A Blast From the Past

Last night we used a gift certificate that our daughter and son in law gave us for Christmas. We went to the Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre here in Fort Myers to see Guys and Dolls. I had called yesterday afternoon and they had just had a cancellation for 6 people at table C2. We could have the two seats closest to the railing which was fine by me. The theatre had a proscenium stage (you know—the kind that has a curtain that goes up and down?) and then about 7 levels, each about a foot higher than the last, for tables. Some tables are for two, some for 4, and some for 6 or 8. Ours was a table for 8. There were already two people there at the opposite end of the table when we got there. As we were eating our salad, 4 more showed up and crammed themselves into the remaining four spots. They had been seated near the back but wanted to move closer. After sitting there for about 3 minutes, they decided it was too crowded (at least that was the reason they gave. Hmmmm) and moved back to their original table. So we had a table for 8 for the 4 of us. Lots of room to stretch out. A big buffet was set up with lots of salads, pork loin, beef, salmon, pasta, veggies, and tons of desserts. Adult beverages were extra but of course we had to have a couple. The food was good and the service was great.

Now on to the play. I LOVE Guys and Dolls. Many moons ago when I was totally involved in the Fort Findlay Playhouse Community Theatre, I worked on this show. For the life of me, I can’t remember in what capacity but I think it was probably lights. That meant I got to sit in the light booth every night and sing along (quietly) to every song. And what great songs they were. Guys and Dolls, Fugue for Tinhorns, A Bushel and a Peck, If I Were a Bell, I’ve Never Been in Love Before, Take Back Your Mink, Luck Be a Lady, and my all time favorite, Sit Down You’re Rocking the Boat. The last one is what is commonly referred to as the 10:00 Waker Upper. (It seems that every musical has a big rock ‘em sock ‘em number around 10:00 which is usually the showstopper number of the show.) Anyway, this is the number in Guys and Dolls and the number last night was fantastic. The couple that played the leads, Sky Masterson and Sarah Brown, were great. Good voices and good acting. The other lead couple was half and half. The guy that played Nathan Detroit was ok. Good voice but a bit over the top acting wise. The gal that played Adelaide was WAY over the top. She way over acted and even though she wore a mic, it was like she felt she needed to shout. Adelaide is such a fun part and I didn’t enjoy this Adelaide at all. The Guys were great. Good voices, good dancers etc. The guy that played Big Julie was super. He was about 6’6 and built like a football player but boy could he act, dance, and sing. When we did the show in Findlay, we didn’t have a big guy try out for the part so we cast the shortest guy we could find and went against type. It was pretty funny actually. (Hey, Karen, do you remember any of the rest of the cast?? Or were you too young to remember? Hint—it was Bill’s first play at FFP and he, Terry, and Dan were all in the show.)

Anyway, this was our first trip to Broadway Palm. We have been to the Barbara B. Mann Theatre to see road shows of Evita, Man of La Mancha (which incidentally I directed at FFP) and Lion King and we are regulars at the Schoolhouse Theatre on the island (which by the way we attended this week also) but we’ve never been to the Broadway Palm. Last night’s trip won’t be our last. I love musicals and this is about all they do. They also have a second stage where they perform smaller shows. Right now they are doing Monkey Business which is described as Nunsense but with monks. They had the cast give our audience one brief song last night before our show started. I would love to see that show too. Shows coming up on the main stage are Caberet and 42^nd Street. I guess we’ll just have to go and see some more theatre!

Anyway, thank you Karen and Michael for the gift certificate. It was a wonderful Christmas gift. One we sure didn’t expect and one we enjoyed immensely.

Wordless Wednesday-Peekaboo

Luka enjoying himself in the stroller.

Enjoy more Wordless Wednesdays at Wordless Wednesday and at 5 Minutes for Mom

Also, I know you are all busy checking out everyone's Wordless Wednesday but take the time to bookmark me and drop back to check out my blog. I am a retired Special Ed teacher who now spends most of her time on Sanibel Island, Florida volunteering for a Wildlife hospital rescuing and rehabbing wildlife. I even dumpster dive for injured Raccoons!! I am also the proud grandma of 5 wonderful grandkids and brag about them often!! OK, enough about me. Back to Wordless Wednesday

The Trip Pictures--As Promised

Ok, I promised some pics of our trip to San Diego. And of course, some brag pictures of the grandkids. So here goes.

My daughter, the photographer, sometimes has to be held back from getting the perfect picture. This was taken in the Meditation Garden in Encinitas. The Gardens are a beautiful spot overlooking the Pacific.

We took a three hour tour. No, not on the Minnow but on the retired Aircraft Carrier Midway.

The San Diego Zoo Wild Animal Park is a great place. We took the tour but not the one pictured. Maybe someday when the kids are older. It was also amazing to see how close the awful fires they had there in October came to the park. The firemen did an amazing job saving it.

We spent one day in Ensenada, Baha California, Mexico. Lots of shops and restaurants.

And of course, when you are in Mexico, you eat in a Mexican restaurant. Does a Mexican McDonald's qualify as a Mexican restaurant???

We did eat in another nice restaurant in Mexico other than McDonald's but you know the old saying "Don't drink the water". I guess that applies to ice cubes too so we didn't sample any Margaritas. We saved that for later. Here is Mr. Snowbird sampling an adult beverage in a quaint little Mexican restaurant--in San Diego.

OK, now for some brag photos of my grandkids. If I posted them all you would be here all day looking at pictures so I had to choose a few of my favorites.

The twins with a friend.


Noah bailing Grandpa out of jail.


It's usually difficult to get a picture of the twins together but here they are sharing a moment with Mommy.

Luka in a shirt his Uncle Dave bought for him. And yes, he does do all his own stunts. The child doesn't walk--he jumps--all the time!!!

I love this picture of Ethan waving. He looks so innocent. If that were only true!!

Our boys love flowers. I could do a whole picture gallery alone of them with flowers.

Don't you just love those eyes? And his "Say Cheese" smile?

And of course, boys will be boys and brothers will be brothers and sometimes there is a little roughhousing.

And with a little roughhousing comes a few tears.

We had a fantastic time with Karen, Michael, Noah, Ethan and Luka. I know they enjoyed seeing us but were probably pretty happy to get back to some semblance of normality around their house--whatever that is! LOL. Thanks guys for a wonderful time.

While We Were Gone

Our friends, Steve and Diana, took us to the airport last week so we left our car at their house. Diana called early Tuesday morning to tell us that someone had gone on a rampage in their neighborhood and had broken into several cars--including theirs and ours. Mr. Snowbird talked to the police on the phone but it appeared that nothing was taken from our car. We had put the GPS under the seat and they didn't find it. And apparently they didn't want my Scottish/Celtic CD's--which apparently the police thought pretty funny. When we got back yesterday, Diana told us that she had washed the car because of all of the fingerprint dust all over the car. She hadn't done the inside of the door frames so I did that today. What a mess! I felt like I had been fingerprinted when I was done because of all the black on my fingers. Anyway, after looking through our stuff, I realized that they had taken one folder of CD's. No, they didn't take the Scottish/Celtic ones (thank goodness!!) but they did take one that had some non celtic favorites. Many were those that I can't replace and I'm not even sure of what all was in there. I sure hope that whoever took them is enjoying them!! Although, I doubt that anyone who needs to break into cars would enjoy the likes of Neil Diamond, Dulcimer music, Wine Country Favorites, Somewhere in Time, Josh Grobin, etc. Apparently whoever broke into our cars, broke into some more cars in the neighborhood the next night. Brazen, huh? Or maybe he just likes CD's!!

Continuing to Keep Busy

I left off the last post with us planning to stay with the twins while Karen and Michael had a day (well at least 3 or 4 hours) off on their own. They enjoyed a walk on the beach and lunch out while we enjoyed the two little ones. After they returned, Karen and I went to the Bead Shop. She had taken a class in beading and wondered if I was interested. Wanting some quality mother/daughter time, I said sure. So we went to sign up for a class and to just look around. OMG--beads, beads, beads--a warehouse FULL of nothing but beads. I immediately started picking out beads that I wanted to use.

Yesterday, we headed to our class where we each made a necklace. OK, I think I'm hooked!! I looked on the internet and found that there is a bead shop--with classes--a block from my house on Sanibel. Guess I'll be visiting that when I get home. After Noah got home from school we packed up the car and headed to the San Diego Zoo. Gotta get use out of our memberships! It closed at 5:00 so we saw quite a lot in the 3 hours we had. We did have to head for cover a couple of times since the heavens opened up and dropped some rain on us. We got to see a couple of baby chimps in the nursery who were just adorable. Since it was a bit cold, many of the animals were inside but we did see the gorillas, elephants, some birds and of course, Noah's favorites, the Poison Dart Frogs.

Today, I got part of my birthday present. When asked what I wanted I said I wanted a day with my daughter. Since we spent a couple of hours in beading class yesterday, Michael and Mr. Snowbird gave us a half day today. So we headed to an interesting shopping area on Cedros St. in Solana Beach-called a Design Center. Breakfast in a cute little outdoor cafe, then roaming through shops and stores, then coffee and cookies back at the same cafe. Karen has a new camera so she took lots and lots of neat pictures of flowers in one of the garden shops and some of the little sparrows who were trying to share our cookies with us.

Tomorrow, we have to start packing and I have to figure out how I am going to get all of my purchases in my luggage!! It has been a very full, busy, fun, exhausting week. I've loved spending time with Karen, Michael and the grandkids and I promise I will post some pictures next week.

I will miss the kids but I have to admit I will be glad to get back to warm weather, shorts, the beach etc. I love San Diego but I think I like it a wee bit better in the summer. Too cold for my thin Florida blood!!

Still Keeping Busy

Still no pictures for my blog but we are taking LOTS. (I'll post pictures when I get home.)

Yesterday, Karen, Mr. Snowbird, Noah and I went to Ensenada, Mexico. Ensenada is a lot nicer that Tijuana, not as much border craziness. The first thing we did was hit McDonalds. When in Mexico, do as the natives do!! Well, Noah was hungry and it seemed the best place to go. After that, we hit the shops. Lots of neat things to look at and buy. I didn't go super crazy shopping but got a few neat things. We had dinner in a very nice Mexican restaurant. Afterall, we were in Mexico. But, we had seafood not tacos or tortillas or tamales etc. And--no margaritas. When in Mexico, don't drink the water--or eat the ice cubes!! So it was wine and bottled water for me and beer for Mr. Snowbird and Pepsi for Karen as she was driving. The drive home was uneventful until we hit Tijuana and had to sit in line for 1 1/4 hours at the border waiting to get up to customs. When we got there, we handed him our 4 passports which he looked at briefly, gave them back and sent us on our way. We got home about 10:00, then sat and decided what to do today.

Noah returned to school today after a month's vacation. San Diego is on year round school with a month in the winter, a month in the spring, and a month in the summer off from school. So, Michael (best son in law in the world!!!!) stayed home with the twins while Karen, Mr. Snowbird and I went to Old Town San Diego, the Presidio (site of the very beginnings of San Diego) and an area that has a lot of old homes that have been saved, moved to this site, and restored. Mostly beautiful old Victorian homes. Again, we wandered through lots of shops and finally had a real margarita and nachos in a very nice Mexican restaurant. All the while, poor Michael was at home with two cranky toddlers and Noah who got home from school at 2:00. Did I mention I have the best son in law in the world??? Anyway, we got home about 5:30 in time to feed kids and send them off to never never land.

Tomorrow, we are being the kind parents and are taking care of the twins while Karen and Michael have some time to themselves and have a lunch date. I haven't got the stamina or the nerve to let them have an evening date where I would have to give all three kids their meals and get them to bed.

Anyway, we are having a great time with the grandkids, our daughter and her super hubby, seeing the sights in San Diego, and adjusting to west coast time. Keep checking back as I'll post more soon.

Keeping Busy

We have been very busy since we landed in San Diego. Yesterday we toured the Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum. Very interesting and very large. Karen and Michael carried the twins in packs on their backs so we had to keep warning them of low headroom. Today we went to the San Diego Wildlife Park. We joined the SD Zoo as members last summer so got in free today at the Wildlife Park. It is a great area and we got to see where the fires in October came right up to the wall around the park. We saw lots of burn areas. The firemen did an amazing job of saving many, many homes around here. Tomorrow, Karen, Noah, Mr. Snowbird and I are headed for Ensenada, Mexico for the day while Michael (God bless him!!) stays with the twins. I would post pictures but haven't downloaded any of the thousands I have taken since I've been here. Maybe when I get home. Anyway, just wanted everyone to know what I've been up to. More later.