Dennis visits for weekend Birthday Celebration

This past week, our son Dennis was attending national security classes at the Shades of Green military hotel in Buena Vista, Florida. Training ended on Friday, so we headed out about 10 am that morning to pick him up.  You can't enter the gated entrance to the hotel with telling the guard who and why you are visiting, and providing ID and letting them know if you will be parking or just picking the guest up.  Absolutely beautiful landscaping!!!

Anyway - after getting lost twice near Magic Kingdom because of the extensive construction, and even On-Star not getting us to our location - we picked him up and headed for lunch, We were a little early to check in to our Hotel, so we drove to Old Town, grabbed some lunch at Checkers and checked out a few of the shops.  Good picture of Rich and Dennis with the Walking Dead - which is one of Dennis' favorite programs!

Our hotel was the Comfort Suites Maingate East which is located adjacent to Old Town, which was very convenient.  With the exception that one elevator was not working, the hotel was exceptionally nice.  Huge rooms, great morning hot breakfast, beautiful pool and fitness center, and small shop for snacks or beverages and concierge for  tickets and shuttle to local theme parks.

That evening we took Dennis to Capone's Dinner and Show, just a few miles down the road. A few minutes in the lobby checking out the "attire" and then upstairs for drinks an horederves before the show.  We elected the VIP tickets again this time which includes your snacks and drinks.  The Margarita was excellent!

VIP gets you seated early, and first to enjoy the buffet.  Tonight the food was exceptionally good!  We all enjoyed seconds!!!   Upon arrival, like everyone who comes to the show, we had our picture taken - which Dennis really liked, and decided to purchase.  We took home the key ring with our pictures.

The show was OK.......We have been here many times and have always enjoyed the atmosphere and the show.  Sometimes a bit corny - but always a good laugh and good entertainment.

Almost the entire staff was new and the show was totally different. We were so used to the regular guys who severed the drinks all night.  Unlike previously these guys did not even participate in the show!  The new cast AND the new show was disappointing, now where near as funny...........  We are not so likely to return again any time soon.  We did however enjoy the non-stop beer and wine!

Saturday was Rich's Birthday.  We enjoyed the complimentary breakfast before heading for home.

It was a beautiful day, with minimal wind so we took a ride in the boat.  Got an absolutely great picture of Rich and his son in the boat...............while I can't say the same for the one Dennis took of ME!!  On the way back we noticed that the turtles were all out sunning themselves again!

That evening we all went to Dock 633 for dinner.  Beautiful evening, so we sat outside.  Unfortunately they were out of the Dock Onion which we were all hoping to share...........but the food  and service was excellent.  Rich had one of their big burgers ( not the one pounder - which is huge - check out the description  below) and Dennis and I had the Reuben and Slaw. Very enjoyable time.

Back home finished the birthday celebration with cake and ice cream!

Dennis' step dad drove down from Tampa to pick him up Sunday morning, shared some coffee and donuts with us.  Dennis will be spending time with him and his step-sister today and Monday before he heads back to Iowa.

All in all - it was a very enjoyable weekend and we hated having to see it end and to say good-bye.

February Celebrations Begin

And so all the February celebrations have started........

First on the list this week is our grandson's birthday.  Dalton celebrated his 20th Birthday on Tuesday February 13th.   He is in his second year, studying Forensic Medicine at the University of Iowa, and is a member of the Hawkeye's Marching Band.  We are just so proud of the wonderful young man he has become.

And of course today is Valentine's Day. 

So much going on this weekend and next week that we decided to just stay in for the day.  But we did each find our Valentine gift this morning when we awoke.   Rich was very happy with his box of chocolate covered cherries, mild chocolate and chocolate cherry candy and his heart shaped chocolate chip cookie!

And I  was especially surprised with a gift certificate for an hour facial and an hour massage at The Spa at Hammock Falls.  But my favorite is always the hand made Valentine Card!

Lazy Days of Winter

February will be a busy month with birthdays, anniversary, and family gatherings, but the past week or so have been pretty slow and lazy days.  Typical winter weather with sunny/cool days and a bit colder nights.

Rich had his appointment with the Cardiologist to see the results of his echo cardiogram.  All went well, just a minor adjustment to his medications!  And so he's good until we come back NY in August.   A trip to the Dermatologist to check a spot on his back also went well......... And me.... I have just one more scheduled next week with the Urologist.

We decided to make a stop at the Hibachi Grill after the Dermatologist visit despite it being just mid afternoon.  Kind of thought that food would not all be fresh/hot given the time of day.  Very surprised - it was very busy and everything was perfect!   Not the usual young man doing the grill ----- and he too did a great job!

Tuesday night was President Trump's State of the Union Address.  Watched the whole thing!  This will be one of those speeches that will go down in history as one of the very best!

And on Wednesday we went to Chicanes Restaurant for a complimentary dinner and informational presentation by Todd Pooley, who is an Independent Financial Advisor.  It was actually a very informative presentation on Fixed Indexed Annuities.   Way better rates than a bank CD, but lower than the stock market.  Rates are based on S&P 500..........but if the Market goes down your balance does NOT.

Chicanes Restaurant is located at the Inn on the Lakes in Sebring. I'm sure the restaurant is excellent - but I would not frequent a restaurant  where an 8oz. Fillet Mignon is $50!  We had three choices for our meal, a Fish dish, Linguine, or Tuscan Chicken.  These dishes normally run about $15 on the lunch menu.  I will say that the food was excellent.  Rich had the linguine, and I had the chicken.

Have to share one more thing.  My nice, while going through some of her father's things after he passes away, found and invitation to my High School Graduation!  How cool!!!

Just another ordinary week.....

Not a whole lot going on this past week.  And now there's not even much to watch on TV.  With the Olympics on, most all of the regular programs are not showing for the next couple of weeks.   We've been recording a few movies, just so we have something besides the news to watch in the evening ..... Rich doesn't watch the Olympics - but I am enjoying them.

Tuesday was my visit with the Urologist.  A few month's back a small spot showed up on my right kidney so I was referred to Dr. Arciola.  It took me from November until February to get an appointment!!  Anyway, I learned that I have a tumour/Angiomyolipoma.  This is a kidney tumour made up of fat, blood vessels and smooth muscle tissue, and while they are generally non-cancerous, they can spread into and destroy surrounding tissue. They can also cause sudden hemorrhaging from the kidney into the abdomen when the tumor is larger. 

Mine appears to be small right now.  I went back in for more blood work on Wednesday and I have a CT-Scan - scheduled for tomorrow morning.  Dr. wants to make sure it has not gotten any larger since November - and if all is good we just need to check on it a couple of times a year.

So anyway - this weekend was a busy one.  Rich trimmed the topiary out front    (and I cleaned up the mess!).  He power washed the front of the house, and the foyer area, while I cleaned the windows and swept up the floor in the garage.  He did a lot of power washing out back, with the deck, the walk and the boathouse. 

February is a busy month for birthdays: Dalton, Rich and Dennis.  Then of course comes Valentines Day and our Anniversary.   And hoping that this week goes by fast - cuz we leave to meet up with son, Dennis on Friday!  Excited.

Cooking, Baking.......and the Country Fair

I really do enjoy cooking.........so we had some pretty good meals these last few days.  Thursday we did Shrimp Scampi over linguine, with garlic bread,  Friday I made up a big batch of White Chicken Chili, with cornbread, and Saturday we did meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy and baked asparagus and today - (no picture) we did Rigatoni and Sausage.

On Saturday we went into town for the Lake Placid Annual Country Fair.  Beautiful day to be out and about and there were lots and lots of people!  When a small town like this starts charging $5 for parking - they know the venue is going to bring a big crowd!  It was a fun afternoon - so many booths set up, and there was a free shuttle running from the park to the school, where a large art exhibit was set up in the cafeteria. 

Like most fairs - lots and lots of tents set up.........with tons of places to eat.  Here are a few of our favorites.........a couple a bit unique, like the Crab Cakes, and the Catfish!! 

And a lot of talented people with booths/tents set up with stuff they build or make.  The bench was one of my favorites, and the outdoor wine bottle/wine glass waterfall. 

As we walked around we ran into our neighbor Phil sitting and enjoying the music.  All the clowns gathered for a group photo in front of the mural of the very first Country Fair.   Bob (Silly Willy) came over from the local Rehab Center, where he is staying and recovering from open heart surgery. Stopped to chat with some of the clowns at their booth - and I received a beautiful hand made bracelet!! And of course before we did anything - we had to find the Funnel Cake booth for Rich!!

The other couple of areas that we enjoyed was the Humane Society, the Bald Eagle and the BC Critter's Reptile Rescue which included the snake, the iguana, the tarantula, the 50+ year old tortoise, the turtles from South America and more. 

Also did some baking yesterday and today.   I made up another couple dozen no-bake cookies for Rich.  ( I guess no-bake is not really baking, is it!!).  A Rich was busy in the kitchen making his homemade, yeast risen bread, which went real well with the Linguine! 

Sad news from the family in Iowa..........as they lost their dog Venus.  This is really a sad story, as Venus was a rescue dog..........  I'll let Dennis tell the story. 

Dennis J. Donald

Yesterday · 

 

😭 Devastating news we lost Precious Venus this afternoon 💖🐕🌈. She passed in my arms trying to get her to ER. Bless her heart, the heart defects were too much. Pain free & run free Precious girl. So much to say & wish I could share everything she was able to experience ... Loving home, big brother, first snow, Christmas, watching TV, many toys, freedom & comfort, etc! She was a Hurricane Harvey survivor & a warrior that fought hard! As a Volunteer at King's Harvest Pet Rescue No-Kill Shelter (KHPR) we took her in as a Hospice Foster on 31 Oct 17. I want to thank all at KHPR, those that donated, the community, family & friends that loved, prayed, asked & cared about her, all Vet's that had a piece of her care & Onyx (our lab) that took care of her & provided love & companionship! So crushed but no regrets! She will be cremated & return home where she belongs & deserves! Precious Venus will be missed but never forgotten! Thank you everyone!💖🐕🙏🙌

 — feeling sad.