My favorite Pensacola Beach spots

I have some friends visiting Pensacola Beach for the first time and that has brought back memories of things we enjoyed in a one week vacation on the beach.   Of course, weather allowed for all it or just some of it.

Of course, you come to Gulf Coast for the beaches.   The beautiful white sand and blue water.

Shaggys is on the sound and you sit up on a balcony looking out at the boats and paddle boarders.   Food is great and not pricey.

This is the side of a new restaurant at the foot of the Pensacola Beach Pier.  (You can walk the pier for a couple of bucks and it is quite a view out of the end.  This is Casino Beach Grill.  New and wonderful!

Fort Pickens is full of history and you can walk through the entire fort.  Just watch out for the ghost dog!

A great picture in the fort.

This is the spaceship house - on the way to Navarre Beach.   I believe there have been only 4 or 5 built in the country.

The boardwalk.  There are little shops, pizza restaurant, hamburger restaurant, and at the end is ALVINS - more souvenirs than you can possibly imagine.

These two pictures show Flounders Chowder House.  Great food and sandy areas for kids to play.  

Hemingways is one of my favorites.  You can sit out on the upper patio and see the view of the sound.  Food is pricey and wonderful.  BUT the good news is that they have a $10.00 menu that offers many delicious dinners for $10.    Plus look on line and get a coupon.   What a deal.

Peg Leg Petes is the most famous restaurant on the beach.  Get there early so you don't have a long wait.  

And we never failed to visit historic Pensacola and Palafox Street.  This Church was built in the 1800's like many of the buildings in historic Pensacola.   It is now used for weddings.

Crabs is a restaurant right on the Gulf of Mexico.  And you can guess their specialty but they also have hamburgers.   There is a sandy area for kids to play.   

There is so much more.  But it is getting late, Kacey is snoring, and I am tired.   Hoping for not much rain tomorrow so I am off to bed and I'll continue this tomorrow.

No pics today

No pictures, just words  and thoughts today.

Dad and I worked on the front of the house to remove the iron stain that we get from the watering system.  You can't afford to water grass from the city water so a well is dug for watering and unfortunately, our well is right in an iron vein.  The iron stains cars, sidewalks, the house, and basically anything it touches.  So we buy a special iron remover chemical from Lowes to get the iron removed.  It is a hot job and annoying because most of the neighbors have no iron in their well water.
Pulled weeds again the last few days.  I am not kidding, if you stand there long enough, you can almost see them grow in this heat and humidity.   The worst 2 months in Indiana is usually January and February because of the cold, ice, and snow.   Here we know that July and August are going to be hot (in the 90's) and humid.  The rest of the months seem to be wonderfully pleasant.  

I mentioned on Facebook a few days ago that our air conditioner was out.   After dealing with 2 companies, it is running smoothly (knock on wood).   But the first company wanted to charge us over $1000. for repairs and the second company was $200.   For the exact same parts!!   Go figure!!  There is more to this story but it depresses me to recall the whole mess.  But all turned out great!

My friend Kelly and her family is staying on the beach next week.  Besides the "hot season"  we are coming into the thunderstorm  that passes through often in the late afternoon.  I know they plan on doing lots and are staying in a beautiful condo right on the Gulf of Mexico.  That is the life!

I have a list of chores and errands to take care of so a busy day is ahead of me. So it is time for me to get to bed.  Take care everyone!

June 22

It is June 22 and I must say, it seems hotter than the other Junes we spent in Florida.  The pool is already up to 92 degrees.   For me....to warm.  Doing yard work after dinner is much more comfortable time to be out.

Next week Kelly, Steve, Natalie, and Colin are coming in and staying on the beach.  Kelly is a great friend and I can't wait for her to see our new home.  We team-taught many years together and went through so much good and bad.   Kelly now has my old job and is doing a great job!!!!  I miss her lots and we talk often on the phone or texting each other.

 Kelly is the blond  -  I have the curly hair.

Safety in the gulf.

I know the gulf is warm.  The only problem is that last week it was red flagged every day because of jelly fish and rip tides.  The life guards had been busy saving lives.   Rule to remember.  if the rip tide starts taking you out into the gulf -

• DON'T PANIC    Panic kills more people in that situation.
• SWIM HORIZONTAL with the sand.  If you try to swim straight in to shore, you will be taken out further and tire out quickly.
• BEST BET IS TO not go into the water under red flag conditions.   Some people go down to beach areas where there are no life guards.  Bad idea! 

KACEY FELL IN THE POOL

Just a quick picture of Kacey and I frowning together.  I was in the pool swimming and she was standing by the side.  No worries.  This pug does NOT WANT TO GET WET.  Well, one foot slipped, then the next and SPLASH!   In she went.  I had taught her where to swim to get out of the pool and she got herself out.   I am a good pug mommy. 

Sun Tan Lotion Irritation

Pool time for me.  I never miss a day but I did today.   I tan.  Easily.  Not that I'm trying I just tan easily.  I have tried several suntan lotions and have had allergic reactions to them all.  The worse was this morning waking up to hives where I had put the lotion yesterday.  I give up.   I see a dermatologist and he says my skin is fine but I wanted to use the lotion here in Florida but not with this skin reaction.

That is it for today.  I just got home from a movie and ready to settle down until bedtime.  

With this heat, thank goodness for air conditioning.    And that is another story for later.

Happy Retirement

     I just got back from a short trip up to Indiana.   My friends, Betty and Kirk Whiting both just retired from teaching and I wanted to be there for Betty's last few days of teaching FACS and the banquet. I had a wonderful time, especially at the retirement banquet.  Not only honoring the retirees but also seeing many people from school that I have not seen since the last day of school for me 4 years ago.  

Here is Betty opening gifts from the 4 of us....Kelly, Lauren, Kris, and me.   (Thank you Kris for doing all the shopping!)

     Kris and Kelly eating lunch.  

     Lauren and Betty.   Betty is going to be missed....lots!

     The four retirees with smiles on their faces.  

     Kris, Lauren, Betty, Kelly, and me.

     One day after school was over for the year, I was driving by the middle school and stopped in the back.  Yes, I am now a visitor.  I did just sit for about 15 minutes remembering teaching here in this incredible band room.

     I took a picture of this old building in Hobart.   When I was in elementary school, I took some piano lessons from a lady that lived here.  It looks exactly like it did then.  She and her sister lived in the basement apartment.  I always felt uncomfortable going in because it was dark and Mom would drop me off.   You did that back then.  She was an older lady, as was her sister and both were kind people and yet, in my own imagination this seemed like a haunted house and maybe, just maybe, my teacher was some sort of witch.   I was never comfortable taking lessons here.  Oh, and the doors open up into an ally.  Didn't take much to get my imagination going!

     Ron's dog Sage.  I think this is where she spends time while waiting for Ron.

     Ron and I went to Monticello and spent a day with Dave - my other brother.  Corn was planted everywhere.  But there is more than corn in Indiana....beans.

     Lake Shafer in Monticello, Indiana.  Dave teaches at the middle school and Mom and Dad used to own a resort by Indiana Beach.  Anchor Bay Resort.   Then they sold the resort and moved into a house on Kean's Bay on the lake.  My week-ends during my adult life were often spent on Shafer Lake.

     The golf course Dad always played - Pine View.  He loved this course and misses his friends that he used to golf with all spring, summer, and fall long.

      Sage still waiting for Ron.  Where are you Ron?????

     And then it was time to go home.  That is a story in itself.  I flew from Midway and when we were close to Atlanta they shut down the airport.  So we back tracked to Chattanooga.  There we sat for a couple hours waiting out the storms.   Off again to Atlanta.  And then we sat and waited with 5 delays.  Finally flew out at 11:30 pm and poor Mom and Dad were waiting at the airport.  I was exhausted by then.  Home and in bed by 1:00 am.  We have all been there, right?

Here is an interesting picture after the storm.  The clouds with  the sun  trying to come out.
Looks like fire and this picture did not do it justice.

Thanks to my cousin Sandy for meeting me for lunch one of the days and also taking me to the Tri State bus in Portage.  I did not get to see all of the family but this trip was for Betty's retirement so most of my time when to activities with her.  

I almost mentioned names of people I got to visit with and the banquet but there is just too many so may I say that I so much enjoyed seeing everyone again.  

Happy retirement to all of you new retirees!   Hope you love retirement as much as I!