Leo the Lion

My kitty has long, silky fur. I’d like to say that at age 18, he no longer grooms himself well. The truth is that he was never very good about it. If we weren’t diligent about brushing, he would get matted and we’d have to cut/shave him. Well, he was pretty matted when we got back, so we decided we would have to have him groomed. I called the vet for a recommendation and they said they had a groomer. I figured Mama’s baby would have to be sedated to be groomed. When I picked him up, this is what he looked like.



I know that some animals get “embarrassed” when they get shaved/groomed. However, this cat who would fight wearing a collar now has a bandana and struts around like he’s the prince. Too funny. And he feels so so silky. He just looks goofy.

Transplant

Our dear friend Judy has suffered greatly with a liver disorder for many years. She took a pretty quick turn for the worse. Suddenly she was on the Liver transplant list, then #1 on the Chicago Liver Transplant list. We got good news that a liver was available and then that it was a match for her. The prayer list for her stretched very long. Please keep her in your prayers as she continues to heal.

This is the logo on the shirt that Pete wore to the ballgame.

Go Batta Batta

Sunday found Pete and I in the car with Sister Elaine and her hubby Phil headed to St. Louis to baseball games at Busch Stadium. Truth be known, I’m not a big baseball fan. After the game between the Cards and the Padres, St. Joseph-Ogden High School played Edwardsville High School. My nephews went to SJO, but what really made it special was that my nephew was the home plate umpire for the game. Isn’t that the coolest? The family was all there to beat up any haters. Just kidding. There were no controversial calls. He spoke to coaches, players, bat boys. I couldn’t have been prouder if he was my son.
My two nephews were so special to me when they were growing up. I loved spending time with them. They were great kids and they have both grown up to be fine young men with wonderful families. Once again, I’m blessed to have such a great family.

89 years old

My dad turned 89 years old today. I have always been on spring break for his birthday. We came home from Mexico early this year especially so we could spend the day with him. He preferred to stay home rather than go out to dinner. My sister made Mom’s famous ham loaf and her special sweet potato casserole, to mention a few things. We celebrated other birthdays on that day as well. I’m blessed to have my dad, but I sure do miss my mother.

My life in a screensaver

My daughter saw the background picture on my android phone and said, “Mom, that looks like a screensaver.” Gosh, it’s so great to think that I live in a screensaver. Did I ever imagine that I could have such a wonderful place? But this screensaver would be empty without the wonderful friends I made there.

Lunch with the girls

From now on, my posts will not be daily. But be sure to check back occasionally.
Lunch with the Butterfield School girls - it was so good to see them. I noticed how loud the talk was in the restaurant. All of the restaurants we had been to in Mexico had been “open air” and so the noise must’ve been spread out. Anyway, dining al fresco has always been my favorite…and it still is.

Sunday, March 27th

Leslie invited Alicia and me to go to a play that her theatre company is putting on. I love theatre. I love community theatre just as much as Broadway. I’m just so cheap that it’s hard for me to pay the big bucks to go downtown. But I always enjoy it when I do. The play was called “That was Then” and it was at the Irish American Cultural Center. I really enjoyed it. This weekend is the last weekend. You can find info about it at seneschal.org.

Friday, March 25th

Oh the mail!! Piles and piles of it. Yikes. Oh well, must tackle it.
Dinner with the BFFs. It’s so much fun.

Thursday, March 24th

It was an early morning 7:45 pick up for grandson Dylan. Ah, we’ve missed him so much. And he has really grown and he’s talking so so much. And sitting up by himself. He smiled when he saw me, but his eyes really lit up for his Grandpa. What is better than having a grandchild whose eyes light up when you walk into the room? Maybe it’s having your eyes light up when your Grandchild walks into the room.

Wednesday, March 23rd

What a nice flight back. We were in the first row with no one in between us - so that meant we were the first ones off the plane. Because of Pete’s pulled muscle (or whatever it is), we caught the tram and we were also the first ones in the immigration line. Unbeweebable.
What was our first meal back? Italian beef, of course. None of our friends have ever had Italian Beefs before. I am determined to get them down to Mexico for a party next year. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. If you were out of the country for 6 weeks, what is the first meal you would have?

Tuesday, March 22nd

My gosh, we woke up to torrential rain and no power. Thank heavens neither one lasted for too long. No laying around on the beach today. Glad I spent some relaxing time on the beach yesterday.
Time to start packing up for the season. This is our first time to pack things away for months. (though we have someone coming in July). Hope we’ve done enough to get the place shored up before hurricane season. Guess we’ll find out.
Since it was our last night, we picked out the restaurant. Oh, it’s too hard to decide. So I let Pete decide and we went to Mom’s in Playa del Carmen. Definitely our favorite place (with Util, Manne’s and H. C. de Monterrey coming in very close). Then it was back to do more packing and laundry.

Monday, March 21st

Today is my last day of water aerobics for the season. Boo hoo.
Karl took us on a visit to the ranch he manages. They call it a ranch, but it doesn’t have animals. It is more like a Mexican conference center. There are individual palapas for sleeping and buildings for meeting and eating. There is also a pool, mini-golf, volleyball courts, tennis courts, and basketball court. There is also a spectacular cenote for swimming. Here is a link for you to see it for yourself. Thank you for the adventure, Karl.
Our town of Paamul is very charitable, supporting a variety of endeavors. This evening there was an auction to support the school at Chumpon. A percentage of the restaurant proceeds were donated by its’ owner, Kalu. Several thousand dollars were raised for the school library (which was financed by Paamul residents). If you would like to donate, I’d love to take any Spanish language children’s books to Mexico. Just send them to me or bring them over.

Sunday, March 20th

Seems like Party is in the air these days. Our neighbors, Mikie and Annie are leaving for Canada the day after we leave. So they had a picnic in the street. Hamburgers and hot dogs were cooked on the grill and everyone brought something. These potluck dinners are wonderful!
Pete and I made a coconut pie. Pete’s job was to get the coconut off of the tree and to crack it open with his machete. I shredded the coconut and baked the pie. I think everyone enjoyed it. I think it would have been better if it had a traditional pie crust. But I am definitely gonna look up some more coconut recipes.