Villa del Palmar in Puerto Vallarta!

Feb 12^th we had a good flight down and connected with friends Sunday and Monday.  We walked to Costco Monday and loaded up for the month.  Ron isn’t feeling too well, has a cough.

Back to Seattle

We returned to Seattle on Feb 4^th for just a week, in order to check on Joan’s mother and father before going to Mexico for a month.  We didn’t see much of Andy’s family as they were very busy:  Winnie was playing in the put orchestra again at the 5^th Avenue Theatre (and she treated us to the show Thursday evening – Oklahoma! –it was wonderful) and Natalie played a solo in the middle school jazz festival on Wednesday which we all enjoyed.

Monday we both went to the doctor, Ron for a spot on his cheek and Joan for her foot, which she had jammed sometime last fall on a leg of furniture – you know how we all do that! – but every step hurt to walk.  The doctor took x-rays and said that she might have to wear a “boot” if a bone was broken or fractured.  Wearing a “boot” in Mexico????

Turned out there were no broken bones and the podiatrist which she saw Friday actually said, “Hmmm, this is a puzzle!”  Not what we wanted to hear?  Anyway, he said it would heal with time.  Suggested new specialized insoles which she already had from before so that was good.

The main activity for the week was to try to get our mothers’ taxes done.  Joan got hers done and dropped it off to the accountant on the way to Oak Harbor Friday when she saw her dad.   Friday and Saturday were mainly spent packing and cleaning the condo since we were leaving very early Sunday morning for Puerto Vallarta.  We saw Joan’s brother Saturday afternoon, so we actually had a more relaxed time packing and cleaning than normal!

TUGGER Meeting in Orlando: Very Successful

Once again we decided to go to Orlando for a TUGGER get-together at the Golden Corral scheduled for January 18th.  We again were able to reserve a 4BD Presidential Suite at Bonnet Creek, hoping that Ron’s brother Daryl and his mother could come too.  Of course, Nancy and Stuart would come, as before, and Merlyn.  An additional reason for going and staying 3 nights, was so Ron and Merlyn could drive to their aunt’s in Ft Myers, which, of course, their mother would enjoy too, getting together with her sister.  (It’s too far for a day’s drive from St Augustine. (Unfortunately, Daryl canceled out but we were able to invite our other friends Marv and Myrna to join us and we had a great time together.  Almost 20 TUGGERS came so that dinner was a lot of fun. 

Merlyn could not believe how much fun it was staying all together and sharing meals, etc.  He said it was one big PARTY!!!  For us, it was like a “vacation”, since we were leaving a place that is so like home (the St Augustine timeshare unit), and going for a few days of a different and beautiful relaxing environment.

On the way back to St Augustine, we stopped by Costco and the Blue Springs State park again so that the others could see the manatees too.

Sightseeing

Discovering the Fountain of Youth

A wonderful rotating globe show showing exploration

The last couple of years, we haven’t gone to St Augustine sights:  seems we do the first years we are there and then not later.  With Merlyn here, though, we visited and enjoyed some sights again:  Ponce de Leon’s Fountain of Youth, the Lightner Museum, the Castillo.  We liked the antique musical instruments playing at the Museum.

 

This music box had 4 circular bows as well
as a piano.  Cost some $2K in 1910.

Ron likes the cannons at the Castillo!

Back to St Augustine

We were very happy to get to one of our favorite timeshare places, the Townhouses at the St Augustine Beach and Tennis Club (TAS), where our good friends Stu and Nancy and Marv and Myrna stay every winter too. We have fixed weeks there in January so are usually there then.  We used one of our float weeks there for Week 1, and then our 3 fixed weeks for 2,3, and 4.  Unfortunately, we do have to move from the float week to the fixed week unit, but from then on, we stay put in one unit.

 Additionally this year, we had Ron’s brother Merlyn visit for ten days (remember he’s the brother that lost his wife Marsha to cancer in September) and so we did a few more sight-seeing trips than normal.  Their cousin, Joy, is in Palm Coast, so we visited her often and we started going to her church regularly, thus being able to spend even more time together as we go out to eat at a Japanese restaurant there which has excellent tempura, one of our favorites.

Merlyn and Ron enjoyed kite – flying, some days being more successful than others.  The beach at St Augustine is beautifully wide; look at the kite way up high while Merlyn flies it down below (they look like just a speck each!) 

Don’t Ask Someone a Question While They Are Kite-Flying

 Joan asked Ron a question and he turned…oh oh….he dropped the roll of string and then his kite – an airplane – decided to fly by itself.  Well, after all, it IS an airplane!  It flew for quite a ways by itself while he ran after it, but then he caught it in time.

                                        Merlyn had more trouble flying the next day! CRASH!

Back to Atlanta

Hmmmmm, seems we are going BACK to a lot of places!  But with family obligations and fixed weeks at timeshares, we do need to repeat our itinerary! 

We left Seattle Dec 30th for Atlanta, where our friend had kept our car for us and stayed a week there at Tara III at Villa Rica on the lake (RCI), then 2 days at Wyndham Ocean Walk in Daytona before checking in St Augustine on Jan 8^th.  We were able to drive up to Cartersville to be with Ron's brother Merlyn in for New Year’s Day. 

Unfortunately, Joan fell down the steps in the unit at Lake Tara (it’s a split level configuration) and opened up her knee scrape again so that will put her back more weeks from swimming.

We visited a wonderful friend of Joan’s, whom she hadn’t seen in many years since they worked together at Hillel Academy in Dayton, OH, (who was  visiting her son in Lake Mary) and then on the way back to Daytona, we stopped at the Blue Springs State Park to see the manatees, which come into the creek during cold days and nights.  It was amazing how many there were that we saw – and there were so many people there: we had to wait about 30 minutes outside the park before being allowed to enter to park.

In Daytona. we visited the Dunlawton Sugar Mill Gardens which is a wonderful botanical garden, complete with the ruins and history of the sugar mill that was there and also DINOSAURS!  In years after the sugar mill closed, it was Bongoland, an attraction with concrete dinosaur statues, and you encounter them as you walk the garden paths.  It is maintained only by volunteers, free admission, and a great place to visit.

Back to Seattle

Leaving Hawaii a day earlier (12/15) than our reservations, due to airfare, we were glad we did as it turned out so that we had a business day Friday,.. although we did have the redeye flight so no sleep Friday.. to get some things done, like Ron's A1C blood test.  Better to have it before he sees the doctor, AND, then, when he saw the doctor Monday, the A1C results were NORMAL again!!!!! A whole year in the normal range (5.4-5.5), and totally off diabetes medications since September! The doctor just looked at him in awe!

The family on Christmas Eve

We went to Oak Harbor Tuesday, stayed all night at the Navy Base there and then Joan’s brother Dave and Linda came up Wednesday night for the special Christmas dinner at her dad’s retirement place.    Then we went up again for Christmas Day so her dad would not be alone on Christmas.   Andy’s family came up too! and we had the Christmas dinner buffet at the Navy Base – really really nice! 

Joan had taken Christmas dinner over to Andy’s house on Christmas Eve and for present opening, since Winnie had to work until 6 p.m.  She had played in the pit orchestra for the 5^th Avenue’s production of Cinderella, usually 2 shows a day, and only had Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off. 

Back to Kona

We moved north to Wyndham Mauna Loa in Kona on December 2 for the last two weeks into our favorite unit there, #3 a two bedroom.  There are many pools on site, so Joan was looking forward to being able to continue to swim her laps. 

See those tiny specks?  3 people measuring the far end of the lot

Unfortunately, while looking at acreage lots with her sister-in-law, with a view to them buying, Joan fell on the asphalt and skinned her knee.  No big deal, we did it all the time as kids, right? ..but….she could not swim with the open sore, and it took so long to heal, that she lost the 2 weeks of swimming.  Her sister-in-law Linda had fallen a few days before… same knee, same banged-up hands, but Linda’s was a lot worse.  But she said Joan was just trying to be a True Sister!!!  LOL.

The good news is, though, that Linda found a lot she liked, and so was able to actually close the deal while we were there.  She and Ron and her sister walked the dimensions to measure it, and we even had a sunset party there one night, and Ron blew the conch shell.  The ocean is in the distance.

He blows it every night he can at sunset.  Here is the video of him blowing it on our balcony at Wyndham Mauna Loa when we had Joan's brother and wife and family over for dinner.  joan served lasagna.  As she was explaining how much work it is to make it (boiling the noodles, preparing the cheese, cooking the meat, layering it all), her brother asked, "Did you get it at Costco?"
     Of course!!!!!!!  Everyone laughed.

Here is the view from the balcony (lanai) there. 

Can you tell Ron is happy and relaxed here?

Sunsets are available from several views from the unit.  Here's one: