Leon & Kathy and Islamorada Fish Company

Enjoyed another good meal with Leon & Kathy at the Islamorada Fish Company Restaurant inside Bass Pro, Pearland, TX today.  

Earlier in the day as we planned where and when, I laughingly told them that we would meet at this place only on the condition that Leon wouldn't wear his ring.

Guess I'll have to tell the story of the last time we met at this restaurant.  And, Leon lost his wedding ring.

How, you ask, does someone lose their wedding ring over salad and fried shrimp? 

Stuff happens, I guess, but sure enough, he had lost his ring - called us the next day to ask if we had noticed it on his pinkie finger where he had been wearing it due to hand swelling.  We sadly had to say "no, we hadn't."  I jokingly said that I assumed it was a ring he'd had for quite a while and turns out he had had the same ring their entire marriage!  Ouch, what a loss!

He said they were going to go back by the Fish Company to see if it had been turned in, but I didn't hear much hope in his voice.  Well, would you believe it? - the ring was still there!  Right in the booth at the back of the cushions.  It must have slipped off his hand as he reached for his wallet.  Talk about happy!  We were all extremely happy it had been found!

Anyway, Leon had his wedding ring on tonight - properly secure on his left hand - right where it had been for 49 years!  

Hope to get together again soon!  Glad these guys could spend time Out There with Lea & Larry.

     

Vying for Mommy's Attention...

Last night, I called to talk to my daughter, Sara, about some dates for a visit to San Antonio's Sea World. It's hard to catch up to her with her work hours, especially on Tuesday when she stays late to tutor kids. We were using the wonderful FaceTime feature on our phones so I could see her in her pre-bedtime state - makeup removed and lounging PJs.  And, she could see me in mine - no makeup to start with and a cup of hot tea in hand.

After hellos with my grandson Adler, and a round of seeing who could stick out their tongues the best, Adler went about his business of making the call impossible.  Jumping on Mommy, swatting at the phone and talking silly. I saw a lot of the ceiling during this first round match. I decided to ditch the Mommy conversation and turned my attention to him.. I reminded him that Mimi and Papa were picking him up tomorrow from his school. Before we could even talk about the park, he was gathering things to throw!

Mommy and I said he better go find Daddy! Which he did... for a few minutes we were able to talk. Then, I saw Sara's eyes dart and here comes that sweet face in the screen - only he's got his earphones on and his iBee (iPad) to watch educational videos - maybe a Tom and Jerry cartoon too. He gave me his mean look and climbed over Sara looking for a way to worm into her arms.

Sometimes, it takes getting hit over the head with a brick for me to realize something... Adler was vying for Mommy's attention and I was cutting in!  Bye Sara - we'll talk later!

The Muffins

"Honey, you just relax and enjoy your book." said my husband, as he handed me a steaming mug of my favorite green tea. "I'll make the breakfast muffins." he called over his shoulder, as he stepped into our little kitchen and began the search for his favorite mix; strawberry - just add milk.

He knelt to light the tiny oven and announced loudly his success. "I got it lit the first time!"  He found the correct bowl on his own, but waved the giant dipper spoon at me and jokingly asked if a full spoon of mix to each muffin cup would be good.  I gave him a pained smile and told him that I always just pour the mix right from the bowl to about 2/3rds full for each muffin. 

I returned to my book and re-read the last sentence...

Just as I was about where I had left off, I couldn't help but hear drawers being opened and closed.  Sure enough, my husband said "Which drawer has the muffin tin?"  By now, I'm feeling a bit annoyed!  But, I just calmly answer, "Bottom drawer, Dear." Then began his search for the spray cooking oil... I averted my eyes in hopes that he would eventually find it in the pantry.  Right where it had been every time he had used it in the past.  And, he did.  

Keep in mind, our micro-kitchen is very organized - everything has a place and like-items are together.  I again returned to my reading and sighed my relief that soon we would be enjoying strawberry muffins. 

My hero in the book jumped in the racing vehicle in an effort to save the girl...

"Hey, Babe," my husband interrupted, "Do the muffins go on the top rack in the oven?" 

"Yeeeessssss." I said through clenched teeth. 

He continued aimlessly... "I have set the timer for 15 minutes, but it will probably take 17 minutes - I'll check them when it goes off - don't want them to be too crispy on the bottoms - I don't like them so crispy and this oven cooks a little fast..."

I closed my book, rose from my comfy chair, put a sweet expression on my face and went to sit at our cozy little kitchen table to wait for strawberry muffins.

This is how it is Out There with Lea & Larry. :)

A Day at Froberg's Farm.... Almost

We set out Saturday to meet my sister, Dee-Dee, and her husband, Terry, for a picnic at Froberg's Farm.  A neat little vegetable market with a sausage house next door on Hwy 6, near Alvin, TX.  You can get the most yummy fresh fruits and veggies there and they always catch you at the door with a sample of the latest sausage - I love, love, the jalapeno deer sausage - greasy, spicy, with a hint of cheese!  I packed drinks, water for washing our fruit, paper towels, and picnic blanket.  Well, little did I know that they were harvesting strawberries!  They let the public pick their own and the line of traffic in must have been 2 miles long and dead-stopped!  Plan B - RV'ers always have Plan B.  We met at Joe's BBQ and ate from the buffet.  Please note:  frog legs do not taste like chicken!  We arrived before the rush so didn't have to elbow anyone aside.  I had wonderful broccoli cheese soup, fried shrimp, corn on the cob, and a fantastic salad.  And, you guessed it.... giant, red, ripe, perfect, fresh strawberries!  Probably from Froeberg's Farm!  Enjoy the photos we took.

My Friend, Darla

This is my friend, Darla, and the best compliment I can pay her is that she's Wacky! I hope if she sees this that she'll think it's a compliment too. Together, we embraced our inner-wackiness and ventured out into the Saturday Night craziness and had a night of it! We started at Cracker Barrel where we proceeded to give the staff challenges of dealing with whether we were sisters or not. We've got to get our story straight when asked this question - I say "yes" and Darla says "no." Confuses the heck out of people. In the gift shop, we quacked every duck, pushed buttons to tweet birds, opened every purse, read lots of greeting cards, ogled the candy, flipped through the Easter clothes, and laughed. We then went over to a couple of stores to shop. Again with the sister story not straight.  I swear if that lady with the 5" belt and 4" mini-dress had asked if we needed a basket again, I would have strangled her! Picked up a couple of things - Darla bagged bling-sandals and I, risky nature exposed, bought new reading glasses. Hey, they were purple and had swirls! Next, we thought we’d see and be seen at J.C. Penny.  Ah, nobody noteworthy browsing the sale racks - at least until we got there! I got new white Keds! Off to McDonalds for a night-cap (coke and ice cream). And, know what? There are people wackier than we are out there! Starting with the guy in a McDonalds uniform (must be management) nodding in and out of sleep in a tall chair. We kept our eyes on him hoping to witness his fall. There was also a burley guy writing squiggly lines on the front of a USA Today paper and giggling insanely at times! Anyway, the fun came to an all-too-early-end at 9:30 p.m. when we staggered out - full of caffeine and satisfied at having caught up on each others news.

Happy Birthday, Larry!

Happy Birthday, Larry!  And Happy St. Patrick's Day, Everyone!

The Warm Spot

My husband and I sleep together. Every night. I like to snuggle and he lets me. Our bed is king-sized, but we sleep in the very middle and let the rest of the bed go to waste. When we spend the night at our daughter's home, we sleep on a twin bed quite comfortably. We have slept in a single sleeping bag together. One night on a mountain camping trip with icicles on the tent, we slept on just one army cot. I remember being a bit uncomfortable but at least I was warm and cherished. Nowadays, we often snuggle on our narrow couch and nap in each other's arms. When the daffodils bloom this spring, we will have been married 38 years. We are experts at sleeping together.

My husband snores. But his snoring resembles someone trying to blow out birthday candles - just gentle puffs of air. When it disturbs me, I groggily press my palm against his shoulder, he turns onto his side and resumes normal breathing. I snuggle against his back and continue sleeping. Our legs and feet or hips and arms must be touching in the night. The few nights in our marriage we had been apart were his occasional weekend of fishing with the guys or my annual girlfriend get-a-ways. That was until a job required me to spend my weekdays in another city. We thought "we can do this." Little did I know how hard it would be for me to sleep without him. I tried to be brave and not mention it. I found things to do well into the night to exhaust myself to sleep. I woke many mornings disoriented and in search of my long-time sleeping partner. I missed the soft snoring and the times he inadvertently snagged my hair at night. I missed hearing him mumble as he dreamed. I missed him reaching for me and slinging a leg over mine. What I did enjoy were the sheets always being neat and straight. I discovered that it was most definitely him that mangled the covers.

Two years later, that job ended and we returned to our normal sleeping arrangements. Over a glass of sweet Riesling one evening, my husband said "I will never take you for granted again!" He had felt the same unrest (pun intended?) in my absence. Later, we moved to the center of our big bed and snuggled down, content to once again be together every night. As I stayed awake watching his chest rise and fall, I began to feel chilly - so, I just pressed against him and he automatically moved aside to let me have the warm spot.