A 4-day of Fun

This past 4-day Bobby and I traveled to Florida to visit my friend, Jen, before she and the kids leave to live in Germany with her husband who was recently deployed there for three years.

Jen and I have been friends since Cornerstone University, which dates back to 2000. We had an interesting relationship and became friend easily. Over the years we have kept in contact, I was her maid of honor, she was my matron of honor and here and there we have kept in contact through facebook and phone calls.

I am very excited that she and the kids get to be with Ryan but I wanted to be sure I could see her and Caelyn and meet Eli before they left. So we boarded a 6:30 flight from South Bend and made our way to Fort Myers. You've gotta love a place that has turtle crossings!

As a thank you to Bobby for going with me, I rented a 2010, Red, Ford Mustang convertible since he loves (fast) cars. While we were checking out, the manager came over and offered us a 2009 Corvette (I love Corvettes!) for only $30 more per day- an offer we couldn't pass up (hey!, we don't do this- ever, and we should have fun!). Bobby was in love! And so was I. We had so much fun driving around Florida in this beautiful car. Did you know there's a Corvette culture? Every time you see another Corvette you have to wave or else you're considered snobby.

Saturday we met Jen for a quick lunch since she was working and (as luck would have it) got a call and so we hit the hotel for a quick nap. After, we drove down to the beach and watched the sunset and had a late dinner at Sharky’s. This Key Lime Pie was homemade and the best part was the gummie shark - how cute!

Sunday we hit the beach and in the morning and later went back, and were on the hunt for shark teeth. We bought a strainer at a local store and dug around on the shore. This place is known as the shark teeth capital and we did well for a few hours on the beach. We made a haul- 50!

Monday we met Jen and the kids at the beach and spent some time playing in the sand and looking for shells. Bobby and I bought masks and snorkels the previous day and after he went out looking around I went out and saw an amazing sight: hundreds of sand dollars! I noticed these lumps of sand about 8-10 feet down and went down to check them out. After I brushed the sand off I realized what they were and they were everywhere! Bobby had missed them but he was amazed when I handed him my mask so he could see. It was beautiful.

In the afternoon, we met Jen in and the kids in Sarasota at Mote Marine, a must see if you're ever in the area. It is a research facility/lab/rehabilitation facility with a focus on education and healing so animals can be reintroduced to their habitats. They had huge turtles(!) manatees and dolphins along with hundreds of fish and examples of habitats. After she dropped the kids off we had dinner at this WONDERFUL Italian restaurant Valenti’s. I wish we would have found this our first night because it was great! The food was excellent and the Martini list was one of the best I have seen in a long time- I recommend the Creme Brulee Martini!

Tuesday it was time to leave so Jen and the kids met us at the airport for lunch and our traditional airport picture. Very bittersweet, like always I cried. I forgot that I had a card for her until after we had already gone through security- Bobby said send it to her but I just couldn't do that. I must have been a mess- eyes red and cheeks puffy from crying, nose running, and the very nice TSA guy said he would take it to her since the plane was supposed to board soon and the line for security had gotten really long. I thought it was very nice of him.

So we made it home in one piece. I didn't leave Bobby in the lost and found at any of the airports and he didn't push me out of the moving car. Win- win! It was a good trip and I actually got him to say that if Jen and the kids are still here in 6 months we could go back. Wouldn't that be fun!?! Not likely though.

Are You a Princess?

I found this today as I was searching Blogs. My Soapbox.

Interesting... (sorry Theresa) Is this what we teach our daughters? As a child I never thought about Disney movies in this way but I know these movies did influence the way I understood dating/relationships- more so that boys wanted a perfect, beautiful (servant?) "girl" that would change to fit their needs. I am very lucky that I found my "prince" and he accepts me with all my flaws (and I mean ALL). I believe that it is important the young women (girls) of today see good examples of successful women and examples of how we are supposed to be treated by others- as equals.

Ummm, I think I'll Pass- Thanks

Today I did one of the most dreadful things imaginable (at least in my world)- I WENT SHOPPING. Yes, hard to believe for those that know me, but with our mini-vaca (vay-cay) to Florida a few days away, I thought it would be nice to treat myself to some new clothes, since I just bought Bobby some new stuff.

Let me tell you: nothing can be as discouraging as trying on clothes to find something that not only fits but also fits the budget. I went to Kohl's today and saw a shirt that was $40.00. To some that may seem reasonable EXCEPT: it was so thin I could see the clothing racks through it when I held it up to get a better look. Lets just say that one found it's way back to the rack without a second thought.

After my ordeal at the department stores, I figured my blood pressure was high enough and I should go donate blood, so I did. There seems to be a shortage of donors so if you are able- GO DONATE!! Someday you might be the one that needs it, so give when you can.

Another great weekend

Bobby and I had another great weekend at the lake. For the most part the weather was nice. A few days it started off overcast but then it cleared up nicely. We decided to take the kids (they are not good car riders) this weekend. Sophie only cried for half the drive (30 minutes) and Lucky threw up on M40- he just can't take the hills. But once we got there they made themselves at home.

Lucky, for the most part, did not move at all over the 4 days. He took up residence on the cot so he could see the bird feeders and stayed there.



And my little hunter? Well, I couldn't figure out why she wasn't eating, or I should say, why I didn't see her at the food bowl. I figured it out when I noticed she was catching and eating bugs. I actually saw her catch a moth in mid air- yep, she's that good.

Thursday we invited our co-workers to spend the day at the lake. I had so much fun!! (I think the kids might have had a good time too) Bobby took the kids tubing, the jet ski was out and Goodman and Lisa even fished. It was fun, we are going to have to do it again before the summer is over.

Today my parents came up and spent the afternoon with us. Dad, Bobby and I fished at the end of the pier and, for once, I did not take home the prize for the largest catch. Dad ended up with an amazing 22 fish! I had 4, including a super small Rock Bass and, well, Bobby didn't catch anything. :-( Oh well, there's always next time. Sorry Bobby- shouldn't have been so obsessed with catching the catfish under the pier. But thank you oh great and wonderful husband for, not only taking my fish off the hook but also putting the worm on so I did not feel guilty about killing it. But for future reference the red wigglers that my dad used today worked much better than the night crawlers we were using. 22 to 4, need I say anything else?

Don't Feel Bad about Eating the Tots- It's Their Destiny

This morning was my first Sonic experience. Now, normally, I wouldn't even mention a restaurant, however I got the biggest kick out of their Tot carton- a carton of tots, salt shaker in hand, salting himself with the above saying. Huh... It makes me laugh.

Anyway, today was supposed to be a work day at the lake, and there is a storm front hanging around IL, so I'm not too excited about going up there to work in the rain. If I have it my way- nap! then maybe (if the weather is OK) some work. To my advantage, I am sitting at the table and I can hear Bobby snoring on the couch, so now is the time if I want to catch a few.

Work has been interesting lately. Yesterday we had a kid tripping on some shrooms; yes shrooms. I'm not sure why someone would knowingly put themselves into that state. I'm sure this person wasn't having too much fun in the ambulance and it looked like they had eaten some grass before we got there. Why would you do that to yourself? Yummmm grass...

I learned yesterday that my girlfriend Jen will be moving to Germany to be with her husband who was recently stationed there. Bummer :-( but good for her. Maybe that's my excuse to travel Europe- Hey Bobby, I'm going to meet Jen in Paris for the weekend, be back soon! Don't think that would go over too well.

This year is my 10 year reunion- 10 YEARS! Oh my! I can't believe it has been 10 years- sometimes I still see myself as that high school graduate and wonder, what-in-the-heck-am-I-doing?!? or how-did-I-end-up-here!?! I always thought I would be excited about my reunion, but- I'm not, and I don't think we are going. Initially it was $80 per person for a Friday night pub crawl (oh that's what I want to do in South Bend on a Friday night) and a dinner on Saturday at St. Hedwig. I think I'll save my $160 and spend it on something special for me- camera lens maybe? ??? And now with Facebook it's not like I don't keep up with the people I graduated with- Is it really Facebook stalking if they accepted your friend request and you just keep up on their postings? Just wondering!

Our Piece of Heaven

Many years ago, my father's parents bought a lake cottage on an inland lake in Michigan. Today, my parents are kind enough to allow Bobby and I to come and go as we please and we spend most of our days off at the lake.

After many hours of working, we are FINALLY at a point where we can enjoy the days with only a few projects here and there. I LOVE this place. I love the sounds, the smells and the feeling that I can relax and be myself with no one to critique me. We are very lucky to have the opportunity to spend time in a place like this.

The view from the end of the lake on the pontoon .

Our Blue Heron

On nice days there are turtles everywhere! As we were going around the lake on the pontoon, Bobby noticed this and if he wouldn't have said anything I would have missed the two turtles sunning themselves on the cradle area of the lift.

Growing up, I used to think that pontoon boat rides were very boring. Sometimes, if I begged enough, my dad would take us through this "special area" (well I thought it was!). It is a portion of the lake that is considered to be wetlands and there is a channel that allows the people access to the lake. As we would travel through this path, shore on one side and weeds/land on the other, we would always see interesting things: large fish, birds nesting and I even saw a deer among the weeds a few years ago. Here are just a few of the beautiful things I saw on our latest ride:

This may not be an area I am excited about swimming in but sitting on the boat and listening to the animals is wonderful!