Our Anniversary Hostesses

We'd like to introduce you to the two ladies who treated us to an Anniversary Dinner at Carrabba's. You know me as the chubby, bald one on the far left and Helen next to me. On the right, nearest to the camera is Rita Lang, photographer extraordinaire. Behind Rita is Barbara Kennedy, the chef of their house and the baker of the best coconut cream pie ever made.



Carrabba's Restaurant is Helen's favorite and she had Pollo Mama Rosa, a chicken dish. To be honest, I don't think Helen has ever tried another dish there. The service was great and Rita even ordered an Anniversary desert of ice cream and coated pecans.....delicious!!! As I said before, we had a great time with great company and we can't thank them enough.

43 years and counting

Well folks, Helen and I celebrated our 43rd wedding anniversary today. 43 years......it sure doesn't feel that long, yet it's difficult for me to remember my life before Helen became a part of it. Our good friends, The Barita Girls, Barb and Rita took us to dinner at Helen's favorite restaurant. It was a very, very special time. The food and service were perfect and the company could not have been better. I think that Barb and Rita are now officially family.

You're probably wondering how an old SOB like me caught a hot chick like Helen. Scroll down and you will see that I was not always a fat, bald old man.

Helen's Dad, Russell, getting ready to walk Helen down the aisle.

Here's the happy couple. Please notice the hair. No, not her's, MINE!!!!!

Our ride to the reception. It seems like I have a bit more chin(s) than I remember.

You can't see below, but we're getting ready to cut the cake. When we got to the part where the bride feeds the groom and the groom feeds the bride, we did not get off on the wrong path by smashing the cake in each other's face. Helen was and is too classy to play that game.

And here we are in my '65 Le Mans convertible, heading away from the reception and off to a week on the Maine coast.

Two years ago we revisited some of the places we visited in Maine and were so surprised to see all the changes in just 41 years. Of course, coastal property anywhere is prime real estate and I think that it's even more so along parts of the Maine coast.

I can't thank Rita and Barb enough for making this anniversary one of the most memorable in the last 43 years. They are thoughtful through and through.

Trying to catch up!

Here I am again behind the eight ball as far as my blog is concerned. As if that wasn't pressure enough, Jodie and Coco, and now even Sandy are on my case to work on their blog also. I feel a little guilty because my friend Sam is so diligent about maintaining his blog. However, he only has Riggs where I have three dogs to take care of.

Helen and I have been busy passing our puppies on to their new homes. I already addressed the Friday night transfer. In fact, we already got several pictures back on his new life. The new family is waiting for him to distinguish himself in some way before they give him a name. Saturday morning we turned over to a nice couple from Orlando. They will call him Max, but will also refer to him sometimes as El Diabalo or the White Tornado. He was the liveliest of the litter, the most trouble and also the most fun. What spirit! We had a lot of fun playing with him outside.

Saturday night Aria, the lone female, had the house to herself and she didn't like it. She was lonesome and Helen spend a lot of time sitting in the pen holding her. Sunday morning her Ft. Meyers family came to pick her up. The little girl was very pleased and even the little boy warmed up to the new family member. It appears to be a case where Aria will grow up with the two children in the stereotypical American family. We wish them all well.

We're not exactly without company as we have Sandy along with our own two dogs. Sandy has become one of the family and she is very bright. She sees Jodie or Coco do something and very quickly picks it up. She mimics Jodie's tendency to greet us with something she picks up off the floor. Our girls also showed her how to chase squirrels. Sandy is just a tad taller than our two Labs, which means that she can see out over the windowsill. This gives her a great perspective on the ten squirrels who play in our back yard. She'll see them and start barking and wants to go out. Jodie and Coco will also start baying as they charge for the door. Squirrels beware!

Sandy also learned the meaning of "supper", "cookie", "out". She also knows that after their last outing of the night, they get a good night cookie, so when she comes in, she hangs around for the treat, just like the other two. So far, Sandy is causing us no trouble. Tomorrow she'll be going to the vet for booster shots and in a couple of weeks we'll take her in to be spayed.

Now, Helen and I are getting the motorhome and Jeep ready to go to the east coast for a few days. My brother has a place in Palm Bay and we have a reservation just around the corner at a dog friendly RV park with WiFi. Rick, my brother, is having some problems with his Florida car and I have the tools to fix it. Specifically, it's an air conditioning problem and I have the gauges and vacuum pump to get it working again. That shouldn't take us too long. We'll go out to eat each night and hang around during the day. I found an off leash dog park not far away and we expect to take the dogs often.

Helen and I got a new camera last week, A Canon EOS Rebel T2i. It is a digital single lens reflex and is the best camera we've ever owned. One of the features is burst mode, where the pictures are taken continuously as long as the shutter release is down. That is how we were able to rack up over 1000 pictures in just a few days. Trust me, we will never forget those puppies. They say the imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. That my be true. I took my camera to show a couple of friends. They looked at it and took a few pictures and before I could leave they had placed an order for two more cameras just like mine. They have a couple of exceptional trips scheduled in coming months and will now have camera that can maximize their memories.

As a matter of fact, we will not forget the last litter of pups either. The pups we raised last November and December were born 8/23/2009, so they were a year old Saturday. We got an email from Talulah, the only black female lab we had in that litter. She has become a real beauty, classical Labrador Retriever in every sense' It's apparent that her family is taking very good care of her and the pictures suggest that she's having a great time with them.

We both agree that having the puppies were a lot of work and that we will not do it again. However, over time one forgets the work and remembers the reward and who knows what we'll do in the future.

Well, it's late and I'm exhausted. I also want to shut down the computer before the dogs get wise and force me to work on their blog.

Riggs......behave yourself!!!! Sam has his hands full right now. I'm sure that he will more than make up for it when he gets home.

More later.

Paul

Today is the day we give this one away.

Today is the day we give this one away as his new family is on the way to get him. It's nice to know that we've done a pretty good job and we couldn't be more pleased with his new family. Of course, they don't know him yet, so they have no idea what they're getting except his appearance.

What they will bring home is the most mellow of the litter. Oh, he loves to play and romp, but he's not as vocal as Aria or El Diabalo. He is content, and that's a big plus with a litter as he doesn't require the attention that the other two do. I think the new family will find that he will be an easy dog to integrate into the family. Very mellow, but he aims to please. To say we will miss him is a great understatement. We only gave temporary names to two of the pups, Aria due to her constant yowling early on, and El Diabalo due to his constant high pitched yipping. I hope the new family picks a name befitting his mellow temperament.

All the work and sleepless nights all boil down to the last week or so when they sleep most of the night and are so much fun to play with. Two more to go. We'll still have our two and the momma, so we will not be lonely and the older dogs can get more of the attention they crave.

More later.

Enjoying the last few days.

Helen and I are sure enjoying the pups the last few days. They are at the right age to be a lot of fun. The little white devil is a real joy to have around, in spite of his big mouth. When we're outside and he wanders away, when we call him he comes running full speed. Of course we make the most of it and give him a big scratch. Since he has also become quite the lover he enjoys being cuddled too.

In the picture below the pups are enjoying the freedom of the whole kitchen. It works well for us because the become very active and soon tire out. A sleeping puppy is a quiet puppy.

Below, the White Tornado is surveying his territory. In another second he will be running full speed toward something he sees in the yard.

Here is the White Tornado mid-stride as he races to me. He comes so quickly and every time we call. The other two pups tend to ignore us.

Below is the tan male. He has no name because he never did anything to irk us. He is an extremely mellow puppy and his new people will be getting a dog that will be a real joy.

I hung a toy from a tree branch and all the pups enjoyed playing. The branch is supple enough to let the pups pull and the branch pull back,making the toy seem alive. Again, you will notice who has control of the toy and who is standing by.

So we are having a ball with the puppies and look forward to the weekend with mixed emotions. It will be nice to be free again, but we will miss the puppies something awful. There is the feeling in the middle of the night when they're barking constantly, but the feeling out in the yard makes it all worthwhile.

Right now, the tan male is being picked up Friday evening, El Diabalo Saturday morning, and Aria Sunday morning.

More later.

Three more days!

Yes, just three more days and the last of the puppies will be gone. Last Saturday I took the six "boxer type" puppies to a no-kill puppy shelter in Orlando. Yesterday I got a call from the shelter thanking me for bringing them the puppies. Although Lab Rescue had the puppies to the vet a few times for de-worming and shots, Puppy Pleasers had a vet check out the puppies and pronounced them all well. since Saturday, we have only had the mother and the three Lab looking pups. Unfortunately we still have the white male who barks when ever he's not sleeping. I think he can be heard from one end of our street to the other.

I'm not barking!!!

No, he's not barking in this picture because he's running around outside. He LOVES to be outside and is constantly expanding his universe. If you recall the great escape artist, it was this white male. The pen could no longer keep him so I took it down. With only the three pups, Helen and I can control them outside and the sure like to run around, inspecting everything. Still, they are determined to explore a little more and more each time they go out. They are all too happy to dash into the woods.

Aria...dashing from one place to another.

Not a bucketful, but a handful, at least.

We're making the most of the last few days with a lot of hands-on attention. They really enjoy being outside, but they do well inside if they have the whole kitchen and part of the family room and hall. The thought is that if we give them enough exercise, it will tire them out. It works, but the mouth barks shrilly for awhile after we out him back in the pen.

Helen and I got a new camera yesterday that will, (I hope), allow us to get better pictures of wildlife. It's an 18 megapixel Canon T2i and the above pictures were taken with it. It's considerably more complicated that any camera we've had before, so it'll take us a while to get up to speed.

Finally, I want to thank all my friends for their birthday wishes. Year 67 is done and now I'm going back to 39.

Paul

Happy Birthday to Me!

Another year another birthday. I sit here puzzled that a young man like me could possibly be 67 years old. I mean, I enjoy life more now than I did back then. I feel pretty good, most of the time. The point is that I don't feel old. My father was dead at 62, but he was never an old man. He died very quickly from a brain tumor,but was extremely active until the end. His mental acuity never flagged and he was always a joy to have around.

On the other hand, my mother was always an old lady and always required a lot of care. She was a stout, robust woman but chose to let the family do as much for her as they would. My Dad doted on her and after his passing it fell to my brother. He and my Mom lived in Massachusetts, but my family and I moved to Florida a short time after Dad passed on. My brother tried to please my Mom, but it was an impossible aim. A few years later, Mom moved to Florida about a mile from me and I took over the caretaker role. It wasn't that taking care of her was so difficult, it was that the job was constant. She wanted me over her house to do something or another all the time.

During this time we also had Helen's Mom and my Aunt also living close and we were watching them too. Every Friday night Helen would have all the ladies over to play cards, often after serving them supper. I could hear the squabbling as the older ladies were hard of hearing and the conversations I could overhear were often pure comedy. Helen is a saint.

All of that generation is gone for us, and that has allowed us to get to Canada on four or five occasions, Mexico, Western US, and Alaska. We are like a couple of 30 year olds enjoying the heck out of life. I sure hope it continues.

Then, out of the blue, I consider my sons, 39 and 40. I could hardly be 30 myself. How about my grandchildren, 7 to 22? How about my great granddaughter almost 2? You can see where this is going.

I take great joy in our friends who are a bit older than we are, who still enjoy life with the fervor of 20 year olds. I am elated to see all the people in campgrounds who are MUCH older that we are. On our trip to Alaska we met quite a number of campers who are well into their 80s.

I think it's a case of people who keep doing things, keep going and those who stop doing things just stop. It seems like all of our older friends are looking forward to next year and the year after. I'm the same way. next year we will most likely go back to Atlantic Canada and may go back to Newfoundland. In 2012, if the Mayan calendar is wrong, I want to go back to Alaska.

I've ordered a new camera for Helen so we can get some super wildlife shots and will not have to rely on the generosity of fellow tourists to email us the better pictures. Still young at heart, I have my eye on a few toys for me, also.

I guess I've rambles on long enough. Thank you, my friends, just for being you.

Paul