Halloween 2009

We made sugar cookies and Brayden enjoyed eating the sprinkles and tasting the frosting. We eventually got the cookies decorated.















Here’s Spiderman aka Brayden
















Halloween took us to the YMCA for a haunting evening. What a great event! First the weather was about 80 degrees, the moon was almost full, and Brayden went from tent to tent playing games and collecting candy. We ended the evening walking Hollywood Beach Boardwalk to get ice cream cones at Margie’s place.

Orlando, Florida

Yes, we are still alive and on the road, I just haven't taken any pictures for the blog. We've been in Orlando Thousand Trails for over a week and we have thoroughly enjoyed the high 80s degree weather. We've played pickleball just about every day and even twice many days. Then it's off to the pool in the afternoon or after evening pickleball. Of course, there are always a few errands to run.

Thanks to Marie for the pictures. We look like we are still enjoying this lifestyle and we aren't too stressed.

The coach is still is good condition and continues to be Home Sweet Home.

It's a good life!!!

Orlando TT revisited

We really did enjoy playing pickleball and had quite a group playing. Here’s Bob and Vicki, Buddy, Karen and Harry, and Dick is picking up balls somewhere out there.










It was great fun to see Karen and Harry again. We enjoyed the pool after a warm evening of pickleball playing.

Pickleball

The sun is finally shining again and that means we may get out to play pickleball again.












Even I can play this crazy game.









This is the "Getting Pickled Ceremony" established by Faye. She has a little ceremony and gives each of us a little pickle pin we are all anxious to display showing we are avid pickleball players.

Chesapeake TT was a great place to play. We always had about 15 players. The rest of the group had already been pickled and watched the ceremony from the sidelines. Thanks, Faye!!

Virginia Wine Festival

I grew up in the Black Hills and a tunnel took one "through" a mountain. This tunnel took us "under" the James River. I find going under the water like this amazing!

It was the fourth day of sitting indoors due to cold, rainy, sunless weather and we needed a change. So we headed off to Norfolk, VA for the 22nd annual Virginia Wine Festival. Heck, we figured we could get all the wineries in one spot rather than spending a day driving around to hit six.



The weather was still cold and the sun didn't shine, but it didn't rain. There were about 30 Virginia vintners represented and thousands of people. I guess ucky weather doesn't keep wine lovers away from the wine! We didn't sample them all, but found some good wines that we'll enjoy a little later.

Ken and Faye

We had a good farewell dinner of Brunswick stew that Faye had made and brought over as they were packed up ready to leave early the next morning. Faye decided we needed to learn a new game and Ken decided we should try a new drink. So we learned Eucre and, using Keith's kaluha, we made B-52s.

Ken and Faye are great pickleball friends and headed back to Richmond to finish up some doctoring for Faye and then on to Florida. Keeping you in my prayers, Faye, and wishing you safe travels. We'll see you guys down the road!

Check out Faye's blog at: www.highwayrunner.blogspot.com

Kaluha

Keith (aka Chef R) can whip up a mean Clam Bake or make beautiful turnip roses to garnish a dish, and he also has some "fun" recipes--like this recipe for homemade kaluha; check out the 100 proof vodka, the instant coffee and the vanilla bean!

So, here's the recipe--just click on the picture to enlarge the recipe. If you need directions you have to flip the paper over! (HaHa--I guess you'll have to email me or Keith!!)



When we visited Keith and Marie's house in September they gave us a bottle of their special brew. It's sweet and smooth and makes a wonderful "Kaluha and Cream".

It was great to spend time with Keith and Marie. We did a lot of day trips, ate a lot, played a lot of "Hand and Foot", and drank our share of kahula.

You guys travel safe on your journeys to Arizona. We'll see you down the road.

Check out Marie's blog at: www.chefrandtinystitches.blogspot.com

Colonial Williamsburg, VA

We spent the day touring colonial Williamsburg, the way it was in the early 1700s. This is the fife and drum corps. Everyone was dressed the way they did then and they recreated the activities that would have gone on at that time. We enjoyed talking to the silversmith, the blacksmith, a dressmaker, a shoemaker, and Mitch even saw George Washington on the street!

For dinner we had Welsh Rarebit and Brunswick stew.

Joe and Pam

This is Joe and Pam, new friends from the Palm Springs, CA area. They play pickeball and enjoy seafood. We enjoyed their company and hope to run into them down the road.

Another day--another outing!

It was a gorgeous day and the eight of us (that's Mitch, Pam, Marie, Keith, Ken, Faye, Joe, and me) decided to find Mitch's elusive soft shell crab and Ken and Faye knew just the place--Reedville, a small harbor town on the Chesapeake (or some river that flows into the Chesapeake).









The soft shell crab sandwich was to die for and Mitch was very happy.

Notice the little legs sticking out of that sandwich--deep fried soft shell crab to perfection!









And of course after the hour trip home, we needed dessert and the TT store serves up a one scoop cone that is hard to beat.

Actually this was two scoops (birthday cake and chocolate donut) and since the cone cracked, Brenda put it into a second cone.

Chesapeake TT--One Day at a Time

So much goes on here and we are terribly busy for "old, retired" folks. The internet service still isn't wonderful so I'm waiting for days when we don't do anything to catch up on some of what we are up to!

Mitch needed a haircut badly and Marie was planning on trimming Keith's so she said she do Mitch's too--and we didn't even have to drive anywhere!!






Of course Mitch had to look good for the pickleball "Happy Hour". Everyone (and there were 22 of us) brought a favorite appetizer and
their own chairs and drinks and we sat between Ken and Faye's and our coach and enjoyed the late afternoon. Good friends and great food!!

Chesapeake Bay Thousand Trails, Virginia

We are here at Thousand Trails and it is so nice to just sit still for awhile. We washed the coach and the car and then it rained...oh well. The rainbow was absolutely gorgeous--a great reminder of all God promises!


We found some new friends, Pam and Joe, and have been playing pickleball.


Besides the new friends, Ken and Faye showed up, and then Keith and Marie showed up! What fun to be all together!







So Faye said we needed to play Frisbee golf on the new course that she was instrumental in getting started. Here we are, me and Mitch, Pam, Keith, and Ken. We actually did a lot of laughing and had a really good time.









Keith (Chef R) and Mitch decided to cook seafood one night rather than going out. What a feast--we had clams and shrimp for appetizers, then went on to poached salmon in a wonderful sauce that Keith made while Mitch was cooking his blackened mahi mahi. We ended up having Keith's homemade kalua and cream for dessert.

PS: We also found out that five of us in our kitchen didn't hurt the broth at all!!