And back to Aaron's

Wednesday Randy came back to Washington to pick me up. He took Mom, Kathy, and me to the Family Restaurant for breakfast. The food was fairly generic but I sure enjoyed spending a little more time with family.

Then Randy and I drove back to Alton, to meet up with Aaron for dinner at great restaurant called Fire and Smoke. Quite a change from bologna and sloppy joes!

Visiting with Mom and Kathy

It's 27 degrees - this is crazy! 

Sunday Randy drove me to Mom's to stay with her, while he headed to Alton to visit with Aaron.  I just had a few days this time, so I got busy on the list. I glued some loose bricks, then got her new tv to work by removing the extra, broken box before having lunch (Oscar Mayer bologna). But Mom had bought a little 24 inch tv, so I took her to Walmart to get a larger TV and set it up for her. She fixed us some hambugers for dinner (with grated potatoes) and we watched the Apple Dumpling Gang.

Monday we went to Hardee's with Kathy. I was developing a pretty bad head cold but was able to cut and color Kathy's hair. I also took Mom to Walmart, Goodwill, and Dollar General. Today's menu: Oscar Mayer bologna for lunch, and Sloppy Joes and mac-and-cheese for dinner.  After dinner we played rummy and watched The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again.

Tuesday I breakfasted on leftover Sloppy Joes and Mac-and-cheese before taking Mom to Ecetera. We also returned her 24 inch TV to Walmart and stopped by the Book Nook so she could look for her paperbacks. Back home for Oscar Mayer bologna lunch before taking a nap - still have the head cold. In the afternoon I took some photos of Mom in one of her favorite red outfits, then did her eyebrows and trimmed her hair for her. As soon as I knew I was done driving for the day, I took some NyQuil to help me sleep. The evening plan was hamburgers, Sloppy Joes, cards, and a Shirley temple movie.

High School Reunion

Friday after breakfast at Hardees we drove over to see our nephew Nick, his wife Christine, and their baby daughter Viviane at their new house. We were able to spend several hours with them, catching up on what's been going on. Great visit! 

On our way back to the hotel we stopped for a blast from the past - Wonder Dogs - still good! We took a quick nap before heading out to Metamora High School to watch a football game. Randy showed me around the outside of the school, recalling what classes were held there. We met a few of his classmates in the bleachers to watch the game, but it was really cold! So a group of us headed over to a Hanovers, a nearby bar, and started the reunion early. Randy is famliar with this bar; when he was a senior in high school he lived in an apartment upstairs. Tonight's group included Mary Lou Hill, Chrystal Balwin, Steve Ahern, Jim Krumholz, Debbie, Dale Whittington and his wife Anette, Jim Springer, Dale Schindle, Sue Otwell, and Rod. They talked about school fights and romances and what had happened to other folks. 

Saturday we went to the official reunion. We were a little early so we drove over to Millpoint, where they finally put in a paved bridge. Wow, this is so different from when we lived here! Back then we had to drive through the small creek to get to our house, and when it flooded, we had to park the car and boat across. We drove on past Jim and Jenny Berry's old house, and Donavan's. Things change. The nearby Village Inn restaurant, famous for huge and delicious tenderloins, is gone, too. 

The reunion ran from 6 to 10 and we got there early enough to help set up. There was a pretty good-sized crowd for a small school. The organizers had games of high school trivia and bucket list guesses, and the food was nice. Randy got to visit with some folks he had not seen since high school. 

It was a very enjoyable visit. But it was just 37 degrees when we left - pretty cold for us Floridians!

North to Illinois

We drove to up to Illinois for Randy's High School Reunion. Along the way we stopped at New Salem, which is a lovely stop. It was cool and a little rainy so there were not a lot of people there. They have expanded the Visitor Center, with really good displays and artifacts. 

They still have the cabins, of course, faithfully restored as best as can be. 

One of the docents at a cabin is related to President Lincoln! He is a 6th cousin, 5 times removed. I have no idea what that actually means but it sounds cool and he was a very nice, friendly guy. 

I loved the wares in the store. They tell me that red vinegar is apple cider vinegar. 

The Dulcimer on display is from probably from Tennessee, but it looks right at home here. 

And the kids playing in characters were adorable!

We left New Salem in plenty of time to get to East Peoria and check into the Super 8. Then went to Avanti's for a gondola and to Walmart for gloves - it's so COLD here! 

Arriving at Aaron's for a visit

We had to be up at 3:15 to get ready for the early flight. Gary and Erin picked us up 4:15, which was very kind of them because it's a ridiculous time of day to be on the road. But it's over an hour to get to the airport and we have to be there 2 hours before the flight. There was a long line at checkin but it was an easy flight.  Aaron picked us up, with his 3 dogs in car. 

He had to go to work so we were on our on today. We had breakfast at Quiktrip which was not very good, and they didn't have Chai tea, which used to be awesome here. We stopped at the vet's to talk about selling building to him. It will happen, we just haven't worked out the details yet. We also stopped at Olin - nice to see some of the people we know there. Back at Aaron's place we took a nap, then, without anything else planned, we visited Aaron at his job site. He's doing a great job, as usual. For dinner we went to Moonlight with Krissie, Izzy, Kassie, Jordan, Glenda, Aaron, and Randy R. 

We ordered our favorite, Moonlight fried chicken with Fettachini Alfredo and Moonlight salad. The best fried chicken anywhere!

Izzy entertained us all with guessing games about her drawings - she's very good and very imaginative! Afterwards Jordan took his family home and the rest of us when back to Aarons to visit.

Drift Diving at Jupiter Beach

We went to the Saturday evening church service, which left Randy free to go on a dive on Sunday. He had to get up around 4 am to do that, and because I wanted to use the car, I had to get up, too! I drove him over to the dive shop where he met up with Jose, Brooke and David. They carpooled over to Jupiter Beach and joined about a dozen other divers on a boat. This was a drift dive, which means the boat takes them out and the current brings them back. It was a perfect diving day - the skys was clear, the weather was nice, and the water was pleasantly warm. Visibility was around 70 feet which meant it was easy to see the groups of little fish swimming around. 

And larger fish too, like the beautiful angel fish. 

A mid-size nurse shark swam close enough for a photo-op.

Jose and Brooke were hunting for lobsters, but Randy and David were the only ones who found one. It was a huge lobster and would have made a good catch, but they didn't have hunting licenses and couldn't get Jose's attention, so the lobster avoided the pot another day.

They also spotted several moray eels, ranging from a tiny one the size of a finger, to one as big as a leg.  

They got in two good dives before it was time to quit.

And somewhere along the way they had lunch at Square Grouper bar.  Seems like a nice place!

Thursday

Our friends had an early flight so we had to get up at 4 am. 4 am! That's pretty early to get up, just to say goodbye to someone when you'd rather they didn't leave. But we got them to the airport on time and then Randy headed on to his day at the dive shop. I was left at home, trying to explain to Shorty where his new friends had gone. 

They work, we shop

Randy isn't out of breakfast ideas yet! This morning it was breakfast tacos - tortillas to fill with eggs, hash browns, cheese, bacon, tomatoes, salsa, sour cream, and amazing sautéed cinnamon apples. When breakfast over Randy R got started right away on putting another coat on the nails and joints. 

Randy and Aaron started installing the porch rails. 

This was the signal for Krissie and I to go shopping again. She wanted to find a few more clothes for her granddaughter. First I took her to the Baptist Thrift store where I occasionally shop. But I don't shop for clothes there so I didn't know they don't even have children's clothing section  So we went to another Goodwill where Krissie employed her excellent shopping skills to find several nice things. Then, as usual, we found a few things for ourselves. We headed home a bit early because Randy needed the car to go teach his Financial Peace Class again. We arrived to find the porch rails were done, and for a bonus, our new porch light was installed, too!

Randy headed off and the rest of us had a late lunch of ham and turkey. When Randy returned around 8 pm, we all went to Starvros for a late dinner of salad and pizza. 

Daytona Beach

We headed to the beach today. Since we never know exactly when the (almost) daily rain would arrive (it doesn't read the weather report), we wanted to get an early start - 8:30 to be exact. So we skipped a big breakfast at home and stopped at a Hardees on the way. Then Randy drove us to Daytona, past the Daytona International Speedway, and on to the beach where we paid $20 to be allowed to drive right on the beach. Randy drove the 4 miles to the boardwalk, passing several houses  that have not recovered from the last hurricane. Some had windows blown out and were still covered in plywood. We got about 1 mile from what we thought might be the boardwalk/pier but there was a roadblock set up so we just turned around and parked nearby. 

The water was so rough today that I didn't want to get in, but Randy and Aaron did. It was too rough to swim but they enjoyed standing up to the waves.

Randy R and Krissy walked along, admiring the waves and thinking it was better on the beach than in the water. 

Krissie and I waded out a bit but we decided it would be better to relax on the beach. After awhile we all decided to walk that mile up to the boardwalk/pier. But right before we got there Randy learned that the weather was rough enough that they were not letting more people on, so we decided to turn around. It wasn't raining but the surf was so strong that, from a distance, it looked like rain on the beach. 

We stood around, eating chips and discussing when we should leave for lunch. The answer was "now" so we left the beach and headed to Aunt Catfish. We've been here before and loved it. In fact, this is the only place I know where I will order only the salad bar. Sometimes I don't even add lettuce and when I do, it's not a major component.

Finally - some shopping!

This morning Randy made waffles and served them with strawberry sauce (from our Plant City Strawberry Festival strawberries) and bacon. I love breakfast.

Then, as usual, Randy R started taping, mudding, and sanding. He is determined to get most of this done before he leaves.

While he was doing that, my Randy and Aaron started the work to add a step to our new porch. That seemed like a good time for Krissy and I to go shopping! We were hoping to find some clothes for her granddaughter so I suggested we go to the Goodwill in The Villages because they have a big turnover in nice clothing. Krissie went through them all and found what she was looking for. Then we did some shopping for ourselves. We tried on a lot of things and both found some goodies. Several times we thought we were done and headed towards the registers, only to find something else along the way. Then it was back to the dressing rooms! Clothes, more clothes, sportswear, shoes - eventually we just had to admit we couldn't try on everything and had to leave. But we didn't get far....Home Goods is nearby and I wanted to shop there, too. And before we headed home we made a quick stop at Walmart. Eventually, though, we did need to leave. And when we got home, there was a solid new step waiting for us!

We got ready to go out to dinner and met Pete and Donna at Oakwood, where their specialty is ribs. After dinner we stopped by Pete and Donna's house so the folks could see the lovely job they've done on their home in the 5 years they have had it. Then they followed us back to our place to admire our new porch and the big, lovely space created by all the work the guys have doing.