As per usual, Ken was up before me. In my defense, he gets up very early, often takes a rest in the afternoon, and most times turns out the light before me, so I get up later then he does! All is fair!!!
After a nice chat with my special friend, Polly, I drove about 25 minutes to meet Cindy and John to play pickleball at the Hempfield Sports Complex. You can play from 10:45 to 3 for only $3.00 as a non member - quite a deal. There was a small group of players there early, but more and more people arrived as the morning progressed. It was a lot of fun, but I must admit I have some trouble with the indoor lightning! I find it difficult to keep the ball in focus, but it does get a bit better the longer you play! The 3 of us left there and went to Mick's near Mt. Joy to have lunch together. It was wonderful to spend time with my sister and John.
I was home by 2:30 and Ken had spent most of his time working in the office getting things organized and working on the computer. He had also taken a walk, but cut it a little short when it started raining. It was a rather raw day with temperatures in the low 40's, but no sunshine and very damp!
I decided I wanted to try my hand at painting on some rocks we had collected in Florida to give to our granddaughters in their Easter baskets. Ken left at 6:30 for Celebrate Recovery and I continued painting until he got home at 9:15. I enjoyed watching The Voice while I was painting.
We did some reading in bed and I only turned out my light at 11:15. I had to finish the book I was reading!
Today, Wednesday, is another rather miserable rainy, cloudy, damp day. Where is that warm Florida sunshine???? Ken had made an appointment to tour the Water Street Rescue Facility in Lancaster at 10 this morning. Originally, I was going to stay home, but I decided it would be a great opportunity for us to go together and learn about their "operation". I am so glad I decided to be a part of it. Heather took us on a 1 hour tour of the property (it covers an entire city block!) and what an amazing place it is! They are only funded through donations and possible grants and the free services they provide, including medical, dental, classes, a computer lab, etc. are "top notch". She was very informative and has such a kind and loving spirit. Ken and I think it could be a great place for us to do some volunteering!
From there, we headed to Wal-Mart for some groceries before arriving back home around 12:30. After lunch, Ken went to Hurst Tire Center to get new tires for the Honda Civic we just purchased. I decided to work on this blog and then do more painting.
After an early dinner, we left at 5 to go to Masonic Village to play cards with Mom and Dad. We stopped for drinks for all of us and arrived around 5:45. Mom and Dad were so excited to play Pinochle again. We played 3 1/2 gaves and the men won 2, ladies 1 1/2 - I think it should really be 2 to 2! It was nice to spend time with them and seeing them so healthy and happy.
We were home by 9:30 and it was off to bed to read! I certainly hope this cold, damp, rainy weather soon ends!
Wednesday, February 28, 2018
Wednesday - A Day at the Campground!
Today was an extremely hot one with plenty of sunshine and very little breeze! Actually the daytime temperatures in Florida for February were the warmest on record EVER! It has been in the mid to upper 80's all but the 1st 3 days of the month! Wow! Ken was up around 6 and did some reading before I arose at 7. Ken left at 7:15 to walk with Ernie returning at 8:30.
While he was gone, I did my stretches, some reading, cleaned up, and showered. We ate breakfast and I got our wash together to take to the CG's laundry.
Ken was such a busy boy outside raking, washing and drying the car, and then cleaning windows on the car and Wilbur. I started cleaning and scrubbing Wilbur inside. Bill and Donna stopped by, friends from PA, and we chatted outside for well over an hour. We had such a good time together. Ken was washing our shark tooth find from Monday and they were amazed at how many we found and the size of most of them. We made plans to have lunch in Punta Gorda Friday afternoon. After they left, Ken and I went to the laundry but all the washers were in use, so we came back to Wilbur and had lunch.
We had been considering buying a 2nd car when we get back to PA and when we were at a picnic in Sarasota with lots of our church friends from back home, we found out that the hosts of the picnic have a Honda Civic to sell before they leave PA and move to Florida permanently March 22. Ken was all ears when they mentioned that info. So today we drove to the Honda dealership here in Port Charlotte so we could look at a Civic and make sure that we were comfortable with the seating and leg room - no problem. We were totally honest with the sales gal from the beginning and she was so helpful. She even asked us if we wanted to take it for a test drive. For her time and "trouble" we gave her a gift card to McDonalds! So, we contacted Frank and worked out the details for us buying the car. Wow, we will be a 2 car couple again after about 2 years of "car juggling"!
We stopped by the laundry when we returned and had the place almost to ourselves - hallelujah! We put in the wash and then went back to Wilbur and I finished my cleaning. Then back to the laundry!
Ken made salads, did dishes, and then washed and soaked the shells we got yesterday in bleach. He came to meet me at the laundry while I was loading the clean wash in the CRV. Back to Wilbur to put things away and then Neil and Nancy stopped by for over an hour. They have been camping here at Harbor Lakes since last Tuesday and we have had very little time together - all of us so busy! It was so great to spent time visiting before they leave tomorrow morning! We will see them in PA this summer!
After dinner, I worked on this blog and Ken went through all the photos he took the last several days. I downloaded the photos and we walked over to Ernie and Noela's to visit, but they were gone! Back to Wilbur to finish this blog and then record expenses in our budget program. Ken answered some e-mails, etc.
Wow, we certainly have been busy the last week or so. Lots of fun but we are tired. I considered playing some pickleball tonight, but just too exhausted! Maybe tomorrow night! We went to bed around 10 after another full day!
While he was gone, I did my stretches, some reading, cleaned up, and showered. We ate breakfast and I got our wash together to take to the CG's laundry.
Ken was such a busy boy outside raking, washing and drying the car, and then cleaning windows on the car and Wilbur. I started cleaning and scrubbing Wilbur inside. Bill and Donna stopped by, friends from PA, and we chatted outside for well over an hour. We had such a good time together. Ken was washing our shark tooth find from Monday and they were amazed at how many we found and the size of most of them. We made plans to have lunch in Punta Gorda Friday afternoon. After they left, Ken and I went to the laundry but all the washers were in use, so we came back to Wilbur and had lunch.
We had been considering buying a 2nd car when we get back to PA and when we were at a picnic in Sarasota with lots of our church friends from back home, we found out that the hosts of the picnic have a Honda Civic to sell before they leave PA and move to Florida permanently March 22. Ken was all ears when they mentioned that info. So today we drove to the Honda dealership here in Port Charlotte so we could look at a Civic and make sure that we were comfortable with the seating and leg room - no problem. We were totally honest with the sales gal from the beginning and she was so helpful. She even asked us if we wanted to take it for a test drive. For her time and "trouble" we gave her a gift card to McDonalds! So, we contacted Frank and worked out the details for us buying the car. Wow, we will be a 2 car couple again after about 2 years of "car juggling"!
We stopped by the laundry when we returned and had the place almost to ourselves - hallelujah! We put in the wash and then went back to Wilbur and I finished my cleaning. Then back to the laundry!
Ken made salads, did dishes, and then washed and soaked the shells we got yesterday in bleach. He came to meet me at the laundry while I was loading the clean wash in the CRV. Back to Wilbur to put things away and then Neil and Nancy stopped by for over an hour. They have been camping here at Harbor Lakes since last Tuesday and we have had very little time together - all of us so busy! It was so great to spent time visiting before they leave tomorrow morning! We will see them in PA this summer!
After dinner, I worked on this blog and Ken went through all the photos he took the last several days. I downloaded the photos and we walked over to Ernie and Noela's to visit, but they were gone! Back to Wilbur to finish this blog and then record expenses in our budget program. Ken answered some e-mails, etc.
Wow, we certainly have been busy the last week or so. Lots of fun but we are tired. I considered playing some pickleball tonight, but just too exhausted! Maybe tomorrow night! We went to bed around 10 after another full day!
Tuesday, February 27, 2018
Tuesday - A Visit to Dave and Sharon Horst in Goodland!
Ken and I were up by 6:15, ate a light breakfast, loaded the car, and were on our to Goodland (about 2 hours south) by 7:15. It was a beautiful, hot, sunny day! We made one stop for gas and coffee and arrived at Dave and Sharon Horst's home in Goodland at 9:30. They are fellow PA residents who we usually see every year we are in Florida! We always enjoy our visit with them and look forward to it each year!
Upon arrival, we chatted and caught up on what is happening in our lives. Goodland was hit very hard by Hurricane Irma and caused lots of damage to many of the homes in that small area. Fortunately, although their home had some damage, it was not as severe as many had in the area. Their boat was on a lift in the water at the back of their home and that and their dock had no damage. The tiki hut did need a new roof, but the wooden part of the structure was able to be reused. The worst part was all the flooring in their home had to be removed and replaced as well as the sub flooring because water had come in! That was a major job as well as cleaning up the palm trees that toppled in the wind and the loss of mulch and plantings. Dave and Sharon worked so hard to get everything done but they did a terrific job!
Ken and I put on our bathing suits and the 4 of us took a ride in their boat to The Lump where we go each year with them for shelling. People can only go there 2 more days (March 1) when they will close the island so that the terns can be undisturbed during their mating season and can nest there. We had a fun 3 hours on The Lump looking for shells and enjoying our lunch.
On the boat ride back to their house they drove around the island to show us some of the hurricane damage. One of the boat storage places that was 3 stores high was totally flattened during the hurricane and they are still cleaning up.
We spent time chatting under their tiki hut before leaving for Cocomos Grill, a restaurant on Marco Island. Dave had caught and cleaned some sheephead fish which we took to the restaurant for our dinner. The chef will grill, fry, blacken, or use Jerk seasoning on the fish when he prepares the filets. Then you get a salad a one side dish for $12.99 per person. Not a bad deal! I chose coconut shrimp for my entree and it was delicious as was the fresh fish. What a treat!
On the way back to their house we stopped at some open lots to see the protected areas for the burrowing owls and they were out and about, so photographer Ken was in all his glory!!! He also got a picture of an osprey with his "fish catch"!
We stayed for tea and coffee at their house before leaving for Harbor Lakes at 7:15. The drive back went well but we were extremely tired by 9:15 when we arrived at Wilbur.
What a special day with special friends.
Upon arrival, we chatted and caught up on what is happening in our lives. Goodland was hit very hard by Hurricane Irma and caused lots of damage to many of the homes in that small area. Fortunately, although their home had some damage, it was not as severe as many had in the area. Their boat was on a lift in the water at the back of their home and that and their dock had no damage. The tiki hut did need a new roof, but the wooden part of the structure was able to be reused. The worst part was all the flooring in their home had to be removed and replaced as well as the sub flooring because water had come in! That was a major job as well as cleaning up the palm trees that toppled in the wind and the loss of mulch and plantings. Dave and Sharon worked so hard to get everything done but they did a terrific job!
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| The back of their property with their boat, tiki hut, and screened back porch! |
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| Their boat was safe on the lift during Hurricane Irma! |
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| What a view from their screened porch! |
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| We are blessed to know and spend time with Dave and Sharon! |
Ken and I put on our bathing suits and the 4 of us took a ride in their boat to The Lump where we go each year with them for shelling. People can only go there 2 more days (March 1) when they will close the island so that the terns can be undisturbed during their mating season and can nest there. We had a fun 3 hours on The Lump looking for shells and enjoying our lunch.
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| Daisy likes to ride to The Lump too! |
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| Heading out to The Lump! |
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| About 7 years ago, this house made up of numerous cement domes, was on land! We were able to walk around them! So much beach erosion! |
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| This is The Lump and it is fairly isolated! |
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| The Lump has experienced lots of erosion to. It is about half the size of several years ago! |
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| Shells everywhere! |
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| The terns will be nesting here soon! |
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| .....and there are lots of them! |
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| The water was so refreshing because it was a very hot day! |
On the boat ride back to their house they drove around the island to show us some of the hurricane damage. One of the boat storage places that was 3 stores high was totally flattened during the hurricane and they are still cleaning up.
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| Heading back to Goodland! |
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| The skyline of Marco Island! |
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| A dolphin gave us a little "show"! |
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| Several photos of the damage in the area from Hurricane Irma! |
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| This boat is still a ground! |
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| Where boats used to be stored in the non-existant 3 story building! |
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| Damaged boats still remain in the "used to be" storage area! |
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| This boat dock took a pounding! |
We spent time chatting under their tiki hut before leaving for Cocomos Grill, a restaurant on Marco Island. Dave had caught and cleaned some sheephead fish which we took to the restaurant for our dinner. The chef will grill, fry, blacken, or use Jerk seasoning on the fish when he prepares the filets. Then you get a salad a one side dish for $12.99 per person. Not a bad deal! I chose coconut shrimp for my entree and it was delicious as was the fresh fish. What a treat!
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| It is very cool under the tiki hut! |
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| Dave provided the fish for dinner! |
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| What a great fish fry! |
On the way back to their house we stopped at some open lots to see the protected areas for the burrowing owls and they were out and about, so photographer Ken was in all his glory!!! He also got a picture of an osprey with his "fish catch"!
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| The county marks off the living areas of the burrowing owls! |
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| They are very small and so cute! |
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| Supper on the claw! |
We stayed for tea and coffee at their house before leaving for Harbor Lakes at 7:15. The drive back went well but we were extremely tired by 9:15 when we arrived at Wilbur.
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| Great painting on the water tower of Goodland! |
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| A view of the clouds from their screened porch! |
What a special day with special friends.
Monday, February 26, 2018
Monday - Another Gorgeous, Warm, Sunny Day with Just Enough Breeze!
Ken was up before me and did some reading. He woke me at 6:30 to give me plenty of time to get ready for our beach adventure today with John, Cindy, Ernie, and Noela.
We made a cooked breakfast and cleaned up before getting some snacks and our thermos ready for the beach. John and Cindy arrived around 9:30 and by 9:45 the 6 of us were in Ernie's truck and on our way to Manasota Beach. Ken and John had recently walked about 2+ miles down the beach where they found "tons" of sharks teeth and knew the ladies would love going there. So that was our destination today! We knew there would be very few people that far up the beach!
Cindy and I found an area where we were finding lots and lots of teeth and having "a ball"! The boys and Noela walked farther up the beach, but we just stayed where we were! We all decided it was probably our best day every looking for "treasures", especially the ladies! All of us found lots of teeth and just to give you an idea of how many, Ken and I filled a quart sandwich bag! Some of them were fairly large ones, better than we normally find!Cindy and I didn't even take time to eat our snacks, because we were just too busy! We only left Manasota Beach around 3:30! I think we were addicted to "the hunt"!
You wouldn't know it by looking at these pictures, but I spent a lot of my time on my knees letting the water surround me and everytime it went back out, more and more shark's teeth became visible! I hardly had to move!
The 6 of us ate at The Sandbar and Tiki Hut in Englewood, an outdoor restaurant and had some very delicious food - quite a treat!
We arrived at the CG at 5:15 and Ken showered and got ready to go to CR at Edgewater. Cindy, John, and I went to play pickleball and played about 9 short games with just the 3 of us. Lots of fun, but rather tiring. Around 6:45 about 8 more people arrived to play and we played at least 3 or 4 more games, switching partners. By the time we left the courts at 7:45 we were all exhausted.
John and Cindy departed as soon as we got back to Wilbur and I certainly appreciated having a shower! I packed Ken and my lunch for our trip to Goodland, near Naples, tomorrow to spend the day with our friends, Dave and Sharon. Looking forward to a boat trip to The Lump to get some beautiful shells.--
I worked on this blog and downloaded photos. Ken returned at 9:15 after a fantastic night at CR. We chatted and I finished this blog. So ready for bed!
I will post photos of the shark's teeth Ken and I found today in the near future! It was amazing!
We made a cooked breakfast and cleaned up before getting some snacks and our thermos ready for the beach. John and Cindy arrived around 9:30 and by 9:45 the 6 of us were in Ernie's truck and on our way to Manasota Beach. Ken and John had recently walked about 2+ miles down the beach where they found "tons" of sharks teeth and knew the ladies would love going there. So that was our destination today! We knew there would be very few people that far up the beach!
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| Rather deserted, huh???? |
Cindy and I found an area where we were finding lots and lots of teeth and having "a ball"! The boys and Noela walked farther up the beach, but we just stayed where we were! We all decided it was probably our best day every looking for "treasures", especially the ladies! All of us found lots of teeth and just to give you an idea of how many, Ken and I filled a quart sandwich bag! Some of them were fairly large ones, better than we normally find!Cindy and I didn't even take time to eat our snacks, because we were just too busy! We only left Manasota Beach around 3:30! I think we were addicted to "the hunt"!
You wouldn't know it by looking at these pictures, but I spent a lot of my time on my knees letting the water surround me and everytime it went back out, more and more shark's teeth became visible! I hardly had to move!
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| Sisters having fun together! |
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| Shark's teeth were everywhere!!! |
The 6 of us ate at The Sandbar and Tiki Hut in Englewood, an outdoor restaurant and had some very delicious food - quite a treat!
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| Shark's tooth hunting can make a person hungry and very thirsty!!! |
We arrived at the CG at 5:15 and Ken showered and got ready to go to CR at Edgewater. Cindy, John, and I went to play pickleball and played about 9 short games with just the 3 of us. Lots of fun, but rather tiring. Around 6:45 about 8 more people arrived to play and we played at least 3 or 4 more games, switching partners. By the time we left the courts at 7:45 we were all exhausted.
John and Cindy departed as soon as we got back to Wilbur and I certainly appreciated having a shower! I packed Ken and my lunch for our trip to Goodland, near Naples, tomorrow to spend the day with our friends, Dave and Sharon. Looking forward to a boat trip to The Lump to get some beautiful shells.--
I worked on this blog and downloaded photos. Ken returned at 9:15 after a fantastic night at CR. We chatted and I finished this blog. So ready for bed!
I will post photos of the shark's teeth Ken and I found today in the near future! It was amazing!
Sunday, February 25, 2018
Sunday - Warm, Sunny and Just Beautiful!
After getting up around 6:30, Ken did some reading and then we both got ready to go to Church. Ken emptied tanks and vacuumed while I cooked breakfast. Did a little work on this blog and then it was off to Edgewater.
Nice visit with new friends before the very inspiring message on Struggles. Today's topic was intimacy from the standpoint of how social media keeps us from being "up close and personal" with our friends and family and how we should actually consider using our phone as a phone and talk to folks! Imagine that! There was a lot of food for thought!
After church, Ken and I went across the road to the local Publix grocery store to help with Feed the Harbor where 5 churches were collecting food for their Food Banks. Boy Scouts gave a list of needed items to folks when they entered the store and Publix's did a great job of having many of the items near the door. Lots of the groceries on the list were "buy one get one Free"! Amazing how the store worked with us and how generous the folks were. We collected lots of needed items!
Ken and I worked from 10:45 till 12:30 and had such a good time with all the folks from Edgewater"s food bank. By then we were hungry so we headed to Subway, getting back to the CG around 1:30. Ken took a nap while I wasted time playing a game on my tablet. I have decided to "give up" playing those games until we get back home. It wastes way too much of my time.
At 3:30 Ken and I decided to go to the beach for the sunset. It was a gorgeous hot, sunny day, perfect for a late afternoon beach trip. We had planned to go to Englewood, but they have a Sunday evening drum circle and there was absolutely no place to park. So we went to Manasota Beach where we did some walking and then enjoyed an gorgeous sunset along with lots of other beach goers!
What a great photo looking from the bath house to the life guard station and the beach -
We had a wonderful phone conversation with Jamie, Bria and Cali on our way back to the CG. They both had great swims this weekend with Cali taking a 1st in the 5 or 6 events that she participated in - Wow! Bria did extremely well too in her age group but was sad that she missed qualifying for Junior Olympics in the butterfly by 1 second. What a disappointment for her! She did qualify to participate in the Junior Olympics in about 3 events! We are so proud of these girls and their dedication and hard work!
We were back to the CG around 7:30, ate salads, and had a chat with Cindy. They are planning to come to the beach tomorrow and we will spend the day together. We went to chat with Ernie and Noela and discuss our plans for
tomorrow and see if they would like to join us. So, the 6 of us will all be going to Manasota Beach.
Ken and I were in bed around 9:45 after a very blessed day! Life is so Good!
Nice visit with new friends before the very inspiring message on Struggles. Today's topic was intimacy from the standpoint of how social media keeps us from being "up close and personal" with our friends and family and how we should actually consider using our phone as a phone and talk to folks! Imagine that! There was a lot of food for thought!
After church, Ken and I went across the road to the local Publix grocery store to help with Feed the Harbor where 5 churches were collecting food for their Food Banks. Boy Scouts gave a list of needed items to folks when they entered the store and Publix's did a great job of having many of the items near the door. Lots of the groceries on the list were "buy one get one Free"! Amazing how the store worked with us and how generous the folks were. We collected lots of needed items!
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| A well organized event! |
Ken and I worked from 10:45 till 12:30 and had such a good time with all the folks from Edgewater"s food bank. By then we were hungry so we headed to Subway, getting back to the CG around 1:30. Ken took a nap while I wasted time playing a game on my tablet. I have decided to "give up" playing those games until we get back home. It wastes way too much of my time.
At 3:30 Ken and I decided to go to the beach for the sunset. It was a gorgeous hot, sunny day, perfect for a late afternoon beach trip. We had planned to go to Englewood, but they have a Sunday evening drum circle and there was absolutely no place to park. So we went to Manasota Beach where we did some walking and then enjoyed an gorgeous sunset along with lots of other beach goers!
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| A nice time of day to be at the beach! |
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| Another day nearly ended.... |
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| ....almost gone.... |
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| ....and a beautiful one it was!!! |
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| Lots of folks enjoying the sunset! |
What a great photo looking from the bath house to the life guard station and the beach -
We had a wonderful phone conversation with Jamie, Bria and Cali on our way back to the CG. They both had great swims this weekend with Cali taking a 1st in the 5 or 6 events that she participated in - Wow! Bria did extremely well too in her age group but was sad that she missed qualifying for Junior Olympics in the butterfly by 1 second. What a disappointment for her! She did qualify to participate in the Junior Olympics in about 3 events! We are so proud of these girls and their dedication and hard work!
We were back to the CG around 7:30, ate salads, and had a chat with Cindy. They are planning to come to the beach tomorrow and we will spend the day together. We went to chat with Ernie and Noela and discuss our plans for
tomorrow and see if they would like to join us. So, the 6 of us will all be going to Manasota Beach.
Ken and I were in bed around 9:45 after a very blessed day! Life is so Good!
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