OLA: Visiting with Family and Friends in SC

the sprawling Southern retirement home of the Thiesings in Mt.Pleasant, South Carolina

view from their 3rd floor deck, witht he boat at the end of the walk

So we just left Florida after 5 warm winter months and are now here in Low Country USA…South Carolina… on our way to Nova Scotia for the nth reunion of the DUs, Bill’s high school gang. This is one of the several visits we will make along the way. Jim, one of the DUs, has decided to retire here to be near his grandkids. Erika, my darling niece who married the eldest nephew of Marty, her mom and my sister Julie’s husband (who passed on in 2009), has also decided to relocate here. Time for special visits!  

Carol walking on the boardwalk back to the house after our boat ride

a Nerd Clock, very apropos in Jim's home office

The Thiesings of Mt. Pleasant

Jim Thiesing just retired last year as Group Vice-President, Federal Operations of Jacob’s Engineering, a Fortune 500 company providing technical, professional, and construction services globally with 200 offices in over 25 countries in Aerospace and Defense, Automotive and Industrial, Buildings, Chemicals and Polymers, Consumer and Forest Products, Energy, Environmental Programs, Infrastructure, Mining and Minerals, Oil and Gas, Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology, Refining, and Technology. Jim was primarily involved in its nuclear clean-up operations including the 3-Mile Island and the Oakridge facility.

spacious second level living quarters

Jim and wife Carol are obviously very comfortably happy in their sprawling 2-level 5,000 sq. ft. Southern home (yes with porches all around) that reaches out to where his boat is moored on the Toomer creek that leads into the Atlantic Ocean through Wando and Cooper Rivers.The 2 guest quarters, Jim’s office, the middle lounging area, and a recreation area make up the lower level while the couple lives in utmost comfort at the second floor. They decided to stay near the grandchildren (don’t we all?) and are truly a picture of shared blissful contentment.

Bill's fave banana cream pie
 baked from scratch by Jim's Carol!

Bill, Jim, and Carol were off to the beach early the following day for Bill’s 2-3 mile daily walk and her bike ride. Then the 2 friends fished  while the two Carols watched the quarterfinals of the Miami Sony Ericson Tennis Open (yes, we are both fan-addicts). What a grand vacation for Bill and me. Carol is a perfect host. Meals were always fine dining…from soup salad, entrée, and dessert! We could not have enough of the cola brisket slow cooked to perfection...and the shrimp pasta salad...and the chcken wild rice mushroom...and even the apple/ham/cream cheese sandwiches!!! But the killer was Bill's
banana cream pie, something he had been pining for for years! 

the co-pilots, Jim and Bill

Bill and Jim at Vickery's at Shrimp Creek
where we stopped for lunch on our boat ride 

The following day, all of us went for a lovely boat ride to the great Atlantic. We had a traditional Southern lunch at Vickery’s, a local favorite resto with its own dock, right before the bay. Back home, Bill and Jim went fishing again and the 2 Carols watched the last set of Quarterfinals. The next morning Bill and Jim braved the walk on the 5-mile loop on the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge and then, sadly, we had to say our goodbyes. The stay was truly fun but we will see them soon enough in Nova Scotia, although it will not be at their lovely home!

the Ravenal Bridge, signalling that we had arrived at the Charleston Harbor!

Jesse and Erika with Bill while dinner was being readied

The Sellers of James Island

Erika is my sister Julie’s youngest child. She married Jesse Sellers, nephew of Marty, Julie’s husband who passed on in 2009. She now baby-sits two little kids while Jesse is in partnership with friends in a construction company. Erika was former Philippine Idol finalist and is currently expecting their first child in September!  I wanted to see first-hand the joy on her face! It was certainly there…perhaps permanently etched, after waiting for almost five years!

we have missed Erik'a snging!

We stored the RV for 3 days while we stayed with Jim and Carol but we wanted to show Erika how we camped so we booked at the Charleston KOA just beside the storage facility. We had Jesse and Erika the first night at the RV. Bill grilled pork loins and I made green beans and mushroom medley and simple baked potatoes for sides and some Italian bread with cream cheese chocolate cake for dessert! And of course, we set up the karaoke equipment so we could once again hear Erika’s melodious voice singing some oft-forgotten OPM (Original Pilipino Music)!

digging into the sumptuous Southern dinner!

The next night, it was Jesse and Erika’s turn to show off their culinary skills so we drove to their lovely, cozy home. Dinner was excellent Southern cuisine: grilled porterhouse steaks courtesy of Jesse, Kajing made extra special (we brought home the left-overs!) dinner rolls from Jesse’s family’s secret recipe, Caesar salad, and mashed potatoes. Oh for appetizers we had veggies and ranch and deviled eggs! Bill and I brought the couple nice oranges and grapefruit from Florida and a small box of Mexican mangoes from the Carolina Coast Flea Market, the state's biggest!.

Carol's turn to sing!

the four...happy together!

We ended the night singing karaoke favorites again and, though we wanted to linger on for we might not see each other again for another 5 years, we had to bid our reluctant  goodbyes. In the morning, Bill and I will proceed to a short vacay in the North Carolina Outer Banks! But surely we left with hearts full of wonderful memories.Visits to family and friends, especially this one to South Carolina early in the spring of 2012, are truly special! RVing makes it all possible for us.                                                                                                                        

OLA: Partying with Snowbirds

Bill's offered his 68th birthday cake to the snowbirders of the RVing world!

snowbirds learning many line dancing variations

SNOWBIRDS!   The term makes you think of old, retired people from as far north as Newfoundland in Canada who leave their cold homes in November to spend a warm winter in Florida then make their way back home in March. They may have a few years under their belt, but they are definitely young at heart, and they certainly know how to have fun! Last week we introduced you to our young traveling friends from Slovenia. This week we spotlight our more regular companions in the RVing world, those sexygenarians like us (or older!) and about ‘partying’ with them.

Fay and Butch toasting the celebrant

Lake Magic in Orlando, Florida

Lake Magic in Orlando, a member of the Encore group, is the overflow park of Orlando Thousand Trails, one of our favorite parks. It sits on Highway 192 West, part of the triangle that circumscribes the theme parks of Orlando. It is only 6 miles from Disney! The RV haven is very nice with well-maintained facilities and tons of activities. We were lucky that Orlando Thousand Trails did not have space for us and got booked in and introduced to Lake Magic instead! 

Warren and Berta leading the singing

But the Park’s outstanding feature is its energetic community of younger snowbirds. Some store their RVs in the Park to use it as their alternate home in Florida. Some rent or own park models and just drive to Florida in their cars, and some are just like us who haul their home full time on the road. We were lucky that we got drawn into a group that seemed to party every day, with pot luck food and loads of karaoke singing and line dancing, led by Warren and Berta who own the equipment. 

      

Bill singing 'Wake Up Little Susie'

A traditional ‘Virginia’ barbecue courtesy of Fay and Butch coincided with Bill’s 68^th birthday, so we brought a large German chocolate cake.  A host of sides were brought by the other 45 guests. A hearty Happy Birthday was sung as Bill offered his cake that read ‘Happy RVing and Snowbirding’ to start dessert time. Then the group burst into karaoke singing, street dancing, and more eating! And, like always when a party ends, Warren and Berta led the group in singing ‘We’re Best of Friends’!

St. Patrick's Day celebration with the 'band'

Three Flags in Wildwood, Florida

Over at Three Flags, another Encore campground, management had ushered in the snowbirding season with the Thanksgiving Party where they served roast turkey while we campers contributed sides and desserts (also became my own 63^rd birthday celebration). Then March 17 they bid goodbye to the season with its St. Patrick’s Day celebration, serving corned beef and cabbage, traditional Irish fare, plus all the sides and desserts from the campers. The holiday is a cultural and religious holiday for the most commonly recognized patron saint of Ireland and the arrival of Christianity to the Emerald Isle.

just the dessert tables

Joe and Dottie having dinner with us...

During the winter of 2009/201, we met Joe, 81, and Dottie, 82 also in Three Flags. He has become Bill’s fishing buddy while Dottie is my Scrabble and Upwords playmate.  Dottie and I also exchange a lot of fave recipes.  At about the same time we met them, we also met Bob and Laverne, who are just a little older than us. They run a popular entertainment blog so they introduced me to the world of blogging and Entrecard. Without them, I would not have known how to establish my online presence.  

Bob and Laverne having dessert with us...

Bev and Dan going out with us...

We were also surprised to see Dan and Bev Johnson (the same age as Bill and I) in Three Flags this year. They are from the Seattle, Washington area like us. We met at an eastern Washington campground when we were on our way back to Seattle. This time around, a special bond developed because they kept me company when Bill needed to stay in the hospital after a heart attack. They visited Bill at the Heart of Florida Medical Center the following day.

Carol singing 'Act Naturally'

The RV and travel community can be very isolating even if we meet a lot of people at all of the campground activities. Once in a while, however, we are able to form special bonds with fellow travelers who become lifelong friends. We make the effort to keep communication lines open even when we are apart and take pains to schedule next meetings. Once again, we are reminded of the theme of this blog…’It is not about age, it is about lifestyle’.  We share the cruising lifestyle.

Being Closer to Family, an Orlando Reunion OLA

an enchanting Loch Ness monster on Pleasure Island in Downtown Disney

New Year's Eve dinner at Giordano's, our treat! 

"A thing is mighty big when time and distance cannot shrink it". Such is family. Just as 2011 was ending, the Aberions  from Seattle, Washington (eldest daughter Trisha, her husband DJ and grandkids Yeye and Kenji) and  the Vidallos from Calgary, Alberta, Canada  (second daughter Claudine and her husband Arnold and grandkids Ashton, Andre, and Enzo) arrived to help us be true to one of our resolutions.

fireworks at the hotel parking lot!

Orlando is not a nice place to be if you are on a diet. New Years’ Eve Dinner was at Giordano’s (famous for their deep dish pizzas and pastas) near their hotel, the Maingate Lakeside Resort. Then, as is the Philippine custom, we greeted the New Year with some legal (not lethal) fireworks at the hotel.  The frenzied exchange of delayed Christmas gifts ensued and the toasts of champagne completed the night!

New Year's Day pandemonium at the RV!

On New Year’s Day we brought a hearty Filipino brunch to wake them up. That was when we also distributed our gifts to everyone. Kenji so loved his 5 gifts (he turned five on Dec. 16) that he danced Happy Feet for us! At 5PM, after an afternoon of swimming, mini-golf and a round of horseshoes at the Orlando Thousand Trails’ clubhouse complex, we had New Years’ Day dinner at our ‘patio’.

lunch at Ichiban, Trisha and DJ's treat, on that cold Florida day!

The following day the Vidallos were off to a fun day at Sea World and the Aberions to Disney’s Magic Kingdom!  Unfortunately, the following day turned out to be a record cold day in Florida, highs of 40s and lows of 30s (an arctic blast came quickly…but also left as quickly!). We all just went shopping at Downtown Disney, sandwiched by a Japanese /Chinese buffet at Ichiban for lunch and a Hibachi dinner cum chef show at Kobe Steakhouse.  Kenji said it best, “Happiness is eating too much!” But for Yeye, it was shopping too much!

dinner at the Kobe Steak House, Claudine and Arnold's treat 

The following day still started out cold but the sun raged and the day ended with high 60s so the two families enjoyed the first of their 2 Universal Studios sprees. It was fortunate that the next day was even warmer, inching up to the low 70s! In the tradition of eating too much, both couples opted to pay for the $20 for adults and $10 for kids all-day eat-all-you-can meals (with a lot more taken out for midnight snacks back at the hotel)!

right at the entrance of LegoLand, a fave dinosaur!

at the entrance to Legoland

Then the couples had their day of rest as Bill and I took the four little boys on a visit to Orlando’s newest theme park, LegoLand!  Designed for kids under 9, the boys had a blast! Between the flying, driving, and boating schools and the build and test race cars at Imagination the little boys all voted Legoland the best theme park of their visit! They were all amazed at the millions of Lego bricks used to build Miniland and delighted at the safari, the Island in the Sky, etc.

mesmerized at Miniland's millions of bricks

The Aberions had to leave early. It may have been a short trip but we were definitely thrilled to be able to hold Kenji and Yeye in our arms and to behold Trisha and DJ’s animated faces as we talked. The Vidallos had an extra four days which they used well to scour every inch and corner of Disney World and its 4 parks. We had a final dinner on the evening of the 8^th, , very glad to have nice talks with Claudine and Arnold first hand and to squeeze the little boys in tight hugs.  Enzo must have posed for me a hundred times with his Harry Potter smile, complete with glasses!

the little boys having fun with Arnold at their hotel room

It is definitely a wonderful start.  But to be closer, despite the time and distance, will require much more than annual visits. Constant communication throughout the year will be necessary. Technology will certainly help. But fervent caring will always be the key. When the Aberions and Vidallos left to go back home, we felt like saying, ‘We will hold you in our hearts til we can hold you again in our arms’.

WOW: Making Resolutions for 2012

2011 has been a great travel year for us. The top 3 destinations where we enjoyed ourselves the most are: 1. HongKong (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2011/05/ola-getting-excited-in-hongkong-hk.html), 2. Palawan (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2011/03/ola-marveling-at-palawans-beauty.html) which also won to become one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, and 3.  Mt. Rushmore (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2011/06/saluting-man-made-wonders-of-south.html).  In 2012 we expect to be wowed by: 1. Nova Scotia, 2.Bahamas, and 3. Niagara!!!  But what kind of a travel year will 2012 be?

This year has been predicted by some as a spiritually transformative and apocalyptic year! It will definitely see the diamond jubilee of Queen Elizabeth on February 6 and there will be a total solar eclipse on November 13. It is also a leap year (men beware)! The fastest computers with 10 and 20 petaflops (quadrillion floating point operations per second) will also be launched by Intel and IBM, respectively, within the year.  Many great happenings!

In our little corner of the world, however, the year will be what we make it to be.  So these past 5 days after Christmas, we formulated one resolution each day to set the stage for our next phase of travels. This is how this week’s post got ready for publication, just in time! They are all interconnected and have arisen out of the lessons we have learned from our RV experiences in the past 2 ½ years. Here goes:

Dec. 27, Slow Down

Bill and I have to slow down and look at settling down a couple of years down the road. Let’s face it…we are both spring chicken no more. Bill had his big wake-up call early December (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2011/12/wow-getting-scared.html) while I have been having issues since last year. We (most especially I) have to learn to remain true to the real definition of the cruising lifestyle (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2010/03/cruising-as-lifestyle.html)    

Dec. 28, Get Healthy

We have finally established our health care team here in Florida. Hopefully, we can do the same next year in Tucson, Arizona and San Diego, California. This should help us choose the area where we could slow down and even, eventually, settle down. Besides we really have to take better care of ourselves in a more preventive and consistent kind of way.  Obviously, we need more help than just our usual healthy practices of eating well and exercising.

Dec, 29, Focus on Giving Back

We have toyed with various ideas for payback. One that we have sort of begun is a very informal study of best practices in parishes all over the United States (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2011/01/opening-door-on-bright-new-year.html).  2 other ideas have come up this year: Habitat for humanity and a soup kitchen. Certainly, we should focus more on this. It will be better for our heart and soul Remember the Latin saying, Mens sana in corpore sano?  Helping others will certainly enable us to help ourselves!

Dec. 30, Write a Book

There are already 112 posts in this blog in over 100 or so pages that can be transformed into a book. Only 2 questions remain unanswered: 1) What is the best way of weaving them together and 2) Do I self-publish or look for a publisher? Now that we are in Florida for the winter months, I may be able to wrestle with these questions, decide, and begin!  Hopefully, this activity (which interests me a lot) will not encroach on a truly cruising lifestyle!

Dec. 31, Be with Family More

On December 31, at 12 noon the Aberions arrived from Seattle, Washington and at 8 PM, the Vidallos from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. This is our third year of reunions.  2009 was during Thanksgiving in Mexico (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2010/02/touring-mexico-with-family.html). 2010 was during late fall in Spokane, Washington (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2010/11/staying-awhile-in-evergreen-state.html). Now we are starting 2012 with a bang! We had only one reunion with Bill’s children so far…in Yellowstone National Park last fall (please see 

http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2011/06/converging-yellowstone-moving-to-mt.html). Hopefully, we can grow the closeness despite the distance. 

    

That’s it! Five important resolutions to make our cruising lifestyle even better! Each will be written about in more detail in the next posts. Thanks for listening to (reading, technically) my many wonderings on wanderings! Pardon me, but it’s that time of the year! Or better yet, I hope you don’t mind that my emotional side is showing!

Finding Christmas on Treasure Island, Florida OLA

the colors of the Holidays...on the beach! 

This Christmas felt different from the others Bill and I have spent together. 2007 was white and freezing at -31 degrees C (-24 F) in Calgary, Alberta with Claudine and family!  In 2008 we were with Trisha and family, wet and cool in Seattle, Washington. Then it turned sunny and warm at the Suwannee River Music Park in Florida on our first Christmas in the RV. Back in Seattle in 2010, it was unfortunately white and cold! This year, it was particularly hard to find the spirit, especially after Bill’s close call (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2011/12/wow-getting-scared.html .

Bill and his glass of wine at the condo

So we went to find it in another new place but, this time, away from our everyday home, a vacation from the RV! We booked a unit at the Sand Pebble Resort of Vacation Internationale (Bill’s time share) in Treasure Island, Florida, one of thirteen beaches around the Tampa Bay area, the region of west central Florida adjacent to Tampa Bay, almost 2 hours from Orlando. It is also known as the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area with an estimated population of 4 M.

the quiet beach at the back

                                                                                                                                                                                                     We had almost forgotten how comfortable condo living is! Our 1-BR unit was spacious enough for 2 couples and had a view of the Gulf of Mexico from the balcony. At the ground floor of the resort is a hot tub, heated pool, pool table, and bar. Every afternoon there was an activity: bingo, ice cream socials, count the shells, etc. But it is the quiet beach at the back that was the best of all!

Like the other years, we got busy looking for stocking stuffers for our Christmas Eve opening of gifts. Bill and I happily lost each other at the Mustang Florida Flea Market for an hour to hunt for the little treasures. Not satisfied with our haul, we went to the Tyrone Square Mall to complete our finds. Each stash was carefully guarded and closed tight so no intruder can take a peek until the proper time! I spent a total of $25; I hoped that Bill did not spend too much more!

another kind of White Christmas...at the beach!

 The following day we went for a long drive…all along the Gulf Blvd that connects all the 10 barrier islands and 13 beaches, collectively known as the Tampa Bay Beaches.  It was never-ending miles of beach homes, condo-resorts, and palm trees. The best of them all is to the north in Clearwater, Florida, just before reaching the Honeymoon Island State Park…Clearwater Beach, famous for white powdery sand (Boracay in the Philippines is pink powdery). We discovered a beach haven much bigger than the Keys, adjacent to a good metropolitan area, and a place where we could conceivably settle (we whispered to each other).

cigars being hand-rolled at Ybor City

Then the next day we discovered legendary Ybor City in Greater Tampa, Florida which became the ‘Cigar Capital of the World’ after Don Vincente Martinez-Ybor moved his cigar factory from Key West to Tampa in the early 1900s.  Other cigar-makers followed, building their own factories. Immigrants from Spain, Cuba and Sicily came to work in them, Romanian merchants opened stores while German lithographers brought the latest in technology to print the cigar labels. Today it is a lively entertainment and arts district, complete with demonstrations of hand-rolling cigars.

at the condo's living room ready for Noche Buena

On Christmas Eve, Bill and I attended a joyous mass at St. John Vianney in St. Pete's Beach, Florida with a little pageant of kids as angels, shepherds, and the Three Kings around the Nativity Scene at the altar.  Then we came home to our Noche Buena of maple/honey glazed ham, Dubliner cheese, fancy crackers, and Christmas stollen. At almost the stroke of 12, Bill got his new polar bear jammies, pristine white hankies, and a heart warmer for cold hands!  He definitely spent more! I got new diamond earrings (to replace the ones I had lost), new fit-over dark glasses (to replace the one I lost) plus a little purse! Talks with my kids on the phone capped our Christmas Eve.

Sunshine Skyway Bridge

After a light left-over breakfast, off we went to complete our drive to the south end of Gulf Blvd for a couple more beaches and the feat of engineering, the Sunshine Skyway Bridge!  Back at the condo, a light lunch preceded our one last time at the hot tub and Skype sessions with Bill's kids.  And to cap a relaxing vacation, we went to see Mission Impossible on the big screen and dined at Joey's Famous Pizza Kitchen in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida to spare me from more cooking!

Christmas tree among the palm trees

Christmas this year was surely different, reliving life in a condo.  We found it in bits and pieces everywhere. But we found it most in us and in Him.  We are a couple who found each other late in life but early in dreams. The Christmas spirit, after all, is the special kinship He has made possible and why we are here, together.

WOW: Preparing for the Holidays in Florida

our Christmas Star, made of Philippine capiz shells, hanging from our RV dashboard

a fifth wheel spreads Christmas joy at the Resort...

In the Philippines preparations for the Christmas season starts as soon as the months turn into …ber (September through December). But America waits for the completion of another important holiday, Thanksgiving. So now that we are settled in Florida where we will be for another 4 months, I can no longer contain my excitement. My children, sons-in-law, and grandkids are coming on New Year’s Eve! So I have been maximizing what’s left of my brain power (if ever there was any to start with!) and Bill’s wallet to come up with décor fit for an RV, special holiday meals, and longed-for gifts!!! It was Thanksgiving 2009 when we last had a holiday reunion in Mazatlan, Mexico!

a motor home lights up the campground!

another brightly lit motor home at the resort

Décor fit for an RV

There is not a lot of space so my tree is a little one and it now houses our Christmas ornaments from our initial travels, before we shifted to refrigerator magnets. Those Christmas stockings for the surprise stuffers from Mr. and Mrs. Santa are also up!  Little poinsettia plants are adding lots of reds and greens. Then a bit of the Philippines hangs as a bright Christmas star (it is made from Philippine capiz shells). A holly wreath filled with Christmas lights completes our dashboard counter top.

Unlike many of the RVs in this Orlando Thousand Trails Resort, this year all of our decor is inside because we spend Christmas at a Vacation Internationale condo in Tampa from Dec. 20-26. There will be no need to take down big décor outside the RV when we move it for storage and reinstall them for the family when they come for New Year..

another fifth wheel gives it all out for the campground...

Special Holiday Meals

From Seattle will come Trisha and Deejay and their children, Yeye and Kenji (Krishna is not able to join us because of work and school). Claudine and Arnold and their children Ashton, Andre, and Enzo will be flying in from Calgary, Alberta. They will all be staying at the Maingate Lakeside Resort Hotel some 6 miles from the campground. Sadly, April will not be able to fly from Manila this year because she is spending her first Christmas with a new beau.

That makes 11 mouths to feed and the RV kitchen is quite small (please see http://rvcruisinglifestyle.blogspot.com/2011/10/wow-cooking-and-eating-in-rv.html )!!! So for New Year’s Day brunch I will serve a combo of homemade American breakfast of biscuits and sausage gravy and an authentic Filipino breakfast of longganisa, garlic rice and fried eggs plus the left-overs from the New Year’s Eve Party of Christmas ham, queso de bola, and ambrosia. As per Filipino tradition, I should also have 9 different kinds of round fruits for lots of good luck in the coming year (I will cheat a little and just have 9 different kinds of oranges-this is after all, orange country)! Then a standing rib roast and lots of roasted vegetables will grace our table for New Year’s Day dinner!

Christmas Gifts

Since Christmas gifts are placed under the tree, our gifts should all be pretty small (great for the budget, too!)! Kidding aside, we have asked Trisha and Claudine what each child wants. So, as requested, Bill and I will treat all of the kids to the newest theme park in Orlando, Legoland, while their parents do some R&R on their own! Anyway they already have welcome gifts of beige boots, hot wheels set, dinosaur T shirt, and remote control cars that we have collected from our various trips.

Unfortunately, Bill’s children and grandkids will not be able to join us (Suzanne and family in Denver, Colorado, Jim and family in Boise, Idaho, and Cristine and husband in Anchorage, Alaska).  We have been searching on line for items on their wish lists for direct shipment. We are also sending the little items we’ve purchased over the past months as we remembered things they like while we were touring. We hope to watch them open their gifts via SKYPE so that we can share a bit of electric Christmas joy!

our complete Christmas dashboard from the inside...

we now come home to this at night!

But now that the plans are all set, we gleefully transition into the execution phase and spend some real dollars...then come home to a brightly lit M'A!!! Costco and Florida’s awesome flea markets and outlet malls…here we come!!!