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July 3, 2007 Happy Birthday to Lauren & Ryan

The Highfill/Welch family gathered at Dave & Julie's to celebrate birthdays.  Lauren, my niece is 7 and my nephew, Ryan is 21!  It was great to see everyone and Julie once again put out a great spread of food.  The house was full of relatives and full of laughter.  A good time was had by all.

July 4th  Independence Day

We drive down to Emporia to visit Aaron's parents, Rosemary and Clarence and take them out to lunch at Jason's new reopening of his restaurant/bar.  We are greeted by a nice surprise, Aaron's brother, Mark and his wife Melanie and their 2 kids, Adrianne and Andrew are here.  It's great to see them and enjoy telling stories over a delicious lunch.

Later that day, we stopped by friends, Ted and Karen, who live in Olathe and see the rest of the Ralston family and chow down on some delicious BBQ.

July 7, 2007   Pomona Days

My sister, Kathy and her husband, Larry live in Pomona and invited us down to experience the fun of Pomona Days, a daylong celebration consisting of playing BINGO,  browsing the park grounds and a parade.  It seems the whole town turned out, and Larry who is president of the Lions Club was busy the entire day.  We missed the Jaws of Life extraction that the fire department put on earlier.  Kristi and Bud, came down to join in the fun also.  The parade began at 5pm, and Kathy had her granddaughter Madisyn, ride her electric car in the parade with signs on each side advertising Kathy's DayCare.

  Kathy recruited Kristi and I to hand out business cards as we walked along with Madisyn.  The parade route went down the main highway and the police blocked off the street as the parade of tractors, lawnmowers, horses and 4 wheelers made their way. We enjoyed a delicious cookout at Kathy's afterwards, and Aaron was recruited as chef.  He is good at that, you know.

July 12, 2007    Hay Fever!

Having been raised on a farm, our summers as we were growing up, consisted of "puttin up hay".  My dad was determined to get me "back in the saddle" of driving a tractor and raking some hay today! You see, back when I was in high school, I was raking hay one day, and it didn't go very well due to the wind blowing against the rake causing the hay to bunch up and the rake would get stuck.  So I would have to climb on down from the tractor and get in there and throw the hay to one side and start again.  This went on for quite awhile, and I finally got disgusted with it and quit.  Dad didn't know what had happened that day til I told him this story.  I haven't raked since then til today.  And it was just like riding a bike, it all came back to me and the wind wasn't a factor!

Later that night, my nephew, Ben and his band called "Static 210" played at the restaurant/bar called "Shorthorns".  My brother, Spark and his wife, Melinda (Ben and Krystal parents,  a musically talented family, and why didn't I get any of those musical genes?) were there as well as an old high school friend, Jan and her husband.  Jan's son, Brandon, plays the lead guitar, while Ben plays the drums.  Two other guys, Connor who is the lead singer and Nathan handles the bass guitar.  These guys played good ole rock and roll, the classics, and did it very well.  The outdoor patio was packed and it was a perfect evening to watch these young men get down with their music.  Krystal, my niece, is also in a band as the lead singer and played in Topeka, but we were not able to attend, but heard the report that she is quite impressive with her moves on stage and sings those headbanging songs well.  She turned "21" the next day, Happy Birthday, Girl.

July 13, 2007    Lawrence, Kansas weekend

Friday the 13th, was a great day.  No bad luck followed us as we drove to Lawrence to visit my Uncle George and Aunt Claramae, who are among our biggest fans of Blow Me Away adventures.  One of the best outcomes of having this website is the emails we receive from family and friends who keep up with us and these two have always kept in touch and send us interesting emails with their questions.  We have actually become closer since we began our journey, and for that I am grateful.  George and Claramae are in their 80's but their zest for life and youthful spirit is admirable.  We walked to the restaurant, Free State Brewery, for lunch and talked about all sorts of things, our adventures, their adventures, politics, healthcare, books and family.  The time slipped away quickly and before we knew it it was 5pm and time for us to say so long.

Our next stop was to our good friends, Randy & Denise, who some years back won the lottery and now enjoy the good life.  We met their new addition to their family, Buddy, a sweet and lovable labrador/golden retriever mix.  He has taken over the hacienda as head honcho!  Kim and Howard came over and all of us went out to dinner.  Over mas margaritas and Mexican cuisine, we reminiscenced the good memories, and told stories of our newest happenings.

Saturday the sun shone bright as we enjoyed the day relaxing by the pool.  Paula & Craig, and their kids, Kya & Trevor came over as well as Val & Jeff.  Buddy enjoyed playing with the kids in the pool and a delicious dinner of steaks, good ol Kansas beef, (it doesn't get any better than that),  was grilled to perfection.

On Sunday, it was time to visit a very special lady, my Aunt Pat.  She has been a big supporter of Aaron and I from the very beginning and possesses a very creative spirit.  Her place, a townhome, she has decorated herself in her own unique style and it is beautiful.  From crystals hanging in the patio door so as to catch the afternoon sun and it is a spectacular light show to see, to the mural of a Greek harbor all along one living room wall, (where Blow Me Away bobs at anchor),  to the tassels on every handle, and the use of the dishwasher as the bar. (She doesn't cook, it's not her forte!)  We enjoyed having lunch out, at one of her favorite restaurants, and then did a little shopping afterwards.  (some might think she is a compulsive shopper!)  But, there are always bargains to be found!  As always time passes by when having fun and it was time to go so that we could make it to Hunter's baseball game later. 

It's off the baseball fields where Hunter has been asked to play tonight on this team.  He played left centerfield and went 2 for 3 hitting a couple of doubles for an outstanding effort.  Although, they were defeated, they all played their best and it was fun watching the game.

July 16, 2007  "Slidin and Divin" at the Gardner Aquatic Pool

After the morning golfing session, it was time to get wet.  So, we piled all the grandkids and us into the family van, which is no small feat, and drove to Gardner to check out the new aquatic center.  Wow, this facility is really nice, with 3 waterslides, a lazy river, a pool area just for kids with their version of water slides, a regular pool with diving boards, water volleyball and water basketball.  Down the lazy river we went, with the girls, Drew and Ellie.  Chase and I checked out the water slides together. All of the kids went off the diving boards!  And Grandma impressed the crowd with a one and a half dive!

July 17, 2007   Ralston Get Together

It was a wonderful turnout of Ralston's who came over to Jeff and Jessica's for the evening.  It was the first time for many to see their beautiful new home and of course, the main attraction was the new set of twins.  Jeff, did a fabulous job as "the grill guy" cooking up some hamburgers and hotdogs. The women took their turns holding each twin while holding a conversation and their drinks, multi-tasking is the key.  It is always good to get together with the Ralston gang, and the laughs are never in short order.

July Lunches

During our visit, we went to many lunches; we joined my Mom and Dad  at Fire Mountain and enjoyed their buffet.  Since they frequent this place everyday, they know everyone who works there and receive special treatment from the cooks! Does AARP know about this?

Our good friend Craig, (a.k.a. Varuna when onboard BMA), was busy with moving into his new office building that he had built recently and this required most of his attention.  But, we stopped by to see his new place, quite impressive, and went to lunch with him and his receptionist, Nicole.  Over a pitcher of margaritas, and a good burrito, we caught up on the latest.  We spent a couple of nights out at his place in the country, and enjoyed the peace and solitude.

My sister, Kathy, and I enjoy eating lunch at Ruby Tuesday's devouring the salad bar.  She also played hookie from work on a Friday afternoon and we went shopping! Even hit a garage sale or two!  Caught refreshments after a couple of hours of searching for bargains, at the "Other Place".

A Happy hour visit was to our good friends, Vikki and her husband Teddy and their daughter Alexis.  It was a good time over Coronas and wow has Alexis grown.  We hadn't seen her for over 2 yrs.  One thing we always do when together is to laugh alot and this was no exception. 

July 18, 2007   Cabin Boy Dinner

Rick, a.k.a. as Cabin Boy, invited us over to his home for dinner.  Rick and Aaron have known each other since their childhood, growing up in Emporia, but has been our Cabin Boy since our days of lake sailing on Lake Jacomo back in 1988 and has joined us sailing thru the years.  His friend, Jennifer came over also, and over a great steak grilled to perfection, and bottles of wine, we enjoyed an evening of good conversation and listening to favorite music.  One song in particular, "Cabin Boy" and I can't remember the artist who sang it, was played several times.

July 19, 2007    Scootin away!

We combined all the grandkids birthdays into one day and each one received a brand new scooter!  Well, the twins will enjoy their new mobile for their crib.  With helmuts on, the kids took off down the driveway and around the cul de sac showing us how well they scoot on their scooters.

 Later that afternoon, we travelled to Kansas City, where Jason and Salena live and met our ex-neighbors, Joe and Cindy with their son, John, at the Nelson Arts Museum, where Joe is employed.  The museum had just completed a new $240 million addition that we toured while Joe and Cindy explained the works of art displayed.  Joe restores any piece of art that needs repair as well as sets up the works of art according to the artists wishes.  Joe explained to us his 4 year long restoration of a sculpture of a lion, dated back to 325 BC originally from Greece.  It is an amazing story of patience and diligence on Joe's part and even more amazing that the artist had never seen a lion but created it using they myths and legends of that time. We all enjoyed a wonderful dinner at a restaurant down on the plaza.   Afterwards, Jason, Salena and us danced the night away at Harrahs at the Voodoo Lounge listening to the band, Rusted Root. On the way there, we passed the billboard that Salena is featured on advertising Go Play.  Salena is an elementary schoolteacher, but also does modeling on the side.  We spent several nights with Jason and Salena during our stay and on our last night in Kansas City, Salena fixed a delicious chicken pesto entree followed by a strawberry margarita cheesecake.  She also fixes a chocolate mousse that chocolate lovers love to eat.  No wonder we gained weight during our visit (all the fast food didn't help either)  but it was indeed worth every bite!

July 23, 2007  Back to Ft. Lauderdale

Our time here in Kansas City has come to end, and indeed the month flew by.  We want to give thanks to all of our family members and friends who made our visit a wonderful memory.  A special thanks to Salena and my nephew Bryan for letting us use your car/truck.   And a very special thank you to Jeff and Jessica, Jason and Salena for letting us crazy parents of yours stay with you.  We can't express enough how fortunate we are to have such a loving and supportive family and friends.

Our luggage has increased in weight and numbers, as we did some shopping in Kansas City.  Marc picked us up at the airport, and lunch was at one of our favorite spots, Southport Raw Bar for shrimps.

June 25, 2007    Wasabi in Stuart, FL

With most of our shopping done yesterday, we made our way to Stuart, where our good friends, Jeff and Cindy live right on the waterway of the Okeechobee.  They also have a small marina with 15 slips.  We sailed with these two for a month when they owned Island Link, a 47' catamarran, in Belize last November.  It is one of those friendships that just make cruising worthwhile, for there is a special bond between us.   Since then, they have sold Island Link and have purchased a power 65' trimarran, named Jonny Wasabi.  Also, more additions are on the way, Cindy is expecting their first child, a boy, November 1st.

That afternoon, we experienced our first boat ride onboard Wasabi, up the river to the municipal docks, where we ate dinner in downtown Stuart.  Their friend Robbi, joined us for the ride. 

The next day, we loaded up Wasabi and prepared for a daylong cruise down to Jupiter along the intercoastal waterway, sightseein and chattin and a drinkin, listenin to J.B.   We picked up Robbi along the way, then since it was a calm day, we returned via the ocean blue.   Wasabi cruises along at a brisk 16 knots easily with no wake.  It is a custom built boat, with a large salon with galley,  a separate shower on the portside and head on the other, and the main cabin forward.  A smaller cabin in the aft for "peanut" was originally the storage space for a dinghy with an opening hatch out the stern;  but since the original splashdown showed a flaw in the design (water came in thru the hatch) they have sinced fiberglassed this in, so it is a solid enclosed room.  Way up forward, accessed only by a deck hatch, is another cabin complete with head.  Wasabi is a unique vessel, and we spent most of our time up in the flybridge area (where Jeff steers the autopilot with his big toe!)  The view from here is awesome as it is at least 12' off the waterline.

It was a successful trip and after Wasabi was back in it's slip, we had one last drink and made a promise to return. For next time, a little McGyver will be waiting to meet us.  

July 28, 2007    Back to San Jose, Costa Rica

Today, we make our way closer to home.  Marc who knows the supersecret ways in and out of airports, dropped us off, secured us a porter to check in our bags, which have again increased in size and weight, and again we say Adios y muchas gracias amigo, til next time.  No problems encountered as we went thru customs and immigration in Costa Rica and our shuttlebus was there waiting for us to take us to our hotel.  

July 29, 2007 All aboard! Bus ride to the border crossing

We awake early at 5am, to catch the bus headed to Sixanola, the town on the border of Costa Rica and Panama.  Leaving right on time, 6am, and making record time, we arrive at the border at 11am.  Hiring porters, to haul our bags up the hill to the immigration office on the Panama side, we stand in line with at least 40 other people hoping to get thru this before they close for lunch.   Our porters are still with us, and watching closely after all of our luggage, 8 bags in all.  After clearing out, we have to walk across the bridge, to enter Panama. I tote the extra spear shafts that our enclosed in a 4ft tall thin cardboard box and 2 backpacks and set them down, leaning the spears against the wall as I reach for our passports.  It is a rush trying to get all of the necessary stamps needed, but we do make it before closing.  Our taxi is waiting for us at the bottom of the hill, and pile most of our luggage on top tied down. There are 4 other passengers with us as we make our way to Changinola water taxi terminal.  Upon arrival, we find that all of the taxis are full, and the next one available is at 4pm.  It is now 1:30pm, so we decide to go on to Almirante, load up all the luggage once again.  I realize that I haven't seen the spears since the border, and so we have to hire a taxi to take us back to the border.  Arturo, our driver, makes a mad dash for it, and we hope that our karma is still good.  Ahhh, I would say our karma is excellent since upon our return, we find that someone had turned it in into the office and it was there waiting for us.  Thank you, thank you.  How luck was that?

Now, it's back to Changinola, where Arturo drops us off and we catch a ride with another driver to the city of Almirante to catch the 3:30pm water taxi.  It takes just 20 minutes to make the crossing across the bay to the island of Colon, where the town of Bocas del Toro is located.  From there, we hire yet another water taxi driver to take us and all of our luggage to the marina, where we gratefully make it home by 4:15pm.  It's been a long, stressful day, and we relax in our cockpit with a rum and coke.  But, have to take a Deet shower due to all the no see ums.  Welcome Home.

July 31, 2007

Sad news to relay, but Mike on Suenos died today of cancer just 6 short weeks after his diagnosis. His daughters did a great job on keeping all of us informed on his battle; posting updates almost daily via emails.   Our hearts and prayers are with Karyn and family and we shall raise a bloody mary or two in his honor. We shall treasure the good times we had together.