Haiti and Private Island

We had breakfast in the dinning room and then of to Haiti and Royal Caribbean's private island.  There were plenty of lounge chairs around so we found a couple in the shade as we had already picked up some sun.  Later they had a buffet lunch and we were back to the ship/

In the evening we went for dinner at the main dinning room where the hostess asked us if we wanted to go to a specialty restaurant at no charge, we did and ended up at the Solarium.  It is a "Mediterranean" style place.  I had Maui Maui, roasted vegetables. plenty of olives.

We went to a Beatles Tribute show in the evening

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Day at sea

Our cabin was nice, the shower the best!  I'd like to take it home!

We had breakfast at Johnny Rockets, when we finally found the place.  Then we went to the pool level for awhile.  We found the Pizza place for lunch and then went to the buffet for fresh fruit.

Nap time and then ice cream.  We read on our cabin's deck in the afternoon as the ocean moved by.

For dinner I had almond crusted salmon and a shuffle for dessert.  We went to the ice show in after dinner...

Off to the cruise ship

We left about 9:30 for the 3 hour trip to the Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas.  It was a cold and rainy day, not a perfect cruise day.  We made a wrong turn that took us off the Turnpike but the GPS got us back on our path.  We pulled into Park N Cruise where they parked our car while we went to board the mini bus to take us to the ship.  We were informed that there was a big backup on the highway and their busses were running slow, but it didn't take long for a bus to come.

When we got to the ship, there was a Long Long line, maybe two blocks long.  Because of the highway back-up everyone had arrived at once.  We stood in line a bit when a ship's employee picked us out (because of my cane, I guess) and led us to the front of the line!

From there we went thru customs (strange) and then airport like security.  From there it was upstairs to another line to sign in and get our passes.  Then up a triple ramp to the ship.  Elevators were busy but we finally got to our cabin.

The cabin was nice, we unpacked our carry-on and went to look for a late lunch at the buffet.  We had salads and a slice of the BEST prime rib.  Then it was time for the safety drill.  When we got back to our cabin our luggage had arrived.  We unpacked and went for dinner.

For dinner I had more prime rob, onion soup, waldorf salad and fruit for dessert.  Afterwards we went to the musical CATS.  By the time we got back to our cabin we were beyond tired.

Cruise Time

Once again Don helped prepare breakfast at the Clubhouse.  Today it was French Toast.  I went over to eat while a load of laundry was washing in our motorhome.  Came back and continued packing, I am down to the odds and ends things, of which there seems to be plenty.

We will be on a cruise for the next week so don't expect posts from me.  I will try to catch up when we return.



One of those events that a person can remember exactly where they were when they got the news.  I was working at at Tech school and went for lunch.  The big screen TV was on which wasn't permitted during the day.  I sat down by a friend who was crying and I knew something awful had happened.

McDonald's, packing, Chinese and Red Box

Today we had breakfast at McDonalds and then to Walmart for some last minute things.  When we came home I started the monumental packing job.  Are we taking too much - need both day clothing and evening clothing.

We got Chinese take-out for dinner and watched Deep Water Horizon from Red Box.  Good show.


I love Yellowstone!

MTM

I continued getting cruise clothing ready.  I went to the park laundry to iron some shirts.  I went to print our ship pass and the printer wouldn't print in color so had to change the ink cartridge as they specified the luggage tags be printed with color.  I am ready tomorrow to start packing, get as much done as possible and finish on Saturday.

The humidity today was something else and hot as well.  I insisted the air conditioner be turned on in the afternoon.

We went to the clubhouse dinner tonight, good beef tips.

A true icon for American Women has died, Mary Tyler Moore

Wednesday

We went to the clubhouse this morning for the Wednesday share time, today's subject "RV Tips".  We didn't learn anything - been at it too long!

Don brought in the suitcase with the cruise clothing so I washed some that hadn't been worn for a couple years.  Also went through things to decide what to take.  Hard to know.

It was a warm, almost air conditioner day.

Brooksville

We miss going to Panera for breakfast like we do in Minnesota so today we went to Panera in Brooksville, about 45 minutes away.  Also got hair cuts while there and did a little shopping.

It was a nice day after all the "weather", cooler and dryer.

I am posting this picture because I am SO tired of two things:  Trump trash talk and people saying we all need to support the president (just like they "supported" Obama).  That may sound like direct opposite comments but I am going to let the alternative facts fall where they will.  Time will tell!  God bless America - PLEASE,

Last of storms

We got rain on and off all night but no storms.  We found a lot of branches small to large, around our lot.  Don was about to go pick them up when a workamper came by with a trailer and got them.  We still have the patio to blow off when it dries.  Funny thing, the acorns lined themselves up along a seam in the concrete.  Part of a fence came down but that seems to be the only damage in the park.

Fixed dinner at home.

Storms

The air conditioner ran on and off all night.  It was about 100% humidity without rain, water pouring out of the AC.  Later the wind came up and we found out that branches were caught in the tree moss and rubbing on the top of the motorhome.  Don had to go up and clear them out.  At least it wasn't raining yet.

About 6 PM the predicted storms started coming, one after another.  Our phones alerted us to "Take cover immediately" so we went to the clubhouse for whatever good that might do.  Other people were there as well.  Finally after 8 PM all the storms passed.

We went for breakfast at Waffle House.  They have good pecan waffles!  Came home and did some work around and read the papers.


Our new education secretary----

More heat and humidity

Don got up early to go to the clubhouse to help prepare breakfast for the park.  I went over later and had a good omelet.  Plenty of people there, they got behind on the omelet making.

It was another hot day with humidity.   We had the AC on most of the day.  Went to Steak n Shake for dinner.

Hot ole day

We had breakfast at McDonalds and then did some shopping at Wal Mart and Winn Dixie.  I don't know how we manage to spend so much money on food when we don't eat at home every day.

It was a hot day with humidity so we turned on the air conditioner.  We grilled brats for dinner.


It;s inauguration day, all I can say is ----.

Orange Blossoms

This morning when I woke up I have a sneezing fit.  Then I realized I could smell orange blossoms.  There aren't many orange trees around here but enough to cause an allergy problem.

We went to the clubhouse for coffee today, a friend was there with her computer.  She had been on the internet at McDonalds and had gotten a nasty virus.  Another friend and I worked on her computer and finally decided she needs to go to see the geeks at Best Buy.  Good she has backed up recently.

I stayed longer at coffee as we were having a good conservation about everything from cruising to alzheimer's.  In the evening we had dinner at the clubhouse - King Ranch Chicken.  Was good but too much food.

Brooksville shopping and eating

We went to the clubhouse for the Wednesday Chat, today's topic was RVing to Alaska.  Most people, including us, have done that but a few had not and have a lot of reservations about taking the trip.  Best trip I have ever taken!

In the afternoon we went to Brooksville.  First to Kohl's as Don needed new dress slacks for the upcoming cruise.  That was an adventure.  First finding his size in a pair that wasn't $100 and then finding that they didn't fit and going through the process again.  Took about an hour, I was too tired to do any more shopping.  Then we went to dinner at Texas Road House, they have a good special of steak and shrimp.  We had to wait awhile and they service was slow so it took some time.  After that a couple more quick stops and we got home about 8:30  PM.


Women's suffrage 1917, we have them to thank!

Cold than hot

It was a cooler than expected night, not that I'm complaining.  It got hot during the day but we toughed it out and didn't turn on the air conditioner, any warmer and I personally will turn it on!

We got pizza for dinner and that's about all we did!





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Clean, topper and leftovers

Don't know how "clean the motorhome" day comes along so fast.  It does seem to need cleaning once a week - stuff to put away and dusty.

Last night we slept on our new mattress foam topper.  It certainly felt better than the hard mattress.

I was going to bake some chicken for dinner but we decided it was too hot already in the motorhome so we had some leftovers.

Sunday stuff

For our Sunday breakfast out we went to Steak n Shake at Wildwood.  They have a good and cheap breakfast.  On the way home we returned the DVD and picked up a couple things at Walmart.

We remade our bed with our new foam/gel mattress topper.  Hope that makes our mattress more comfortable!  It is hot and humid today, just don't like the humidity.

Dinner - we grilled T-bone steak.  It was on sale last week.  It was good but not like midwest beef.  Also had corn-on-the-cob and a salad.

Waffles, Mexican and DVE

Don got up early and went to the clubhouse to help prepare breakfast for the park.  I went over to eat later - waffles and sausage today.  We had fog overnight so the trees were all dripping moisture but cleared up and the sun came out.  Plenty humid.

We had dinner at a good local Mexican place and picked up the DVD Magnificent Seven.  It was good, lots of violence.

Friday the 13th

Friday the 13th.  Never causes me any problems but when I worked at a High School it could be a problem especially if it came right after a full moon like this time.

We went for breakfast at McDonalds and then Walmart for a few groceries and plenty of other little stuff.  Then to Winn Dixie mostly for meat, theirs is definitely better and some coffee on sale.  Got back in time for 10:00 coffee at the clubhouse.

We looked at land tours for the upcoming cruise and booked one.  Think the other two islands we will just get off the boat and see what is in the area.  Also found and booked parking at Port Canaveral, booked a spot at Park n Cruise, same name as where we park at Fort Lauderdale - we are happy with their service.  I fixed dinner and we stayed home in the evening.


Sadly I have seen some of this---

Motorhome excersised

Today was our annual mid-winter "Take the Motorhome for a Ride" day.  We drove into Bushnell and filled with gas.  When we got back had to top off the hydraulic jack tank to compensate for our leaking leveling jack and ran the generator for awhile to make it happy.  So it took just about 1 1/2 hours for all this.  If we move 50 feet or 500 miles the process is the same so there was take down time and set back up time.  IT IS DONE!

For dinner we went to the clubhouse for their weekly meal.  Was port tenderloin tonight, was tender and good.

Stay at home day

Went to 10:00 coffee this morning, on Wednesday we have planned discussion.  Today was "what do you have in your RV that you don't need".  We used to have a lot of needless stuff until we bought a townhouse.  Now all that stuff is there and we're building up again in the motorhome.

We fixed the eggplant we purchased at Parksdale Farms yesterday, was good - hadn't had that for awhile.  Also had salads with all the fresh tomatoes, cukes, etc.

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Tampa and more

We went to Tampa today.  First to our favorite Sweet Tomatoes for lunch and then to Camping World for some motorhome items and Parksdale Farms to load up on fresh fruit and vegetables.  It always surprises me how little we pay for several big bags of stuff.

In the evening I fixed grilled cheese sandwiches and we has some of the catalope we had purchased.  We were stiff full from lunch.

It was a nice day, lower 70's.  On the news we heard Florida is the only state without snow!

Monday

Clean the house day, mostly put the final stuff from our trip away day.  Good to have the motorhome back to normal.

We went to 10:00 coffee at the clubhouse inbetween cleaning.  In the evening we went to Beef O"Bradys for their Monday special - hamburgers.  A little warmer today, the sun did a good job of warming up the inside of the motorhome.

Winter in Florida

It was a cold night, it was 30 degrees when we woke up this morning.  We got the motorhome warm enough to take showers and go out for breakfast.  We also did the Winn Dixie trip for groceries that we didn't do yesterday.  I have bought a lot of groceries recently!

We grilled the pork chops I bought this morning, were very good.  Also bought a peach pie and it was good as well.

Rain, rain, rain

It rained all night and most of the morning.  Don helped with preparing breakfast at the clubhouse, I decided not to go over in the rain.  Don was nice enough to bring me a breakfast to the motorhome!  We were going grocery shopping at Winn Dixie but decided not so in the rain.

In the evening we went to our favorite Chinese place to bring home dinner.  We also picked up the movie "Sully" from a Red Box.  We enjoyed the movie, a true story.  We knew how it ended but didn't know all the scrutiny that Sully had to endure.

Elvis would have been 82 today.

For the first time since we returned we went to 10:00 coffee at the clubhouse.  Good to get a chance to visit.

Before that we went to McDonalds for breakfast and then to Walmart for groceries to restock the refrigator.  We got a lot of stuff but probably forgot a lot as well, time will tell.  It turned out to be a hot day, could be the last hot one for awhile.

We went to Captain D's in Dade City for dinner.


New little candles (battery operated) I got for Christmas.  Can't really see the colors but they look nice!

Escapees meeting

As tired as we are we went to the monthly Escapees (RV club) lunch in Clermont.  Not too many people there but good to see friends again.

We both are stiff and sore, I think from riding in the car for 3 days.  And we both need another good nights sleep.

We are slowly getting stuff upt away, will be glad to have the mess cleaned up!

To Sumter Oaks

We made it to Sumter Oaks about 4 PM today.  All is well with the motorhome.  It was hot inside but what can you expect!  Had 4 dead bugs in the shower.  We got it aired out and some stuff brought inside.

Turned the satellite Dish on which worked fine, BUT no local channels.  That is what we really want.  So after considerable time on the phone, Don finally got the problem solved.

I started a load of wash after the water got hot.  Then some relaxing in front of the TV.


Missing "Home"

Efferingham to Plattsville

There were all sorts of dire warnings about heavy fog forming this morning.  We have been in fog in this area before so believed the warnings.  BUT no fog except in a little high fog in areas.  We had a little rain later in the day on and off, otherwise the roads were good.  There was some heavy traffic in a lot of areas, mostly trucks probably getting out after the holidays.  Plenty of Highway Patrols as well.  Don was sure we were going to mess up our turns in Nashville, but it went slick.  No wrong turns today!

We checked into Country Inn  about 4:30 and went to eat at Zaxby's.  We are tired tonight, don't know how we used to make the trip in 2 days.

Heading south.

We left home today at about 7AM and after taking the wrong turn two different times we made it to Effingham, Illinois about 5 PM.  There was none of the predicted snow when we left, in fact roads were good.  We got into freezing rain in northern Iowa but it was not sticking to the road.  When we got to Illinois we got into heavy rain and it rained and rained.  

Super 8 is our motel for the night.  We checked in and went for dinner at Steak and Shake.  We are tired.  48 degrees at this time, feels warm to us!

2017

New Years Day today.  We went to Denny's for breakfast and then came home to finish getting stuff ready to travel.  Cleaned the house and I did 4 loads of laundry.

In the evening we went to dinner with the family to tell them so long for four months.