Weekend Beach Fun

After the most recent golf tournament, we headed to St. Augustine Beach to visit with daughter Leaa and pick up Grand-Alivia for a sleep over in a local hotel (I won't mention the name, but we will never stay there again! It was advertised as a budget hotel, but the room was very "beachy", there was a long walk to get to the beach - through Hammock Park boardwalk, the breakfast was almost non-existent, the swimming pool was the smallest we have ever seen, etc...).
We knew better :(

We had lots of fun on the beach with the high tide coming in; so many waves to jump and get knocked over in but we did have to keep an eye on the rip currents!
We then went to the motel pool for a swim before heading out for dinner, a trip to the carrousel park and a stop for ice cream!
The next morning we had brunch at Cafe Eleven (11) - a GREAT place to eat, and then off to the park again!

After cleaning up, off to dinner at a local, small Italian Restaurant, Romano's (next to the Purple Olive).

Then to the Carousel Park, the girls love riding the merry-go-round. This was the first time I did not stand by Alyzabeth during the ride, she was quite willing to follow Alivia's lead and be a big girl!

Golf Tournament - Jacksonville Beach Golf Club

The first two photos are of Alyzabeth following the Jacksonville Beach US Kids Golf Tournament, the kickoff for the local 2012 Fall Tour.
We had a great day and will keep playing as long as Alyzabeth says it is fun! She likes being outside, going on "road trips" and riding in the golf cart too!

Caddy confers with daughter:

Which includes a few hugs along the way:

First time AA ended up in the sand bunker. Will need to ask Coach to show her how to get out of it!

Caddy looking pretty spiffy in his new Caddy bib :)

There were two girls in the age group 7 and under. Kaitlan S. is almost the maximum age and Alyzabeth is the youngest, so you can see the difference. AA finished second (and last) but enjoyed the medal. A very nice organization. If you live in the area, please sign up, the more the merrier!
Thanks to new U.S. Kids Golf regional Director, Matthew Forte for scheduling the Jacksonville Local Tour.

AA's New Chipping Swing!

Following our first tournament outing, Alyzabeth's coach ask her what was the best part of her game and the part that gave her the most trouble. Alyzabeth quickly answered that her driving was the best. After consulting with her caddy she determined that her chipping needed help. One time it would be fine and then the next couple of times, not so good.

So Coach Doug had her set up to practice some chips to the green but asked Alyzabeth to remove her glove. He then had her hold the glove under her right arm while she made the shot, reminding her to not let the glove drop!
It was like watching a magic act. The shots started to land softly and consistently on the green. Our final instruction was to practice the swing at home while holding a towel under both arms.

Practice, practice, practice... :)

Adoption Agency - Gift to the Founders

Our Agency employees asked all families to make a 12 by 12 inch scrapbook page to give to the founding couple of CCAI. I am not used to scrap-booking and not naturally very creative. I printed a few pictures, used some glue and voila! I can't imagine the size of the scrapbook as they have assisted 10,000 families through the China adoption process. We were group #1409. So long ago, such a process. We are so blessed, I know the CCAI agency is too.

Weekend Visits

We visited with our grown kids on Saturday the 18th. Dear Hubby made Taco Soup (I need to post the recipe, it is a keeper, everyone loved) for dinner. AA played with Alivia, Dylan and Kilee. I took a few pictures when we first arrived and then didn't get the camera out again, so missed Kilee when she arrived with her Dad (our son). Here's the girls being silly, but at least they let little Dylan play with them some of the time!

The next day, Sunday, we had brunch at Club Continental with family, Cathy and Werner. We hadn't seen them in awhile so caught up on news. As we were leaving after watching the turtles and fish, the rain started and didn't let up until evening. A very wet day!
Here's Daddy and daughter, walking at a fast pace as the rain started.

Cathy and Werner:

 AA was wearing a homemade dress for the first time. I had bought many dresses during the "wait" that were for adoption fundraisers. They are so cute, I wish I had kept track of the makers (one who's work I love is (Robin), but I don't think she made this one).

They brought AA a gift, so sweet. A wonderful book and book marker. As educators, they appreciate books and AA loves to read them! Thank you!

Cheap Finds - Goodwill

We occasionally stop by the local Goodwill store for bargains. Yes, we are frugal when it comes to some purchases which allows us to spend more on other things that are much more fun!
There are so many things that we think we need, but if you look at Goodwill you may find it at a great price. And you think about the real value of each item and is it really necessary to buy it new.
Alyzabeth loves looking at the used Disney VHS tape, at 49 cents or 99 cents, she can buy several!
Here are three bargains that hubby bought recently. A camera tripod, electric grill and a food processor.

We still own the "Little Oscar" food processor that was given to us as a wedding gift by my Mom & Dad. It is really handy and works great after almost 27 years! Since Dear Hubby (DH) has cooked extensively over the past five or more years, he has wanted a little larger food processor.
We also had an electric grill given to us by my In-Laws. Worked great but developed a crack after much use. When we moved, we decided it needed to go, afraid it would break on us. We missed it so, the Goodwill find was great and it looked brand new! So we had grilled burgers - Yummy!

Whenever we want to take a group photo using the remote to our Nikon 40DX, we have to improvise to find a place to set the camera on/down. Now, with a tripod, a perfect shot at the right height can be made. So what did he pay for each item? $4.99 each. A bargain. Happy shopping!

First Day of Kindergarten! Orange Park Elementary