Rain is the Word! The Weekly Pratter! (thru 09/02/16 - Friday)

08/29/2016: Monday was rainy, so much so that Alyzabeth only cleaned/groomed her horse, the arena was full of mud and puddles. We have begun going back to the River House for our happy hour and to relax and chat. Ford and I seem to chat more there than at home! And we see members dropping by to check in on Ford. I had dinner ready with a chicken/broccoli/rice casserole, a new "light" recipe (no canned soup, made homemade creamy sauce with flour, chicken broth; I poached chicken instead of the already cooked rotisserie chicken). http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/chicken-broccoli-and-cheese-casserole.html. It came out pretty good as it still had cheese in it and made 3 quarts so we ate the leftovers for Tuesday dinner.
Tuesday was to be the first Eagle Harbor PGA Junior team practice, but with rain in the afternoon so was cancelled. AA and I did go and play a few holes but she got very frustrated with the way she was playing (new longer clubs and how she lines up), so we went home and had a family discussion about how she should behave going forward when this happens.
Wednesday, Ford had his six week cardiac team check-up: Doctor said to be patient, was able to stop two prescriptions, but still needed to elevate left leg and use breathing tube as his left lung was still "diminished". Over all a good report. We have been making trips to the Villas condo (see bad news below) swimming in the pool and some bike riding this week with AA.  AA and I went golfing and she did great! I think we went to the River House again afterwards!! {double smiles}. For dinner I made pesto using our home grown basil leaves - yummy! We love making bruschetta for an easy meatless dinner.

09/01/2016: Thursday was when Tropical Storm Hermine was to arrive, but turned north just enough to delay landfall and Jacksonville missed being a direct hit. Ford and I still got in his mile walk in the morning.

It was actually dry when school let out so we headed to the golf course. It did start raining so a quick stop at Kohl's to check for back to school clothes (AA's wardrobe is all size 8's and she is out growing them all!) then back to the golf course. We were incredulous when we finished all nine holes and had a putting tournament (I didn't do too bad, but AA won!). 
The calm before the storm! Squeezing in a round at EH. #AlyzabethMorganGolf

Thursday, Ford made a new recipe for dinner, a delicious baked chicken burrito.

Yummy with salsa, guacamole and sour cream!

TS Hermine became a Hurricane 1 and brought up bands of rain and wind gusts by Friday morning. School was cancelled for Friday! All in all, two golf team practices were cancelled, the PGA Academy Thursday Clinic was cancelled, a special clinic with EH Coach Bryan to help AA with her longer clubs and AA's second Chinese lesson with Miss Nancy cancelled.
The yard was littered with oak tree branches and a few large cedar limbs. We did see some power lines down and a pulled up power pole on our way to lunch at Sweet Sensations. A few twisters must have landed around Green Cove Springs.
Mid-morning, while raining and blustery winds:

After lunch, raking some of the oak branches and Spanish moss:

Alyzabeth was carrying the camera for me, decided to take a few photos of me; not too bad (that's what I look like)! 

After we raked, we went to the pool to see about helping drag all the furniture out of the pool - no one was there, so I let AA jump in with her clothes on and push all the furniture to me, where I leaned over and set to the side to dry out. AA had fun!
This was the before photo:

This week has been good in that AA is beginning to share her feelings about how scared she was about when her Daddy/Ford was in the hospital. She is showing some of her emotions about being scared and what if she lost both of us. Such harsh worries for a little girl. We hope to be comforting and loving; the fear never goes away after the experience she went through, so close to her heart and not very good at explaining how she felt at that time. Our little talks help see into her thoughts; she doesn't say much so we do the best we know how. Hugs and patience and comfort.

To end on a bad note: Bad news from last Friday, was that the condo we own, the washing machine broke and the renter didn't notice it until the renters downstairs had water pouring into their rooms. With ServPro at three units for 3 - 5 days, we are in for a huge bill. Carpet restoration, cleaning, replacing baseboards, ceiling damages, etc. And our insurance says our policy doesn't cover this type of water damage. Humph!! Double sadness and financial badness! 
On to better days with family coming for a visit!! Sister Terri, BIL George will be here on their 34th Wedding Anniversary (tomorrow)! And will visit with cousin Carolyn and on Labor Day will be at Leaa and Jesse's for a beach day! Happy Labor Day!