Good Intentions

As the song goes "It's hard to rely on my good intentions"......because I've been meaning to write, but some how I always manage to find other things to do. It's not that I've been so busy....I haven't, but it has been SO nice out lately...sitting inside at the computer is not a high priority. This morning, I woke up after a great night's sleep, last thing I remember is I was dreaming about some sort of party...hahaha....how could you not wake up happy. hahahah
As April comes to an end ,I realize (again) how fast time seems to be slipping away. So the I-pod is on the dock, I'm rocking out and enjoying my coffee (and the birds out back)...and I'm going to try to get motivated.
Back on April 9th...we attended a wedding. We have known the bride since she was 2-3 years old. It wasn't a BIG wedding, so it was really nice to be included on the guest list. And boy did she get lucky....the weather was ABSOLUTELY perfect for a wedding at Sebastian Inlet Beach Park.

Courtney and her family spent many weekends down at SI State Park, fishing, boating and swimming on the sandbar, etc, so it was the perfect place for her to get married.

For Courtney...being by the beach, with  her feet in the sand, guests in short sleeves and flip flops....it was just the type of nice relaxed celebration she had hoped for.

It was so relaxed...they had a hard time getting half the people to come inside and eat! hahahah The brides parents and family made the dinner and all the appetizers. Naturally there were fish dips and fresh fish salads, along with the usual fare. For dinner, Mike make Seafood Alfredo,; made with plenty of lobster and crab that he caught.  Everything was delicious, made even better because we all knew the time and effort Mike and Denise spent getting all together for Courtney's big day.

our little friend Julia ( this picture was taken by her grandmother Georgette)

My hair was kind of a mess...because it was breezy down on the beach...but no one was paying attention to me. I had the perfect "beach" dress...laughed when I heard the colors were coral and blue....I was waiting for a chance to wear this dress!

"Uncle " Steve

The back deck was a great place to sit...before and after the wedding. Before...you could watch all the activity as people gathered around where the ceremony was going to take place. If you didn't want to watch the people you could watch fishermen, boats and beach goers nearby.

                              or you could be like the bride's nephew and play in the sand. :)

            The actual ceremony was pretty brief...the bride's brother-in-law was the "official". The groom had a hard time keeping it together...that was sweet.

                                      And then it was time for the celebration and dinner.

big sister and her family

other big sister and nephews

happy Mom and Dad knowing their daughter has found a great guy

Aunts, cousins, friends

 

As you can see we had a nice time celebrating with Courtney and James and their family. Her family is like me...they like celebrating! We have been to many parties at their house over the years. As we get older, the parties have gotten a bit smaller  and less crazy...hahaha but always fun! It's always nice to be part of a special celebration like a wedding.
We had to laugh at one point...we were talking to some other guests and the woman said..."Okay...I am officially getting old"...(the younger guests were enjoying the open bar and fooling around on the deck) and her first thought was "Oh that's not a good idea, maybe they shouldn't do that" hahaha.
I have to admit...the bride and her friends were having a pretty good time...and it's been a long time since I've been to a wedding where guest were drinking like that....but no one was out of control and they were having a great time....so I guess it's true...we are getting a little old. hahahaha
That was the highlight for the month of April. Last week we went to the annual Art Festival; and it was okay...enjoyed watching the people as much or more than I did looking at the artwork.
Next month we are headed to another wedding in TN...it should be interesting. we don't know the bride that well...but Brenna is in the wedding and it was nice of her to include John and I. While we are there...we'll skip over to visit John's sister and her family in Knoxville and Pigeon Forge. We get to meet our great nieces...so I am looking forward to that. Haven't been to TN in May in a very long time...so that will be fun too. Just a couple of weeks after that we head to upstate NY to celebrate with my nephew and his wife. They got married back in October...but few family members were able to make it...so we will enjoy celebrating with them in June! I feel like I am on the "wedding circuit"...almost like the wedding crashers...hahahah (We'll see how many times we hear " Celebrate!"or whatever that song is called...hahaha )
*they did not play it at Courtney's wedding  :)....her music tastes (and her Dad's) are more similar to mine...hahhah...however someone did try to "booty" dance with me...I just played dumb...HAHAHAHA John got a kick out of that.....hahha

March is winding down

Okay...once again it feels like time is just flying by...and so I'm playing catch-up again. All I can say is it's a good time I'm not in school....
Earlier last month we met up with Martha & Tony, Ian & Tara, and Wim & Maris (my sister's in-laws) out in Utah.
We stayed at the same resort where we stayed last March...just in a different condo this time. This year they has a little more snow left on the ground....so we could actually take advantage of the "ski in" feature...which was pretty convenient!
The first day in town we had to go get my skis and boots, etc...so while the rest of the group headed out; John and I headed down to the store.

Neither John nor I were in any hurry to get out on that particular day...because it was kind of warm and raining at the bottom. It was snowing up on the mountain...but a wet snow...so everyone came in looking damp and kind of miserable. We got all of our gear and took it to the condo/lockers for the next day. We decided to venture over to the other end of the resort so we could pick up a couple of things at the general store.

even the skating rink had a sad wet look to it...hahaha

but we could see that the amount of snow on the mountain was better than what we had had last year....so that was a good thing.
By the time we made it back to the condo...everyone else was coming in...calling it an early day and making plans for the next day....... that had a much more promising forecast.
The next day was bright and sunny...so we all got out pretty early. The snow was a little damp and with the new powder it was clumping up a bit...not too bad for the snowboarders...but a little extra work for the skiers!
We had a good time in spite of the conditions... because (a) there was plenty of snow and (b) it wasn't very crowded on the mountain. Hardly any lines for the lifts, which is always a good thing.
Later that afternoon storms were supposed to move through and so we wanted to get in as much skiing as we could before the weather changed.
We got back to the condo and some of us went in the hot tub...while Tony and his B-I-L Wim made dinner preparations. Unfortunately for John...he wasn't feeling 100%...so he kind of took it easy. It started to rain a little...then it switched over to sleet...then finally snow!!!!

Wim and Maris had some friends from Maui, who were also in Park City...so they joined us for dinner. We had a great time, eating, sharing stories, listening to music, etc.

Wim was on crutches...he's recovering from ankle surgery. He stayed back at the condo each day...and usually was involved in cooking something up for all of us to eat...like our own personal chef. (he's a good cook too!)
Our plans for the following day included a half day of skiing/snowboarding and then a snowmobile tour in the late afternoon. That was nice because Wim could participate in that with the rest of us. After skiing and lunch we all piled up into the rental vehicle and headed out to the spot where we were taking the tour. It was about 20-30 minutes away...so it was a close/tight ride for those of us in the back seat...hahahah We were glad it wasn't any farther away and there were no traffic delays...hahaha

It was a beautiful afternoon for sight seeing. The spring conditions made driving the snowmobiles a little tricky in some places...but everyone did just fine.

ready to go

                                                                      We loaded into the van and we were off! We got a brief training session with our guide, they gassed up the vehicles and then we lined up, ready to head out one by one.

           Some of us rode double, but Martha, Tony, Tara and Ian all had their own bike.

All along the route I was trying to hold on, keep my hands warm and take pictures all at the same time...hahahah Kept hoping I didn't get bounced off...hahaha

We stopped for a few minutes in an open field and the guide let us take turns riding around the area with a little more speed.

After a short break...we started back up the trail.

                  Just looks at the blue skies in these pictures....it was such a pretty day.

Here's me acting like I was driving...I was happy I wasn't...Martha said it was hard work keeping her snowmobile straight...and as it is John and I managed to tip ours over one time. Luckily it happened slowly and we both fell away from the bike....and neither one of us was hurt. But that thing was pretty heavy! we were behind Martha for part of the time and I could tell it was hard work keeping it balanced and going straight....especially on the icy patches.
It was a nice afternoon. John was finally feeling better...which was a relief for him. He was worried that he might not feel up to going and would miss out. I was happy...because I had no desire to drive and enjoyed being his passenger. :)
we followed the guide and the trail kept us going up. we stopped to take photos at the "top".

Crutches don't work well in the snow...but no problem...Tony just picked wim up and carried him to and from the snowmobile to get him in the pictures. hahaha Luckily Wim is not a big guy.
When you're standing around and there are piles of snow...you almost feel compelled to do this.....

Tara making a snow angel

Then...it was time to head down and make our way back to the base camp.

There were a few tricky spots, but no one had any issues...so we just enjoyed the trip down. John was telling me to keep taking pictures...so I snapped away while were bounced along the trail.
That night when we got back to the condo we had a nice dinner and then we had some fun with Charades.

The best one was when we were all acting out "Quicksand" Wim had just his head above the table and he was wimpering "Help, help ahhh"...hahahahah I forget who was guessing , I believe it was Tony.......but he finally figured it out.
That night we got some more fresh snow. we were excited because we knew it was supposed to let up during the night and all the slopes would be groomed in the morning. We all got up and out the door to be the first ones out. It was GREAT! Probably the best conditions I've skiied on in the last few trips we've taken. It wasn't crowded and the runs were all groomed and smooth and FUN! JOhn was feeling better and decided to switch things up and try skiing again after 20 years of snowboarding. He had a good time....and only thought about how nice it would have been on the snowboard once or twice...hahaha
Maris and Wim were the first ones to depart....we had one more half day of skiing after that and then we were off to the airport. Martha, Tony ,Ian and Tara all left the next day.

It was a nice little break from work for all of us. Things were busy at the library when I got back.
We usually are busiest in January, February, March...Usually sometime around Easter, all the part time residents and "snowbirds" head back north. This past week was considerably slower for us. Word is there were a steady stream of RV's heading west and north on I-95!
We had a quiet Easter here. For the first time in a very long time it was just us. Brenna, Josh and Mark joined John and I for some great fresh fish that John and Reid had caught earlier in the week....so that was a good thing. Mark was shipping off to Colorado the next day for the next phase of the Orion project.; so he appreciated the dinner...especially the fresh fish.
I'm enjoying the longer days.....it's great to get home while the sun is still up in the evening. The weather has been pretty nice...not too hot yet. everything is blooming...so as long as the Advil Cold and Sinus medicine is handy...we're good to go.
Now we're gearing up for a wedding this weekend and another in May and yet another in June. It's nice to have plans on the calendar...it makes the work worth the effort! when I have a "bad" day at work....(aka when I get annoyed with the BS, hahaha I just mark off another day on the big calendar in my mind. Less than two years before I have 20 years in with the county...so I am counting down (sort of) the days till then. Of course if the director retires...I might stick around awhile. For the most part I enjoy the job....but there are days/..................................................................................................
Till next time!!!!