1072 Sarasota With The Fords January 4-8, 2024

We left Atlanta on January 4th. The boys got on the bus to go back to school after a fun filled winter break. Tim and I got into the Jeep and drove to Snellville to get the RV. We organized our belongings and we were on our way. We traveled south on 75 from Georgia into Florida. We stopped for the night at the Gainesville Walmart. We used this opportunity to stock up on all of our essentials.

On Friday morning, I took a walk in the huge complex of nearby stores while Tim did his yoga and strength training. Tim had been strict with his exercise schedule in Atlanta but I had not. It was time to get back on track!

We arrived in Sarasota in early afternoon and got settled at Sarasota Lakes RV Resort. It was a gorgeous day and it was so nice to be in the warm sunshine. We met our good friends, Lisa and Walt, at their condo and went to Lakewood Ranch for Music on Main. We walked through the outdoor mall, chatting and drinking and shopping and snacking. Afterward, we went to Sculler’s for dinner.

The four of us had planned to ride bikes on Saturday but we had hours of heavy rain. It was nice to have a quiet day. The weather finally broke in the afternoon. Tim and I were in a great big hurry to get out and move and I got a great walk in. I saw four wood storks on a patio here in the park.

We set up DISH TV and Tim was able to watch the Ravens game while I worked on the blog and did laundry.

Sunday we had more early morning rain but we were did get to meet Walt and Lisa for a 15.25 mile bike ride. Lisa made us all a delicious lunch.

We are very close to the airport. Fortunately, the planes stop flying from 10pm to 6am!

Monday, we had more rain and I was forced to cut my walk short with my hair dripping and my glasses covered with splatter. We went to get a few groceries. It was clear enough that Tim and I drove to Nathan Benderson Park with the bikes. We got in a good 7 mile ride.

We saw a flock of more than 30 parakeets! I have never seen parakeets in the wild!

In the early evening, Lisa and Walt picked us up and took us to downtown Sarasota. Lisa and I walked around town. We started at the marina.

This HUGE yacht was docked in the harbor. It made all of the other boats look like tiny toys.

We met the guys at El Melvin, the home of Sarasota’s best margarita…indeed!!! We enjoyed a great meal. Tim’s fajitas were prepared with tasty seasonings and mango! My enchiladas in a green sauce were amazing!

Downtown Sarasota is really beautiful I would like to come back someday and explore some more!

We had the best time visiting. Tim and Walt have been friends for more than fifty years and I have known Lisa for more than 20. They are the best kind of friends. We have made a lot of memories with them and we look forward to many more years of shared adventures!

1071 Happy New Year December 8, 2023 – January 3, 2024

We moved the RV into the Prime Storage facility in Snellville on Friday, December 8th. We were settled in at David and Dre’s and waiting for the boys when their school day ended. We were all so happy and excited to be together again!

The last four weeks have passed in a blur. We tried to cram as many adventures and memories into our time as we possibly could. Oliver asked each day: “What is our special for today?”

Baking Christmas cookies…three different batches on three different days.

Building a gingerbread village.

Andrea and I and her cousin from Argentina, Encarna, celebrated Ines’ birthday with a group of her friends.

Viewing the holiday lights at Atlanta Botanical Gardens. This year’s display was voted the best commercial light display in the U.S.

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve with Andrea’s family; calling Santa and leaving oatmeal for the reindeer. We rang bells and ran through the yard with sparklers.

Christmas morning.

12 grapes under the table for good luck on New Years Eve!

Tim assembled bookcases with the boys for their rooms.

We worked on some independence skills. The boys did some cleaning.

Austin cooked his own quesadillas and eggs for PopPop too.

The boys helped with laundry.

Austin cleaning up after an explosion of the Cheeto bag!

We hiked at Stone Mountain, went to the playground, and then had a picnic.

We hiked in the “stream woods” a couple of times.

We went to the movies to see Migration.

Movies at home too!

McKoy Park.

The playground at FAV.

Lots of Legos.

Lots of silliness.

Family time.

Lunches out.

A Lord of the Rings puppet show written and directed by Austin. I acted the characters of Gollum and Gandalf and Dre did Sam and Frodo.

Reading.

Austin created this badge for me. It signifies that I am the very best person in the whole world…#1…such an amazing honor!

So many fun times and so many precious memories made. Oliver is trying to wrap his head around our crazy lifestyle. He called us explorers!

We celebrated in Atlanta this year. Kyle and Allison were in Maryland. Next Christmas will look very different. We are waiting for a new baby boy who will arrive in March…we cannot wait to meet him!

We hope that this finds you in good health. We wish you all a Happy New Year!!

1070 December 6, 2023 Georgia On My Mind

We got up early and got our exercise in before leaving Cedar Key at 9:15 this morning. We traveled north across rural Florida. Most people think of Florida as overdeveloped and commercialized. That is certainly true along much of the coast and of course, in Orlando. There is a lot of undeveloped land, farmland, and small town America in the middle of the state.

We were initially disappointed that we were not able to stay in the Outer Banks. What did happen, is that we saw places we had not seen before. This has been a very good trip and we are glad that we were forced to come up with a new plan.

Our journey today eventually led us to 75N and then we crossed into Georgia. The road was busy and inundated with tractor trailers. There were lots of RVs too but they were all heading south!

We decided to return to the Harvest Host site, Lane Southern Orchards. We liked shopping here last December and we wanted to get a few things for the holidays.

After shopping, we took a walk.

This will be our last blog post until January. We will be back on the road on the 4th or so. In the meantime, we send you warm wishes for happy holidays spent with your family and friends.

1069 December 5, 2023 Mr. Rogers

Tim and I both got up and got our exercise done. We had heard that the part for the RV should be here by 10:30.

At 11am, we had to make a decision. We either had to pay for a late departure or we had to commit to staying another night. We decided to stay.

We waited all day. I kept busy deep cleaning the RV. When we get to Atlanta, later this week, we will store the RV while we visit with David and his family. I wanted to put everything away clean so that when we get ready to ride in January things will be in good order. I scrubbed and polished and vacuumed. Tonight, as I write, I am feeling very satisfied.

Finally at 4pm, just as Mr. Rogers was on the phone with FedEx, the van pulled into the campground with our new motor.

It took less than 5 minutes to install.

I held my breath as Tim went in to try the slideouts…YAHOO!!! Then he tried the leveling jacks. The jacks went down so quietly and smoothly that we weren’t sure that they were working…but they were…YAHOO!!! What a huge relief.

Thank you Mr. Rogers!!! What a knowledgeable, friendly, professional!

Tomorrow, we will drive about halfway to Atlanta.

1068 December 4, 2023 Around Town

Another walk down the peaceful country lane. I saw the wings and tailfeathers of a roseate spoonbill. I tried to get close enough to take a picture but I spooked him.

Today I started to pack and organize for our trip to Atlanta.

We took a break this afternoon and went into town for fresh water. We parked the Jeep and walked the town.

We walked the fishing pier.

We watched this group of pelicans and gulls hunting as they followed a school of fish.

A grackle.

A black mangrove tree.

We sat in a bench on the beach for a long while.

Each time we go into Cedar Key, I notice something I haven’t seen before.

I had hoped to do a little gift shopping but the store I really wanted to visit, closed early today.

Mr. Rogers, our RV repairman is supposed to get our part tomorrow. We are hopeful that it will arrive, be the right thing, and fix the problem. If so, we can be on our way on Wednesday morning!

1067 December 3, 2023 Suwanee

It was foggy and misty and damp when I got outside.

This morning on my walk I passed a pond.  I saw movement and stopped to watch this animal in the water.  It swam and floated on its back and then flipped over and stayed suspended, its limbs hanging down.  He would put its snout out periodically to breathe.  I thought that it was an opossum but now looking at the pictures, I’m not sure.  It doesn’t look exactly like anything.  I don’t think it is a nutria…maybe a super huge rat?!?  It was more than a foot long.  It is kind of hard to tell what it is because it is wet.  It sure is ugly though!  Any ideas???

There were also turtles in the pond.

This afternoon, we drove to Chiefland for groceries.  While we were shopping, the heavens opened and it was pouring when we came out.

We had planned to drive around in the more western portion of the Lower Suwanee Wildlife Refuge.  We went in the rain. 

We drove to Weeks Landing right on the river.

We found a small community park with a picnic pavilion and we ate our lunch there.

We continued on to the town of Suwanee.  There are some ramshackle places intermingled with beautiful properties along a system of canals.

We drove the hour back to the RV and spent the rest of the gloomy day indoors.

1066 December 2, 2023 Downtown Cedar Key

We have been having some trouble with our slideouts. Fortunately, there is a certified RV mechanic that is a resident snowbird here in the campground. He agreed to come and take a look this morning. He spent a lot of time and was able to make a diagnosis of a failed motor on the hydraulic pump. He will order parts on Monday. This means we have some extra time in Cedar Key!

It also means that we got a late start on our morning exercise. As I was walking, Tim met me on the road on his bike.

We went downtown after lunch. We sat on the beach. I took a book but never opened it. I was completely content watching the water.

We walked through town. We stopped at the Community Garden where all kinds of herbs and lettuces appear to be thriving.

We walked through the sculpture garden. I really liked the mosaics.

We walked down along the water.

We walked across the bridge and to the restaurants. We had such outstanding food at Steamers the other night and so we decided to eat there again. We shared a heaping bowl of local clams prepared in a diablo sauce and accompanied by tasty yeast rolls just perfect for dipping. Tim was so happy with his seafood salad that we both ordered it tonight.

After dinner we walked in the city park. The whole town is adorned with twinkling Christmas lights.

1065 December 1, 2023 Way Down Upon The Suwanee River

There is a really nice paved country lane that runs beside the campground.  I walked until the blacktop turned to dirt, about 1.5 miles, and then turned around.  Tim met me with a mile to go and we walked back together.  It was 70 degrees and sunny! 

Today we went to explore the Nature Coast.  We started at Shell Mound.  This is a 28-foot-high pile of mostly oyster shells that was left by native coastal peoples, thousands of years ago.  I was excited to see it.  When we got there, the road and trail was closed!

We did go to the campground.  It sits right on the Gulf and might be a possibility after we leave Cedar Key.

We drove to the Lower Suwanee National Wildlife Refuge where we did one of our favorite things.  We took dirt and limestone roads through the wilderness.  We traversed cypress swamps, hardwood forest, and salt marshes.  We drove down almost every spur and took the 9-mile nature drive through the park.  We got out to walk several times.

We saw some wildlife today.  Not pictured are the deer, the second armadillo, and the group of feral pigs.

This bat box is home to 30,000 bats of several species. At sunset, they erupt from the box and spend the night hunting.

This area is 40,000 acres and we had the whole refuge to ourselves.

We stopped for lunch across from park headquarters.

I really wanted to see the Suwanee River but the trail was closed because the boardwalk was unsafe.  We walked as far as we could.

We drove into Fowler where we found a boat ramp on the river.

We had a really fun day and the weather was outstanding!

1064 November 30, 2023 Moving To Cedar Key

It was another chilly day start.  I could see my breath as I started my walk.  There was fog hanging over the river.

I saw a bald eagle perched in a treetop.

We packed up and Tim drove us back to Cedar Key.

We went out with the Jeep to explore.  We found a couple of dirt roads to try.  This area is part of Florida’s Nature Coast; so named because there is far less development and commercial properties and lots of wildlife refuge and preserved land. 

When we got to town, we took our bikes and wandered around.  The city of Cedar Key is considered “Old Florida.”  The architecture is similar to Key West.  This is a small fishing village.  As we biked around, we saw more evidence of storm damage. 

We sat on a bench far awhile watching the sky change.

We decided to have an early dinner at Steamers.  The seafood was delicious!  This place knows how to do seafood well.  We enjoyed the Gulf shrimp last night.  Today we had mussels, fried oysters, and Tim had grouper, shrimp, and scallops on his salad.   

We thought the sunset might be spectacular but as the evening progressed, more clouds moved in.  There was some color in the eastern part of the sky.

1063 November 29, 2023 Exploring Cedar Key

More laps in the campground this morning.  It was only 36 degrees and there was frost overnight but there was no wind and the sun came out and it was a great day for walking.

SOOO MANY squirrels.

We had been noticing large areas of dug up sand. We suspected that there were wild pigs in the campground. This morning we saw a pack of 4 or 5 small pigs running away from the road. These pigs certainly can cause a lot of destruction, looking for roots, reptiles, and rodents in the dirt.

Tim had been looking at maps to see where we might go next.  He was interested in going to Cedar Key.  We knew that on August 30^th of this year, Hurricane Idalia made landfall near Cedar Key.  We were not sure if there was a town to visit.  We decided to drive there today in the Jeep to check out the area.  We packed our lunch and drove the 57 miles to the town. 

We had our lunch at the small beach at the Cedar Key City Park.  The sunshine felt magnificent.  I could have sat on that bench all afternoon!

There are some buildings and businesses that were affected by the storm. These seaside communities seem to be very resilient.

We walked around town and browsed in some of the shops.

We saw these watermen coming in with buckets full of clams. This town is the main source of farm raised clams in the United States.

Pelicans always pose so nicely!

We have chosen to move to Cedar Key tomorrow.  We found a really nice campground outside of town and made our reservation.

I went back to town to get fresh water and to make use of the Dunnellon Library internet again.

We had stopped at a seafood market for some fresh Gulf shrimp. We grilled it and it was so much better than grocery store shrimp!