So much fun, so little time!

What just happened? Did I loose a week somewhere? It seemed like just yesterday we picked Ashley up at the airport and before we knew it, we were dropping her off at the airport. Our heads are still spinning.
Just who is this "whirling dervish," Ashley? Grand daughter of Bill and Angela and Pat and yours truly's great niece. Our "Little Peanut" can stretch time as if you were in a "time warp." It felt like we crammed two weeks into one. In some ways we may have overdone it. Bill and Ashley came down with a "bug" the day she left and are still fighting to get over it.

Here's a recap.

In the cool weather we headed out to Disney's Art of Animation.

The movie themed compilation of resorts put us all in a "child's frame of mind."

Ashley got to spend a few minutes with many of her childhood favorite "characters."

She just had to send a few photos of herself and a couple of very special movie stars to her beau.

We walked the four resorts marveling over the many "larger than life" Disney friends.

 

From there we headed to Downtown Disney.

While there, Ashley sought out a few more of her "friends!"

 

We all needed to stretch our legs so our Monday bike ride filled the bill.

Celebration was the venue and our guest donned her "colors" and we hit the saddles.

Our bike group gathered in down town Celebration.

Along our route, Ray sacrificed the lead to put his foot down on something...

The errant sprinkler had a few "victims" but Ray kept us dry. Although, none of us found out how Ray got away without getting wet.

Thanks to a passer-by we all managed to get into the picture.

Our (normally) ten mile ride ended up being just over eleven miles. Along our trek through the residential area of Celebration our leader, Pete, seemed a tad (shall I say) lost! Just returning from a cruise, Pete and Joan just weren't up to par for their positions. (Pete in the lead and Joan the "tail-ender.) We tried to make lite of our predicament but Pete, ever the optimist, had little to come back with...

We ultimately made it back to the Celebration Town Tavern for lunch.

 

On with Ashley's visit.

Ashley confronted "Wreck it Ralph" as DisneyQuest.

She challenged the Jungle rapids. Fought off hoards of pirates and shot at Astroblasters.

She couldn't resist Dance Revolution.

This kid was just getting started! EPCOT here we come!

Fast Track!

Mission Space.

"Off Kilter."

A moment in Paris.

Time out for a treat!

We check out a new wrap...

We sat by the "fire!"

And we ended the day with a bang!



But Ashley wanted to see EPCOT by day.

 

Back we went to meet the people and experience the customs of all the countries.

We dined in China.

Had some fun in Norway.

...and got into trouble in Italy!

Above, the "Ziti Sisters" were up to mischief!

Yours truly and Ashley were dragged into the show.

Pat and I even got married.... again!

It was a fun fest... at our expense!

All the while Ashley "hid" in the background!

At least we didn't get snagged for this "photo op!"

Leaving Italy, we'll never be the same.

It's off to France!

The Chef and Waiter went to "new heights" for the crowd.

England was a short hop away and we sat in the sun while the "British Revolution" entertained us.

(Ashley has the sunburn to prove it!)

 

But the Canadian Rockies beckoned!

We came full circle as we ended our "world" tour in China.

We caught up on the history of Norway.

 

Leaving EPCOT we had to pass by the Boardwalk and check out the ESPN Bar.

Ashley's beau, Nick is a huge sports fan so we thought a few sports photos were in order.

On the Atlanta Braves Spring Training field.

We toured the sports complex and were humbled by the story of a young boy named Scott Carter.

The HP Field House is the home for an extraordinary collection of sports memorabilia this young boy

amassed during his short life. It is a must see if you plan a visit to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.

 

Darlene and Buzz introduced us to Nitrogen chilled ice cream. Yep, that's super chilled air flowing out and over the bowl as the worker mixed up our ice cream... and it was rich!

During her stay, Ashley tried in vain to "hit the pool." She did manage to get in the water but her visit to the pool was brief. It just wasn't warm enough to stay very long.

 

And, we're not done yet!

 

Ashley saved the last day to spend the day in Disney's Animal Kingdom.

Seven of us scurried around the park from morning to closing.

We certainly managed to see many of the "locals!"

Ashley and Bill got up close and personal with the "Yeti."

 

We took a ride on the train Bill was the "Engineer" of last year.

Ashley got to meet an "old friend"....

"Rafiki"

 

Whew, it's been a busy week!

But what a grand time.... for all of us.

Ashley's early flight was bitter sweet. She was heading back to the cold and we will surly miss Ashley.

 

Perhaps Ashley's visit was graced by the "Fingers of God" as we began our week long adventure.

 

This is the sky that greeted us one morning and guided us through this awesome week....

Thin remnants of early morning clouds in an open hand gesture.

(The dark spot is a dirty lens!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Golf and a Bike Ride

Last week "Big" Buz, "Little" Buzz, Rick ("Big" Buz' brother-in-law) and yours truly stretched our legs, woods and irons on the (Disney's, now Arnold Palmer's) Magnolia Golf Course.

This pristine, long and beautiful 18 hole course was both kind yet unforgiving for our foursome.

Each of us "donated" a ball or two on more than a few occasions.

We were thankful for the golf carts; this course not only plays long, it is long!

You may notice the center sand trap as a "familiar face."

You may have seen it on TV on one of the PGA Pro-Tours.

As the afternoon sun dipped behind the never-ending array of Magnolia trees a few of the "locals" began searching for something to munch on.

In the above photo two of the six or so deer we observed, walked within feet of us and our golf cart. As the daylight ebbed so did our stamina, but seeing Mother Nature in all its beauty was both refreshing and rewarding.

The 18th hole just about says it all when it comes to the elegant beauty of the course and the day....

As the sun set the blooming Magnolia's made for a colorful send-off and finish to an awesome afternoon.

That same afternoon, we greeted Bill and Angela as they completed their journey south and set up in Lake Magic. After our round of golf we met up with them at Buzz and Darlene's camper. They made the trip down in great shape and the surgery Bill had on his shoulder is healing extremely well. He and Angela are touting new Raleigh bicycles. Now that's another story. You see, the bikes rode in the camper, on their bed until each stop-over and they were hustled to the kitchen. The story goes, Bill couldn't get the cover on the bikes on the bike carrier on the back of the camper so the bikes got special treatment until their first bike ride.

Sunday was our second "Palm Tree Biker" party. Jim and Judy hosted a grand fiesta in their spacious grassy site.

Several tables stocked with goodies and lots of chatter (along with a great day) made for a terrific afternoon.

Many party goers took advantage of a couple of familiar games.

And, after all the food, fun and games.... we all headed to the Club House for Sunday night Ice Cream!

Guilt ridden, after all we ate, there were thirty bike riders who met at the club house on Monday morning... in the rain, for a serious session of bike riding to work off all we ate the day before!

On the way to Fort Wilderness rain began to take a toll on our spirits. But, we were determined and we lined up to begin our weekly venture.

Editor's note: Bill and Angela protected their new bikes from the elements for 1500 miles plus and the first time the bikes head for the trail they are pounded with rain! Go figure!

Fort Wilderness creates a dilemma for us. It's our riding venue that requires us to select one or another restaurants for our lunch.

This day it was between "The Wave" and the "Floridian Restaurant." Before starting out the group set out to make our decision. It was 29 to 1 for "The Wave." Between driving to Fort Wilderness and lining up to ride there was "mutiny" among the rank and file. Twelve riders opted for the Floridian and the rest to the Wave, and so we split up.

Here lined up are the "rouges gallery" of riders on "the list!"

NOTE: the faces have been changed to protect the innocent!

In mildly subdued confusion, we began our trek to the boats and lunch.

Twenty one of us "circled the wagons" at the Wave. But, we had to take a boat ride to get there.

And, depending on how you look at it, it was either good luck or bad luck for Kathy...

Kathy was "bombarded" from above by a passing bird! Her right hand took the "full blast" and the spots on the right leg of her pants are "collateral damage!" She survived in great spirits and all hands rushed to her protection with tissues, hankies and (I thought) I saw Larry ready to offer his PTB shirt!

After an outstanding lunch at both our choices of eateries, we met up with the full complement of our riders at the dock for our return trip.

(If you look close at the above photo see if you can find our rider who made it into the photo two times.)

To keep with the "split" motif of the day, like two ships passing in the night we headed out on the high seas in one direction and the rest went the other way..

...and that's kinda how the day went for "The Palm Tree Bikers!"

But the best was yet to come. We shocked er surprised Bill and Angela when their Grand daughter, Ashley walked up to their camper just before sunset. They didn't know that Ashley quietly planned a ten day visit here in central Florida! Pat and Darlene "stealthfully" headed out to the airport to pick up Ashley while Bill and Angela and yours truly headed to the DownTown Disney Casting building to check something out.

Mission accomplished!

A Bike Ride and an Anniversary

Our Blog provider is having troubles with posting photos so this post is somewhat overdue... and they still haven't fixed the problem! Grrrrrrrr!

We had another bike ride. Our scheduled route was Celebration. But, before we held our weekly bike ride we had an Anniversary to celebrate. Jim and Marti celebrated their 38th, er 39th, er 40th. According to Marti it was somewhere around one of those years. By the time Pat and Darlene finished teasing Marti about how many years they were celebrating, she wasn't sure if she was even married!

Darlene and Buzz, Pat and I and Jim and Marti set out to the Landmark Baptist Church in Haines City for the Senior Patriots weekly gathering which turned out to be a fun way to celebrate Jim and Marti's Anniversary.

Above, Pastor Lewis Cruz gets Marti and Jim to "fess up" and tell us how many years they've been married. There was a "pregnant pause" as our table waited to see what year Marti would say.

The event had a sports theme so everyone had a chance to root for their favorite team by wearing a piece of clothing with their team's logo.

Also celebrating there Anniversary was Elva and Jerry. Jerry surprised Elva and everyone in attendance when he asked the assembly to join in and sing "Let me Call You Sweetheart" to celebrate the 62nd year of their special day.

That's Pastor Lewis' Dad on stage behind Jim and Alva.

The next day we all headed out for lunch at The Olive Garden.

You'd never know they've been married for 38, er 39, er 40 years!

However, they still had the spark in their lives....

The next day was the Palm Tree Bikers weekly ride day!

Our enthusiastic group made the best of a cloudy, cool start of a day and peddled our ten mile ride with ease.

We don't seem to look any the worse by the time of our second pit-stop.

I'm not sure Judy was prepared for Larry's "advances" during our rest stop. Larry, this is supposed to be a "rest" stop!

Joupy couldn't be bothered by all the commotion, he was busy trying to figure out how to unhook his bicycle helmet straps.

We enjoyed a tasty lunch at the Celebration Town Tavern

And, for the record, Jim and Marti celebrated their 39th Anniversary. Congratulations Jim and Marti!

(It's awesome how working 57+ hours a week can keep a marriage together!)

"Something Old & Something New"

"Something Old & Something New"... well, at least New to us! This past week Pat and I spent much of our time removing nearly ten years of stuff packed in our "Old Friend," Our 2003 Winnebago Journey. We reached the time in our RVing lifestyle for us to "downsize." Traveling just two or three months a year in our "Old Friend," just barely reaching three thousand miles per year, seemed so unfair for such a complex diesel pusher to watch it sit and age.

Our proud "Old friend" has 57,400 miles on it. We had but one breakdown on the road due to a blowout. Even then it handled in outstanding fashion. Sure, we encountered a number of mechanical issues but she always "got us there."

So it was on Saturday December 22, 2012, in 45' temps, her block heater made for an easy start-up for her last journey with Pat and I. In fine fashion she glided over the twenty miles to her "next chapter" and to carry on with a new owner. Our "Old Friend" never sighed or complained as new handlers came out to inspect her pristine bays, unblemished interior and well maintained chassis.

In truth both Pat and I had more than a few moments of melancholy where saying "goodbye" was most difficult.
As we turned our attention to the pre-owned 2011 Winnebago Access 31CP we were about to purchase we just couldn't help but notice our "Old Friend" seemed to "turn its back" on us.

Our Journey served us well. We are the first owners and I have come to know just about every single nut, bolt and nook and cranny of this fine motorhome. We've given it lots of TLC and she paid us back with thousands of safe miles an equal amount of wonderful memories and meeting so many awesome and friendly people.

As we passed our "Old Friend" in the salesman's golf cart she seemed to say, "Its OK!"

With all the paper work completed and congrats handed out, our ride out of the Giant Recreational World parking lot was semi-sweet. We "tipped our hats" to our "Old Friend" and Pat and I said nothing as we idled past our mobile "home away from home."

Good bye "Old Friend."

Now, Pat and I must begin to adjust to the RVing lifestyle all over again. We wanted to "downsize" and boy did we! We'll be carrying ten percent of what we're used to in our Journey. I must go back to leveling the rig with wood rather than hydraulic levelers. The driver's cab makes us feel like we're in a VW. The V10 just can't compare to the Cummins 300 six cylinder.

In all, I personally wanted to downsize in complexity. Our Journey required countless electrical, mechanical, etc. systems for us to enjoy what we became accustomed to. Age and time (not to mention the salt on the roads up north) had indeed taken a toll on our "Old Friend." We traveled south two years in snow, slush, sleet and salt which cost us two alternators and the replacement of the entire dash A/C. Not to mention one summer I spent sanding and painting her undercarriage.

The brief amount of time we have spent in our "Old Friend" over the past several years led us to this (somewhat) emotional but realistic decision.

And so our (new to us) 2011 Winnebago Access (with 5,400 miles on it) is now tucked into our RV Port.

The Access is exactly the same width as the Journey. The Journey is about eight inches taller. The Access is three feet one inch shorter and a great deal lighter. The Access' wheelbase is twelve inches longer. The Access has one slide and a whole lot less inside (and outside) storage space.

Interestingly, the brochures lists the exterior storage as 95.3 cubic feet for the Access and 92 cubic feet for the Journey. However, 90% of the exterior storage for the Access is in one huge bay under the bed in the rear. But, in reality, the usable space is basically what you can place on the floor of that bay! You just cannot fill the bay to the top!

So what if we are limited to carrying but one change of clothes, wash them every other day and eat out for lunch and dinner and use the (what looks like a kid's E-Z Bake Oven) combo micro wave/convection oven to cook an egg in the mornings! Pat doesn't mind "dropping and rolling" into the bed and sharing the barely there closet space.

As for me, (the "Pack Rat") I'll be suffering from "packing envy" each time we head out in the Access.

We'll be having a yard sale soon!

At least we're still RVn!

(A solar pillar from Encore Lake Magic 12/23/12.)

Things to Do and Places to Go

Jack headed north last week. He forced himself into "big boy" pants and reluctantly made his way to the Jetway.

Sure, Jack is all smiles! We'd like to see his face when he stepped off that plane into the 30+ temps! We wish Jack and Alice and all of our Lake Magic friends who headed home to visit with their families as well as those yet to make their way south a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Everyone is waiting for the "great exodus" south and things can get back to the "routine."

Darlene, Buzz and Pat and I planned another evening at EPCOT. The guest reader at the "Candlelight Processional" was Lea Salonga.

But first, we had a few things to take care of. Such as Spaceship Earth.

Darlene and Buzz had "lofty" dreams for their future and headed for the sky....

Pat and I thought we'd satisfy our future need for more "depth" in our lives. We hit the ocean...

From there we jetted over to "Soarin."

On our way to the "Candlelight Processional" we were stopped by another guest trying to "escort" this "fella" across the walkway...

This non-venomous Red Rat Snake couldn't be bothered by all the on-lookers and picture takers. He simply (and literally) climbed up the flower bed wall and into the bushes.

It was amazing to watch him "climb" this wall!

Arriving just before the show began we staged ourselves at the chain outside the American Theater. Another great show! Then, one more time for Illuminations, Reflections of Earth. I mentioned in an earlier post that they added a Season's greeting onto the finale with .... well, see for yourselves....

Here's the regular finale...

But, here's the Holiday Season "Grand Final".....

(Click on it to watch.)

Finally, the Palm Tree Bikers held their first 2012-13 season "get-together."

...and low and behold, it was Judy's birthday! Happy Birthday Judy! Hubby Jim treated the party girl along with the rest of the PTB's to a scrumptious cake! (Of course, yours truly, the host and hostess got to "take care" of the leftovers!)

You might notice that Judy is looking very fit and trim. She's strictly adhering to her running training program and is looking forward to the upcoming Disney Princess Marathon. Good luck Judy and keep up the good work.

The beautiful Sunday afternoon and awesome food (with a few spirits thrown in) made for a grand time.

We (figuratively) played "musical chairs" as everyone made the rounds with each other for an afternoon of fun and camaraderie. (Hmmmm, that's funny, there were lots more people sitting just before I took out the camera!)

We topped off all this fun with a Monday morning bike ride along the West Orange Bike Trail.

(Sorry, no photos, Pat and I had to take care of "something old and something new." We'll be posting the story shortly.)