It's been a very busy few days. Heck, it's been a very very busy 10 days or so. We just barely got moved in when Bobby and his girlfriend came to visit for the holiday. They drove 12 hours to get here. I haven't seen him for almost a year. It's great to see him again.
I did serve a full turkey dinner yesterday for the four of us. Not as full as I usually do but with only four of us I figured I'd skip a few things. We had turkey, stuffing made with sausage , mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, the ever famous greenbean casserole, cranberry sauce and olives. I did without rolls, carrots, peas and/or corn as I usually do. We also had three pies. I made Lemon, Pumpkin and Chocolate Creme. I made more than enough because we invited another couple to join us for leftovers today. Even after tonight I still have Turkey, Potatoes and Stuffing leftover with a bit more pie as well.
Today was a very nice day. It was pleasant, in the 70's. After our first experience with Black Friday, we decided to tour the Recreation Centers around here choosing just two to check out. They are absolutely gorgeous with pools, bocce ball and shuffleboard courts as well as basketball courts and many other extras. At the second center one we played quite a bit of tennis on the brand new courts. I basically know nothing about playing tennis other than vollying the ball around so today I learned quite a bit including the fact that I'm not very good at this game. I really need to work on my serve among other things.
Each Rec Center has a little shed with all the tools needed to play these games including tennis balls. Very nice. We then went over to the Pickleball Courts. This game, similar to tennis, is new to us and seems to be very popular around here. It is played with a paddle instead of a racquet and a whiffle ball instead of a tennis ball. Again all the supplies are included. They even have a cooler with cold water and cups at every court. I'm liking this.
We will have to get online and do a search on the rules for these games. Outside of tennis we really don't know the rules for bocce ball, pickleball and shuffleboard so we kind of made the rules up as best we could. There are rule pages in the sheds but we didn't take the time to read them. Now....just in case my middle son is reading this and laughing his head off.....the challenge is on.
While I didn't do well in Tennis (by a long shot) I did very well in pickelball. We played couples and us "older folk" absolutely killed the younger set. It was actually quite funny to see them trying to beat ol' mom and dad. They now want to practice and come back and give it another try. Maybe tomorrow we'll go at it again. I'm game. These two had such a great time these last two days they have extended their trip by another day. I knew they would. It's going to be a hardship for them on the other end but they really are having a blast here and are willing to give up that extra day to visit here one more day. Courtney keeps saying how fun it is here. She's having a great time considering this is the first time she's ever met us. We like her alot.
After that we came home for a bit of respite. Well actually they all hung around while I quickly prepped dinner so we could go back out again to play. That way when our company came later at six I'd be all set. It was to be a leftover night anyhow. Table set, turkey and gravy in the crockpot we set off again. I told them I had to be back by 5:30 to get it all out and on the table by 6:15.
This time we got our bikes out while Bobby and Courtney got the golf cart. We set off for the Town Square. Since the golf cart was faster than our legs could pedal they got there ahead of us. After finding each other we took a stroll around the town stopping for an ice cream cone and ducking into shops along the way around the square. I got myself a nice hooded sweatshirt with "Villages" printed on the front. We even posed in front of the Town Square Christmas Tree which was absolutely the tallest, biggest tree I have ever seen. It wasn't a real one. But it was quite beautiful and a great backdrop for pictures. It was kind of strange getting my picture taken in front of a Christmas Tree with shorts on.
Bobby liked the golf cart wayyyyyyy too much. He was very goofy beeping the horn as he drove down the street. At one point, as we followed behind him on our bikes, I saw a lady walking her dog with a smile on her face watching us. All I said as I passed by on my bike was "first day trying out the golf cart." She smiled a big knowing smile.
It's a Wonderful Day in the Villages.