Saint George Island, Florida

February 9th through February 12 was spent at St. George Island, FL We are now on the Florida panhandle which is uncharted territory for us.The weather was sunny and in the mid 70's each day. There were several very nice 5 mile hiking trails which we enjoyed walking with Nicky.







The beaches here are very pristine and it is very fine sugar sand. It feels like walking in baby powder. The afternoons were spent on the beach with a picnic lunch and a good book.

Our Internet air card did not get good reception there, phone connections were hit and miss and we had only 2 tv stations so if you are waiting to hear from us we will catch up to you on our next stop.

While walking Nicky one night I did get to see and alligator catch his dinner! That's a first, they are fast.

Don and Lois Waltz in Lecanto, Fl

This is a picture of us parked in the back yard at Don and Lois's house. There was a cold snap while we were there and we got to see first hand what Don and Lois go through to protect their garden and plants. You can see in the picture some of the plants still draped in sheets for protection. Don is quite the gardener, growing everything from seed.

We spent an absolutely wonderful week with Don and Lois, from February 2 through February 8. For those of you who don't know, Don and I graduated from High School together in 1960.
Lois's culinary skills are incredible and I'm sure we all put on weight that week!!! but we sure had fun doing it. Lois and I had a lot of fun swapping recipes and cooking while the boys talked about motors, construction, RV's and such.






Their dog,Toby, and Nicky had great fun together in the fenced in back yard. They quickly became big buds. Toby loved to visit Nicky in the RV.

We spent one day at Lazy Days RV looking at RV's with Don and Lois showing them what to look for when purchasing an RV. They are interested in doing what we do in another year or so.

Don and Lois's friends Earl and Darlene took us out on the Homosassa River on their pontoon boat to watch manatees. We were not disappointed--we saw lots of them and I was able to get some good pictures. I hope you enjoy the video.

Saying good-bye to Don and Lois was like saying good-bye to friends we've had all our lives. Nicky says ditto that to Toby.

Wachula Florida, January 19 - February 2

We arrived back in Wauchula, FL on Jan. 18th. The majority of our time here has been spent visiting and playing with the good friends we've made from winters past. We shared dinners with one another, played Pickle Ball, and played games such as Mexican Train, and Fast track. A lot of time was spent just catching up with one another after being separated for almost a year.







A lovely afternoon was spent with Lou and Carol Hands and Jim and Jane Rankin at Highland Hammock State Park.

We walked the Cypress swamp trail which is a lovely boardwalk trail with a catwalk.

This live oak tree is over 1,000 years old! The old people sitting on the tree are not near that old.

We enjoyed several nice meals out at two of Wauchla's newest restaurants, Celtic Crossing and Giovanti's.


Jane and I had a great time shopping and sharing-- just plain catching up. The more we share the more we find out how much alike we are. I'll miss coffee with Jane, my sister by heart. God has certainly blessed me with 2 sisters---one by blood, Jill and one by heart, Jane.


It was great fun catching up with Lou and Carol and sharing several meals with them. We look forward to perhaps seeing them on our return trip from the west.




This is for those of you who have not heard of Pickle Ball.

Nicky enjoying Venice's dog beach

We took Nicky to a dog beach that was gorgeous! Lee and I sat in our beach chairs and just watched all the dogs have the time of their lives. We have found Florida to be very dog friendly.

Beaches of Venice

The beaches here are lovely and you don't have to fight traffic to get to them. In addition there are no parking fees. The beaches are natural with sand dunes and sea grass. The water is very blue and there are tons of birds.

It's been cooler this week but still sunny and warm enough to sit on the beach.

Arrived in Venice January 12,2009

January 12-19th we spent in Venice, FL at RAmbler's Rest Campground, an Encore Park. We really like this park it is well kept and the people in the park are very friendly. We fell in love with Venice when we visited here last year.

Venice is a beautiful, historic town on the Gulf. Main street is lined with lovely little shops, restaurants, and coffee houses.

On the Road Again!!!

Left Pennsylvania on a very cold December 26th and arrived in Palm Coast, Florida Dec. 28th. We spent the evening visiting with our friends Nita and Ray Derois. By the way, we are back to shorts and short sleeve shirts.

Dec 29th we arrived at Peace River campground in Wauchula, FL. This is one of our favorite places. A small town with lots of community spirit, nestled among orange groves and cattle ranches. Main street Wauchula takes you back in time to small towns of time past.

The First Christian Church here has become our second church home. Every year we return the church has grown. They have very active focus groups and a lot going on. We witness many changed lives changed through the mininstry of this church.

Each year we return we are amazed to see the improvements this small town has made. Last year they added a lot of landscaping to the down town area. It is really pretty. There are some new restaurants downtown.

We have been here for 2 weeks and our time has been spent catching up with friends and acquaintances that we've made over the last 5 winters. We have played pickle ball, attended several pot luck dinners, gone out to eat with friends and made new friends.

Nicky met up with his friend of 4 years, Jet, a black standard poodle. We had a lovely dinner with his owners , Rob and Bonnie. Nicky made a new friend this year. Her name is Q-Tip and she is a white standard poodle. Jennifer and Bill are the proud owners and we really enjoyed getting to know them.

We really treasured the time we've had to spend with Jim and Jane Rankin. Over the last winters they have become very special friends of ours. Jane and I are, what can you say, kind of cut out of the same mold. We often think a like and can always pick right up where we left off the year before.

We're off to Venice, Fllorida on the Jan 12th.