Trip to Cape San Blas

Since my last post, our family made it back to Cape San Blas for a weekend. After one trip was canceled and trying to find a house for another weekend, Lindsay said why not just go sooner than we had planned. I feel like it was a fast decision, but we were lucky enough to find a house. We just planned and packed quickly. This time we stayed on the bay side rather than the Gulf side. 

One thing is for certain, the bay will win out for future trips. We always went to the bay when the kids were little, but when we went in 2020 we got a Gulf side house. Hands down all loved the bay side, so Sandy will just have to walk over to put her toes in the Gulf side. Now, the bay is actually just trapped Gulf water so really I am getting my salty experience on either side. If I am honest, I liked the bay side too. The one who didn't or maybe he did was Gus. Gus was a bad dog though. He couldn't relax because he could see everything from the window so no one was leaving out that back door without him. He didn't understand the salty taste of the water. He threw up all the salt water that he ingested despite my best efforts. Next time, he will stay home with a sitter.

Other than that we had a marvelous time together soaking up the quiet life the Cape holds.

Here are a few photos of the trip.

Sunrise and you can see low tide. The tides are very prominent in the bay and bring with them loads of sea life. We didn't keep any of it...just enjoyed seeing it. All of the sanddollars and starfish are alive.

Tucker did reel in a small shark. He was quite proud and asked if anyone his age had ever caught a shark before? HA!

View from the porch. The water you see is wonderful for swimming. Shallow and clear. Pure Gulf water. Lots of patches of grass for finding starfish and sand dollars and other things too.

Jeff and Paul Allen's birthdays were last week but we waited until we got to the Cape to celebrate. I felt like I rushed their birthday a bit, but I think they would have chosen the trip over the regular day we usually have.

The boys put each one of those candles in the cake. I also felt he cake was rushed. It is the fudge frosting that I know is popular in the south. Not sure about other parts. It is time consuming and I didn't even clean up the cake pan. I was making it the night before we left.

I failed to get a better picture of the birthday boys. When you have 3 little boys around, the mind doesn't work as well as it once did. They did however get the candles blown out and the cake was delicious! All that icing was cleaned up off the pan before we left for home. Paul Allen is 33 and Jeff is 64. I have 9 months on him.

I am back worn out and spent most of yesterday moving slowly. Grateful that we got to go and now there will be a knee replacement for Jeff in July and of course the usual with Mom. I am still planning a day a week for tutoring Tucker. I am also doing something each week with the kids. It is a busy season, but I am grateful to be able to share time with them. 

In my next post I will share more about what I have been stitching on and a book I read. I have 2 new books sitting in my stack ---deciding which I will start today. Both look like they will be great.

The stitch is a gift for a family friend that graduated from high school this year. I had no idea she would like a stitch, but I got word she would.  I am just trying to finish it by the end of June. More details later on it.

 

Tired, but oh so grateful for time with family making good memories. 

Sandy

Summertime Is Here

 After the surgery mess, I did take a full day to myself on Friday. Jeff and I did go and take a short walk on the beach early Friday, and I took Gus on a shorter walk than usual. He wasn't all that happy about that, but I plopped myself down in my clean house and read and stitched most of the day. I pretty much rotated between my 2 books and my stitching all day long. It was a very nice day if I must say so myself.

This did not seem to be Hank Heron (named after Hank Aaron). He didn't fly off and he let Gus and I walk around on the deck. Hank would not do this. Do we have a new guy or girl on the bayou? If so, he may be Lenny or Linda Longlegs.

This surgery tried to ruin our mini vacation to Cape San Blas, but I have recovered that. Woohoo! As for the surgery, the next date the doctor can do it is August 1st, but that is if United Health Care approves it. I am actually not holding out hope for that and honestly that is not a good date. I am praying and thinking to myself right after Christmas sounds about right. We shall just have to see what happens. I am not in charge of this...All in the Lord's hands. I will say I am thinking the insurance company is going to slow roll it until I am officially on Medicare. I did sign up the first week of June. Don't have my card yet, but I am sure it is in the system. I am going to go with Florida Blue which is Blue Cross in other places for my supplemental insurance. My mom has it and it has been a good fit for her. Enough of that. The waiting game is on.

Vacation had been canceled but a mini one has been rescheduled. I am all in for that.

These lush ferns look like they are suspended in air, but they are on the old wagon wheel and obviously loving life.

Gus turned 8 yesterday. Seriously, it seems like just yesterday we drove to west central Georgia to pick him out. 

He is a loyal boy. 

He goes everywhere I go. 

He loves to swim, take the same old paths for walks daily and is a good pal to the grandkids. 

Tucker has had his first tutoring day here and it went well. I think he was quite proud of himself. On one of his breaks he entertained himself by throwing a rope in to the water like he was casting a net. I'd say he did this about a 100 times. His form was pretty good. You may notice Gus is wet because he seemed to think he needed to go get the rope about that many times too.

Summer is here and it is time to be on the water and enjoying the fact that we live where people go to vacation. Valerie is learning young as each of the boys have.

The kids have all been getting out on Saturdays to either fish or swim. I have made it a point to sit on my deck in the mornings or evenings. 

Jeff's therapy went so well. I am so pleased about that. He is really trying to keep up with the things he taught him. I think he is early enough in his walk with this ugly disease to see the value of the therapy. I am grateful for that. One day at a time.

If I have learned anything about the trials that have come along lately, it is to value each day. 

I will be checking in with everyone today and I will share what I have been stitching on soon. 

Until next week,

Sandy

Cancellation News

Well folks, my surgery was canceled less than 24 hours prior to go time.

I don't know who is responsible, but I have had all the phone calls I want to deal with today. I will share more later, but for my surgery day I am going to give myself a hey day. My hey day is going to be watching a movie on my recovery list, reading one of my books in my stack and stitching on my latest stitch.

Bottom line is - it is the doctor's office saying my insurance, United Health Care had not approved the surgery. The UHC person says the doctor didn't get the information to them in time to review and approve. Both are accusing the other. 

Jeff doesn't handle things like he might once have, so he was so unhappy that I had to just be so quiet and stable. He was saying no insurance that you pay that much for should have the approval process at all. He also thinks they saw I am about to turn 65 and decided to hold out on it. Who knows?!!! Lindsay was pulling out all her contacts since she is still at the district office for the schools which is where our insurance still comes from.

This I do know, God is in control and I am a believer in things happen for a reason.

Remember, when I was supposed to go to Haiti and the trip was canceled at 8:00 PM.  Katie and I were supposed to fly out at 5:00 AM the next morning. At the very time we would have landed in Port-au-Prince, riots were breaking out and Haiti hasn't been the same since. A week after that a church group was taken hostage. 

So, I will just go with the flow.

Be back later after I have come down from the high energy levels I have been at all week trying to get my house perfect and so much more.

Just wanted to give my prayer warriors a heads up. Thanks, guys.

May Days

 May Days went quickly for me. I really like May...it is such a pleasant month post teaching. Some of the loveliest weather is in this merry month of May. I think the young people call it "Maycember" because of its busyiness with school ending and all the activities. I remember those days and don't exactly miss that. However, the last 2 weeks of May have been very busy for me. I had many appointments and then we went to Auburn where I generally rest and catch my breath, but this time even that was busy. So, I have been AWOL and now heading in to June trying to catch my breath. 

My daylilies are so pretty at the moment. These will take me in to June and I have a few varieties that go on into July. It keeps a happy pop of color near the front of the house for a little longer.

A couple of weeks before Memorial Day I popped into a store and bought some flags. All of mine were really needing a replace. Since I have no where to hang a flag on the front of our house, I bought several to line my only pots out front. I took this picture soon after I purchased them. The flowers are so much bigger now, but I am too lazy to walk out and take a new picture.

I got 3 taller ones and 2 shorter ones to lean out a little bit. I was quite pleased with myself. The month had been so busy with things that Memorial Day slipped up on me as well and I got my little patriotic stitches out on Wednesday before Memorial Day. We left on the Thursday that week to go to Auburn. It was quiet but we had friends there so it was go go go.

As I was standing in line to purchase those flags, it hit me that next year the country will be celebrating 250 years since that Declaration was written. I started reminiscing about 1976 and the Bicentennial. That was so much fun. I am now looking forward to getting my patriotic game on for next year...well, this year too.

Tucker got on the bus for the last time as a kindergartener. Seriously, how can that be?!!! He has had a growth spurt as of late too. He is looking like such a big boy.

Palmer will be attending VPK in August at the same little church school that Tucker attended. I was so happy Lindsay decided to move him to that school. The church daycare that both he and Tucker have gone to is starting VPK this August and has been a great daycare, but the one Tucker went to for VPK was just amazing and I just know in my gut it is the right choice. I had been praying about it. She is going to let him attend VPK twice since he is so small and has a late summer birthday. 

Kristan, our niece and family are in town and we had our annual pizza dinner this past week. I remembered to grab a couple of photos. The twins Katelyn and Tanner will be 16 in August. For those of you have followed along with me for the years know that is hard to believe as well. Katelyn is sitting by the TV and Tanner is on the couch on the phone in the next photo.

Practically grown. Katelyn plays soccer and loves Florida. She says she wants to come here for college and Tanner is a baseball boy and is all Texan.

Valerie was sleeping in this picture but came out later and enjoyed watching all the boys' antics.

Jeff has grown quite a few tomatoes in buckets this year. Another blessing of the pine trees being removed. Enough sunlight to get these little goodies.

We went out to Lindsay's for Memorial Day afternoon to eat. I snapped this cute photo of Palmer with Valerie.

And this one of the Three Musketeers.

As I was placing the dolphin stitch on the shelf next to the whale, I realized how cute it would have been if I had turned him on the diagonal for his pillow, but he looks cute in the dish anyway. Live and learn.

A cute story about the candy below which illustrates what Paul Allen will be dealing with when Miles becomes a teen. Might there be a little payback for the son who argued his case on a daily basis with me and gave me all my gray hair???

The candy is now known as "Ovals" at our house. I have been a fan of this candy for quite some time. I really like the dark chocolate coconut candy bars (much like Mounds or Almond Joy). I like them too much in fact. This brand has quality ingredients that I don't react to and while they are expensive, I do let myself indulge occasionally. I kept my stash in a drawer and really no one ever ate any but me, BUT then Jeff discovered them and likes them way too much too. He likes the above chocolate covered peanuts and the ones like Reese's peanut butter cups. So when he started coming home with bags of it, it wasn't long before Miles discovered all of in the pantry and took a great liking to the ones above.

One day he came over asking for the "ovals." Finally he explained it enough that we figured out he was talking about the candy. He knows his shapes and these are indeed oval shaped. The name has taken over the Palmer house.

Here is the case making chip off the old block part. One day Paul Allen and Katie were over and Miles asked for the ovals. Jeff proceeded to make the case for his large amounts of candy to them. He made them sound too healthy - so much so that Miles began to say when asking for more that Pa Pa said they were healthy.

I just had to smile, because he really is quite good at making his case even at his age. He is going to give his daddy a little bit of what his daddy gave me all the time. A constant case for what he deemed important to do that I didn't always agree with. I just can't wait until he says his dad's name 50 times in a row. Oh the teenage years.

I have my pre op appointment on Monday for my surgery on Friday. I am going to go look for a knee scooter after that because there is no way I can walk on crutches for a month at my age. 

Not looking forward to it, but also ready to get it behind me. I have a busy week trying to get my house clean enough for me to last 4 weeks not being able to do it like I want to. Gonna try to throw a beach day in there too. 

I will probably be off the blog again for 2 weeks.

Happy summer everyone. It is the best time of year!

Sandy

Stitching and More

I have stitching to share, thoughts on this time of year and my plants, and a little life thrown in the mix.

Stitching

First up. I finished the dolphin. I was obsessed with stitching it. I know. I know. How can one love stitching something you change colors every 30 seconds? It is weird, I get it. I was that way too with the whale I stitched. Watching it come together is strangely fun. Lest you think it is just a blob of different colors; there are swirls and lines and circles all through it to make it come to life with patterns.

I finished it yesterday and cut it out and ironed the cloth to go behind it and found myself in the sewing room fairly early this morning stitching the pillow. 

As I started putting the trim around it, I realized there is a lot of blue underneath the dolphin compared to the whale by the same pattern. They are different for certain. I think I will leave it like that. My initial thoughts were maybe it needed a nautical charm of which I have a bag of, but I think I like it just plain. I will live with it awhile and see.

The pattern was by Awesome Pattern Studio and was stitched on 36 count peacock linen.

I shared that I had hung my sandpipers, but needed to sit on the location a week. I have landed on that I quite like it in my guest bathroom. At first, I wondered if was lonely on the wall and did I need to move the turtles on the opposite wall ---do a swap a roo.

I have decided after walking by it many times during the week that I am pleased with it. I can even add to it. It doesn't look as small in person as it does in the photograph.

I ended up liking the frame more too. The bathroom has cabinets similar in stain.

I don't think I ever shared the final home for Valerie's name.

Future Stitching

I think I have a plan for Valerie's Christmas ornament put together. That will be my next start. Oh, and I have some of that peacock blue linen I used on the dolphin and whale left, probably enough to stitch 2 ornaments. I am thinking some retro Christmas ornaments in the pinks would look good on them and I have a flamingo pattern that I picked up last year with some cute beading that might look good on that color. My creativity is being fed by the possibilities.

My Flowers

My daylilies are really starting to pop now. I love how I have something in bloom almost all the year in the yard. That took a lot of years to put together, but I am reaping the rewards now. Summer only really has my potted plants blooming, but my goodness in summer everything is green and lush.

Alabama Jubilee

Fly season is upon us in Florida...not that they ever really go away, but something about May brings them in with a new gusto. You can't leave anything food related stuff out even for a second. I have to hit up my sinks with Clorox for the drains. It is probably one of my least favorite things.

Don't even think about cracking the door. Enter and exit quickly. HA!

I got rid of most of my houseplants last year about this time. It was a big step, but one that has proven to be just what I needed. When do you have too many plants? When they become too much to care for. 

I downsized potted plants outside as well and have found it all to be much more enjoyable and enough for this gardener but not so much that it is a burden.

Life this Week

It was a slower week than most in things outside the home which meant I got a good bit done, but eventful nonetheless with incoming phone calls.

My toe surgery is scheduled for June 6. Yes, I dread it!!! More so, because I don't think I am going to like not being able to put weight on that foot for 4 weeks. That is going to be very tough on me. I am going to share a photo at the end and will give you a warning that it might be just too much to look at. I am doing so because in all my research I have seen every kind of toe deformity imaginable, but not very many like mine. I have had it for at least 10 years and it has gotten worse with time. It is very difficult to tape at this point. I tried to strap it and tape it and it hurts like the dickens after about an hour, so I guess it is time to try and repair the tendons. I actually went to a doctor about 8 years ago and he said it would come back, but this podiatrist swears if it is done right it will remain in place.

I think it is combination of rheumatoid arthritis and injuries from jogging. I always struggle to call myself a one time runner because I am not winning any contests for sure. Once upon a time I did jog and really liked it. I did all the 5K races around the area. Never got less than 30.5 minutes ( I could never break 30 minutes) so as you can see I am not a real runner, but for the non athlete here I was proud of those times.

All is about the same here, but Jeff did schedule an appointment with a knee doctor. The one he used to see has retired. We shall see how that goes. All the things of aging I suppose.

That is it for me. Until next time.

I will scroll down and add the toe picture so if you don't want to see it...goodbye.

Sandy

The surgery will be on the left toe, but as you can see this is going to eventually have to be done on the right. Pooh!!!

 

Stitching and the Week in Review

 I have a stitching finish. The sandpipers are from the Crossed Wing Collection. They are always so much fun to stitch. After all that creating for Valerie's name, the following just a pattern was sheer pleasure.

I like the frame color and wood, but wish I had gone with a little wider selection. I am not bummed though. I think it turned out well. I have hung it, but will wait to show until I am sure it stays where I hung it. I am 90% sure it will. 

I immediately started a dolphin like the whale I stitched here. Oddly ---as crazy as it might look, these are so much fun to stitch.... seriously almost addictive...very hard to put down. I plan to finish it the same way as the whale. There is one more of these patterns that I downloaded. It is a seahorse. I am not sure if I will stitch or not, but they are fun. You must stitch in small squares, but all that madness does have patterns. Swirls and so forth.

I shared I take a morning walk around the yard each day. I captured this early one morning this week.

Everything is greening up so pretty and there are about to be lots of daylilies blooming. I can't wait. We finally got much needed rain this week. All but Monday has provided showers, but in true spring fashion they are mostly crazy. Not just showers, but downpours with occasional winds.

I am still getting lots of roses. The heat should arrive next week and they will be a little less prolific in the high heat of summer. For now, I will enjoy them.

 

Monday was my calm day and knowing that rain was in the forecast for the week, I slipped off to the beach and got my first start on the tan. I do not care about the tan. It is a bonus to just loving the beauty of the beach. It was another gorgeous day. I took my chair this time.

I also ordered me a new beach chair for Mother's Day. I am going to be sitting in style this summer. Still no schedule for my toe surgery. It may be fall before that happens which will be ok too. Surprisingly I am very calm about it all. Nothing like big things going on to keep things in perspective. 

Jeff started his PT this week. Monday was mostly assessment. She firmly told him the knee that he has been going to the doctor for since 2017 needed to be seen about. It is making the back worse and she strongly suggested it was time to replace it. He didn't take that news well. One day at a time.

The PT is intensive for 4 days a week. It is not strenuous to the average person, but I would say it is intensive for him. Sometimes I just look and think how could someone so athletic could be where he is? It doesn't do much good to dwell there.  We made him a notebook of the exercises he will be doing for life or as long as he can AND I did them with him on Wednesday, the day he didn't go. 

We sold our Jeep 2 months ago. I didn't mention it, but he made the decision to let it go. It was a 1995 YJ Jeep which they only made for a couple of years back then. It was known to Jeep watchers/lovers because of the square headlights on the model. I always joked it was his midlife crisis car (not a bad choice though). It was a favorite for the dogs. You may remember we had to spell J-e-e-p for our Golden Retriever, Lemony because she loved riding in it so much. 

Anyway, Jeff has made him a great little workout place the garage with the absence of the Jeep and a place to sit and listen to his newfound like of audio books. They help with the bike rides. 

I did his exercises with him out there Wednesday. Mostly they are just big movements. Trying to keep the body from choosing smaller movements, but I actually think they are good for any of us that are aging. Balance too of which he has not a lot of.

He does them again the same day as his therapy too. The idea is morning and afternoon.

Lindsay had to go to a conference this past week in Orlando, so naturally Palmer got sick. I kept him home 2 days and made a few trips out to help get Tucker on the bus and all. Never a bad trip as I get to see the bay and the Gulf. 

At one point he was feeling better so I took him for ice cream. We have an amazing local ice cream shop now. It has been a huge hit here in town which is great because it means it will survive.

He is starting to look like a big boy!

Jeff and I had a party to attend so I will share a picture someone took of us. Not too bad of us. I am not photogenic at all.

Paul Allen and Katie are in Auburn this weekend for a baseball game. Miles go to see Aubie up close.

Looks like he enjoyed it. 

We have officially turned Katie into an Auburn fan. She was a Florida State fan, but didn't attend there so we have sold on her on Auburn. 

She sent the one of Valerie and said, "Let the indoctrination begin."

My heart just melted. She is so adorable. 

Mom's senior living place had a tea party for the mothers yesterday so I scooted over to go with her.

Enjoying the beauty of May and soaking up the goodness in each day.

A Quick Trip to Auburn

Jeff and I made a quick trip to Auburn on Monday through Wednesday. It wasn't really in our plans. That is a biggie for me to do something so spontaneous since I am a planner girl. We really won't be able to get up in May due to his physical therapy, so we decided to go check on some things and get some things also lined up too. He thinks some pressure washing needs doing, so we have someone coming next week for that. Paul Allen and Katie are going up the next weekend for a baseball game and then my good friend is going up for the week, so there will be a presence there in the month of May.

We were busy going more than relaxing but I did find some time to just sit, read, and think.

Gus and I took our walks of course and saw a few things to share.

I came across this flower and oh did I stop!!!

I mean it is purple...think Donny Osmond's sash purple.

It is similar to the Mandevilla that I see here in the big box stores that are not made for our growing zones. I used my handy dandy app to identify it as Clematis. I know many of you know it, but I was not familiar with it. BUT, I needed to be.

I went home and did research for it. I made my way out to the local nursery in Auburn and promptly bought me some of this goodnesss even though I have said I am downsizing plants, etc., etc., etc.

It says it grows in zones 5-9 so it should be a go. I also watched lots of videos to make sure I was doing all the right things. 

I have been outside most of the morning today planting new stuff. I will wait to share it until it has been planted a week or so, because nothing ever looks too happy after being moved from their pots to a new pot.

I have shared many of the homes in the Auburn neighborhood before. It is such a nice place and I seriously have to pinch myself sometimes to think that I live in the most amazing place on the planet...the Panhandle of Florida, but that I also have a home in Auburn. We really do get to see 2 such different landscapes. 

However, I don't think I have ever shared the pink house. There has to be one house in every neighborhood that is a little different. Jeff is not a fan, but I am. She had a Dolly for President flag outside all during election season...gotta love that --- 

Check out the toadstools. Now that is in Auburn, Alabama but she has got some Florida yard art going on there. Chairs on the porch have some hot pink cushions and once I could see in her front room and lots of abstract and color art adorned the room. 

I added some pine straw to our front beds. 

I really took this picture coming back from a walk to see if the chair on the porch looked ok?

The porch is very narrow so the black rocking chairs we have out back won't fit, but I really wish they did. This is very much a front porch sitting kind of neighborhood.  We had gone looking for some black ones while out and about to which I saw nothing I loved. I came home and just decided to try out the ones we use on the back. We keep the chairs in the garage when we are not there to make them last. My eventual decision was those were fine for when we wanted to sit out front. A win...saved money and these are comfortable. 

What you can't see from that picture is that the gardenias planted across the front are about to be an explosion of white blooms. I hate I missed it but my friend will get to enjoy them.

The Confederate jasmine growing on the fence is blooming and smells so good. Just imagine a week from now with all those gardenia blooms. People will want to stroll by our house.

I found part of a robin's egg. Such a pretty color.

Next up is an example of how different going north 3.5 hours can be. Get a load of these pansies.

Pansies will fizzle out here when the calendar turns to April. I grow them in FWB from mid October to mid April and switch over to vincas then.

I might also have bought another bedspread. I go in spells where I go for months buying nothing and then I see stuff and go nuts. I swore I was through trying to buy something for the guest bedroom aka Lindsay's old room.  

Now, the problem with the picture is that it is hard to notice how cute the bed is with a twin size mattress standing up in the room glaring at you...

I will share again when the mattress being saved for Palmer's big boy bed is purchased and this leaves my house.

And since we have switched to interior picture talking, I love to sit on the end of the couch and look out the windows at the neighbor's bird feeder. It keeps me entertained and I love that I can open that door and let Gus out without having to go out with him since the new fence addition takes care of him leaving. He is a good dog, but he does like to run up the street and see if our friends are there from Huntsville. Remember we have been friends forever and they had to move to Huntsville years ago, so Auburn (specifically this neighborhood) is our meeting place.

This house is a testament to how dark colors can be so nice. This room and the upstairs bedroom which is a dark paint are the coziest rooms and everyone always says how much they love them.

There is lots of natural lighting to help make it not too dark.

I do find I love to go and just read, stitch and nap here.

I will share my plants soon. I will be checking in with everyone soon. I didn't take my computer with me, so hang on I am coming.

I have 6 roses in containers downstairs. They love this time of year. I love it too.

They won't look this way much longer. 

On a side note, I always watch for these little guys.

They are in abundance here and on most everything. Pots, porch railings and the one I always check first....the trash can lids. Our lids have a lip to lift it and they love to get under those which means you can get quite a scare unless you are Miles. 

Miles thinks they are cute and need to be caught and touched. He doesn't understand why Mimi screams when I touch them which is why I never lift the lid before pounding on the top to scare them.

Spring is a lovely time of the year. Although I was quite surprised by how cool it was still in the mornings in Auburn. Definitely a change of pace for us when we get to go up. 

Jeff starts his PT for Parkinson's next week and Mom has not been feeling too well these past couple of weeks. I did get a change in her blood pressure meds so hoping that helps her. I don't often know what to pray but God knows what is needed so I am trusting in Him.

I love May,

Sandy