TaDA! 2013 is all over, Welcome to 2014

The Dancing Shoes!

This fella scrubs up really well, don't you think?

The glitter from the material is EVERYWHERE...and I mean...EVERYWHERE. People avoided giving me hugs for fear of getting 'glittered'!

We partied at the Isles Yacht Club where Carl and Penny are members. This was an ice sculpture. Crab claws, shrimp and oysters on the shell...all of which we ate with gusto!

Chef putting out the oysters.

Thanks Penny and Carl for the invite:)

The Browns

Janet, Stefie and Len, ready to go out the door.

The table next to ours wasn't disturbed so I had to take a photo.

Penny getting into the party mood!

Ditto, Len and Stefie:)

Pouring the champers just before midnight

Goodbye 2013, Hello 2014.

Will tell you all about it tomorrow!

Night night...or rather...good morning!!

Breakfast out and other monday-ish things.

I'm not sure why I would call them Monday-ish, but why not? If they are the sort of things you might do on a Monday vs Wed. or Frid. then it just makes sense to call them Monday-ish!

So...Waz had suggested, last night as we prepared for bed, that we might like to go for Breakfast to that place on Hwy41 called ..what else...John Ski's Breakfast Restaurant...Open for breakfast and lunch.  Sounded like a champion idea, so that's what we did!

Whoa! back up the horse a weeny bit!

We woke around 7.30/8am...give or take....and decided not to rush things too much, lol. First we sat around in our Pjs and read mail on our computers, did some medical claim forms and collated those with the receipts to go to NZ...we are missing one receipt, so we are waiting for that to appear. It has been requested from NZ, so it might take another day to get posted on e-mail.

Then....I made a cup of Community Coffee. That meant we had to sit some more and do some other things, like look at some of the house designs we have collected, and discuss the various merits of them.
Finally, Waz went off for his shower and I followed him. So, by the time we had ourselves together, the rest of the world had passed us by!:) It was 10.30 by the time we went out the door.

JS's B/fast Restaurant was busy, nothing special to look at inside or out, but the smells were decent. Sounds silly, but some restaurants I will not go into because they don't have good smells emanating from them! Tis true!

We were initially seated by the entry door, which isn't very nice when you think about the people coming and going and trying to pay their bills right at your elbow, so when a booth cleared, we requested a move there. Nice to be able to view the comings and goings from a more private space.

Waz ordered something that wasn't on the menu...well, it was...in bits. Hard poached eggs...always!!!...crispy bacon, Texas toast (door stop thick white toast, buttered!), hashed brown potatoes and hollandaise.
I ordered the crab cake benedict...what else? I have to say that I was very pleased with the meal. The crab cakes were chunky and meaty and tasty, and though the hollandaise was a little weird (was a bit separated, I think) it tasted good. Waz wasn't too happy that the eggs he requested to be HARD, were a bit soft and runny, but no way were we going to send them back. The toast absorbed enough of the run to make it edible. Over-all, a decent meal... if a little pricey at $26 for two. That included two cups of tea.

Our next stop was Fisherman's Village where I needed to go back to the hairdresser to get a few hairs cut off. Somehow she had missed them and they would not sit down and do as they were told..so off they came. That taken care of we visited Minnows, a children's shop down the mall a bit. We had been looking for a baby back/front pack carrier for Stefie and Len, and hadn't found one that pleased us, before Christmas, but we happened to find one today that did. Yay! They now have that in their possession:) Len would not have looked too good with a sling thing wound around his hips, in hippie style, though I am sure Stefie would like it!

We left the Village, and wouldn't you know it...we came across the house building company whose brochure we had taken out of a box on a building site. Oh joy!! We let ourselves into the show room, where all the products were on display. Nobody seemed to be there, so we just looked around, making a noise as we went. Someone eventually came out to say hello and see how they could help us. It appears there is more to building or renovating a home in this neck of the woods, than meets the eye. We learned a lot from these folks, and it was recommended that we make the trip of about 6 miles, to their Model Home. We did this.

The model home was pretty low key from the outside, but we were impressed with the inside. We liked the floor plan and a lot of the features, but being us, we would change a whole lot too.

You might ask why we are doing all this house looking and hunting!

Well, we love looking and speculating and gathering information so that when the time comes for us to be more serious about our looking, we will have a lot of information to call on. We enjoy the research and it has made us better at what we do when we finally find a home to make our own. We have done this twice, together, and very successfully, so far.

There is lots more to learn, and I'm sure we will take the whole three months to find out about this area and decide if we want to come back here.

There is always the question, in the back of our minds : If we have done the loop and don't think we want to continue living aboard the boat, what will we do?

Obviously we would give the boat to Len to sell! That doesn't mean it will sell immediately either. Being a large vessel, it might take a while, who knows? on the other hand, it might not! 50/50 chance.

We would like to think that when we decide to be land based, that we will have a dock at the back door that we can keep a 32ft weekender on, and use that for our fishing and day/weekend trips around the area. Anyway...we are keeping this in mind, as we look, and trying to decide what we might like. Remodel or build?? Here, or there?
We cannot really make these kinds of decisions until we have done the loop. We might both be Loop-y by then!

Well, the man is snoring next to me again...yes, again!!:) Time to pack up and go to bed, me thinx.

Oh..I forgot to tell you...I do this, don't I?

Len called us at 7.45pm to ask if Waz has  trousers, jacket, shirt etc for tomorrow night's New Years Eve formal night at the Isles Yacht Club?
We went over to the house for Waz to try on some of Len's formal gear. I wish I had taken the camera!!...NO! sorry...I forgot. Didn't think it was going to be so much fun!!  I promise to post pics of the night when we are all dolled up, though.. REALLY!!!

I didn't take any photos today either, sorry. I wasn't allowed to take pics inside the houses, so I didn't. Hence, no photos.
Next time?? maybe.
Night night!

It's raining, it's pouring...

Yes, we were woken in the early morning hours (or so I thought...Waz says it was 7am!) by a thunder storm. We were very aware of heavy rain, from our bed, and Waz got up to check that the windows up forward were closed (they were) and then went out the back to bring the basket of towels under shelter. We keep a clothes basket full of rags and old and odd towels handy on the cockpit deck for emergencies (of which we have had enough to warrant keeping it there). No fun when they all get wet and we have to do the Chinese Laundry thing for a day to dry them.

I just asked Warren what we did today!
Nothing, was the reply. Then we thought about it some more.

He was down in the lazarette checking the packing on the rudders, greasing the bearings and doing other small chores here and there. I got the stainless Steel cleaner out and attacked the Passarelle  (the thing that lifts the dinghy) and other assorted stainless that needed cleaning. The Pasarelle takes some time to do it properly, having so many little parts, and it is mostly awkward to clean, leaning out over the dinghy, the way it does. I do lift it up and out, but it is still over the dinghy, unless we take the dinghy off. We weren't going to do that today as there was a stiff southerly blowing, a high tide and fast current (with the wind blowing water into the canal) flowing. Not a good time to be out on the water, though neighbors just down a couple of houses chose today to go boating in their runabout. We wondered at their intelligence level, but they made it back in one piece...we watched them dock into the boat lift, from our lofty perch on the flydeck while enjoying some Hummus and chips, late afternoon.
Getting off the boat for a walk was a good choice of activity, even though it was showering intermittently all day.
We decided to drive down to the Charlotte Harbor Beach Park and walk around there, for our constitutional. We had forgotten to take our money with us, so we didn't park there...park and pay, as it was. Instead we returned to a street nearby, parking on the verge and walking down the roads we had driven previously. We stopped to take in the spectacle of a Hawk/falcon sitting on a tree, and then swooping into the vacant lot there, for food. The neighbor across the road said that it is common to see the bird in that area as there are lots of fruit rats and other rodents about. We also spied two gorgeous (as a pair) Osprey circling overhead, riding the thermals straight off the sea. We were adjacent to the  Harbor, on this road, and could see the water from where we were standing.

It is always a thrill to us to observe these raptors in their natural habitat.

It started sprinkling while we were a short way from the car, so we hastened back and then drove in and out of the roads that have canals on each side, looking at all the vacant lots...some of which had prices on their For Sale signs. One nice lot was $229k, a bit pricey considering that some of the adjacent homes are no more than $250k. As is often the case, it is less expensive to buy an existing home than to build your own.

We stopped in front of one home for sale to ask an elderly gentleman, the next door neighbor, what the asking price might be. He didn't know and didn't care. He said he is 90 yrs old, has lived in his home for 28 yrs. He was born in 1923, had been in the US Navy during WW2, and had been on a Destroyer in the Pacific, doing carrier escort. He was obviously an intelligent man with a good sense of humor. He hoped we would become his new neighbors, as he needed others there with a sense of humor:). We enjoyed the chat, but it was getting dark and we had another couple of stops to make before going home. The home next door to him is listed at $449k. Waz has it up on the screen of the computer right now. It is about 2,400 sq. ft on just on 1/4 acre with a 40ft concrete dock, a 13k lb boat lift with cover, all on Edgwater Lake. Lovely! Maybe a bit overpriced, but it has underground utilities, which is rare around here. Many pluses...but hey, we aren't buying right now, just terminal lookers!:)
Im off to bed, so night, night. Monday tomorrow! yay!

There is always something...

...that needs replacing.
Good thing Warren noticed that the shower hose was coming apart near the handgrip, coz I wouldn't have noticed until water sprayed everywhere at me! I don't see these things without my glasses on and I don't wear them in the shower! His eyesight is pretty good for the most part, so he spies the offenders easily.
Of course this necessitated a visit to Lowes. It is closer to us than Home Depot.

On the way there we spied the larger of two Health Food markets, and decided to take a wee look. The recce took about 20 mins, coz you cant do a recce any justice under that...says who? Well, I know this for a fact. Trust me!

Having recce'd to our hearts content, we ventured forth to Lowes in search of another shower hose. Waz, of course had already looked it up online and discovered that there was a choice of half a dozen to be had, but of course, the choice was more limited in-store....to ONE! ACK! We bought it, coz it fortunately was what we wanted. While there we perused the vast assortment of Home Handyman, House Plans, New Kitchen/bathroom, Patios and decks etc.. books. I have a large library of such books in the lock-up in NZ.

Just to go back a bit...as I like to keep you on your toes:)

Breakfast this morning was a bit of a challenge. Some might rightly ask why I had proceeded with the course of action I chose. Who knows, is the correct answer to that one!

I had just a tiny bit of Buttermilk left in the bottle and didn't want to throw it out. I had frozen blueberries in the freezer, and I had MOST of the makings of Blueberry buttermilk pancakes.
Half way through making them I discovered that I didn't have any eggs left. Hmmm...and when I added the buttermilk to what would normally be the oil and egg, there was far less than I had anticipated. Hmmmmmm!
Because I don't add sugar to my pancake mix (I let the fruit do the sweetening), I decided to just add plain milk to the buttermilk mixture...but...brain malfunction!!!.... I added too much milk (being more watery) that I would have normally to compensate for the lack of B-milk. Sheesh! Talk about go back to bed and start again!
So, I ended up adding another half cup of flour and half tspn of Baking Powder to the mix.
I didn't like the purple heavy mix, but Waz said he would eat them anyway...bless his cotton sox, lol.

Purple mix meant I had over-mixed the whole thing with the berries in it, and you never want to do that with pancakes. Anyway...they turned out ok, if a bit heavy. Not a happy beginning to the day, but the coffee made up for it all:) Community Coffee is fantastic! If you ever come across it, buy the Breakfast Blend! splendiferous!

We actually went out in the first place to get food...not a lot, but we had run out of eggs...see above...and needed some more bananas etc. The cooler just inside the door was advertising Pork Loin for $1.99 lb, so we bought two large loins...$8.72 for one that would feed 6, and another about the same size to freeze. Buttermilk was also on the agenda, as was cream. We are unabashed cream eaters.
Waz found some Michelob Light beer for sale, and bought a dozen for $10.99. He only drinks it when we go next door for happy hour occasionally.

We didn't intend going to Sam's Club, but we arrived there after our Lowes visit. We needed to put some Gas in the car, and at $3.25 9/10, it is the cheapest Gas in town, with our club card. Filled up then went inside for a pineapple at $2.98 and  few other things. Lots of post- Christmas specials on there too, with 50% off lots of Deco's and gift baskets...if I was inclined to indulge in some of the goodies, they would have been a good buy. No choc for me this year!  Waz went looking for Chrissy lights, and didn't find them, much to his disappointment. He swears that next year he will decorate the boat. Blames me for 'not letting him' do it this year! ha! I think we just had better things to spend our money on than something that sits around taking up precious space for 11 months of the year...Grinch!!!
On the way home, at 1.45pm, the worms were biting (hungry) so we stopped off at Wally's to buy some takeout pulled pork. We had seen their takeout menu when we had ribs there last week, and meant to stop off and get some. We did think the portions was a bit small for the price, but there is enough there for lunch tomorrow also.

I had some Corned Beef in the fridge,  ready to be cooked, on our return, and decided to go the whole hog and roast the pork loin as well. I put a pot on the inductions cooktop to boil the Corned Beef and placed the roast in a pan, oiled and salted and popped it into the Micro-convection oven for 1 1/2 hrs. Both meats were cooked at around the same time, so I cooled the CB and set that aside. One half for the fridge and the other to go into the freezer downstairs. The pork I left sitting in the oven and used that for dinner, with enough left over to put 1/2 in the freezer and the other half for dinner tomorrow night. It was lovely and moist, despite me roasting it at 400F. So, I can relax about meals for another few days. I have some sewing to do, so don't want to have to think too much about what to cook, and then have to take precious sewing time out to make food.

Waz tells me it is going to rain tomorrow. Bah! Just when I need to be upstairs using that table to sew on....My upstairs sewing room that I showed you a week ago.

 

We have just been for our nightly constitutional up and down the road. It is cool, but not, if you know what I mean. It is 77F in the salon and the wind is coming from the south, so water is woofing under the stern of the boat...not a sound I like to hear.

It does mean we get a bit of a breeze in the salon door.

I finished taking down the three loads of washing we put through between other activities today, and was surprised that it continued drying after sundown. I usually have to wait for morning to take it down as there is so much moisture in the air. Today it was 85F, and rather warm. I had put longs on to start the day, and wished I had just put shorts on.

 

It is now 10.30pm. Time for a cool shower, and bed. Sunday tomorrow.

Enjoy the weekend, folks...what is left of it, that is:)

Friday, Dec. 27th, 2013

Apart from not sleeping well, Waz had turned the alarm on for 6.30 on one of his alarming appliances, and the other for 7.am. Of course I woke with the earlier one!:)
Not much sleep and feeling like I had gravel in my eyes from reading on the computer at 1.30am, I got up and put the pot on for coffee.
We had a muesli breakfast this morning with the last of the bananas, and this all preceded the necessity to make our way to Fort Meyers, an hour south, for an appointment with Customs and Border Security at Fort Meyers International Airport.
Huh?
Yes, exactly!

Waz had organized for us to have back to back appointments (online booking) with Customs, which happened to be in the bowels of the airport....

Not unpleasant, as far as out of the way places go.

We had to go to this window and follow the instructions, which involved then picking up the adjacent phone and pressing the Customs button for service. 10 mins later, the officer came out and we gave her the required documents for our Small Vessel Reporting, which allows us to re-enter the USA from surrounding countries when we leave here on the boat. It is primarily for Warren to have his exit and entry recorded for the Homeland Security People when he reapplies for his Green Card, but is also required for any vessel leaving and then re-entering US waters. We have to fill out a form when we get to the port of exit and then entry, and Waz, as Skipper of the vessel has to leave the boat to report into customs in both cases.

We watched this Police Officer first have a drink while tethered to his Segway, then take time to look at the arrivals screens, opposite where we waited for our Officer to approach. He then sped away down the corridor!. Kept us amused for a little bit:)

 

We had left the boat at just before 9am to travel south to Fort Meyers Airport, which we thought might take us an hour...it did. We also had to find parking (which the officer validated for us, so we didn't have to pay..woohoo!) and then find out where we were supposed to be for our 10.30 and 10.45am appointments.

 

Waz found the place we needed to be, and we just had time for a Starbucks and a wander.

Somebody did a fab. job of restoring these old cars on display at the airport :)

I love this 'Opera' version of the Caddy

The sculpture in the airport was excellent, as were the lovely bird photos printed onto canvas. They were huge, of course, but the colors were lovely and caught the eye.

 

This sculpture was rather fun, and being all white, was very effective. A bit hard to photograph well with so many palms in the way, lol.

 

After we left the airport, we decided to try finding a tea shop that had been recommended to us. They sell Loose Leaf tea, so this was important.

We ended up at Coconut Pointe Mall...which was HUGE. Italian-style! and very up-market.

 

 

These condos were occupied for the most part.

Jag anyone?:) It was Loverly!

Fiat 500

I really liked the colors of the walls, and the decorations, such as the lamps.

Don't you love the bike stand?:)

'The Residences' as they are known.

 

 

The Residences

One of the main gates into The Coconut Pointe Mall complex along Hwy 41

We had lunch at Johnny Rockets...forgettable, especially as they charged us for things that they didn't say were going to be an upsell, and didn't deliver on the all- you -can- eat fries...oops! and when we explained that the charges were incorrect, she did some weird jiggery pokery with the numbers and charged me $2 less...eh? THEN she said that if we had any problem with the charges, we should come back. We said we were from NZ..did she think we should make a flight especially?

Over the ICW at Fort Meyers  on the way back north on Hwy 41, which was the secondary road, and stop and start all the way. We went down on Hwy 75 (70 mph) but wanted to see more scenery on the way home. Lots of  bridges!

 

 We were rather anxious to get home for a cup of tea and a nap, at around 3.30pm. And, that's just what we did.

 

Oh, did I tell you that we did some shopping?? silly me! of course we did.

 

SALES< SALES>SALES!!!!

Post Christmas sales were everywhere, of course.

I have always liked Chico's brand of clothing, so we went into the store which was showing signs for sale items everywhere.

My favorite sign was the one that said, Take 50% off the most expensive item!!! We did! and 50% off the Jewelry and two tops we bought for me. This is the first ' special wear' clothing I have bought in a looooong time...probably more than 10 yrs! I just never needed it!

Buying some 'junk' jewelry was nice too...very mix and match and a bit bling...You will have to wait for photos, Im sorry. They wont  photograph well at night.

We did buy some tea, and are in the process of drinking it. The young man who obviously owns the Tea shop was very disparaging of our $3.89 lb choice of plain English breakfast tea, and we ended up buying some fancy-pants tea which you are supposed to be able to steep up to five times. Hmmm. ok...whatever they say, We will try it. I cant say it is any better or worse than the floor sweepings we are used to!

Well, Waz is looking at Fort Meyers Real Estate online and wants me to take a look at some of them, so it's Good Night from me, and Good Night from him:)

 

 

Boxing Day....

I don't think many people here call it that, but it seems the easiest thing to call the 'Day after Christmas Day', which is an otherwise cumbersome moniker.

What did we do?
Apart from getting up at a reasonable hour, around 8am, had some breakfast and went off to do a few 'things'. First on the agenda was to find Blood Donors, not far from here, but a part of town that we had previously not explored. It was closer than anticipated, and we went inside to enquire about Waz giving Plasma, which he would normally give in NZ.

After some discussion, he was ushered into a side room (it is all very confidential...I was excluded!!!) where he was asked the 651 questions (no, not literally) and passed with flying colors, because they then took him into the donation room and put a slot into his arm and extracted a pint of whole blood.
I took this opportunity to learn more about some celebrities than I would otherwise not know or care about, from the Wimmins magazines, as they are known, in the 'waiting room'.
I was constantly asked if I would like some cookies, sugar drinks, snack bars, etc...all high sugar things, and in the end, I said with a rather tart tone...NO THANK YOU!:) They left me alone after that!

Waz took half an hour to bleed into the bag, so I was well versed in what the Stars think and do. Most enlightening!!! NOT!''
Why don't I give blood???? Because I may have Mad Cow disease! well, yes, we know this, but for those who are unenlightened....If you had been in the UK, or EU countries any time from 1980 until present day, you may be a carrier of the Jakob Creutzfeld Disease. This is commonly known as Mad Cow Disease.
Believe me, I have tried to given them my blood, but they turn me away all the time. I have perfectly good  blood...but I would never forgive myself if I gave someone Mad Cow! well, you wouldn't, would you?...so I don't!

I do get to indulge in the coffee, soft drinks and high sugar everything else, though, should I choose, as a 'supporter' of a donor. I find this a bit weird....although in NZ you are sat in a nice lounge and fed chocolate cookies and hot chocolate, tea or coffee! very civilized!. Here they don't do the choc. bikkies thing...no wonder I refused the other things!

Having bled himself, we went in search of some a new toilet brush, which was duly found at Bed, Bath and Beyond. Have you ever been in one of their stores in the USA? There is more BEYOND than anything else. An amazing place! Phew..it is all a bit exhausting though, there being sooooo much 'stuff' in there.
Mission #2 accomplished!
Mission #3 Was a little less obvious and perhaps might get accomplished. We were searching for some 'sophisticated' fabric which would make up into a sophisticated outfit for our New Years Eve party at the Isles Yacht Club. This apparently is a Black Tie do, so I want to look the part.
It took a while, but we did finally find the required fabric, x 2...we also bought enough plain black for a sleeveless top...and two patterns which I can make something interesting with.

Hard to believe that all this took all day.
We had a brunch before going out...no breakfast, just brunch. Len's leftovers are still going, and we enjoyed scallops and crab meat in a large frittata, along with fresh spinach and onions. Yum!

This held us over until we returned to the boat. Len was home early, and Heidi, Stef's mom was by the pool, so we joined them with a hummus dip and some corn chips, for happy hour.

Stef came home around 6pm. She had had to work, and then they were off out to dinner. We stayed in and made use of yet more leftovers in the form of the shrimp from the cocktail...these jumbo shrimp are lovely and sweet, and fantastic on a salad. No dressing!

Oh..I forgot the Library visit on the way, after the blood letting. Heavens!
We went into the Port Charlotte Library to join up for three months...$10 please.
I wanted to be able to borrow magazines, as we cant collect them on the boat...space being the issue, again. I borrowed a couple of Vogue mags. to see what people are wearing these days (not previously having been that interested...I mean...we live on a boat, what haute couture do you need??) and what could I make to look 'current'.
I also borrowed some Psychology Today mags. I do like their articles, and have previously subscribed to their mag. This should keep me out of trouble for the next week, until they are due back.
Waz found and bought another Tom Clancy novel, ...hardback, (900 odd pages) which we purchased from the Friends of the Library store for $1.50! I love it:)


And...wouldn't you know it...and this is why the afternoon became an all day affair...
I forgot to tell you about the trip to the Marine Trader Store...This was after the blood and before the library!

Waz needed to find another BOW ROLLER for a second anchor to be attached on top of the present Bow Roller for the primary anchor. This is in case we need two anchors for any particular reason. We are told these things do occur! Best to be prepared. I will send photos when it has been installed!...

I guess you could say that the Marine Traders is organized?? What do you think?

 

I had to take some photos of the dried Star Fish...just for you:)

 

 

 

It wasn't a good night for me. I had eaten something spicy for lunch...spicy crab meat? and was suffering from reflux. I couldn't find the peptide in the dark and didn't want to wake Waz, so I got up and read on the computer till about 1.30am. The neighbors were having a get together, and at about that time, their guests left...loud cars and motorbikes. It was also cooler at that time of the morning, so I turned the fan to low, in the bedroom. I think I might have been a bit cool after that, because somehow I managed to pull the sheet out of the bottom of the bed. Bah!
I mostly enjoy a good night's sleep.
More on the 27th, Dec. next.

 

Christmas Dinner

We joined Len, Stefi and Janet (who drove them) at the lovely condo of Tony and Ruth, for Christmas Day Dinner. Two of Ruth's sisters were there...I learned that there were 10 kids in their family, the first five being a year apart!!WOW! ...their family and friends of R and T. It was a casual affair but Ruth and Tony put on a fantastic spread!
I love the way Americans get dressed for the occasion in sparkly clothing and jewelry and their dishes, napkins etc are specific to the season. Such dedication to the traditions surrounding each 'holiday' is admirable, but I am not about to start doing it too. I have no room for all the 'stuff'...and let me tell you, this is 'Serious Stuff'!

I admire it in other people's homes, but somehow lack the motivation to do likewise. Maybe one day when we are more settled...if that day will ever come??:)

Ruth had prepared a stuffed Pork Loin, a super tender Braised Brisket, baked root veg, including parsnips and carrot, along with some pumpkin. Barb made a caesar salad, which was yummy, and a waldorf salad accompanied the food. I had not had red jacket potatoes mashed with their skins on, before, but they were excellent.

Dessert followed with a Grandma's apple pie with cream...Ruth added Raisins, which is the perfect addition to an apple pie, to my way of thinking, and she also made a favorite cranberry dessert. I cant even begin to think what is in it, but light and fluffy it was, and not too sweet. Perfect! The coffee was good, as was the company, the music, and the general feeling of comfort and good cheer. What lovely, generous people we are surrounded by.
We are eternally grateful for being included in these celebrations, and cant thank our hosts enough for their generosity.

We made our way home just after 8pm...and the reason you are not seeing any photos??? I plain forgot! I got so caught up with meeting all the new people, enjoying their company and conversation and eating the lovely food, that I didn't even THINK of the camera...wow! that surely speaks volumes. Unfortunately, you will have to make those pictures in your own heads.

Next time, I promise!

So we are now settled down for the evening and it isn't yet 9pm. I think a walk is in order, don't you?

Waz has nearly finished his book, so I will allow him to knock that one off before getting up for our evening constitutional.

I hope you have all enjoyed the festivities these past few days, and don't feel over fed, overwhelmed or over -anything. We have  a New Year to look forward to!!!
Ciao for now, and good night.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Yes, it is Christmas Day.
 It took us a while to wind down from our feast, much hilarity and general bonhomie, last night, and we didn't make it to bed until well after 1am, this morning.

We slept until 10am...well, we did get our 8 hrs sleep!!
A cuppa and bowl of berries followed a shower, and we ate upstairs on the fly deck in the sunshine.

Just as well we got the boat washed yesterday, while it was cloudy and cooler. It filled in the time for the most of the day, and we sat down to a late lunch of a huge fresh salad.

It had rained in the night, for which we were eternally grateful. It made the boat washing job so much easier.

A generally grey morning, when I rose at just after 6.30am. Waz stayed in bed until about 7.30 before I got him up. We HAD to get the boat washed today!

Our huge but delicious salads with fresh raspberries and avocado...among other things, obviously.

 

 

After lunch and finishing a few other chores, we decided to visit Lowes hardware to find a new floor  mat for the fly deck, as we are throwing out the one that makes black marks on the white gelcoat. We also needed a few hose parts to make it easier for us to use the existing hose while hooked up to the dock.

 Mission accomplished!...especially the Y-connector.

 

And of course...just outside the hose aisle was the Christmas 'dress up so that you look like a total twat', section...and I made Waz demonstrate the goods...poor man, lol.  He really is soooo obliging

You can see the' long suffering husband' written all over his lovely mug, cant you?

 

We weren't expected at the shindig last night until 6pm, so we had time once we got home, to enjoy a cup of coffee on the fly deck before dressing for the evening.

 

We have had a quiet morning and now, afternoon. We ate some left over scallops for lunch along with some tomatoes and other leftovers...not a lot of food, as we are expected at Tony and Ruth's home for Christmas Dinner, tonight around 4pm.  It is now almost 3pm, and I think Waz and I need to go for a walk...the heat has returned, somewhat, so a hat is in order, today.

 

I will post more photos of Christmas Day, later in the day...or night, as the case will no doubt be.

 

Enjoy your Christmas Day...we sure will:)

 

Ciao for now..