Well as you who follow this post know I'm a little late in posting for Sunday as I slept in by mistake this morning so I'm writing this after pickle ball. Sunday found us cold outside so we had the heat on before we headed off to church and then again most of the day as it stayed nippy with the north wind making it feel even colder. Since there was no church at Element due to house church Sunday we decided to worship with daughter Amy and her family at our old church in Seminole. Well we were made to feel welcome by many and it was a great home coming as well.
After church we came back to a lunch of left over soup and brats. Afterwards I settled in to the NFL and watched our hapless Bucs beat the best team in the league convincingly. I was pleased to think they had something to build on for next year after a 7-9 season. There were a couple other good game whereas the Vikings and Redskins made it into the playoffs after dismal starts. We headed out around 6 PM for neighbors Dan and Carol for supper.
Dan was grilling salmon on a cedar plank along with smashed spuds and sauteed spinach to go with a fresh salad. We played a game of Phase 10 and while it looked like I was the winner Nancy beat me by 20 points on the score sheet in the final phase. It was a cold walk back to the house around 9. I settled in once again to the last game of the regular season until it was lights out a little after 11, LATER
Monday, December 31, 2012
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Sunday Morning
Well Saturday was one of those days where we were just home bodies; at least I was. Nancy took her mom to the mall and then to Publix in the afternoon but I stayed around the house reading and watching college football. It rained all night and the ground was soaken this morning.
The morning found us sleeping in until 7 then we did our quiet times and had a breakfast of eggs, grits and toast; that held us to about 2 PM when we decided to have a salad for a late lunch. We decided to take down the Christmas Tree and store all the ornaments once again in the attic for another year. The house looks so barren after all the Santa's are gone off the T.V. cabinet, oh well!!! That took us a couple hours to take down and clean up.
We decided this was the last year for this artificial tree as its starting to shed some needles so out in the trash it goes on Tuesday. It saddens me to think of all the fun times we had around that tree, all the presents that sat under it and then to just trash it after almost **&%$# years. I bought that tree at Dillard's right off the floor at the end of the season as they don't repackage them for the next year. Its been nearly 9 years since I retired and I probably didn't work at Dillard's as security for 5 years or more before I retired; so we more than got our money's worth.
We ate leftover rib roast as fajitas with sauteed onions and peppers for supper and yeow was that ever good. After the cleanup I gravitated to the bedroom T.V. for football while Nancy flipped channels in the living room. I do miss this activity at the cabin as we have just the one T.V. Anyhow we did get in a phone call to our "mountain mom". Her son, Rick came up from Florida for a week over Christmas and they had a grand time together. It was good to hear she is finally getting over that nasty cough she had for weeks.
Well today we are going to our old church for worship as Element on the 5th Sunday does a house church which means no gathering at the warehouse. Since our house church is on vacation we will hook up with our daughter Amy and her family at SFBC. It turned cold over night with a temp of 40 this morning, yikes!!! LATER
The morning found us sleeping in until 7 then we did our quiet times and had a breakfast of eggs, grits and toast; that held us to about 2 PM when we decided to have a salad for a late lunch. We decided to take down the Christmas Tree and store all the ornaments once again in the attic for another year. The house looks so barren after all the Santa's are gone off the T.V. cabinet, oh well!!! That took us a couple hours to take down and clean up.
We decided this was the last year for this artificial tree as its starting to shed some needles so out in the trash it goes on Tuesday. It saddens me to think of all the fun times we had around that tree, all the presents that sat under it and then to just trash it after almost **&%$# years. I bought that tree at Dillard's right off the floor at the end of the season as they don't repackage them for the next year. Its been nearly 9 years since I retired and I probably didn't work at Dillard's as security for 5 years or more before I retired; so we more than got our money's worth.
We ate leftover rib roast as fajitas with sauteed onions and peppers for supper and yeow was that ever good. After the cleanup I gravitated to the bedroom T.V. for football while Nancy flipped channels in the living room. I do miss this activity at the cabin as we have just the one T.V. Anyhow we did get in a phone call to our "mountain mom". Her son, Rick came up from Florida for a week over Christmas and they had a grand time together. It was good to hear she is finally getting over that nasty cough she had for weeks.
Well today we are going to our old church for worship as Element on the 5th Sunday does a house church which means no gathering at the warehouse. Since our house church is on vacation we will hook up with our daughter Amy and her family at SFBC. It turned cold over night with a temp of 40 this morning, yikes!!! LATER
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Saturday Morning
Friday turned out to be a day of many weather conditions. It started out with 42 degrees and a chilly ride on the way to the rec. My breath was evident as I pedalled out. The middle afternoon it was warm enough to open a window then it clouded up and a chilly breeze blew in rain clouds and by supper time it was raining steadily and rained all night long and it's still cloudy with some showers this AM.
I did almost 2 1/2 hours on the pickle ball court before heading out to the library to pick up a new read. I headed home and the sun was shining and it had warmed up to the high 50's so I did some watering and pulled a few weeds. Amy and the kids were coming for lunch then she wanted to go check out mattresses for the new bunk beds for Ava and Sam, so she and Nancy took off in the truck. Well they found a good buy at Big Lots and the girls managed to load the mattress and get it back to her house where they unloaded it. Sam and Ava stayed with me and we(they) had treats and we watched a couple movies. I sent the last of the ice cream home with them as I'm officially off sweet foods for awhile. I even froze the last of my applesauce cake for a later date.
GG called an invited us to her house for Zucchini pie for supper. That is an awesome dish and one we haven't had in awhile. Nancy brought a fresh garden salad and the meal was superb. After the cleanup we got in 2 games of Phase 10 and GG beat us in both games; convincingly. We headed out around 9 and so I hit the showers and then tuned into Duck Dynasty and some Friday Night Fights(I love boxing). Nancy was into some 2 hours of a show on 48 Hours that was about a hoax abduction, LATER
I did almost 2 1/2 hours on the pickle ball court before heading out to the library to pick up a new read. I headed home and the sun was shining and it had warmed up to the high 50's so I did some watering and pulled a few weeds. Amy and the kids were coming for lunch then she wanted to go check out mattresses for the new bunk beds for Ava and Sam, so she and Nancy took off in the truck. Well they found a good buy at Big Lots and the girls managed to load the mattress and get it back to her house where they unloaded it. Sam and Ava stayed with me and we(they) had treats and we watched a couple movies. I sent the last of the ice cream home with them as I'm officially off sweet foods for awhile. I even froze the last of my applesauce cake for a later date.
GG called an invited us to her house for Zucchini pie for supper. That is an awesome dish and one we haven't had in awhile. Nancy brought a fresh garden salad and the meal was superb. After the cleanup we got in 2 games of Phase 10 and GG beat us in both games; convincingly. We headed out around 9 and so I hit the showers and then tuned into Duck Dynasty and some Friday Night Fights(I love boxing). Nancy was into some 2 hours of a show on 48 Hours that was about a hoax abduction, LATER
Friday, December 28, 2012
Friday Morning
Well Thursday was another busy day with a touch of winter in the air. When I say winter for Florida it means one had to wear long pants and a sweater when outside. I headed to to the rec after a cup of hot green tea and my quiet time. It was a little chilly on the bike and the wind was blowing out of the north. I did almost 2 full hours of play and it felt good despite having a brace on my knee and elbow. Afterwards I headed home and hoed the garden and then feed all the plants with some liquid nutrients. I pulled the weeds in and around my onions what a trick that is to keep from pulling them up.
We had lunch just the two of us as Amy and the kiddos were busy elsewhere but they along with Bob's family, GG and Betsy were coming for supper. Nancy wanted to give Tyler a birthday dinner despite his birthday happened while we were in the mountains. I grilled brat's and Nancy made a huge pot of vegetable beef barley soup using the prime rib bones for the base. Wow was that delicious. GG made a bowl of German potato salad and then Amy made an apple pie with vanilla ice cream and Nancy made a chocolate cake with white icing. I managed to stay away from the dessert's but it was tough. Thankfully all of the dessert left the house when the guests left. I still have 1/2 of a homemade apple sauce cake with raisins and black walnuts leftover from Christmas and since no one else is crazy about it I will take my time devouring it one slice per day; I grew up on that dessert.
The grand babies had a great time running, playing and just being pals together. They are really playing good together and starting to show so much personality and getting them together twice in one week is a real treat. I'm having to go on a"watch my food intake" 'cause I'm developing that spare tire once again. We have one more overeating day with New Years coming up in about 4 days. My resolution will be off desserts for awhile and start back on my apple cider vinegar after each meal.
Well its cold here again with temps down into the 40's but the garden is doing O.K. except the sweet basil which is just about dead. I'm trying to revive them but it doesn't look good, LATER
We had lunch just the two of us as Amy and the kiddos were busy elsewhere but they along with Bob's family, GG and Betsy were coming for supper. Nancy wanted to give Tyler a birthday dinner despite his birthday happened while we were in the mountains. I grilled brat's and Nancy made a huge pot of vegetable beef barley soup using the prime rib bones for the base. Wow was that delicious. GG made a bowl of German potato salad and then Amy made an apple pie with vanilla ice cream and Nancy made a chocolate cake with white icing. I managed to stay away from the dessert's but it was tough. Thankfully all of the dessert left the house when the guests left. I still have 1/2 of a homemade apple sauce cake with raisins and black walnuts leftover from Christmas and since no one else is crazy about it I will take my time devouring it one slice per day; I grew up on that dessert.
The grand babies had a great time running, playing and just being pals together. They are really playing good together and starting to show so much personality and getting them together twice in one week is a real treat. I'm having to go on a"watch my food intake" 'cause I'm developing that spare tire once again. We have one more overeating day with New Years coming up in about 4 days. My resolution will be off desserts for awhile and start back on my apple cider vinegar after each meal.
Well its cold here again with temps down into the 40's but the garden is doing O.K. except the sweet basil which is just about dead. I'm trying to revive them but it doesn't look good, LATER
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Thursday Morning
Wednesday was rather boring after all the excitement from the past couple days. After my quiet time I headed out on my bike for the rec where I played pickle ball for nearly 2 hours. Once I got home Nancy wanted to do a Sam's Club run so we picked up GG and headed out. I filled up at 2.99 a gallon for gas but I think the prices are going back up as the station next door was already up to 3.25.
Well it rained very hard after we made a couple more stops before getting back to the house. GG, Amy, Ava and Sam came for lunch and we ate left over soups and salads. I headed in to start a new read after lunch as it was too wet to do anything outside. Nancy and I ate salad with some rotisserie chicken on it for supper then just chilled the rest of the evening, LATER
Well it rained very hard after we made a couple more stops before getting back to the house. GG, Amy, Ava and Sam came for lunch and we ate left over soups and salads. I headed in to start a new read after lunch as it was too wet to do anything outside. Nancy and I ate salad with some rotisserie chicken on it for supper then just chilled the rest of the evening, LATER
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Wednesday Morning
Well Christmas Day was one filled with culinary delights. I must say I have put back on all the weight I loss while sick and then a few pounds, yikes its so much more fun putting them on than trying to take them off. The morning started out with a sleep-in until nearly 7 before rolling out. I literally mean rolling out because of the late night eating and so we were never hungry until the gang came once again around 10 AM for breakfast. We had the same gang to eat minus Braden who would come later in the evening with Betsy for supper along with Bob and his family.
After our quiet times I headed out to water the garden. The temps had warmed up to the high 60's and eventually reached the middle 70's for the day. We had the windows open once again on Christmas Day whereas all my family in Virginia had 3-4 inches of snow and thus a ''White Christmas" even our N.C. friends had no snow but cool temps in the 40's, which was mild compared to a few days ago with single digit's. I think they are fore casted for some white stuff later in the week. Oh well!!! After the big breakfast and clean-up we just chilled until everyone came back for supper and once again eating lots of rich foods. It was a merry time had by all and it all started once again around 4:30. We had the Ross Family(Amy, Tyler, Ava and Sam), the Triplett Family from Riverview(Bob, Jill, Annsley and Gabriel), GG(Nancy's mom), Betsy and Braden(Nancy's sister and nephew) and of course us which made for a houseful. The kids were wired as they spotted all the packages under the Christmas Tree. They play much better together especially the girls as they are like one another shadow.
Well we had 2 standing rib roasts in the oven since 1:30 and where they ever smelling good. There was the usual smashed spuds and gravy, spinach casserole, a fresh garden salad, crusty bread and homemade apple sauce cake from Virginia as well a chocolate moose tarts for dessert. A little fruit of the vine was sampled before the eating began as well as some left overs from last nights chips and dip. We took the roasts out at 120 degree's inside and let them set for a 1/2 hour which brought the meat up to a delicious medium rare flavor. This was by far the best roast we have ever done on Christmas.
We all rolled away from the table and of course the kids were raring to open gifts. It was a fiasco as paper flew, ribbons and bows were littering the floor and I was so full I could barely bend over to clear away the mess. It was a fun time had by all and it was going on 10 before they all started leaving for home. We put the house back together and then got ready for bed, finally. I was so full that I made a promise to go some kind of a 1/2 rations for a week or so, LATER
After our quiet times I headed out to water the garden. The temps had warmed up to the high 60's and eventually reached the middle 70's for the day. We had the windows open once again on Christmas Day whereas all my family in Virginia had 3-4 inches of snow and thus a ''White Christmas" even our N.C. friends had no snow but cool temps in the 40's, which was mild compared to a few days ago with single digit's. I think they are fore casted for some white stuff later in the week. Oh well!!! After the big breakfast and clean-up we just chilled until everyone came back for supper and once again eating lots of rich foods. It was a merry time had by all and it all started once again around 4:30. We had the Ross Family(Amy, Tyler, Ava and Sam), the Triplett Family from Riverview(Bob, Jill, Annsley and Gabriel), GG(Nancy's mom), Betsy and Braden(Nancy's sister and nephew) and of course us which made for a houseful. The kids were wired as they spotted all the packages under the Christmas Tree. They play much better together especially the girls as they are like one another shadow.
We all rolled away from the table and of course the kids were raring to open gifts. It was a fiasco as paper flew, ribbons and bows were littering the floor and I was so full I could barely bend over to clear away the mess. It was a fun time had by all and it was going on 10 before they all started leaving for home. We put the house back together and then got ready for bed, finally. I was so full that I made a promise to go some kind of a 1/2 rations for a week or so, LATER
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Tuesday Morning( Christmas)
Monday turned out to be a little cool; the heat actually came on to take the chill off of the house but after that it warmed up enough we could open a couple windows for fresh air. We had a very busy day with some great company and then some awesome eatin' as well.
After the early morning wake up from the rooster we managed to roll over and sleep in until after 7. We stuck with oatmeal and blueberries for breakfast after our quiet times. I headed out back to the garden and transplanted my Swiss chard and kale as well as hoed around the lettuces. Nancy needed fresh green onions so I pulled and cleaned several for the egg casserole for breakfast today. I got a call from my former nephew, Bruce Jr. who is visiting his dad, Bruce Sr. in Tampa about coming by for a visit before they head back to Louisiana today.
While waiting for them to arrive we put together the casserole; I beat about 20 eggs, chopped up the green onions, broke up the bread for the toppings and sauteed the chopped ham then mixed it all together while she got the glass casserole dish ready. With the two of us it didn't take long and I did the clean up as well. We are expecting about 10-12 for breakfast on Christmas morning around 10 AM.
Well its been 13 years since we last saw Jr. and his family. Seems his first wife died who is the mother of his son Ian(who came along for the visit). Ian was 13 when he was last here. Jr. has remarried to really nice gal, Penny who has 2 grown children. Sr. came along with Norma his wife who is from the Philippines. The last we saw Sr. was at Amy's wedding about 6 years ago. They visited and we reminisced, laughed and shared lots of personal history. It was great to catch up after such a long while. Sr. and I were married to sisters many moons ago and while both of the sisters have moved on marrying a couple times since we were last in the picture. Sr. and I use to fly together in the USAF and have remained in contact over the years. He had a son, Jr. and a daughter Sandy with the sister while I had no kids with my sister. Sandy has 3 children and lives just south of our cabin in Hickory N.C. I was always their favorite Uncle Butch and I'm still called that by them despite making them eat vegetables on their plates when I babysat. I had Jr. come and live with me for a couple years when Sr. was stationed overseas as the sister wanted nothing to do with him; so I became his legal guardian during that time period, plus I had fun teaching him many things about growing up.
They visited for a couple hours and it was one of the high lites of the day. Nancy headed over to pick up her mom(GG) who was going to attend a candle lite service at our old church in Seminole where daughter Amy and Tyler attend. The place was packed and the service was awesome. We saw so many old friends and familiar faces and got lots of hugs and well wishes as well. Afterwards we headed back to our house for snacks and eats. GG had made a pot of vegetable soup, Amy brought a pot of Zuppa, Nancy had spinach dip and cookies, Dan and Carol brought Carol's mother, Jesse and a dish of salsas as well as a concasio dip that Tyler made. We ate until nearly 8:30 as we all had skipped supper. It was a fun time as we did this tradition for years when the kids were still at home and the only ones missing were the Carlson's who were there yearly and of course Nancy's dad who has passed on. Braden came and ate with us as well and then took GG home when he left.
Most everyone was gone by 10 so after the clean up I headed for the shower and was out cold when Nancy came to bed around midnight. Today will be another round of eating as the same gang is coming for breakfast around 10 which is another tradition only this year Bob and his family will come for supper instead of breakfast. We alternate as Jill's family lives near them so they will have breakfast with Brian and Susan and supper with us. We have 2 prime ribs to roasts which is about 25 pounds of median rare eatin' around 6 PM, LATER
In the picture(s) on the left is Penny who is Bruce Jr. wife, then Ian who is Jr. son by his deceased wife, Norma them Bruce Sr., me and then Bruce Jr.
This bottom picture is shown missing Bruce Jr with Nancy in his place.
After the early morning wake up from the rooster we managed to roll over and sleep in until after 7. We stuck with oatmeal and blueberries for breakfast after our quiet times. I headed out back to the garden and transplanted my Swiss chard and kale as well as hoed around the lettuces. Nancy needed fresh green onions so I pulled and cleaned several for the egg casserole for breakfast today. I got a call from my former nephew, Bruce Jr. who is visiting his dad, Bruce Sr. in Tampa about coming by for a visit before they head back to Louisiana today.
While waiting for them to arrive we put together the casserole; I beat about 20 eggs, chopped up the green onions, broke up the bread for the toppings and sauteed the chopped ham then mixed it all together while she got the glass casserole dish ready. With the two of us it didn't take long and I did the clean up as well. We are expecting about 10-12 for breakfast on Christmas morning around 10 AM.
Well its been 13 years since we last saw Jr. and his family. Seems his first wife died who is the mother of his son Ian(who came along for the visit). Ian was 13 when he was last here. Jr. has remarried to really nice gal, Penny who has 2 grown children. Sr. came along with Norma his wife who is from the Philippines. The last we saw Sr. was at Amy's wedding about 6 years ago. They visited and we reminisced, laughed and shared lots of personal history. It was great to catch up after such a long while. Sr. and I were married to sisters many moons ago and while both of the sisters have moved on marrying a couple times since we were last in the picture. Sr. and I use to fly together in the USAF and have remained in contact over the years. He had a son, Jr. and a daughter Sandy with the sister while I had no kids with my sister. Sandy has 3 children and lives just south of our cabin in Hickory N.C. I was always their favorite Uncle Butch and I'm still called that by them despite making them eat vegetables on their plates when I babysat. I had Jr. come and live with me for a couple years when Sr. was stationed overseas as the sister wanted nothing to do with him; so I became his legal guardian during that time period, plus I had fun teaching him many things about growing up.
They visited for a couple hours and it was one of the high lites of the day. Nancy headed over to pick up her mom(GG) who was going to attend a candle lite service at our old church in Seminole where daughter Amy and Tyler attend. The place was packed and the service was awesome. We saw so many old friends and familiar faces and got lots of hugs and well wishes as well. Afterwards we headed back to our house for snacks and eats. GG had made a pot of vegetable soup, Amy brought a pot of Zuppa, Nancy had spinach dip and cookies, Dan and Carol brought Carol's mother, Jesse and a dish of salsas as well as a concasio dip that Tyler made. We ate until nearly 8:30 as we all had skipped supper. It was a fun time as we did this tradition for years when the kids were still at home and the only ones missing were the Carlson's who were there yearly and of course Nancy's dad who has passed on. Braden came and ate with us as well and then took GG home when he left.
Most everyone was gone by 10 so after the clean up I headed for the shower and was out cold when Nancy came to bed around midnight. Today will be another round of eating as the same gang is coming for breakfast around 10 which is another tradition only this year Bob and his family will come for supper instead of breakfast. We alternate as Jill's family lives near them so they will have breakfast with Brian and Susan and supper with us. We have 2 prime ribs to roasts which is about 25 pounds of median rare eatin' around 6 PM, LATER
In the picture(s) on the left is Penny who is Bruce Jr. wife, then Ian who is Jr. son by his deceased wife, Norma them Bruce Sr., me and then Bruce Jr.
This bottom picture is shown missing Bruce Jr with Nancy in his place.
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