A Little Bit of Everything!

 Saturday was check in day to our condo.  It has 3 ensuites upstairs with king size beds, one for each couple.  A very nice kitchen, laundry room, half bath,  double living room and huge covered patio with grill, table and couches.  Quite a nice set up.

Pat and Kelly were arriving later in the evening so Bill, Kara, Ted and I went to get pizza since we had not been to the store yet.  We all turned in pretty early.  Bill awoke with a fever and cold so stayed in their suite for 1-2 days until his fever broke.  The four of us went to church and then Kara and Pat went grocery shopping and Ted grilled burgers outside for dinner and we all sat around the table.

Monday Kara continued to cook and we had fajitas, again outside at the table.  I cut up the chicken!  I was content just settling in and pretty much being waited on.  The kids had made reservations at Yachtsman’s Steakhouse at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort to celebrate our 60th anniversary early since we were all together.  Kristin drove back and forth each day if she was going with any of us. 

 

The food was delicious and Disney provided congratulation pins, a champagne toast and chocolates for us. 

On Wednesday Bill and Kara were picking up his sister and brother in law at Coronado Springs to show them around Disney especially the Grand Floridian which is their home timeshare.  Pat had met up with Larry for lunch so Kelly, Ted and I took advantage of all the free transportation at Disney to ride around.  We parked for free at Hollywood Studios since we had Bill in our car with his DVC ID.  Kara parked their car using her ID. Nothing to sneeze at since parking is $25 per day!  

We took The Skyliner to Epcot, took a boat to The Boardwalk and then a bus to Magic Kingdom where we rode the monorail to the Grand Floridian.  It started raining so we had a snack at Gasparillo’s in the Grand Floridian waiting for the foursome to arrive for dinner at Narcoosie’s.  Marilyn and Dave were pleased we waited for their arrival to say hi before we caught a bus back to Hollywood Studios to drive home.  This is a great way to get an idea of the enormity and flavor of the park without paying $169 a day to go in!  The kids all have annual passes and go in and out frequently.  

Thursday Patrick went to St. Petersburg to kite board while Ted, Kelly and I went to see Conclave at Disney Springs.  We ate a late lunch there at the Polite Pig before heading back to the condo.  Our evening would be spent at Port Orleans Riverside Resort to see Yeehaw Bob Jackson.  This guy is a hoot!  We did the Hokey Pokey, YMCA, singing competitions with the other side of the room, etc.  So much fun!  He sure can tickle the ivories!  He gave us a shout out for celebrating our 60th anniversary.

Friday we were all home during the day.  Bill put the dash cam back in our new car, Kara did laundry and I just took it easy.  Pat and Kelly went to Universal Studios and we didn’t see them until Saturday morning.  We had gone to the dueling pianos at Jelly Rolls piano bar on the Boardwalk.  We again got a shout out for our anniversary and a song (Going to the Chapel) which was a hit in 1964.  When we sent up a request for Last Date (a ‘60s Floyd Kramer piano song) Scottie said “this has to be from Ted and Donna who are the only people in this building old enough to know it.”  He said it had not ever been requested and he had not played it in decades but he would try.  With no music and no other info, he did a beautiful job!  The later we stayed the less we knew any of the songs.  They did play Cecilia which is CeCe’s actual name so that was fun.  Big night!  I had a Peach on the Beach and Ted had 3, count them, 3 beers!

Saturday was Kelly and Pat’s departure day.  They had to pack his kite board to have Ship Sticks return it back to their Michigan home.  They were going to pick it up Tuesday at Kristin’s so they needed to stop there to drop it off before heading to the airport.  Kristin and Larry spent the day together for their anniversary so Bill spent the afternoon there waiting for Kara’s computer to be delivered needing a signature.  It had been scheduled for Friday so that put a wrench in the day!  Kara was meeting Disney friends who were all in to run the Disney Princess 5K, 10K and half marathon.  Ted and I just stayed behind helping get everyone where they needed to be.  We went to church, got gas and stopped at Olive Garden for dinner.  Bill had joined Kara at Disney and I went to bed  before they came home.  Kristin stopped by to say goodbye to us.  Everyone arrived home so all is good.  It is Sunday morning and we leave here and head to Clearwater for the theater and to spend one night before moving on to Punta Gorda and Fort Myers for some visiting.  

What a wonderful story!  Gander, Newfoundland on 9/11. Our interest was a couple we know who met there and married. They live in our town and she belongs to the same club as me. However, I was blown away at the emotional and heartwarming recollection of that fateful day.

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