Wednesday - What An Amazing Day at Pensacola!

Ken and I left the hotel at 8:30 and drove the 35 minutes to the entrance to the Pensacola Naval Base to meet Dan and Jackie.  We followed them to the hanger where Dustin has his office.  There we met up with the rest of the "gang" including Dan's sister's Darlene and Sandy, Jackie's brother, Randy, Dustin's wife, Leticia and their children, Teya and Cael, plus Letitia's parents, 2 aunts and uncles.  What a great group!

Leticia took all of us to Dustin's office to wait for him to return from his last flight as a member of the US Navy.  He got back later than planned because the plane had engine troubles when they got to their breakfast destination and another plane from the base was sent for his return flight. 

Entering the Naval Base!

Dustin's hanger on the base!

Dustin's office is the windowed area and it overlooks the tarmac!

His photo hangs everywhere in the hanger building!

This is the back part of his office.....

....and this is his desk area!

This is the plane he has flown in during a lot of his career!

When we walked down to the tarmac, we had the opportunity to see the hanger and all the planes he commands!

These are the airplanes that pilot trainees fly under Dustin's
command!

When his plane got near the runway, the pilot circled once and then landed within 100 feet of where we were all waiting.  He was greeted with ice water (Dustin said he was thankful they repaired the ice machine last week - Not!) and champagne shower to celebrate his last flight. 

This is Dustin's last flight with one of his pilot trainees!
They are saluting us!

...and here comes Dustin!

We are all waiting for him to depart the plane!

The celebration begins - cold water and champagne!

Dad and mom are so proud!

And so is his son, Cael!

Then we all went back to a room near his office where he hammered his wings onto the "wall of fame"!

Hammering his "retired" wings into the wall....

....and then writing a brief messaage!

After changing clothes he joined us on the tarmac where we had the privilege of watching the Blue Angels practice their entire routine right over our heads - it was amazing and we had a "ring side" view!

The Blue Angel pilots are heading to their planes!

.....and they are off!

Here we go!

Returning at the end of the show - amazing!

I was impressed by Ken's fantastic photos!

Following the "show" Ken took some photos of Dustin with his parents and then all of us had the opportunity to go to the Officers Club on base for lunch.  It was delicious and so reasonable.  

Lunch at the Officer's Club

Dustin had to leave  to go to a rehearsal for tomorrow's change of command and retirement ceremony.  Ken and I followed Dan and Jackie and their sisters and brother to their hotel (about 25 minutes from ours) to play cards and chat.  

Then it was off to a Happy Hour with hors d'oeuvres  at the Fish House only 5 minutes from their hotel. It was on a deck overlooking the water and a beautiful evening for a celebration.  We had so much fun spending time with folks we hadn't seen for quite a while.

Ken and I were back to our room by 9, did some reading, and it was off to bed.  We were so thankful we were invited to this celebration and were able to attend.

Tuesday - Good Bye Port Charlotte and Off to Pensacola!

Ken and I were up by 5:30, ate a light breakfast, packed up the remaining food items, finished "closing up" the condo" and were on our way to Pensacola by 7:15.  

It was a gorgeous driving day with very reasonable traffic the entire drive.  We made the usual stops for gas, bathroom breaks, and lunch at Wendy's.  We actually did less stops then we often do when traveling.  We had a time change near Tallahassee which allowed us to arrive at the hotel around 4.  We unloaded and then decided to take the 30 minute drive to Pensacola Beach.  

What a beautiful beach and surrounding area.  We did some walking and enjoyed seeing a new beach. 

Love the beach ball water tower!

Very unique life guard stations!

Loved this unique bandshell both front -----

.....and back!

Jackie called and said a group of them were going to dinner around 6:15 but we were tired, hot, and sweaty and knew we would be late even if we didn't return to our hotel.  So, we went back and had a good and relaxing dinner at one of my favorite places, Sonny's Barbeque, which was located right next to our hotel.  When we walked back to our room at 7:30, we did some reading and then went to bed - so tired!

Sunday and Monday - Off and On Sunshine!

Sunday morning we were at Edgewater Church by 9:10 and had lots of time to chat with friends before the 9:30 service.  We are blessed here with such a fantastic church family.  After the inspiring service and wonderful music Susan joined us for breakfast.  Denny's had a 25 minute wait, so Susan suggested Hometown, a small Breakfast/Lunch Cafe very close to our condo.  What a delicious breakfast at a very reasonable price and they offered great service.  We will definitely go there again!

Susan was interested in seeing the location of our condo community and to check out what we had done since arriving.  She and her husband only moved to this area of Florida in December after living near Orlando for numerous years.  She has done a lot of thrift store shopping and furniture painting since they purchased their home here, so she was excited to offer me some assistance in finding some bargains.  We will plan to do that when we return sometime in September.  Ken and I really appreciate her spirit of service for friends and the church!

Ken and I both rested after she left and at 4:00 Rick and Joyce arrived to spend the evening.  We chatted for quite a while and then we made salads and had the leftover chicken cacciatore from when Melissa and Chuck were here.  Then it was time for the game playing.  The women won Pinochle but the men were victorious in Skip-Bo.  What a fun evening with such special friends.  We admire how they are always willing to help people with so many different projects, including jobs here at the Condo.  We are going to miss them when we return to PA!

They left around 9:45 and we went right to bed!  It has been another great day!

Today, Monday, we met Joe and Carolyn at Denny's for an 8:30 breakfast.  This is another couple that we have met through the church and the Food Pantry.  We had a very nice visit and look forward to seeing each other again in the fall!

From there Ken and I went to the office of Empire Electric to express our concerns over the work that was done at our Condo.  We met with the owner's wife and she couldn't have been any nicer or accommodating.  She was so apologetic  for all that transpired and immediately said she doesn't want us to pay any portion of the bill until the entire job is completed to our satisfaction including the drywall.  Wow!  She also contacted her husband and he will be stopping at the condo to see us a little later.  

We returned to the condo and Jeff stopped by as planned and we had a good conversation.  He agreed that we should pay nothing until the drywall is repaired when we return in September.  So, we were impressed with the owners of the company and how they want us to be pleased with their service.  We told Jeff the best thing he could do was have the people in his company do better with communication with their customers!

Ken and I spent the rest of the day getting ready for our departure tomorrow.  I did wash and we packed up everything with Ken loading what he could in the CRV.  Somethings will have to wait until tomorrow morning due to the heat.  Ken also talked to Lloyd in PA for some further info on closing up our "home" before leaving for 3 months and stopped by the office to make sure we had done everything necessary for their files and records.  Can't believe our time here has ended already, but we are thrilled with all that we accomplished.

We had a light dinner using up most of the items that were in our refrigerator because we will disconnect it when we leave tomorrow.  Did all that we could before we head out in the morning.  We played 2 games of Pinochle and we each won a game.  Bed by 9 to do some reading.

Earlier Ken had a nice phone conversation with Burt in Maine.  He is on the road to recovery following hip replacement surgery.  Looking forward to seeing he and Pat again this winter here in Florida.  They will actually be our neighbors because they have a Condo in this same community!  After visiting them and seeing there unit Ken knew this is where he would like to live while in Florida, so they are the reason we purchased here!  Thanks, Burt and Pat!!!!

Friday and Saturday - More Hot, Humid Days

After breakfast, Ken and I were off to help at the Food Pantry at Edgewater Church.  I was excited to see several of the women that were not there last week and spend some time talking with them!  We did not have as much food for the clients that we normally have, but not as many people came today so it was fine!  After taking 3 people around, I left to run some errands including some food needed for when Chuck and Melissa arrived later in the day.

Cereal, dry goods, and veggies!

So many good looking desserts and even boxes of candy!

Each person gets a bag of canned items, "surprise" items,
and water!

Edgewater Church also has a bike ministry and gives many free
bikes to the homeless.  They will do 3 free repairs also to
the bike owners!

I also stopped at the Humane League Thrift Shop where I purchased a small shell lamp, a holder for my sharp knives and a container for the master bath.  I stopped by the condo to put the refrigerator items away before returning to the church.  No one came after around 11:45 and we don't close until 12:30, so there was time to chat.  After cleaning up, Ken and I left at 12:45 and came back to the Condo.  We had lunch and Ken rested while I did some reading and put chicken cacciatore in our crockpot.  I was working on a cardholder when Chuck and Melissa arrived at 2:30.  It was so wonderful to see them again and be able to spend about 24 hours together.  We so appreciated their willingness to drive 3+ hours so we could enjoy time together.  They are such special friends.

Obviously we spent time chatting and catching up on our lives including what is going on with our children, my parents, and Melissa's mother.  Several years ago we took a  2 month "leaf tour" in our motorhomes going from Canada to see Ernie and Noela and ending the trip in Florida.  During that journey we stopped to visit and spend time with each others children and parents.  It was a very special time!  After "catching up on life" it was time for dinner and I had decided to cook so we could stay in for the evening and play games which we always like to do.  So, Melissa and I made individual salads to have with our pasta.

After dinner, we played 3 games of Pinochle stopping to have dessert after the 2nd game - Key Lime Pie from Publix (YUM!)  We ended the evening around 10:30 with the women winning 2 of the 3 games and Skip-Bo.

After getting ready and having breakfast the 4 of us walked around some of the property here at the condo.

There is lots of gorgeous, mature landscaping!

This is one huge palm!

Lots of large live oaks with Spanish moss here at our
community - Oaks I and II!

The front of our building!

We drove to Venice to have a scone at the Upper Crust, something we had done numerous times when we camped together in this area.  They were definitely as good as always especially when you spread on the Devonshire Cream.  There was a craft show downtown, so we walked through it but didn't come away with any packages. 

Smiling faces when eating those delicious blueberry and
raspberry scones, but the Devonshire Cream is a must!

Busy craft show but it was so hot in the sunshine and with
all the folks so close together!

Several weeks ago Ken had seen a show on Italy and they talked about the making of Espresso.  We passed a Coffee Shop that offered it and he thought Chuck and him should give it a try.  The lady that made it was a "hoot" and enjoyed having fun with the "boys"!  I was surprised but Ken actually liked it!

Ken and Chuck's 1st experiences with Espresso!

Cheers to the boys!

After leaving downtown Venice, we drove to check out the new winter training stadium for the Atlanta Braves outside of North Port off River Road - a rather amazing property. 

We were back to the Condo by 1:30 and had a few snacks while playing 2 more games of Pinochle which were won by the guys.  They also won the Skip-Bo game.  It definitely was their day!

At 3:30 we drove to Jason's Deli where we all enjoyed their salad bar.  We said our good-byes and they were on there way back to The Villages by 4:30.  We are so excited that we will all be in this area this fall and winter and be able to spend more time together.  Reminiscing about our many days of traveling together in our motorhomes (150 days 2 years in a row) brings us so much joy and makes us feel so blessed.

Ken and I rested when we returned to the condo and did some reading.  I downloaded photos, worked on this blog, and worked on a cardholder.  Ken did some prep work on his phone for sending his devotions to numerous of his CR brothers!  It was later night for the Hoslers only getting to bed around 10!  Looking forward to seeing our friends at Edgewater tomorrow and hopefully spending time with Rick and Joyce!  We are so blessed!
 

Thursday - Hot and Humid Like All the Other Days!

Ken was up early to enjoy reading on the screened porch.  I rose by 6:45 to do my stretches and get ready for the day.  I helped Ken with his breakfast and we had time to have coffee and chai outside.

At 8:30 the manager from Empire Electric stopped by to check on our electrical box repairs.  I don't believe he was overly thrilled especially with the drywall situation.  We agreed to let Marco finish the job including the drywall, but Larry, the manager, guaranteed that if we are not completely satisfied he will have a professional drywaller come and do the job to our satisfaction.  So, we will wait and see if Marco does finish the job correctly!

Ken left to help at the Food Pantry from 9 to 11:30 and at 9:30 they arrived from Kane's furniture with our new sofa and 2 reclining chairs.  I was a bit apprehensive until I saw the new pieces in our Condo but I love them and all of it is so comfortable!  Hallelujah!  I did some devotions and clean-up and then had a wonderful phone conversation with Donna who lives in Pottsville, PA.  We had met her and Bill when camping here in Florida and really enjoy their company!  They are trying to sell their motorhome when they return to Florida this coming winter.  We plan to get together when we are all here.

After lunch, Ken and I both decided to rest for a little and then I had Ken take new photos of the Condo with the improvements we have made!  Things are slowly coming together.  The LR still needs tables and lamps, but all in all I am very pleased with all we have accomplished in 1 week!

Here are some new photos -

There are seashells on the shams in the MBR!

I found these rather "whimsical" seashell lights!

Large Master Shower!

Love the wicker headboards I spray painted for the guest
BR!

Looking across the hall to the guest Bath!

Our new LR furniture looks a bit "naked" without tables
and lamps.  That will happen, but just not now!!!!

Nice view from the LR!

We enjoy the nice open area!  We even have a place to work
on our computer!

So glad they removed the 4 cabinets between the DR and
Kitchen when they remodeled to give it such an open feeling!

So much cabinetry compared to Wilbur!

Ken made a phone call to the Eicher Arts Center in Ephrata, PA to reserve it for our 50th Wedding Anniversary Celebration which will take place on Sunday, October 27th - how exciting!  I can't believe we have been married that long.  I think I was 10 when we got married!!!!! 

We made salads and had leftover Mexican for dinner.  Ken has a large lead in Hand and Foot after 3 rounds.  He did some work on his I-Pad and I did worked on some cardholders.  I can't believe I never left the Condo today.  Both of us are happy for some slower days!

Wednesday - Warm and Sunny Again!

Ken and I had debated this morning if we should call the electric company again with our concerns, but at 8:30 the county electrical inspector arrived to approve yesterday's work.  He was unaware that the job hadn't been completed.  But, he found many infractions which he e-mailed to the company.  In Marco's defense (we always try to support the underdog!) he really hadn't finished the job, so some of the items probably just weren't done!

By 10:30 Marco was back to address all the issues and finish the job, including starting the "patch job" on the textured wall.  So, Ken and I left for about 3 hours while he "did his thing"!  Marco talks to himself while he works and it's a lot of negative words which positively drives Ken crazy, so it was good we left. I was still having difficulty walking, so bless his heart, Ken did the shopping and returns at Wal-Mart and the grocery store while I waited in the car.  It gave me a great opportunity to talk to Lanie, leave a message for Jamie, and talk to Joyce!  We did stop at Chipotle again for lunch and to have leftovers for the next 2 nights - they give you so much!  When we returned, Marco had just finished including doing the 1st coat on the drywall.  He said he will return tomorrow to complete the "patch job"!  

Ken and I both did some reading and then it was nap time!  We had to sleep in our beds because we have no furniture in the LR!  We had leftovers for dinner and then Ken spray painted the lamp in the guest bedroom.  We played a game of Pinochle because we have no TV (Ken won) and then I headed to bed to talk to my sister.  We had a nice long conversation.  Ken spent time looking on Amazon for a gift for our friend's son, Dustin, who is retiring from the Navy.  It was lights out by 10:15.

Tuesday - More Sunshine!

Ken was up before me as usual to read and enjoy the peace and quiet.  At 9:00 the electrician came who will install our new panel box because the original one is old and questionable.  Long story short, Ken wasn't comfortable with this gentleman because of a few comments he made and he was only with the company 1 month.  He left to get some supplies and Ken decided to call his boss to get some assurance that all was on the "up and up"!  He told Ken that Marco would do a good job and the company would stand by his work.

So, upon Marco's return, we left for about 5 hours to run some errands and get lunch.  Ken was such a trooper going in and out of stores considering he is not a shopper.  When we returned, we were not very happy.  Marco was not able to finish the project today and the drywall really cracked when he removed the old box.  He said no problem, he knows how to fix drywall and will take care of it.  We decided to extend him "grace" and he said he would return tomorrow.

At 3:00 Rick and Joyce arrived and what a blessing to have their help.  Ken and Rick loaded the furniture we decided to give to Habitat for Humanity in our car and it took 3 trips to get everything there.  Joyce and I went to a consignment shop in North Port and to Kirklands to see if I could find tables for the LR - no success!  I guess because of all the spray painting yesterday and the shopping in many stores, I had a very tough time walking today and my right leg ached.

When we returned to the Condo, the "boys" were busy hooking the newly painted wicker headboards to the twin beds in the guest bedroom - they look great!  Then Rick and Joyce worked together trying to figure out a way to hang the light we had purchased above the DR table.  What should have been a 1 hour project took 3 because of not being able to wire it directly into the ceiling (not allowed) and a cord being needed.  Now a days, lights are not made to be hung that way.  Halfway through the project Ken and I went for pizza while they went to Lowe's to find a way to make the adaptions necessary to hang the light.  Rick and Joyce actually figured out a way to do without any outside help - they are amazing.  By 8 all the projects were done and they were on their way back to Venice.  We are so grateful for friends like Rick and Joyce!

Ken did some work on his I-Pad and I headed to bed to give my leg a rest. Ken and I agreed that tomorrow will be a low key day without a schedule of things to do.  We need it!