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.