Dog Sitting While the Kids Enjoy the Lake

While I was watched Lola and Khloe.....

Melissa, Jamie, Violet, Lincoln and Hazel made a trip to the lake.

Lola and Khloe are really very easy to watch if you don't count the excessive number of walks they want to take. The staring while I eat and the barking in the evening while their other furry friends take a stroll past the house.

After checking out their room and deciding on sleeping arrangements, it was off shopping, eating, feeding fish and a trip to Miner Mikes.

Lincoln's getting braver with the water and tried his skills on - do you call this a paddle boat? Whatever, it's still better than being stuck at home with the dogs.

Violet Loses Another Tooth

Boy, when those teeth start falling out, it seems like they never stop.

Poor Violet lost another tooth and it's starting to affect her speech. Little bit of a lisp going on. I hope the other ones come in quick before she has nothing left to chew her Chick-Fil-A!

Hazel's First Trip to the Pool

While I was gone, Hazel had her first experience with swimming.

I'm not sure whether she enjoyed the water or the escape from the heat.

Violet loves the water and isn't afraid to try anything, even jumping off the diving board.

Lincoln is getting braver and finally went down the slide. Maybe one day Jamie and Melissa will be able to afford a pool of their own!

Western Caribbean Cruise

I can check off another trip for 2019.

My friends, Debbie and Robin, met me in Fort Lauderdale the day before we anxiously boarded our ship for our 7 day Western Caribbean cruise.

I think ships are getting better with the boarding process. Either that or we're getting to the pier at the right moment to check in and walk right onto the ship. As soon as we boarded, we headed to the buffet for food. What is it about cruising and eating? They seem to go hand in hand.

Then it was off to the sail away party for drinks and exploration of the ship.

After a day at sea, our first stop was Roatan, Honduras. I've been to the Western Caribbean before and absolutely don't remember it being so impoverished. We were told there was better shopping that would take us about 5 minutes to walk to. So off we went only to find the area kept getting poorer and poorer. A cab driver pulled up next to us and said he knew of a great place to shop. Since we were all 3 together and he spoke English very well, we figured we'd be safe. But when he turned onto a dirt road, all our eyes bugged out of our heads. He was actually taking us through his village where he grew up before taking us to the shopping mall. He was so proud of these run down shacks. We finally convinced him to take us to the mall which wasn't much better.

I was able to find a rather decent commemorative shirt. Oh, and the mall, just one store but at least it was air conditioned. Our cab driver did wait for us, thank goodness, and suggested other areas to explore. I kept saying "No" to every suggestion he made. We finally made it back to the pier and I would have run back to the ship but I was having knee problems. But I was limping back at a rather fast rate of speed.

Our next stop was Belize which was even worse than Honduras. I was so disappointed, I didn't even take one picture. I was able to find my Belize shirt which I wore while walking around Costa Maya - another disappointing port.

Now Cozumel was a different story. Plenty of fun stores and restaurants. You'll have to excuse my grubby clothes. The weather was so hot and humid that I couldn't bear wearing anything other than sleeveless tops and flip flops. Our last day was at sea. By this time I was so disappointed with the entire cruise I didn't even think of taking any more pictures. While the company was great, I believe this is my last cruise to the Western Caribbean. My next cruise is in February through the Panama Canal. Fingers crossed it will be much better.

3 Month Old Hazel

Hazel turned 3 months old and is growing so fast.

This chair has been the background for both Violet and Lincoln as Melissa was showing the monthly progression growth. The only thing missing from this photo is Hazel's mimi. Ummm, Melissa, I think you're getting forgetful!

Grease Is The Word

When you have to work on your birthday, what better way to celebrate than with a Grease themed slot tournament.

If a prize was given for best recreation of characters from Grease, I think they would have to give it to Michael and his co-worker. Michael may need a little more hair to portray John Travolta's character Danny but the idea is there.

All the guys wore leather T Bird jackets while the ladies wore Pink Lady jackets.

If I would have known the theme earlier, I might have found my old poodle skirt and dressed the part to take Michael to lunch. But then again, I might have been mistaken for an employee and asked dozen of questions from the guests.

Happy Birthday Michael! I couldn't ask for a better son. And stop telling people your real age. All that does is make me older!

Pre-Birthday Bowling Party

Trying to find a time to celebrate any occasion that includes the whole family doesn't always mean it falls on the actual date of the event.

Today we were able to celebrate Michael's birthday with a family get together for bowling. I started the game tripping over my feet and falling as I released the ball. Believe it or not, I got a strike. Already I can feel the muscles in my body regretting this activity.

I won the first game but no one could compete with Michael's 4 consecutive strike ending in the second game. Melissa jumped in for a few frames and got 2 strikes in a row. Teresa, Jamie and Brandon just shook their heads at our competitiveness. Happy pre-Birthday, Michael. There's still lunch on Saturday.