Pets In Windows

On our walk today decided to see how many pets in windows we would see. I knew it would be to hard to remember so of course I took pictures and the one above was my favorite. We saw four cats and one dog, this isn't the most we have seen nor is it the least. We are always on the lookout for pets in windows and Riley is a good spotter, he usually sees them first. Other than that our walk was pretty normal.

While Riley was napping I watched a show that Andy always records and I have come to enjoy it too. Some Assembly Required, not sure what channel but I have learned how lots of things are made. Today it was Sushi knives, John Deere riding lawn mowers and chocolate. I really wanted to try the butterfly shaped peanut butter cup that was in the chocolate segment.

I love how when Riley is sitting in a chair or his stroller that he crosses his feet, just always looks so cute.

While I was hard at work, Dan had one job today, replace a light bulb in a microwave. He was home before 0800. Again it worked out well because Chris was off today so they got to go shooting after having to cancel on Sunday. They had a good time, but Dan still out shot Chris, not by much so I think the day is coming for Chris to finally defeat Dan.

Not much else, I just can't believe how fast the weeks go by and here we are with only one day until the weekend.

Here They Are...

This is what I have been doing for the past week. Dan is beginning to think that I'm stuck to the computer chair and can't move away from the desk.

I have learned so much about PhotoShop Elements in this class, I'm so glad that I took it and I'm thinking I may take her next one that starts in March. This one runs for 4 weeks and we are on the second week.

Don't forget if you want to see them larger just click on them.

Lakefront

Decided we had to keep up our string of getting out and about, so we headed to the Lake front for our walk. Parked at the Marina and walked two miles. The lake front looks really good, the last time we walked here (Sept) the construction was still going on, but now it is all done. Had a great walk, the weather was perfect and we saw and heard lots of birds. Took awhile because we had to stop every so often to look at whatever was there and to have an animal cracker.

Went and got gas and who would have thought paying $2.88 a gallon would be a good thing. That is the cheapest I have seen in a long time. Saved so much money headed over to Sonic for a diet coke.

When we got home I checked on Skitty Kitty, she wasn't feeling well last night but seems to be better today.

The rest of the day was pretty normal so nothing to report on that.

Did You Vote?

Riley and I went and voted today. Took longer to get him in and out of his carseat and stroller then it did to vote. Only had two things I could vote on and I knew what I was voting so didn't have to read the whole change, just fill in two circles. New polling place this time, not as accessible as the old one, we don't seem to have many people who vote in our two precincts during the time that we go so it wasn't hard to get in and out but if more people show up it will be difficult.

After voting went to the tennis court and chased the soccer ball around, Riley enjoyed that but got distracted very easily. Any stick or rock would make him forget about the ball until I kicked it again and then he would be off after it.

We had a pretty easy day, when we got back to the apartment played for a bit and then Riley took a 2 1/2 hour nap, got up and had lunch and we played some more. He mooed at the cow page again when we got to it today so it wasn't a fluke the other day. Good thing we didn't come across any seals because I'm sure he would have been barking like Grampa was yesterday.

I spent most of the evening working on my photoshop class and got another layout finished. When I figure out how to post to the web I will put a couple on here. The files are huge and I haven't taken the time yet to learn how to make them smaller for the web, but I will.

Dan Had No Jobs Today...

After scrolling through all the pictures I guess you know that we went to Sea World. We had a really good time, not many people and most times we were in attractions with only 2 or 3 other people.

We started with the dolphin viewing and went to the underwater section. Not sure if Riley was more excited to see the dolphins or that he was out of his stroller and able to run around. Once he found out that he could step on the grating and get close to the window to see the dolphins he enjoyed that.

Headed up to see the dolphins above water but they have the area all roped off and only let you in at certain times and of course we missed the first time because we didn't know and the next time was an hour away, so we will do that next time.

Then it was on to the manatees, which were very hard to see because they all stayed underwater and didn't move much. Now the alligators were a different story, Riley was fascinated with them and wanted to get closer. Guess a trip to Gatorland will be in our future.

We watched the Journey to Atlantis ride for a bit, all the water flying up and the noise held Riley's interest.

Penguins were next and we rode the conveyor belt twice just to be sure that we saw everything. There were two young ones molting their baby feathers, the bottom half looked like an adult penguin and the top half was all fluffy with the gray feathers, it looked very funny.

We watched the puffins for a bit because they were very active and right up against the glass, doing funny little dances half in the water and half out. Seems like we saw lots of new things today.

Pacific Point and the seals were next. We were the only ones there! Riley liked looking at the seals but what he liked best was Grampa aka Dan making seal sounds. He had Riley laughing and laughing. Then Riley tried sticking he head between two sheets of the glass fence, guess he wanted to swim with the seals, we were over in the area of the pups and they were just a little bigger than Riley.

Shark Encounter, always a highlight of a Sea World visit. Riley liked the shark tank and was whipping around like he does when he wants to see everything.

The Clydesdales were pretty boring today, they all had their blankets on and were standing butt out so we didn't see much. The donkey was right up next to the viewing area so we got a good look at him.

Riley got a start in Wild Arctic. We were watching the polar bear and he was walking on the ledge right inside the window. Riley was standing on the ledge outside just watching him go back and forth. Well on about the third or fourth pass just as the bear got to Riley he rubbed his huge head on the glass right where Riley was standing, Riley back right up into Grampa arms so fast we almost didn't see him do it. I don't think it scared him as much as it just startled him, but we all had a good giggle with that.

We also checked out underwater viewing at Shamu Stadium and there was nothing in there, I bet we haven't seen anything in there for the last 2 or 3 years. Don't know if we are just there at the wrong time or what.

That pretty much was the end of our day, we walked across the lagoon bridge and stopped to pick up our picture we had taken when we entered the park and then we were off.

Riley fell asleep practically before we were out of the parking lot. Stopped by Burger King to get lunch for Dan, dropped him off at home and went back to the apartment. I put Riley in his crib and he slept for another 30 - 45 minutes.

Being out all morning made the day go by really fast. We are going to have to do things like this more often.

Look What I Found

Nikki asked me to scan a picture of Andy and when I took the frame apart I found about ten other pictures. This is Chris and Dan when we went to Saipan, so somewhere around April 1984. Guess I need to look in some of my other frames, never know what I will find.

Dan and Chris were suppose to go shooting today but Chris ended up having to go to a GameStop meeting, neither of them was very happy about missing out on going to the range. I'm sure they will find another time to go.

Heard from a little birdie that someone dyed her hair and didn't send out pictures to everyone. We want to see a before and after and after, because I also hear that there will be another dye job this week.

Went to Ashley and Wally's to help move a desk/bookcase. Okay, so I stood at the bottom of the stairs and took pictures and watched. Let me tell you it was very heavy and everyone who helped move it is hoping that it just gets left in the apartment when they leave.

Mum and Tammy came to visit. Got to see mum's new camera, very nice and takes some nice pictures. Showed off all my digital layouts I've been working on. Can't wait to get started on next weeks lesson.

Not much else is new, the weekend just flew by and I get to be with my favorite grandson tomorrow. Hoping for nice weather so we can play with the soccer in the tennis court.

Brace Yourself

Do you recognize this guy? I almost didn't after giving him his haircut, he shaved too, so he looks different then he has in a while.

We had a very busy day. Did the regular Saturday stuff and when we got home I called Tammy but got Tom, who has a sore throat and he told me she had just left and I could get her on her cell. So I call the cell phone and who should answer but Tom. The one time Tammy doesn't have her phone in the car with her. So Tom is going to have Tammy call me.

I moved onto my weekend chores, laundry, vacuuming and all that household stuff. In between I worked on my Photoshop class, finished up two layouts and I have learned bunches, really enjoying the lessons. I have a couple of extra things that our instructor threw in for us to do that I may work on tomorrow.

Also watched a couple of my shows that I have tivoed.

Andy, Nikki, and Riley came to visit and the first order of business was the haircut. Then he and Dan went to Auto Zone to see why his check engine light came on, it was the gas cap, you would think we would learn that trick and try it before taking the car to be checked. That was a pleasant surprise.

Later Tammy, Dennis, Sami, Cole, and Breann stopped by for visit. They had been to Jared's Birthday Party and stopped by to see us. I had some pictures for Tammy and she picked those up. We also looked at the classes for the Scrapbook Expo that will be at the Convention Center at the end of March.

Very busy day but lots got done, hope it continues over into tomorrow.

Welcome Home John

I think the pictures say it all!

New Game Stop Employee

When I saw Riley wearing this outfit for some reason it reminded me of Chris when he gets home from work. Shirt untucked, khaki pants and one shoe off, they could be twins.

Not much going on today, did our errands and Riley was a big flirt with all the ladies everywhere we went.

Finally got my pictures from scrapbookpictures.com and I will be working on them this weekend. Can't wait to get going on all the projects I have in my head.

Changing Up

We've been changing up our breakfasts this week just to get some different things into the diet, today it was a waffle and banana, nice easy breakfast because Riley can feed himself. Oatmeal is still a meal I have to feed to him.

Went for our walk a bit early today, Riley was just getting antsy and wanted to get out of the house. Decided to change up our walk today, also. Did our normal in the apartment complex but we also went to Walgreens and walked around in there. Not very exciting but it kept us out of the house a bit longer.

It's a good thing we went for our walk early because just after we got back Tammy and Mum and Dad came to visit. They didn't stay long but they brought me a present. Staples was having their grand opening and everyone got a goody bag and they didn't need three, so I got one. I love office supplies. They also changed up their day, Tammy and Luke joined them for their morning walk. This is part of Luke's get healthy resolution for the year.

Just after they pulled away was when Riley started waving bye-bye, he is a silly boy. To prove that even more today he started spinning round and round and then he would fall down when he was dizzy. He's done this five or six time already. I wouldn't be able to get back up after that many time if it was me spinning.

We were reading one of Riley's books and got to the page with the cow and before I could say anything Riley said, "Moo, moo, moo". Okay so maybe it sounded more like "Boo, boo, boo", but I knew what he meant. Anyways it was pretty exciting. I guess it pays to read the same books over and over and over and make all the animal sounds. I still haven't figured out what sound a spider makes.

Rainy Day

It looked like we might not get our walk in today because it was really raining, but we lucked out and storm passed over and we only had overcast skies left. The rain did prevent us from taking a soccer ball to the tennis court because there were puddles everywhere. So we will have to save that for another day. I will just leave the ball in the car and it will be there when everything has dried out.

Nothing much exciting on our walk although we did see blue sky for a few minutes. Of course it was snack time when we got back to the apartment. This might be our main reason for taking a walk, we always know when snack time is.

Nap time went much better today, Riley went down at 1130 or so and slept for 2 1/2 hours, lets hope we can keep this going, he is so much happier in the afternoon with a nap.

Forgot to mention that Nikki should be getting another ultra-sound at the end of March. Maybe there will be more news at that time.

Had a small accident today. Riley pulled the lamp off the end table and everything would have been fine but the lamp rolled and the light bulb burnt his ear. So now he has two blisters on his left ear. It doesn't seem to bother him but I sure felt bad. Don't think he will touch the lamp for a couple of days.

Running

We had a great walk today. Stopped at the tennis court and Riley ran around in there for about 20 minutes. He never once sat down or stopped moving. Constantly exploring, looking at the rocks, acorns and leaves. The base of the basketball hoop was pretty fascinating, too.

We continued our walk and there were birds everywhere we went. Flying out of trees, hopping across the sidewalk and of course all the ducks were accounted for. The ducks were pretty active, taking off and landing in the pond and staying up close to the sidewalk so we had a good look at them.

It was starting to get pretty warm so we took off our jackets and enjoyed the breeze and sunshine.

Finished up our walk and it was snack and juice time or diet coke time if you are allowed to have it. Guess that would be only one person in this house right now.

Played, read, and had lunch. Riley didn't go down for his nap until about 1400 and then he only slept for about 45 minutes. I don't know how our day got all changed around, but I'm not adjusting well. I liked the nap that went from 11-1300 but I'll get use to this schedule.

Got home and still hadn't received the rest of my pictures so I call scrapbookpictures.com to find out what was going on and they didn't know what had happenedd but they were going to reprint and send the order out right away. Maybe I will have them for this weekend.

I have also been for on a tutorial for Photoshop Elements and I'm learning lots of stuff, some of it new and some just easier or better ways to do things I already knew. Really enjoying it.

Haircut

I finally couldn't take it any longer - today I got my haircut for the first time in months. It is back to being very short and I like it so much better already. I was able to get it done today because I got a babysitter to replace the babysitter. Tammy was off today, Martin Luther King Day, so we all went to the Hair Cuttery and while I was getting my hair cut Tammy and Riley walked everywhere. Riley really enjoyed Home Depot, all that interesting stuff and it was piled so high.

After the haircut and walk we stopped by Sonic for sodas and once again Riley didn't get anything but he had just finished his juice so he was happy.

Before Tammy came over she had taken Luke to the vets for his annual check-up and poor Luke has to go on a diet. No more table scraps, I don't who it will be harder on, the humans in the house or Luke. Guess we will find out.

Tammy left at about 1130 and Riley should have been going down for a nap but he really didn't seem like he was ready. So played for a while and I made his lunch, yogurt and a grilled cheese. Played some more and I put him down at about 1330. He only slept until about 3 but he was happy and playing.

The pictures show Riley's two favorite places to sit today. I would think the blocks would be uncomfortable but he didn't seem to think so. The table was calling to Riley because it was empty. Usually Nikki's laptop sits there but today nothing so Riley felt he had to fill the space.

Getting Ready for Some Football

Pretty exciting day around the Gigstead house. First Mum and Dad came to visit and just as they were leaving Tammy called. She was laughing when I answered the phone so of course I had to ask what was going on. Seems she had tried to call me but the phone was busy but then she realized she had actually dialed her own number and it was her phone that was busy. So we had a good laugh about that.

She was really calling to see if I could help her with a baby shower invitation for one of the girls at work. Of course I could so over she came. We made a couple of different ones but I think our favorite was one we put a very cute train on. Then we took a tour of my craft room just to see what was new. About the only thing was the mini scrapbook I did of our stay at Disney in Dec.

After Tammy left got back to my chores. Chopped up veggies for fried rice, made some baked potatoes, cooked some chicken chunks and bacon so we have a few dinners for next week. Makes it much easier during the week if I don't have to think about what's for dinner.

I was also uploading pictures to Ofoto and for some reason it was giving problems and it took most of the afternoon to do 21 pictures.

Dan and Chris were very busy out in the garage customizing a gun safe. It looked really good when they were done. Chris also got some more of his stuff up into the attic.

Then it was time for football. The Patriots and Chargers were the first game and I was having a problem watching because it seemed like way to many commercials. I would get up come back, have missed a couple of plays and they were ready to go to commercials again. Finally 1/2 way through the 3rd quarter I got in sync and started seeing the game and not the commercials. It turned out well for me, Pats won 21 - 12.

Don't envy the Packers and Giants tonight. I think it's cold here and can't imagine the weather they will be playing in, in Green Bay. It has been to long since I've been in weather like that and I want to keep it that way. I will be missing some of the game because the Amazing Race finale is on tonight and this has been my favorite season so I'm looking forward to see who will win.

It has been chilly around here today. We started today with the temperature in the house at 73 degrees, well it dropped down to 70 by noon and that is where it has stayed all day. The temp out side right now (1822) is 44 degrees. It is going to be another cold one tonight, better put another blanket on the bed.

Let's See Florida

This was our weekend to start seeing Florida. I've had the information about Myakka State Park on my computer for more than a year and I happened to open it last week when I was cleaning up the computer. I figured this was a good place to start. So packed up the cooler and the camera stuff and hit the road this morning.

Went down through Haines City, Zolfo Springs, Arcadia and then onto the State Park. We were getting a bit worried because the fog wasn't lifting and it was after 0900. Just before we got to the park the fog was gone, it was still overcast but that was okay.

Paid our entry fee and stopped at the visitors center to watch the "What to see at the Park" video, looked at all the exhibits and then we were on our way.

Stopped at all the pullouts. We saw so much wildlife, much more than I had imagined. One of the first stops was along the water, saw three gators staring each other down, an anhinga all puffed up and preening, a bald eagle looking very majestic and a huge group of vultures soaring over us. Spent quite a while here looking at all the animals.

We were driving along and the ground was all dug up like someone had been using a roto-tiller on it and the next thing we saw was three pigs rooting around and our question was answered.

Our next sighting came because we adhere to the philosophy of: if there is a car pulled over and everyone is looking into the woods, stop and look also. There must be something there. This time it was a doe laying down just taking it easy. As I was taking her picture another doe walked into the frame. She was a bit smaller but just as beautiful. Shifted around so I could see her better and get some shots. By the time we were done looking at the deer, there were five other cars and a bunch of bicyclists watching the two deer.

Stopped at the concession area and we checked out the gift shop and got a pin for my collection. We didn't hang around there long because there were just to many people. So we headed out to hit the spots we missed on the way in. One of stops was the Canopy Walk and Tower Nature Hike. By this time we were getting hungry so made a couple of sandwiches. Why does everything taste better when it is eaten outside?

After lunch we walked the nature trail and arrived at the Canopy Walk, which is a suspension bridge strung between two towers. The bridge was a bit shaky but that was nothing compared to the top of the tower. It was shaking so much it was hard to hold the camera steady. The view was pretty spectacular and no matter how much the tower was shaking I really didn't want to go back to the ground. Had to finally head down so other people could come up to the top.

That was our last stop of the day and it was time to go home. We took I-75 to I-4 and the traffic was pretty bad but we made good time and we were home by about 1600. All in all a very good day. Can't wait to explore somewhere else in Florida.

New Shoes and Errand Day

I don't know where our days go to. Seems like we are just eating breakfast and then Andy is coming home. Another dreary day, gray and overcast and sprinkled every now and then.

This morning we did our errands pretty much same old thing but we did go to AAA. Needed a Florida book and map, it is about time we start seeing some of the things around here. There are so many state parks and things like that I'm sure it was will keep us busy for a while.

Riley got some new shoes, Nikki found a web site that has kids shoes. Nothing fancy but very reasonable and cute. Of course the ones she really wanted they didn't have but these blue ones look great on him. They are also very easy to get on which is a first for his shoes.

I'm always trying to get a good picture of Skit and it is so hard because of her coloring. But today I think that I succeeded.

Thank goodness for grilled cheese sandwiches, it is Riley favorite. He always eats the whole thing, even making sure he didn't drop any down in the chair beside him. Today he also had some yogurt with it, another of his favorites.

Dan and Andy are going on a boy's night out. Going to dinner and then to see the movie Cloverfield, now we will know what all the hype has been about. I get to do laundry while they are gone. Getting a head start on the weekend chores. I was disappointed because my pictures I ordered didn't come today, well maybe tomorrow.

Just a Lazy Day

Today was our day to pretty much do nothing. We had to wait for the UPS and FEDEX man so we really couldn't go anywhere. It was raining so a walk was out of the question. But we lucked out because Tammy came to visit for a while. Had a good time while she was there.

When Tammy left it was nap time and this time Riley went right down and slept for about 2 1/2 hours, maybe we are back on schedule.

The house was full of good smells all day. Made a crockpot full of chili and when it got going it smelled very good.

After Andy got home and we got the guitar that he got with his Rock Band (it didn't work) all packed up I was heading out to the UPS store and got as far as the exit to the apartment and realized I had forgotten my camera and a dvd, so back I went. Got the package dropped off at UPS and I was headed home.

It started to rain and I wasn't looking forward to checking mail and picking up the paper in the rain but I lucked out because Dan beat me home and had already done all of that.

Beautiful Day

Even though I got to leave the house later, Nikki had a Dr's appointment, I was very busy. I colored my hair, talked to Mum and Dad, and ordered mum's new camera, all before 0715 this morning. Mum and Dad are heading up to Jacksonville to be with the kids in the morning. Dennis has to leave bright and early to take the Chief's exam and they are going to be there to get the kids off to school. Here's to a good test score for Dennis, I know what it is like to take the test each year.

My morning didn't slow down. Riley got up at about 0745 and I made him up some cereal and apples. Got him dressed and he was ready to go for our morning walk. Banging on the door and going to the closet where his stroller is kept, so off we went. It was another beautiful morning. Today we ran into one of the barking, yippee dogs, why anyone would want one of these dogs is just beyond me. The ducks were all out swimming so we didn't get to watch them much. But we did take the time to look at the trees, leaves and rocks. We're working on not putting them in our mouths, Riley is doing pretty good with that but I'm still having problems. Maybe in the next couple of weeks I'll be able to control myself.

When we get back from our walk Riley and I usually play for a bit, we have a snack and he goes down for his nap at about 1030 or so. Well, today it didn't happen at all like that. At 0930 he started acting like he does at nap time, so we do a diaper change, turn on the music and cover up with the blanket. He looked like he was going to go right to sleep. I'm sitting in the living room and about 15 minutes later I hear Riley just talking away, like he has had his 3 hour nap but I know he hasn't slept a wink. I get him up and he plays for another 1/2 hour and he is acting like he's ready for his nap again. So we do the whole routine and the same thing happens. This time we play for about an hour and we do it all again. Now I'm wondering if he is even going to nap today, but at 1230 he finally goes down and actually falls asleep.

That was short-lived because the maintenance guy showed up at about 1345 to install the microwave and Riley heard the noise and woke up at about 1400 so we only got about an hour and a half nap.

Guess this guy hasn't installed to many microwaves yet because it took him 2 hours to finish up. He had to call someone to help him lift it into place and that was a 20 minute wait. Sure makes me wish it was Dan installing it because I know it would have been done much quicker. But now it is installed and everyone is happy. Riley spent the whole time sitting on my lap watching the guy do the installation and found it all very fascinating.

Had another great dinner. Pasta with diced tomatoes and grated cheese. Dan cooked tonight because he was home again before me.

How Does He Do It?

This is how my day starts with Riley, all the toys and books are lined up and just waiting to be played with. Then Riley gets to them and it is like a mini hurricane has struck the living room. We spend the rest of the day playing with various toys and reading books. Couldn't ask for a better place to be.

We went out for our walk today and we were very prepared. It wasn't quite as chilly because the wind was calmer and Riley would pull his hands out from under the scarf every time he pulled himself forward to look at whatever caught his attention. I will take todays weather over 90 degrees and humidity in the summer any day.

While we were on our walk we saw the microwave man cleaning the pool, so I guess the maintenance men for the apartment are jack-of-all-trades. He told me he would be installing the microwave tomorrow, so we will see.

Andy got home and had a flat tire, so off we went to Tires Plus to get a new tire mounted. While we waited we went over to Staples to walk around. The tire took about an hour but we were home and new tire on the car before it was dark so that made the job easier.

I got home at about 6 and got dinner started, eggs, homefries, and toast. Dan also had a long day so I ate my dinner and will cook his eggs when he gets home.

Where Did the Cold Weather Come From

Wasn't expecting it to be cold this morning and then to find out that it will only be getting up to about 65 as a high for the next few days was a real surprise.

Riley and I got our early morning routine stuff done and we headed out for a walk at about 9 and it was much colder than I thought. The wind was blowing and even though there were blue skies the sun was behind some clouds. So we walked around the back of a couple of buildings and headed back to the apartment because we were both cold. Will go out again this afternoon and be better prepared. We had long sleeves and pants on but that wasn't enough, guess we will have to put on jackets.

So until nap time we played with blocks and duplos and just had a good time. Riley is getting pretty good at putting together the mega-blocks (really big duplo type blocks). So we build all sorts of things.

After a nap and lunch it was time to brave the fierce weather again. This time we went prepared as you can see in the pictures. It wasn't as cold as the morning but there was still a chill in the air. Guess it will be glove weather tomorrow. Even the ducks didn't want to move but we had to walk by them so they finally went down to the water.

Spent the afternoon reading and playing. The book for today was the Jingle Bells book which means I have to sing and Riley doesn't seem to mind at all because I must have sang it about 20 times.

Got home just in time to start dinner. This weekend I made preparations for most of the meals this week. We had fried rice tonight and the vegetables were all cut up and the rice was already cooked. So I just had to throw them in the wok and it was ready in about 15 minutes and it was very tasty.