Happy Memorial Day!

Hi Everyone!

Happy Memorial Day! I hope you all are enjoying fun picnics and festivities and well, no...we aren't are we? Ah well. At least we are all hopefully safe at home.

It's a cloudy, rainy day here, which is kinda a bummer, but I got my walk in - and it was relatively cool, and Glenn took an extra long bike ride.

I have a bunch of pictures to share...sorry it has been a while. For some crazy reason, my work has actually picked up and I've been busier than usual. I count myself as very fortunate.

I was just doing the math and we've been in quarantine for 73 days now. But Glenn and I are lucky to be stuck in a sunny and beautiful place.

So, here we go - a random assortment of pictures.

Some folks get creative around here with their mailboxes.

This one's a little hard to see, but it's hanging from a branch like a swing.

And a random note from a rock.

Love this house's tropical garden.

Here's a weird little flower bud saying "Hi". (Waves)

Two days in a row I saw this giant gator - not at a park or anything but laying in someone's back yard. I named him Samson and have not seen him since. I was quite far away, so these are pretty blurry, but you can tell he's a big fella.

So...what else? Well, I see a lot of birds.

This is a Muscovy duck. They are not real attractive.

And here's three of them.

This is an Ibis. They have funny faces.

I've also been seeing Cooper's hawks. Or maybe just one that I keep seeing over and over.

Here's an osprey...we see them often, and hear them even more. They have a very distinct cry.

These pics would be better if I carried my superzoom camera around with me but it's pretty cumbersome, so I just use my phone.

This is a bad pic, but I think you can at least tell it is a bald eagle and he's pretty darn big. I think he had his head ducked down to clean himself or maybe he is camera shy.

And here's some other wildlife.

Shot on our porch. The biggest spider ever. Nope, nope, nope.

Here are some trees.

This is a jacaranda tree - it has these beautiful purple blossoms and smells fantastic.

I think this is a mango tree in someone's yard. The fruit will turn green and then fall off.

This is a pretty view toward the bay down a little side street I walk on.

I like some of the houses on this street. Two of my favorites:

I love the big porch and old southern charm of this one.

And look at this little cutie. Neat as a pin.

In other news, I know you are dying to know how our orchids are doing. The yellow one's flowers fell off, but the other ones are all doing well.

This is our latest one to bloom and it still has a bunch of buds to go.

We also have a couple rose bushes that don't bloom much, but this was a good one.

I now will interrupt this blog post with some cute pics of the doggos.

Deuce sticking his tongue out at me. 

Eva looking like a supermodel. SHE'S SO PRETTY.

Pardon the interruption. I shall continue with your regularly scheduled blog.

Last weekend, we drove to Indian Rocks beach to blow the dust off Stella. We did not actually go onto the beach with the humans, but we stopped in a parking lot, breathed in some salty air, and snapped a couple pics.

Water looks beautiful!

Out in the world!

Also, I know food pics are weird but, man, we're eating pretty good. I'm sure I've put on the COVID-19 (lbs) as they say.

Here was one dinner I made.

And here is a meal we got from Marker 39 for take out - the Cuban pork crisis. I really love the fried plantains.

So yesterday, we took a nice bike ride to the Bay and back. Glenn had gotten his new helmet a few weeks ago.

I said he has to wear it all the time. Even when he's just walking around. :-)

Anyway, this is us on Bayshore.

And here's Glenn with his new bike. (It's pretty cool.)

Here are some sunrise pics he got on one of his recent rides.

And finally, to wrap things up, sleeping puppies. You're welcome.

Love you all! Hang in there, everyone!

April in Quarantine

Hi Everyone! Welcome to our second blog of April. It's been a month of many birthdays, continued quarantine, walks and oh...Glenn getting hit by a car! (He's fine. Relax.)

So let's see. Well, let's do the birthdays first. My dad turned 81 on April 18th (Happy Birthday, Sir!), my friend Amy had her birthday yesterday - as did Hitler, she is fond of saying, as well as Eva (who turned two). Our friend Chad's birthday is today.

Last year at this time, we were in Tucson, celebrating my dad's birthday with everyone at the Casa del Sol. That was more fun than this year, although my dad sounded like he had a good day, with spaghetti and cherry pie.

We sent my friend Amy a care package of liquor, which she greatly appreciated.

Eva celebrated by hanging out by the pool and eating some pizza.

I'm 2!

It was funny because some people have been posting to the shelter's Facebook page where we got her, and I've received pics of two of her sisters who also turned two yesterday.

This is Tawny - she has Eva's eyes.

And this is Bella and her folks...who look like nice people.

I think we can all agree that Eva is the prettiest.

Let's see...in other news, people have been sending us pandemic presents. Our friends Pat and Lori surprised us with an old fashioned popcorn maker.

And our friend Julie sewed Glenn and I some custom-fitted masks.

Rainbow kitties for me.

Black and white chairs for Glenn.

I had to break quarantine yesterday to go to my doctor's office for my Entyvio IV - I wore a mask and hat and glasses and was very careful, and everything went really well. For the first time in a long time, they got my IV started on the first try - probably because they finally got smaller needles in that they ordered especially for me.

Additionally, we went out to pick up my car from the mechanic. It had died, and although Glenn had gotten it started again, it kept dying and the power steering stopped working. We got a new battery and it is working great now and is back at home. I will post a picture of it too, because I know Tom will enjoy seeing it again. :-)

Hello!

Here is the pasta primavera I made for Easter - I don't usually take pics of food but I thought the colors were pretty.

Ok - so lots of random pics coming up. Here is a bouquet I made from flowers in the backyard that smelled awesome - gardenia, confederate jasmine, Easter lily and oh, a lime.

Also there was a bromeliad that never bloomed and wasn't doing great, so we tossed it in the backyard and suddenly it is blooming all over the place, enjoying its neglect.

Here are some pics from our recent walks around the neighborhood.

Jacaranda tree in bloom

Roseate spoonbill

Stork!

Curlew (and snail?)

Turtle from the wrong side of the tracks.

BABY DUCKS!

Wildflower on the side of the road.

Here's a great blue heron on someone's roof (these things are huge).

And also a regular blue heron that visited us today and flew onto our neighbor's roof.

Action shot!

Oh - here's a look at how the orchids are progressing since you saw them last.

Today, I lengthened my normal walk because I felt like going down and seeing the water, which I did.

On my way back, I walked up my favorite little hidden street - it's very lush and tropical.

Alright guys, I guess that's it for now. Hope you are all doing well and staying safe and healthy. Remember, naps are your friend!

Love, us