Here we go again

So much of the house is done: the front room is finished!  

The kitchen is finished!

And now . . . we start the living room. 

Christmas Holilday 2020

Christmas Eve Day we delivered the hot chocolate and cookies for the Christmas Eve service but we didn't stay; we were heading to Lake City to spend Christmas with family. We got to Lance's house by 5. We visited with Marla, Lance and their son Liam for about 15 minutes when a heavy rain started and suddenly there was a loud BANG and all the lights went out! We could still see fine because earlier Marla had fill the rooms with scented candles and strings of tiny battery-powered lights. So everything had a lovely glow.

Lance went outside to check on the trees and on the chicken which was already on the grill. Trees were down, chicken was cooking. Nothing much to do but drink Cinnamon Fireball and eat chips with Ken Ranch dressing - great! In spite of the rain Lance and Randy continued to check on the chicken and soon it was done. 

Good, I needed to eat something besides chips to soak up that Fireball. Grilled chicken and grilled asparagus, with Stouffer’s mac and cheese did the job nicely. After dinner Lance and Marla taught us to play Uno Attack. There are a lot of rules but Liam, at 7 years old, is already an expert. And as soon as Liam yelled “Uno” to end the first game, the lights came back on! 

Four long hands later, it was time to call Santa, who knew all about Liam’s wish list and school concerns. Santa always knows. After that Randy and I were ready to call it a day so we left Marla and Liam to bake cookies for Santa while we went to bed. Lance has renovated the guest bedroom in an English theme with signed prints, Royal wedding commemorative cups, and a big English flag.

In the morning Marla's mom Gail, daughter Jordan, and Jordan's friend Rachel joined us for a breakfast of waffles and bacon, followed by opening gifts. 

Liam was such a sweetie - he had wrapped up his money as a present to his mommy. Fortunately he cleaned up with gifts of more money, a Les Paul guitar, a telescope, and (from Uncle Randy) his first gun. 

Next Marla and Randy spent time in the kitchen cooking prime rib, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, fresh rolls, and cheesecake with apple topping.  Lunch was in the early afternoon and everything was so good that we ate enough to last the rest of the day!

So we relaxed and visited until the evening when we chucked all the good vibes out by watching “Greenland”, a dramatic film about a near apocalyptic event. Ah well, I slept great anyway. And the next morning we headed home. 

Randy's Christmas Delights

Randy does love to make Christmas goodies. This year he made Peanut Brittle,

Oatmeal-cranberry-chocolate chip cookies,

Toffee,

Chocolate chip cookies.

and Peanut Clusters.

Then he put them all together to make a tray for his lucky co-workers at Shooter's World!

Christmas parade at Lake Griffin Isles

It is a Christmas tradition at Lake Griffin Isles for people to decorate their golf carts with Christmas lights and form a parade through the park. This year's parade was scheduled for last night, so Randy baked some delicious fudge and chocolate chip cookies, and we set up our chairs outside to wait for the parade. Neighbor Pat crossed the street to join us. We lit some citronella candles (mosquitoes are still bad, here even in December) and waited in the dark. Randy got into the spirit with his Mickey Mouse Christmas-light ears. 

A little after 6pm, here they came! There were 20 to 25 of them, each decorated differently. They passed our house and drove to the end of the street before turning around. As they passed us again, we handed out fudge and cookies to the surprised and grateful crowd. Merry Christmas everyone!

Out to see the lights

Larry and Linda came over to our part of town and we took them out to see Christmas Lights. We planned to go to Cottom Farms but I forgot that you take a tractor-trailer ride through the lights. None of us were dressed for that kind of cold so we admired what we could see from the road. Linda said they were pretty "Wow" anyway.  

Next we went to see the Lady Lake lights at the Lady Lake Visitor Center. Every year they dress this area out beautifully. Linda rated this one a double-Wow!

Then Randy remembered the big light decorations at Venetian Gardens. They have great lights that flash and blink in time to the piped-in music. Triple Wow!!!

Another year of things to be thankful for

Thanksgiving at the Lamberts again and we have so much to be thankful for, including a tableful of family and friends. This year it was Lance and Marla with Liam (who is growing up so fast!), neighbors Pete and Donna, and church friend Billy. Randy fixed deviled eggs, potatoes with gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberries and oranges, Waldorf salad, dressing and turkey. Marla brought her cheesy green beans, Donna made pecan pies, and Billy brought pumpkin pie with whipped cream. With so many good cooks, all I had to do was sit down and eat! (That's my specialty, I'm very good at it.) 

Thank you for joining us to celebrate this day set aside to remind us of all the good things in our lives. 

Turtles get big here

Went out to pull a few weeds and found a huge turtle by the house. It's a yellow-bellied slider, probaby a female 'cause it's too big to be a male. I like these, too. 

Wild Things

For breakfast we had some of Randy's wonderful cinnamon rolls. Then, when nobody could decide what to do, Randy suggested we do the Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive. None of us had been there before so we didn't know what to expect. What we found was wonderful! Just a little ways inside the park we pulled over where a lady was standing, and she pointed out little baby alligators! There must have been 2 nests because some were so young they still had rounded little snouts and some had more elongated noses.

They all still had their baby black and yellow camouflage stripes. So cute!

Of course where there are baby gators, there will be mommy gators. In fact, as we walked over we saw one a few feet out in the water as she sank below the surface.  It probably would have been smart to leave but instead we kept an eye out for her as we admired her babies. Fortunately these alligators must be used to seeing people around. They are certainly used to the sleek red-beaked Moorhens who share their leaf-covered waters.

Alligators are the stars of the show here. They are not tame, but they feel safe enough that they are not terribly shy, either. 

At first we exclaimed at every one we spotted but eventually we got so used to seeing them that we could enjoy everything else here, like the abundance of water birds. I have a weak spot for Great Blue Herons. They are so tall and graceful, even when they are just relaxing in the sun.

Overhead a very large bird started making noise. It had an eagle-like body and a black eye-stripe - an Osprey. I didn't know they were this big.

This was a great place for a photo. Turns out everybody wants their photo taken; in the lower left corner is an alligator! 

And oh, how beautiful are the snowy white Great Egrets. These long-legged beauties rival swans for elegance.

Everywhere Anhingas perched and spread their wings. Without water repellent feathers, they need to dry in the sun. 

We got used to seeing alligators in the water. But along the bank we spotted a HUGE alligator walking along like a dinosaur. By the time I grabbed my camera he had laid down, so big and shining in the sun that you would think this couldn't be real, it must be a halloween prop. 

Then he eased himself down the bank and into the water without a ripple, disappearing into his realm. We were inside the truck and across the canal from him and he was still scary.

This part of the canal had even more alligators than the beginning section. We passed one who was slowly but determinedly chasing a smaller one out of his area. 

And sometimes we found one close to the edge, giving us a long, hard look. 

I love them all, these untamed wild things. 

When we reached the end of the driving loop, we headed to Eaton's Beach for a late lunch/early dinner. I simply cannot order anything but their Mac and Cheese, while the guys love the Shrimp and Grits. Last time we were here Glenda ordered a burger, but this time she opted for a fish sandwich. Everything is still great. And it was home to one last sighting - the goofy tourist!

Visit from the Newlyweds

Saturday Randy drove to Tavares area to do a scuba diving job. A man there has a nice sailboat but he cannot get into the water to clean it anymore. So Randy suited up and got the job done for him. 

On the way back we got a nice surprise - a phone call from Aaron and Glenda saying they are in Florida to visit her mom, and asking to visit us for a bit. Of course! They drove over Sunday morning and joined us for church service before we went to Fiesta Grande in Mt. Dora for lunch. It was good as always, although it's better with the two-for-one margaritas. Afterwards we strolled through Mt. Dora (strolling is what one does in Mt. Dora), checking out stores with cute stuff, oils, and spices. It's October but we stepped into one store lit up like Christmas - I want this look in my house!

We stopped for ice cream, where Glenda and Aaron acted like typical newlyweds.

By the time we were ready to leave it was too late to fix dinner, so we came home, ordered Stavros, and just chilled out. 

One more day in Branson

Monday Randy fixed us breakfast before we headed out to wander around Branson. First we went to Dicks and then to my heart's desire, the Victorian Store. 

We also went through leather stores, thrift stores, and antique shops. And a candy store where we stocked up on saltwater taffy. 

Then we went to MacDoodles, a liquor store where we looked for something wonderful and failed to find it. Maybe next time. 

We went to Billy Bob's Dairy for cheeseburger, tenderloin, fries and malts. Very good. A bit pricey but very good. We did a bit more driving about before deciding an early night would fit the bill. Leftover for dinner, and early to bed. 

The next day we decided to go home, so after breakfast and laundry we loaded up Shorty and headed out. Our truck got 22.6 miles per gallon, even though there hills - love it! We felt US 65 was a 2-lane road a bit too long but it was still a good road. Having had enough of cheap motels on the way up, this time we stopped at a La Quinta. Still no good. Someone had left underwear on the floor, there was no wifi, no breakfast, and a surprise pet charge. Poo. We went out for dinner to El Portillos for good nachos and poor service. 

Next morning we were on the road early, stopping out of town at a local restaurant called Wards, but it wasn't anything special.  So on and on and on. For lunch we stopped at Buccees for a pretty good brisket sandwich. And continued until we finally made it home. That's too long a drive but we made it safe and sound. 

Any day fishing is a good day

This morning the guys went out to clean the boat, while Kris and I slept a bit longer, but by 9:30 we were all out for the day. First stop was breakfast at The Farmhouse. Since this is such a great place, there was a wait. So we put our name in and went into Dick's Five and Dime - an excellent place to spend some time. 

The Farmhouse breakfast was, per usual, great. Then we went to Randy R's nice clean boat for another cruise. This time the guys put a couple of poles in the water, to see what they could catch. 

And what they could catch was beautiful Rainbow Trout!

Soon Randy started handing off his line to me when he got a bite. I lost the first one right before we got it in the basket, but later I got the hang of it. So much fun!!

Unfortunately Randy and Kris had to head back for Monday's work. After they left we got a few groceries, then spent the evening watching movies and having Mr Gilberti's leftovers.

Back in Branson

We got up around 9 but didn't make it out until 11. No worries, we were here to relax. Randy R drove us to Danna's for breakfast/lunch, where I got my usual - baked potato with pork, slaw and cheese. Randy had the Boss Man salad with lots of good meat and a Memphis roll. That's a roll which is deep fried, then they punch a little hole in it and stick in a chuck of butter to melt inside. Such a GREAT idea!

Then we went out on Randy's boat. How nice - this is how to relax. 

Randy and Kris have had a boat here for 35 years so he knows lots of stories about the area. He entertained us until I gave in to my somnolence and napped a bit. 

Afterwards he drove us to an Amish grocery store - lots of good stuff here. 

We went back to the condo to let Shorty out and then, hey, it was time for dinner! We went to Mr. Gilberti's Place for the Andy Williams salad for four, plus spaghetti and pizza. So good.