June 24 and June 25

Sunday June 24

Well, I felt unmotivated, tired, want to lie around and do nothing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We checked out of the hotel @ 11…..but the morning was lazy.  We slept in, ate breakfast, and watched the rain.  Really? More rain. 

Well, let’s go to Walmart.  We needed a few things…I certainly needed some pants and tennies…all I brought were flippies and my feet were wet!  L  Dry pants and dry feet certainly make a person feel sooo much better!

However, I think ½ of PCB was in the Walmart, good gracious was it crowded! But this Walmart has airbrush shop!  Kewl….very cool. 

Then take a trip to Best Buy and finally lunch.   We found a PO FOLKS!  For those of you who might not have had the pleasure, it is food similar to Cracker Barrel.  A little more humor in the decore however…their slogan We’re Po but we’re proud.  I haven’t been to a Po Folks in quite literally 20+ years.

So a super lunch and then off to our next (and final) hotel….. the Days Inn Suite , Beachside.

The room was not as nice as some of the others, but it was adequate.  The floors were tiled (beach---sand) but there were 3 double beds.  And no clock?????  We aren’t in Key West on Island Time folks!  Anyway, we have cell phones, so we have clocks.

I spent the rest of Sunday perched on my bed, book and tv clicker.  I was just tired tired tired.  Tom took Olivia to the pool for  abit.  Although it was raining, it was not storming and part of the pool was covered.

Later that night, we hit up the sonic for a chili cheese coney and ice cream!  Then off to sleep…………………….  Maybe the weather will be better in the morning……….

Monday June 25

Last day in Florida.  The skies were a bit more clear this morning and it was time for a good breakfast.  Ahhh…..Bob Evans….one our new favorite places to eat! They bring me a pot of coffee……

We hoped for a more rapid clearing, but that wasn’t the case.  So time for a new adventure!  Let’s to http://www.wonderworksonline.com/panama-city-beach/

WONDER WORKS….

It was quite an interesting place.  Had lots of interesting and interactive exhibits to keep us all entertained.  I enjoyed lying on the bed of nails.  That was really amazing.

We spent a couple o fhours in there, and then back to the hotel for a bit.  The weather was getting better all the time….  J  Hey, I think I saw a peek of blue sky?????????

Dinner was back to the Po Folks.  The day prior I couldn’t decide if I wanted crab cakes or liver and onions.   So one day I had the crab cakes and the next, liver and onions!  Good food once again! And it was off the beaten path and out of the tourist area, so more locals were there.  The place was quiet and nice….

For the evening, we needed to get out a bit.  We went to the go kart tracks.  The rain had stopped, the sun set was pretty  and it was nice to be outside.  We all were able to ride some go karts.  This was the first time that Olivia drove some by herself, so a new thing for her.  She seemed to have fun.

Its funny….put me behind the wheel of a go kart and I become quite competitive…..Tom and I race and we race hard.   We had a blast.

Sad to have a last night as such.  I was ready to go home….but I wish we had had a bit more sun….but the good news, we weren’t sunburned

Tuesday June 26

6 a.m. alarm goes off.  Really?  Already? 

We were on the road by 7:30 a.m.  The sun was out and the beach was beautiful.  I did manage a few snap shots……

Saw lots of power trucks heading south thru Alabama.  I can only assume they were heading to Florida to help with the after math of Tropical Storm Debby.

It was a lovely, adventurous vacation, but I’m ready to be home, with my kids and in my own home and in my own bed……………………..

sunset june 25 tropical debby departing.....

watching go karts...waiting our turn

morning of june 26

We arrived home about 4:30 p.m.  Glad to be here!!

Thurs June 21 & Fri June 22 pix later

Thursday June 21  Day 6

And we’re off and running again.  After another breakfast at the Awful Waffle, (aka Waffle house), I’m over the waffle house.  The greasy food is not agreeing with my gut.  At least I think that’s what it is.  Either way, I’m swearing off Waffle house for a bit.

We were on the road before 10 a.m. so I felt we were doing well.  It was a little sad leaving the Keys as it is so beautiful there, but once you’ve done all the touristy things, what else is there to do anyway?  And, quite frankly, I was ready for a better hotel.

The Days Inn was acceptable, clean.  But you can tell it wasn’t a high end hotel.  No fridge.  No coffee pot.  Pool was pretty nice, but the laundry facilities left something to be desired.  Decided not to use those! 

We drove from Key West to Stuart Florida in about 5 hours, give or take.  There we went to Mike’s house.  Mike is Tom’s older brother, by 9 years.  Tom had not seen Mike in 20+ years and of course, I had never met him.

Mike’s house was quite nice, quite beautiful decore, (by my standards, but I am rather eclectic myself).  He made us feel right at home and it was a comfy place to be.

We ate out at a place called Shrimpers.  Great seafood!  It was right on the water, so you could see the boats, the water, and it was warm, but not too hot.  We were able to sit outside and enjoy ourselves.  They had really good coconut shrimp.

After, we went to a small family bar/restaurant where one of Mikes’ favorite local bands was performing.   Tom and I took a turn on the dance floor….that doesn’t happen very often!    We only stayed about 90 min, maybe that long.  It was fun for us but of course, BOOOORRRRIIINNNGGG for Olivia. 

Back at the house, we chatted a bit, and then it was bedtime.

Just before bed, as per the usual many times a day, I checked my phone.  Chelsea had texted me “U up”  I am glad that I was.  She was very upset….this house buying process has turned into something of a nightmare and she needed to vent.

Slept well….more travels tomorrow.

Friday June 22 Day 7

Eyes popped open @ 6:20.  Go figure!  I managed to close the eyes for another 40 minutes.  Success!

It wasn’t too difficult to get up, and the morning was pleasant!  Coffee was made!  Yeah!!!!!   The little things sometimes….

We had breakfast at the Cracker Barrel.  Always a good choice for food….homecooking, fairly priced, decent portions. 

We headed out towards Tampa about 10 a.m. 

The trip was quick, uneventful!  We took the toll roads.  In one way they are kind of a pain, but travel sure is good on them.  Prices weren’t bad at all.

We arrived in Tampa.  Staying at the Springhill Marriott ….and I THOUGHT we were in Tampa.  (More on this later)….nice place.  A double bed suite with a sofa bed….hot tub, pool.   A REFRIGERATOR AND COFFEE POT!!!   Internet works well…..ahhhhh, decent hotels!

We met Judy, Angie and Jordyn for dinner in Tampa about 6.  Due to weather/traffic we were a few minutes late.  We rendezvoused at the Spaghetti Wearhouse.  It was a nice place, great atmosphere and wonderful food…but the company had it beat.  

It was wonderful beyond words to see my sister Judy.  She looked great.  She brought me an eagle shirt (one for Tom too!) and some eagle beads.  I can make earrings!!!!

Angie is so pretty. Some moments she had features and expressions like my own sweet Chelsea!  So cool to see that. 

And Miss Jordyn….so very cute.   I loved her sweet little laugh.  It was wonderful to see the closeness the three of them share and to be included in part of that, even for a little while was beyond words.

During the evening we were chatting about where we were staying….and they found out that although I am a brunette, I have very blonde roots.  The hotel that we are staying in is quite literally 15 min from Judy’s house, 10 min from Angie’s work….I thought we were across town from them, actually in Tampa. We aren’t! And because I wasn’t clear on exactly where we were, they were sweet and tried to save us a trip across town, therefore, they picked a restaurant IN TAMPA….26 miles away from all of us.  OOOOOPPPSSSSS>  Sorry ya’ll……  Guess that teaches us all, if you want to know where we are, ask Tom, not Janet. 

Everyone at least had a good laugh out of that one!

Anyway, parting company was hard.  I shed a few tears.  It had just felt so good to be in family company.  Family that accepted me, didn’t criticize me, my actions, no one asked well is your daughter still smoking?  Are you still smoking/drinking? None of that…and that wasn’t from the entire other side,  but certain members….and it was hard to deal with and made me want to and did distance myself from them. 

When we lived away, for 20 years, and other people would have family over for holidays, I would often dream of having some of MY family over….wellll…..that hasn’t exactly worked out as well as I had hoped.  Tom’s family is great; but they have their own traditions…or not.  Some of them don’t celebrate holidays……and my family that was close to me in TN ….  Just weren’t open and accepting….and  one was often very critical of everyone and every thing all the time.  So, like I said, distance.

But tonight, it felt great!  And I loved every minute of the visit!  Maybe sometime in the not too distant future we can do this again!

I teased Judy she had to come up for Bonnaroo and Angie for CMA’s Fan Fest.

Now we are back at the hotel.  Checked in with my own older kids, making sure the fur babies are still okay.  Snack time and soon bedtime.  Off and running again tomorrow…breakfast with Angie and Jordyn, then hit the road to Panama City Beach.

Saturday June 23 Day 8

Time to travel again.  Tour de Florida.

Were able to sleep in a little AND have breakfast with Angie and Jordyn!   We found a Bob Evans restaurant!  That was a delight in and of itself. Its funny how you miss little things like your own coffee pot!

We were seated and the server brought us coffee mugs AND A WHOLE pot of hot coffee…Livvy got her mug with tea and a small mug of hot water!!!!   The server even had a sense of humor!   Life is good.

Angie and Jordyn arrived and the hour or so we were able to visit and chat with them was a treasure.  Jordyn is so beautiful and such a sweet spirit.  In Angie, beyond her own sweet self I see hints of my own wonderful Chelsea.

It was a little hard to part company and I was kicking myself for not knowing I was so close to Judy and we could have visited more.  L  Oh well, maybe next time. Mentally I started figuring out another trip….  It just felt so good to be with them.

Anyway!  On the road, Tampa /St. Pete to Panama City Beach.

60  55 45 35

60  55  45  35

60 55 45  35

60  55   45  35

Repeat that for nearly 8 hours.  That’s the trip up the coast.  Initially we took the toll road which isn’t heavily traveled and has a decent speed.  THEN IT ENDS.  If we had taken 75, which likely would have been the better choice, #1.  We would have traveled a better speed.  #2.  Not lost our GPS signal. #3.  Would have taken us 50 miles out of the way…but we would have probably arrived about the same time.

THEN we get here and hit the tourist traffic  …. YIKES>   and I was driving.  I hate driving and I really hate driving in traffic.

Oh well, after some searching, we called the hotel and located them.  We are in a very nice room, but it is only for one night.  Due to the error in dates, we have this hotel today and then move tomorrow.  And that wouldn’t be a problem, except, we check out @ 11 and can’t check back in til 3.  Okay it s PCB…..plenty to do.

Now say hello to Debby, TROPICAL STORM DEBBY that is.  L

Okay, unplanned event.

So we grabbed some dinner at Sonny’s bbq.  This was one of our favorite places to eat when we lived in Jacksonville.  It was cheap, all three of us had full meals plus drinks for under $25.  And full????  My belly hurt…I had a puppy tummy!!!!  It was delicious!

After, we were able to come back to the hotel and Olivia and Tom swam in the pool for about 30 min to burn off some of the energy that she had pent up.  I was sleepy….but managed to sit and watch them for a bit.

Now to figure out what to do on Sunday between hotels.  Driving up the coast to Pensacola to the Navy museum doesn’t seem likely with a tropical storm out there….hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm  challenges………

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June 20 Day 5

Wed June 20 Day 5

After an adventurous Tuesday, Wednesday was to be quiet!!!

We slept in.  Even I slept til almost 8.  I knew the weather wasn’t going to be “beach” weather and truth be told, I was wiped out.

So I got up, checked bank account and paid my bills (yes, the mundane must be taken care of on vacation!) and then I could play some more.

As I said, there was an 80% chance of rain.  Given that, the weather was actually quite nice.  It was dry most of the day.  It was extremely humid though.

After breakfast at the waffle house, we opted to go to the beach.  All the time that Tom’s been here before, he never went to the beach.  The seas were still rough, the wind quite brisk, so going in the water didn’t appeal to us, but walking on the beach, taking a few pictures did.

There were some young men out wind surfing.  They had themselves harnessed to crescent shaped parachutes and had boards, like snow boards, strapped to their feet.  They were interesting to watch.  If you want a total body work out that appears to be the thing to do!

I am amazed at the plant life down here.  There are trees that remind me of something out of a Dr. Suess book! 

The day was spent shopping.  We revisited the dock where we caught the Freedom II.  There were a few items there I wanted to go.  We didn’t buy a t shirt from the Freedom II and inquired if we could purchase one there.  No,  these can only be purchased on board the ship.  Therefore we missed out…oh well, its okay.

We parked near the famous Duval street and walked around for about an hour.  We picked up a few things and ate lunch at the famous Hogsbreath Saloon.  Olivia was less than impressed.  She liked the pigeons that were wandering around our feet and she fed them some left over bread and crunched up chips…

Its hard to be 11.  It’s a pain to be in that tweener age……between childhood and teenage hood.  Olivia wanted this half shirt.  I had no problem with her having one, however, we had to find one her size.  Well, they only came in adult sizes which are huge on her.  I would not allow her to have a shirt she couldn’t wear for another 2 years and that really upset her.  I felt bad on one hand for her and frustrated on the other.  Being the parent of a tweenager is sometimes a loosing battle!

The rest of the day was quiet.  We finally did find a cropped shirt for her.  It had smocking on the bottom so that it fit her. 

We spent a quiet nite having dinner, packing and getting ready for our trip to Stuart Florida in the morning.

This place is a little hard to leave.  Sometimes, in my fantasies, I think I’d love to live here.  However, reality kicks in, and then I say, uh no.  I’ll visit again sometime.  The water, the colors, have me so hooked.  I remember the first time I saw them, I flew down to the Keys when I was pregnant with Chelsea, so 26 years ago this past January.  I was amazed with the colors and still am.  The warm weather isn’t as hot as Nashville, there’s always a breeze….but the thought of moving…of packing, of preparing, etc….no moving here is not likely to happen.  But that’s okay, as I said earlier, I can always visit!

Now, onto day 6….been a super visit to Key West.  Now on to more fun and adventure!

*******************************************************************

June 18 & 19

June 18, 2012  Day three

Today Chelsea is 26.  Hard to believe, but its true. 

And today is the day we head to Key West from Jacksonville. 

The drive was LONG….almost 10 hours.  Uneventful.  We joked around, tried to make the trip as interesting as possible.  I bet Olivia would say that the worst part of the trip, other than the length of time it took to GET to Key West, was my corny jokes! 

At one point the song Seminole Wind went through my head and I put it on the IPOD. Tom made some comment about wishing he could feel the Seminole Wind and I told him to just stick his head out of the window.  This caused some mirth and chuckles…..  I didn’t have any other “good ones”. 

Such is life. 

We arrived safe and sound…..had a tough time finding the Navy base…small island ya wouldn’t think it would be difficult. But it has been several years since Tom has been here, and I”ve only been here once so it makes a difference.

We found the base, and I asked Tom if we had a sticker on the wagon. NOPE.  Hmmmm.  Well, a lot of bases have relaxed their standards in the recent years….but not Key West.

So the gate guard asked for ID”s which we had and then car registration and current insurance card.  WEEEEELLLLL, here’s where it gets interesting!  So Tom has an insurance card..for the blue truck.  He does not have a card for the focus wagon.  The gate guard did allow us through, however, he stated that we needed to get to the decal office first thing tomorrow and get  a temporary pass.  And, they may not accept the insurance card.

So, I call our insurance guy and yes, he can fax it. Well, we don’t have a fax number, yet.  So I said I would call and leave a number.

We go inside, check in, and start to talk this through.  We decided to go up to the room and work through this.  We had a real problem on our hands.  We had to be at the boat by 7:15 a.m.  for boarding and launch is at 8 a.m. 

Problem:  allstate does not open til 8 a.m. CENTRAL STANDARD TIME>  we are on EASTERN STANDARD TIME HERE.  By the time that the allstate office opens and he faxes the information, we will be out to sea heading to the Dry Tortugas. Cannot reschedule the trip either.

What to do. What to do.  We opt to get a hotel out in town, and cancel our navy lodge reservations.  We cannot risk leaving base and not being able to get back on  base to get to our stuff.  Nor do I want to risk not having a place to sleep .  For those who are not military, this might sound extreme, but it could happen. 

So we pay the $7.95 internet fee that the navy lodge charges and find a reasonably priced Days Inn around the corner.

We checked out, explained and headed out.  We drove around and found the dock and the parking garage for the next  morning, and at dinner .  By this time we were over tired and frazzled!  TGIFridays hit the spot!

I wish I could say we slept well, however, it was a late evening. In our discussions, we figured out that Tom had not booked our Panama city rooms for the right dates.  He had us arriving on Sunday when in fact we were scheduled (per our agenda) to arrive on Saturday.  He spent some time trying to correct this, but was not successful before I just had to go to sleep.

Thus ends the night.  Tomorrow will be better!

Tuesday June 19, 2012  Day four

Let me tell you, I did not sleep well.  Nor did Tom. We were both very stressed regarding last night, and the fear of oversleeping was present.

The alarm went off at an evil 5:20 A.M.  grrrrrrrr.  We were up and moving and ready to walk out the door just before six.  Thankfully there is a waffle house right on the same property as the Days Inn and so we grabbed a light breakfast.  And in the sounds of Key West category:  roosters!   They are walking around like they own the place.  Now, mind you we can’t have chickens in our part of Davidson Co. back home, but they roam free in Key West.  I guess anything goes, eh?  Lol.

We also took Dramamine.  The weather forecast did not look promising.  60% chance of rain and winds were up.

We arrived at the dock just prior to 7:15.  The captain of the boat was out giving the facts about the day. Although the weather was not “bad” enough to cancel the launch and trip, it was going to be quite rough.  If people wanted to reschedule, then they would waive the fee.

We opted, along with about 70 other people to go ahead.

We left the dock roughly at 8 a.m.  The sailing out wasn’t too bad.  The water was a bit choppy and the skies were gray and overcast which made for chilly sailing. 

The Yankee Freedom II was our boat.  It was a catamaran.  It could hold up to 150 passengers, so it was a good size. 

The trip out went okay. We were able to sit on the bow where there were benches, or stand at the front.  We did both, but finally settled into the bench.  Olivia had a jacket on and I wrapped a towel around me.  Although the weather was warm, the winds made it feel quite chilly.  Laughing, huh, a wind chill in the south keys. 

The waters were still pretty even though the sun was hidden.  That lovely turquoise color just has a grip on me.  The skies were overcast and we watched some storm clouds as they moved to the port side.  At one point, we actually saw a wall cloud and watched for a funnel, but never saw one.

Our arrival at the Dry Tortugas was welcomed.  The rocking of the boat had lulled me into a very sleepy state.  However, the weather was no better there than at the keys.  Sometimes they say it can be completely different.  Not today.

We started out by poking around Fort Jefferson.  I would have been much more interested if I wasn’t hungry.  And then, during our brief exploration, it started to pour.  We waited out the worst of it and finally just found our way back through the most dry means. We did hear thunder and saw explosive lightning, bright and sharp.  The thunder sounded different, I suppose nothing for the sound to reverberate off of.

Lunch on the boat was good, several different breads, meats and cheese to choose from along with the old standby peanut butter and jelly.  It was create your own sandwich, had chips, drinks, all included in the trip.  I was just glad to eat.  My morning two eggs over medium and toast had long worn off!

We waited on the boat for nearly an hour waiting for the next band of heavy rain to move through, then it was darn it we came to snorkel, let’s snorkel.  So with that and a mind set if I don’t mind, it doesn’t matter, we set off to get our gear.

The water was warm, but given the weather, still felt cool.  It was that lovely aqua and purple….and I did look forward to getting in. 

Given the conditions, it did rain some while we were in the water, but we were already wet so it didn’t matter.

We were able to see some fish, corrals, a sand dollar and Livvy saw a crab.  At first she was nervous and we held hands.  As she relaxed in she finally swam unattached to me.

I did have problems, as did Tom with the mask fogging up.  Not sure about how to remedy that completely, but dealt with it because the view, despite the weather was still enchanting to me.   

It was a great experience and I would do it again in a heart beat.  There is something wonderful about swimming so close to these creatures.  You can just hang there in the  water, hover over an area and watch, not bothering anything…..it is truly Magickal. 

After a bit though, my calves started cramping up and I knew it was time for me to stop. 

We returned our gear, changed clothes, and returned to the Yankee II.  It was already 2 p.m. 

We left the dock probably close to 3, and we warned to finish drinks, hit the bathroom now as its going to be rough.  They weren’t just whistling Dixie!  Wow.  At first, the first 10 min or so, people were laughing and squealing, like a Disney Ride.  THEN the sea sickness set in and people were retching and vomiting.  I have to say, the crew was so prepared. 
We could not get up and move to the outside of the boat, we were being tossed up into the air.  I saw Tom fly about 18 off his seat at one point and then we landed down, hard.  The waves were coming over the bow and smacking the window in front of us.  It was intense. 

We made it through the ride, that part lasted close to an hour or just over.  Then it settled down and we had a choppy ride back to the dock.

I think everyone was glad to see land again.  Although I did not get sick, Livvy did qet queasy and Tom had a nasty bout of sea sickness.  He was plain green.  Livvy never did vomit, but I had her to focus on the horizon and that seemed to help her out.

After coming to the room and cleaning up, a quick dinner at the Waffle house.  They have nice salads and a small tour around the island at sunset.

We were all in bed early, and no alarms were set for Wednesday….sleep in day!!!!!!!!!!!!

**************************************************

June 17, Day two

After  a decent’s night sleep, the day started quite nicely.  No alarm clock!!! :D

We headed down  to the breakfast bar, which was quite nice.  There were small glass bowls in the tables with white pebbles (which Livvy said looked like mentos) and roses.  Nice touch.  Good breakfast! They even had peanut butter for the Belgium waffles….  They are a okay in my book!

We still hadn’t heard from our friends, felt sad, but figured maybe in a bit.  I had Tom to get onto facebook and send messages.  After having called them the previous night, didn’t want to over push the issue.

We drove down to St. Augustine, Florida.  This is one of my favorite city in Florida. It is unique in its beauty.  On the way found out Tom had never visited the old city nor the Castillo de San Marcos!  I remember doing this when I was about Olivia’s age!!! Tom is such a history buff so I concluded, let’s do it!

We delighted Olivia by taking the horse carriage ride thru the old city.  That takes about an hour.  We took the historic tour, which I knew Tom would like and Olivia didn’t care, she just wanted to take a horse carriage ride.  J 

We visited the Castillo, which had updated a lot since I had been there, lol.  (of course).  They now have a small movie theatre in there showing info about the castle.  Very cool.

After a couple hours playing tourist, which was grand fun, we grabbed lunch and journeyed to the beach. 

If you have never been to St. Augustine beaches, the cool thing is you can drive on them.  This is why I like the beach here so well, it is hard packed.  The water is certainly not as pretty as the Gulf side, but I love that hard packed sand! 

I understand several years ago a woman was killed by being run over by a car.  Sad.  But after having been here many times, I could see how that could happen.

We played in the ocean, holding hands, the three of us. Jumping waves….the waves were quite rough.  Surf was UP!  Some of the swells were over our heads.  I helped Olivia to hang onto her boogie board and keep it under her and we rode over the waves together.  Quite a tiring adventure. 

After a time, we headed back to the shore where my back complained a bit.  I listened to it. What do I tell my clients but to listen to their bodies?  I did the same.

Olivia played in the sand a bit, then in the shallow waters.  It was delightful to see her frolic about!  J

Tom took her out once more time, but she tired quickly this time.  Those waves were no joke !

It was now time to head back to Jacksonville.  We still had no messages from our friends.  Tom even said maybe its my phone, maybe the messages will be on facebook when we get back. 

After hot showers and fresh clothes, we felt human again.  Love the ocean, but that sticky water and sand makes one feel so dirty and gritty!

Sadly, no messages, so we opted to go to dinner by ourselves, feeling very sad and let down.  We went to one of our old haunts, Gators Dockside so we could have and Olivia could try some Gator tail.  Unfortunately, the experience was terrible!  Tom ordered a simple philly cheese steak, I ordered a salad, and Olivia mac n cheese and apple slices.  (Gator tail was the appetizer)  It took well over an hour before our food arrived.  In fact, we were demanding our check, ready to walk out.  The manager came to us, had no excuse, except a large party of 35 was there and took our bill down by 50%.  I think the only reason we stayed it was now 8 p.m. and any where else we would have had to wait as well. 

The food was delicious, well prepared, but we were so disappointed by the lousy service.  Tom , and I agreed to a point, felt we shouldn’t have to pay for anything, but after rethinking, he did have to pay his staff .  And we took care of our server.  This wasn’t her fault, but she had to face us when we kept inquiring about our food ….  But I did tell him, years ago we used to come up here and eat, good food, good service. Tonight, you let us down.

Anyway, from there, we hit walmart.  Tom bought me a new swim suit.  We had to compromise a bit, a two piece.  I needed a bottom to “hide” the bottom half of me I am not fond of, but a skimpier top to show off my top half which is still decent, thanks to plastic surgery!  J

Back to the hotel.  After picking up and getting things in order, Tom’s phone was giving an odd message (still).  I said reboot the thing and guess what. We felt like heels, our friends had called 5x that day!  Now WHY they didn’t call my phone any or facebook us I do not know, but at least we knew we weren’t being blown off! 

Now we were sad that we didn’t get to see them for a bit, but better because we knew they had at least tried to get in contact with us. 

Sleep time and get ready for the trek to Key West in the morning.  Happy Father’s Day 2012!

The  St. Johns River

horse and carriage ride with our driver Aaron

Olivia with Bridge of Lions in background

Florida grasshoppers.

Florida Trip.....2012 Days 1 and 1/2 my musings

June 15, 2012

Worked til 2.  So ½.

Left about 4 p.m.  Haven’t had to thump anyone yet, lol.  Nice trip down, some traffic.

Staying in GA in a La Quinta Inn.  Tom and Livvy had a pillow fight. 

Forgot a few things, biggest:  phone charger!  Will replace tomorrow.  No worries.  Tom’s fits my phone so I can keep it charged til I get one.  GRRRRR>  Such is life and could be worse! 

Nice trip thus far.  Traffic wasn’t bad…..eyes are getting heavy…heading to bed.

June 16  Day two

Didn’t sleep well.  Stayed up late watching a documentary on Adam Lambert…nothing I didn’t know, but interesting.

Got up early.  GRRRRR Its vacation!  Felt a bit grumpy.

Finally got everyone moving, we were late to the complimentary breakfast, but grabbed a quick bite.  Nothing really amazing…usual fare, pastries, cereal, waffles.  Either way, it was something in the stomach.

Hit the road.  Man, its hard to not “run on a schedule’ mentally.  Lol.  So structured and Capricorn I am!

We drove from Atlanta to Jacksonville in the appropriate amount of time.  Nothing dramatic happened.  Just chugged right along.

When we arrived, we drove around to some of our old haunts!  Where we once lived,etc along with the former N.A.S. Cecil field.  Its funny how the mind forgets. The places we once drove to automatically we now struggled to remember. L  GPS’s are great.  Lol.

We showed Olivia a few places and oriented ourselves a bit.  Things change of course, but particular landmarks are still there.

Slighly before arriving, I called my friend Michelle with whom I was going to rendezvous.  I was excited and nervous as it had been 13 years since I had seen her.   I remember the EXACT date that I saw her last date I last saw her because she is the one who performed our marriage ceremony!!!

She is, and she does not fully know this a quite influential person in my life.  She is the first person whom I met that follows the same spiritual path that  I now follow….and that’s been 12 or so years now.  (Hard to believe its been that long!).  And she’s funny, and smart, and always impressed me with her thinking!

She, Robbie and their partner Lynn came to Olive Garden and we had a LOVELY dinner with much laughter, sharing, and mirth!  So great to see them!  Loved meeting Lynn, what a beautiful woman,both physically and spiritually!  Got such a great “vibe” from her!!!

It was sad to part company again, but we both promised that it would not be 13 years this time.   Let’s hope that is true!

After dinner, we hit the pool for a bit.  For such a nice hotel, mints, fancy folded towels, etc, kind of a laughable pool!  Adequate, but not luxurious for sure!  Wet thought and that’s all Olivia really cared about!

We determined since the pool closed a short bit after we got there, that we wanted to go get some towels for the beach trip on Day 3.  Walgreens hadn’t had any…so off to, yes you know it, WALMART .  We traveled 10 hours to go to WALMART!  Lmao.  Can’t escape it can ya?   And I think the local community, at least at 10 p.m. beats the West Nashville hoodlums, (just a term, not really, at least I don’t THINK, lol) in a bad way. All I can say is WOW.

Got towels, etc and off we go.  Quick stop at sonic as I had a hankering for a chili cheese coney.  J  YUMMO

Had a hard time sleeping again, just wound up.  Tom and Olivia were sawing logs far before me.  However, when I did fall asleep, the sand man made sure I had enough sleep sand to sleep well! 

What a nice day two of vacation.  I felt myself unwinding and finally coming down from the stressful time of the past few weeks!  

And now…day three! Whoo HOO! 

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me and my friend Michelle!

pool time

<3 <3  US  <3 <3

p.s.  found phone charger!  what a dork I am!  lmao!

:

June....almost summer

 olivia swimming in percy priest lake

 went to 6 flags over ga for amelia's 6th bday.....

preparing the raised garden

my sweetheart and best friend, tom....

ride 'em livvy

ride em' livvy and mom

yep, its gonna be a great summer

Its been a busy spring here in Nashville.  Boat seats, raised gardens, flowers, birds.  Catching up on stuff I haven't been able to do for a while due to an issue with my hip and low back.  Good to be able to do this stuff again!!! 

Saw M. R. Sellars @ PUF.....great speaker and great author! 

My front yard.....

Garden has grown A LOT in the past month

bird houses

Olivia with her new furbaby, Doc. 

I love all seasons, but come May is PUF (Pagan Unity Festival) and its only full speed ahead to fun and sun from there!   Thanks for reading!   :)  Light and love to you this day and always!  Namaste.