Happy BD to me!

OK- so my birthday's not for a few days yet, but Ted's just an on the ball kind of guy.
Like my new toy?
I'm cool!

Kinley's here!

Hey! Thought I'd better post- and let everyone know I'm alive and well in Tallahassee! (and using Kailee's Mac- which is a bit of a challenge in itself!- )
SO....Kinley Reese Grulich arrived in a rush last Friday morning (12/19)...and we've been a little busy keeping up with everything since then!
She was born after a 3 hour labor (ask me sometime about Evening Primose Oil and Castor Oil!), weighed in at 8 lbs, and has blond hair and big (blue?) eyes. Eveybody's adjusting pretty well- and this Grandma is having fun helping out.
The only not so fun part is that Cap (that's Ted) is back home till after Christmas... He'll come get me, and spend a few days on 12/26- then we head home to wait for grandbaby #3...So stay tuned!

We really do Give Thanks!

To say Life is busy is an understatement! (Exciting times!)
It all started when Teddy and Teresa had an opportunity to rent out their Ft. Lauderale Condo (a matter of prayer for some time- and when God answered, they had to move fast!) Did I say move? Oh, yeah, they moved- INTO OUR HOUSE! So that meant relocating Bonnie to the smaller room, getting the bigger room ready for them and emptying out the littlest room for our littlest (soon!) grandbaby. (Kathryn Reese is due in January). So that meant prep on Monday, move on Tuesday.
Wednesday Jamie and Josh arrived for the holiday weekend.
Thursday we joined the larger Cook/Wyrick clan for dinner at Carol's (God provided in that little detail, too!- My kitchen was full of boxes to merge into my already crowded pantry!- and who's cleaned around here? Not me! :))


Friday was for Wedding Dress shopping (she found one!)- Then an evening sail (of course!)- on a Chamber of Commerce Day- with fresh grilled Wahoo for dinner, and choclate eclairs for dessert. We really are blessed.






Ted, Bonnie and I all had to work on Saturday- while Jamie and Josh had an appointment with their wedding photographer for an "engagement session"(and a quick visit to Ted at the Station and to briefly see Teddy in a volleyball tournament)- by the way, Teddy came in second!
Now it's Sunday evening- the J's left early this morning, the T's have been hanging w/church friends all day, Bonnie's working, and it's quiet for now. Wonder when they'll all get home?
Like I said, this is kind of fun!
We sorely missed Kailee, David and Avery- she's feeling very pregnant- waiting for Kinley to arrive- and hoping she's early! (she's due on the 16th- we plan on going up on the 12th unless we get an earlier phone call!)
So that's the week in a nutshell! Our life in a nutsell! (nuthouse?- maybe! ;)
And for this we are very thankful!

Happy B-Day to my Sweetheart!

53 isn't so old!

(especially when you think you're 30.)

But I'm glad for all the things that 53 brings...grandbabies and a new mellowness and a nice boat and retirement soon and wisdom and maturity and not making me sneak into sporting events any more... the list could go on and on...

He is my Captain- and I remain his faithful admiral.

Happy Birthday, Sweet Avery!

She's just the most wonderful two-year-old in the world, that's all!
She's smart, she's funny, she's sassy, she's sweet, she loves blueberries and grapes and yogurt, she lugs the cat around like a sack of potatoes, she loves to read books, she steals people's seats, she loves to talk to Ami and Cap on the phone...
And we're completely in love with this little girl!-

News! News!

Once upon a time there was a fair princess who vowed never to kiss another frog.
Along came Josh- who wasn't froggy at all.
Matter of fact, he's kind of a prince.
So I guess she kissed him. Anyways- now they're planning happily ever after.
Better check out her blog for the real story...
Congratulations Jamie and Josh!

Happy B-Day to Kailee!

I was so thrilled to have a little girl! 25 years ago today...in Augusta, GA...
And now our second child is expecting her second child!
God is Good.

So What about California?

Hard to narrow it down to the highlights...


One would have to be sailing on San Francisco Bay with new friends Joe and Kathy Siudzinski- fellow Seawind owners- actually way more experienced than we'll ever be (i.e. Australia and Alaska)- We're passing Alcatraz in the background, and marveling at how cold their world is!


Another was seeing an old friend of Ted's and getting to know his wife and daughter. They actually took us to the yacht club, gave us a ticket for a free winery tour, then fed us at their home as we passed through San Fran at the end of our trip. They really made us feel welcome and special. Frank was Ted's best friend back in Jr. High School- lot's of memories and fun stories! (Daughter, Teya, had just injured her knee playing soccer- hence the crutches.)

We also got to spend Sunday morning with Teddy and Teresa's good friends, Kenny and Kelly McCord. Breakfast at their place, then rowdy church in a warehouse, where the gospel was fresh and strong. It was truly great to talk to them- just very encouraging. They're awesome people. Now I know why my son feels pulled West- but I hope he stays home, because West is really far away.

Then there was the middle of the trip...4 days at a quaint, simple Bed & Breakfast in Mendocino (North Coast)- very relaxing- from there we took several mini-trips to see Redwoods and Botanical Gardens and Cliffs and CuteLittleShops (always fun!- but here they were more like galleries, so no big purchases... just lots of strolling 'round.).


























And then there was this spot called "Glass Beach", where a landfill was back in the 60's (right on the shoreline!)- And all that's left of the garbage is tons and tons of seaglass! It was really kind of beautiful in an odd sort of way. People just sort of sift through it, looking for bits of treasure... and yes, I brought home a baggie full!

Well, the food deserves mention, too- San Francisco really cares about good food- and Mendocino really cares about good organic food. Needless to say, we ate really well. These pictures were taken in Chinatown- Ted asked a young girl on the street where to eat, and she sent us down a side street to Hing Lung, where menus and daily specials were all in Chinese Characters and the restaurant was filled with Chinese Characters and a dragon danced through, complete with firecrackers and drums...Oh my! At the end of my Chow Mein I realized I was holding my chopsticks upside down (by looking out the corner of my eye at the little old lady at the next table.). Soon as I flipped 'em life got a lot easier!

What a great trip! And what a great way to celebrate 30 years together! We had a blast, and loved every minute of it-
And now it's good to be home!

JAMIE!!

Someone who definitely deserves her own post is our very own Jamie, who turned 23 in the middle of all the chaos. She's always shared her birthday with her Grandma Tucky (well, it was Tucky's birthday first!)- so here they were a few years ago...
And here she is now! (wearing her birthday pearls!)



Sorry I'm so late, Jame... Happy Birthday, and lots of love!
(by the way...Handsome Man is Josh- Old Guy In The Background is an undercover CIA agent watching to make sure Josh is behaving.) (I think.)

Catching up

Wow! It's been wild and crazy since the last (June!) post...
First Atlanta for our niece's wedding - Congrats to Jill and Greg! (it was lovely- and lots to fun!)


The wedding morphed into family reunion, and an 80th birthday celebration for Grandpa...


Then Ted and I spent a week in North Carolina, at the Jones' home, while they were in Wyoming... and at the end of the week we returned to GA to spend a little time with old college buddies at their lake home.


So that was a busy 10 days!
We came home for 2 weeks or so....
Then off to San Francisco- Mendocino- Sonoma Valley for our 30th anniversary celebratory excursion!! We've been in hyper-travel mode, to say the least! The trips were all great- California was amazing! And perhaps deserves it's own post. (so stay tuned!)

The rainy season is here!

Sweet Teresa!

So what happens when you give a shout-out to your son on his birthday, but then totally neglect to post anything on your daughter-in-law's birthday? You have to admit, I'm a slacker! So three days late, I do apologize-
Happy Birthday, Teresa!!! We love you!

Happy Birthday, Teddy!

Always the fun guy! You've loved life well from the very beginning- and it's been a blessing watching you grow into the man we so love and admire- and enjoy! Happy # 27 to you!

Spring has Sprung and it's almost Summer!

Oh Boy!
It's been entirely too long since I've posted... blame it on rough seas and my balance- I smacked my camera on the foredeck (smacked my butt on the foredeck, too!) while trying to take pictures of a sailboat race. No Camera. No Pictures. No Posts.
But we have been sailing since then- Keys to Evergaldes City to Naples to Sanibel and back- that was in April... And Ted's camera still works.
(and I caught a nice fish!)
And then a week later we were able to take our long-time (notice I didn't say "old") friends, Cal and Janet Callen, on a weekend trip down in the bay. We've known these guys since college days- and they still like us! We like them a lot, too. We're separated by too many miles, and don't seeeach other as often as we'd like- so it was really special to have them all to ourselves for a few days. It was great to share Morning Glory with them- the weather was beautiful, the water crystal clear- we did some snorkling, ate good food, and caught up on each other's lives... really a great trip!


And NOW we've just gotten home after spending a weekend at Anastasia State Park (outside St. Augustine) with most of the fam.- It was so cool to camp with our grown-up kids (and our baby girl!). It's hard to choose which shots to post...but here's a couple of favorites. (I got a new camera for Mother's Day- and it's really easy to post to the blog with it's software!- Now if I can just take some decent pictures, we're good to go!)


More later!

February Tally Trip

Well, it was a little too short, but it was wonderful in every other way.



We had a long weekend with the Tally girls (and their guys)- Yes, Avery's the big attraction, but we kind of like her parents, too.
















We loved seeing Jamie every day, too- and hearing a lot about some guy named Josh.. and on Sunday we finally got to meet him. He's a sweetheart- and a pretty good sport- he sat through 100 laps of NASCAR without complaining. (that's more than I can say for myself!) (Sorry, no pictures of Josh- he and Jamie are on Teresa's blog if you're curious.)


And we even had a quick visit with our old friends, The Richies. Gene and Terri were in town cleaning their kid's "college house" to get it ready to put on the market. Our kids are the same ages, and were all good buddies when they were small. Separated by mutual moves after Hurricane Andrew, we don't see them as often as we'd like- so when we heard they were in town we just had to interrupt their work for a few minutes! They sent all three of their kids to Tallahassee, and their girls came home when they were done (Their son, Tony, is roaming around the country playing baseball) ...our girls went to Tallahassee and stayed! O.K., so Kailee's the only one who's stayed for sure, and Jamie's still at FSU, so her final destination is yet to be determined, and Bonnie didn't exactly put down roots there....so I need to quit my whinin'. Two here and two there is pretty good- as long as we get to go see the ones there ever so often. And we did! And we made plans to try to go on a family camping trip in May- so, as Teddy says, it's all good!

Banana Bread

Jamie wants my banana bread recipe- so I figure why not share it far and wide! I'll blog it!

Banana Nut Bread
1/2 c. butter or margarine
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
2 cups flour!
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3 large mashed bananas (overripe is best)
1 c. chopped nuts (I use walnuts)

1 Tbsp melted butter
TOPPING: 1 tsp. cinnamon mixed with 1 Tbsp sugar

Preheat oven to 350
Grease a loaf pan, and sprinkle with 1 Tbsp. flour.
Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in sifted dry ingredients. Beat in mashed bananas. Add nuts. Pour into prepared loaf pan. Bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes (or 65!-test with a toothpick, sometimes stays gooey in the middle). While cake is still warm pour melted butter over top and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture.

Old fashioned comfort food! Enjoy!

Just another nice weekend in South FL!

This is where we were Friday night... a little cove just off the Key Biscayne Yacht Club; it's one of our favorite spots. It feels like we're on vacation, even though it's just south of our mooring field. (works for me!)

We went exploring in the in the a.m. Saw a nice manatee, lots of birds... and mangroves!

Happy Birthday to Me!

well...some people just aren't very good about keeping up with their blogs! Where has the time gone?


Christmas came and went... We enjoyed having Jamie home for a good, long visit. The Jones Family stopped by Christmas morning on their way to the Keys- and it was good to share breakfast with them- Then off to Grandma's for our traditional Christmas dinner and mayhem. We missed Kailee, David, and Avery- they were in Dallas this year.



Then somewhere in the middle of the week, the Florences, from Atlanta stopped in for one night and a sail-day...it was great to see them- kind of a whirlwind visit! No pictures-sorry!- we didn't stand still long enough!


And before you know it, it was time to celebrate 51 big ones! Ted and the kids took me out to dinner, then we had dessert at Teddy & Teresa's.



Maybe that sort of catches us up!

More sailing posts, soon!- We took Tim and Laura Love out last weekend, and blew out our jib. Good thing Ted saw it coming, and the sailmaker was already working on a new one for us. We're going to hoist it tomorrow and show off our pretty new sail. Maybe I'll post a picture of it before next month!