Florida's done us good, the moss is all over the trees, and now growing on me
Hi everyone,
Well this is our first posting of the New Year and what a spectacular New Year we had, but I will get to that soon and keep you all in suspense!! We drove from the everglades to Naples, and went through a spectacular storm that drenched the area. I have never seen rain on the west coast like it rains here. It was almost as if a thousand fire hoses were being pumped into the sky overhead with the water pouring down on us. The furnace didn’t work for awhile, until I could dry it out. It took on a lot of water through the vent. After visiting Naples, we went on to Ft. Meyers, and set up an appointment to have the front wheels aligned and to have an oil leak checked. We checked into a pretty nice RV park, each one of the sites were privately owned. A little pricy, but that is par for Florida. It is prime season for them right now with all of the snowbirds heading down here.
Our campsite at Ft. Meyers, the lake in front of the motorhome was patrolled by an alligator. Most people use watchdogs, not this place.
So, while the coach was being repaired, NanCarrol and I headed off to tour Ft. Meyers. Thomas Edison had a summer house that covered about 14 acres, complete with multiple buildings, and his workshop. He was a good friend with Henry Ford, and the two homes which are next to each other are now museums as well as all of the workshops.
NanCarrol and I at the Thomas Edison Museum.
So we toured the museum and enjoyed all the sights there all day. The shop where Edison spent most of his time on his inventions was really interesting. It was set up with a lot of belts overhead that were driving the different equipment.
Thomas Edison's workshop
We went back for the coach, but it wasn’t quite done, so they allowed us to pick it up and go back to Wal-Mart, our favorite location while traveling, and return it the next morning so they could complete the work. The tires were looked at closely and they suggested replacing them, not because of the tread but the cracking on the sidewalls, so we made a reservation to have the tires changed in Orlando, and headed for Haines City to see NanCarrol’s stepfather and to meet his brother, Clifford and his wife, Katherine. Clifford is the associate pastor at the local assembly of God in town, so we parked the motorhome on the church property, went to Christmas eve services and spent Christmas day with them. Katherine served up a beautiful meal with ham, potatoes, and beans, and we all stuffed ourselves. The company was great. We spent several hours playing mexican train with them, a form of dominoes.
Clifford, Katherine, NanCarrol and her stepfather Ron on Christmas Eve
On Monday morning on the 28th, we left early to make our appointment for new tires in Orlando. We arrived and they waved us into the garage, and put the Honda on a rack. Both the car and coach got new tires, so we are set for the trip home.
Oh, oh!! I have a feeling that this is gonna cost more than the whopper that we just had
The coach now has about 46,370 miles on it. I purchased it in South Carolina with about 27,000 miles on it, so we have put about 19,000 miles on it since February a year ago. The highlight of the day however was that Angelina, our granddaughter was scheduled to arrive at Orlando airport flying from California at midnight. I drove to the airport to pick her up, and we spent the next day resting. I had gotten ahold of an old friend, Patrick Carvalho, that was in High School with me through facebook. He said he was in the Orlando area, so after Angelina arrived and was rested we set up a time when he and his wife could come over for dinner. Pat and I were both in a Hawaiian song and dance group in Hawaii. He was a champion ukulele player as a sophmore in High School and pursued a career as a musician. He has been performing at Disneyworld for the last 20 years, in a Hawaiian Band. He brought his guitar and Ukulele, and we sat and sang the old Hawaiian songs and reminisced about the past and talked about all of our old friends. Angelina cooked a wonderful dinner and jumped right in and sang with us, with a Hawaiian song book in front of her to follow along.
Me, Angelina and Patrick Carvalho singing all the old Hawaiian songs that we loved to sing
That was a wonderful night with Pat and his wife, Noreen. It is so much fun to catch up on missed time with friends and family. So now for the highlight of the entire trip for us. New Years was just going to be a quiet time for us, just going to bed early and rising to take in the sights. Angelina came with a ripe heart to know the Lord, and I had the incredible pleasure to lead her in a salvation prayer on New Year’s Eve. Since then, we have had two weeks of miracles in her life. The Lord has moved on her in a powerful way and she has a newfound hunger for the Lord and the Word that has been delighting the Lord and us daily. It is an absolute delight to have Angelina with us and to watch the Lord at work in her.
Angelina found this spot in the Holy Land to just kneel down
We went to the Holy Land experience in Orlando, a part of the trinity broadcasting network. They put together a gospel message using people in costume in a setting that recreates the time period. I was in tears, as we watched them play out the life of Jesus from the prayer in the garden of Gethsemene through the resurrection. They drug him through the streets beating him, and then took him to the cross and lifted him up while we all sat and watched. It was painful to watch, but brought our faith to a new level of understanding.
That is a real man on the cross representing the crucified life of Jesus as they played out his life
We went to several presentations, that challenged us in our beliefs and faith in a powerful way. We went to the last supper, where the man playing Jesus himself served communion to us, talking to us as if we were his disciples, and then he went out into the crowd and blessed each of the people. We all just enjoyed the time to sit, reflect, and allow the holy spirit to change our hearts.
After arresting Jesus the Roman soldiers took him to a spot where they chained him against the side of a mountain and began to beat him. Each time they beat him, a red stripe was left. I was reminded of the verse in the Bible, that says “by his stripes we are healed” and it began to cause me to tear. As they led him through the streets spitting on him and mocking him and then raising him on the cross, it hurt me to watch it and I saw my own sinfulness as he was raised and I wept for the pure sacrifice for our lives.
Lots of time to reflect and just listen to Lord
After we left Orlando, we headed into the Oscala National Forest and stayed at Lake Dorr for two nights. We then headed off to see the manatees at Blue Springs State Park.
I love you Nana!!!!!!!!
We stayed at a park where we saw these very large birds, and Angelina was sitting in the field feeding them. They almost took food from her hand. I think that they must be florida chickens.
We got to the Blue Springs in Florida and the temperature was a little cool. The outside temperature was about 43 degrees, but the manatees had it good. They were in a spring being fed by clear spring water that was 73 degrees.
Our heavenly creator's masterpiece.
Yeh, bring em on, hey papa and nana where's my bathing suit? It's gator wrestling time!!!
How can it get much gooder than this? God just keeps blessing and raining his love on us
After leaving the Blue Springs, it was off to Cedar Keys National Wildlife Preserve. Angelina asked to spend as much time with the animals and nature, so much of our trip home will be to see places of God’s beauty.
Nana and Angelina at Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge. The south has a lot of deadly snakes so we walked carefully and I carried a big stick watching the bushes closely
We left Cedar Keys, picked up some fresh seafood, including fresh alligator meat, prawns, and fresh grouper and looked for a place to spend the evening. I picked a nice sandy place to rest for the night and barely made it off the road before the wheels were nicely settled into the sand. We settled in for the night, and then in the morning I set out with a shovel to see I could dig my way out. After about an hour of digging and slowly inching my way out, we got some help from a couple of guys that passed by, and they pulled us out. I needed practice getting stuck so it was all good. The shoveling did me good.
I guess this isn't a dune buggy... hmmm, maybe I should have gotten the one with the monster wheels
This trip is a fun one for all of us to try new foods. I stopped at an oyster bar so Angelina could get a taste of raw oysters for the first time. You will be able to tell by her reaction that it will quickly become her new favorite food.
So our next stop was at San Marcos de Appalache, an old fort dating back over 500 years. It has transferred from Spanish to French, British and American rule, with lots of fighting over the years.
Our beautiful Angelina at the entrance to the old fort in St. Mark, Florida
We met a couple here that host the state park that are Christian and we built a great friendship. Mel and Sharon are from Minnesota and travel down each winter with their trailer to this area, carrying their Harleys with them. They helped us find a place to settle down for a couple of weeks and unwind from the constant traveling. So here we are now sitting on the Waculla River, sitting here looking at all of the boats. It is a beautiful location and we are enjoying it immensely. Mostly we enjoying the newfound friendship. We spent the day in Tallahassee running around to the shops and picking up things we needed. We picked up a beautiful dress for Angel, and she looks adorable in it.
NanCarrol and Sharon quickly realized that they had another common interest in their art, and have had one day together here in the motorhome crafting together.
While they were crafting, Mel asked Angelina and I if we would like to go for a ride in his boat to see the gulf of Mexico and to take a ride up the Waculla River. That was a beautiful ride, but the temperature was a little cold. We were in the middle of a freeze down here. The temperatures plummeted down to 13 degrees one of the nights, and record low for them. The coach is warm so all is good.
We just happened to be here when operation migration was herding the whooping cranes into Florida leading them with ultralight aircraft. There are less than 50 of the cranes left and they are carefully trying to bring them back. We saw them go overhead, and they take them to a protected area where they are not visible to the public. There were about 300 people there at 7 in the morning in about 30 degree weather to see them fly over.
Mel had asked me if I wanted to take a ride with him on the Harleys. I used to ride a lot in Hawaii and rode with a club there, so took him up on his offer. I took it out for a spin with him to get a feel for the bike, and the following day took Angelina with us for a long slow ride through the rural area of Florida. They left a Christian Cd in the player, and we turned up the volume and just enjoyed the breeze, the beauty and what the Holy Spirit was doing in both of us as we headed down the road. When we got home Angelina said, I think that I saw two angels fly into the clouds. Do you know what they look like? I didn’t have much of an answer for her, but was excited for her. God has continually blessed us to the point that we overflowing in the abundance of his love for us. Angelina will be baptized this coming Sunday here in Tallahassee. Please pray for her this week as the Lord prepares her heart for what is to come.
We love and miss you all, and rejoice in the goodness of our Lord and Saviour
Glenn, NanCarrol and Angelina
Saints ride Harleys too!!!!
Mel and I at the midpoint of the ride. Both Harleys are identical and were a real joy to ride.
Never knew life could be so ummmm ummmmm good
Can't stop now, I'm on the right track
Woohoo!!! What a ride!!!
This was the closest we got to the whooping cranes. They flew overhead about 400 feet above us.
Yeh babie, how fast does this thing go? Yeehawwwww!!!!!
My beautiful NanCarrol and Sharon crafting jewelry. NanCarrol made a beautiful necklace that day.
Aww, she's so pretty
Yummmmmm, oh my gosh, this is soooooo good. Can we have these every day?
Oh, the beauty of God's creation!!!
Florida Chickens, look our for the colonel you guys
Angelina and Nana at the Holy Land Experience
Holmes Sweet Home 