I wrote in my devotional book.  I caught up on my FB post with Rhonda.  I colored.  Now I am writing in my blog.  Plus the Internet is so fast I was able to upload all of our pictures into Shutterfly very quickly.

Tomorrow we have an owners update meeting at 10:30. I dislike those so much.  I am setting the alarm on my phone and we will leave when the hour ends.  We are not too happy anyway because the bonus package we purchased was misrepresented to us.  I know they will want us to add the points into a permanent package and we are not going to do that.   They just keep coming back with more offers and make it very hard to walk out without buying

Not sure what the rest of tomorrow will bring.  I just know there will not be snow, and that I need to get more sleep tonight!

The Illustrated Words of Jesus for Woman

I met Rhonda through a small FB group through Proverbs 31 Online Bible Studies.  We were both in a group whose leader was not strong, and it seemed like Rhonda and I were participating and asking questions and generating discussion more than she was.  Eventually we decided just to form our own group and participate in the study but to discuss with just each other and a couple of others who we invited to join us.

Rhonda lives in San Antonio so we have never met.  But we have communicated with each other so much, sharing our life experiences, our joys, our concerns, our worries, our life events, that we seem to know each other and we have become good friends.  Kinda like 21st Century adult pen pals!  Probably no one even remembers what those are---and I am sure that concept would be foreign or out of the dark ages for my grandchildren.

Anyway...Rhonda posted on FB around the time of the New Year a picture of the book The Illustrated Words of Jesus for Women.  It looked interesting to me, so I asked about it.  I checked it out on Amazon, then ordered my own copy. 

Next we decided to continue our FB secret group so that we could discuss the daily entries.  It seems like I am participating more than Rhonda is, but that is understandable because she works and I don't, so my 'free' time is more than hers is.

I like the book.  The verses are meanaingful and most of them are familiar in that I have studied them previously.  But what I like are these two things - the commentary, and the coloring!  The commentary has been giving me a different perspective, a different way of looking at the verse and applying it to my life.  I like the spot at the bottom of the page for notes, or if there is no space to write, I always find myself underlining or highlighting many passages. 

I also like the coloring.  I picked up a couple of packs of colored pencils, some for Tessa and some for me for our Christmas stockings, and I really like using those.  Shelby and Caleb left two packs of gel pens for coloring on Christmas Eve for the kids to use so those are coming in handy.  The coloring is relaxing and I like interpreting the pictures to make them mine, if that makes sense.

The book and a pack of colored pencils will be tucked into my suitcase for the trip to Florida.  I have tried to get ahead on the devotional posts on our FB page so I can just add in my comments next week. 

Daily devotions - easy to start at the beginning of the year.  Hard to keep up with as the days roll along.  But I am determined, and I will make this work for me.

The Wind Blows from the East

I taught Whittier's poem "Snowbound" to my juniors for many years, and I always tried to schedule the Fireside Poets during the winter months.

In the first stanza, one of the lines stood out to me.....

The sun that brief December day

Rose cheerless over hills of gray,

And, darkly circled, gave at noon

A sadder light than waning moon.

Slow tracing down the thickening sky

Its mute and ominous prophecy,

A portent seeming less than threat,

It sank from sight before it set.

A chill no coat, however stout,

Of homespun stuff could quite shut out,

A hard, dull bitterness of cold,

That checked, mid-vein, the circling race

Of life-blood in the sharpened face,

The wind blew east; we heard the roar

Of Ocean on his wintry shore,

And felt the strong pulse throbbing there

Beat with low rhythm our inland air.

One of the teacher notes focused on that line and how Whittier was referring to what we know as an east wind and how winds from that direction were especially harsh and brutal.  Always more rain.  Always a fiercer wind.  Always more snow.

I remember also that the test (and I took questions from the standardized test questions that came with the teaching materials along with adding some of my own) included a multiple choice question about the direction of the wind.

I also remember two students, Anthony Gutwein and his cousin Kevin Gutwein, who both answered incorrectly, then challenged me as to the validity of that question even being on a literature test.

Who cares what direction the wind blew?  How are they supposed to remember every little detail from a poem  that is stupid anyway?  After all none of them are English majors and none of them really care anything at all about what we are reading and to expect them to remember insignificant facts from a line of a poem is ridiculous.

All the while, and they even stood up and shook their fists at me and pointed their fingers at me for effect, I stood calmly (I think...I might have been red-faced and steam was probably escaping from my ears), then I explained how Life Lessons are also part of any class and a good teacher will include them.

Repeating the information about the east wind and the life knowledge gained from Whittier's lines, I stood firm with the question and its answer and its inclusion on the test.

Funny how one of the weather guys on a television station repeated the same information that very evening and funny how many students told me about it the next day which validated what I had said in my defense.

I always think of that when the east wind is blowing--which it is today.  The snow is coming down heavily and the wind is blowing from the east to the west.

But I always always think of it whenever I hear the names of  Kevin and Anthony.  My hope that they have grown up as adults and, if they remember the incident, can feel a little ashamed of their behavior.  But sadly, that isn't true.  When Hilary was asked to photograph family pictures for that family last year, guess who was the most difficult person to pose in any of the family groups? 

Some things just don't change, I guess.  Even the wind.

HItting the HIgh Spots?

We spent the day in Pulaski County.  Yes, we did.

First we stopped at Family Express in Winamac for gas.  We noticed that gas prices are lower in Lafayette at our favorite pumps at Sam's Club.  We paid $1.82/gal there compared to $2.25 in Delphi but the FE in Winamac was more in the price range at $2.08.

Since we neededto drop off a new bag of cat food, the next stop was Dollar General for that.

Driving past the Edward Jones business, we decided to stop by and visit Sandy before we went to Duane's office.  It was good to see her and just catch up about family news since we saw her on Christmas Eve.

At the Davis Real Estate and Auction office, we went through the paperwork for the closing on the 20 acres, then we moved to the Pulaski County Abstract office to meet with Norman, Arden, Trevor, and Trent Bathke to sign the paperwork to sell our 20 acres at The Farm.  We had actually accepted their offer in late August, but we wanted to wait until 2019 for tax purposes to actually transfer the property and accept their payment.

Following all of the necessary paperwork, I walked to Key Bank to close the one final account I had in the that bank - a CD that I had opened with $1000 Mom had given me as part of Grandma's estate.  I had never touched it, letting it sit in the bank to collect the interest.  We had closed out the checking account, cashed in the other CD we had, and cancelled the credit card, all within the last 18 months.  This was the final connection to Key Bank.  I walked out with a check for the full amount minus $1.35 since we closed it before the maturation date of January 28. 

I had been chatting with Krysten Hinkle on FB recently and since we aren't 'across the field neighbors' anymore, I suggested that we have lunch to catch up.  We met her at a new place, Sublime, which moved into Tippy's old spot.  The salad bar was great, but Gary didn't like the set up - everything was self serve (except the sub sandwiches) on Styrofoam plates and cups and bowls and the utensils were plastic forks and spoons.  The place was full, though, and Krysten saw several people she knew and we knew a few also!

After lunch we drove down 119 to Pulaski, then west on the Francesville-Pulaski blacktop and stopped at the house.  Gary took down a peg board that Dad had made and I found a couple of things I wanted to bring back to our house.

When we drove to Francesville, it just seemed odd to me.  We had driven that road for 42 years, to school, to The Farm, to church in Medaryville, to church in Francesville, to events in both towns.  Now we didn't really 'belong' anymore. 

Kayley Cervenka Kasten bought a baby carrier from Hilary, so the next stop was at Alliance Bank in Francesville.  Coincidentally Wendy called at the same time we pulled up to the bank about signing some paperwork that she would send to us.  Since we were parked across from her office and she was on her way into town, we met there.  We decided to lower the price on the property, signed the forms to do that, and also signed the paperwork to extend our contract with her for another 6 months.  A side perk was being able to see the new baby - who is just so sweet, so cute, and absolutely adorable!

Onward to the north to Lake City Bank in Medaryville to take care of the checks we had received that day, to distribute some money to the savings accounts of Landon, Tessa, Cooper, Owen, and Lynnlee, and to get some cash for the Florida trip.  Of course we visited with Karen too, and there are plans for a trip to Las Vegas in April in the works.

Another gas station stop at the Family Ecpress to cash in our lottery tickets from Christmas.  Gary came out with $11 which is more than we usually get from the scratch offs!

Final stop of the day was actually in White County at the Whistle Stop for an early dinner.  For the first time ever we saw NO ONE that we knew in there. We didn't know the only waitress who was working, the guy who was working in the museum, nor the two people who were already dining when we arrived or the two people who came in just before we left.  Good food though....

As we were waiting for our dinner, Gary gave the rundown for the day:

two gas stations (both Family Express)
three banks (Key, Lake City, and Alliance)
two real estate offices (Davis Realty and Auction, Neihouser Realty)
a financial service (Edward Jones)
two restaurants (Sublime and Whistle Stop)
three towns (Winamac, Francesville, Medaryville)
two sisters (Sandy and Karen)

But the best thing was that when we were pulling out of Whistle Stop, Gary said 'Let's go home'---and he turned south to return to Delphi. 

Because that is where home is.  Now.

Remembering a 'birth' day

Today is Landon's 9th birthday.

I wish I could share the excitement we felt the day he was born, but I can't.  You see, we didn't know Landon until he was 5 weeks old.  He was a Safe Haven baby, left at a hospital by his birth mother, then put into foster care with a wonderful couple who cared for him until his Forever Family could be found.

But when I think about it, I really do remember the day he was born.

Dad died on Dec. 31, 2009.  After the funeral on the following Tuesday, and spending a few days helping Mom with thank you notes and being sure she would be allI right staying by herself without him, we returned home.

It was the week before classes began, and it was also the first week in our new building at Ivy Tech-Logansport.  I was in charge, for the first time, of Adjunct Orientation which was on Thursday, January 7, the normal time for that event during non-instructional week. While we were in Ohio, I had spent time at Panera Bread using their Wifi since Mom and Dad did not have it at the house, and I sent most of the needed documents to either Susie at our campus or to Ethan at the Kokomo campus since he was on the committee and offered to help.

That day and evening I went through the motions of the event.  Kevin helped me as best he could.  I was fortunate that we had decided to hold the meetings in three separate locations, mainly to give those adjuncts who would be teaching in the new building the opportunity to explore the workroom, their mailboxes, their classrooms, and to acclimate themselves.

The event was draining for me, though, and Kevin, Tom, and Kim all encouraged me to stay at home the next day to rest, re-group, and prepare on my own time, and to stay away from the campus.  I did.  I stayed home.

I remember on that Friday, being alone in the house.  I am not sure where Gary was, probably at his folks, taking care of the cattle, or doing something on the farm.  Maybe he was just giving me some time alone.  I am not sure.

But I sat in his recliner and just sobbed.  I missed my dad so much. In my mind I knew he was not suffering anymore, but that sounded like such a cliche and it bothered me to even say it.  But having seen him on the evening of Dec. 30 hurt so much.  He was so frail, so thin, so weak, so tired.  He was thirsty, and Gary fed him ice chips and tried to help him sip small amounts of water.  Weak as he was though, he squeezed my hand so hard before I left, but I can still see the hollow look in his eyes as they met mine for the last time.  The last thing I remember him saying was "You're a good guy, Gary.  A good guy." which were words of high praise from my father.

I cried and cried and cried.  I hurt inside and out.  I didn't know how I would plan, prepare, teach on Monday.  I prayed for peace, for comfort, for the feeling that life would return to some sort of normal and that we would move on.  I thought about how difficult Mom would be, how hard it was going to be for Greta to care for her, and how Dad had apologized to each of us for leaving us with her.  More tears. More sadness.  More grieving.

Then, and I don't know what time it happened, but it did.  I felt a wave of peace wash over me.  I was calm.  My tears were dried.  I felt like I could go on.  I felt like Dad was telling me that he was fine, that I would be fine, and that I would be able to work through the remaining time with Mom.

At the end of January we met Hilary and Blaine for lunch at Red Lobster at its old location.  They had news.  There was a Safe Haven baby in Portage (I think) that was available for adoption. Their case worker had asked if she could submit their file for review as possible parents for that baby.  They agreed, and they were selected to be the parents of that baby boy.

After a flurry of preparations, after driving past the house of the foster parents a few days before they went to meet the baby for the first time, after they finally brought the baby home, it occurred to me to check out his birthdate on the calendar to see if I could remember what I was doing that day.

It was January 8, the day that I was sitting in the recliner, sobbing about Dad.  It was the day that suddenly a sense of peace and comfort came over me, and I felt like I could carry on.

When I told my students about the new baby, and, for the life of me, I cannot recall why they were all standing in the hall outside of my office, and when I showed them the pictures on the screen of my office computer, there were exclamations of joy and some tears.  One student took me aside and told me this:

"Mrs. Siemens.  I know what happened.  Your dad died and went up to heaven on Dec. 31.  When he saw God, he said to Him, 'God, my granddaughter and her husband need a baby.  What are we going to do about it?'  Then Landon was born on January 8 and here he is!  It was meant to be!"

That still gives me chills.

So no.  I can't share a story about being at the hospital and waiting to see my newborn grandson soon after his birth.

But I can remember his birthday---and the feeling I felt when the peace surrounded me that day as I sat in the recliner.

And I know that Dad had a part in it, which is why Landon seems to 'know' Grandpa Norm and has picked up so many of his mannerisms and wants to know more about World War 2 and asked for Grandpa's drafting table for his room.

Happy Birthday, Landon.  You are one special grandson!

Educated by Tara Westover

I just finished this book.

Wow!  Powerful!

Alicia Abney, who used to teach with Megan at Clinton Prairie, started a FB page focused on books that we are reading, that we enjoy, that we can review.  Kinda like a book club or a reading list or something like that.

I participated because now, especially, I need help with titles. I don't have the conversations that I used to have with students and colleagues and friends so that I can pick up book titles.  I just browse around the shelves at Barnes and Noble or at a library and see what might be interesting.

On the Whatcha Reading? page, Alicia adds in titles that she picks up on.  I like her lists, to some extent, because she is working on her PhD at Middle Tennessee and has more contacts with the scholarly world.  But her tastes are a little different than mine. I still consider her suggestions as I look for new titles to explore. But there are others who post suggestions that really speak to me.  Educated was a title that popped up.

Educated was a book that intrigued me.   Yes, being a teacher is part of it.  But learning in general is something that I value.  I truly believe that no one ever stops learning, and I believe also that learning can be self-imposed.  I always tried to teach my students that they could learn as much as they wanted to learn---or nothing at all if they didn't want to open themselves up to new ideas.  It was all up to them, not to me.  I couldn't control their education - only they could.  I was just a means to help them at that given time. 

As I read Educated, I felt anger, sorrow, pity, happiness, more anger.  I didn't want the book to end, but I wanted it to end so I could be sure that she survived.  I knew that she did survive because for one, she wrote the book after the fact, and for two, she was speaking at MTSU in the spring so she must still be with us!

But I also felt some kinship with Tara as she was grew up.  No, I was not denied going to school. Nor was I ever not allowed to see a doctor. I was not put into risky situations where my life was in danger.    Those are a few of the many differences between us.

But I did feel a kinship of sorts when she returned to her family after months of absence.  Her mother would offer support, tell her one thing, then deny it later because actually she had been lying.  She was very manipulative, as was her father.  Telling lies about her to family members was also something I could relate to.  Of course the chasms were not as great nor the effects as serious as what she experienced, but I can't help but wonder if some of the reason I feel a distance between me and a few of my cousins is because my mother told them things that really aren't true, just to keep me separated from them.  I remember my mother not confirming things that happened or things that were said, just because she didn't want the blame to be shifted to her. It was much better for her to let me remain in the hot seat for whatever had happened.    Like Tara, I stayed away from my parents for several years just because it was too painful to see them and I felt like I was losing what I had built as Beth when I returned to visit, even for just a few days.  For me, however, it was my mother who was causing the distress, not both of my parents.  My father just seemed to be powerless to stop her.

Anyway, I was on a reading marathon this past week with the book.  It finally appeared on my bookshelf when we were in Pigeon Forge and I downloaded it while we had Wifi in the cabin so I could read it on the way home.  I had been on the Wait List for the book for several months, either from last May or last July - not sure which one.  I knew that when I started it, I needed to finish it before the expiration because being put on the wait list again would mean I couldn't finish it before probably summer!  But once I started it, I really had a hard time putting it down.  It was just that good. 

It isn't often that I am captured by a book to the point that I rush through what I am doing to be sure to have enough time to read.  I was even tempted to take my Nook along with me to Landon's birthday party and read while others were visiting - but I knew that would be rude  and his party is too important to him to remember Mamaw sitting in a corner, reading a book the entire time!

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone.  I am not sure everyone will like it, but it really spoke to me.  I was caught up in her trials and tribulations. I cheered with her as she achieved her goals, one step at a time.  I would love to hear her speak, and I will be checking her lecture series calendar with the hopes that she stops at Purdue.

Read the book. It is good!  Educated.  Tara Westover.

And the house looks so empty and so dark

Taking down the Christmas decor and putting it away until next year is always depressing for me.

I like the colors, the lights, the glittering.  I like the glow of the lights and the softness they lend to the rooms. 

We spent most of the day taking down the decorations in the house, undecorating the two tress, and putting everything away on the shelves in the basement.

Now the house is dark. 

Being in a new house for a major holiday has been interesting in itself.  I had to find new places for favorite snowmen and candles and wreaths and wall hangings.

We bought a new tree and had to adjust to new fullness and new places for the ornaments.  That was funny too because we couldn't find all of the boxes of ornaments we used last year, but we did find a couple of boxes of those we hadn't used for a while and one that I had forgotten about that I had brought from Mom's house.

But now the house is dark.

The furniture has returned to the original (or what was the original for a few months) spots.  Some pieces have been moved to new places.

New wall hangings must be added because there are new nails which held Christmas decor in the hallways, in the bathrooms, and in the family room.

But the rooms are still dark.

The lights are still strung around the railing on the deck.

The tree is still on the circle.

The wreath is sitll on the barn.

But those will be coming down this week--as the weather permits.

The holidays are over.  The memories remain.  And plans can be in place for next year's celebrations!

But the house is still dark!

"Must Be Nice..."

Gary and I decided to use some of our Hilton points and fly to Orlando to stay at one of the resorts for not just a few days, but for two weeks.  We purchased a package last year to use for Owen's Adoption Day celebration, but the day didn't happen as early as we had anticipated and the package was going to expire.  So we decided to use it for ourselves and add in another week in the sunshine.  After all...if we are going to spend the money to fly and there is really no reason (other than being with the grandkids who will be in school anyway) to stick around in the cold weather, we might as well stay for a couple of weeks.

Yesterday we booked the rooms, then we reserved the plane tickets, and we still have to plan for the rental car.  We shared the news with other family at Landon's birthday party yesterday.  The girls knew we were thinking about doing this and why we were doing it, but others didn't---and there was no reason why they should.

I am not sure who said it...and it doesn't really matter who did....but I heard the word 'Well, it must be nice" floating into the air.

Ok....I understand that maybe one would think that because not too many people can take off in the dead of winter and go to Florida for a couple of weeks.

But I think we have earned this opportunity.

Why?

Because for 43 years I taught either in the high school or in college and couldn't take off anytime during those usual nine months of a school year and go anywhere, except maybe at spring break when everyone else was going too or at Christmas break when the holidays and family activities prevented any type of travel except maybe to Ohio to endure Mom's wrath for a few days.

Because for many years the girls were on basketball teams that played during the winter months, the Student Council sold cookies at all of the home basketball games, and I supervised boys home games.  Then Gary was coaching either junior high girls or was the varsity assistant and I was the scorekeeper and our evenings and weekends from November to the beginning of February were full (and his afternoons were full of practices too). 

Because when I went to Ivy Tech to teach, not only did my schedule consist of two full semesters but also of teaching in the summers which had only two weeks in August and two weeks in May free.  Farming got in the way of doing anything in May, and the August time was usually full of other family things and state fair.

Because I spent SO much time grading and prepping and grading in my last semesters (especially when I had four very large ENGL 111 classes) that I had no time to do anything else except that.

I have earned the pleasure of travel.

Gary has earned the pleasure of travel.

We want to travel together and can do it now.

We have the money to travel.

We have the time to travel.

We want to go to Florida and just enjoy the sunshine and drive around the town and go out to eat and maybe drive to the beach one day and just have a good time.

So yes...it must be nice.  It IS nice.  But don't say the words begrudgingly like we should be sorry or guilty or ashamed that we are going to on a trip for two weeks.

We planned it.

We want to enjoy it.

We have worked hard to be able to do it.

And we will have fun!

It WILL be nice!

New Years Eve

Another New Years Eve in the Smokies is in the books!

It all started in 2010.  That year had been particularly hard.  For one thing, Dad died in the wee hours of the morning of Dec. 31, 2009.  New Years Eve, New Years Day, the holiday season, the move to the new Ivy Tech building - all of it was a blur because of his difficulty during his last days and his final breaths that morning. 

For Karen there had been many health issues also.  I remember standing in her hospital room, talking with her and Clay, and declaring between the two of us that the year had been a difficult one and that I, for one, wanted to do something different to welcome 2010, something that would be fun and take my mind off of remembering the anniversary of Dad's death.

I remember Gary asking what that would be and out of my mouth popped, "I want to go to Gatlinburg for New Years Eve."  Where that came from, I don't really know, but Karen and Clay said that sounded good to them too----and the tradition began.

Over the year we have stayed at various venues, most of the time through our Hilton points.  Laurel Inn for three years. Oakmont on the corner of Veterans Parkway and Teaster.   Treetops for two until it burned in the big Smoky Mountain fire.  Then we started branching out to other places - the place behind the Local Goat where I acquired bites all over my body, the two bedroom cabin in the hills behind the outlet mall, the large cabin with four bedrooms this year behind Dollywood.

Our usual routine includes places we ALWAYS like to visit to shop and favorite restaurants as well.  The Christmas Store.  Apple Valley.  Premium Outlets.  All Sauced Up.  The Clock Store (Clay's favorite).  The Donut Friar.  Alewine Pottery.  The boot place.  Bass Pro Shop on the way into town.  The Knife Store.  A meal at Smoky Mountain Brewery and our annual 'night out' meal at The Alamo.

This year was a little different and I don't think the four of us were sure how it would play out.

Instead of just the four of us we added in other family.

Megan, Matt, and the kids had some extra time off of school for Christmas vacation so they went along.

Amanda, Shelby, and Caleb had time off work, so they joined us also.

What would this do to our routine, to visiting our favorite spots, to being sure that everyone had a good time and were able to do what THEY wanted to do as well?

What we did was designate each day with The Plan, then we worked from that.  If someone wanted to do something different, they could.  Since we didn't have a vehicle, we were at the mercy of riding with someone else, so that had to be adjusted too.  Plus it was easier to take two cars than three into Gatlinburg since the traffic was so heavy and parking spots limited.

All in all I think the five days went well.  On the plus side were several things. 

Everyone seemed to have a good time, which is a key to a trip anyway!  Who would go on a trip if not to enjoy the time spent away from home and work?

Since we did spend so much time together, it was interesting to get to know those we usually DON'T spend that much time with.

Cooper became more comfortable with Amanda, Shelby, and especially Caleb.  They sat on the futon downstairs and watched football together one evening.  Plus Shelby played games with Cooper on New Years Eve.

We spent more time with Megan and Matt and the kids, which we try to do, but sometimes their schedules get in the way of that happening. 

We were able to share some of the places WE like to go with everyone else. 

New Years Eve was fun with a game of Shanghai Rummy and one of Tripoley.

It was fun just to laugh together and not have schedules or plans or anything else getting in the way.

Of course Gary, Cooper,  and I had the main floor bedroom and bath while everyone else was in the rooms downstairs, sharing two small bathrooms (and we did offer our shower to anyone who wanted to use it!).

Most of all I love family time together.  Family is extremely important to me and time spent having a good time or celebrating holidays is very special.

On the way home we talked about the trip, like we always do, and I know that Karen blogged on her new iPad like she always does.  Even though there were some changes in the dynamics, they were good changes.  I am not sure whether the same people will be able to get together again to ring in the new year in a cabin in Pigeon Forge, but the experience for welcoming 2019 was a good one.

What a tradition we began with just an off-hand remark about needing to do something fun for NYEve in 2010!