Friday's FIVE!

I am so fortunate to have a career I love... I work for the best rehab company in the country, Paragon Rehab....and I am so fortunate to have co-workers that I love to work with... I respect my team-mates... and am so blessed to be a part of the team! One of the advantages of my position - is the travel that I have the opportunity to do... While I get lonely on the road, and I miss being home with Bruce and Millie - I do get see so many wonderful places around the country. This weeks Friday's FIVE! is a look at the five places I have been in the last few weeks!



1. Louisville, Kentucky - The location of our home office...I love Louisville. I love the feeling I have when I drive across the Ohio River and see the cityscape... there are so many wonderful things to do in Louisville...and as a road warrior, I'm always happy to spend some time with my team-mates! http://www.gotolouisville.com/



2. Lima, Ohio - A quick drive to our westward neighbor... My drivetime always give me time to enjoy my Sirius Radio - sing... pray... chat on the phone a little - and organize my thoughts.
http://www.limaohio.com/



3. Birmingham, Alabama - It is true what they say about southern hospitality. Everyone is so thoughtful, courteous and pleasant. We drove from Birmingham to Montgomery and stopped at a gas station to fill up the tank - I ran in to get a cup of coffee - and had a friendly conversation with the salesclerk as I poured my coffee. When I made my way to the counter to pay for the coffee - the salesclerk said to me, "Oh Ma'am, there is no charge for coffee here... enjoy your coffee and have a great day!" It made me smile the rest of the way to Montgomery! http://www.alabama.travel/



4. Hendersonville, Tennessee - Outside of Indiana, Tennessee is truly my favorite state. I love Nashville, home of our Paragon Office...I love Memphis - the BEST BBQ ever...and Eastern Tennessee in the Smoky Mountains is one of my favorite places in the world! I was reminded this weekend how much I love Tennessee. This wasn't a work related trip - This trip was a quick 24 hour trip with Bruce to go to Hendersonville, TN to pick up a new boat. We had a good time together - and we enjoyed the beautiful scenery of Tennessse and a taste of the Tennessee spring weather! http://www.tnvacation.com/



5. Claypool, Indiana - Sweet HOME Indiana! While I see wonderful places...and I enjoy so many different climates, scenery and friendly faces...there aren't any places I love as much as my own home. When the planes land...and I'm on the ground Indiana ~ I know I have arrived in my favorite place in the world. The place where my husband and my home are - the place where my grandsons live... where my mother and my oldest daughter reside. Oh, the wonderful, blessed comforts of home. http://www.kcgov.com/

Friday's FIVE!

March 22, 1955 ... Bruce was born in Grand Rapids, MI...

This weeks Friday FIVE! is a celebration of Bruce.... and a few things that I love about him ~

1. His School-boy Heart ~ Bruce is a true boy at heart ~ he is the epitome of "Snips and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails"... He likes to get dirty, he likes to play hard, he likes to shoot his guns ~ and sail his boats...His school boy heart makes a perfect playmate for his two grandsons!When it comes to buying Bruce gifts - most who know him well, know that a squirt gun, a nerf ball or some water balloons will make him just as happy as any costly gift.

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2. His Tender Heart ~ Bruce is peaceful and gentle...rarely gets mad or participates in angry conflict. His peacefulness has been such a blessed gift to me. His calm demeanor is evident with his youngest grandson, Trevor. From the time Trevor was a tiny infant - he would be calmed by sitting on Grandpa's lap. He still is... Bruce insists it is because the rest of us have to play with him and pick at him... and he just lets him 'sit'... Now that Trevor is getting bigger - if Grandpa is around, he is content to find a place close to Grandpa where he can sit and play.

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3. His Love for the Outdoors ~ We both love to be outside... playing in the sun ... in the water... in the woods... in the mountains... in the snow - if it is outside, we love it! Bruce has an innate need to be outside. He is a red-head...and a few minutes in the sun and his cheeks show the evidence of outside play. It is his place of solace... I will often find him outside sitting on the porch eating peanuts...or chopping wood or just walking around the yard. During the warm weather months - we are outside until bedtime - often cruising the lake in our pontoon, paddling our kayaks, pedaling our bikes or taking a walk.

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4. His is a Handyman! ~ Bruce can 'fix' almost anything.... If something is broke - he can usually fix it. If a coffee pot or hairdryer breaks - my response is to go buy a new one, he will usually 'fix' the item before I have the chance. Our boats and cars are always running in top-notch condition because he knows by the sound they make, the repair that might need done. He likes to 'fix' things - and is often found under the hood of his Volkswagen bus - or tearing apart a boat engine.

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5. His Essential Lifestyle ~ Bruce is more comfortable in his blue jeans and sweatshirts over fine dress apparel in most any situation. Essential living is far more important to him than the traditional 'finer things' such as fine leather shoes, fine wine and upscale restaurants. Of course, there are fine things he enjoys, and he is always willing to accomodate me if I want to enjoy a fine dining experience or a glass of wine, but the true essentials in life are what make him thrive. He prefers comfortable living with his family ... a cold beer at a local bar with close friends... his best worn jeans ... and classic rock and roll. Bruce's father passed away unexpectedly at the age of 62 - and because of that, Bruce is dedicated to taking care of his body - it is essential to him that he is faithful to his cardio and strength training routines. So, essential to Bruce... is family, friends, happiness and health.... and to me, that is his most endearing quality.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BRUCE... I love you!!!

Friday's FIVE!

Springtime at Yellow Creek Lake!!! Spring is not my favorite season... I'm a true lover of summer of fall.... but there is something magical about Spring - This week's Friday's FIVE! is a focus of five signs I've noticed this week that remind me that spring is just around the corner....
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1. HIGH WATER - We've had High Water since we've been residents at YCL, but this season is the record. The Tippecanoe River reached well over 15 feet causing flooding in the area. Standing in our living room was like standing on a boat = we had water all around us!!!
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2. LOONS and other migratory waterfowl.... I've seen hooded mergansers and wood ducks - I've seen Sand hill cranes... the robins are back and the Martin house goes up this week. We had dinner this week at El Arriero and saw a loon on Center lake....but we haven't seen or heard our resident loon yet. We anxiously await the call!

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3. CROCUS and other perennials are starting to pop up. I've got little buds of Rhubarb coming up ... it won't be long and the trees will be budding.

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4. FISHERMAN on the lake... this weekend we saw the first Fisherman of the season... it's time for all the lakers to return.

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5. DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME!!!! I LOVE Daylight Savings time!!!! It gives us an extra hour to enjoy the great outdoors!!!! The days are getting longer and the time has changed!!! While Spring is not my favorite season....it is the season that ushers in Summer... So - bring on the sunscreen, the hats, the coolers of beer and fun in the sun!!!! I LOVE SUMMER!!!

Friday's FIVE!

My California Cousins, Mark and Bob

Bruce and his brother Matt, first time together in 15 years!

Temecula ~ Wine Country

Kayaking in the Pacific

Humpback Whale ~ Splash after breaching 4 times!

Bruce and I have just experienced a wonderful trip to San Diego, California... We did so many wonderful things - and this Friday's FIVE! is a tribute to five of the highlights of our trip!

We enjoy so many of the same things...and have such a wonderful time together. The objective of this trip was to see whales while kayaking in the pacific as it is whale migration season...

The highlights of our trip include:

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1. A visit with my California Cousins... I stayed in Ocean Beach in 1973 with my cousin, Mark...and this time, Bruce and I rented a cottage in Ocean Beach...it was a wonderful little cottage less than a block from the ocean. It was so good to see my cousins again.... We were able to have dinner with them two times during our visit. I'm so fortunate to have a relationship with my cousins that live 2000 miles away.

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2. A visit with Bruce's brother, Matt, his wife Maria and his girls, Lauren and Angela. It was wonderful to meet Matt and his family...and it was wonderful to see Bruce visiting with his brother. It was the first time they had seen each other in 15 years!! We were able to have dinner together at Downtown Disney ~ it was a great visit.

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3. The vineyards in Temecula were a pleasant suprize and not something we had orginally planned to do - however, the weather on that day was too cool for kayaking....so we make the drive to the beautiful country and had such a great time tasting wine!! Our favorite winery was a friendly place family oriented place, Wilson Creek http://www.wilsoncreekwinery.com/

Winery. We enjoyed all the wines ~ and are looking forward to the deliveries of our wine purchases....including Wilson Wineries famous Almond Champagne!

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4. Our objective for the trip was to paddle during whale watching season... We paddled for about 4 hours with a guide all around LaJolla. We saw many, many sea lions, harbor seals and leopard sharks. The kelp forests were amazing... it was a an eventful paddle and we had a great time! All of the sights significantly reduced the disappointed fo the no-show of the whales.

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5. Because the whales were a no-show during the LaJolla paddle - we decided to take a harbor cruise ... a 'whale-watching' cruise. It was such an exciting event! We were several miles off shore when we saw a huge humpback whale breach ... FOUR times!!! After witnessing the humpback - we were treating to glimpes of 4 gray whales.... it was a wonderful.... truly awesome experience. I was thrilled to be able to check off a box on my 'bucket-list' by seeing the whales in the pacific!

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Honorable Mention

We also went to Disneyland, We toured the Midway, a retired Aircraft Carrier, We went to the San Diego zoo and saw the Panda Bears and we visited San Diego Wild Animal park. The evenings were spent at sunset cliffs watching the sun go down over Ocean Beach...and eating fish tacos and enjoying each other at many of the shops in Ocean Beach before settling in for the night in our bungalow... it was a great trip!