Saturday

Well we said our thank you's and good bye's to those great folks we met at Calvary Chapel because of the AngelFood program. Nancy and I first served at Cornerstone our mountain church home and felt the need to serve when we came back to Florida for the winter. Now it seems our son's church Element is going to start the program in Tampa so of course we will serve there instead of Calvary. It just amazes me how GOD builds relationships through programs that help serve, of course remember CHRIST came to serve not be served. What a role model we have now we just need to JUST DO IT(where have I seen that logo).

Nancy and I was setback with our favorite store(just kidding, Publix is) Wal-Mart when they sent us an e-mail on Friday that they had cancelled our order(which was on the way) for Ava's kitchen which we were to give her on Saturday at her party. Short story long is we left Angelfood and went to Toy's R Us and purchased this beautiful wooden kitchen that came in a box weighing nearly a 100 lbs and was 8 inches high by 5 feet long. Well it took me 3 1/2 hours to put that creature together but it was well made and should last her until she gets married,ha ha. Actually we liked it much better than the one we had ordered. Ava and Annsley cooked several meals for all of us in the short time they got to play with in before the sand man arrived last evening.

Tyler smoked an amazing brisket which I must admit I had never eaten (or just don't remember). You could cut this with a fork and it just melted in your mouth. Luckily we ran out out before I totally ruined my arteries. The dinner was the best as Cindy(Tyler mom) made this super mac and cheese as well as homemade vanilla ice cream(there goes the arteries for sure). Nancy made a great bake beans casserole and cold slaw and Amy baked a mocha chocolate birthday cake for Ava. What a superb meal and a birthday party for Ava. She unwrapped presents forever. She was so subdued I wondered if she was alright. Cindy and Robb(Tyler's dad) gave Ava a blow up bounce house. The girls were in its having a super time so much so Annsley continued to bounce while we ate. The girls were just worn out but had so much fun and really love to get together.

Well this week promises to be an exciting one for Ava as Robb and Cindy are taking them to Disney world for 3 days. Ava can't wait to see Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and Donald Duck, she just lights up when you mention Disney World. Nancy and I are busy again this week starting this morning where we will do our last nursery at SFBC as we do the 4th Sunday; then we will be hopefully working at Cornerstone Church in the mountains as its getting to be that time when we head for higher ground and cooler temp's. On Friday its off to Tampa to help Element with the Motion Filmfest plus all the weekly activities we are involved with. Sure will miss Ava and Amy this week coming by for lunch but this is a preview of what we will expect this summer.

Well I've rambled long enough. This evening G/G and Pap invited us to their house for dinner. Here are a few pics. LATER.

Friday on Saturday Morning

This will be quick, as usual after a few minutes with the Creator(quiet time) and a lite breakfast I did 2 hours of hard play with my pickle ball buddies(7) then came home to work at neighbor Jon's camphor tree. What a beast that was and the sun was hot and direct. We got her down and sawed up, loaded on a trailer and truck and called it a day about 4PM. Must work on the trunk to get it down for a stump grinder.

After a lite dinner of homemade biscuits with cream of tuna and green peas we entertained our house church for a dessert social. We had about 15 people there and each family brought a dessert. I broke down and sampled 4 desserts. Now I must eat a piece of my granddaughters birthday cake today so I might as well forget about giving up on sweets. Yea that's right AVA is 2 years old today.

Well must go as we have Angelfood distribution day at Calvary Chapel. This will be our last as next year Element with start the program so we will go there instead of Calvary. Thanks for allowing us to serve your community with you. We learned so much with such a huge program over 750 orders monthly. Better go as its time to leave and will post pics later of the Birthday Party. LATER

Thursday Evening and Friday Morning

Wow what a busy day and the evening was even better with a superb gourmet meal at a reasonable price prepared by none other than our son, Bobby. We hooked up with friends Dan and Carol and headed to Tampa for an evening of fun and delicious dining. We were there nearly 3 hours and the restaurant was totally ours. I think there were 22 people(customers) with a support personel of 4 with Bobby as the chef. Wow what a delicious meal for a total of 35 bucks per person including tax and tip and a ton of freshly prepared food. Actually several of us donned aprons and became a part of the preparation process which was actually fun, educational and really is what made this a great dining experience. It seems this was Bobby's second gig at CHEFSONTHELOOSE.NET and has been asked to do a monthly gig as a guest chef. Go to Facebook and I've explained each dish we helped to prepare and ate last night. Can't wait until we do it again.

This morning was the usual with my quiet time, lite breakfast and a good 2 hour workout on the pickle ball court. Wow I'm beat and I haven't started to help neighbor Jon to finish with the big Camphor tree in his yard that we started on yesterday. Tonight we are having a dessert social with our house church at our house around 7 PM. That's about it for now except the temp's are back up and supposed to get 85 today with much more humidity. Tomorrow we have Angelfood Day at Calvary Church at 9 AM then its off to the beach. Tomorrow evening we are having Ava 2 birthday celebration with a big dinner and lots of family. Yea Tyler's folks will be here all the way from Kansas. LATER

Thursday

Well after my quiet time and oatmeal breakfast I rode off to the Rec. but not before I picked a bag of fresh kale for a senior lady(70+) who regularly walks at the Rec. each morning. You would have thought I bought her a bag of gold. Thats one of the the many blessing of having a garden and the plentifulness of sharing. I got in 2 good hours of pickle ball and I can feel my strength returning each day, PTL. When I got home around 10:15 I noticed my neighbor was in the process of taking down a huge Camphor tree in his front yard that was destroying his driveway.

I worked with Jon for a couple hours with his Stilh chainsaw(I find that relaxation for me) sawing down and up this tree. Tomorrow we will finish up and do the clean up. Tonight we are heading to Chefs on the Loose in Tampa as Bobby(son) is hosting a cooking show. I think there will be around 35 seats or people who have made reservation for dinner. The theme is Backyard Bistro. It's just like the Food Network with a celebrity chef(Bobby) cooking with audience participation. Sounds like fun and this will be his second dinner. So we are excited for him as well as proud of his love for preparing gourmet dishes. I will include pics on tomorrow's blog. LATER

Monday and Tuesday

Well I must say the weather here is beautiful once again as we have opened up the windows to let in the fresh, cool, dry air.Its been years since we have had the windows open this late in April. I must say its refreshing except for the night birds which start about 5 in the morning they in turn wake up the turkey gobbler next door. Well you can imagine the racket that causes, so I may have to close the bedroom windows tonight. Any how all is starting to get back to some what "normal" around here with regards to our health. Nancy is having some adjustments to her new blood pressure pills but at least the pressure has been reduced to around the normal levels. YEA!!! My cough is gone except for an occasional hack. I'm back to playing pickle ball every day for 2 hours so I'm trying to get in shape for the mountains.

After my daily quiet time and lite breakfast's I ride the bike to the Rec. for my daily workout. It's taking a little extra to get back in shape from my 2 weeks of laying around with that cough. I still manage to read at least one book a day and some times two. I prefer non-fiction true crime or memoirs but a novel by Andrew Gross called THE DARK SIDE was recommended to me by my library buddy and its a good read and one with a different plot. I'm about 1/2 way through as I started it yesterday.

Speaking of yesterday(Tuesday) Nancy and I drove over to Riverview(Annsley house) and watched her from about 4 until Bob got home around 6 PM. Jill's folks normally watch her but Brian, Jill's dad had a serious eye operation for a detached retina Tuesday so he will be flat on his tummy for a week. Kept the Kuyatt Family in your prayers. We had a great time with Annsley. She now refers to us and grandma and grandpa. She is such a smart one with lots of word recognition also she like to stand on her rocking horse seat seat and balance like she's on a tight rope lifting her hands out and and exclaiming "tata". She even to tried to stand on the horse's head. Nothing about heights frightens her. Bobby fixed us a super dinner of grilled salmon with stir fry and rice. YUMM. We got back to Seminole around 9:15.

Well little Ava will be 2 this Saturday so Tyler's folks are on their way from Kansas and will be here for a week or so. We are having a big family dinner as Tyler is smoking a large beef brisket and of course lots of good eatin' and a party. They are taking Ava to Disney World for 3 days next week. Well will close for now. I just planted 3 kinds of tomato seeds, kale, dill, green and jalapeno peppers as I will take them to the mountains when we leave in May. LATER

Saturday and Sunday

Well the weather is still amazing here with pleasant temperature and low humidity that lets us have the windows open. If only it would stay this way but if it did then we would be less inclined to go to the mountains. Oh well speaking of the mountains it looks as if we will head that way as of now on the 24 th of May. We will have Amy's birthday dinner on Friday and leave Sunday morning.

Saturday was a fun day with all the guys going to watch the puppy's run at Derby Lane. Nancy had a fun time watching Annsley and Ava play together in the kiddie pool and digging in the back yard. Nancy and I just chilled Saturday night watching the Ray's finally win a game but they wound up losing 3 of 4 games to the White Sox. Those guys better shape up or they will go back to being the worst club in baseball again. Maybe last year was a fluke!!!

We had a great worship time at Element and the attendance is climbing every week with lots of kids of all ages. Bobby is doing a great job and we are so proud of him. He is also doing a chef gig this Thursday in Tampa and we are planning on attending the dinner where he is the featured chef. It's called Backyard Bistro with Chefs on the Loose.

Well Tyler's folks are coming next week from Kansas for Ava 's second birthday. Amy is planning a big party next Saturday and Tyler is going to smoke a beef brisket. Should be a great time of celebration as well as good eatin'.

We had Dan, Carol, Stacy and Jerry for dinner tonight. I did marinated rosemary chicken breasts on the grill with oven spuds and home grown beets. Carol made a salad and Stacy made a pecan pie. We played a couple card games and all was gone by 8 PM. What good eatin' and lots of laughs. I think we are planning something for Kentucky Derby Day.

Well I will sign off for now, LATER

Friday on Saturday

After my usual quiet time and lite breakfast I rode to the Rec. for PB play and got in 2 hours. Finally getting my strength back after that bought of "whatever it was" that laid me up for 2 weeks; however I tweaked my right knee some how Friday before I ever got to the Rec. so last night is was a little sore. I will baby it this week end with a little R & R and some Motrin, yuck I hate taking pills. Hopefully will be back on the courts Monday.

Not much else going on as its been a quiet day without little Ava coming by on Friday. Bobby is bringing Annsley over today so the girls will get to play together. The men are taking Pap Pap(Nancy's dad) to the dog track for a couple hours this afternoon as he likes to go there occasionally. Its been nearly 4 years since we last went. I'm not much of a gambler but its fun to watch the dogs run against each other and its free to get in.

Nancy fixed a couple of home grown white eggplant for supper and were they ever good. She fries them, I know that's not healthy but when you sprinkle fresh oregano, basil and jalapeno pepper on them its very tasty. At last that's the way I like them.

Well the Rays came from behind last night and finally stopped their 2 game losing streak by beating the White Sox's. Will close for now.