Tap Shoes and Birthday Parties!

I don't know where to start! We've been home since the 20th of February and have been so busy that I've neglected my dear diary of retirement! My most fun things are too numerous to mention, but you know me! I'll try to recapture them for you. I am getting a pool, which you saw previously so we've spent hours working in the yard destroying my beautiful rose garden...hopefully it will arise a bit further back in the yard behind the pool!

Then...tahdah! I had three birthday parties! and I got presents!! and you know how I love parties and presents!!! My first party was with a huge (try full sheet!) cake decorated in Notre Dame colors and presented to me at McDonalds by my favorite husband. The fire marshall wouldn't let them put 60 candles...yes, I'm 60...so they had to use the little 6 and 0 candles...thank goodness or I would have singed my hair trying to blow out 60 candles. We fed everyone, including the wonderful staff at Mickey D's who take care of us so well every morning! My loving daughter came for lunch and brought me Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies!! A personal favorite. She does know her mommy. My next party was at Long Hollow Jamboree. Hence the tap shoes from my dear friends Bill and Jane. You must have tap shoes...you even see taps on cowboy boots!! We've started going to the Jamboree every Friday night to have dinner and dance..or try to dance. The cheeseburgers are devine and Woody loves the always gourmet "half pound of ground round"...he feels so cosmopolitan! Shades of Clinton in the 50's! Ask him about that! We've learned the two step and watch the cowboy cha cha but we're not quite ready to tackle that yet! I do the electric slide with Jane, which for those of you who don't know...it's an old line dance from the disco era countrified.

My third birthday party was with my cohorts in crime..our dinner club...three of the girls are turning 60 this year! Cindy in April, Donna in July and Holly in about 12 or 15 or 18 years! She lies about her age so we really don't know when she'll get around to 60...we do know she's much younger so we keep her around to bring us chocolate when we hit the nursing home! She's promised to visit. We had a wonderful dinner at Macaroni Grill, and then back to Donna and Mike's for cake and ice cream. We had a bonfire in the fire pit and watched Roy play with psycho cat! Psycho cat used to be really sweet until Emily left it too often with Mike! I think he did something to the cat! I got flamingo beach towels for the pool, a wonderful book and chocolates and great accessories for my guest bath! The only problem...I gave up chocolate candy for Lent so it's sitting and waiting for me to open on Easter. The older I get the more compliant with Lent I think I need to be...so I'll just wait on the candy!

Hugs to all of you! I'll try to do better with keeping you updated on the exciting life of Woody and Pat at home...rare though it is!

We're baaaaack!

I've been remiss...we got home from Florida on the 20th of February with snow and sleet in the forecast...luckily it missed us! Since we've been home, we've worked in the yard continuously and visited friends. My rose garden has been so neglected since we were gone all last summer! We lack mulching and then we wait for warmer weather to plant flowers! We are going to put in a pool since we're staying home for a while. That's my 60th birthday present from Woody! I'm thankful to have lived this long...every day is a blessing! We'll still travel, but short trips to places I want to see around Tennessee and Kentucky and NC. For those of you who know me well, I'm a Jack Daniels girl and have never been to Lynchburg, TN where it's made! That's on my agenda for the first sunny and warm day now that the yard is "laid by" as we say in the south. We're also planning a week or two or more in NC at Chris and Jennifer's beach house! Yeah! A free place to stay on the beach!!



I'm also going to work a bit more for The Oncology Group, a consulting group that specializes in oncology. While we're doing well now, if the market doesn't come back in the next 5-10 years, I may have to go back to my original plan for retirement...greeter at WalMart! Hopefully President Obama will get things heading in the right direction...if we can get everyone in Washington, DC to play nice with each other! I thought briefly, very briefly, about going to work for the government since healthcare reform is such a hot topic. It passed. Given that we pay almost $1500 a month for health insurance, I'm counting the days until November 17th when Woody turns 65 and is eligible for Medicare!!!



Since we're home, there is an open invitation to come visit! We have a fabulous guest suite...private bath, cable, pillowtop mattress...the whole 9 yards. So call, make a reservation and come on over to Hendersonville, TN! We'd love to see you!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Hope you've all had a wonderful Valentine's Day! This has been a quiet week...Woody had a bit of a virus and was in bed for a few days...so I shopped. Chicos was having a really good sale! There were tons of things I wanted, but not working means you don't need much! I really love the new shopping area in SanDestin. If you haven't been down here for a while, you won't believe all the new construction. HarborWalk is also a blast. Pat O'Brien's...yes, that one, and Commander's Palace have restaurants here in Destin now.

We aren't much into celebrating Valentine's, but we did book tickets for Bristol today! For those of you not in the know...that's a NASCAR race in March in Bristol, TN!! Let's see...Woody has me in a "trailer", living in a "trailer park" most of the time and, now, going to a NASCAR race!!! What is the world coming to? The interesting thing is that getting tickets to Bristol has been like getting tickets to see the Green Bay Packers play at home...apparently the economy is really hitting racing. The race is less than a month away and the tickets we got are really very good. We're going to stay in Rogersville which is where many of Woody's uncles live...so lunch with the uncles and racing. It should be a blast! I'm for Tony Stewart and Woody is for Dale, Jr.

We did manage to go out to dinner tonight, even though it was Valentine's Day...can you say, Taco Bell? seriously!! We just wanted a quick bite and no lines and no makeup. There was a Valentine's party tonight at the club house, but we just couldn't get moving to go. Besides...I don't think they would be playing our music if you get my drift! We're young for snow birds.

Only one more week and then home to Hendersonville...I'm ready to be home, but it better not be too cold! I can't wait to work in the yard. I've about convinced Woody that Canada this summer is not in our future. I just want to stay around home for a while...he's RV'd me out! I've been retired 27 months and have been away from home 20 months of that!! I want some short trips like to Lynchburg...I love Jack and I'm the only one in the world who hasn't been to Miss Mary BoBo's and the distillery. However, if it gets really hot, all bets are off. I do have two jobs pending...one in Alaska and one in Connecticut. We'll just have to see how the year goes.

See you soon!!

Seaside's Yard Sale

OK...Woody has not completely grown up! After wandering all over Destin looking, he finally got his 3D glasses and he and Harley watched Chuck in 3D and some of the commercials from the Superbowl.

The group pictures are our Mexican Train Dominos night after the Low Country Boil dinner in the "trailer park". We were out til midnite playing...now we're on the search for dominos with numbers rather than dots. It's a blast to play. These are all our good friends! We come every year and all of us have already made our reservations for next year. It's a great bunch.

We had a wonderful day today...Seaside was having their annual yard sale. On the way, we stopped at Lily Pad's in Grayton Beach which is one of our favorite shops. There are multiple booths with tons of good stuff! We had lunch at Great Southern Cafe in Seaside and had the best shrimp and grits I've ever eaten! I thought the ones in Ocean Isle, NC were good but these were better. We're getting close to H day...the day we leave for home. We are expecting that Estelle and David will be down in the next week or so. We're looking so forward to their visit. We're taking them to the Great Southern Cafe so we can all have shrimp and grits! I told you they were good.

We are still doing water aerobics three times a week and walking...still gaining weight! The food here is fabulous. We have eaten shrimp every way and last night at Dewey's I had ruby red's which are called "poor man's lobster". With drawn butter, I couldn't tell the difference...other than the fact that I got 1 lb for $15.95!! We still haven't been to Apalachicola for oysters, but are planning on Capt Anderson's next week in Panama City. I remember going there as a little girl with my parents and sisters. I can't believe that I've been coming down here over 50 years..supposedly my mother came down here when pregnant with me so that would be over 60 years! Yes, I'm sneaking up on my 60th birthday on March 6th! I certainly don't feel that old, and I'm not sure who that old woman in the mirror is!

We are so blessed to get to stay in Florida while TN is freezing cold! We've had a few days of cold weather, but for the most part, we have had jeans and sweatshirts and the top down. Life is good. It is a bit sad down here though...you can tell the recession is hitting. There are tons of houses and condos for sale and several of our friends that own shops are hurting. State Farm is completely pulling out of Florida so that just reinforced our decision not to buy a house here...it is impossible to get insurance. If you're down this way, be sure you go to Footprints on Hwy 98 (Emerald Coast Parkway) between the outlet mall and SanDestin on the left. Great stuff! We've also seen some of the high end restaurants close, but that hasn't hurt us too much! We love Dewey's and Buster's and Pompano Joe's. Great food at great prices. Frou Frou is not us since the market's down! Although I did just buy some more GE stock! It's a cinch that we're not getting any interest income so might as well day trade! See you all soon!

Another Day in Paradise!

Hope you're all having a wonderful week and that the ice storm isn't too bad!

As you can see, Woody is in the water...after a bit of wading, you get used to it. We're seeing tons of beach erosion and I'm not sure it's going to get much better. Currently, Destin Harbor is at 6 feet in depth and a few of the larger sailboats can't get out. The city and state are arguing with the Corps of Engineers and who knows who about funds for dredging. The frightening thing is that on Okaloosa Island they are talking about levying the homeowners to rebuild the beaches! How would you like to spend millions on a beachfront home and then have to pay to rebuild the beach. If you don't think climate is an issue, watch how this evolves! Without the dunes and beach, a hurricane with a storm surge will wipe this region out. Our beach in front of the RV park has been hit hard, and the waves and wind were so bad last week it snapped the beach volleyball pole. It was a big pole!

Did any of you watch The Last Templar on NBC Sunday night and Monday night? I loved the book, but this was the worst miniseries or movie I've ever seen...if what I saw was acting, I'm moving to Hollywood cause even I can do better! You know it was bad when Woody suggested we flip to the Bachelor at commercials! Things have been a bit lazy down here...mostly eating out, shopping, eating out, walking, eating out, water aerobics, and oh, eating out! Donna, you'll love this...I taught one of my friends down here how to knit a scarf!! Of course, that's all I know how to knit! I did buy lots of yarn to work on a blanket for Riley, but it will be next year before she gets it at the rate I'm going. Did break down and buy a new Bramin purse, but it's a small one to replace my wallet on a string like purse from Montana! This one is a bit more upscale.

Sunday we cleaned! Woody washed and waxed the whole coach...he said no one would believe it so I guess I should have taken a picture! Our neighbors have all been cleaning so we were shamed into it! I cleaned the carpets and then read magazines and watched him work. There is something romantic about a man working. My goal today was to update a presentation on international clinical trials but I didn't get too far! I'm trying to read the Final Rule in the Federal Register...boring! I think the government needs new writers so that normal people don't go into a coma trying to decipher their findings! My goal is to write two intellectual articles a year! I did submit an essay to AARP on Beans, Egalitarianism and Obama and an op-ed piece to the NY Times. I'm still blogging to the Washington Post and occasionally other sites on healthcare. Wish I could figure out how to make some of these pay!!

We lunched with Robert and Laurie from MN at a Thai buffet in Ft. Walton on Monday after water aerobics and the food was great. I love Pad Thai...the spicier the food the better. We still haven't found a convenient Thai restaurant near Hendersonville so we'll just save that for our winter solstice. Camping on the Gulf is really slow this year. The usual bunch on the hill still made it, but we beach people have lots of space! I guess the economy has been an issue, although you'd never know it by the restaurants and stores around here. Much of this area has military families, lots of pilots, and senior support staff and, of course, snowbirds! We hear the planes and the helicopters a lot along the beach and occasionally they come right over park. There is a bombing range north of Destin on the other side of Choctawhachee Bay and we can hear them too!

Big plans for tonight...heading to our favorite restaurant, Dewey Destin's, a little dumpy place on the bay! http://www.destinseafood.com/ It's been here forever. Supposedly they are opening a more upscale version in HarborWalk, but we like the original too much to change! We go around 4P, early bird special and all; split an appetizer and entree...then have Dippin Dots for dessert! Thursday we're having a Low Country Boil here in the park...$15 for the two of us and someone else does the work! My kind of dinner. Told you we eat alot!

Off we go to eat again...don't look for us to be slim and trim when we come home!

You all know how much I adore my very bright granddaughter! This is from her mommy:

I was taking Riley to school this morning and we were talking about Chris's birthday. She said, "Well Mommy, Daddy wants a fishing party and I think we should have a surprise fishing party." I said, "We aren't having a surprise party because we did that last year. I think we'll just take Daddy to dinner at his favorite restaurant." She said, "Oooohhhh sweet mama. We're going to Taco Bell." I thought you'd find that humorous.

Like all of you, we've had a bit of a cold snap...cold at night but we're still running around in jeans and sweatshirts during the day. In fact, it was cold enough last night that I actually cooked rather than going out! I needed comfort food...we've found the coolest recipe. Beef stroganoff hamburger helper; but instead of ground beef, add a can of roast beef, gravy and all. It makes it much richer in flavor.

I've been remiss at posting pictures. Here are a few for you! The restaurant is Dusty's Oyster Bar in Panama City Beach...fabulous food and we fed the fish! They were a hoot...the minute you walked out on the porch, they swarmed! We'll definitely head back there on one of our meandering trips. The beach shot was a few days ago. They are doing prescribed burns in some of the pine forests so it makes the sunsets interesting.

We're still eating tons! Today was IHOP...you know they are having the all you can eat pancake special! Of course, we're still frequenting the early bird specials...such fun being retired! Stay warm!

Boo Hoo! My Titans Lost!

We are so bummed. Our Titans lost! I think they finally believed their own press that no one thought they could do it. Kerry Collins did a fabulous job...now if our receivers and backs had some superglue on their hands. We also watched Cardinals Carolina last night...At this point, we're solidly behind the NY Giants...it they don't win, then it's Pittsburgh or Cardinals...NOT the Eagles or the Chargers!! We had planned on unplugging the RV and heading down the road to Tampa! Oh well...


The weather here in Destin, or officially Miramar Beach, has been fabulous until yesterday. We had rain in the afternoon and today it's cooler. Our high is low 60's, but we are expected highs in the 50's and lows in the 30's later this week. I can still live with that! Our friend in West Yellowstone said she went to work at -30 the other day with lots of snow. We're worried about the earthquake swarms in Yellowstone National Park. It would be horrid if there was an eruption of the volcano, but the volcanologists are saying it will probably be a hydro or geothermal event. In other words, a new geyser or geyser field. Problem is, the most activity is under Yellowstone Lake...it's too pretty to lose! I looked at what it took to be a Park Ranger online last night...I was supposed to be a forest ranger according to my high school testing...maybe it's not too late. Hmmmm.


Woody and I are still doing water aerobics. This is the longest we've stuck with any organized exercise regimen. We're walking more too...unfortunately all it is doing is stimulating our appetites. We ate at PF Chang's Friday night compliments of Libby and Led's gift card. We also love our Starbucks and McDonald's cards from Chris and Jen! Latest movie we saw was Marley and Me...cried my eyes out, but I may have told you that already!


I'm still a knitting fool, so watch out. I'm working on a lavender blanket for Riley so you'll be safe for a while...it's long! Hope you all have a wonderful week. Got to go pay attention to the Giants' game!

Happy New Year!!

Hope you've all had a wonderful New Year's Eve and Day...now it's time to get about the business of 2009!

We ate at Landry's for New Year's Eve, but our favorite restaurant for fried shrimp is Dewey Destin! While it doesn't look like much, the food is out of this world. While you're waiting for your freshly prepared seafood, you can watch the dolphins playing and the pelicans and blue herons just hanging out! There are also several cats that hang out...they love shrimp!

http://www.destinseafood.com/

New Year's Day was fun at Camping on the Gulf. We had a great pot luck with lots of pork and black eyed peas! We're certainly going to have a prosperous, or maybe just gassy, New Year! For those of you who aren't southern...hog jowls and black eyes guarantee prosperity if eaten on New Year's day! Our resolution for the rest of our time here is to go to water aerobics three times a week...so far so good! We're at 100% compliance! but then it's only the 2nd of Jan! Wish us luck.

Weather remains fabulous and while we miss home and friends, we don't miss the weather!