Monday started out well with Ford getting up and making Alyzabeth's lunch and her breakfast plus the usual taking Ginger out and feeding the dog and getting my coffee ready! I seem to have a hard time to get out of bed on time anymore. I did get up and chat with Alyzabeth; then logged into work until about 8:30. Ford showered and I took him to his Parkinson exercises at the Catholic Church. I hadn’t walked in a long time, so I got out and walked 11 minutes south on the Black Creek Trail and then 11 minutes back and then jumped in the truck and tuned into my 10 a.m. APTIM meeting. It is the last Monday I will be working since I am retiring at the end of the week. Once Ford got out of his exercises, we went to the bank to deposit a check, it was the first check I wrote on the Larry Bradley estate account that he owed us (as we paid out of our personal funds for his attorney fee to begin his estate processing back in November). We went to Sweet Sensations and both got the Outlaw chicken salad sandwiches and a bowl of their pasta salad to go for Alyzabeth's lunches this week. After lunch, I drove to Larry‘s to continue sorting through the last of the papers and folders from the file cabinet, and there’s still two boxes of odds and ends that I went through. During that time, I stopped to chat with my Mom on the phone and then the people who are buying the house (Blunk's) stopped in to show their daughter from Philadelphia the house (who is here visiting for a week). She wanted to show her the house.
After school, Alyzabeth drove her Dad over to the Sheldon Road home; they wanted to surprise me as knew I was working on cleaning up the house. I found a magazine on an exhibit from the Vatican and several technology magazines with articles about women ventures that I showed to Alyzabeth, I also found another five dollars from Charlotte‘s grandmother, Ree. I also found an autograph of James Dolittle in a volume of the Britannica encyclopedia.
I worked until 6 PM and then filled up the truck with gas and went home. Ford had started dinner of spaghetti and meatballs, and I fixed a small, iceberg wedge salad for each of us with blue cheese dressing. We watched Jeopardy where Alyzabeth answered many of the questions, and then the new episode of The Voice.
Tuesday morning we all got up and got Alyzabeth off to school. I worked and then got dressed and took Ginger to the groomers. After that I headed straight to Walmart to pick up two of Ford’s prescriptions and buy food on a grocery list including coleslaw and hotdog buns for the River House happy hour. I got home, then took Ford to his physical therapy on Kingsley and I walked a bit and chatted on the phone with my mom. My mom told me the story of waking up during the night hearing noises, and realizing it was mice in her bedroom, dresser drawers. She’s not having fun cleaning that up and taking care of the mice. They have been having very, very cold freezing weather up there for the past three or four days. Spring has not sprung up there even though the lake "ice out" melt was one of the earliest days on March 14.
Ford and I picked up Ginger from the groomers and then went to Urban Bean for lunch. We had not been there for lunch but while having coffee one morning, saw the extensive menu with sandwiches, salads and burgers on it. Ford had the deluxe cheeseburger with chips, and I had the Caprese sandwich with kale chips. The kale chips were literally freeze dried or fried kale leaves with stems. A bit too chewy crunchy for me.
After lunch, we took half our sandwiches home for Alyzabeth for her afterschool snack. Ford then made his new recipe of chocolate cookies he found with only three ingredients called Cool Whip cookies. I mixed them up with one egg, one box of chocolate cake mix, and one 8-ounce container of thawed Cool Whip. Using a cookie dough scoop, roll out each ball of dough in confectionary sugar. They were OK but cakey, a bit fragile and just didn’t seem to be that delicious. We can do better making brownies or other chocolate bakery items. It was a good effort though. I continued to get ready for our hotdog happy hour by chopping up onions, packing up serving utensils, paper plates, napkins, tongs, gloves, all the condiments and coleslaw plus putting the hotdog cooker in the truck.
Alyzabeth stayed home while we went to happy hour which was Hugh, Maureen and their daughter Erin plus Kathy. No one seemed interested in the hotdogs at the bar so we were about the only ones eating them. Conversations seem to be slow everyone a bit concerned and I think depressed about the Baltimore Maryland bridge that collapsed when a huge barge hit it at 1 AM this morning. Conversation was a bit stilted as Maureen wasn’t very lively and we just didn’t seem to have much to talk about. It was beautiful weather a little breeze, but nice in the high 70s. We sat out on the covered porch. Once home we chatted with Alyzabeth. I walked Ginger, Alyzabeth had already walked her and fed her. We watched the new episode, recorded of Maine Cabin Masters, and listened to the Chipola basketball team (they lost) and then The Voice at 9 PM.
Wednesday: The morning started wet, rain predicted for today and tomorrow morning. We can always use rain! I made blueberry muffins last Saturday, so have been eating/enjoying each morning. AA had fresh pineapple, plus a Mango bottled smoothie for breakfast.
I worked, until it was time to take Ford to the dermatologist - his forehead will be cut into. We arrived there at 9:50 a.m. and left at 4:25 p.m.! A very long day! We sat for 99% of the day. No lunch! AA came home from school and walked Ginger, got the leftover corned beef and cabbage warming in the crock pot and worked on homework - she's taking a make-up History test after school tomorrow, Thursday. Ford and I went to the River House to pick up the hot dog cooker (from yesterday) and sat at the bar, enjoyed a glass of wine (real glass when you sit inside!). We chatted with Michelle, watched about 40 Builders Club of Clay County come in for a meeting and grab a drink.
We drove home and had a nice dinner - we were starved so actually had some cheese and cracker's first. Ford was fading, his forehead will be throbbing by morning, so he went to bed and promptly fell asleep. I did about 30 minutes of work and then tried to catch up on the blog. I still have not finished my posts from my February Maine visit. I am behind!!
Thursday: I worked for a few hours, Ford rested due to his throbbing forehead. I went to see Steve, he colored my hair - I took Easter candy and Dunkin Donuts to him.
I laid down after lunch, keeps my hair from frizzing and dries better. Alyzabeth stayed after school to make up a History test, then we drove to Garage Zero (France Street, JAX) to put the deposit on the Yamaha motorcycle restoration project.
Went to Hawkers for our Asian food - always delicious, Ford ordered Pad Thai, I had the Hong Kong soup again, AA ate the Dan Dan Noodles.
At home we watched the UMO Ice Hockey team get beat by Cornell. Dashed hopes for a Frozen Four showing.
Friday: Last day of work! No school for AA - Good Friday.
Today was Good Friday and Alyzabeth was off school. She slept in a bit while Ford and I got up at our usual time. I enjoyed drinking coffee and working my last couple hours for APTIM. Today is my official day of retiring. Alyzabeth started on her homework And Ford was still resting from his dermatologist surgery. We had canceled any exercise scene for yesterday and this morning. I drove to Green Cove Springs hoping to get my taxes and Larry Bradley‘s estate taxes, signed and submitted but unfortunately I did not check and it is good Friday and their office was closed. I stopped at Sweet Sensations for a pound of the outlaw chicken salad for our Easter luncheon, I will make sliders with it. I came home to drop off the chicken salad as I forgot to take a cooler and freezer packs so that I could stop by at Publix and do our shopping. So I went back to Publix, of course it was very crowded with so many people off today and being the Friday before Easter. Once home we ate leftovers for lunch of corn beef and cabbage while Alyzabeth had some sushi (bought at Publix). I then drove to Larry’s home to work on paperwork and going through boxes I had not been through yet. There is still a few and I am amazed each time I find unopened letters with five dollars and six dollars in them which I did today. I also found an envelope with some coins from Australia.
I have a few more boxes to go through, but I’m almost to the point of needing to pack up glassware and all the belongings we will bringing to our home. Dinner of hotdogs, coleslaw, pasta, salad, and baked beans.
We watched a new Maggie Smith movie called The Miracle. It was pretty good even though rotten tomatoes only had a 66% approval rating. We didn’t quite finish that movie as Terri called so I went and chatted with her for quite a while. Ford and Alyzabeth Paused the movie and started watching a Rick Steves TV show on Rome. Alyzabeth said she recognized many of the places that she went just last week. Then we started another Rick Steves episode on Northern England, and actually saw the cathedral where the Harry Potter movies were filmed for Hogwarts. Looked exactly like it because they did film on location there. Been tired as I didn’t turn off the TV last night until midnight. I am ready for bed.
Saturday: Another slow morning, even though Ford woke me up at 3:30 AM. We did manage to sleep until after 5 AM. Ford made me coffee and I actually did an hour's worth of work even though I officially retired yesterday. We had breakfast of some air fryer waffles, leftover steak from our Helen GA trip, I made a fruit compote, added vanilla yogurt and maple syrup for our breakfast. We all took showers, then I went to Publix to pick up shrimp for our "mini" Sunday Easter brunch at Larry and Charlotte’s. We did not make any kind of lunch but I made deviled eggs for our RH happy hour and deviled eggs for our brunch tomorrow at Larry's. I also baked a 9 inch square blueberry buckle. Ford chatted with Justin, he's out fishing this weekend so will not see him.
By the time we all got cleaned up and settled, it was time for our drive to the River House. Michelle, the bartender brought plenty of food and even did a little Easter egg hunt for the patrons. I gathered several chocolate coins and eggs to bring home to Alyzabeth.
It was only Hugh and Maureen tonight as Kathy and her son Tom went out to dinner. We ordered an Aron's pizza for dinner.
The weather was beautiful, it was the first time that we sat out on the deck over the river. Once home, we ate the pizza which was delicious; watched another episode of Rick Steves travels to Europe. By 8 p.m. I was ready for bed!
Sunday: Easter! Good news as Jesus rose from the dead, our Christian foundation about eternal life, God has prepared a place for us by his side. Alyzabeth received lots of chocolate, a few hidden eggs, a stuffed bunny rabbit (bought in Maine at a gift shop closing), a panda named Bamboo and another Highland cow (actually found at Walmart).
See separate post on Easter Sunday.
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