Monday

Well the day started out with a chill in the air after that much needed rainfall on Sunday morning. I'm still battling this cough and deep lung congestion so I guess tomorrow I will call a doctor and get some antibiotics. I'm just not a person who likes to take drugs but after 4 weeks of this stuff its time to seek help other than my home remedies. I have rested pretty much the last 3 days, no real physical activity other than riding my bike to the library today which actually made me feel good. I miss the wet shirt workout's that come with pickle ball. Oh well my son-in-law went to the doctor today and he has walking pneumonia so naturally I really heard it from my side of the family that I need to be evaluated as well.

After my quiet time and oatmeal breakfast I just lounged around until it warmed up enough to pick green beans and play outside with Ava. She came over for a couple hours while both Amy and Tyler had to go to the doctor and do some shopping. Ava is such a cutie and she brings so much joy to our lives. She loves to be outside plays with bug's, picking flower heads and playing in the dirt. Amy came around 1 PM and those guys took off around 2 for her afternoon nap. I napped and read until it was time to help with dinner. Nancy cooked collards and kale together which were super good as well as some wild rice and then pan fried some Mahi Mahi in a corn flake crust. It was out of this world delicious. Its definitely a favorite with me. Well will close for now, LATER

Sunday

Well we were awaken during the early morning hours to a thunderstorm and some much needed rain. After our quiet time and breakfast we headed over to Tampa to worship. We experienced some great worship music then listened to a missionary who is heading back to the Amazon basin with his wife and daughter. What a remarkable job being done in Brazil to reach those third world people for CHRIST.

After church we stopped off at CVS to get some type of expectorant for my cough. The pharmacist recommended Musinix as the best OTC for that problem. I guess I will have to lay low next week from any physical activity in other words no pickle ball, to appease Nancy. We came back and enjoyed a salad and left over pizzas for lunch. I laid around and watched NCAA, fast pitch girls soft ball from USF and then the final NCAA with N.C. whupping up on Oklahoma big time. We just snacked for dinner with some homemade bean burritos.

Well I hope this Musinix works as I hate to lay around but I did get a little reading in and Nancy and myself talked to Ms. Helen in the mountains. This should be a busy week as Nancy's older brother Eric is flying in Tuesday for a week from Michigan. There goes my weight loss program as there will be lots of good meals both here and at G/G's. Until LATER

Saturday

The day started out with me still hacking this deep chest tickle and with Nancy complaining of a sore throat. Then she began to complain her tongue was swollen as well as her throat. We called the pharmacy and sure enough it seems she may be allergic to this new BP medicine so she stopped that immediately. That is such a bummer as the medicine in just 2 doses dropped her pressure down remarkable. We did our quiet time then I decided to do nothing thinking that course of action may help my body get over this coughing.

Amy and Ava came for lunch and we played inside as it was very windy all day. We had to once again turn the A/C back on as the humidity began to rise. We were supposed to help with Angelfood distribution in the morning but we thought better not due to our health issues. We were supposed to meet up with our house church for Element to donate blood to the Florida Blood Services at 4 PM in Pinellas Park at the mall then all have dinner together at BJ'S Restaurant. We decided to go and support out group, Nancy's sore throat disappeared as well as the swelling and I had been sucking down DayQuil all day so we went but did not give blood. 6 of us were eligible to give to blood and a couple gave enough blood for 6 transfusion's where by the process puts back into your body plasma at the same time as pumping the blood out. Nancy and I were eligible but because of her BP troubles and my being sickly we opted out to donate at this time.

We all then walked over to BJ'S for dinner. The food was very good, a little pricey and once we were seated good service. Nancy and I shared a large veggie pizza. We brought home enough for lunch today. We got back home around 8:30 then just chilled the rest of the evening with her flipping channels and me on some NCAA.

This morning we are heading over to Element Church in Tampa and are taking Dan with us as his wife Carol, daughter Amber and grandson are going down to visit son Andrew in West Palm Beach. We were awaken to the sound of much needed rain around 3 AM and some thunder and lightning. It's very dark and overcast as I write but hopefully we will get some more rain as we are just totally dried out. Lakes, ponds and rivers are drying up, would be nice to have some of that Fargo, N.D.water down here. Well will close for now as I need to get ready to head to Tampa. LATER

Friday

Well the day started out as usual with my quiet time and oatmeal for breakfast before heading out on the bike to the Rec. There were 9 players and I wimped out after an hour and a half of continuous play. I was just bushed. I will be glad when then chest congestion is gone so all afternoon I have been sucking on the DayQuil. The coughing has slowed a great deal, now to just get my strength back. The weather today was once again just perfect with low 80's, no humidity and a good strong breeze.

After lunch I sat out in the yard with Amy and Ava as Nancy went out to the Olive Garden with her 2 girlfriend; Carol and Daisy. Amy left around 2 PM to put Ava down for her afternoon nap then came back around 5 PM for dinner. I grilled pork chops and Nancy sauteed some fresh mushrooms, baked a couple of spuds and I had a fresh salad.

Tomorrow will be a big day as it Angelfood Distribution day at Calvary Chapel then our house church for Element is meeting to give blood and blood platelets; then meet for dinner afterwards. It should be a full day then on Sunday we will meet for the gathering at Element at 10 AM this week taking Amy and Ava along. We are fore casted for some rain on Saturday night/Sunday morning. Wow do we ever need rain. Well will close for now LATER.

Wednesday and Thursday

Wednesday was another usual morning with quiet time and oatmeal breakfast then off to the Rec. for pickle ball. I managed 2 hours of hard play but was bushed when I got home. I can still feel the effects of that chest congestion from all this pollen in the air. I laid around after watering the garden and read until it was time for Amy and Ava to give me a ride to church to help Nancy with the fellowship meal. Speaking of Nancy she is having a real tough time with this new diuretic drug for her blood pressure. We had to pick up a new real blood pressure prescription on the way home so she could start it today(Thursday). Nancy's fellowship meal was a real treat and possibly our last Shepherd's Pie prepared at SFBC as she is giving up that ministry when we leave for the mountains in May.

Thursday morning was the usual as well except for the breakfast as I ate Cheerios for a change along with banana. I did 2 hours of pickle ball then spent the rest of the day entertaining Ava and reading. The chest congestion seems a little better with not near as much coughing, Yea. Nancy fixed a pot of Zuppa soup for dinner which is my favorite with lots of fresh kale in it. Amy and Ava ate with us as Tyler is in Reston, Virginia for his job. He will be gone for a week. Well since not much is happening with us we are expecting a busy week end so will write on Friday. The new blood pressure medicine seems to have made a real difference immediately. Praise the Lord.LATER

Tuesday

Well the day started out once again like most morning with a few minutes with the Creator in my quiet time then my usual breakfast of oatmeal, cinnamon and honey. After which I jumped on the bike for my ride to the Rec. I needed a long sleeve shirt as the dry crisp air made it feel chilly. The temperature eventually hit 81 in the afternoon but once again no humidity. Man is this beautiful weather.

I did 2 hours of pickle ball play and after yesterday's workout for the games it was nice to not have to wait to play for an hour between matches. I got home in time to water the garden before Amy and Ava came for lunch. I then made a huge fresh salad mostly from all of the veggies from my garden; lettuce(3 kinds), beet greens, kale, radishes, oregano, parsley and basil as well as fresh green beans to go with the salmon and angel hair garlic pasta Nancy fixed for dinner. Wow is that ever a great meal and good for you.

Well after dinner of which Amy and Ava joined us then Nancy and I took off for our weekly Bible Study at the Gispert's. We had a huge group tonight with at least 16-18 folks as we did half of the second chapter in Daniel. Great study and we celebrated 2 members with ice cream and cake as their birthdays are this week. I once again passed on the desserts although I did break down last night and had a bowl of yogurt that was leftover from dinner on Friday night.We just got home so I will talk at you LATER.

Monday

Well the day started the usual with my quiet time and oatmeal breakfast with cinnamon and honey before heading out to the Rec. for the Good Life Games to play some pickle ball. The morning air was cool enough as a long sleeve shirt was needed while riding my bike.

The gym was set up and there were several players there when I arrived at 8 AM. The luck of the draw gave me and my pardner in the mixed doubles a bye in the first match. It was nearly 9:30 before we finally played and we won the match in straight sets. Next we played a very talented husband and wife team from the Villages(outside of Ocala). We each won a set then in the final and third set we lost by a score of 11-9. This couple went on to win the mixed doubles championship and a gold medal. I would later face the husband part of this team again later in the day when he played in the men's doubles event. This time along with my pardner we beat them in straight sets and we eventually went on after defeating another team to win the championship and a gold medal in that event. All in all we saw some very good players from all over the west coast of Florida. I finally got home around 3 PM and was some what bushed as this chest congestion was still lingering around from last week.

It began to sprinkle rain as I got home and the temperature seemed to be turning cooler. Boy could we use some rain. Well Nancy fixed a great dinner with oven spuds, fresh broccoli and a pan fried steak. Will talk to you LATER.

Saturday and Sunday

Saturday morning was supposed to be a beach day but the air was so unseasonably cool and dry we decided best to stay home as I still had some chest congestion from last week. After my quiet time and oatmeal for breakfast we hung around the house for the whole day. I had started a new novel by Nelson DeMille called The Gate House. I finished it Sunday afternoon. It was a good read however I'm more of a non-fiction adventure, true crime type of reader but DeMille will hold your attention. Saturday evening we babysat Ava as Amy and Tyler went to the Lightning Hockey Game. Nancy made a great pasta dish with garlic, tomato's and fresh herbs. Yumm and Ava eats pasta as its one of her favorite.

Sunday morning we headed out to SFBC to work the nursery. We had Ava and Jake so it was a fun morning in the nursery. We got home from church and Amy and Ava came by for frozen pizza and I finished the leftover white chicken chili. Was that ever a great dish. I laid around and finished Gate House that I had started Saturday then watched a little NCAA basket ball then G/G and Pap called to invite us for dinner. She made a new lasagna dish and wow was it ever tasty. We stayed after dinner and played 2 games of "Oh Hell". Well tomorrow will be a big day for us pickle ball players as our Rec. will host the Good Life Games and many of our members are playing in the tournament with yours truly as well. Will let you know the results tomorrow. Well better close, LATER

Friday on Saturday

Friday started out with a touch of coolness in the air with the birds singing in the branches of the new green leafed oak trees surrounding our house here in Seminole. A lot of the pollen and fuzzies are still in the area as not all oak trees bloom and leaf out together, so I'm still fighting this chest congestion. There is a constant breeze which makes it feel colder than it actually is(wind chill at 60 degrees..HA). The day started out the usual way, however I've been remiss in failing to tell all about our live turkey which gobbles every morning at daybreak. Henry(turkey's name) will gobble at sirens, dog's barking and even at the rabbit in the cage he is constantly pecking. It sounds like a wood pecker at times, but no its just Henry trying to either get the rabbit or get in the rabbit cage and play. Oh, well after my quiet time and oatmeal with cinnamon and honey, I jumped on the bike for my ride to the Rec. for some pickle ball.

There were 7 of us and I got in a good hour and a half before I felt tired out from this chest congestion, so I headed on home where Nancy put me to work. We are having the family including her folks and sister for dinner tonight. I picked fresh lettuce, kale ,beet greens, parsley, onions, tomato's and basil for a big salad for dinner. Of course all of this has to be cleaned and dried in the salad spinner before actually putting the salad together. By then it was lunch time. After lunch I vacuumed and she cleaned house and started on the white chicken chili that Jill requested for her birthday dinner. The dinner turned out excellent with many compliments for the chili, salad , corn bread muffins and fresh baked peach and blueberry cobbler with vanilla yogurt for dessert. I broke down down and had a very small taste of each dessert, Yummm!!

The kids got here from Tampa around 6 and by the time the girls settled down it was nearly 6: 30 before we ate. We had a great time as the girls played so well together. It was nearly 10 PM before they headed back to Riverview. Nancy and I slept in until 7:30 this morning. Will talk at ya LATER.

Thursday

Well the cool front that has been passing through our area is absolutely great. No rain though which we sure could use, but the lack of humidity and bright sunshine is just delicious. After my usual quiet time and oatmeal breakfast I jumped on the bike for my early morning ride to the Rec.I got in 2 good hours of pickle ball with 8 other players. I contracted that lousy chest cold once again this week so I'm not back a 100 % but hopefully I can sweat it out before Monday and the Good Life Games.

After the Rec. I did a little garden work and Nancy got back from her workout on the treadmill, so we got lunch ready for Ava and Amy. Ava is just a cute little chatterbox and just loves to be outside playing with buggies, shredding flower heads and mimicking the real live turkey next door. Amy tried to start potty training today but Ava just isn't whole heartily into it just yet.

After they left for her afternoon nap, Nancy and I took one ourselves. She is still having some health issues with menopause and I can't shake this pollen allergy or this cough. Anyhow after our nap Nancy made a Shepherds Pie dinner for a shut-in couple and we took it to them around 4:30; then came back and had one for our dinner as well.

We are looking forward to celebrating daughter-in-law Jill's birthday dinner tomorrow. Ava and Annsley will get a chance to play together as well. I will post some pictures tomorrow.LATER

Tuesday and Wednesday

Well the day started out as usual with my quiet time, oatmeal for breakfast and a bike ride to the Rec. for some pickle ball. I got in 2 plus hours of good hard play then did a few reps in the weight room. After that I stopped by the library and picked up a couple books and headed home. I picked a bunch of fresh lettuce, broccoli, beet greens and kale to make a big salad for lunch. Amy and Ava came about 11:30.

After lunch I had to head back to the Rec. for badminton and played another 1 1/2 hours. I was having week knees by the time I finally pedalled home around 2:30. The girls had already gone for Ava's afternoon nap so I chilled until it was time to help Nancy make dinner. We had stir fry with fresh veggies only. Wow was that ever good with; fresh mushrooms, broccoli, sugar peas, celery, carrots, water chestnuts over white rice. I ate the leftovers today(Wed) for lunch.

After dinner I headed out to our Bible study at the Gispert House with neighbor Dan. The girls didn't make it as they were having some 50's ailments. Oh well!!!!

Thursday was another usual day for me in the morning; quiet time, oatmeal with honey and cinnamon and the ride to the Rec. Actually it was cool enough this morning to where I thought I was going to need a long sleeve shirt on my bike ride. The cool front that passed through last night brought about 40 drops of rain but did cool things off for the day today. I think temp's stayed in the high 70's all day with a stiff breeze.

After leaving the Rec. I climbed onto the roof and used the blower to removed all the leaves, sticks and fuzzies from the gutters and roof area. Wow what a mess I had all around the house. But you can now tell I have a grey roof once again. The pollen and fuzzies(from new leaf's) are just about gone, maybe I will finally get rid of this cough and congestion in my chest.

Well I helped Nancy at church with the fellowship meal; roast chicken, oven potato's, corn, salad and homemade chocolate chip cookies and ice cream. I'm still holding off on the dessert so good so far but I haven't seen any pounds or inches leave my waist line, YET!!! We were out of there by 6:45 just in time to make out bi-weekly Element House church meeting at the Botbyl's. There were 11 of us. Well will close for now. LATER

Monday

The day started out with Nancy getting up extra early as she had a doctor's appointment with regard to her use of Lipitor. Tomorrow she has to have a blood withdrawal for both liver testing and thyroid testing. I started the day with the usual oatmeal for breakfast after my cup of green tea and my quiet time. I rode out on the bike to the Rec. about 7:40 and it had just starting getting close to sunrise.

There were 11 players for pickle ball and we had some great spirited play for 2 good hours. Many of us are playing next Monday in the Good Life Games being held at our Rec. so we kind of teamed up with our respective pardners as much as possible. It sure was great to hit the ball after a 4 day lay off because of POW WOW(that's a spring festival). I managed to get an extra 1/2 hour workout in the weight room with Nancy as she came to the Rec. after her appointment for her 30 minute workout on the treadmill.

Ava and Amy came for lunch and today was the first day Ava went potty on the big potty. Wow is she growing up fast. Right now its a hit and miss routine as she hasn't really made up her mind. She is so cute and her memory is unbelievable for age. After the girls left for Ava's nap time Nancy and I read and chilled until it was time for dinner. She made pork chops, sweet potato's and collard greens.Talk about eatin' country, YUMMM!! After dinner and the clean up we took about a mile walk with neighbors Dan and Carol. We got back about 7:30 and dialed in Fox with Shepard Smith followed by Bill O'Reilly. Well will close for now, LATER.

Sunday

Well we had a super day of worship with our son in Tampa then had lunch afterwards. The morning was quite pleasant but did warmed up to the low 80's in the afternoon. At present there is a nice cooling breeze so it looks like a great sleeping night with no humidity. That cold front that had stalled north of us for the pass 2 days is supposed to move on through tomorrow so maybe we will get a little rain as things are really dry here.

After getting back home around 3 PM Nancy went with her sister, Betsy to their mother's singing concert. G/G sings with the Suncoast Singers and has been for the past 20 plus years. I stayed home and watched the NHRA finals. Yesterday we only saw the qualifying rounds and there were a number of upsets in the finals today from what was expected.

Well hopefully I can get back to a full workout tomorrow on the pickle ball court as next week end the Good Life Games are played. I will be participating once again in 2 events. I'm looking forward to defending my wins from last year. Well will close for now. LATER

Friday and Saturday

Well the weather here in Florida has turned warm and hot but the humidity is still holding back some what. The mornings and evening are still quite pleasant with the afternoons reaching into the middle 80's. Friday was another sleep in day as the Rec. as closed until Monday so Nancy and I slept in until 8 AM. After a light breakfast I did some garden work then took an hour bike ride while Nancy did her Friday morning women's Bible study. Amy and Ava came for lunch.

After lunch we play outside until it was time for Ava's afternoon nap. After they left we chilled until it was time to head out to the Bonefish Grill in Largo for our 5:15 reservation. There were 10 of us for dinner and we had quite a good time visiting with Chris and her new beau Bill, Uncle Warnie and Aunt Daryl down from Pennsylvania. Nancy's mom(G/G's), dad, sister Betsy and her son Braden were all there as well. The food was O.K. but not nearly as good as Nancy's cooking.

After leaving the Bonefish she dropped me off at our house and went on to visit with her aunt, uncle and cousin. I stayed home and got ready for my big adventure today as we had to get up at 4:45 AM. I left Seminole with friend and neighbor Dan around 5:20 and headed for Gainesville,Florida to attend the Florida Gator National's (NHRA). Wow, that was the first time for me and it was an exciting day. We were able to venture into the pits see the mechanics, drivers and cars right in front. To view these vehicles, cars and motorcycles that reach a speed of 300 mph in 4 seconds over a quarter mile is unbelievable. Some of the pro fuel dragsters have 8000 horsepower. The earth trembles when they accelerate and take off as well as your ears need to be covered. They use a parachute to slow them down after they cross the finish line. It was truly a unique experience. Thanks Dan for sharing an on top of that we were fed a good meal of barbecue chicken, pulled pork, tater salad, cole slaw and garlic bread. We got back home a little after 7 PM. A Great Day. I got my first tattoo thanks to a sponsor snap-on tools(pic enclosed).

Well tomorrow we will be heading out to worship with our son at Element in Tampa then spent the afternoon visiting with him and Annsley. Well until LATER.

Thursday

I'm a little late for this post but early for Friday(a play on words). The day started out with bright sunshine and cool morning temps with a slight onshore breeze. No real humidity yet(yea). After sleeping in until 7:45(Rec. is closed 'til Monday) I did my usual but only later. The time just flew by and before I knew it 10 AM was here so Nancy and I headed out for a 4 mile walk. By the end which was near Amy and Ava's we stopped to say hi and then realized we were both starting to sweat. We came on home and got ready for lunch as the girls were going to the mall after we ate. Ava was so cute with her sunglasses on and Nancy got a couple pics.(I'll enclose a couple).

I did a little garden work then kicked back to finish a very interesting book on conjoined twins in the early 1900's. The book is really informative with lots of pictures. I think it is a must read. The twins were Violet and Daisy Hilton and the book is written by Dean Jensen. They are buried in Charlotte, N.C. and lived to be in their early 60's.

After the girls got back and Amy put Ava down for her much needed afternoon nap, Nancy and I chilled while waiting for the chance to start dinner. Nancy made taco salad and that is another one of our favorite meals. Amy also loves that as well(it's not one of Tyler's fav's) so that since Tyler is in Virginia on business we kinda do all the dinners she likes, of course we like them as well.

After dinner we loaded up Ava into the stroller and took a nice walk. Wow we hadn't walked the neighbor hood in months so we stopped to to say Hi to several and visited with a couple who are having some real severe health issues. Jenny has lung cancer and has no hair and is quite frail, Danny passed away from Lou Gehrig's disease while his wife was in the hospital with a heart attack, our once babysitter and close friend Susy is suffering from Alzheimer's and her husband Wade has severe breathing problems.

Well we came back and put Ava in the bathtub and got her ready for bed then the girls left and Nancy and I settled down to watch Survivor. The time change sure leaves me ready for bed earlier than my normal 11 PM. Tonight will probably be a no post night as well.We have family(Nancy's side, first cousin) in from out of town with a new significant other so we re going out to dinner at the Bonefish and then tomorrow Saturday I'm heading to Gainesville with friend and neighbor Dan to the Gator Nationals. This will be my first time to see drag racing legally(I saw a lot on the streets) at such a large venue.LATER

Tuesday and Wednesday

Tuesday was another busy, busy day with the morning starting out the usual way after my quiet time and oatmeal for breakfast. I headed off to the Rec. for pickle ball and got 2 good hours of play, then about 15 minutes in the weight room. After getting home I hand watered the garden and waited on Amy and Ava to arrive for lunch. Nancy got back from church shopping a little after noon so I went ahead and ate with out them as I had a 1 PM badminton match. After another 1 1/2 hour workout on the badminton court I was bushed until it was time to barbecue a chicken on the grill for dinner.

Amy and Ava came around 5 PM for dinner and was it ever a good one with; chicken on the barbee, fresh asparagus, new spuds out of my garden and a salad. After clean up we got ready to head out to our weekly Bible study. Next week we start the book of Daniel, that will be really interesting with all the prophesy proclaimed. We finished James last night as its a short book with only 5 chapters as we took a chapter a week. Got home and was able to catch the last hour of American Idol.

Wednesday was the start of another beautiful day with temps in the low 80's and no humidity. I had the usual morning with; a quiet time, oatmeal and banana for breakfast, bike ride to the Rec. and 2 plus hours of pickle ball and work out. After coming home from the Rec. I hand watered the garden for about an hour and since I was all alone I did a few honey-do's then settled down to finish the 3 last episodes of John Adams. Wow that is a must see series(3 disc). Local libraries have it in stock. I bet you never knew Adams and Jefferson were friends and at times closer than others; but they both died on July 4th.

Amy picked me up at 4 PM and we headed to SFBC for the evening meal. Once again Nancy fixed a really tasty pork chop dinner with smashed potato's and gravy, green beans with garlic seasoning, salad and carrot cake. YUMMM one of my favorites. Well will close for now as it about time to watch A. Idol. LATER

Monday

The day started out with the usual except it was pitch black outside when I rolled out at 6:30 AM. After my quiet time and oatmeal for breakfast I headed out on the bike for the Rec. The morning was just beautiful with no humidity, warm temp's and coolness in the air requiring a long sleeve shirt at 7:30 on the bike. I got in 2 hours of play with 10 other players and then got in a few repetitions with the heavy weights later.

I stopped off at the library and picked up 3 books and the DVD series called JOHN ADAMS presented by HBO. WOW is that great what I have watched so far. I've finished 3 parts so far and the history portrayed is very refreshing and stimulating.

Amy and Ava came for lunch and afterwards Ava and I got in some outside playtime before she had to head home for her afternoon nap. I finished up my taxes using turbo tax on line and filed on line as well. Thanks Brian Kuyatt for turning me on to that program and it saved me nearly a couple hundred bucks. I always want to save money especially with this economy and the legislators we have in Washington.

After finishing with the taxes I mowed up 7 trash cans of dried oak leaves that Nancy had raked from the front yard. I reduced them down to about 2 cans and spread them in the garden for my worms to work through and turn into the best top soil around. My plants love composted oak leaves that are turned into castings(by the worms)as you will see with some of the pics I'm going to post later. We had fresh beets and beet greens along with a turnip casserole for dinner. Once again meatless but after the roast chicken dinner we had at G/G's last night it was good to give the system rest from meat. G/G's dinner also was complete with chicken gravy, mashed spuds,corn and salad with fresh bakery bread. No wonder I can't loose any weight. I did for go the chocolate cake(Nancy's birthday cake) with white icing, however that's one of the best cakes ever.

The Ross Family came by(now that it stays lighter longer) on their bikes for a quick visit after dinner. We sure hope Tyler has a safe an uneventful trip to Reston, Va. tomorow for his job. He will be gone all week so we will get to see Ava and Amy a little more the rest of the week. Well will close for now. LATER

Saturday

The day was just unbelievably beautiful; cool morning, clear skies and warm temp's in the low 80's by afternoon with no humidity. Nancy and I took off for the beach about 9:30 and left there about 12:30. We got in a good 2 plus hours of tanning as well as a nice long walk in the surf. Wow the water was cold around 59 degrees after last weeks cold front. I usually swim but today was just a little to nippy hopefully by next week it will warm up enough to work out in with a good long swim.

We came back to leftovers from last nights superb dinner. The meal Nancy made last night is an all time favorite and Amy is just crazy about it as well. Its very simple but so good and no meat. You take fresh squeezed garlic(6-8 whole cloves), onions, fresh basil, fresh oregano, olive oil, butter and some salt and pepper and saute these together with fresh whole Roma tomato's. Cook this down and then spoon over penne pasta and sprinkle some Parmesan cheese on top. The Olive Garden has a dish similar but not nearly as tasty, wow is it ever good.

We cooked up some fresh peppers, green onions along with some chicken strips for fajitas for dinner along with a fresh garden salad. Wow I do love eating fresh veggies out of the garden. Well I will keep this short as I posted some this morning. Tomorrow we are off to Tampa to worship at Element Church with our son, Bobby. Tomorrow evening we are going to G/G's for a roast chicken dinner as we celebrate Nancy's birthday again. Hey don't forget to spring forward on the clocks in the morning. LATER

Friday on Saturday

Friday morning was another great example for a Spring day. Just enough moisture in the air that made it feel cool when you first went out doors. By the early afternoon you were looking for some shade as the sun was quite hot. After my quiet time and usual oatmeal breakfast I headed off to the Rec. for some pickle ball. After 2 hours I was tired. I will be happy when I fully regain my strength after that bug as I need to get back on the heavy weights. Oh well!!

Amy and Ava came for lunch and Ava and myself played outside for an hour or more. She just loves to pick flowers and shred the heads. She is an outdoor kid; playing with bug's(like Amy), pulling of onion leaves and actually biting them(she say's I like'm) and of course gobbling at the turkey next door and watching the turtle try to escape up the plastic swimming pool(like a hamster on the wheel). She went home around 2 then came back for dinner as Amy and Tyler went out for dinner. We gave her a bath and the kids stayed and played cards for a couple of hours.

We are getting ready to head out to the beach as its a beautiful morning. Talk at ya later.

Thursday

Well it sure was nice on the bike ride this A.M. to the Rec. After my quiet time and oatmeal with a banana for breakfast I played hard for nearly 2 hours on the pickle ball courts. We had a lowest turn out with just 7 players.

The morning warmed up nicely and by the time I got home it had warmed up to nearly 70. I did a little garden work before Amy and Ava came for lunch. Nancy made a huge fresh garden salad for lunch and fresh Greek salad dressing. Man is that good eatin'. After lunch I read and played with Ava outside until it was time to head back to the Rec. for badminton at 1 PM. Well I was the only one to show so that was o.k. with me as I'd already had a good work out. I kind of took it easy the rest of the day, reading and napping until its was time to pick collard greens for supper.

Nancy had a couple of steaks in a marinade since yesterday so I grilled them and along with squash casserole and collard greens we had a starch less dinner. Once again a super dinner. After dinner we both cleaned up and watched Fox news before flipping back and forth between Survivor and American Idol. Well the weather was nice today with not much else going on, just enjoying retirement. LATER

Tuesday and Wednesday

Well just let me say it was down right "freeze your bippy off" the last 2 morning while riding the bike to the Rec. at 7:40 AM. After my quiet time and the usual oatmeal for breakfast I got in 2 hours each morning on the the pickle ball court. Tuesday I even went back at 1 PM and got in another 1 1/2 hours of badminton. Ava and Amy came for lunch on Tuesday(Nancy's 52nd birthday) then the girls went to Target. Tuesday evening Amy had the both of us for a spaghetti & meatball dinner with a garden fresh salad and garlic bread. That Amy is getting to be a great cook just like her mother. We came back and watched 2 hours of American Idol. It was a very subdued birthday celebration but we will do it again this Sunday at grandma's(G/G's) house.

Wednesday was Nancy's all day cook at the church day.We served about 60 people for her famous beef stroganoff. Wow is that an ever good meal with lots of compliments. I spent the afternoon after pickle ball reading another book on arctic exploration. Some how I'm fascinated about living at 55 degrees below zero, hunting and eating frozen caribou, seal, walrus while sleeping in an igloo at nights in animal furs. It's hard to believe people actually thrive as meat eaters only.

The afternoon turned really nice with temps reaching the 70's so I sat in the backyard reading. My garden is starting to gear up again with the bean plants once again blooming and lettuce big enough to eat. I picked lettuce, beet greens, kale, parsley and oregano for a fresh salad for lunch. I received some snow pictures from our neighbors on top of the mountains(the Fuller's) that show about 10 inches of snow. The cold temp's this morning were single digit once again. The sun was out bright and with the blue skies the snow made for an awesome picture.Thanks for sharing, Fred and Brenda.

Well will close for now as we met with our house church group tonight at 7 PM. We have a great group with 7 different families represented. Our next project will be to donate blood and platelets to help save lives the last Saturday of this month. Well will close for now. LATER

Monday

Well it was a cool, breezy morning especially when I crawled on that bike for my ride to the Rec. around 7:40 AM. The stiff breeze once again had my eyes watering. After my quiet time and bowl of oatmeal I was ready to get back in the routine of 2 good hours of pickle ball play then a little extra on the elliptical and weights. We had 14 players this morning along with a couple new ones. I think I will postpone that extra workout for a couple more days and stick with just the pickle ball play. Nancy walked to the Rec. around 10 Am and did her 30minutes on the treadmill then walked home and took off for her daily fix at Publix. She was getting last minute fixin' for Carol's birthday dinner.

Amy and Ava came for lunch so we polished off the left over Zuppa soup. Ava makes such cute ahhhh sounds when she eats soup. She is so cute and doesn't forget a thing. I took her out in the back yard in the sunshine after lunch as she just loves being outside and we played in the big piles of oak leaves that are finally falling from our trees. She was so cute jumping into them, rolling around and tossing them into the breeze. While I finally raked them up and put them in my garden she proceeded to pick many of my flower heads. She just loves picking and shredding them for some reason.

Well dinner was super as always with roast pork tenderloin, smashed spuds and gravy, fresh broccoli and pea pods out of the garden with cooked carrots on the side and red cake with cream cheese icing for dessert. I skipped the dessert once again but of course I had a second helping of spuds with gravy and pork.

I received several different photos from friends in the mountains showing snow falls all the way up to 7-14 inches. Wow was that ever a beautiful sight but with temps down in the single digits for tonight driving conditions are not very good for safety on the highways. You'all be careful up there. LATER

Sunday

The gray morning skies promised a real threat of rain and shortly after day break the heavens opened up with a heavy down pour as well as gusty winds. We had a storm pass through that had me looking out the windows for tornado clouds. Luckily we were spared from any real hugh winds or any damage but the temperature rapidly began to plummet. By the time we had finished our breakfast, quiet time and dressed to begin our trip to Tampa for worship at Bobby's church the skies had moderated and just a light rain fell off and on all the way there.

What a great worship service we endured along with about 150 other enthusiastic worshipers. Bobby is quickly becoming a super speaker with tons of personal stories he shares with all. We stayed until 12:45 before had to head out and be at the nursing pavilion at 2 PM for a service we would conduct there for the infirmed and aged. I gave a short talk on community, sharing some of my childhood recollections of growing up in the country and on a small farm. We had about a 15-18 in wheel chairs and probably that many who came to assist in pushing them to and from their rooms. Nancy and I have grown to know and love many of the patients and all of their different personalities and I think we are more blessed by them than they of us. Thanks to all who helped make this a success for those who are unable to get out to church on Sunday.

Nancy and I chilled the rest of the day; she on the computer, me in another book. She made my favorite soup for dinner; zuppa dis conta. I had tons of fresh kale in the garden and did that ever taste great in this soup along with a couple of fresh green scallions. After 3 bowls(we had a snack only for lunch) I finally was full. The cool temperatures (now its down into the 50's already) made the hot steaming soup so good. Well will close for now as Nancy is fixing our friend Carol B. her 53rd birthday dinner tomorrow. Nancy will be 52 on Tuesday and Amy is fixing her birthday dinner. So we will be celebrating with tons of dinners the next couple of days. There goes my waist line again, Oh well. LATER.