The Merry Marsden Travels

Thursday Feb 28/13   Time is getting shorter in the Texas Sunshine We have been busy enjoying the Texas Sunshine. Our street party was on Feb 16 and we had a potluck lunch on the street and played beanbag and ladder golf games after. Unfortunately Canada lost the CAN-AM golf tournament last week but we keep playing golf anyway. We have been doing some new things too. Last Saturday, I went with Maureen, Bonnie and John to "Smokin on the Rio" in Mercedes and were judges for a smoked ribs competition - tasting 10 different rib entries. Maureen, Bonnie, Brenda, Judy and I spent the afternoon before at the same place watching 3 top valley singers for an afternoon happy hours party for Winter Texans. Last Monday Brenda, Maureen and I went to the local Aloe Vera Farm - where I had been 2 times before but I like going to see the 90 year old couple who do the tours of the place. This time the plants were all flowering too. Later Bonnie and John hosted Maureen's birthday din...

Thursday, February 14/13     Happy Valentine's Day Continuing AT&T internet problems have caused delays in blogging and keeping in touch with family and friends but we persevere. Good trip to Casa Grande Arizona from Jan 29 to Feb 5 for Gourdfest. Our friend Tom Brudnicki was a wonderful host to myself, Barbara, Sally and Russell for the week. Barbara and Sally worked hard increasing their gourd art skills and I went on adventures and shopping trips with Tom and Russell. On our last full day we toured the Phoenix Botanical Gardens and did some shopping in the big city. Don survived well back in Texas with friends in the park feeding him dinners so he didn't go hungry. Coming back to Texas, life continues to be busy. 16 members of our TG Bike Club participated in the 20 mile bike tour for Arbor Day in McAllen. We completed the ride in 2 hours - starting early at 7 AM. There are birthdays to celebrate and potluck dinners for different reasons - the Cana...

Tuesday, Jan 22, 2013 Time flies when your having fun. The weather has had some cool spells here in January - Florida seemed to have missed the cool and wet and today Florida is cool and we are just fine at 75 or so. There are some special projects happening here at the park. I am working with friends building some new gardens - funding them through pancake breakfasts. Also getting 16 members of our bike club to do an Arbor Day 20 mile ride on Feb 9 in McAllen - for which each member will get a t-shirt and a tree - which fits into our garden project. Last year there were just 2 of us that went on this ride. I have also went to more high school plays - "Chicago" done by Edinburg High School and "The Wizard of Oz" done by Edinburg North High School. High schools in Southern Texas have large theatres attached to their schools to promote the arts - and it seems to be paying off since their productions are very well done. We are going to another one this Sunday call...

Monday, December 24, 2012 Christmas Eve  Awaiting Baby Jesus at Basilica San Juan Don and I drove  9 hours from Orlando to Buloxi Mississippi and stayed at a Casino Hotel there for the night. After a nice Senior buffett breakfast at a nearby Casino, we drove another 9 hours to SanAntonio, Texas and stayed at a Marriott Residence Inn - enjoyed the manager's special dinner and nice breakfast. Mary investigated the evening Riverwalk Lights - chilly night since a cold front (from Canada of Course) came through that afternoon. Tuesday, December 12/12 After a hearty breakfast at the hotel we drove the 4 hours to Trophy Gardens in Alamo and set up for our winter stay. Since we have been here, Mary has been teaching her exercise class for 3 monings, Don is back playing Masters Slow Pitch in McAllen in the competitive league, we bike and golf and swam etc. Mary went to see "Beauty and the Beast" play at the Sharyland High School in Mission, donated blood, cleaned the ...

Friday, December 7, 2012  Katie's Birthday - Magic Kingdom - Disney, Orlando Florida Got up early to make it to the front gates of Magic Kingdom before opening to see the Disney Characters arrive  on the Train. Katie got her Birthday Button at the Town Hall and all day the staff wished her "Happy Birthday" which she loved. On entering the Magic Kingdom, we hurried off to Fantasyland, which had just opened some new attractions and we visited the "Beauty and the Beast" area, then on to "It's a Small World", a 3 D show and more rides. We dined outside the Sky Cafe for lunch, Jacob fell asleep on the peoplemover ride in Tomorrowland and Hannah enjoyed a nap at the same time while Diana, Tom and Katie snuck off to Space Mountain and Oma minded the sleeping children. A picture with Santa was tried but Jacob doesn't seem to like Santa yet. But he did like some other Disney characters. We lasted all day until 7PM with our last stop at the Child Care ...

Monday, December 3, 2012 Crab Trap Xmas Tree in Duck Now located at Summer Bay Resort in Orlando Florida Don and I survived our Dr Oz 3 day detox/cleanse and enjoyed the rest of last week in Duck NC. Diana visited with Jacob and Hannah on Friday, Nov 30 - her birthday. We visited Duck Donuts, had lunch at The Blue Point and went swimming with the kiddies in the big resort pool. Diana and Jacob @ Busch Gardens Saturday morning we packed up and drove back to Chesapeake. Katie arrived at Tom and Diana's last night. Saturday afternoon, all of us but Don went to see the beautiful Christmas light displays at Busch Gardens. We stayed till after dark and then returned home to get packed for our Orlando trip on Sunday. Sunday was a 12 hour drive to warmer weather  - destination of Summer Bay Resort in Orlando Florida. We rented a 2 bedroom unit that is on the 4th floor of one of their buildings. It is a lovely place with lots of pools and things to do. Tom and Diana and kid...

Saturday, November 24, 2012 Photographer session at 8 AM on the home turf and it all worked out better. Christmas card worthy. Ate more turkey, pumpkin and the TV played more Football games but the kids are fun to be with. Hannah hums and smiles and is rolling all over. Jacob keeps busy and can work an iphone better than I will ever - and he is 18 months old. At night we watched the TV documentary on "The Dust Bowl". Sunday, November 25, 2012  (Our 34th wedding anniversary) Poor Jacob and Tom are not up to top form today - darn cold. Don and I moved on down the road to Duck, NC - only an hour away. We checked into Barrier Island Station - reserved through a certificate from Sky Auction a few months ago. We have a lovely 3 bedroom unit on the top (3rd) floor with a view of the ocean. This resort is showing it's age but is nice and quiet since it is off season and has a nice indoor pool and access to the beach. The picture above is taken from our balcony. Monday,...