12-31-16  Last day of 2016!

What a year this has been!  Started it out in Oregon for an extended family Christmas vacation.  Then went back to our apartment in South Florida for the next 5 months.  Loved it so much we even agreed to renew our lease when it came due in June only to have the "kids" move back to Atlanta before then.  So we ditched the plans of renewing our lease and packed up and moved to an apartment in Buford, Georgia (2 bedroom, 2 bath instead of the 1 bedroom/1 bath we had in Florida and still cheaper than Florida).  The day after we moved into our Georgia apartment we drove back to St. Louis for a friend's wedding and Dr. appointments to renew our meds.  My heart Dr. appointment ended up in me having to go back about every 6 weeks or so for the rest of the year because my A-fib had gotten a lot more frequent.  Finally had surgery on Halloween to cook part of the inside of my heart.  Wonder how anyone thought of that as a treatment---and who was the first patient to say, "Sure, burn the inside of my heart!"?  Seems to have helped considerably, though.  Ken and I also made our longest trip to Hawaii so far---4 weeks (2 in Maui, then 2 in Kauai).  This was our 3rd time to Maui (my 5th time) and our 15th time to Kauai.  Instead of getting tired of going there, it just keeps getting better!!!  I also made a quick trip to St. Thomas to join Angie and Josh---too short, but so worth the effort!  In Nov./Dec. Ken and I made it back to South Florida (between our many trips to St. Louis) and enjoyed 4 nights there before going on another Caribbean cruise---this time on HAL's brand new ship the Koningsdam for 10 nights.  That was another fantastic trip.  Then we headed back to St. Louis for Christmas (by way of Knoxville to celebrate Tim's 38th birthday with him).  Angie, Josh and the pups even joined us in St. Louis for Christmas and a couple more Dr. appointments---Ken even having cataract surgery.  I will admit, I had a pretty good time, even though I like to complain about St. Louis.  At least now when we go back, we go out with family and friends several times.  When we lived there full time, we hardly saw anyone!  3 weeks later, we stopped back in Knoxville for 4 nights on our way back to Georgia.  Ken likes to say our apartment in Georgia is an expensive storage unit.  But it's nice that we can afford such a nice storage unit!  It's also been nice getting out and exploring what Georgia has to offer.

As for how we spent this New Year's Eve----Ken and I went to our "go-to" special restaurant---Cunetto's on the Hill.  They make the best bistecca Soto!!!  Not to mention their cheese garlic bread, salad, and pastas!  You know it's gotta be good when there's a waiting line to get in and it's still early!

No more food pictures.  I eagerly ate it as soon as it was served!

All in all, a pretty good year!

12-30-16  Time to get the patch off----

We were off to Illinois, again.  This time to Alton to the eye Dr.'s office there.  Ken got his patch off and ---Presto---he's able to see again.  Wish all surgeries were that easy and effective!

Since the Dr.'s office is only about a block away from Golden Coral, we headed there for lunch.  Love their $7.99 Senior early bird special! 

12-29-16  Surgery day---

It was an early day for us!  Ken had to be at the hospital by  6 am.  So we were on the road dark and early.  Once there he was checked in quickly and taken back for "prepping".  About an hour later they let me come back.  We had another hour wait before it was his turn.  The Dr. does about 12 surgeries there every other Thursday.  He starts with right eyes, then does the left eyes.  So Ken was one of the early ones.  He was taken back about 8:30.  Sounds like an interesting procedure---not that I'm interested in having it anytime soon!  Ken said he was awake the whole time and the Dr. explained what he was doing the whole time.

 After about another hour of being in recovery, he was released---complete with a patch over his eye.

Since we had been there about 6 hours, lunch was in order.  So we stopped at Lee's Chicken on our way home.  Can't get enough fried chicken!

Then came the 3 different eye drops 3 times a day for the next 3-4 weeks.  Of course he's a wimp and can't put them in himself! 

12-27-16---Ken to the hospital for pre-surgery registration----

 Kids final full day here.  They had lots of friends and family to see.  The pups stayed locked up in "their" room a lot of the time, but they did quite well.

 Today Ken and I had to go out to Jerseyville, Illinois, to get Ken pre-registered for his cataract surgery on Friday.  For a change it was him with medical procedures instead of me!  He wanted it done by the end of the year so it would be covered by the wonderful health insurance we're use to through Ameren, thus the trip out to Jerseyville some 50 minutes from home.  But it was a nice ride and the hospital was really quaint.  Everyone was very friendly.  Pre-registration went quickly and we were off to Fosterburg for lunch at Castelli's Moonlight restaurant.

(Speaking of insurance companies, we also just got a notice of denial from the insurance company for my cardiac ablation back in Oct.!  Seems they don't want to pay the $93,000!  They said it was "experimental"!  So another fight with them will ensue!) 

Back to today, we were treated to a rather nice sunset on our way home from Castelli's.

12-26-16 hanging out----

I think Micky's going to miss the our windows that were placed at a height just for him---or so I'm sure he thinks!

 our tree---

Micky resting up for the long ride home in a couple days.

After the busy week we just had, we were feeling about as pooped as the pups.  So Ken and I hung around the house and visited with them while the kids caught up with more friends and relatives.

12-25-16 a very Merry Christmas!!!

Even our Grand dogs Micky and Molly seemed to enjoy their short Christmas vacation to our house. 

 I hadn't planned on putting up a tree, but on Christmas eve, Josh helped me carry the tree up from the basement and helped me assemble it.  I didn't spend long decorating it, but it was nice having it up---finally!  And it stayed up until the day before we left to head back South (mid Jan.).  Angie and Josh even managed to pretty well full up the space under the tree with lots of beautifully wrapped presents.

12-24-16  Christmas Eve in St. Louis---

Christmas Eve has been the LaBeaume Christmas party night for as long as I can remember.  It use to happen at our house.  But in recent years, the LaBeaume's in Washington, Mo. have taken over the festivities.  Can't say I'm sorry about that!  It's a lot of work getting ready for and hosting a large party.   So now we get to just go and enjoy the parties!

This year we were even invited to the Hick's open house brunch on Christmas Eve with their family and close friends.  So glad to be included in that circle.  They really are great people and I'm happy to call them our friends!

 Carol is another one like Angie and Faith who really does it up for the holidays.  Some people sure have a great knack for that!  I, unfortunately, am not one of them!  She is also a great cook and always has a great spread. 

12-23-16  On to St. Louis---

Back to passing the time on our long ride by looking for photo ops.  At least this time we were on a different highway then we usually are.  Since we were leaving from Knoxville, we took I-40 to Nashville where we connected up with I-24 again.
The mountains along this route don't seem to be as high, but they still make for an interesting ride.

 It was another beautiful day to be stuck in a car all day.

12-22-16  Back in Knoxville---Happy 38th birthday Tim!

Since Angie and Josh were heading back to St. Louis for Christmas this year and we had yet more Dr. appointments the next week, we left a few days before Christmas and went to spend Tim's birthday with him and Faith in Knoxville on our way to St. Louis.  It was a short visit, only 2 nights, but we planned to spend a few more nights with them on our way back to Georgia.

We got there on the 21st.  The next day Tim took his birthday off work and we ran around to a few stores with him.  First to a huge very well organized used book store---McKay's.  I'm not an avid reader, but I did thoroughly enjoy looking around this store.  Loved the book Christmas tree they had by the entrance:

Then he was on the hunt for some new work shoes.  Who am I to complain about going to a shoe store!?
When Faith got home from work, we headed off to dinner at a really good steak house, Connors Steak and Seafood Restuarant.  It was so popular, that we had to wait about 40 minutes for a table, but it was worth the wait.

12-12 through 12-14, 2016 --- Sea days and back to ATL:

Dec. 12---Today was the day of the Mariner luncheon.  Our time slot was noon.  Apparently we've moved up in days sailed so that we now get seated with the higher ranking Mariners!  I think we have about 125 days sailed on HAL. Can't say the menu was too impressive this time---either a fish or pork entree.  One of the couples seated with us even got up and left before ordering.

  I ended up with the fish.  It and the rice was pretty good. The fritters were chewy.

12-11-16 Aruba (7am - 4:30):

I was excited and apprehensive about Aruba.  I've heard alot about it being a great vacation spot, but we've never been there.  It doesn't have the reputation for snorkeling that the other ABC islands have, but I had printed off a map with a couple spots listed as snorkel areas, so we decided to check at the information center in the port shops and see what they say about snorkeling from shore.  Especially since the destination guide on the ship said there was no shore snorkeling on Aruba.
The view from our verandah from where we were docked in Aruba.  I was amazed that there was a tree growing in the ocean. 

12-10-16 Curacao (7am - 10:30pm) :

They were calling for the same weather here today as we had on Bonaire yesterday, so I was a little down.  But we were seeing some blue skies, so decided to head out and hopefully get some snorkeling in.  We had tentatively made plans to go to Porto Mari with someone from Cruisecritic.com.  I had gotten her room number at the meet and greet which was held before docking at Grand Turk.  I think I woke her.  She wasn't wanting to leave before 11.  So we headed down with no real plans.  I figured we would see if anyone else was wanting to go to Porto Mari at the taxi waiting area, or just go to Blue Bay again (where we went last time we were here). 

 After waiting about 30 minutes, someone wanting to go to Blue Bay finally showed up, so we joined them.  Made our fare $7.50@ one way.

12-9-16  Bonaire (8am - 5:30pm) !

I was hoping to be able to take a water taxi over to the little island just off shore, Klein Bonaire, but the weather wasn't cooperating today.  It was suppose to rain heavily and storm all day. 

 So we rushed off the boat and took a short taxi ride to the nearby Eden Beach.  Our fare was only $7.50/person each way.  Not bad when you consider how much a HAL excursion costs.  We had gone here the last time we were on Bonaire, too, and knew that there was great snorkeling and that the water taxi also ran from here.  Being a resort, it also had a pool, bar, restaurant, restrooms, and lots of chairs for rent.  

12-8-16 a day at sea:

A day to wander around the ship and rest up a little before the next 3 port days.  I suppose it's a neat idea to have these exercise equipment pieces along the walking deck, but they sure didn't get used much.  In fact, the whole deck didn't get used much. 

 Nice that they have filet mignon and shrimp in the Lido cafe for dinner.  They even had lobster one night.

12-7-16 Amber Cove, Dominican Republic (8am-5:30pm) :

This is a new cruise port.  Only open since 2015.  I didn't have much success researching snorkel areas near here, so we just planned to stay in the port area.  It was another early port day.  Today we even woke up in time to see a pretty sunrise.

The port is in a pretty area.  I had hoped it would be like Grand Turk and we could swim in the ocean there, too, but the water here was very murky.

12-6-16 Grand Turk (11am-5:30pm) --- off to Pillory Beach:

This was our 2nd time to Grand Turk.  It was suppose to be our 3rd time, but we missed that port a few years ago when hurricane Tomas beat us there.   This time looked promising.  The water here by the port was calm.  Love that there are free loungers here, too.  Behind them is a Margaritaville with a large pool.  We ended up hanging out there the other time we were on the island.

  I had read that Pillory Beach was the place to go to snorkel.  We had tried to go there the other time we were here, but there was a south surge and the waves were really rough.  That time we took a taxi there, looked at the water, then took the taxi straight back to the port.  Ended up being a $28 taxi ride to nowhere.  This time we tried it again.
Some views along our way.

12-5-16 Half Moon Cay day (8am-2:30pm) :

We had all our breakfasts in the Lido.   Today we happened to be in this young man's station.  Along with busing tables and filling drinks, he took the time to make me a flower out of a napkin.  Such a nice gesture!  Thanks Komano!

 final result.  It sat in our cabin for the rest of the trip.

12-4-16 Embarkation day:

Our short 4 day stay in South Florida was over.  It was time to make our way to the cruise port.  So we jumped into our rental car and headed off to the Budget Rental Car location on 17th street across from the cruise port.  They offer a free shuttle to the port, so we've used this return location a few times.  It also offers a free shuttle from the port, so it was a busy place.  No Fastbreak line there, but they were anxious to get the returned cars so they have cars for the people from the cruise ship, so the wait wasn't too bad.  By 11 we were on our way to the port.  I shot this picture from the shuttle as we were entering the port.  Not too busy for a Sunday---only 3 ships in port.  I had read about the mobile passport app and while we were waiting to board the ship, I went online and downloaded it.  It's suppose to get you through customs much quicker.  Unfortunately, the app wasn't good for port entry with a Samsung phone yet.

 Our wait wasn't long.  Soon we were on the ship and eager to check out our spa cabin.  I had originally booked an oceanview Guarantee for $1199/person.  About a month ago, the verandahs dropped to that amount for an obstructed view (VH) with metal wall category, so I called to see about switching.  It was past final payment, so I knew no refund would be given.  They did have a category (VF) Guarantee(non obstructed with plexiglass wall) for $100 more/person, so I went ahead and paid it.  About 10 days before our cruise, I was offered a paid upgrade to a verandah suite for another $599@, but didn't think it was worth that.  A few days later, we got our assigned room---VQ 10031 (spa verandah--I think that's the highest verandah category).  Also got another upgrade offer for $499, but that was still too high and I was curious about the spa cabins.
Our cabin was nice (more pictures of it in my Koningsdam post--- (click here Cabin VQ 10031 )  It had a few extra amenities since it was a spa category: yoga mat; Bose speakers; pedometers; and was suppose to come with 3 complimentary bottles of flavored vitamin water and 1 large complimentary bottle of plain water, but ours were missing.  We called the number on the flyer in the room and inquired about the water.  Took 3 days to get them, but they were handy for taking on shore.  We also liked the new features of USB ports, large mounted tv, lots of tv channels,  and throw blanket, didn't even mind not having a tub.

Holland America's Koningsdam:

Ship Class: Pinnacle Class
Inaugural Year: 2016
Tonnage (GRT): 99,500
Country of Registration: Netherlands
Guest Occupancy*: 2,650
Crew: 1,025
Length: 975 feet
Beam: 115 feet
Passenger Decks: 12

VQ Cabin 10031 (Spa Verandah)--

12-3-16  Wakodahatchee and Green Cay!

I figured it was a little early for the nesting birds, but wanted to go check them out anyway.  It almost turned out disastrous!   I pulled my phone out of my pocket on the boardwalk and the rental car keys fail within an inch of the end of the boards!  Sure glad they didn't fall in the water!
First bird to greet us --- Reddish egret?

flowering wetland plant

 kingfisher

Great blue heron

very large alligator

 Mr. Blue again.

 reddish or glossy egrets

 iguana

 grebe

 cormorant

 very large iguana

 osprey

 again

one more.

 red bellied whistling ducks

 a couple soft shell turtles

on to Green Cay----

 heading around Green Cay

 mossy turtles

 teals and a grebe

 nice to see water back in the wetlands.  When we left in May, it was pretty dry.

heading back towards the entrance

reflections

 after about 3 hours of wandering around the 2 wetlands, I went back for Ken and we headed back to Flanigan's.  Saw another one of the Pompano fish sculptures along the way.

 sunset at the beach after dinner.

 We took a walk along the Pompano pier as the sun was setting.

 not the greatest sunset, but not the worst, either.

 the Hillsboro lighthouse off in the distance

 the new parking lot lit up nicely at night.

I really do miss south florida.  Glad we got to spend a few days here before heading off on our cruise.