Sunday: 3rd Place NFJG Bent Creek AND Notah Begay Qualified!

Sunday:  “Showdown at Bent Creek” and the optional Notah Begay “JUNIOR GOLF NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFIER” which was added to the “Showdown at Bent Creek” event, for a 2 events in 1, 18-hole round event.

I stayed home and made a new recipe - chicken tortellini spinach soup. I washed the porch bench, washed dishes, cleaned/organized the freezer, caught up on writing this blog, walked Ginger, got rid of a few things in the garage, etc. Relaxing day for me.

Soup from website:

AA's tee time was 11:26 a.m. and she played with Sarah Harpster (2022) and Lauren Barned (2026).

Good news! She placed third and earned a spot at the June 28/29th Qualifier for Girls 14 - 18! She had a really nice front nine holes (1+ over), then within three holes (10, 11 & 12) went to 5+ over. With another 4+, her score was an 80 (71 Par). Top 3 scorers photo, Emma (2nd) and Tylar (1st):

Jack's Newsletter: Port Orange’s Tylar Ann Whiting couldn’t stop smiling as she led the Elite Tour Girls with a fine score of 77 to take the Gold Medal away from Jacksonville’s Emma Wells (78). Alyzabeth Morgan would bring it home at 80 to capture the Bronze Medal. Whiting, Morgan, Sofia Rivera (81), Alyssa Hardy (82) and Alanis Santiago (88p) would all earn qualifying spots for the next level in the Junior Golf National Championship. Brasselton, Ga Elle Marie Reisner (88) only playing in the qualifier would also earn a qualifying exemption.

Sunday evening, we watched the first 1.5 hours of the Golden Globes (TV and Movies, Foreign Film Academy). I printed a ballot and we were horribly wrong on the majority of categories. Of course, we had only seen a few of the shows: Hamilton, Mandalorian, Emma, Soul, Over the Moon; Ford watched Ozark and Queen's Gambit and we all watched an episode of Schitts Creek and thought it was useless. If we didn't know the show, we selected by the actors we knew.

We all tied at getting 7 or 25 right! Pretty bad!

Saturday NFJG - White Oak Plantation - Fall Season Winners

Saturday, AA played with Jenna Roach (Junior at Fleming Island HS) in the White Oak Plantation “FALL TOURNAMENT SERIES WINNERS OUTING”.

Jack set up a very nice reward, gift for the Fall Season winners, one from each age group, at the White Oak Plantation/Animal Reserve. AA originally asked Penny to play with her but a sore wrist prevented that. She asked Jenna Roach, her future golf team captain, and she accepted. Both young ladies said it was a fun day, challenging course (many water hazards and hills) and a nice lunch. This is private with the owners not allowing anyone on site when they are there (LA Dodgers). The gazebo had all the drinks and snacks they could want, all free for the Fall winners (we paid for Jenna's round; each Fall winner could invite one guest).
AA played well, combination of red/white tees, didn't lose any balls, scored 83. Jenna hit the water a few times, but overall, a great day with only eight in the NFJG group. Dylan Frein, also from Fleming Island played by AA was not in their group. The photos posted in wrong order, the end of the day are first. AA took two pictures of the white rhinoceros on the reserve (they were told over 17,000 acres), while leaving at the end of the day. 

Pictures of the water features and a waterfall (may be blurry, saved from the video Ford sent me).

Many rocks and this bridge:

The sandwich was huge, only ate half with chips and cookies!

Jack joined them for the back nine holes.

I made this black and white, Jenna and AA in the golf cart, smiling!

The gazebo had everything they could want (and the restrooms):

First photo of the day, ready to play! Reid Joiner and Dylan (EH) played plus a couple of the NFJG sponsors.

It was fun, they could relax and enjoy figuring out a new golf course, with no pressure. Jack posted this on Instagram - nice selfie!

Last Week of February (thru the 26th)

After the rainiest first three weeks of February, we are enjoying beautiful dry weather for a week. Yesterday, Monday, we had rain after 4:00 p.m. but has been dry since. The Voice has started a new season, we especially like the blind auditions.
Tuesday, I worked from home, Ford grocery shopped, I walked the dog. AA had a make-up golf lesson at 5:30 p.m. today. So Ford and I enjoyed some wine on our screen porch. Lovely weather this week!

Wednesday, I worked in the NGS office, trying to learn Sales Force.

AA had her quarterly dentist appointment for her braces and a cleaning. Ford and AA baked a homemade pizza.

Thursday: This is E-E's Clivia plant with orange funnel shaped flowers (evergreen perennial, member of the Amaryllis family). So many blooms (and it is so pot bound, I am afraid to repot it, disturb it, possibly kill it!).

Melissa sent this old photo of my Dad flying the sea plane. I should have edited it, rotated it. My favorite picture of flying with him and one I took, with the windshield reflection. Memories!

Friday: Ford made a batch of his meatballs, we love them!

Saturday - Sunday - Monday

Saturday, 02/20/21 - the month is flying by, isn't that life! A cool morning, I made red beans (with rice) for dinner. Ford and AA watched the movie Space Between Us.
In the near future, Nathaniel Shepard, CEO of Genesis, launches the first ever mission to colonize Mars. During the journey, the lead astronaut, Sarah Elliot, discovers that she is pregnant. Shortly after landing, she dies from eclampsia while giving birth to the first human born on Mars. The father of the child is unknown. In a dilemma, Nathaniel eventually decides to keep the child on Mars as a secret, to avoid a PR disaster for his company.
Sixteen years later, Sarah's son, Gardner Elliot, has grown up into an inquisitive, highly intelligent boy who has only ever met 14 people in his very unconventional upbringing. 

During dinner, we watched Always Be My Maybe. Sasha Tran and Marcus Kim are childhood friends who grow up next door to each other in San Francisco. As Sasha's Vietnamese-immigrant/refugee parents regularly leave her home alone while they tend to their store, Marcus's parents often have her over for dinner, and Marcus's Korean-American mother Judy teaches her to cook. Eventually Sasha and Marcus form a close friendship that carries on into their teenage years, but this is broken after his mother dies in an accident.

In 2016, Wong mentioned in a New Yorker interview that she and Park had been working for years to develop "our version of When Harry Met Sally...". Vulture's Jackson McHenry wrote a column in enthusiastic support of the project with the headline, "Dear Hollywood, Please Make Ali Wong and Randall Park's Dream Rom-Com." In May 2018, Keanu Reeves, Daniel Dae Kim, Michelle Buteau, Vivian Bang, Karan Soni, Charlyne Yi, James Saito, Lyrics Born, and Susan Park joined the cast of the film, titled Always Be My Maybe.

No Zoom Happy Hour this day, Hugh and Maureen had a scheduling conflict.

Sunday, I made biscuits, always Ford's favorite. 

Grating the frozen butter (no Crisco shortening) is my least favorite task!

We dropped off some books for Owen Bailey and restocked our wine supply at ABC Liquor. 

AA and I practiced golf, me for 40 minutes, AA putted and chipped for two hours, while Ford and I enjoyed drinks on the Talons patio.

Then we enjoyed time on our screen porch. From Facebook: Sunday evening, 60 degrees, enjoying a new Spanish wine on our screened porch, Ford is smoking chickens and pork belly. Ginger resting under the table. Many aloe plants abound (do you need one, I have plenty to gift). AA typing/adding to her novel. Life is better than we deserve.❤️ Blessed. 

Comments:

Mary Mcminn - Gotta love North Florida weather!

Frankie Quinones - I believe you deserve the life you have. Integrity, hard work and all around good people. ❤️

Shannon Bailey - I’ll be the first to purchase AA’s novel ❤️ Signed of course ❤️

Dawn Minney - I expect Ford uses a pretty big ashtray when smoking a chicken 😂😂😂. I’m sorry I had too.

Rose Feeney Panaccione - Sounds wonderful!

Sharon Register - Sounds wonderful

Sarah Clarke Kleinhans - Fantastic!

Dianna Todd - Sounds like a blessed and beautiful way to spend your Sunday ❤️

What is with all the aloe plants, lol what are they good for? Do you keep them inside or outside?

Walter Eastwood - Cheers, skal... (don’t know hot to put the dots over the a)

Debbie Emmons - One lucky lady

Patty Johnson - ❤❤❤AA gets her ambition and values from the best!

Dale Wood - I love that she's writing a novel!

Edilyn Torralba Williams - Cheers!🍷 I can’t wait to read AA’s creation!!❤️

In the evening, I watched the finale of Miss Scarlet and the Duke and the finale of All Creatures Great and Small (while Ford and AA watched American Idol).

It seems like just yesterday that we were heading to the Yorkshire Dales for the first time. And while Episode 7 brought us plenty of Christmas cheer—mistletoe, puppies, an elf costume, and, most importantly, a canceled wedding for Helen and renewed hope for James—it's hard imagine waiting a whole year for Season 2! 

Monday, brought beautiful weather during the day. I worked from home and walked Ginger, plus AA and I picked up some trash around our backyard pond.

E-E's plant is blooming! It is "pot bound" so will need to transplant it someday.

Rain showers came just as AA was getting ready for her golf lesson, so postponed. We zipped to the library to check out a few movies (nothing good, tried watching a BBC Shakespeare TV show, Richard the VI with Hugh Bonneville, 2016, just couldn't get into it!). AA and I putted for about 30 minutes during a break in the sprinkles. We enjoyed leftover red beans and rice for dinner, quiet evening!

More Rain, More Winter!

Tuesday, the 16th, as I type this, we are having a beautiful day, cool in the low 60's, working on the screen porch. We had a HUGE amount of rain in the past two weeks, I still cannot walk Ginger on any grass, still flooded or soppy wet. The sun is out and Donna just left, so the house is clean, so thankful for her!
Yesterday, Monday was a decent day but by 5:45 p.m. AA was soaked on the golf course, rained hard from 5:30 p.m. through midnight. She did get in a few holes with Coach and Emmitt.
Also, yesterday, AA and I made dumplings, so very delicious with fresh ginger, garlic, green onions and the new addition of cilantro. Yum!! I do need a steamer basket, as after I brown them, I just add some water and cover, would be better with a real steamer.

Received a nice thank you from Nicole about the girls Valentine's Day and CNY sweets!

Tuesday, AA realized she did not have her range finder. She had to take apart her bag the night before as she was soaked coming off the golf course. We went out Tuesday and searched the course, taking the same path she did with Coach. So excited when on Wednesday afternoon, someone found it and turned it in to the Pro shop. Tim Martin found it while jogging along the path and roadway. We were so happy, it was fine as it was in its case. Thursday morning, Ford got it and all is well!

From Facebook:

We wish to thank the honest golfer who found and returned my daughter’s range finder. She lost it during the Monday evening rainstorm while hurriedly leaving the golf course. We noticed it missing on Tuesday and searched the course. Thank goodness it was in the case, so it survived. A good person found it walking yesterday and returned it to the #EagleHarborGC pro shop. Thank you so much!! We appreciate living in this wonderful golf community and much praise to the Eagle Harbor Pro Shop employees who looked out for it too. #EagleHarbor.

Janice Gray Martin

LOL, not so small world - Tim found it when he was out running and turned it in! So glad it was yours! 

Sun!

Goofy Daddy and Daughter:

Wednesday, I worked at the NGS office. Dinner was bruschetta (which we have about once a week - "meatless" meal).

We received a text from the Bailey's thanking AA for the valentine's postcard. We mailed it on the 6th in Orange Park and it arrived in Fleming Island on the 17th! Horrible USPS delivery time.

Thursday was a beautiful day, reached 80 degrees. I worked on the screen porch table, AA golfed (lesson, played several holes with Jenna Roach) and we enjoyed happy hour with neighbor Joe Powers (he lost his wife of 46 years last year, Phyllis). He had two bottles for us, a very nice (pricey) Chateauneuf de Pape (French) and a red blend, Amore, Italian with a 92 score! Both very good, of course the Chateauneuf was much richer, deeper flavor and dry. He told us about their time on Amelia Island, then how they came about buying their home on Players Club Drive (hurricanes made them want to live a little further inland). They are from NY,  Joe's daughter went to SEMO on a field hockey scholarship, they made trips to NH and ME (Cape Elizabeth).

Friday, I went to the NGS office again. Then stopped at Carolyn's work to drop off empty egg cartons. Ford made air fryer salmon and wilted spinach salad. All delicious! AA and I finished her Pine Tree puzzle (500 pieces). The colors all blend together so much, that we could hardly tell the light blues from the light greens! We began another puzzle, a 1000 piece of Yellowstone National Park.

Pine Tree Puzzle from Nana of the North:

And today, we received more RAIN, all day! The month of February is up to about 6 inches of rain (typical for February is closer to 3 inches!). Hoping to dry out next week!