I'm Back

I can't believe I've neglected this blog for this long. Time sure flies when we are having so much fun!! I've got a lot of catching up to do, so I will try to make it brief, but informative.
August flew by without much excitement, other than lots of pool and/or beach time.
September 1st we took an extra long weekend and went to the NASCAR race in Atlanta. While there we celebrated out 26th Wedding Anniversary by relaxing at the Track (just the two of us). Then Cully and Janine arrived to join us for the rest of the Race Weekend.
October 2nd we went to Myrtle Beach, SC for a Gaither Fan Fest - three concerts in two days - It was amazing and so uplifting as always. We are putting this on our calendar every year for sure. We took Elani to the Pumpkin Patch and Falling Leaves in Celebration, FL and later in the month we took her to Seaworld so that she could Trick or Treat there. We had a blast. This will also become an annual event. We were in Talladega, AL for Halloween and Hallo-Dega. That was a cold, raining race weekend, except for Race Day, it was just cold! Fun times though.
The middle weekend of November we were in Homestead-Miami for the last race of 2009. What a weekend, what a way to end the season! We were fortunate to have a friend who has a friend that got us HOT PASSES for the whole Race Weekend. This means that you found us in the Pits, by the Garages and hanging out at the Haulers all weekend long. It was amazing and so much fun. We got up close with drivers, owners and pit crew members all weekend. I got some amazing pictures from inside of Jeff Gordon's pit during the race, on Pit Road before the Race and at Driver Intro's. This experience topped off our 2009 Race Season. Thanks to Cully, Diane and Dale for getting us the passes and allowing us to hang with the big shots!
Thanksgiving Weekend we were on the beach again at the Bon Aire Resort in St. Pete Beach. It was cold, but we walked on the beach and lounged around the heated pool. We had Thanksgiving Dinner with the Ealy Family and did some shopping on Friday and got lots of R&R.
November 30 Rudy has his left knee replaced and now on the road to recovery. It is a long haul, but he is on the mend and making progress very nicely. I've had to cook, clean up, do laundry, drive everywhere, help with physical therapy sessions, and keep the place running. It's been a challenge for me, but we are surviving and it will be back to normal soon.
December 23rd we will be leaving for Pigeon Forge, TN for Christmas in the mountains with Michelle and Rob. The shopping is done, presents are wrapped and the car is ready to be packed. We are looking forward to a little snow and some time in front of the fireplace or in the hot tub and more R&R. After a few days at the cabin our plan is to head to Nashville and be tourists for a few days (staying with Cully) and relaxing some more before 2010 rolls in.
Our thoughts and prayers are with all who read this and our prayer is that you will come to know the Saviour of the World, that came as a babe to save the world from its sin, as we have. There is a line from a song I heard on the radio that makes me think....... "How many Gods have sent their only Son to die for me......not one". I am thankful today and everyday that God sent His Son as a Baby to this world to provide Salvation to all that choose to believe.

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and we hope you have a Blessed New Year.

4th of July Pics

4th of July, 2009

We had a very relaxing 4th of July long weekend full of sun, sand, sharks-teeth, shells and fun!

We left on July 1st and headed to Venice, FL for sometime in the sun at the many beaches in the Venice area.  We drove through a torrential rain storm all the way south on I-75.  By the time we arrived at our destination and got settled in (after doing some grocery shopping) the sun was out and we got ready for the next day and hitting the beach.  

Each day that we were there from July 1 through July 6, we would get up and have breakfast and then hit the Beach, any beach, it really didn't matter, a long as it had waves, the Gulf, sand and Shark's Teeth.  We would stay until around 2 p.m. and then head home for showers and lunch.  We would then relax and enjoy the peaceful time with hardly any cell phone service.  I completed 22 Scrapbook pages over those 6 days - Very productive!

On the 4th we went to Venice Beach and got the perfect spot in the sand, so Elani could dig and watched the sun set before the Fireworks started.  Sunday was our last day at the beach and then we headed home on Monday.  What a great relaxing place without a care in the world.  Elani had a ball playing in the waves and sand at the beaches.  It was hard getting her to come out of the water to go home every day.  Just had to promise her that we would be back the next day!  She is like a little fish!

More Michigan Pics

Catch up Time

I can't believe I have neglected this blog for the past two months.  We've been so busy, but we are now settled in at home for a couple of months.

June 25th we flew to Michigan to celebrate my birthday with our daughter Michelle.  We took Elani with us.  Rudy found some great rates on flights and we couldn't pass it up.  When we arrived in Grand Rapids at 1:00 p.m., Michelle picked us up and we drove to her house where we relaxed for a couple of hours before going to The Bear Claw for dinner with my Mom and Don.  Michelle made a cake and brought it, but it wasn't edible (we tried).....  long story.  We took lots of pictures outside the restaurant and then down along Lake Cadillac.  This time of year, it doesn't get dark in Michigan until almost 10:00 p.m.  I forgot that about Michigan summers.

Friday we worked in Michelle's garage sorting through some boxes that she was storing for us and we threw a lot of stuff away, too.  In the afternoon we went to Aunt Phyllis and Uncle Paul's house on Rose Lake.  They took us on a pontoon ride and Elani caught her very first fish and then another one.  After two she was done with fishing (they stopped biting).  It was so nice and very relaxing riding around the lake.  Michelle fixed dinner and we ate on their patio.  While Rob was giving Elani rides on his 3-wheeler, Michelle and I took off for our traditional photo-shoot at Lake Cadillac.  We took lots of pictures of just Michelle and me.  Our time together.  Very special to me.  

Saturday we went to my mom's house on the Muskegon River and tubed down the river for 1 1/2 hours.  It was very refreshing to say the least.  We never got off the tubes once after we started the ride back to the house.  When we arrived mom had fresh strawberry shortcake waiting for us.  Another thing I miss about Michigan summer's - sweet juicy strawberries.  The Florida grown just aren't the same.  Later that afternoon we came back to Michelle and Rob's and had grilled chicken, pasta salad for dinner.  We made a fire in the back yard and roasted marshmellows and made smores in the spitting rain with umbrellas. We didn't let a little rain stop us from having a good time.

Sunday we had to get up early and head back to Grand Rapids for our returning flight.

When we arrived there we found out that our flight had been cancelled and wouldn't leave until Monday at 4:00 p.m.  This was not going to work for us, so they made us other arrangements.  We had to rent a car and drive to Fort Wayne, IN and catch a 7:30 flight that would arrive in Tampa/St. Pete at 9:30 p.m.  Janine had our car, so she drove to the airport and picked us up and we finally climbed into bed around 1:00 a.m.  My alarm went off for Monday's work day at 5:00 a.m.  Needless to say, I was somewhat tired by the time I left work that night at 6 p.m.

It was a great weekend though.  A great way to spend my birthday, too!

Charlotte, NC Race Weekend

May 20 - 26, 2009

Wednesday, May 20: We picked up Janine and Ashley at the dorm and left heading north to our final destination of Charlotte, NC for the Coca-Cola 600 to be run on Sunday, May 24th at 7:15 p.m. We drove all night (Rudy & Ashley drove all night) and arrived at Roush Racing at 4:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 21st. We were about the 75th, 76th, 77th & 78th persons in line to get Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle and David Ragan's autograph tickets for a signing later that morning. It was a very long 4 hours on the hard concrete and rocky area where we waited with another 200 people or more, only to have to return at 10:00 a.m. to actually get our items autographed. Some even had blankets, pillows, mattresses & chairs because they had been there since 9:00 p.m. the night before. After receiving our tickets we went to a nearby Cracker Barrel for breakfast and some caffeine. Returning to Roush we joined others in another line to wait for our turn to chat with the drivers and get their autograph. Carl was super nice and chatted awhile with us about his experience last December with Elani at the ESPN Club. From Roush we headed to Stewart-Haas Racing to see the new shop and get Rudy a # 14 Tony Stewart shirt or two! By this time we were all ready to check into our hotel and get a hot shower and a change of clothes before heading to the Track for Qualifying. After Qualifying we found a good place for another hot meal.

Friday, May 22, 2009: Rudy and I had a Meet & Greet Fan Event with JEFF GORDON at Hendrick Motor Sports, so we let the girls take the car with free rein to do as they pleased. Rudy and I had a great time and met some new friends, had some lunch, tasted some new Schwan's ice cream and finally got to get up close with JEFF GORDON. Rudy got my Pepsi replica Hood personalized and autographed by JEFF for me and I had a scrapbook page from last year for JEFF to autograph. I told him that it was now tradition and we couldn't break tradition for me to give him a kiss on the cheek when I see him at these events and he willingly obliged.

We had a great time. It was in my eyes the perfect place to spend a Friday afternoon. We had scheduled an "inside" tour of Joe Gibbs Racing with the receptionist that we met there last year for 4 p.m., so we made our way there. Paige was great and we saw a lot of behind the scenes areas at JGR. We also found out that Joey Lagano was going to be at a local Home Depot so we made our way there and waited in line for 1 1/2 hours to get his and Matt Kenseth's autographs and pictures. By the time we made it to Michael Waltrip Racing it was 5 p.m. and closed. That place will definitely be on the agenda for next year.

Saturday, May 23, 2009: We all slept in a little and then spent some quality time relaxing by the pool. We did a fun thing while down at the pool. Each of us girls had our iPods with our favorite Christian music, so we each picked out a song that we wanted the others to hear and after listening to them, we told each other why that was one of our favorite songs and what it meant to us personally. It was a great sharing experience and I am sure we will do it again on our next trip. Later that afternoon we took a drive to Lexington, NC where we found the Childress Winery. Janine and Ashley had never been so we took a tour and learned how they harvest the grapes and make their wine. We then had lunch in the Bistro overlooking the vineyards. It was a perfect afternoon. The Nationwide Race was that night, so we went for a little while, but it got rained out and we got soaking wet.

Sunday, May 24 - RACE DAY: We took our time getting ready and just kind of hung out at the hotel until Noon because the Race wouldn't start until 3 p.m. We got to the Track and the skies were not looking good. It was hot and muggy, so we didn't spend much time around the merchandise trailers or vendor areas, just went straight to our seats. I was glad we did, because the rain held off and we saw a great pre-race show honoring all the veterans and those currently serving in the Armed Forces.

After several attempts to start and run the race, it was called due to rain and more rain coming for the evening. It was announced that it would run on Monday at 11:00 a.m.

Monday, May 25, 2009: The Race started without much pre-race happenings and it wasn't long before you could see the rain moving in over Turn 2. It rained hard, too. Then it quit and the sun tried to shine, then it would rain again. Fortunately for the #00 Aaron's Dream Machine car of David Reuttiman the Race was stopped after 227 laps in intervals of 30-40 laps which made it past 1/2 way and he just happened to be leading at the time. We left at 4:00 p.m. before it was officially announced that # 00 was the winner and the Race was considered complete. We are happy that we left when we did, we missed a lot of bad traffic this way. Again Rudy & Ashley drove all night and we arrived at home at 2:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 26th. where we unloaded the car and crashed and called it an early night.

We had a great time despite the continued rain and we were happy to return home to the sunny blue skies of Florida.

Another NASCAR Race under our belts with lots of great experiences and stories to tell by all

See ya on the Road. . . . .

More fishing pics - May 9, 2009

The waiting Game

"I can do this all day"

"Let's find a new place to fish"

"I did it all myself"