All Good Things Come To Those That Wait

One of the best features of our home is the view.  It was the "AH HA" moment that sold me on the house...the great view of the fairway from the inside.  But, I wanted it to look good from the outside also.

The view from the golf course is not so nice.  As A REAL RETIRED HOUSEWIFE OF FLORIDA, I am on the golf course a lot.

I started planning a backyard renovation.  I broke it down into manageable pieces.  First a patio, then landscaping, then curbing and ultimately furniture.  I wanted the landscaping to be low-maintenance and winter hardy...all within a reasonable budget.I figured a month from start to finish.  WRONG.  Think more like five months!
JULY 2012 First the patio... 

 

AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, OCTOBER 2012

 

I spent the next couple months trying to find a landscaper.  One was too high, another was outrageous, and a third admitted he didn't have any time.  When I found the right landscaper, he couldn't start until November.  By this time, I had learned patience.

 

NOVEMBER 2012

 

Russ Gano, owner of Richloam Growers, showed up when he said he would, listened to what I wanted, created a detailed drawing, quoted a very reasonable price and SHOWED UP to do the work on the day he said he would.  I couldn't be happier with the results. 

 

First, Russ took out the sod.

 

 

 Then layout the plants.

 

 

Then bring in the show piece. 

 

 

 

Freshen up with mulch and it is beautiful. 

 

 

The last step was the curbing to match the existing landscaping.  I called Jim Revell from Kwik Kerb.  Jim was another great choice, very professional and a job well done.  Kwik Kerb is a continous curbing system.  It was a lot more work than I thought it would be...digging out the grass, mixing the concrete, hauling it in a wheelbarrow from the street to the back yard, shoveling it in the machine, moving the machine around the curves, finishing the surface. 

 

 

 

Now the big reveal.  P.S.  Furniture will be added later.

 

 



Day Trip - Tarpon Springs

 

A REAL RETIRED HOUSEWIFE OF FLORIDA hits the road for a day trip

 

 

Brian and I continued our exploration of Florida by spending a day in Tarpon Springs, a quaint town on the west coast of Florida, north of Tampa.  It is a destination with lots of culture and great food.  This city is known for the sponge industry and a strong Greek community.

 

It's a perfect day trip...less than 2 hours from home.  When we got there, we took a quick drive down Dodecanese Blvd., parked the car and set out on foot to browse the shops and see our options for food.  You can feel the Greek influence in the colors (white and blue), the food and the architecture.

 

After strolling up and down the boulevard, Brian and I had a good idea of what we wanted to buy (sponges) and what we wanted to eat (Greek food).  It was hard to pass up the pastries before lunch...but good thing we were strong.

 

We ate at Mykonos.  Brian got Pastitsio and I got my standby, Gyro.  Pastitsio is ground beef and macaroni with a cream topping.  It is similar to Mousaka, which has eggplant and potato instead of the pasta.  The cream sauce is a bechamel sauce with a hint of nutmeg.  I called it Greek Mac 'n Cheese...delish!  Both meals were great and very plentiful.  We brought half of each home for later.

 

 

Next time I will order the Saganaki, flaming cheese.  It was fun watching the servers ignite the cheese and then douse the flames by squeezing lemon juice over the top.

 

 

Even though we only ate half of our meals, we were too full for dessert right away.  So we cruised through the shops again.  I wanted some natural sponges.  The problem wasn't finding a sponge..it was so many sponges, so many choices.

 

 

We couldn't leave without dessert.  We stopped at Hellas Bakery for some baklava and coffee.  Anyone who knows Brian and me, knows we love our coffee...bold coffee, Starbucks coffee, cappuccino, latte...you name it.  In Key West, we had the best Cafe con Leche...I still dream about it.  So, it caught my attention when I saw "Greek Coffee". 

 

 

Good thing I asked what it was.  It is espresso with the GROUNDS left in.  You let the grounds settle to the bottom and sip the top.   We passed on that one.

 

 

After dessert, we gathered up our packages and headed home.  Another interesting adventure for A REAL RETIRED HOUSEWIFE OF FLORIDA.

 

 

 



Myrtle Beach, Golf, Golf...FORE!

I have been told many times that as A REAL RETIRED HOUSEWIFE OF FLORIDA, I am on a permanent vacation.  But that didn't stop me from taking a golf vacation to Myrtle Beach with some friends from Ohio.  In fact this was our second golf trip to Myrtle Beach (MB 2.0).

TEAM OHIO consisted of Barb, Bonnie and Monica.  I was the solo member of TEAM FLORIDA.  We arrived in Myrtle Beach on Friday, staying in Bonnie's timeshare at the Wyndham Westwinds in North Myrtle Beach...right on the ocean.

Here is the routine...wake up, breakfast, GOLF, dinner, hot tub...repeat 6 times.

The weather was a little on the chilly side, with one day of forecasted rain (more about that day later).  The cool weather made for some great sunrises.  Barb and I were the early risers and took lots of pictures to show Bonnie and Monica.

On Saturday, we started our golfing adventures at Indigo Creek.  We participated in a shotgun start, best-ball scramble.  It was a full course, with prizes given to the men's teams and mixed teams.  Turns out we were the only all-women's team and the starter said they hadn't had a all-women's team all year.  Still we were optimistic.  The golf was fun, lots of food and drinks.  We ended up with 2 over par and were happy.  Till they announced that we tied for LAST PLACE and were awarded a box of golf balls for each of us.  Plus I won a raffle prize of more balls and a towel.

At least we didn't embarrass ourselves by driving our golf cart into the water.  Rumor has it that the driver was on HIS cell phone and the sun was in HIS eyes.

On Sunday we golfed at Cypress Bay.  Monica had a great score with 6 birdies and 7 bogeys...a record for the week.  The course was in good shape, with no rough because of over-seeding

Monday we were off to WaterWay Hills.  Access to the course is by an aerial tramway across the Intracoastal Waterway.  Riding the tram was half the fun of the golf experience.

At WaterWay Hills, we played the Lakes and the Ravine courses.  Like all the other courses, there was plenty of sand, trees and fast greens.  I had my best round of the week here and had the only birdie of the week.  Bonnie had her best score on this course also.

Tuesday was cold and rain was predicted.  So instead of golfing we went shopping and saw the movie Argo...lots of fun and a good movie.  We still couldn't get away from golf.  Here is a license plate we saw.  WOW!

No rest for the golf-challenged.  Wednesday we were back on the golf course at River Oaks.  We all had pretty high scores at this course.  I think we blamed it on the water and trees.  The added feature for this course is the cart path bridge over the road.

Too soon we were off to our last day of golf.  On Thursday we golfed at The Valley at Eastport.  Barb plays this course often when she is in MB and it shows.  She had her best score of the week.  There is a lot of water and sand.  Bonnie kept track of the sand bunkers and would announce how many at the start of the hole.  At this course, we all got a par or two.  Bonnie showed us the "stopper".  It is a bowling term..you draw a line on the scorecard when you want to start getting better scores.  It didn't work for us...but I think use it in the future.

The grand finale of this course and our week of golf is a par 4, 282 yard hole that involves some course management...the green is surrounded by water.  I hit a good drive and was about 110 yards to the green.  The other three used two shots to get close, for a short hit over the water.  I hit a good shot, but it faded right and rolled into the water.  The good course management of the other three didn't help because they all landed in the water also.  From the looks of the dings on the service shed, it was a difficult hole for quite a few golfers.

Monica was a master at packing four sets of golf clubs and all our other gear into her Honda Accord.  Definitely a gift!

Golf is a big part of the Myrtle Beach adventure, but so is the food.  So many restaurants, so little time.

My favorite was Thai Season.  It is only the second time I have had Thai food...but it won't be my last.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I love the Fall season and miss the colorful trees.  Well, I got a week of trees and nature on the Myrtle Beach golf courses.  It was a blend of the nature from Ohio (Canadian Geese and Fall colors) and Florida (birds and turtles) and some unique to the Carolinas (raccoon squirrels).

When we were asked as a group where we were from, the answer was "Ohio".  I was starting to forget I was A REAL RETIRED HOUSEWIFE OF FLORIDA.  It was a great time, but all good things must come to an end.  I was up early Friday for the drive home.

Fall in Florida

Yes, there are season changes in Florida.  Definitely not the same as Ohio...but as A REAL RETIRED HOUSEWIFE OF FLORIDA, I can tell it is Fall in Florida.

• The snowbirds are coming back.  The neighborhood is busier and more there are more golfers on the course.
• The decreased humidity and cooler temperatures make it ideal to open up the windows.
• There were less people on the beaches.  Maybe after Brian and I have been in Florida a few more years, we will start to think 80 degrees is too cool for the beach...but not yet.

Here is New Smyrna Beach in June

Here is New Smyrna Beach in October

Florida doesn't have the colorful fall leaves like Ohio.  For a moment, I though I was in the Ohio, when I saw this tree.  When I looked harder, I noticed that the colors were not from the leaves...but from yellow flowers and red seed pods.  It is called a Golden Rain Tree.

I have one change of the season experience that has followed me from Ohio to Florida.  I have an Emerson SmartSet Clock Radio.  I bought it because it automatically sets the correct time after a power interruption.  My problem started in 2007 when Congress changed the dates that Daylight Savings time starts and ends.  This clock is programmed for the pre-2007 time change dates.  So each Fall, the Sunday before the official Daylight Savings time change, my bedside clock spontaneously "falls" back a hour.  This year, I was surprised when Brian woke me up at 4 a.m. to go with him to a motorcycle hare scramble near Ormond Beach, Florida.  The actual time was 5 a.m. (which was early enough). 

Each year, I start out thinking I will leave the clock set to the wrong time till the next week when Daylight Savings time actually changes.  But, it takes too much mental energy for A REAL RETIRED HOUSEWIFE OF FLORIDA to keep converting the time.  So a couple of days in, I change the clock.  Now next week, I will have the same experience in reverse!  Next Spring, the fun begins again.  I think I will put a new clock on my Christmas wish list!

Lower temperatures play a big part in the changing seasons.  That got me thinking about the differences in the climate between Ohio and Florida.  Here are some comparisons between Ohio and Florida. (from climatezone.com and weather.com).

Some Differences 

 



Average High and Low Temperatures
 

AKRON         17 degrees (in January) to 83 degrees (in July)
ORLANDO    49 degrees (in January) to 91 degrees (In July and August)

Much bigger range of temperatures in Akron

Days with Max Temperatures of 90 degrees or higher

AKRON         7 days a year
ORLANDO    107 days a year (Oh My)

Days with Min Temperatures Below Freezing

AKRON         125 days a year
ORLANDO 2 days a year (And Even That Is Too Much)

Some Similarities



Average Precipitation

AKRON         37 inches with 47 days of snow
ORLANDO    48 inches with 0 days of snow

Close to the same amount of precipitation, Akron just gets it in rain and snow)

Cloudy Days

AKRON         28 Clear Days and 99 Partly Cloudy Days (238 Cloudy Days)
ORLANDO   89 Clear Days and 147 Partly Cloudy Days (89 Cloudy Days)

Just about the same "clear" days, big difference in the "cloudy" days

Believe It Or Not!



Record Temperatures

AKRON         Lowest was -25 degrees in 1994, highest was 104 degrees in 1918
ORLANDO    Lowest was 19 degrees in 1984, highest was 101 degrees in 1998

No way!  Akron beat Orlando for the record HIGH temperature!

Fall is my FAVORITE season...hands down.  I like the colors, the smells and the cooler temperatures.  I have some great memories of the Fall season in Ohio..colorful leaves, Summit County Metro Park Hiking Spree, mums and pumpkins.  Oh My.  Now that I am A REAL RETIRED HOUSEWIFE OF FLORIDA, I have to make new memories of my favorite season



The Road Less Travelled

The REAL RETIRED HOUSEWIFE OF FLORIDA hits the off-road sandy trails of Florida

 

Let me tell you sand in Florida is not limited to the beaches.  It is everywhere, including the back road trails.

 

I have had my motorcycle license endorsement for over 5 years (from back in the day in Ohio).  I took the Ohio Department of Public Safety Basic Rider course at a local motorcycle shop.  The course involved some classroom instruction and a couple days of practice riding.  At the end, I took the test and got my motorcycle endorsement.  It was lots of fun and I highly recommend it.

 

My husband, Brian, is an avid motorcyclist.  In fact his love of riding was one of the many reasons for moving to Florida.  He wanted to be able to ride year round.  Most days he rides to work and on the weekends he does off-road events (hare scrambles and enduros).

 

 

I am an occasional rider...a few times a year.  I like gentle rides on back roads and some off-road adventures.   Brian and I have explored lots of back roads in Ohio, West Virgina, Kentucky and South Carolina. 

Since our move to Florida, I have kept to the back roads because of the special skill (guts) needed to handle the sand on the off-road trails.  Finally I put on my Big Girl Pants and told Brian I was ready to try the off-road trails at Croom.  Here I am all suited up (including my Big Girl Pants/jeans, long-sleeved shirt, helmet, sturdy footwear and gloves).  My motto is:

"All The Gear...All The Time"

 

 

Lucky for me we have had a few afternoon showers last week.  Well, that is good...harder packed trails.  And that is bad...lots of standing water.   Sometimes we went thru the water, sometimes we went around the water and sometimes we turned around.

Still there were long stretches of high ground that gave me my adventure in the sand.  It may look like a flat trail, but I couldn't get the series of small hills (called sand whoops) in the picture, some hard-packed, some sand.  Kinda like moguls in snow-skiing.  This area was my favorite!

Sometimes we took the Trail Less Travelled.



First time I saw a tree in the road, I freaked out.  Turns out they were fun and easy.

A couple of times, I found I was going too fast when I hit the loose sand.  But my motto was:

It will hurt to fall ... so don't fall

In the end, I never fell, had a great time and gained some valuable experience in the sandy trails of Florida.  Brian rewarded me for a job well done with a margarita at our favorite Mexican restaurant, The Coyote Rojo in Bushnell, Florida.  I needed it because I was very sore the next day!

Like Mother, Like Daughter...Like Granddaughters

There is a very close bond between my Mom, myself and my daughters (Mallory and Michelle)

When my daughters were growing up in Ohio, my parents lived in Maryland.  Every summer, Mal and Chelle would spend time with my Mom and Dad (aka TwoMommy and TwoDaddy). They have some great memories from those visits.

Another connection we have is matching tattoos.  Yes, you read correctly...three generations of matching tattoos.

Our recent connection is STARBURST MIRRORS.  Mallory started the trend by making a starburst mirror and featuring it in her blog Our First Nest.

Then Mal found another one she liked better.

So she gave her first mirror to her sister, Chelle (Chelle promises to get me a picture shortly).

Fast forward a few months...  My Mom wanted something large and round to go over her new TV and I thought of a starburst mirror.  But she needed one larger than Mallory's design.  I searched Pinterest and found one at twenty-six to life, with great instructions.

Mom and I headed off to Michael's for the floral rings and mirrors...and Home Depot for the shims and Liquid Nails.  Of course it took a couple trips, more shims, paint, more paint, another mirror (I broke one, my bad).

Mom painted hers gold to match the collage of gold-framed pictures in the room.

And I varnished mine to work with the earth tones in my living room.

This project earned a thumbs up from both of us.  And another connection between the four of us.