Western Caribbean Cruise - April 6-17

Our cruise started in Ft. Lauderdale

We had an aft cabin

Looking out through our cabin 

We met our next door neighbor Rick the first night and spent many nights

together on the deck of his suite enjoying the sunset with a glass of wine.

Larry winds up on stage on all our cruises.

We loved the glass blowing shows.  We live so close to

Corning and have never been there but now we really want to go.

We went to a complimentary wine tasting on our first sea day

On the days we didn't do tours, we walked did two miles around the deck.  That was 16 times around. Every trip back and forth to our cabin from the stairs (or elevator) was 1/8 of a mile so my fitbit really racked up the steps.  I usually always did the stairs when I wasn't with Larry.  His knees didn't like the stairs but my hip didn't mind.

Our first port was George Town, Grand Cayman.  We enjoyed staying on the ship that day with so many people gone.

On April 10 we did a city tour in Cartagena, Columbia.  This statue of a woman was given to Cartagena by Fernando Botero, a famous Colombian artist. It is made of bronze and everyone wanted to get their picture taken with it.  Larry made me do it.

We bought Columbian coffee from people hawking it on the street and it wasn't until we were in Florida almost a month later that we got to test it.  I still like Starbucks.

The most amazing thing we saw was this ring around the moon.  By chance I happened to look at the sky, don't know why, but was so surprised to see this.  It wasn't until I had an internet connection that I could find out what it was.  It looked like a rainbow ring around the sun.  It is actually called a "halo" and can be seen around the sun or moon.  They occur when high thin clouds are drifting 20,000 feet or more above our heads and they contain millions of tiny ice crystals.  The halos are caused by refracting and reflecting of light.  The crystals have to be oriented and positioned just so with respect to your eye, in order for the halo to appear and depending on where you are standing will determine what you see.

This is only one of the pictures we took but it is the only one we were able to capture the entire halo

Coming and going to the ship we walked through an area filled with all kinds of birds and other creatures.

On April 11th we were in Panama but since we're doing a Panama Canal cruise in October we decided to stay on the ship.  The next day we were in Puerto Limon, Costa Rico and did a Greenway Tour which included a hike in the rainforest and a river boat ride.

 Below is a poisonous strawberry frog.

 I don't think this guy was poisonous, one of the few things that wasn't.

This is called a walking Palm Tree because it's roots are above ground and it is said to move and follow the sun.  So just now I was looking up information about the tree and saw that it is a myth that tour guides like to tell tourists.  Well, I was taken in.

This millipede wasn't poisonous but it was big and fat. 

 This is a handful of termites.  If you're ever stranded in the

rainforest without any food, this is a good source of protein.

Here we have the poisonous green and black frog.  All these creatures were

so tiny.  It was amazing how our tour guide was able to find them for us.

This is either a two-toed or three-toed sloth.   I don't remember which we saw first.  We were riding along the highway and stopped so we could get pictures.   An interesting fact in case you run into a sloth and can see it's face, the three-toed sloth looks like it's smiling.

 We're on the river here when we saw the rest of these.

 Here's the other sloth, in a tree along the river.

 All of these boats were seized from Columbian drug dealers.

Columbians say the cartel is now in Mexico

Our final tour was in Belize where we did cave tubing.  We couldn't

resist having all the guys stand under this sign and take their picture.

 Here we are in our tubing outfits.

18 tubes were tied together and our 3 guides had to push/pull us through the cave. 

"Butts up," was a frequent call since the water would be really shallow in spots.

Wedding and Florida

We had a nice weather day in Williamsburg.  The best part of this resort is that it was .7 miles from an Outlet Mall that you could walk to.

We went to Bethesda for Brittany and AJ's wedding.

All the grandkids

And the kids

We arrived in Orlando on Monday, March 30th around 4:00 PM after a 7 hour drive from Florence, SC where we stayed at the tiniest Fairfield ever and it was 80 degrees - boy did that feel great.

Tues. conversation:
L:  What do you want to do?
B:  Go to the hottub
L:  I meant tomorrow
B:  I thought you wanted to play golf.

That was the go ahead to hit dial and make a reservation.

Next it was Ft. Lauderdale.  We stayed in Weston and fell in love with Lester's Diner.

Close by was Sawgrass Mills, a huge mall with outlet stores and department stores.

People come from all over and shop with suitcases.

Virginia Beach

We planned a late winter/early spring trip this year that will involve 8 weeks and 8 different locations not counting any overnights we need while traveling.

Two of the weeks we're away are because we're using 2 free weeks that we got from rcicruiser.com that came along with cruises.  Last year we did the transatlantic and Baltic and this year we're doing the Western Caribbean.  We originally were going to head straight to Florida in March but then found out that Brittany was getting married March 28th in Maryland, the day after we were going to come back from the cruise so we had to make some changes.  How we put this whole package together is amazing.

We didn't want to drive all the way south and then fly back north so the first thing we did was change the date of our cruise and we were even able to get the same cabin.  We found a place in Virginia Beach for the first week then a week in Williamsburg, VA before going to the wedding.  I have to admit that I wasn't looking forward to our first two weeks.  The winter was so cold and the idea of heading not so far south where it wasn't that warm either did not appeal to me.  I would have preferred to stay home and be cold.  Plus we had to pack for 3 different trips and I HATE packing, or rather deciding what to pack.

A couple of days before the trip I started looking at the reviews of the places we were staying for those weeks on trip advisor and then I was even less ecstatic about going because the place in Virginia Beach had so many negative reviews.  Nevertheless, we were able to get packed, had more room in the Highlander than I thought we would and left home only 1/2 hour later than our 8:00 AM planned departure.  I packed sandwiches so we barely had to stop.  In fact, for the 14 hours it took us to get here I only made 2 bathroom stops.  Can't believe I did that especially with 2 cups of coffee in the car.  There was an accident on 64 - the only way to get to VB so we were stuck in bumper to bumper traffic for about 15 minutes.  It would have been a lot longer but we got off to get gas.  Good not only for a way to kill time but also for not running out on the bridge or in the tunnel.  We checked in and unloaded the car and ate leftover car food.  My first reaction was that I did not like this place but the next morning and ever since I've had nothing bad to say about this place.

We're in a great location at 33rd St right on the beach.

From our balcony (which we're not using because it's too cold) off the living room we have sunrises over the ocean.

From our balcony off the bedroom we have beautiful sunsets.

From our floor (7) we can look down to the pool on 4.

Sunday, our first full day here, the weather was pretty nice, around 60 and there were lots of people out.  You can ride horses on the beach.

This looks like a good way to walk your dog.

 King Neptune is a photo op spot.

On Monday we walked and walked along the beach boardwalk and then came back along the street to check out the stores.  Walking down Laskin we went to Farm Fresh and Starbucks!  The weather app said it was 71 today but the temperature really never got above the 50s - at least where we were.

Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana is a military airport located in Virginia Beach and is the only Master Jet Base on the East Coast. NAS Oceana's primary mission is to train and deploy the Navy's fighter/attack squadron-the F-14 Tomcats and the F/A-18 Hornets. Two H-3 Sea King helicopters also are assigned to NAS Oceana for search-and-rescue duties. Pilots stationed at NAS Oceana fly approximately 219,000 training operations each year (see more here) and on Monday they were doing touch and go training the entire day.  I was so impressed with these jets flying overhead I tried taking pictures of them flying overhead.  Every time I would try to take a picture I never could see anything through the camera screen but I just took the pictures anyway.  All but 3 of the many I took had the jets in them.  The sound is kind of soothing.

When we came back we went into the super warm pool.  It felt so good.

There are always ships going by.  This is super zoomed.

On Tuesday it was really in the 70s - notice short sleeves, so we walked 4 miles round trip on the boardwalk.

The annual Shamrock Marathon is coming up this weekend and the boardwalk is part of the route for some of the other races.  Workmen were busy setting up tents and facilities.

After walking we went to play golf and the temperature hit 83 degrees.

 On Wednesday the temperature dropped 30 degrees and we were able to get our picture taken without any other tourists.  So glad I took my gloves and fleece headband.

 We finally walked to the end of the boardwalk.

 This truck got stuck in the sand.  Hope he got out.

 No one was on the beach.

 No one was eating outdoors either.

On Thursday, just to do something different than walk on the Boardwalk with 4 layers on we went to the Lynnhaven Mall.  It's a huge mall and we walked around the whole things as well as through the anchor stores and some others that I wanted to check out.  The last store we stopped into before we were ready to leave was the Apple store.  We couldn't believe how empty it was compared to the one in Victor.  We left a couple of hours later.  I had a new MacBook Air and Larry an iPhone 6.  We had no intention of buying anything but at least it wasn't something we didn't need.  I still had my Macbook from 2007 which was so-o-o slow and frustrating and Larry had a 3GS.

Today, Friday, is our last full day here and it's cold and rainy but we have our new toys.

Falling Apart?

With only 10 days left before we were leaving for 8 weeks things started going.
First a bridge in my mouth got unglued.  Fortunately I was able to get into the dentist the next morning and have it glued back.

The hard drive on our iMac is in a non repair state but that will have to wait until I get back to get a new one since I probably wouldn't have had it back before we left so it might as well sit at my house than in a repair shop.  I'm going to take it to the place in Pittsford, Fixingfox, where I took my memory to have installed after I couldn't get it to stay in when I tried to do it myself.  This time I'm not even going to try to do it myself.

And then I all of a sudden was getting a little desperate about my hip and would have gotten another cortisone shot if I could have gotten an appointment but I couldn't.

Amazon delivers on Sunday??

I almost forgot to order the bug spray and lotion that was recommended by fellow cruisers on Cruise Critic for our upcoming Western Caribbean trip that will take us to some buggy places.  I ordered it on Friday from Amazon and since we have a Prime membership was informed that it would be delivered on Tuesday.

Today we went over to see Marge and Darren.  We wanted to see the work they've been doing to create 2 new bedrooms and a bathroom and drop off the quilt I made for the baby that will be born while we are gone.  After we drove into the driveway Larry went to check on what was happening with the huge ice mounds that have started melting on the roof above our kitchen by our front door.

He came into the house with a package in his hands from Amazon and it was for me.  I couldn't imagine what it was unless I ordered something that I completely forgot about and of course I didn't like thinking about that - you know, that Alzheimer's worry.  And when did it get deliverd, no one delivers on Sunday.

I opened the package and sure enough, it was my bug stuff.  I went to the computer to look up the tracking information and sure enough, found this:
Sunday, March 8, 2015 10:46 AM, Webster NY US               Delivered

So then I had to Google "amazon delivers on sunday" and found out that they do!!

Have I been living under a rock??  It started in LA and NYC in 2013 so if I knew it I just let it go in one ear and out the other because it didn't apply to me and maybe I heard about it for Christmas but thought it was just for Christmas.  But in Webster?  In March?  Is this a good thing or necessary?  I was fine with my package coming on Tuesday but OK that it came on Sunday.  It's a good thing thought, that Larry went to the front door because otherwise it could have sat there for days.  Found two interesting articles about the situation.

This one explains it's existence.  Click here.

This one is from the point of view of a postal worker.  Interesting read.  Click here. 

south of the border chicken bake

ingredients

• 3 cups (24 ounces) enchilada sauce (I like salsa better)
• 18 corn tortillas (6-inch), cut in half ( I use 16)
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels
• 1 1/2 cups canned black beans, drained and rinsed
• 4 cups shredded plain rotisserie chicken, skin and bones discarded
• 4 cups shredded cheddar or pepper jack cheese 
• 2 medium scallions, chopped 
• Sour cream, for serving

directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 13-inch casserole pan.

Pour 1/2 cup enchilada sauce onto the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread around with the back of the spoon. 

Arrange about a quarter of the tortilla halves on top of the sauce. Sprinkle 1/2 cup corn, 1/2 cup beans, 1 cup chicken, 1 cup cheese and 1/2 cup sauce top of the tortillas. Top with another layer of tortillas, and repeat layering with the same ingredients and tortillas 2 more times. After the last layer of tortillas is placed, top with the remaining 1 cup chicken and 1 cup enchilada sauce. Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup cheese on top.

Bake covered in the oven until hot and the cheese is melted, about 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 10 minutes. Sprinkle chopped scallions on top and serve with sour cream.

Tip: Rinsing canned beans can reduce their sodium by as much as 40%.

Makes 16 servings @ 7 PP

5 PP if use light cheese

I got the original recipe from http://www.target.com/r/recipes/south-border-chicken-bake-recipe

February in Webster

Conversation from February 12th
Larry to Me:  Would you like to go Cross Country Skiing today?
Me:      Didn't you mean to ask "Would I go Cross Country Skiing, not "Would I like to", because you know I never like to!"
Now I don't know why that is always my response for any kind of outdoor activity in the winter.  It could be because I hate the cold.  It could be that I don't want to have to get dressed.  Or it could be that I don't want to do anything except stay home and play on my computer or do something craftsy.
However, the truth is every time we do go do something at Larry's prodding, I LOVE IT!!!

Here are some (a lot) of the beautiful pictures from our glorious days outdoors this month in the FREEZING COLD

balab issue 02

I finally came up with a topic for a new magazine.  This one is only 24 pages with very little text so it was much easier to do.  I hope Brittany likes it.

balab magazine by Barb Boudens
|
Make Your Own Book

Baby Quilt

Quilt front

Unlike my t-shirt quilt, I made this baby quilt over a few days.
I even tried a new way to sew on the binding in one strip.

Quilt Back

I used flannel for the front and fleece for the back.
I used 5 different flannel patterns and cut them into 5 inch strips with a 1/2 inch seam.
My goal was to have 4 in squares.
Then I sewed the strips together in the order I wanted them for each row.
Then I sewed them together and cut them into 5 inch strips which saved a lot of time cutting into individual 5 inch squares.
The only problem with this was that I needed to reinforce the ends so the stitching wouldn't come out.

After I sewed them together I laid the front onto the back and stitched in the ditch over all the seams.
I used this method <click here>  to put on the binding. I made the binding from another piece of flannel.

Socks

I finally finished these socks that I started a year ago.  So far I've done all my socks on dp needles.
For my next pair I'm going to try using the Magic Loop.  I just ordered a size 000 circular needle.
That's the size I need to use to have the socks come out with the fit I like.  Maybe one of these days I'll be able to make a pair good enough to give to someone.

New RAV4

I just leased my 4th RAV4 yesterday.  I kept the same silver color but the design is entirely different.  The tire isn't on the back end anymore, a feature I'll miss because it made finding my car easier in a parking lot and it opens up now instead of out.

So far I've had a silver 2006 a red 2009 a silver 2012 and now a silver 2015.  When I got the 2012 I was going to write to Toyota and tell them about all the changes I didn't like that they made to the car, but of course I never did.  I didn't even document them here and it wasn't until yesterday that I thought about it when I focused on all the changes that they made now that I don't like.  Maybe if I wasn't so lazy and didn't hate car shopping I wouldn't have gotten this car and would have looked for the perfect one, but I didn't.  It was easier just to take this one.

These are the things I didn't like that they did to 2012:
They took the phone buttons off the steering wheel and moved them over by the radio on the dashboard.  Dangerous!!  I don't remember how you looked up phonebook names in 2009 but the 2012 way also didn't seem as easy.  I didn't like that they got rid of SiriusXM radio, especially since Larry was paying for it.

But now in 2015 I have even more complaints, although I do like the advances in the technology and they did put the phone buttons back on the steering wheel.  I guess I wasn't the only one who didn't like that change.  BUT, THEY TOOK AWAY the upper glove box, the sunglass holder over the windows, the electric outlet in the back seat and the small upper storage area in the console storage box.  The pockets on the doors were reshaped so my maps won't fit in there anymore and who knows what else I'll find when I actually use the car.  They did put SiriusXM back in the car and I have 3 months free but Larry didn't volunteer to pay for it again so not sure if I'll get it since I usually listen to my books.  There's now GPS in the car, no choice, and they moved the backup viewer down to the GPS area from the rearview mirror which is nice.

1/25/15 - Update - another negative.  I don't like the door locking keyless mechanism.  On the old RAV4 you just pushed a button on the handle and all the doors would lock.  On this new one you put your finger where the grooves are and it locks.  However, unless I'm doing something wrong, it doesn't lock if you have gloves on.  I did get it to lock once with the gloves that you can use with an iPhone that has the special fingertips but I was only able to do it once.  I do love driving it though!

July 2015 update:  the back seats don't move up or back.  I noticed this when I wanted to move the seats up so I had more room in the back for golf clubs and cart.  Now the only way to get more space is to put the seat down but then you lose the seat.

Greta's Interview in PRWeek

The original article is here:  http://www.prweek.com/article/1329336/pitney-bowes-conveying-new-identity-digital-age
It is reprinted here with no one's permission - hope it's OK - I'm the Mom!

How Pitney Bowes is conveying a new identity for the digital age

Added 1 hour ago by Diana Bradley , Be the first to comment

Pitney Bowes' VP of brand strategy explains what went into a major redesign and how the company is communicating about its new identity.

Pitney Bowes' former logo (left) compared to the new one (right)

Hunter's Day

Greta shared this email that she and Charles got from Hunter's media teacher.    I am so proud of Hunter and Greta and Charles fur the great job they are doing with all three boys.

"I've been meaning to email much sooner but there's always something that comes up through out the work days that interferes. So I set an alarm on my phone to sit down and type this very important email to you.
This email is important as I want to express to you what a wonderful son you have.
 Hunter has been a pleasure since the start of the school year. He is attentive during media class instruction. He is engaged in the work.
 He is patient with technology. He is respectful of his peers. He's always polite at bus duty. 

When he arrives in the media center he not only greets me hello but asks how I am doing that day. He even says good-bye and have a good day while boarding the bus. 

I will be a first time parent of a son in just three weeks! I know that being a teacher and being a parent are two very different things.
 But having been a teacher for 12 years, I have had many students and come to know many families. It is not often that I send an email to parents in awe of how they raised their child. But I am today.  I admire how you have raised Hunter and I only hope that my son can be as diligent, kind, and respectful. 

Thank you."