A Cloudy Day on the Beach

Yes, all my friends in Northwest Indiana - I am going to say it!   "It is CHILLY COLD here!"   It it is 50 degrees, north wind, and rained all day.  And I know you are much more cold....much more.   But this is a damp chill that goes through you.   So I said it.  And yes, I remember what 20 degrees feels like but it is amazing how you get used to the warmer weather.
Because it has been cool and cloudy, my latest beach pictures are called At the beach on a cloudy day.

This is the entrance to the fishing pier - the 2nd longest in the Gulf of Mexico. This Bar and Grill has just been added - I am anxious to go try it out.  There were people out walking on the pier and some fishermen.

The Pavilion is where the beach concerts are held.    This man is practicing his boxing.

This man stopped to talk to Dad.  Lots of people on their bikes.  There are several places to rent bikes for the day.

Part of the fishing pier.  This is Casino Beach and there are life guards there every day.

This is a beautiful condo that my family stayed at 10 years ago.  This is where my friend Kelly and her family are staying this summer.  Right on the beach with a pool in between.  She will be spoiled.

This was taken with the care moving 35 miles per hour.  Still a good shot for my IPhone 6.  Winter on the beach means the sand oats turn a greenish brown.  Those clouds were introducing us to the weather front that gave us 1 1/2 days of rain.

The road between Pensacola Beach and Navarre.  The gulf on one side and the sound (inter coastal) on the other.   Water everywhere!  And here is our version on the Indiana snow plow.  Notice the brushes in the shovel......to remove blown sand from the road.

Dad with some beach shops behind him.....hot dog shop, breakfast and lunch, laundry, and souvenir shop.

This guy was amazing - kite boarding.   The waves were coming in fast and he was moving on that water.   Never saw him fall.

The Pensacola Beach Ball Water Tower on Casino beach.

The beach received a grant to plan more palms.  There were lots of palms before and lots more now.

It did rain starting yesterday afternoon through this evening.  We need the rain and I had bills to pay so staying put today was not a problem.  I have some lessons to give tomorrow - Solo & Ensemble is 2 weeks away.   I think Dad and I both are anxious for the cooler rainy weather to leave so we can start doing some yard work.   We do not have to cut grass in the winter here but we have areas to put new pine needles down for our mulch.  Pool is looking great but just too, too cold to swim.  I just called my brother in Hobart.   While reading Facebook, I saw that some of the roads that he travels have black ice and I wanted to warn him.  Yes, I nag him 900 miles away!
                     Take care - keep warm and dry!

Will uploading work? YES!!!! Disney

Let's See If This Works?!?!?!?

Oh yes!   Thank you computer magic dust!  After several hours of work I got it working again.  Whew!!

So now that I can again do my blog, the pictures will be a smorgasbord of pictures from the last month and a half.   So above is our trip to Disney World last week.  So much fun.  We spent a day in Hollywood Studios.

Dad, Mom, Me, and Sandy going into the Polynesian Luau Dinner.  The food was great - BQ chicken, pork shreaded, and ribs.  Pineapple bread - I must learn how to make.  Bread pudding with caramel sauce for desert.  The show was in three parts and wonderful.  Thank you Disney!

Dad in his leis.   He also got a kiss.  

Sandy with her leis and eating the salad.

Mom with her leis also working on the salad.  Pineapple coleslaw and fresh pineapple, salad with mango dressing. 

We saw Beauty and the Beast.  Row one!  What a wonderful view. That was maybe our favorite of the day.

We have some flowers here in Gulf Breeze.   Mostly pansies but of course Disney has beautiful flowers everywhere.   Soon it will be their Flower Show in March.   I went last year and was in awe of the beauty.

We ate lunch at the Fifties Restaurant in Hollywood Studios.   EAT YOUR VEGETABLES!

Those Disney buses get crowded and we were there at one of the least crowded days of the year.

Kacey stayed at Best Friends in Disney World.  When we walked in, their guest's pictures rotate up on their tv screen.   Look at my cute Kacey.

Kacey sent me an email on day two that she was having a great time, made lots of friends, and was eating her food.  Along with it came this picture.

 

What a joy it is to walk out your door and pick a mango orange off of your own tree.  It is a small tree but gave us 18 oranges this year.  So sweet!!

Here is a beach sandman waving hello to all!

The quality of some of these pictures could be better.  My IPhone had an unfortunate accident and died during the trip but now I have the new IPHONE 6.   I have not even really taken pictures with it yet so we shall soon see how the quality of those come out.

SOME GOOD NEWS TO SHARE!

• Everyone is healthy.   Let's keep it that way.
• Kelly and her family are coming down for a week the end of June.  I just can't wait!
• My lessons are getting ready for Solo and Ensemble Contest mid February.   Have have students that I so enjoy working with in lessons.
• We purchased a few new large pots for our pool area decorations and need to get to work on pulling some plants out that did not make it through the 30 degree weather.
• My Aunt Sandy has been to almost every Disney trip with us and she is so fun!   We love her company......come back soon Sandy!    She says she wants to wait until the pool is warm.
• Speaking of pool, I bought a new bathing suit today so I am ready.

I hoped to drive over to the beach and take some pictures tomorrow but it is going to be rainy so I will wait for a sunny day.  Our weather has been wonderful for January - upper 60's and sunny.  Hey, if I can wear capris and flip flops - I am happy!   

Cold Everywhere

Well, cold here!  
         Colder further north!  
                   Colder yet even more further north than that!!
                                    And  DOWN RIGHT FRIDGED when you get to the upper states!
Checking out the weather Channel at 11:30 PM Hobart, Indiana is -7°. And hour and a half south Monticello Indiana is -8°.  Gulf  Breeze,  Florida is a toasty 34° and going down to 24 degrees by 5 a.m.    Yes,I said toasty. Because after 55 years of living in Northwest Indiana, I so remember zero and below degrees and the wind blowing.  I really hate to remember using the snowblower to clear the driveway and the wind blows the snow back into your face.
Any temperature below freezing here in Florida can cause problems. We have always heard of the orange groves losing a lot of their trees because of the frost. The same happens with some of the palm trees and many of the tropical plants that grow here.  Because of that we cover some of the plants to protect them - with the sheets over them they look like a ghosts's convention in our yard.  Other than covering water Spicket's and some of the pipes for the pump that is about all we can do to protect ourselves from the cold.
We won't have any ice or snow on the ground when we get up in the morning.  There will be frost on the windshield but if you wait till later in the morning that too will be gone.  No snowman, no snowball fights, no ice skating.  Well actually there is an ice skating rink in Destin.  And none of the students that I give private lessons to have ever seen snow in their life.
So to all my family and friends up north keep bundled up, drive safely, and a good supply of hot chocolate and chicken noodle soup seems to help get through the cold winter.
    Take care and keep warm!

Pictures

I have some pictures to post; no specific order or subject.  Mostly of Christmas so let's start with those.  And the pictures are tiny.  For some reason I can't upload the pictures from my IPHONE to the computer properly.  I have already worked on this problem for several hours......frustrating!

  Our Tree always has a star on top.

  The bulbs all have a history.

 Ron and I.

   Dave and Ron beginning with gifts.  Oh yes, and Sage.

  A giraffe Holly and Tom bought Mom.  It is beautiful.

   Mom was weak from surgery so we took her for a ride by the beach.  Hot chocolate to make the ride even more special!

 

   Merry Christmas morning.

   No snowmen but sandmen can be found.

  On their 61st Anniversary.

   Ornament - Santa boating.

  Neighbors had New Year's Day brunch.  YUM!

   Dad opening gifts.

  Beautiful sunsets.

   This guy hangs around a lot when Ron is here.

These two silly dogs!  I was trying for a picture for next year's Christmas card and do you think they would both look forward at the same time?   To honest, Kacey was the biggest problem.

 

63 Degrees here today and that is noteworthy if you know the extreme cold temperatures that Indiana is having.   And it is going to get worse.   I went to Target today because I read on Facebook about the Christmas deals that were 90% off.   I did get a few things.   The Target I went to is in Fort Walton and it is a beautiful drive along the water.  Another unusual pet service they have here is the Pet Caravan.   They visit the Walgreens throughout the county each month and you can get your dog or cat's shots at a cheaper fee.   This is the 4th year we have done this with Kacey.  

 

Our trip to Disney World is coming soon and we still have not decided which park to go to this time.   We do one park on each trip.   For now, that is it and again I have a snoring doggy at my feet so it is bedtime for us.

Keep warm everyone........

Where Have I Been?

I know, there have been no  postings for awhile - I am so sorry.  It is not because I have had nothing to say but because there has been too much to say.  We have visited the ER, the hospital, and ICU way more than seems possible in the last month.   I will mention a few difficult times we have had in the last month but most of the blog will be on the good times!

• Mom feels bad on Thanksgiving - taken to ER with twisted bowels - 15 scary days later comes home exhausted and weak.  Kept out after surgery for 48 hours due to swelling of breathing passages.
• Mom has lots of doctor appointments because of the above surgery.
• Flu virus A hits Dad hard - took to ER.  Then hits Peggy not so bad. We wore masks in the house so not to spread the germs.    As of yet, Mom is ok.
• The house next door remains as it was after the fire - quite dangerous. 

Enough of that!  Now the good!

And there is so much good!

• Mom was home to enjoy Christmas with her boys.  Dave and Ron spent a week here for Christmas.  Her exhaustion hasn't improved but the doctors are working on that.
• Sandy was here for two weeks while Mom was in the hospital.  What a help to have her here.  We just felt bad that we did not get to go out and have fun more.
• Thanksgiving was a joy even though Mom was in the hospital.  The Thomas/Basala side of the family was here and it was great to visit.   Tom and Holly stayed an extra day and we visited Mom.   Dad and Tom hung out together, and we went to the Fish House for dinner!  WOW!  What a delicious meal!
• The nurses loved the story that Mom got up and prepared the turkey and placed it into the pan.  Then said "I need to go to emergency."   A good old-fashion American woman.  Cook the meal before you go to the ER.
• I shopped more on-line than I ever had done before and got some great deals - especially from Maceys.
• All Christmas decor is down and back in the attic.  Ahhhhh....I love Christmas but love also getting the house back to normal.
• Warm weather - about 70 degrees each day makes for capris and flip flops.  
• And I am so excited!  Can you guess why?  Yep!  We are heading to Disney World this month.  We have not decided which park to go into yet but I have our reservations in All Star Music and Best Friends Kennel for Kacey.     I also have reservations for an afternoon Tea Party for Mom, Sandy, and I in the Floridian.   (Dad will not go to that so he can have some time on his own.) 

So tomorrow is THE day.  You know, the day all kids and teachers go back to school.   You can just feel the depression in the air.  But I can tell you, by 11:00 am, you feel that you have been back for days and you are back into the groove. 

 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!  We did and look forward to 2015! 

 

 

Fire

This was us Saturday during the day - enjoying the wonderful weather and sitting out by the pool.  The house next door has no one living in it right now and has been that way for over a year.  But how fast things can change and your peace of mind is blown to bits.



At 2:00 am I woke up with my Dad yelling FIRE AT THE NEIGHBORS!   I was out the door in less than a minute and the flames of the neighbor's house was twice as high as the house.  The picture below shows how high the flames were.   Our house is the house with the white mailbox.  This pic was taken by our friend, Sue, who lives down the street from us.  She was sure it was our house burning.  Five fire engines and many police cars pulled up.  My cell phone rang and it was my friend Nicole 3 houses down yelling to me, "Peggy, are you ok!?  We are coming!!"

I was instructed by the police and my Dad to grab the second set of garden hose by the pool and spray the roof of our house to save our house.   As the water hit the shingles, they would steam because they were so hot from the neighboring flames.   I was wearing a yellow slicker and realized it might melt on me due to heat.  Dad was on the other side of our gate and I was terrified that the flames would get to him.  We were yelling back and forth to each other.  But the sound of the fire was deafening.  Then the water pressure dropped to nothing and I realized we could not fight the heat - but that did not last long and we were back to spraying the house. The woods behind the house was burning and moving to our area.  Our neighbor Josh ran up to me, gave me a hug and took my hose.  He kept saying "It's going to be alright!"  But I didn't want to give away my garden hose......it was the only thing I could do to help save our house.

Under our fence, the flames were creeping through and Josh sprayed it down and I got a bucket and threw water on the flames.  Mom was in the back yard with us but could do little without garden hose.   I am sure that was so frustrating for her.  The fire moved toward the front of the house quicker than you would of thought possible.  It was not until then that I could pull out my phone and take a couple of pictures and noticed how many police were standing about.  Neighbors were out in both directions but now allowed to come by us.

And the firemen kept fighting the fire.

As the fire moved towards the front of the house, we were in less danger of the heat causing damage to ours.  Finally I could take a picture.

The firemen said it was a "very hot fire".

They cut an X into the garage door before making holes in it to prevent the flames from jumping out at them.

Between the flames and their lights, you felt that it was daylight.

A beautiful house! Gone.  2400 square feet.  

No roof anywhere.

Burned into the woods behind the house but Mother Nature will take care of that.

This is the backside of our new fence.  We are so lucky.  Probably 13 boards to replace.

This is part of my nightmare.  These PVC pipes hold our drying bathing suits.  I was standing next to this while spraying the roof - aware that the heat might melt my rain slicker.  My rain slicker was very wet from the spray but the heat bent these pipes.   WOW!

I was right here and Dad was on the other side of the gate.

So now what.......

•     A destroyed house is next to us and lowering the worth of our neighbor's homes.
•     How long will it take for this to be torn down.  It is a DANGER to children with hanging timbers throughout.  East to walk into the house.
•     The smell.
•     The ugliness.
•     What the burned timbers actually represent.
•     Why????   

Three days later.

I hate how this has made me feel.  We could of lost our home and the neighbor on the other side of the burning house went through exactly what we did also.    Worse than that, my father could of been injured or worse from the flames.  At least I had a pool to back up to - he had no where to go.  I see the flames still in my head and feel very uneasy going out to our backyard during the evening hours.  My friend down the street wakes up asking her husband if there is a fire.  

Oh, and in case you wondered - Kacey slept through the whole thing. 

Many thanks to the Gulf Breeze and Navarre Fire Departments and Police.  I am in awe of the work that you do and how calm you are during the worst of the fire.  You all answered all our questions and offered to stop by whenever we need you.   Thank you!!!!

Foo Foo Festival

                     Who LOVES the arts!   I do!  I do!  So the next few weeks in Pensacola and Pensacola beach can really keep you busy!   First of all, you might ask "What on earth is Foo-Foo?"    Well, it is a festival of the arts from November 6th - 17th and you can keep mighty busy during that time.  Some events are free and some take tickets.   The name Foo-foo came from the music played by sailors on 19 century vessels. This music was very entertaining for everyone on board.                         Let me list just some of the events:

                  THE ONES CAPITALIZED I WILL BE GOING TO FOR SURE!   I hope to do some others also.

• Frank Brown Int'l songwriter's Festival
• Davis Bellet
• 3-D Video Mapping
• THE BUDWEISER CLYDESDALE'S ON PALAFOX
•  THE GREAT GULFCOAST ARTS FESTIVAL
• BLUE ANGELS HOMECOMING AIR SHOW
• PENSACOLA SYMPHONY FEATURING ANTHONY MCGILL ON  CLARINET
• Live glass blowing and pottery demonstrations
• Pensacola Marathon
• SYMPHONY IN THE SQUARE
• Matisyahu
• The Art of the Con  - Comic book themed
• Japanese Film Festival
• Jerry Seinfeld
• THE PENSACOLA CIVIC BAND
• Pensacola Craft Beer Festival
• An Evening With The Dukes of Dixieland
• Cher D2K Tour 2014
• Mannheim Steamroller Christmas in Concert

And so much more!  Lots of culture here in Pensacola to enjoy and much of it is offered free.   I'll be talking more about this later.

+++++++++++++++

Otherwise, Mom, Dad, and I have been working on some craft projects and they are coming out pretty darn cute.......even if I say so myself.  It was chilly this week-end but will warm up to the high 60's  to low 70's.  I have lots to do right now and all is well.   Hope everyone is getting some warmer weather coming in and you are not spending every moment of free time raking leaves.

Take care........