Rick Ate Gator!!!!! A Wonderful Saturday with Friends

Yesterday was a great day-we went shopping at a large mall in the morning! Found quite a few of those 'must haves'..and finished up the easter packages for the kids. Then we hopped in the shower and drove into Palm Harbour to visit and have supper with friends Eda and Tom and their two adorable little boys. They took us to the Azona Blue restaurant not far from their home. We actually travelled there via their golf cart. It was right on the water, we had a great table outside, they even had a swimming pool and hot tub in the restaurant area. It was at a marina, what a neat place and the food and service was excellent!! We hadn't seen Eda since 2008 so there was much gum flapping going on. So as you know Rick held a gator last week at gatorama well last evening he ate gator...I didn't eat any, but he said it was good and tasted alot like chicken. Just knowing what it looked like 'alive' -nothing could entice me to even taste it.

One of the many piers at the Azona Blue

Eda :)

Eda and I 

Tom and the boys

Myself and Rick

Sweet Boys at the restaurant

The wifi here in the park is not the best-but it is free so we can't complain. I cannot blog or comment while on it-so I have been using my air stick to do up the blogs. I can read your blogs and am keeping up with you all but sometimes I cannot comment on your posts-so please don't think we are ignoring you. That would never happen!

Today is looking like a nice day so we may possible hit the Clearwater beach. And meet up with some family I have in the area. Have a super Sunday everyone! Eda and Tom thanks so very much for the wonderful evening!

Be safe out there yall..thanks for stopping by!

Home is where you park it

"May your day be filled with blessings like the sun that lights the sky~and may you always have the courage to spread your wings and fly"

Safe and Sound in Clearwater -Port Ritchey Area!!

We arrived safe and sound yesterday afternoon, and it was a good drive in from Palmdale. We will be here until moving on day which is Tuesday and we are heading up around the Panhandle :)..to check out that area.
We crossed the big scary bridge (as most of you know I'm terrified of bridges)-the Sunshine Skyway Bridge- and you will be impressed this time I stayed in my seat and took pictures, even tho my heart was pounding. 

The RV resort is nice lots are a bit tight but everyone seems very friendly. And they honor good sam and passport america :) Here we are setup for the next few days.

This morning we are hitting the malls..I need a few things to add to the grands easter packages before I mail them off. Then we are meeting with friends who live in the area for supper. The sun is trying hard to peek through and it is warm.
Thanks for dropping by and have a great weekend folks. Wifi is sketchy here (good thing its free) so I'm doing this off my airstick. 
Be safe out there

Home is where you park it

"May your day be filled with blessings like the sun that lights the sky~and may you always have the courage to spread your wings and fly"

Great Vist on Wednesday~Sad to say Goodbye!

Due to the fact that we are leaving this area tomorrow (Friday) we packed up the firkids yesterday, packed a bag, and headed on into Cape Coral to spend the day and night with my sister Julia and her husband Kit and their friend who lives with them Phil. 
I had cooked some party mix up and a nice casserole of lazy man's cabbage rolls (quick and easy and I will include the recipes)..so we loaded everything in the car and headed to their place.
We spent a nice afternoon visiting, and we had a combo supper-Kit made a nice salmon dinner, with alfredo linguini, and salad, brocolli, and asparagus. I popped the lazy man's cabbage rolls into the over and we also had that. For desert it was chocolate valentine cake yum. 

Lazy Mans cabbage rolls, asparagus, broccoli, salmon with sauce and alfredo

Rick, Julia, Kit and Philip

We visited until bedtime out on their Lanai by the pool. There was alot of gum flapping going on I tell you and many 'remember whens'.

Tucker, Kits legs, Phil Julia and Rick

My Brother in law Kit and Philip

My sister Julia

Their pool on the Lanai

The furkids had free run of the place and they also enjoyed their visit. Tucker is still having some issues but I think it is getting somewhat better. We will keep him on his rice and chicken until his bm's are back to normal. Other than this issue he is truly his regular goofy self and very active.
This morning my wonderful brother in law was up and out and back with coffe for us before we even got out of bed. What a wonderful surprise.
Here are some morning pictures taken from their dock, they live on a canal. 

Looking up the canal toward the neighbour

Looking down the canal

A shot of their Lanai and House from their dock

This morning we visited some more,having our coffee out on the lanai...eventually I finally made myself gather up our things - get packed up and ready to roll back to our Rv resort. It was sure hard to leave as I had not seen my sister (my only sibling and only 9.5 mos older than me)..since 2008. After hugs all around a few times, and some tears between her and I we finally managed to ourselves get in the car. I promised we would be back to visit the end of this year. Hopefully her health continues to improve between now and then.


We arrived back at our resort Sable Palms and what did we see out for a walk?

Both Pictures are through our windshield-tucker & Lill sure thought that was one big dog!

Now we must get busy and start our cleaning of the MH prepping to head out tomorrow to Port Ritchey as we have friends in Tampa we will visit with on the weekend. From there we're not too sure, we may spend a few extra days in Tampa, and then we plan to head up around the panhandle to the Cedar Keys area. Rick has always wanted to tour up around the panhandle.
Take care all, be safe out there and our next posting will be from our next destination. Until the next time....thanks for stopping by.

Home is where you park it

"May your day be filled with blessings like the sun that lights the sky~and may you always have the courage to spread your wings and fly"

Lazy Man's Cabbage Rolls: Quick and easy

1 lb ground beef

1 onion chopped

apprx 3 cups chopped coarsely raw cabbage

3-4 TBSP long grain uncooked rice

1-10 oz can tomato soup (I use spaghetti sauce)

*if you use the tomato soup you will also need one can water

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Method:

In frying pan sear beef for couple minutes, add onions, salt pepper and rice. Stir, cooking about 5 minutes-Add soupe and can water and mix (If using spaghetti sauce no water unless you do not have enough sauce then add a bit of it)

Put cabbage in greased casserole. Pour meat mixture over cabbage evenly. Do not stir. Bake covered 1 1/4 hrs at 325F

Party Mix: Quick and easy

stick pretzels

cashew nuts-peanuts

crushed potato chips (plain ripple chips)

melt white chocolate in microwave and stir all together. Spread on wax paper on cookie sheet and put in fridge for 20 minutes. Break up into bite size pieces and enjoy. There is just something about the salt and sweet taste.

We have a Sick Boy :(

Tucker and his Nurse

Tucker started feeling peekish Sunday evening ...we are thinking he picked something up at the groomers on Saturday after being there for 7 hours or they possibly fed him treats he was not used to ...he had diarrhea Sunday night and yesterday-we took a drive to LaBelle to see where the vet's office was located in case we had to make a fast run in with him. I took him off his feed and cooked him chicken and rice and he ate well last evening and again this morning. We will keep him on the rice and chicken for a few days. I also picked up some kopectate  but didn't dose him yesterday because if it is something intestinal I wanted him to pass it.

This morning his movement had some form but it wasn't normal by any means-but better than yesterday-he ate his chicken and rice with a gusto. 

We will keep a close eye on him and take him in if necessary or if he doesn't continue to improve. Hes still his goofy active self..thankfully...say a prayer he gets over this..we are suppose to leave here on Friday...

Have a good day all and Happy Valentines day to each and everyone of you!

Saturday/Sunday Spa and visitation!

We headed into Cape Coral Saturday morning, to drop the furkids off at a spa for a good grooming, and to visit my sister and brother in law. We dropped the kids off at 12:30 and they didn't call until 7pm that they were ready. Wow was I worrying and calling and checking on them every few hours. Apparently they were totally over booked and didn't bother to tell me this when I made the appointment and took them in. Regardless after a long day for them and $110.00 smack in the wallet for us, we did get gorgeous kids back. 

We headed over to my sister and brother in law's and she was resting and not having the best of days so we left her to rest and we headed out shopping. The boys got a haircut and I did some shopping while waiting for them. Found a nice pair of sandals and a cover for my kindle. Because I complained about Rick's last haircut 3 weeks ago not being short enough-when he told the 72 yr old barber about my complaints-he buzzed him right off. Is it really possible to have a hair cut shorter than a brush cut...yep it is. But like my dad always said "its only a week between a good haircut and a bad haircut"..or in Rick's case it will be more like 8 weeks. 
When the guys were done we met up and headed to publix and picked up some ingredients for me to make my famous 'fish dinner' for everyone for supper. 

Hows that for a nice kitchen to work in..2 ovens :)

Kit my bro in law and Me

My Special Fish Dinner

Making my special desert here-butterscotch dumplings

So for dinner we had "tilapia fish" steamed asparagus, mashed whipped potatoes, tea biscuits and butterscotch dumplings with vanilla ice cream for desert. We spent a lovely evening sitting around and chatting and it was a great visit. 
(Yes for all of you wondering how to make my fish dinner I will include my recipe at the end of this blog)..
This morning Kit was off to work and the rest of us got up had coffee my sister felt pretty good so we hopped in the car and headed off to a diner for breakfast-then to Beals and JCPenny's to do some shopping. While shopping in Beals, I saw a lady going from rack to rack with tears streaming down her face-the other shoppers around here didn't seem to notice. I finally walked up to her and said "Are you ok? Are you sick? Did you lose something" The tears we flowing big time at this point. She had lost her 'wedding ring'. After describing the ring to us, we proceeded to help her and her husband search for it in every department she visited in the store, including the dressing room :(...we did not find the ring and come to find out her husband gave it to her for a very special occasion and although it was insured and could be replaced the memory could not be ..I felt so bad for her..her husband told us it was valued at $30,000.00 and that she had lost weight and it was a bit big on her. They were from out of state on vacation and it was their last day in town. We continued to help them search a long time but to no avail. If she lost it in the dressing room anyone could have found it there and pocketed it..sadly not everyone in this world is honest.
We got back to the house around 3:30 visited a bit with Kit when he got home from work, then we sadly loaded up the kids, packed our overnight bag and headed back to Palmdale.  Today was quite a chilly day here in Fl and this evening as I type this the furnace is kicking in and the electric heater is up and running. But tomorrow is promising to be around 71 so we can live with that. I don't mind the cool nights for sleeping as long as we can have warm days.
Take care all, have a super week and stay safe out there.

Home is where you park it

"May your day be filled with blessings like the sun that lights the sky~and may you always have the courage to spread your wings and fly"

Fish Dinner:
Fish-Tilapia, sole, haddock (pretty much any type of white fish boneless and skinless)
Brush some butter on all pieces of fish and place on cookie sheet in the oven @ 350 degrees until its 1/2 cooked.
Transfer to casserole dish cover with chopped up onion (raw)..a couple of handfulls of shredded cheese (Cheddar works good) Pour a can of "Campbells New England Clam Chowder" over it all (chunky style)..another handfull of cheese and pop it in the oven till done.  Quick easy and delicious!! Enjoy

A Great Day and A Visit from Family and Friends!!!

Thursday was a nice warm sunny day-my sister Julia and her husband Kit arrived early in the afternoon to visit with us! I had spent the morning prepping for supper..bbq steak, toss salad, potato salad, coleslaw, tea biscuits, shrimp, mushrooms and onions and apple pie to top it all off. We had a lovely visit, and it was nice catching up in person. She left Canada in 1992 and relocated to the Fl area, and mostly due to health reasons she doesn't get back to Canada to visit too often, so its nice that I'm in her area. 

Julia, Kit and Rick

Today Kenny and Debbie our friends from our last park (Avon Park) came to visit and we had a great day. So much chatting and fun I forgot to take pictures today. We toured around Mooe Haven, Clewiston, and La Belle...we stopped and picked up pizza for supper and the four of us came back home here to eat and visit some more. It was great to see them again. They are from Maine which isn't too far from us in New Brunswick, so we will meet up during the summer months. I think Tucker and Lilly were as happy to see them as we were. Here are some pics of our current park (Sable Palms)

The view from our patio toward the dog park and pool

fence to the dog park

Sand Hill Cranes just hanging around-the babies not with them for this stroll

I need to be quicker on the draw..there is a new family here in the park. The momma sand hill crane and the daddy and the kids..they just stroll thru the park walking around and don't seem to be afraid of anyone. The babies are yellow in color. I'm trying to keep the camera handy to snap of pic of them all while out on their daily strolls.

Last but not least...heres a couple for you Karen, I also passed along that group url and info from you -to them so they can join. This Safari MH is owned by Pete and MJ from North Carolina.

Ok yall am off to read up on your antics of today, then off to bed. I didn't sleep well last night so hopefully I will tonight. Tomorrow we are off to Cape Coral to my sisters and if she feels up to it I may take her shopping. Thanks for stopping by, and be safe out there!!!

Home is where you park it

"May your day be filled with blessings like the sun that lights the sky~and may you always have the courage to spread your wings and fly"

Gators Gators Everywhere!

Hopefully it never comes to this but its nice to know there is a setup in place should we ever need it~I figure I'll get to ride in the little rig like a queen :) !!!

This morning we arose around 8am..took the furkids out for their morning business, then got down to our morning business of coffee and putering. Dropped in on yall..and nice to see that everyone is doing fine :)..

After a bit I said to Rick what time is it (thinking it was around 10am) he said its almost 1pm...wow -guess we got lost in the blog reading. We hurriedly tidied up, made the bed, passed the vacuum, hopped in the shower, got dressed and headed out to Gatorama. Now that was an experience and not one I'm in a hurry to repeat. I think I saw on Marti's facebook (R Sanity RV Adventures) 'Love is going to a military aircraft museum, because that is what HE likes to do..now I can say "love is going to hang out with a bunch of gators and crocs because that is what HE likes to do"..all I can say Marti is there better be some good 'valentine memories' coming our way :)..

Gators and Crocs do not amuse me in fact I'm petrified of them unless they are incorporated into a nice pair of boots or a nice handbag.

I loved the birds, panthers, macaws, and other small animals. But alas most of the 'livestock' were gators and crocs.

Gators laying around

This bird really wanted that piece of bread

If there is such a thing as a 'nice' gator maybe this is one?

The bread landed on his head he didn't move

This dude was cute and very interesting

She was darling wish the pic was better I could have snuggled her right up

Of course theres vultures everywhere

These Macaws were gorgeous and quite chatty

Pretty Peacocks

Young Gators just laying around

Feeding time (with chicken)

I can't believe Rick held this 'thing'..he was pretty interested in it..I didn't touch it..I stayed on the other side of the camera.
The sun came out and it was hot and sunny, so we headed back to the campground, visited with neighbours and took the furkids for a walk to the dogpark. After supper we took a run into Labelle to the win dixie to pick up a few special things for supper tomorrow -my sister and brother in law are coming to visit us for the day!! Thanks for stopping by folks...stay safe out there...

Home is where you park it

"May your day be filled with blessings like the sun that lights the sky~and may you always have the courage to spread your wings and fly"

Monday Tuesday Trip and Happy Hour

We had a bit of rain earlier today (Monday)..Florida definitely needs rain-it wasn't enough to soak the ground but it was enough to break the humidity thankfully. As I write this blog tonight it is pouring, and has been for a couple of hours. How I love to sleep hearing the rain patter on the motorhome roof. 
We popped the furkids and ourselves into the car and headed into LaBelle today to have a look around the area. Popped into the win dixie for a few things..(nice store and I think the only food store in town)..
We came back and Peter and MJ next door invited us over to meet some other folks and have happy hour under their awning. Thanks Pete and MJ...
After happy hour we came in and I dished up our spaghetti supper, toasted up the garlic bread..and Rick did the dishes. I've been reading blogs this evening catching up with you all, and watching tv. 
Some Palmdale History:
It seems like in the early 1900s Palmdale was a booming town, tourists came from all over the country to experience the wilds of Florida, and stay at the Majestic hotel built by Otto Fog. Up until the 1960s Palmdale was home to several favorite eating and drinking establishments and even had a gas station or two. All that remains now of its thriving town is the post office and the Sabal Palm Campground. Palmdale was never destined to become a tourist attraction and the cabbage palms reclaimed her, perserving its beauty for us to enjoy today! Now the community of 300 is indeed so small you might never know it existed at all if you didn't go looking for it. Once upon a time, Palmdale was a fashionable destination. It is now a hidden treasure of peace and tranquillity. Monday night it rained all night which was good as Fl sure needs some rain. 
Tuesday we headed on out late morning for Cape Coral and a visit with my sister. My bro in law was off so the four of us went out for supper. We had a nice visit, and got back to the resort around 9pm..wouldn't you know the gate was in place and we forgot to ask at the office for a swipe card. Rick walked in and our next door neighbor drove him back to the gate and swiped us in..here are some pictures of our current park:

The mascot I believe

Entrance to the Park

Camp Office and Store

Pond where you know who lives-I don't want to meet him

Ossumer parked and setup

Community bonfire area

Yup Gator lives in there too just a small fellow

Ossumer on other side of dog park

As you can see the park is country and rustic although it has all the amenities you would need including free strong wifi. A nice clubhouse, shuffleboard courts and a nice new pool, and cement patio. The closest town is LaBelle 13 miles away. A driving time of approximately 45 minutes to Ft Myers/ Cape Coral area. Quite a fair size park, and you can be parked in the open area  or the shaded area if you choose.  We like the rustic country atmosphere in the open (no shade for us thanks), and all the folks are very friendly. They have a busy calendar of events so you sure don't get bored here.

Tuesday was warm but overcast and today the weather is calling for a high of 81 and cloud cover. I guess we can live with that for a day or two.

So have a super day folks, and stay safe out there..until the next time - thanks for stopping by!

Home is where you park it

"May your day be filled with blessings like the sun that lights the sky~and may you always have the courage to spread your wings and fly"