It was time for a party

This past weekend we decided it was about time that we got together with our friends and had a cookout. My friend heather and I have been talking about this for a couple of months now, but for a variety of reasons, we just never made a plan. I decided since we had a long weekend that I was going to get a few friends together one way or another. I casually mentioned it to a couple people who all sounded interested.
seems that no one had plans

John went fishing early in the week and I told him I was thinking about a cookout. He was tired from being up since 3am and fishing all day...he paused and said "I don't think I'm really up for a party"...
me - "Well guess what, that's  too bad because I've already got a plan in the works"...hahah  I told him he was too tired to think anything was a good idea...and I'd check back with him after he got a good nights sleep. Sure enough the next day he said...a party sounded like a good idea. And our little party got bigger and bigger as the week went on.

The funny thing was that every single person we talked to had no plans and was happy to have something to do. Everyone offered to bring something and we were on for Sunday afternoon/evening.

                                  and I kept buying more chicken...hahah

M was squirting us with these two little toys...She's a nice kid...I was happy she came over

Sunday evening we all enjoyed the slight breeze on a HOT day....and hopped in the pool which felt great.
we ate burgers, chicken, corn salad, quinoa salad, fruit salad, macaroni salad, tomato cucumber salad, humus, guacamole and a couple of other dips..... and of course cookies, etc for dessert. Heather brought all the things we needed to have "California Burgers"...sprouts, guacamole, provolone cheese, bacon, tomatoes and onions...and made a sign with instructions...hahaha. Everyone had plenty to eat and left with a doggie bag! hahah
Our new neighbors came over and met everyone. They enjoyed the collection of friends...and the food.
Last night we went over to their house for dinner...a Memorial Day Cookout. They like having holiday celebrations...once again Cathy had the porch decorated in red,white and blue. Brenna and Josh, John and I, the new neighbors who bought the house next door and another couple all came. The lady fixing up the house next door and the gal who sold Joe and Cathy their house had a bit of a power struggle going on that was interesting to watch. Brenna tried to chime  in and change the subject once or twice...but "Stacy" and "Anna Marie" kept at it.At one point Stacy walked over to me and muttered under her breath "That woman!"
Haha...John ducked into the next room to get out of the way...and the rest of us watched to see how it was going to play out. Both were nice enough...Stacy was a little much...but not terrible...Anna Marie was a little hard to take...talking about their various homes, her two daughters and their full scholarships, the wedding in Kennebunkport Maine...(you get the idea)...after a certain point you just wanted to say "yeah yeah we get it lady"...hahah  But, that said... I have seen her working on the house next door and you can see that she is not afraid to get in there and get dirty and sweat and work hard...so I have to give her that. If she lived next door I might get tired of all the "stories" bragging. hahaha Not sure what Joe and Cathy and Aunt Mary thought about the whole thing. Meanwhile Joe cooked up some delicious burgers, hotdogs and sausages, fresh corn on the cob, etc. It wasn't quite as hot as the night before and it was a nice evening in spite of the "competition" going on. It's kind of nice having neighbors who like to celebrate a holiday...no matter which one it is....because as Mike R and I discussed on Sunday night...he's been too busy to have all the parties like he  ( and Denise of course) used to....and we have our share...but  we miss the get togethers we used to have....because they didn't seem so few and far between....

A long weekend in DC

I made this for Megan and Marcus...we saw a similar item in a catalog for about $150.00...I'm no expert but I figured I could recreate something similar....fortunately the dog in the catalog picture looked a lot like Rupert...so I could "copy" it

Marcus had it framed for their anniversary

Megan and Marcus just celebrated their first anniversary and it was time for the annual Reston Art Festival so both of those reasons sounded like one good reason to head up to Virginia for the weekend. As it turns out...David opted out of the show...but since Bridget, Destin, John and I were already planning to be there...he got a last minute ticket and flew up too. We got to visit with Rob and Shane, Marcus's parents Tom and Laura, and my nephew Ryan  who drove up from Charlottesville. After some very heavy rains earlier in the week...the weather cleared up for a beautiful spring weekend! The highs were in the upper 60's-low 70's sunny with a few clouds...it was great!( I never got hot once! hahaha)
  We got to check out the new condo M &; M moved into after the wedding.They now have an extra room...so we stayed at their place. David and Ryan were at Rob's and Bridget and Destin had a room at the Westin  in Reston. (hahah how do you l like that tongue twister...) We were in Falls Church.

view from the balcony

trees out front

walked down the street for dinner on Friday evening

 

part of one course was flooded after the rains this was after one day

lots of standing water but it was receding

you can see where water was over the bridge

Saturday we booked a room at the Lansdowne Resort...just down the road from Rob's house. Nice resort with a nice golf course. They had a special going on...room included golf for two. John and Marcus golfed on Saturday. Megan and I headed to the art show... shopping in Reston. I did look at the art...but spent plenty of time in the various shops downtown. That night we had plans to all join up back at Rob and Shane's for a fish cookout...courtesy of the 58lb fish John and friends caught the previous week.

Looking down the hill from the back porch of the resort.

Marcus, Megan, Ryan and Tom in the background

Aunt Anne with Shane

out back--Shane, Bridget, Destin and John

inside after dark...David had us laughing with some of us wild tales about his friend Buddy....John must've looking for "legs" in the wine glass...Ryan is amused...

we met up with Jeni on Monday...got to meet Jia...and hold her...she's a cutie. M & M aren't in any hurry to have children...that's fine with me...never want my kids to think they need to have kids for ME...I love kids...but I can always find one...hahah

  Enjoyed seeing Jeni and the baby...on yet another beautiful day. We walked around a bit and then headed back to the condo. We had a late lunch/early dinner and then headed to the airport for our trip home. Megan was packing for San Fransisco...she had to leave the next day. The weekend was fun,and relaxing. We had a good time visiting with everyone.

Nothing can top last year...but this one was good

Last year we celebrated Megan and Marcus's wedding on Mother's Day. It was a great way to spend the day..even though some people questioned it... And I don't think any future Mother's Day will be able to top that...but this year was pretty good.

John, Brenna, Megan & Marcus surprised me with this KitchenAid Mixer. I have always wanted one...but never bought one for myself. Megan knew this and suggested to John and Brenna that they all pitch in and get one for me. Good idea! I will enjoy using this for a long, long time!

We decided to brave the crowds and go out to eat. We went  to brunch at Matt's Casbah. There was a line going in...but once everyone was seated, there was no problem getting through the line. They seem to have a pretty good system. Everything was pretty tasty and we enjoyed ourselves.

           Josh got a cake pop...it was stuck to his plate...Brenna insisted on a picture...hahah

Places have gotten smarter over the years...they offer lots of smaller sized dessert options...that way you can have several and not waste too much. I tried the Strawberry Bread pudding, Lemon-Raspberry shooter, and some of the Berry Spinach Salad.

After we ate we took a short walk down New Haven Ave

We had to go check out/show off John's handiwork in front of Meehan's Store. This tile work is about 35 years old...look at that perfectly centered pattern!

After that we went home and everyone but me ended up taking a nap! I read up on my new mixer, talked to Megan and took a bike ride.

 

                                                        Here I am posing with my girls.....hahah
That evening John and I rode our bikes down to LongDoggers for a light dinner. Ran in to the usual gang and enjoyed talking to everyone. All in all, it was a very nice, relaxing, fun day. And I ate well!!!!

Sometimes it's refreshing and sometimes it's a washout

Today is a beautiful day...blue skies, 82 degrees relatively low humidity...kind of perfect! But it hasn't been like this everyday....hahah Last week we had some crazy weather when a front was blowing through. The panhandle got pounded and then it worked it's way down to our part of the state on Thursday/ Friday/Saturday. When I got off work on Thursday I knew there was a good chance that IF I took a walk or bike ride I would get rained on. I checked the radar and decided I could handle getting wet...as long as there wasn't any lightning I was going to try to get a bike ride in. I made sure all the important stuff was in a plastic bag (phone, garage door opener) and set out. I was on my way up the bike path when a little drizzle started...no problem...I kept going. About 1/4 mile later I got to a point where I could see the river.  That's when I saw a wall of water heading across the river heading right towards me (and the other unfortunate walkers/bike riders). I did a quick u-turn and picked up the pace...the rain got steadily harder and then it just completely POURED! I was drenched. There wasn't anything to do but keep my head down...so my visor could at least keep the rain out of my eyes...and keep pedaling. I had to laugh...because I'm sure anyone driving by got a good laugh when they saw me. So...I rode the rest of the way home with a big grin on my face and tried to enjoy the cool rain. I looked like I had been in a dunking booth by the time I got home...hahah

Saturday the forecast was NOT good...there was an 80% chance of rain.....which was bad news for the town of Melbourne Beach...since Saturday happened to be the day of the annual Founder's Day celebration.
Races, crafts, food, music, a kids talent show all were scheduled. Brenna and Josh joined up with a Classic Car group showing their cars. They were spreading the word about electric cars. welll...they had hoped to anyway...but the rain really put a damper on things.

I got there around 9:30 or so...and it had already rained a couple of times...and the radar showed a big line of storms heading right in our direction. I did a quick loop around the park to see the crafts and say hello to a couple of friends...and then the rain started up again. As my friend Larry commented "Not a good day to get your face painted"...hahah unless you wanted to look like a sad clown that is...hahah

the guy in the hat organized the "Classic Car Show"...he was chatting with Brenna and Josh when I arrived...he remembered me from High School! hahah

After evaluating the weather radar...we decided to pack it up and clear out before the big storms hit. I made it back to my car without getting too wet...and was glad I decided to leave when I spotted a huge bolt of lightning in the distance. (That thing had some power!) Oh well...unfortunately the Founder's Day was a total washout!
Sunday...proved to be a beautiful day...cooler, clearer...all the way around better conditions....oh well.
Also this past weekend we enjoyed a quick visit with John's brother and sister-in-law. Bill was in town for his 50th class reunion. (Melbourne High/Eau Gallie High combined)
They got into town on Thursday and we went to dinner with them...Brenna and Josh and John's sister Lucy and her husband Mac.

We celebrated Lucy's birthday (again).

We had a great dinner at Carraba's in Palm Bay.

Mac, Bill, Anne & John

Josh, Brenna, Kathie & Lucy

Bill had a great time visiting old friends all weekend. The reunion was well attended...considering it was a 50th reunion. They had a lot of good laughs. Also enjoyed driving around to see how much has changed since they were last in town.

 We enjoyed dinner on Thursday night and then breakfast on Sunday morning right before Bill & Kathie headed back to Alabama.

It was a nice weekend...and the nice weather Sunday made up for the WET, dreary day we had Saturday.
we finished up the day with a bike ride down to Long Doggers for dinner and to watch the Kentucky Derby.
A bunch of friends were there in hats...placing their bets on who would win.   Well, not really bets...they all just put money into the pot and then drew numbers from a hat. Beth was the lucky winner!
And...last night we enjoyed dinner at our new neighbor's house. They had decorations and the whole works for Cinco de Mayo. Joe used to have a restaurant  (Italian)...but for May 5th he cooked up some tasty chicken and beef tacos, margaritas, beans and rice, chips and fresh guacamole and cinnamon crisps with fresh fruit and whipped cream for dessert. Very nice. We enjoyed learning a little more about them and meeting Joe's 97 (!) year old Auntie. We were trying to figure out when May 5th became a day to celebrate...Joe told us back in the 80's the company that sells Jose Cuervo was the one who approached him at his restaurant to see if he was interested in promoting the "Cinco de Mayo" celebration. So there you have it.................... or you could go with my Dad's explanation "It's cinco de Mayo...you know what that means don't you...it's the day after quatro de Mayo."  hahah