The Palsky Family

Hawaii

2010-03-21T10:19:00.000-07:00

Our trip home from Puerto Rico was uneventful. I am happy I bought airline tickets to avoid the worry of nonrev travel during spring break, and especially happy now that I almost have enough miles for Rach to come and visit. I have been saving miles since Simon came home to surprise Rachel during their engagement and it is going to be worth it seeing Rach again.

We arrived home on Monday and I worked Tues, Wed and Thurs nights. Judi had rented a 2 bedroom condo on Oahu for her family and invited me to come along. I agreed, woohoo! I talked about bringing Steve and the girls, but that didn't seem to pan out. Steve had too many projects to work on and Mel and Ida had plans with friends and the First Robotics competition. For pics of the hotel check out the Marriott Ko Olina property. I hope to get some pictures from John, but still haven't gotten any from Ida from Puerto Rico so I am not holding my breath!

The flight over here to Hawaii was almost painful. I was pretty exhausted after returning home and working 3 nights shifts, after which I didn't sleep well due to the foundation repair work that has started. There are holes all around my house and pounding going on all day long. I got a hotel room one night but that wasn't great because hotels have odd sounds during the day such as maids, vacuums, and doors slamming so it was only marginally better. I slept there one full day and 1/2 the next until check out time. I barely had time to come home and pack on Friday before leaving. The flight was 8 hours. It was an aisle seat but I was actually too tired to sleep, I hardly dozed. My feet were so swollen by the time I got here I had to elevate them that night because they were so uncomfortable.

The property is gorgeous. I am sleeping in the living room. I was offered a pull out in the bedroom but because of my odd hours I declined. Everyone was particularly glad to see me because their computer had been left at home and I had brought mine! I have been sleeping very well because this is a very nice couch. It is long enough that I haven't even pulled it out.

Friday I didn't do much but go to Costco, but yesterday was wonderful. Judi and I went for an early morning swim in the lagoon. Everyone went to the North Shore in the afternoon but I decided to rest at home and watch for whales. I have been rewarded nicely, I have seen whales several times right outside the window. That evening mom and Judi and I went to the hot tubs and swam in the pool and underneath the waterfall, it was very relaxing. I am feeling very relaxed and refreshed.

I had a good nights sleep and I am about ready to cook some breakfast and get ready for 11 am church. I love flight privileges!

Day 3, 4 and 5 in Puerto Rico

2010-03-13T14:15:00.000-08:00

Our couples massage was great. My shoulders were a little sore from the kayaking but were much better when we were done. We rested the rest of that day while the girls recuperated a bit from their burns. The massage was a little disappointing because I didn't end up with any really good towel stories like I did in the Dominican Republic! Mel and Jenni are still laughing at me over that.

Day 4 was fun. It was raining again so we headed to the dry side of the island. We followed the main road and used the map to find a golf course. It was a small local golf/country club that had 9 holes, several of which had a view of the ocean. The grounds were beautiful and far more manicured than our normal par 3 course. I loved the bougainvillas dotting the course. Mel had her own cart and enjoyed trying to play bumper cars with us. It was so beautiful, and only $15 a person with cart!

We only played 7 1/2 holes before we were tired and it was time to go home. We stopped at 7 1/2 because Mel and I teed off on the 7th hole on a vista overlooking the ocean and both had sweet shots right down the middle. We decided that was a good shot to end on and we drove at breakneck speeds to get our balls. Steve was very adept at driving close and me picking up (because we usually shoot 4 balls each per hole before we get one we like) and Mel was able to drive and pick hers up at the same time. You can't coach talent like that. Ida was too burned to golf and Jenni was too pregnant, so they drove around looking for shopping while we golfed. We enjoyed exploring the dry side of the island and getting out of the rain for a day.

That evening Mel and Jenni and I played commando in the pool while Ida was our lookout. We had gotten kicked out of one pool, but really wanted to swim. We headed for the big pool in the next building complex to see if it was still open. There was no one inside so we quietly slipped in and headed for the shadows. We swam around the whole pool evading capture and expulsion. There are build in beds in the pool with backs that we swam and hid behind which reminded us of the the Van Trapp family hiding behind the gravestones in the Sound of Music. Whenever we came to open areas with lights on the edge of the pool one person would block the light while the others leaped frogged past them to the next light. We were able to do all the swimming we liked and never got caught, it was great fun.

Today, day 5, was our last full day here. We used it to good advantage. We had planned to take a ferry to an island for some good snuba diving, but missed the 9 am ferry (we didn't even get up until 9). We talked to google about snuba diving and found a place in San Juan that was a national park that was supposed to be good. We found it without incidence and it was beautiful. Steve saw a guy fishing who had his family with them and he offered me some squid for bait. I gladly accepted and told him he could keep whatever I caught. He had caught two fish earlier that moring (it was 1pm) and said things had slowed down a bit. That didn't stop me, however, since I am the worlds greatest fisherwoman. I fished for several hours and was happy to catch a parrot fish (about 12 inches long, a picture will eventually come) and a sea snake. I hooked that guy in the middle and he was mean while we tried to get him off.

Steve and Mel went snuba diving and said it was like diving in an aquarium. Ida was too burned and Jenni too pregnant to go, but we enjoyed the ocean view and breeze. We made sure Ida stayed in full shade as she is the worst burned, but I was not so lucky. My face is very red and starting to hurt, oops!

We hit Costco on the way home and ate fries, ice cream, and drinks while waiting for our pizza to be done. Now we are fat and happy and back at the resort for the evening. When the sun goes down we will swim in the pools one last time. Tomorrow we check out before noon and head to San Juan for our last night. We opted to stay in San Juan our last night as the flight is at 8am and we are about an hour from the airport. All in all it has been a great trip!

Day 2 in Puerto Rico

2010-03-11T09:20:00.000-08:00

Becky is in mourning, she is on her way home today. In fact, she should be arriving about now. Yesterday was her last day so we used it to the fullest. We had a full breakfast of bacon, cheesy potatoes and eggs, with smoothies of course, followed by a trip to the beach. We first rented tanks in hopes of snuba diving, but we never could find a beach good enough. We did find a nice suntanning beach, and then also went to a natural reserve.

Becky wanted to visit the bioluminescent bay before going home so she called and got the details. We ended up driving to the take off point and finding a tour group (cheaper than reserving through the hotel) and joining in. Jenni and I, Steve and Mel, and Ida and Becky were partners. Jenni sat in the back wehre the good paddler is supposed to sit and she really put in more than her fair share. I pretty much treated her like I do Steve, I paddled when, and if, I felt like it. Jenni did have on major disadvantage over Steve though, she hasn't yet learned not to listen to my rigths and lefts! She ran me into a tree on the right simply because i told her to steer right! How rude!!!

The bay/lagoon was really boring, but the trip there was fantastic. The way was through a channel that is very dark and filled with the bioluminescent creatures. Occasionally a fish would jump creating a light show to accompany the splash. I think I had the most fun that trip, but everyone else argued with me on that. We all loved it. We are all a bit sore from the paddling, but that is nothing compared to the "burn" the girls are feeling from the sun yesterday. It was overcast so no one really recognized how badly they were burning. We have been using so much aloe since that time that Steve just went to the store to get more. Ida has to be burned the worst since she is the fairest, Becky next because she was trying to get sun, but Mel still has it pretty badly. Jenni and I even have a bit from inadvertently ending up in the sun for part of the time. No one slept well last night due to the pain.

I got up early this morning to drive Becky to the airport. It was an uneventful trip there and back, although it did take 2 horus. I saw an outlet mall on the way there and offered to take the girls but got rejected, they are too red and bruned to even shop, that is bad! Steve and I took the opportunity to take the resort tour for a 25 min couples massage at the spa, that should be fun. We will go when he gets back from the store. It still is raining cats and dogs, and has been from the beginning. We heard that the other side of the island is dry and not raining, about 1-1/2 horus away, but everyone is too burned to even want to go.

I am still having trouble getting pictures, I hope to have some soon. Wishing you all were here, but I have to run and get ready for my massage. Love you all.

Puerto Rico

2010-03-09T14:06:00.000-08:00

Well, I guess it is time I let everyone know I got safely out of Zurich! Now we are in Puerto Rico for our last family vacation while Mel is at home. We planned a family trip but it expanded into a girls getaway since we hadn't been able to plan anything due to children and pregnancies. Steve was still allowed to come along to schlep bags, but we are all enjoying having him here. We bought real airline tickets because we thought it would be busy with spring break one week away, and we were right, not that it did us any good, not with the way we all vacation!!!

You see, we got a room at the Hampton Inn the night before for free parking and Jenni and I spent the night there. The next morning Mel, Ida, and Steve joined us at the hotel and we went to the airport to check all our bags which took two cars with all the scuba equipment, tennis gear, and golf clubs. Ariel drove Becky in and we all checked in at the D terminal that Jenni and I had checked the night before. Check in was not too easy because as nonrevs we get free baggage, but under the tickets we purchased we had to pay to check luggage, what a bother.

Finally we all checked in and went back to the hotel for breakfast. The shuttle ride to the airport was non-eventful and the trip seemed destined to be calm and serene. Oh wait, this is a Palsky vacation! We got in line for the security checkpoint and we were concerned that the line was moving too slow and we wouldn't make our confirmed seat flight. We doubled checked our boarding passes, which was a new experience for us to have in the first place, and discovered our flight left from the A terminal!! We barely had enough time for the D terminal but decided to run. That was no easy feat for us since we had checked as little luggage as possible, and doubly difficult for PG jenni. Yet, off we ran for the tram. Bummer dude, despite our exertions we missed the flight and had to fly standby on the next flight. At least we got seats together, although I was in a middle seat.

That flight got us in too late to make our first flight, we thought, but when we landed early and the first flight was late we ran for the terminal. It didn't look too far on the map in the back of the American Way magazine, but that deceptive. It was so far we thought we would die running, jogging, and finally limping. Steve, Mel, and Becky had heelies so they were able to go faster that Ida, and even faster than Jenni and I. But we still huffed it the whole way there. It was frustrating to find the plane still at the gate, but our seats filled with non revs. We didn't have the heart to demand they be taken off!

We were too exhausted to walk to our next flight which was very close to our original arrival, so we called for a cart for the "pregnant woman" and all enjoyed riding along. We were pleased to get seats on that flgiht, although, again we were standbys and all of us but Mel in middle seats. The flight was long but uneventful. Our luggage arrived on the flight we were on, which was so weird for us. We rented two cars and didn't even have to do any shoving, tying, or dragging of luggage. We found Costco without incident and bought several hundred dollars worth of groceries. We stuffed ourselves on pizza and fries for dinner.

Again we thought we were gonig to have an unusual vacation, but not so. Our drive out to the resort was punctuated with a little incident at the toll bridge. Apparently Steve has the mass of a car. We drove across a toll bridge and used my Visa to pay the toll. We didn't want the girls to have to pay so Steve ran back with his card to pay for their car as well. When he ran back to our car he tripped the sensor for the gate and down it went before Jenni had a chance to get through. Steve was back at the car before he realized this and started back again. The toll guy was impatient, as were the people behind Jenni, so he swiped the card for us and gve it to Jenni to keep. Par for the course wtih us!

When we arrived at the resort we found our ocean view unit was actually garden view. I spent almost two hours calling RCI and visiting check in. Nothing was able to be done that night but the next day we were moved to an ocean view unit. Here I sit now on the balcony typing away. The weather has not been good since we have arrived, but we have had a good time anyway. We slept hard last ngiht and I cooked a full breakfast. Steve and I had gotten up early for my sunrise walk but it was completely overcast. No rain though, even thoguh it had rained the night before, so we played tennis (which of course I won) and walked along the beach. Steve f0und a couple of coconuts and stopped the grounds people and had them hack them open with the yard maintance equipment, a great machete.

After breakfast we changed rooms and then went off for our horseback riding adventure. Becky had done all the calling and arranging and we enlojoyed a two hour ride though the rain forest to the river and jumping rocks. Steve had a great horse and mine was very good after I learned it spoke "switch" very well. Mel had the most fun, she had never galloped so fast on a horse before. Jenni of course was too pregnant to come along. Becky looked great until we ran through the first mud puddles, and Ida drove us crazy riding without stirrups. How she did that we still can't figure out. After the ride we drove to the top of the hill and got some great pictures from the top of the lookout.

After horseback riding we came home and toured the pool and walked along the beach. It was still overcast but had stopped spitting at us like it had while we rode horses. The beach was very rocky and interesting. Hermit crabs in shells of all shapes and sizes by the hundreds were crawling along the beach. Mel thoguht they were particularly interesting and stuck her finger at one several times to see if it would grab on. Much to her dismay, it did! Now her fingernail polish is ruined and we are all laughing at her.

Following the beach we lounged in a pool side cabana big enough for us all and then everyone but me headed to the main building for free pool and ping pong. I was a tired camper and decided that I would be good and do my blog. There is a very expensive spa here with a $30 a day use fee that we may try one day. I haven't seen the spa but I hear it is very nice. It is raining too hard to kayak at the bioluminescent bay tonight so have decided to do that tomorrow night. Right now we are going to play Rook and Sequence while drinking smoothies Steve and Becky are making. Life doesn't get much better than this.

It is late now and I couldn't download pictures from Ida's camera for my blog, but she said she would send me some tomorrow so I will include some photos of our adventure so far. Wishing you were here.

Zurich

2009-08-02T02:20:00.000-07:00

I am currently in Zurich. I have been here for 3 nights now trying to get out. We knew the flights were bad so we started home early. We arrived Thursday night and missed the flight on Friday. Steve got out on Saturday in business class, I had to stay behind. I am staying at the Hilton in a very nice room (last night I had a junior suite, tonight is just a regular room). I am enjoying relaxing and watching TV, but decided it was time to finish my trip reports. Steve took the camera home (we bought a new one when our last bit the dust) so I don't have any pictures, I will have to post those when I get home.

We enjoyed our trip to Barcelona proper. We drove in one day and went to one of the most interesting cathedrals I have ever seen. Steve has some great pictures. Next we went to the beach and rented a moped. With that we toured the gardens, the boardwalk along the beach, and a castle on a hill. We even stopped at the harbor and watched some men fishing. I sure wanted to join them but it was time to return the moped. We finished our touring of the Barcelona area with some local drives, local beaches, and more touring of the town. It was a very enjoyable trip.

The drive back was very quick. We stopped in Lausanne and had a marvelous lunch overlooking the lake. Now I am facing another day in the hotel watching TV, napping, and eating in the executive lounge. Life could be worse!

Barcelona

2009-07-26T03:44:00.000-07:00

We are enjoying our time here in the Barcelona area. Our apartment is on the second floor of a nice apartment complex with a center courtyard and pool. The water is solar heated and is very comfortable and refreshing. We would send pictures only the camera is currently non-functional.

The town is currently having a festival and it is fun to participate. There is a small carnival in town for the children, an activity and parade each evening, and fireworks each night. Last night we watched a parade of very large figures of historic people (Kings, noblemen, tradesman, etc). The torsos of the people are 15 feet tall and sat on tripods. Long flowing skirts hid the wooden frames. The manipulator of the figure climbed underneath the skirt and lifts the tripod on their shoulders like a backpack. A small band followed to play music to which the person holding the figure would dance manipulating the figure.

We ended up in the drink section of the parade where all the participants would stop for a beer break to rest their shoulders. The beer bottles were large and shared by all who were thirsty, we decided we were good! The night before we watched fire spitters for our evening show. It is definitely small townish and very enjoyable. Last night for dinner we sat in a local pizzeria and sipped lemonade slushes (the only way to get ice in Europe, or a cold drink for that matter) and shared a pizza. It was very good. The entire town was out and about waiting for the parade.

The day after we arrived we drove up the coast (away from Barcelona) for a picturesque drive. We were very disappointed. The wind was blowing so the water was a muddy color, the towns were neither pretty nor interesting, and the train ran right along the coast spoiling the beach view. I wondered what we had gotten ourselves into. Yesterday we took the train along the coast the other direction and loved it. The wind was gone, the sea was calm, the water was a beautiful shade of blue, and the scenery was good without the train tracks in the way. The towns were clean and picturesque and seemed to get nicer the closer we got to Barcelona. Our town is still very beautiful and we love it.

We are having a relaxing and enjoyable trip.

Monaco and beyond

2009-07-23T07:32:00.000-07:00

Leaving the Tour was quite the experience. The road was closed for about an hour as every bicycle rider in Switzerland and France road down the hill. We were stuck in traffic for another hour or so and finally made our way into the Swiss Alps. We chose the route the tour would take the following day (after a rest stage) and rode until evening.

Just after crossing the border into Italy we came to a charming hotel/restaurant that I could not resist. We stopped for the night and had a private dinner on the balcony overlooking the most gorgeous valley/river gorge and had a great night’s sleep after a long shower (not to mention a bathroom with a flushing toilet!). Our room was on the third floor in the attic and was so nice. All the wood was cedar and it smelled fabulous with the windows open and the greatest view.

Breakfast in the morning was unsweetened hot chocolate and the flakiest croissant ever. We drove most of the day through beautiful scenery into Monaco. Monaco is a very beautiful city. The beaches, and the entire city for that matter, were very clean. It was very picturesque. We had decided to alternate nights in a hotel with camping so we searched for a camping spot. We found the most beautiful sight perched on a hill above Nice, but it had been full for months. We toured a national park and defensive site above the city of Nice and headed into Cannes where we found an adequate site for the night. Setting up with so little equipment is very simple.

We were tired of not getting good sleep at this point so after touring the beaches of Cannes we stopped at a hotel on the beach and got a room for the night. The view wasn’t spectacular but the bed and television to watch the Tour was nice. It was fun watching the Tour follow the route we had traveled the day before, especially as they passed my special little hotel/restaurant and bakery.

The next day we took off about noon after a brunch of couscous and croissants. We drove until almost 9pm and found ourselves in Barcelona. I drove for an hour as my drive of the trip. The Barcelona area is not exactly what we were expecting. The coast line is okay, the weather is fine, and we are having fun, but I miss being in a country where I can speak the language and read the signs. Still, we are communicating fine. We spent the afternoon driving the coast and an hour on the beach, now we are poolside blogging and using the wireless internet. The connection is slow, but manageable.

Happy Birthday to my mother! I love you Mom, have a great day.

The Tour

2009-07-22T00:03:00.000-07:00

In Zurich we got a very nice minivan like car, a Mazda something or other. We loaded in and headed to our first stop, Verbier, for a mountain leg of the Tour de France. Steve and I had become very familiar with the Tour while living in France and continued to follow it while in the States. In Verbier we started the 7 K drive to the summit and end of the 200 K race for the following day. The place was packed with people, cars, and camper vans crowded into every available space. There were over 100,000 people planned to attend this stage of the Tour. We found a tiny little space hanging over the edge of the cliff that was perfect for our little car and tent. We sure got a lot of looks after we were set up! Several people even stopped and took our picture along the way. It was the perfect spot to watch the Tour and only a short walk to the port-a-potty set up by the city for the event. We enjoyed exploring the local town after setting up our tent, we love little European towns.

The night on the cliff was one of the most interesting nights I had ever had and followed the tent and sleeping bag mantra: I have never slept in a tent or a sleeping bag. I have spent many long nights in them, but never actually slept! The night was SO long. Our tent was, of necessity, right next to the road between a break in the guard rails. We only had bare essential equipment as it all had to fit into several carry on bags. At dark we settled down for bed to discover that the traffic for the tour actually began at night when the day’s broadcasts were finished. Every Tour and tourist vehicle passed our tent at breakneck speeds ALL night long. We couldn’t decide what was worst. The motorcycles that were so loud they sounded like the were going to run us over, the cars that drove slowly by panning us with their lights like an extra-terrestrial examination to see if they could squeeze in next to us, or the trucks going so fast they literally (not even exaggerating) blew the edge of the tent so hard it lifted our feet a few inches from the ground.

Mr. Gadget man, with help from Melanie, had rigged a power line that went from the car battery to my CPAP so I was able to breathe at night. Interestingly, the CPAP served as a day time fan blowing air into the tent when it got hot without any shade. We made many friends along the route to the port-a-potty as we all waited for the big event. The riders went by in a 10 second passing as we thought, and was totally anti-climatic after all the fun we had making friends and watching the pre-race parade. The riders seemed to even notice our spot!

Still, the most fun I had was watching the crowd. We watched 50,000 bike riders (okay, there were probably only 5000 riders) going up the hill on bikes, many talking while they rode which made me out of breath just thinking about it. They came in droves all day long like a never ending stream of ants. Steve and I sat amazed for 4 hours watching so many people walk and ride to the summit and every space and nook and cranny in between. We loved our spot; we were glad we had gone a day early and claimed it. As entrancing as it was to watch the people go up, watching the riders go down at breakneck speeds was even more interesting. We loved our day watching the Tour, but had more fun watching where we had camped on TV the next day rather than being there ourselves. We had originally planned to watch a few more stages of the Tour, but felt we had a great experience and were ready to head on to our next adventure.

A Typical Palsky Vacation

2009-07-21T23:25:00.000-07:00

Calm, serene, and going just as planned—NOT!

Candice once asked why our vacations always had to be so chaotic. Good question! It seems to be the norm, however. Our vacation started Wednesday morning. I looked online to see when our exchange guest, Nancy, was to arrive on Thursday. I was surprised to see that she actually arrived Wednesday. Oops, I had worked Monday and Tuesday night shift so had planned on sleeping Wednesday and cleaning Thursday. Jenni saved my life and came over and cleaned the kitchen spotlessly.

Thursday was supposed to be a day of packing. Of course, that would have been too easy. Wednesday night Steve’s car, the one we planned for Nancy to use, wouldn’t start. An eventful trip to Auto Zone told us the alternator had gone bad ruining the battery. We love driving luxury cars, but repairs on them can be a real bugger. The alternator was over $200 to buy (and several hours to find a place that had one in stock) plus over $300 in labor because it was difficult to get to. Steve simply did not have time to replace the alternator and pack for a semi-camping trip. Pep-boys was willing to replace the alternator for a $150 standard fee. There went Wednesday night and a good deal of Thursday for me planning that out. We were very glad we had decided to have the alternator replaced instead of having Steve do it when it took Pep-Boys several hours longer than planned.

Thursday night I finally found time to clean and pack, which of course took until 3 am. Steve and I were totally exhausted by the time we finished. We got a few hours sleep before our 6am alarm for our flight. We arrived at the airport without delay and were pleasantly surprised nothing happened. I got online to check the flight to discover that it was completely full and oversold. We checked alternatives and discovered that it was the only flight into JFK that day. There was, however, a flight into LaGuardia (LGA) leaving in 20 minutes a few gates down. We were undecided as to what to do. We didn’t have time to figure out exactly how long it would take us to transfer from LGA to JFK, but this flight was one hour before the other. Our original transfer time was very tight so we had no time to waste, but one hour should be enough to make the transfer. We made a quick decision and ran for the new gate. We were fortunate the gate agent was willing to transfer us over and we made the flight. Then we had nervous time as the flight was delayed 30 minutes on the tarmac eating up half our transfer time and landed at 3:30pm, just before New York rush hour was to begin.

Upon arrival to LGA we raced for the taxi stand and made the transfer without any problem at all. We even arrived before our original flight was to land. Sweet! We checked the flight loads and discovered that we would have missed the original flight-Good choice to change airports! Now the obvious question was where was our luggage? We checked in at LGA and inquired. The agent was confused when our luggage wasn’t due to arrive for a few minutes and we were already there! There was no way to see if our luggage had come without us as we still had to make it through security and to the gate of our new flight. We hoped for the best.

We were content we made it on the flight to Zurich but disappointed we didn’t get business class. We had originally planned to fly into Milan, but had to change that when the flights home were too full, whereas Zurich had more open flights. I even had good luck finding a last minute car rental. The first leg of our trip was exhausting, but at least we made it!

Our Day on the Boat

2009-07-07T10:02:00.001-07:00

Our driver John, and his very sweet boat complete with skis, wakeboard, knee board, and tube.

Everyone, but me and Lizzie, on the tube.

The sun was behind the clouds most of the day, but still was very warm. We were not happy when it finally came out!

Even the rib was able to pull a tube, here is Rach and Mel enjoying a ride from Steve.

Eric brought his canoe, it pulled well behind the pontoon boat. Caleb thought that was too cool.

Good thing Steve didn't call into work, he is so sunburned it would have been a dead giveaway.

Lizze loved the boat, she was really good. She also loved to swim. Isn't she sweet in her little swimming suit?

An exhausted Mel after a long day. Everyone is very sore and a bit sunburned today but fondly reminiscing over a great day.

Family Vacation

2009-07-05T16:44:00.000-07:00

We are having a wonderful time here at our family vacation. We drove out Friday during the day and were able to get two units next to each other very close to the activity center. We have lots of room for everyone, even Lizzie has her own space (I have the cutest grandchildren).

Rachel was not able to come because she had to work; she is on her way out right now. Saturday we got a boat load of groceries, swam, played mini golf, and rode the motorcycle around the timeshare a bit. Saturday evening we went to the fireworks show in Tyler and then set off our own fireworks on the lake.

Today we slept in, went to church in Tyler, and now I am blogging before the turkey is ready to come out of the oven. We are going to have a big turkey dinner and enjoy leftovers the rest of the week. It rained a bit today, we hope the storm passes by tomorrow since we have two boats reserved, a pontoon boat as a base and a ski boat for fun. So far I am the Catan champion, but I don't expect that to last long. We love being together as family, it reminds of what life and the eternities are all about.

Graduation

2009-07-01T09:37:00.000-07:00

It took 4 1/1 years, but I finally did it, I finished my master's degree. I am now officially educated and deserve more respect. Whether or not I will get it remains to be decided!

June is gone, a full month without blogging, oops. Notable events:

Father's Day. Steve was honored nicely by all, except no one let him win at Catan! I gave him a digital photo frame with 200 pictures from our family, he says people at his desk no longer look at him when they talk, they keeping looking at the photo frame...

Day Camp. Rachel and I worked two days at day camp as the camp nurse. Rachel did all the work, but since her CPR wasn't current I had to be there to make it official. You can see all the hard work I did while there. Somehow I don't think I am going to get any blessings for service on this one.

Melanie. Mel had a great time at girls camp, and youth conference as well. Only one of each left for her now. Mel has decided not to join us for the trip to Italy, Milan, and Spain as she wants to go to Denmark later when Rach has a place and visit. She will be staying with family during that time.

Rachel and Simon are still here and we are enjoying their stay so much. We do feel a bit of a cloud as the time for them to leave approaches, we will miss them so much. We love Simon so much, he fits into our family so well. We especially love his sense of humor, he is always making us laugh (I am still laughing over his t-shirts, especially the one about the video games). Oh, and we love Rachel too!

Temple trips. I have enjoyed 3 temple trips with family since Rach and Simon arrived, always followed by lunch. Having family around who love the Lord and want to serve him is so rewarding.

Family vacation preparations. Everyone is in high gear getting ready. We have two condo unit rentals at the timeshare in Tyler and are planning on bringing the rib, kiteboarding kite, canoe, motorcycle, tennis equipment, games, and plenty of food. We have rented a pontoon boat for Monday and are working on a ski boat as well. This is going to be great fun!

From Steve -- Men's Getaway Part II Report.

2009-07-01T09:33:00.000-07:00

Well, we all successfully returned from our 2009 Men’s Get-Away, Part II. No loss of limb or invocation of the ‘acceptable losses’ clause. This second part of the trip included a cave campout, and float trip down the Guadeloupe, a stop at the Silverleaf Resort outside of San Antonio for the pool and clean showers, and buffet at a famous German Town restaurant.

The cave was a short hike down the arroyo, was known only to locals and undeveloped. After pervasive fogging that looked like some horror movie we were mosquito free for the night. It was fun sitting around talking stories in the quiet of that wilderness spot. The weather was great for the float trip, sunny, with spotty clouds in a bright blue sky. The water was lower than we would have preferred, but it was fun being out of earshot of any traffic noise what so ever.

The river is very clean and had a gravel bottom, so we were able to navigate it without problems. We had water blasters on every tube, so nobody got hot or kept dry. The rope swing was a big splash with Steve. We hope the deer we rescued regained his strength and made it through the night without being eaten by coyotes. I don’t know where it will get more Gatorade, now that it has developed a taste for it, but it was an interesting adventure for all of us. The bus picked us up as planned, and it was nice not having to schlep the tubes back and forth. We ate well during the trip, stopping at several small local haunts. One place was well known for their Jalapeño burger. It was really good – homemade bun, and all.

The drive to the German Town went fast with GPS guiding us all the way. It was way out in the middle of no-where. We were sure we were lost, until we saw 50 cars parked outside this hole-in-the-wall restaurant. There were probably 100 people inside and another 150 outside in the beer garden. George said it looked authentic. Simon said it looked normal, but he’s from Denmark. I think that they were saying the same thing. We all ate well and enjoyed the total divergence from normal Texas fare. The German Potato Soup was well received by all.

The trip home was significantly shortened by John Bytheway and some good gospel discussions. We were, however, all glad to be home and out of seat belts. Get-Away 2009 is now complete. A proposal for a Northern wilderness 2010 trip is being entertained. Get your suggestions and desired timeframes in early. Hope to see you all in 2010.

Almost June

2009-06-01T06:42:00.000-07:00

It has been awhile since I blogged, I just couldn't bring myself to write up the details of my brother Murray's untimely passing at 49 years old. It was difficult, but with the support of family and friends it was bearable.

I am now officially 1/2 done with my very last master's class. I am having the hardest time actually doing the assignments for this class. You would think, being so close to finished, that I would be anxious to rush in and get it all done. Not so, I can hardly bear to think about homework. I am anxious for summer though. Steve and I are still planning on flying into Italy, then seeing some of the Tour de France, and then staying in Barcelona for a week or so. Originally Melanie was going to be staying in Denmark with Rach and Simon, but since they are here, I have no idea what is happening.

We have thoroughly loved having Rachel and Simon here. We have had so much fun. This week Steve and Simon went paintballing together and had a blast. Yesterday Eric and Simon and Steve played guitar together (Eric has his own guitar, we gave Simon one for his BD, and Steve has had one for a while now). No one is making any records, Ariel is by far the best of them all, but they have fun together. Yesterday during golf ball hunting Simon and Eric were lifting Steve in and out of the creek bed in the steep parts. It is great to see them having so much fun. The other day Steve and I went golfing with Eric and Jenni. That was hilarious, we are all so bad. But a good time was had by all. We are loving the spring, especially knowing that summer will soon be upon us.

April Showers

2009-05-03T20:13:00.000-07:00

Well, May is here and it is pouring like crazy. My flowers are still doing well, despite the storms. The creek out back flooded over the banks onto the golf course. We had fun watching it rise and pour over. Watching the beaver family head for the woods was interesting as well. We couldn't decide if they had been washed downstream or if their home was destroyed so they were heading upstream to start over again.

Today was another great Sunday. Church, nap, then family over for a big pot roast dinner. What could be better...me winning Catan, which I didn't! The creek was too high to golf ball hunt so we brought out the kayak and floated downstream in that. Fun was had by all. This weekend dad and I are headed to the timeshare for dad's BD celebration, Rach and Simon will go with us and Jenni and Eric will come when they get off work. Life is good. Oh, tomorrow is the last day of my classes, then just one more 6 week course to go. Saweet, as Rach would say!

I almost forgot to report on the men's getaway. I had hoped to post some pictures, but there weren't hardly any. The guys were having too much fun. Rick Reinbold is quoted for saying, it isn't high adventure unless you have cheated death at least once. This was high adventure, at least for Ariel who was the most adventuresome on the motorcycle. It was a good bonding time for the guys, and us girls stayed at home and watched movies and ate treats. Good fun and bonding time for us as well.

My Favorite Day of the Week

2009-04-20T08:42:00.000-07:00

I love Sundays. Yesterday was a typical, wonderful Sunday. I had to work Saturday night so I slept for a bit and got up and went to the Spanish branch with Steve who was speaking. He gave a good talk which I enjoyed, and then home for nap time! I was awakened by the sound of my grandchildren, that is so fun. We had a house full of people, lots of noise, food, games, and fun. We went golf ball hunting and kite flying, that was an adventure. I also found a small patch of bluebonnets and got some pictures of Lizzie. Rach and Simon won the most adventuresome award of the evening, I tried to capture it in pictures. Enjoy!

Rach on her way to the ball...

Oh oh, look at those tracks, it is deep, she is slipping...

Oh no, over compensating...

But she got it!!!

Now she jsut has to get out, look at that mud on her...

Simon arrives, her hero!

Kite Flying

2009-04-15T19:42:00.001-07:00

Did I mention that Steve bought a 7 meter kite in the Dominican Republic? He did, and he has slowly been collecting the pieces he needs to fly. He bought two harnesses (one for himself and one for Mel) and also a board for the water. Last Friday was windy, and a holiday, so Steve and the boys (Eric and Ariel) went Kite Flying at the park/soccer fields.
We girls and kids went along for the ride, and to fly kites that don't fly you. They were having some trouble getting the kite into the air because the wind was very gusty and Steve didn't want to launch it into the power zone. Well....he was doing fine until the last launch when a big gust hit and he and kite went sailing. Steve was dragged along the ground for a bit before the kite hit a tree! Mel climbed up and rescued the kite, which needs some repair work. At least the kite hit the tree before Steve hit anything! Only his wrist was hurt, a mild sprain he has been icing.

Steve did some reading and found that smaller kites are better in gusty weather so he bought a smaller kite to practice with. Meanwhile, his attention is geared towards getting the motorcycle and quad in top shape for the men's getaway next weekend. The timeshare is booked the the guys are psyched.

Simon and Rach arrived today so there is going to be quite the crowd. We are excited to have Simon and Rach home for a visit, we love having family here. They will be here until her tourist visa resets and they can try for residency in Denmark again. We had a grand party with games and a BBQ, it was great fun. Rach and Simon are still going strong after a night in the airport and two flights, they must be young.

Oh, and Becky had a sonogram, and now knows the sex of the baby, but I won't ruin the surprise...

I Love my Life

2009-03-29T20:19:00.000-07:00

This is a game I found when I was blog surfing.
Rules: Anything you have done has to be in colored, bold, and/or underlined. How much have you done? It only takes about 5 minutes…Just do it..it's fun! The things I've done are bold.

1. Started your own blog (I was coerced)
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland!
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a Praying Mantis
10. Sang a solo (Believe it or not, it is true. When I was 13 I starred in a pre-roadshow warm-up about fish and sang a solo, although calling it singing may be a bit liberal.)
11. Bungee jumped (Does it count if my children jumped and scarred me for life?)
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched an amazing lightning storm
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch (Wood Cutting counts!)
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables (You should see our grapes this year!)
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping (Twice, got caught both times!)
27. Ran a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle (That’s how I broke my foot!)
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Visited Italy

71, and still counting...

The Highs and the Lows--Our trip home

2009-03-24T16:53:00.000-07:00

The Highs:
Our trip to the DR was wonderful, until the last day. After our fishing trip we raced home and looked up flights yet again. We discovered that the flight out of the DR was still wide open, but the flights from Miami were getting close to the 100 levels again. There was nothing to do about it at that point so off we raced yet again. We noticed the car had a fender ding we weren’t sure was there when we rented it, and were pleasantly surprised when there were no extra charges. We were really hard on the car, it served us well! When we landed in Miami we raced for the gate and found a full plane load of people after the plane had already left! Non revs were hovering all over the place! We got on the internet and discovered that the flights to Tampa were wide open both ways, and there weren’t so many non revs listed for Dallas from Tampa. We landed at 12:30 pm and had to take off at 6:00 am so we just slept in the airport. Thanks to Becky, who clued us into soft flooring in Kiddie Play areas, we looked for and found a very nice kiddie play area that was very comfortable for sleeping in, relatively.

The Lows:

The next day was non stop rollovers, all day long. Only one non rev got out all day long, it was very depressing. We finally bought Steve a $300 ticket home for Monday on Southwest through Austin to Love Field so he wouldn’t get fired. Working for AA sure had it benefits! The second night sleeping was not so comfortable; our hips, neck, and shoulders were getting a little sore despite the padded chairs. Steve took off for home after the second night and made it home around noon.

Mel and I were prepared for a long day of rolling over when the miraculous happened. We were 17th and 18th on the list with NO ONE getting out the first 4 flights of the day when it started to pour outside. I thought that would delay the flights but I was wrong. About an hour later the next flight took off and some people must have been delayed as they got all the passengers on, the revenue standbys which hadn’t gotten on all day, and then they started calling non revs. The first few non revs got on, a party of 3 was a no show, the next party of 4 wouldn’t split, another seat was given away, a few more no shows, and they had just two seats left for Mel and I!! All the other non revs below us were so deflated when we took the last seats! We raced to gather up our things (we had moved into the kiddie area) and ran for the plane. We arrived just 3 hours after Steve. We followed the flights after we got home and most of the non revs were still there that night and into the next day. We were so fortunate to get on!

Your vote is now requested. You have read the posts, you know how much fun we had, but it ended with two nights sleeping in the airport and paying for a flight home for Steve. Do you think we deserve sympathy for the poor ending of our trip??? Vote Now!

Our last day in the DR

2009-03-24T11:35:00.000-07:00

Steve and I had originally planned on getting up late our last day and packing for the trip home. That idea was instantly put to rest on Thursday when we were out shopping waiting for the wind to pick up. We were just lazily shopping when two men with 5 fish, which looked like tuna, walked by! Who could resist that??? We stopped the men to talk to them. One didn’t speak any English; the other was from the DR and was currently a student in Germany. They said they owned a small boat and could take us out fishing the next day for 4 hours for about $70 each. We figured the fish were all the proof we needed that they knew what they were doing so it was agreed.

The next morning we headed out at 7:25, which meant we were going to be late. We actually weren’t, but only because it was Saturday, there was no traffic, and I had learned where most of the potholes were! I am pretty good at driving nowadays. We found the men and the boat easily enough. Their boat was obviously the 16 ft fiberglass boat on the beach facing into the surf with a reinforced nose for breaking into the waves. It wasn't until we were out in the ocean that we noticed the leaking patch on the bottom of the boat and the milk jug bailer the guy used every 15 minutes or so! We were comforted by the home made paddle, but we never located the hidden compartment where they obviously stored our life vests...

They said we had 20 minutes until they were ready as one headed off for gas once they were sure we were going to show. While we waited I realized I had made a big mistake, I had no hat. I didn’t bring one! We would have gone to the shops and bought one but had less than $1 to our name after paying for the fishing. Steve, however, had a brilliant idea. We had our $20 Costco beach umbrella, still with tag on, in the car. We brought it because some people on the internet had complained that they hadn’t been able to find a shady spot on the beach and I didn’t want that to happen. We had never had that problem though, so hadn’t used it.

We ran to the car, Steve put the umbrella on his shoulder, and we went for a quick shopping trip. The first shop didn’t have what we wanted, and we were running out of time. At the second shop I asked for a hat with a brim and a tie around the neck to keep it on in the boat. The man produced the ugliest orange touristy hat, but it did fit the requirements. We didn’t have much choice so we tried to explain in English our lack of cash and desire to trade. He didn’t quite understand so Steve asked if he spoke French, which he did, and the bargaining began. We explained our desire to trade and the man asked us to show him the umbrella. It was brand new, big, and even had a tilt on the top. The man made a show of trying to do us a favor by agreeing to the trade! I got a $1 hat for a $20 umbrella! The man must still be talking about the great trade he made!
Back at the beach the real fun began. We pushed the boat out to the water where they made me hop in. I hate it when they won’t let me join the fun! The rest of the crew pushed the boat out into the waves and jumped in, pretty well soaked. The man revved up the 15 hp Yamaha motor and off we went like Tom Hanks in Castaway, crashing through the oncoming surf. It was way fun! The main guy put out his line immediately. He fished the same way they did in St. Maarten, they used 30 lbs test on a spool and dropped it into the water with a lure. He was trolling in less and 30 seconds with the line over his shoulder so he could feel when he had a bite. The second guy started rigging our poles. He was almost finished when the first guy caught a bonita (I think, I need Mur to look at the pictures to be sure). They called it tuna, but I am not certain. Anyway, we reeled it in and off we were again. Not too much longer the main guy and I caught a fish at the same time. I think my fish was a yellow tail, again, not sure. It was only about 12 inches long, but thick, a nice fish that was fun to catch. More trolling followed and I got a big bite!!! It took forever to bring it in, and I almost gave up and had Steve finish because I was so sore, but I persevered. The fish was huge!!

That was so much fun! We fished for another hour or so until I asked them to head back. We had explored the coast and had a great ride, but after 4 hours of horseback riding the day before my back was sore. We trolled the rest of the way home. About 20 minutes out I pronounced myself done and handed my pole to the other guy and just relaxed. I had too much fun. However, the funnest part was actually coming to shore. The man just surfed the boat with the waves like we were body surfing, careful not to get too far in front of the waves and swamp the boat. When we got to shore we jumped out and pushed the boat the rest of the way with a crowd on the beach jumping in the help.

When we landed a French couple on the beach asked to buy my smaller fish. Good thing I still speak Franglais. I told them I had given it to the owners since I was leaving that day. After a bit of bargaining the man sold it to them for 210 pesos. The man cleaned it (burying the waste in the sand on the beach) and scaled it for cooking. The couple walked off happy with fresh fish for lunch! We had quite the crowd very impressed with my fish milling around for a while. It was a great end to a wonderful trip.

Actually, that wasn’t the end, but that is another post…

Numb Butt

2009-03-20T06:05:00.000-07:00

Today was a great day. We stayed up late watching movies last night. When we finally woke up this morning it was bright out and I thought we had missed the horseback riding by sleeping in until noon! I looked at my watch and it was almost 7:30! We rustled around and hit the breakfast buffet for more made to order omelets and French toast, orange juice, etc, and were on our way. There were a few scattered clouds but the weather was warm and beautiful. We were on time for the horseback riding. The man was there with 3 horses and we mounted up. Well, we waited a moment because there were whales jumping in the surf outside the hotel and kite school, they were fun to watch.

Then off we went walking down the beach in the surf. The man that owned the horses led us along the beach, through the back streets of the local town where we saw his house, and then across the highway headed for the mountains. The horses were not typical for most riding we had done before; these horses loved to run. My horse actually loved to trot. I don’t prefer that, so I had to keep reining him in. I finally discovered that if I rode behind Steve I didn’t have to work so hard, we would just walk for a bit, and then run to catch up with the leader who liked to give his horses a good workout. His horse had a very fast walk so my horse was accustomed to trotting to keep up.

After we crossed the main road we headed across some pasture land for the mountains. The man was convinced at this point we could handle the horses so he rode behind and let us set our own pace. We could run, walk, trot, whatever and whenever we wanted. It was so much better than trail riding! He would just run ahead when we came to a junction or if he needed to open a gate or such.

We kept going forever it seemed. At the 1 ½ hour mark we stopped at a beautiful garden place with birds and went to “the lagoon.” This was actually a cave with a natural spring. It was crystal clear so we decided we would take a swim. We were told to wear our bathing suits on the ride but that sounded too uncomfortable. We decided to change there instead. Mel thought this was a questionable idea, at best.

The swim so refreshing after almost 2 hours on a horse. Mel and Steve went way back in (past what you can see in the picture) until they became spooked with no light. They don't float very well and it was very deep (and too cramped to swim) so they used rock climbing handholds to stay up.

The ride back was very fast, the horses were headed home and we had to keep them from running the whole way. We stopped for lunch at a local place on the main road. We washed our hands in a communal bowl and shared a communal towel. They offered us Cola, which we didn’t drink, but they assured us the water was purified. That was over 8 hours ago so it must have been the truth! We had chicken, complete with gizzards and other organs, rice, beans, salad, and some potato like root vegetable. It was all very delicious, surprisingly!

Following lunch we reluctantly got back on the horses and finished the trip home. We stopped at the man’s house on the road and saw his wife and 3 small boys. The oldest boy was getting a bath with a hose on the front patio. The wife was soaping him up and rinsing him off. My horse got impatient so it took off, but Steve hung around long enough to hear the man tell his son to wash his privates, which he did, thoroughly, there on the street!

We made it quickly to the beach. We knew the horses had been on the route before and loved it, because right before we hit the beach they started to run! We ran in the surf splashing and having a good time until we made them walk. 10 minutes before home we came to the first resort we didn’t stay at and I made them let me off. I sat on a beach chair under a cabana with a frozen pina colada drink waiting for Steve to come back with the car to get me. He didn’t mind because I got a drink for him too! Mel and Steve said the ride back after dropping me off went just as quickly with the horses running for dear life. Mel was only a little spooked when she tried to stop her horse from running and he wouldn’t, he wanted to stay up to the other horses. After 4 hours, we were just a little sore. Numb Butt hardly begins to describe it!

We went straight from horse back riding into kite boarding, which is in an earlier post. That was fun to watch, let alone do! After that was another massage for Steve and I while Mel lounged, read and slept on the beach chairs at the other resort. We are sure enjoying having a sister property in which to eat, drink, and lounge. Now we are home waiting for our 8:30 dinner reservation. This time it is Tex-Mex cuisine. It was the only choice so we took it, rather than go back to the buffet. The restaurant last night was excellent. Mel had a chicken brochette, Steve had a grilled chicken breast, and I had sea bass. They were cooked perfectly and we really enjoyed them. The food has been very good this trip.

I am back from the restaurant now trying to download the kite boarding pictures. This reminds me of mom’s old connection! I guess I can’t complain, at least I have internet access in my room and don’t have to go to a shop. Dinner was good, salad, tortilla soup, and quesadillas for appetizers, with beef fajitas for dinner. The quesadillas were some of the best I have ever had, but the fajitas didn’t win any awards.

We are still having fun!

Kite Boarding

2009-03-19T16:17:00.001-07:00

The goal of today's kite boarding lesson was body dragging. That is the essence of kite boarding without the board. You practice maneuvering the kite with one hand while being dragged along in the surf, waves crashing over you, and all the time keeping the kite in the air and pulling you along. Mel and Steve say it is even harder than it sounds!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, enjoy this commentary on kite boarding...

Steve is in the surf with the kite in the air ready to drag along the surf.

Steve in the surf, the kite is going down.

The kite is down and Steve wiped out when it did!

This is the helper guy laughing at Steve's NICE wipe out.

This is Mel after watching Steve...

Mel launches the kite, braves the surf, and flies the kite.

Mel is being dragged along in the surf but the kite is going down!

The kite is almost down!

Mel saves the kite and along she goes!

They lived to tell the tale!

We are having fun!

Wednesday in the DR

2009-03-18T15:33:00.000-07:00

I awoke early again, this time to the sound of rain. Islands often get short squalls, but this was not like that. The entire sky was cloudy and it was raining fairly constantly. It rained for several hours while we ate breakfast and drove to the place for horseback riding. We kept wondering if the rain would clear, but it never did. The people for horseback riding weren’t there, but we were 20 minutes late. We didn’t see any horse tracks so off we went exploring. We drove around for an hour or so, found the restaurant I had read about on the internet that was supposed to be good, and went to the bank for cash for the remainder of the kite boarding lessons. We were not able to get cash because their phone line was down so we went to the other bank in town. We were lucky they had two!

We went back to meet up with the guy for lessons to find no wind and still raining. We agreed to eat lunch and return in two hours to check the weather. We also met the horse riding guy who tried to talk us into going out in the afternoon. We weren’t sure it would clear so we agreed to take a 4 hour ride tomorrow. That is going to kill me off! We will start at the beach, ride to the river, head into the mountains and the lagoon, swim, have lunch, and then back to the beach. All for $70 per person. We think that is fairly reasonable.

Lunch was okay, not as great as the internet promised, but quite enjoyable. Afterwards we drove back to the beach and slept in the car for 30 minutes. When we awoke the wind still had not picked up and it was raining slightly. We agreed to meet again in 2 hours and off we went. What to do for two hours??? I had a brilliant idea, NOT! We dropped Mel at the resort and Steve and I went for a couples massage. I had read about the cheap massages and Steve was sore from the first day of kite boarding so we stopped in. It was interesting, to say the least. I still smile and break into spontaneous laughter when I think about the experience. Steve says he feels much better and isn’t sore anymore. Me? Well, any woman who is interested in the details let me know via private email!

After the massage we went to pick up Mel. We decided to check out the beach and got hit by the sales people. Mel had always wanted to have her hair braided and they offered to do it for only $50. Wow, I know she has a lot of hair but that was just a bit pricy. We settled on $25 and the woman set to work.

She was very fast so it only took an hour or so. While there we sat under a cabana and sipped frozen drinks and ate burgers from the grill. Who cares if it is raining when life is that good?

Now we are home and waiting for dinner. We are eating at one of the specialty restaurants tonight. Normally it is near the beach but tonight it is moved because of the rain. We are hoping it will be good. The nightly show is what we have planned after that.

We are still having a good time!

Wednesday Pictures

2009-03-18T14:44:00.000-07:00

It rained all day today, so no horseback riding or kite boarding, but we still had a VERY interesting day. A trip report will follow later, for now here are some pictures.

Typical mad people traffic patterns.

Mopeds for normal use. Mopeds are also used as taxi's. They are faster than the autobus so they cost more than that, but not quite as much as a shared taxi ride. We saw a stop today and mopeds were being targeted, we aren't sure exactlty for what. We think many people just go out and ride until they are flagged down to make extra cash!

Mopeds for carrying items, notice the mud flap for the rain today.

Does anyone have any clue what kind of fruit this is???

Still having fun here!

Beach Buffet Tuesday Night

2009-03-18T02:36:00.000-07:00

Pictures from the DR

2009-03-18T01:55:00.000-07:00

Today I am up early trying to download pictures. I will take some of horseback riding and kite boarding today if I am successful.

Steve and I on the hotel property.

Mel and I on the beach with the buffet tables in the background.

The view from our building as we enter.

Tuesday in the Dominican Republic

2009-03-17T19:20:00.000-07:00

Tuesday morning I awoke at 6am to a sky just beginning to lighten. I woke Steve who was still very tired. I asked him if he wanted to go for a walk on the beach. He was still sleepy so I said I would see him when I got back. Well, he got right up and went with me after that because he can’t stand the thought of missing anything! The beach was beautiful, the sunrise spectacular, and the walk refreshing. Breakfast of handmade omelets followed. The fresh squeezed orange juice was also very good. After breakfast we had a short nap to make up for the short night and headed off for Kite Beach. We had researched kite boarding online and found some lessons for around $400 per person. Despite the steep price, Steve and Melanie really wanted to give it a try. We headed off to the beach but the wind didn’t pick up until the afternoon so the place was practically deserted. We saw one sign on the street for a free 30 minute kite boarding lesson so we stopped in.

We parked in a vacant lot and walked a bit to the beach. There we found a man with a small shack and a few Spanish speaking helpers. He was a private individual with a passion for the sport and his own equipment. He agreed to give Steve and Melanie private lessons (3 days at 2-3 hours each) for $540, a great deal. They had one palm shade cover and a few chairs, so I was set. Steve and Mel started by flying mini kites to learn about maneuvering kites, then strapped into the 4 foot kite. They learned how to keep it in the air 2 handed. Both said it was much more fun than they had anticipated. They made arrangements to go tomorrow for the second lesson where they learn one handed flying in preparation for one hand being free to maneuver the board. They are both so sore it is funny, tomorrow should be entertaining.

While we were waiting for the lesson to begin a man with a small group of horses and riders came by running down the beach. The kite instructor knew him and he stopped by on his way back. He was from an equestrian center down the road and agreed to come by the next morning with horses and take us on a two hour ride along the beach to a river. He said we really needed two hours so we could run the horses, swim, and stop for refreshments. That will be at 9 in the morning before the second lesson for Steve and Mel. They are going to be so sore and tired!

After our lessons we came back to the resort and enjoyed an evening swim after the sun had gone down. It was so refreshing. Next we had dinner on the beach. I have some pictures of that also, but the internet connection is so slow here I am having trouble attaching pictures. Maybe if I go to the WiFi center I will be able to get a better connection. After dinner the resort had a live band and dancing. Mel took center stage with one member of the animation team. Thanks to Ariel she did a nice salsa. Now it is time for bed for a big day tomorrow.

We are having a great time!

Not Good Enough

2009-03-17T16:52:00.001-07:00

It is too bad you can’t hear Eric imitate me saying, Not Good Enough. Eric tells a great story of going to Niagara Falls with Steve and me and getting, according to Eric, the nicest room he had ever seen with a great view of the falls. I immediately declared it Not Good Enough and dragged Eric and family back downstairs for an upgraded view. He was amazed when I got an even nicer room with a fabulous view. He makes fun of me whenever I pronounce something Not Good Enough. Like the time we rented a Deck Boat at the lake. When we got there we discovered the boat was broken. They offered us a ski boat for the same price. I pronounced it Not Good Enough because there were too many of us. Then they offered us a pontoon boat, but I pronounced that Not Good Enough because you couldn’t ski with it. Eric says they would have told him sorry and given him nothing, but they offered me both for the price of the deck boat. Sweet! That’s good enough! This trip to the Dominican Republic (DR) has had its Not Good Enough moments.

The trip started out doomed for failure. The flights filled up quickly, and so did the non-rev list. Mel and I had to leave for the 6am flight Sunday morning in hopes of making it out. We missed it by 8 people. By 8am we were 104th on the list. No, that wasn’t a typo, there were over 100 people standing by in front of us. We thought all was lost, but then discovered an AA chartered 757 that was allowing non revs to fly. By the time it took off at noon we were down to 128th on the list. It was tight, but 5-10 people made it on after us. We arrived in Miami too late to make our connection to the Dominican Republic so got a free room at the Hampton Inn. I love Hilton Hhonors points. Mel and I were able to sleep and even watched a movie Monday before taking off for our flight to Puerto Plata.

Steve was not so fortunate. He spoke in Waxahachie that Sunday so didn’t make it to the airport until later. Even though so many non revs had gotten out on the charter flight, there were still way too many in front of him. He ended up spending the night and going for the 6am flight Monday morning, which he also missed. That wasn’t the low point of the day, however, discovering that he had lost his wallet was pretty low. It wasn’t a total disaster as he still had his passport, but he only had $20 and no cards. He finally made it out to Orlando on Monday and made the connection to Miami. By that time he had missed the flight to Puerto Plata. There were several flights to Santo Domingo, but he didn’t have any money to rent a car. That meant that I would have to drive and pick him up. I had him fly into Santiago, DR, as it was closer. He was to arrive Monday at 9pm.

Meanwhile, Mel and I had made our flight to Puerto Plata and had rented a car. I drove like a mad woman (all people in DR drive like mad people) with no respect for lanes or right of way to the resort. We had read almost 100 reviews of the resort we had reserved through RCI. All of them had two things in common. First, the room you were in made all the difference in the world. The resort had good rooms and bad rooms. The bad rooms were small, had low ceilings, and were dark and barely livable. The good rooms had vaulted ceilings, and while still desperately in need of repair, weren’t so bad. Second, the food was only okay, you get what you pay for, and the resort only charged $35/per day per person for all inclusive. I was hopeful that since I had reserved a one bedroom (4 beds, 2 bathrooms) through RCI I would be given a nice room.

I was sadly disappointed. When we first arrived they couldn’t find us. They did tell us we were lucky, they had one good room available to give us. They showed us a dark hole room, one with 2 poor beds, dark, low ceiling, and pretty dirty looking. I very politely said, Not Good Enough. They said they had nothing else to offer us. I didn’t mention the 10 registration papers with assigned rooms sitting on the desk waiting for people to arrive and check in they could have switched to us. They offered us a one night stay in a sister property 30 minutes away, but we would have to come back the next night. Not Good Enough. I called RCI and had them deal with the issue. Finally the resort offered us a room at the sister resort for the whole week for the same price. Good Enough! Mel and I drove and checked in. The sister resort was at least 10 times nicer. We were given VIP tags for our wrists and a room on the beach. No beach view, but a wonderful garden view and really close to the water. The resort is on the windy side with a protected beach in the bay. It is very nice. Here is a picture Mel took outside our room looking towards the ocean. (I am unable to add the picture, will try later).

Mel and I quickly ate dinner at the buffet and drove to pick up Steve. That was a true adventure. We had asked for a map, no one had one. Steve’s GPS had no maps of the DR, so we had the man at the resort draw us a map. Turns out he can’t draw so well! He told us it would take us an hour or so, in my dreams. Most of the people here use mopeds or small motorcycles. They REALLY use them. We see lots of people riding small mopeds with two or three and even four people on them. Women in skirts often ride side saddle style. They carry everything with them. The funniest thing I saw was two men with a white plastic patio table and two chairs upside down, balanced on their heads. They used 3 hands to hold it in place and one hand for steering. Considering the driving conditions on the side of the road with no rules, it was scary at best, suicidal for most. I drove very carefully around the two large men on a small moped with a large (4 foot) propane tank between them. The man on the back was so far back on the seat he was almost falling off. The tank was so rusted I commented on the lack of road rash they would get if they ever crashed, they would be incinerated before that could be an issue! The traffic traveled much too quickly with cars entering the oncoming lane to pass mopeds. When this happened on both sides of the road at the same time you just squeezed in tighter, 4 lanes instead of the two that were marked! At lights you would stop and the mopeds would weave in ahead of the cars vying for a place like bikers lining up the Tour de France. They would take off when the signal changed and head for the side with the cars quickly overtaking them. It was truly comical and dangerous for everyone involved. Not to mention the fact that it was now dark and very few mopeds even had lights on them. We bravely forged on ahead, seeing we really had no other option! I only scared Mel badly a couple of times. Once I was surprised by a section of dirt road that appeared out of nowhere and had us off-roading for a bit. When Steve hit that section driving home fast we slid sideways for quite a bit! In another area of rare divided highway we were shunted to other side for repair work. I forgot about that on the way home and found myself heading straight into oncoming traffic. A quick swerve saved us from death, but left Mel permanently scarred for life.

There were almost no signs to the airport and we drove for over 2 hours, stopping at every light, asking the people on mopeds next to you where to go. Our Spanish was so bad we just said, Aeropuerto??? We couldn’t understand a word they said in return, we just waited for the pointing! We finally made it to the airport. I was worried that Steve would not have $10 left from his lone $20 bill to buy the tourist card needed to enter the country. He did, with $4 to spare! He was glad to see us and cards again!

Here is a picture of Mel and me at the beach. Next update about our first day and kiteboarding coming soon. Wish you were here!

Sunday Afternoon

2009-03-08T16:57:00.001-07:00

I love Sundays. Fast and Testimony meeting was enjoyable, followed by a nap. Steve and I set our financial goal for the year as we were asked to do. I had some stew meat that I put in the cast iron with some potatoes and onions and cooked slow and long, it was good. After lunch we sat on the back patio in the shade and enjoyed the cool weather, don't know how long that will last. We love our view. I even had Steve take pictures!

This week we worked on our small garden areas. I planted monkey grass and nandinas in the front planter.

I also placed a small trellis in front of the air conditioner and planted a small Carolina Jasmine in front.

We also placed a small jasmine by the front fence and gate for a bit of privacy.

Steve also fixed my frog fountain. The frogs always get clogged with dirt over the winter so Steve went in and sucked out the gunk. Mellie said he was making out with frogs in the backyard!

While we have pictures up, here is one of Steve's new dirt bike for the men's getaway and summer vacation at the timeshare. Ariel tried it out and thought it was great fun. I took it for a spin down the block but haven't gone dirt riding yet. One day Steve is going to take me to the dirt trail he has been chopping in the woods nearby.

Have a good week everyone!

Family Fun

2009-03-02T03:14:00.000-08:00

This was a great week. I worked 5 days but managed to have quite a bit of fun despite that. Thursday Steve and I went to Holly Lake to explore the motorcycling riding possibilities in that area. We spent the night and came home on Friday so I could work that night. We played tennis in the morning. I fear I have lost my edge against Steve, he is getting much better. We stopped by Canton on the way home for first Monday trade day and had a fun time. We were not there for long but got an idea of the place. It is a huge swap meet type experience but with much nicer things, most of them homemade. Steve got a turkey leg and I had a baked potato. Then we came home to meet up with Dan and Michelle. I am so excited! Michelle and Dan are moving here from Utah and it is fun to have them here. We had a pot roast lunch followed by Catan, I was so close to winning! A good time was had by all. I love getting togther with family. I wish I had taken some pictures, but I didn't, I will have to do that more often.

Pay It Forward!

2009-02-19T16:04:00.001-08:00

I found this on Jenni's blog, sounds like fun so I am passing it along.

1. Be one of the first THREE bloggers to leave a comment on this post, which then entitles you to a handmade item from me (yeah for handmade!).

2. Winners must post this challenge on their own blog, meaning that you will pay it forward, creating a handmade gift -anything!- for the first THREE bloggers who leave a comment on YOUR post about this giveaway!

3. The gift that you send to your 3 friends can be from any price range and you have 365 days to make/ship your item. This means you should be willing to maintain your blog at least until you receive your gift and have shipped your gifts. And, remember it’s the spirit and the thought that count!

4. When you receive your gift, blog about it! If you are not one of the first three to comment on this post, you can still play along. Go ahead and start your own Pay It Forward chain, and encourage your blogging friends to do the same! It's all about paying it forward.

Who knows what you will get...

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-15T12:42:00.001-08:00

Saturday was wonderful. My Valentine and I went to lunch at the funnest place. We went to Ben Franklin Apothecary and soda fountain for real ice cream sodas at the counter and lunch. Steve had the baked potato and fresh made limeade. They were fabulous! Elvis was there serenading us and we even had our picture taken. They asked us if we would mind if they put our picture on the web, and we said no. Maybe we will be on their site when they update it next. Check it out at http://www.benfranklinrx.com/deli.html. After lunch we walked across the street to another store and I bought some fabric to make a dress for little Lizzie. The fabric has flowers on it, I hope to make it and get a picture on my blog.

After lunch and a nap my Valentine took me to play tennis with Mel and her date. Following that we went to DQ for ice cream. I still look back and smile at the day, it was fun. Steve and I had plans to go to the sweetheart dance but Steve had a lesson to do and so we stayed home instead. It was a good day!

The New Year

2009-02-08T15:15:00.000-08:00

Well, I am finally ready to send out my Christmas cards. Oops, a little too late I guess. But not too late to give an update on how our family did this last year. It was certainly eventful. I only have one child left at home, my family is getting old!

Melanie just turned 17 last week. Wow. This last year Melanie had quite a few accomplishments. Choir is still her favorite subject in school. Several weeks ago she competed in Solo and Ensemble and received 1's (Superior Rating) on both. She now moves on to State to compete in both of those, probably in May. She also competed in UIL in BCIS (computers) and ranked 8th. Robotics is another interest she has and she is working on a Lunacy robot for competition. Melanie still comes to me for math questions, NOT. She is in Calculus BC which is so far over my head, and even past what Steve has done, that she has to go to Eric for help. Melanie is growing nicely, I often get stopped by friends who tell me she has turned into a beauty and is turning heads. I've known that for a long time! We recently got her contacts but she is still trying to find a pair that works for her. Here is a recent picture of Melanie after church, sure wish I was this cute when just hanging out!

Rachel is doing wonderfully after her recent marriage to Simon Bendtsen. They are the cutest couple! All the details of their courtship, engagement, and marriage are found in earlier posts. I sure miss them, but thanks to Skype we get to see them often. For Christmas they joined our untalent show on the big screen and even sang hymns with us. Rachel is now the chorister in church as well as YW leader (the only one!). Simon continues in the Branch Presidency and was recently called as YM president. Simon still works and is going to school, Rachel sometimes babysits for extra cash. They are a busy happy couple. You can find more info about Rachel on her blog.

Becky and Ariel are now expecting, again. WooHoo! Aaron is now almost 2 years old, here is a picture of him at Christmas. Do I have the world's cutest grandchildren or what? I am also including a picture of Becky and Ariel performing their untalent, playing rock band. They aren't doing it quite standard though, Becky is playing one drum and strumming the guitar while Ariel is playing the other drum and chording. If you haven't played rock band you probably don't know how hard that is, you have to watch two different screens at the same time. It requires more coordination than I possess! We all got quite the laugh at their expense! Ariel is still working and is about to start school again. Becky is still working full-time and also getting ready to start up school again.

Jenni and Eric moved back to Texas this past year, it is wonderful having family so close! Caleb is now 5, and little Lizzie was born, ensuring my title as mother of the world's cutest grandchildren! Here are some pictures of them at our Christmas Eve untalent show. Lizzie is opening her present, and Eric is helping Caleb put together his marble toy. Aren't we great grandparents??? Eric LOVES putting together toys with over 300 pieces! For more info and pictures about Jenni visit her blog.

Mike married Linda this last year after returning home from his mission in Ukraine. They are also here in Texas. They are both working and going to school, they are doing wonderfully. John and Aubrey still live in Denton where John works operating a particle accelerator, his dream job. They are also doing great.

Here is a picture of Steve, me, and Melanie at Becky's Hat party. We each designed our own hat and had a great time with prizes and all. Steve's hat is very Steve, he rigged an air contraption to party and noise makers and blew all at once. His hat was a definite winner. My hat was a favorite with dessert included for the taking. Melanie's hat was certainly unique. Her shirt had a sign that said, "I can't wait for vacation!" and, in honor of Rach, she wore a bridal veil. Thanks to Rachel and Simon everyone keeps asking me where I am going on vacation to find Melanie a husband!

Steve changed jobs this last year. He qualified for early retirement at American Airlines, which he will receive in May 2010. He now works in the IT Project Management office of AAFES, the Army and Air Force Exchange Service. He likes his new job, especially working 9 hour days and taking every other Friday off. Combine that with Federal holidays and he only works about 20 full weeks a year. He feels like he is on a permanent vacation.

I am still working at North Hills Hospital. I changed from primarily supervising to working in the Emergency Department. My main goal for doing this was to prepare myself to work on a cruise line after Steve retires. He thinks it would be great fun to travel the world via cruise ship when he is ready to leave AAFES. Who knows what the future will hold. I am currently taking two classes, with only 3 left to finish my MSNed. Everyone asks me if I am doing this so I can teach, and the answer is no, I am only doing a masters in education so I can be a better teacher for personal reasons. We all know that working interferes with my lifestyle!

We are still loving our new home, for those that don't have our current address it has changed to 1022 Kaylie street. Our phone number is still the same. We love living on the golf course and taking our grandchildren golf ball hunting. We wish everyone a happy new year!

The Wedding, Part 3

2008-12-11T14:09:00.000-08:00

The trip to the Put and Take was like all others, cramped and uncomfortable. A highlight was stopping for Danish’s on the way. We stopped in a random town and asked a local for directions to the bakery. He said it was too complicated, so he had us follow him there. What a nice man. People in Denmark are so friendly. The bakery was filled with wonderful sights and smells. We bought one of everything that looked good and 4 milks. We finished the trip to the Put and Take with Sherry dividing out pastries for us to try.

Fishing was interesting. No, we didn’t catch anything, but we had a good time. The Put and Take was not one I had fished at before, nor did anyone else catch fish during the 2 hours we were there, so we have no idea how the fishing is normally. It started off cold and dark. We fished through the most beautiful sunrise I had seen in Denmark. Actually, it was the only sun we had seen in Denmark! Less than ½ hour later it turned dark and cold with another cold front. Denmark is extremely cold in winter. After fishing we took the bridge into Sweden. The bridge was very impressive. Sweden was only so so, at least the part we went through. The town appeared poor, the shopping sparse, and the food not really very good. I am sure other parts of Sweden would be much better, but we just didn’t have time to go anywhere else.

After several hours of shopping we headed back to Germany. We made Hamburg a little before 8 and were a little surprised to find the market still open. Hamburg has the most fabulous market filled with shops of homemade goods and wonderful treats. This time we ordered the sautéed mushrooms with garlic sauce, even I liked those slimy critters. More meat on a skewer, a hotdog over the coals for Melanie, and Goulash followed. Once again everything was fabulous. Sherry was able to get the few things that she had seen on the way through that she found interesting, and then we were headed back to Frankfurt.

Poor Steve, he drove the 12 hours from Frankfurt to Sweden by himself. We let him have several breaks, once on the ferry, one nap in the car, and several stops. Okay, lots of stops for us, although not too many after midnight because I am the only one that is normally awake during that time. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Lol, I just fell asleep on the plane and the above is what I typed before I woke up! We are so exhausted. We are almost home now; we have slept most of the way. My feet are very swollen and painful; I am so looking forward to a good nights sleep. We have had a marvelous trip and wouldn’t have missed it for the world. The next time I go to Denmark though, it isn’t going to be with so much luggage, so rushed, or so short!

I just can’t begin to thank Sherry for all her help during our trip. I worked her to the bone making cakes, doing hair, putting on make-up, decorating, and anything else that needed to be done. We teased her endlessly about sitting around doing nothing…which she did every time we got into the car because she couldn’t move with all the luggage crammed around her! Sherry did so much work, all on less than 4 hours sleep per night plus whatever she could sneak sleeping upright in the car. Who could have a better friend? Well, she could have taken me fishing longer…

The Wedding, Part 2

2008-12-11T13:57:00.000-08:00

Hindsight is 20/20. Sherry is seeing much more clearly now! She claims that she is still glad that she came, but I don’t know!

After finishing the cakes at 5am I got a full 3 hours sleep, which should be our theme for the trip. I woke up to the sounds of Rachel showering. Rachel had forgotten her towel so she was using the one I brought, which was the communal towel for Steve, Melanie, and I. We would have brought more towels but we would have had to wear them like a turban to avoid the weight restrictions we had so freely and completely abused upon check-in.

I showered when Rachel finished. Rachel woke up Sherry to start her hair. I was summoned out of the bathroom a short time later to the smell of burning hair. Apparently the smallest curling iron didn’t work well with the transformer Rachel had and Rachel got a new cut. Fortunately Sherry is a miracle worker with hair as well and no one was aware of the difference. The hairdo Rachel and Sherry chose was wonderful, as was the make-up, and Rachel looked fabulous. When Simon first saw her he was absolutely speechless, she was stunning.

Steve, Melanie, and I ran to the store to get luncheon supplies and then home to get ready for the temple. I barely had time to get ready and escort Rachel across the street to the Copenhagen temple. She had her wedding dress for pictures after the temple as well as her Temple dress for the sealing. We were escorted downstairs to the bridal dressing room were Rachel realized she had forgotten her Temple Clothing. We told the Temple Matron’s Assistant that she had forgotten her clothes and asked if we could send someone to get them, knowing that this temple had no clothing rental. The woman informed Rachel that now she couldn’t get married that day. Rachel’s eyes got wide and the woman smiled…good one. Rachel told me that I couldn’t tease her that day at all!

There were approximately 15 people in the temple, everyone who could come in except Sherry. She showed up a few minutes late and the ceremony began when she arrived. The ceremony was beautiful, as always. Rachel and Simon were sealed by Simon’s sister’s father-in-law. Simon was the 3rd child of the family to be sealed by the same man. Denmark, apparently, is truly a small place. After the ceremony Sherry showed me a deep cut on junction of her left thumb and index finer. She had cut herself rushing to get ready after working all morning to get Rachel ready. That cut, right in the junction, still plagues Sherry now. It reopens with about everything that she does, but stopping was not an option!

The luncheon after the temple back at the temple apartments was very nice. Simon’s family jumped right in to help and we had an enjoyable time talking and resting before the 3-4 hour drive to Randers where the reception was to be held. After cleaning up we still had to pack up and load, which, despite unloading 3 large bags onto Simon’s family, was still quite an ordeal.

Sherry and I were determined to fish while on the trip, so we headed to the Put and Take, a Danish version of a stocked pond. The GPS couldn’t find the exact address, and we wandered around lost until it was completely dark and started to rain. The trip itinerary would have to be rewritten. Steve drove like a trouper the entire 3 hour trip while the rest of us crashed. The only stop we made was for gas. We were so exhausted and hungry that we even ate at the McDonald’s at the gas station. FYI, Big Mac’s don’t have special sauce in Denmark!

The GPS directed us to the church where we planned to drop off the wedding supplies before checking in at the Youth Hostel. We had been given a key to the chapel and the code to the security system. We were told it was 4 numbers and then either A or enter, whichever was there. No problem, so we thought. We used the key to get in and input the code. To our horror, there was both an A and an enter button, with all kinds of written instructions in Danish! The alarm kept beeping and we weren’t sure if we had armed or disarmed the alarm! Finally we took a guess and waited through tense moments for the sirens to sound. Sure enough, they did, but fortunately passed us by. Melanie guessed right, go Melanie!

We decided to inspect the cultural hall while we were there and the whole thing just sucked us in. Simon’s family had set up 6 tables, which we rearranged. Then we wanted to see if the chair backs and tablecloths would fit, so we brought them out. Then we moved the lights into position to spotlight the dance floor and sacrament table (cake stand). Then we decided to put the cake in the refrigerator and it wouldn’t fit. That led to the idea to just make the cake and beng done with it. By this time it was 11:30. Sherry put the entire cake together and finished by 3am. I assembled the centerpieces and Steve and Melanie took a nap. By the time we were done we were a little sleepy, oh wait, totally exhausted is a better choice!

Melanie was in charge of the GPS. We were very surprised to find that the route to the Youth Hostel was too short to accurately map. Just 2 city blocks away was our home for the next two days. The Youth Hostel was very much like any other Youth Hostel we stayed at with the bathroom down the hallway. However, it had beds and we were happy! We slept for 4 to 5 hours and got up to go finish decorating for the reception. By this time sleep deprivation was very close! Simon’s family was all at the church with friends working hard. I had left a too do list for them and they were working hard ironing and such. They were also preparing the food, finger foods that turned out very nicely. They did provide two sheet cakes, but these were smaller than 13x9 cakes and ½ the height. Sherry cut cake for everyone, about 100 people, and everyone got a large slice. It was the perfect amount. The cake was gorgeous!

Rachel and Simon fed each other cake, but used forks. I didn’t get a chance to ask Rachel but I think it might have been too Bohemian for the Danes to do it by hand! The afternoon was very fun, Rachel just beamed through it. They had a speech by Ole and Steve, a traditional wedding waltz, the cutting of the socks of Simon, a song written by Simon’s mom and sung by the crowd, and a father daughter dance. Rachel walked around at the end with a bowl of chocolates and gave everyone a piece. Rachel had bought bubbles for everyone to see her off with, but everyone insisted on using rice-8 kilos worth. Rachel was still pulling rice out of everywhere from the temple!

We have no regrets about all the stuff we brought. The room turned out fabulously. We only took 2 things we didn’t use, confetti and small wedding bells. We couldn’t find the confetti, one guest handed it over when she sat on it! The wedding bells we just didn’t put out. The Danes were exceptionally impressed with all the decorations. They loved the roses, arch, and especially the cake. At the end one woman who made birthday cakes talked to Sherry as she had a passion for cake making and wanted to get into the business. Sherry ended up selling the woman her cakes pieces for about $100 which was replacement cost. The woman ended up in tears she was so happy.

Another woman was having a wedding in April and we gave her the small LED lights we used. She was also moved by tears and just could hardly accept such a valuable gift. We had to convince her to take them! There are just so many things that aren’t available in Denmark. More than one person commented that we had raised the bar as far as weddings were concerned, even starting a new church tradition. Sherry should have handed out business cards, she works cheap!

I was thinking that we were going to have so much room with all the stuff gone but I had forgotten Sherry’s ability to shop! As soon as the reception was over we went shopping at a Christmas market in Denmark. The market was only okay but Sherry got a few treasures.

After shopping we went back to the church to pack up the rest of our stuff. I told Sherry that she could, for the first time, sleep as long as she liked and get up when she wanted. We were so tired we were really looking forward to getting some sleep. Sherry decided that we would get up around 6 or 7 to go fishing. She asked me to set an alarm but I assured her that it was impossible for me to sleep longer than that. Off to bed we went.

I slept like a rock, and to my horror didn’t wake up until 8:40. Even though it was so late I felt so heavy and sleepy I could hardly move. It took a minute to decide that even fishing was worth getting up when I was that tired! I woke up Sherry and we got dressed. By that time I realized that if we didn’t leave within the hour we wouldn’t have time for shopping in Sweden, something we were both looking forward to. Sherry and I decided that we would have to give up fishing. We dejectedly took off all our cold weather clothing and we packed for the trip to Sweden.

About this time I woke Steve up who asked several times what time it was. He didn’t think it was light enough for that time of the morning. I assured him I had the time right. We finished packing at 9:20 and Steve said NO WAY it could be that time. I turned on my cell phone which said 2:50. Oops, turn the watch around and it said 2:50 am as well! Steve and I started laughing so hard we could hardly talk! We went to Sherry’s room who demanded to know what was so funny now! I handed her my watch and asked her what time it was. Then I made her turn it around and asked her again. She couldn’t believe I woke her up so early! So much for Sherry getting any sleep or getting to sleep in as much as she wanted. And no wonder I felt so poorly when I woke up!

It was way too early to go fishing so we decided to load up the car and head towards a fishing spot about 3-4 hours down the road. Needless to say I was the butt of the jokes for the day, and probably will be, for the next 10 years!

The Wedding, Part 1

2008-12-11T13:29:00.000-08:00

It all started with the cake. Rachel wanted an American wedding cake. However, since she was getting married in Denmark that seemed a little impossible. But as any good mother would do, I tried to make it work. What was I going to do about an American wedding cake? Google it. My searches revealed nothing. Simon gave me the correct wording and I found all kinds of beautiful wedding cakes. Very expensive beautiful wedding cakes, starting at $12 per person! That idea went out the window. The next obvious solution, make one there. Since I don’t make regular cakes I had only one choice, call Sherry.

Sherry is the wedding planner extraordinaire. She had not only made Jenni and Becky’s wedding cakes; she had also planned, decorated, and executed the two most beautiful weddings ever put on in Grand Prairie. One phone call to Sherry, full of muted laughter and polite suggestions, and I was on my way to Walmart. When I got home I started my creation around midnight. Being a night shift nurse really makes timing odd at our house. The cake was the best and worst thing that I could have done. Worst because I did everything wrong.

First, I greased the pans, mostly, and then forgot to flour them. Getting the cakes out was interesting, to say the least. I had two pieces per cake, and I don’t mean two per layer! FYI, frosting as glue doesn’t work very well! I wasn’t too concerned when I couldn’t find the plastic pieces that held the cake together, I just did without. That was fine until I slathered on the frosting and the layers started shifting. The leaning tower of Pisa and my cake were similar. My next big guffaw was the fondant. I rolled and rolled and finally got the fondant big enough the cover the leaning layers. I got the fondant on top and molded it to shape. Somehow the cake didn’t quite look like Sherry’s wedding cakes!

To cover up the glaring flaws, especially the leaning part, I needed decorations. Since it was late I needed to decorate my creation with only the things on hand. Some old ribbon around the bottom of the cake was the first decoration. I held that in place with push pins. Since I hadn’t done a very good job of smoothing the fondant the ribbon couldn’t quite cover all the flaws. A little bit of old ruffled lace pinned at the top of the ribbon covered that flaw, mostly. The cake still needed some distraction from the obvious molding flaws so more push pins were in order to simulate pearls. That did the trick, and having them yellow really made them stand out! A big bow on top in place of the topper was the final step. My creation was complete. I have included a picture for you to see.

The picture proves one thing about the wedding cake, I needed help! That was the best part of the cake! I called Sherry back who was impressed that I had done as well as I did, but agreed that a cake by my hands was going to require more time than the 3 weeks I had until the wedding. That inspired the idea of importing a wedding cake, which ended up being improbable. However, that led to the best idea of all, importing the wedding cake maker! I knew that Sherry had flight privileges through her husband’s family. All I had to do was think of some way to convince Sherry to go!

Sherry, it turns out, had a fatal weakness, she had always wanted to go Sweden where her father had been born. One promise to drive to Sweden when the wedding was over and Sherry actually agreed to go. Who else but my best fishing buddy ever would agree to make a cake, do Rachel’s hair twice, decorate the reception hall, make the bridal bouquet and floral decorations, and even do the brides make-up all for free???? Sherry of course! Since no good deed goes unpunished, I decided to treat Sherry to the following adventure!

Before the trip I planned an itinerary to beat all others. Rachel, upon reading the itinerary asked the real question, when were we planning on sleeping? In the car of course! We had a tight schedule to keep, and I was going to keep us on track. The adventure started off on a note to set the tone for the rest of the trip, Sherry’s flight was late. It seems that we were just a bit late for the rest of the trip! We were still able to make the connection in Dallas to Frankfurt, and enjoyed a nice LONG trip in coach. Man do I hate coach! I better get used to it though now that I have lost my priority since Steve is no longer an active employee.

We should have seen it as a sign when every single piece (8 bags/boxes) hit the 50 lb weight limit/size limit and most had to be repacked with some weight taken out and put in our already overflowing carryon luggage, 2 each. We were pleasantly surprised to land in Frankfurt and have our entire luggage arrive with us on time. Four luggage carts later and we were at the rental car. It seemed WAY too small. At this point we weren’t so sure we were glad all the stuff had made it! We were fortunate enough to get two free upgrades and ended up in a full-size wagon. That meant with a layer of luggage tied on top, the back filled to the brim, and a solid wall of boxes and bags in between Sherry and Melanie (not the mention the leftover stuff at our feet) and we were on our way.

The itinerary called for a four drive to Hamburg starting at 8 and lunch at the Christmas market there. I guess Google isn’t as smart as I thought as, after a late start loading the entire luggage, it took us 6 hours to get to Hamburg Not to mention that we didn’t actually get off until 9:30 that morning. That was no deterrent though; we found the market and had a great time shopping. Dinner was a tasting of local Christmas favorites at the food stalls. We had roasted nuts, sausages, and pork over open charcoal fires, a marzipan crepe made in a little booth, and goulash cooked in a big pot with dumplings. Unfortunately we were skunked on the shopping; we couldn’t find a single thing we couldn’t live without. We did end up with a parking ticket as a souvenir. We need to find a convenient way to pay that…

At that point we were on our way to Copenhagen and Rachel was on the train there as well. Rachel was the first to arrive and took a taxi to the temple apartments where I had arranged for us to stay overnight. We were later there than we planned, of course, and the place was locked up. There Rachel stood with wedding dress in hand and no place to stay! Not only that, we couldn’t make other arrangements as we needed a place to make the wedding cake that evening. Fortunately I had a phone number. Rachel phoned and was let in. That was good as we were still 3 hours away. Google really has no idea how long it takes to get to Copenhagen from Frankfurt!

Steve was getting a little tired at this point so I took over driving. We had the GPS so I headed off with confidence. Not too much longer I discovered myself at what appeared to be a port. I guess I looked like an idiot to the man at the booth when I asked him what country I was in and where I was going! After being assured we were still headed for Denmark we bravely got in line for the ferry. It didn’t take us long to figure out what had happened.

Have you ever heard the saying, garbage in, garbage out? That is what happened with the GPS. We neglected to input the “avoid tolls” option and it routed us the fastest way, through the ferry! It probably only saved us 20 minutes, but it was a welcome relief from the cramped confines of the car. No one person had a comfortable spot in the car, although, I must admit, I probably had it better than most.

Shortly after 11:30pm we arrived at the temple apartments. Rachel was relieved to have us finally arrive. We showed her, for the first time, her bridal bouquet and table decorations. She was delighted. That was good to hear, as Sherry had been forbidden to spend any money, just to use the things she had around her house from previous weddings. That wasn’t too bad as Sherry never throws anything away! The bridal bouquet had flowers from both Jenni and Becky’s wedding which was so fun to see.

After our brief decompression from the road trip the long tedious night began. We sent Rachel, Steve, and Melanie to bed and Sherry and I started making cakes. Transformers, adapters, and other electronics set up by Steve got us started. Sherry’s ingenuity kept us going as we baked a three tiered wedding cake in a small European oven. The 14 inch cake pan fit by a mere ½ inch. Sherry seemed to have a magic box that kept producing all the equipment and supplies we needed to make the cake. I had brought all the ingredients from home to avoid having to bake from scratch with unfamiliar ingredients in a strange kitchen. Steve was the hero of the day, earlier on the drive, when he remembered, 30 minutes before all the stores closed for the evening, that we needed to get eggs and oil to make this cake happen.

Making the cakes was not as easy as it should have been. First off, the small oven necessitated cooking the cake in 4 batches. The fact that we didn’t start until after midnight, and had two other patrons to worry about, meant that we prepared in our room, not the kitchen. A small antechamber with sink and refrigerator made it not to difficult. Pounding out the bubbles surely woke up the dead, but was necessary for the perfect cake! Sherry was finally able to get some sleep while the last two batches cooked. I woke her up when they were done so she could get them ready for freezing. She insisted that I should be the one to get the sleep but I needed her fresh in the morning as she had only 5 hours until she had to be up and doing Rachel’s hair!

So that brings us up to date at present. Sherry is napping while the 4th batch cooks and I am typing up the trip report. There is a computer in the common room; I will just have to find a way to get it from this computer to that one with antiquated equipment and no WiFi. I am not complaining though, the cake is almost done!

Thanksgiving Day, almost.

2008-11-23T20:58:00.001-08:00

What a great Thanksgiving day. Well, almost. I, of course, have to work that day so a big traditional Thanksgiving meal on Thursday was out of the question. Today we invited everyone over and had a great time. Jenni made her fabulous french bread that was out of this world. Steve cooked the turkey and stuffing. He also made the mashed carrots and potatoes. I made the green goop, killers, and gravy. The pumpkin pie was store bought, but I just can't bring myself to make my own. That was all our favorites and it was a good meal.

Catan was fun, two games and I came really close both times but ended up losing. We love to play Settlers of Catan, it changes every time. Thanks to Judi for introducing us to that game. Caleb and Aaron were really good, they didn't even knock anything over with the soccer ball and golf ball in the house. Lizzie didn't even complain when the golf ball ended up in her carrier! Grandchildren are so much fun!

We were sorry we missed Rachel, she was on Skype but we didn't see it. We talked to her the other day. She has moved in her few belongings and is getting settled. She had gotten used to the warm Texas weather again and was acutely aware of how cold it was in Denmark. She will get used to it again soon, I hope. She bought and acquired (thanks Candice and Michelle!) quite a few winter clothes and boots while she was here, everything is so horribly expensive over there. The only problem is that she didn't have room to take it all back with her and is waiting for us to arrive with the bulk of it.

This week is going to be busy. We have packed most of Rachel's things and wedding stuff for our trip. We have almost 50 lbs of wedding cake mixes, frosting, and dessert makings. We also have another 75 lbs of chair backs and tableclothes. We only have a few personal bags left to pack. I just got up and put my temple recommend in with my passport, I have a bad habit of forgetting my recommend when I travel, especially to weddings. That is a load off. Now I have to remember to pack my temple clothes as there is no clothing rental in the Copenhagen Temple.

Mel is off school for the week and spending the night at Becky's house tonight. Steve only has Thursday off. I had Thanksgiving off until one of the supervisors at work had a heart attack. How inconvenient was that? The house is strangely quiet with everyone gone...Got the tickets???

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

2008-11-17T18:37:00.000-08:00

Today was both a good and bad day. It was good because I am very happy for Rachel who has decided to marry Simon Bendtsen from Randers, Denmark. Bad because Rachel moved to Denmark today. I will see her in 2 weeks for the wedding December 5th, so it really hasn't hit me yet, but Rachel is all grown up and moved out! Here is the story of Rachel and Simon meeting...

True Love at First Sight

Have you seen the movie The Holiday? That could be the story of Rachel and Simon! Simon lived in Denmark. Rachel lived in Dallas. Both were looking for true love.

Rachel's parents made a home exchange with a family in Denmark. That family lived in Dallas while Rachel and her family lived in Denmark. The very first day in Denmark Rachel just happened to run into the missionaries who told her family where church was. Simon had no idea, while sitting on the stand in church the next day, that the love of his life was about to enter.

When Rachel walked in, sparks flew! It was true love at first sight. Rachel and Simon spent the entire vacation together talking and getting to know each other. Neither was certain that they could maintain a relationship over the Atlantic, but wanted to try.

With the help of Skype and Facebook, Rachel and Simon continued their relationship. After school and EMT certification, Rachel hopped back on a plane to Denmark. It took only a short time to realize that nothing had changed, true love cannot be thwarted!

Simon was still tall, fun, and handsome. Rachel was still caring, sweet, and attractive. Not long after, during a romantic sunrise, Simon proposed on one knee. Rachel was happier than she had ever been before. Simon could not believe his good fortune.

Rachel and Simon decided that they would marry and live in Denmark. Simon plans on finishing school while Rachel learns Danish. They hope to be able to travel and visit both families as time and money allows.

Simon is now in Denmark and Rachel is trying to pack her entire life’s belongings into two checked bags and one carry-on. Rachel is excited to start her new life in Denmark but sad to leave friends and family behind. But don’t worry, true love conquers all!

Rachel and Simon Bendtsen

2008-11-07T22:49:00.000-08:00

Okay, I got started on Facebook by Rachel and now I am going for the big leagues and creating my own blog. It can't be too hard, kind of like open trip reports! So, bear with me as I create our site. With Rachel's wedding coming up and still being in class it may be slow in coming. But then again, when I get on a roll with a trip report I can really get going...