Thursday August 20, 2009

How do the dogs know the exact day we are leaving?  From the moment we got out of bed, Zak was morose.  His ears were back flat against his head, his head was hanging low and his eyes were so full of sorrow that I began to wonder how I could abandon such a perfect dog!

At 9:30 Gary carried the first suitcase out to the van and tossed it in the back.  Zak followed him, and would not return to the house.  Gary called and called but Zak wanted to keep an eye on the van.  Gary opened the side door and in jumped Zak.  He went directly to the third row seating and gave Gary a look that said, “You’re not getting away without me this time!”

So Gary left the car door open, left the garage door open and came back into the house.  I had to swap out and repack a suitcase (broken zipper) so Gary sat and did a crossword puzzle while I repacked and Zak guarded the car. He stayed out there for 45 minutes!  By 10:15 we were off to my parent’s house where we completed the complicated manoeuvre we call “the doggy-dump”.  Zoë cast a very sad look out the front window as we drove away!  Her eyes said, “Rats, hoodwinked again!”

We were quickly back on the road and crossed the St. Lawrence into the USA at 11:20.  We had a quick lunch at the Cracker Barrel just outside Syracuse, stopped at the Christmas Tree Shop to pick up a few things we don’t need and then headed to the airport.

Our Jet Blue flight left on time, arrived on time and Magical Express had us to Port Orleans French Quarter 8:30.  We checked in and were delighted that we had a corner room with a river view.  Bonus!  Our room is a corner room over looking the river and the end of the pool, it is in building 5. The boat dock was just steps away, I couldn’t have been happier.

We threw our luggage into the room and immediately got on the boat, it was like it was waiting fur us, as a matter of fact the captain told us to enter through the exit to save some steps. By 9:15 p.m. we were sailing down the Sassagoula River heading to Downtown Disney. The first stop was the Earl of Sandwich. We were both hungry since we had not eaten since noon. I ordered while Gary found us a table, I had the Original and Gary had the American. That sandwich tasted so good, it has become my new tradition, an Earl’s on arrival day! After we ate Gary pulled out his book and told me to do my pin thing while he waited for me at a table outside. I wandered around the pin shop and picked up a couple of new releases for myself and my friend Susan; there wasn’t a whole lot new since I had been there 6 weeks earlier!

Gary was surprised to see me back so soon. The next stop was the World of Disney, I did a quick browse around the store and then went outside to find Gary reading his book. It was very crowded and hot and we were both getting tired so we decided to grab an ice cream from Ghirardelli’s and then caught the boat back to POFQ. When we got in the line for the boat we realized that it was 11:30 p.m. and this was the last boat! WOW, we were up way past our bedtime (lol). We got back to the resort in good time and quickly fell into bed, the both of us were exhausted!

Friday August 21, 2009

As much as I would have liked to sleep in, it didn’t happen, I was awake at 6:30 a.m. Gary was up too and decided to go and get the rental car.  Our plan for the day was to relax! When he got back we went down to the food court and had breakfast . . . he has asked if I wanted to get something offsite and I said no way, I am having the beignets! They were so good.   

As we were leaving Gary had just said, “I wonder where John and Cathy are?” and we heard our names being called. They were just going in for breakfast so we chatted a minute and then left them with plans to meet later. We drove over to the Outlet mall where Gary dropped me off, I headed right to the Disney shop and he went off in search of a bottle of Scotch for the cruise.

There wasn’t a whole lot there this time that I wanted except some huge Mickey Halloween lighted stakes, I immediately bemoaned the fact that we didn’t have the RV and it might be a problem to get them home. I had myself convinced that I couldn’t have them when Gary came along, he took one look at them, picked up two boxes and said, “We’ll will figure it out!”

We went right back to the resort and I was at the pool by 11 o’clock, Gary came down shortly after and we went into the food court for a bit of lunch. We shared a meal since we had an early dinner planned.

After lunch we both had a swim and then decided to go back to the room for a little nap. Just as we got in the room I got a message from John that they were going down to the pool, we passed and said we would see them later. When we had finished our nap we call them and it was their turn for a little nap so we laughed and said we will see you later in the evening at the bar.  

We drove over to the Magic Kingdom and decided to take the ferry over to the park, we hadn’t done that in years. It had been raining and was very overcast but it was still a nice view of the castle as we approached. We had a bit of time before our dinner at the Plaza so we walked through the store, watched the Main Street Philharmonic band and saw a bit of the Dapper Dans.  

Our dinner was at the Plaza so we checked in and found a spot to stay dry as we waited because it was looking like rain again.

We had a very good dinner at the Plaza. I always enjoy eating there . . . of course we had to finish it off with an ice cream sundae, it’s a rule!

After dinner walked over to Buzz, got a couple of fast passes, then walked over to see The Hall of Presidents. Gary hadn’t seen the new version yet.  We walked in just as the doors closed behind us. I like what they have done with the show. When we exited the theatre it was really raining hard so we made our way back over to Buzz walking through stores and under canopies when we could. After riding Buzz it was getting very steamy hot and we were getting quite wet so we decided to head back to the resort.

Back at POFQ we ran into Dave, Kristen, Brinn and Maddy.  We had a quick chat and then made our way back to the room. Shortly after 9 p.m. we got a text from John, they were almost back to the resort so we went down to the bar to meet up with them; Dave also came and joined us. It was a pleasant evening sitting with friends and talking about the plans for the cruise and Tagomainia. Before we knew it, it was 11:30 p.m. and we decided that we had better get some sleep so we could be up in time for the Soarin’ meet the next day.

Saturday August 22, 2009

This morning we had to meet our Tagrel friends at EPCOT at 9:30 a.m., so we were up and moving quickly.  Gary had a quick bite of breakfast at the POFQ food court while I did a bit of packing and then we drove off to EPCOT.  We arrived seconds after rope-drop and headed directly to Soarin’.  On the way we met several Tag friends and Gary went to get our Fastpasses while I went to the Garden Grill where we were meeting.  Bookwood ended up getting to the Fastpass line first, so she got passes for everyone!

Back at Garden Grill we had a nice time chatting in a quiet, out of the way location.  Our meet hostess, Tina had a draw for a door prize and once again Gary won.  He seems to be on a roll lately.

We all headed to the standby line and after yakking in line for about 25 minutes we all rode together.  Most of our group rode the front row in the “B Pod” – the best seats on the ride!  Bonus! After the ride we headed off to Sunshine Seasons food court where we had a cold drink and a bite to ear. Then our Fastpass time came around, so we headed back and rode again.  Wow – front row “B Pod” again. 

We left The Land and most of the group headed off and rode Spaceship Earth together.  Gary and John were anxious to ride Mission Space and Cathy and I were not, so we went shopping while they rode.  As they were walking back to meet us, they saw the Jam-itors getting ready to play, so we followed the rolling trashcans and watched their show.  They are very entertaining, but I think this show was shortened by the threatening rain clouds.  The four of us then went over to The Living Seas and rode the Nemo ride. After that we headed out of the park and back to POFQ.  It was 1:30 p.m.

Back at the resort Gary and I split a lunch at the food court and then went for a nap.

By 4:00 we were heading back to EPCOT for the evening.  We walked through the park to World Showcase and caught the boat over to Germany.  From there we walked to Italy where the heat began to overpower me.  We sat in the air-conditioned waiting area at Tutto Italia and cooled down for a few minutes.  We were a bit early for our 5:30 dinner reservation, but we checked in at 5:00 and were seated immediately.  This was our first time eating at the restaurant since it changed from Alfredo’s to Tutto Italia.  We used to really enjoy Alfredo’s.  Our impression after our first dinner there – the food was merely OK but the service was good.  It was actually too good.  The server delivered a tray of bread, olive oil and a plate of olives and other antipasto at the same time she took our order.  Before we had finished nibbling our first olive our entrees arrived.  We both felt quite rushed. . . this is supposed to be a fine dining restaurant, but we were in and out in 35 minutes.  I don’t think we’ll be rushing back.

After dinner we headed over to the American Adventure and the show was due to begin in 10 minutes.  We went in and waited in air-conditioned comfort.  We had not seen this show in many years and we had some difficulty remembering what it was all about.  Benjamin Franklin and Mark Twain walked us through three centuries of American history in a 40-minute show.

After the show we headed out and joined our friends John & Cathy who were sitting waiting for our group to assemble for the dessert party before the Illuminations fireworks show.  Because the weather was once again threatening rain, Disney had moved our function from the area beside the British pavilion to the area in front of Italy.  This move also meant that our dessert party was moved indoors, to the 3^rd floor of the American Adventure pavilion. It was awesome, the desserts were great and the room we had been assigned was furnished with nice comfy sofa’s. What a nice treat and a great way to spend the hour before Illuminations started.

At the appropriate time we were escorted out of the building and over to our special seating area, there were even chairs for us to sit on. It was the best viewing spot I have been in to watch Illuminations. After the show was over Gary and I made our way out of the park and to the car. We headed right back to the resort. I had to finish getting our stuff ready for the cruise.

Sunday August 23, 2009

Our stateroom (#6134) was ready promptly at 1:30 and we freshened up before our first meet with our Tagrel friends.

Belle was our hostess at the 2:30 p.m. Ice Cream Social Meet on Deck 9.  We visited and chatted for a while and those who hadn’t over indulged at Parrot Cay also enjoyed and ice cream treat for dessert.  

Gary and I headed back to the room to finish unpacking.  We were heading to Deck 9 for the sail-away party when they announced over the PA system that the weather was threatening and the party would be held indoors, at mid-ship, Decks 3, 4 and 5.  It was a zoo, far too crowded in such a confined area.  We stood for a while with Belle, Jon, Mik and Tyler, but it was impossible to see the show.  We wandered out on deck and were exploring when we bumped into John & Cathy.  Soon Gary and John decided it was time to do a “quality check” on the scotch Gary brought, so they adjourned to our balcony while I went shopping and Cathy went for a nap.

When I arrived at the shopping area on Deck 4, the Walt Disney Theatre was just opening for the Golden Mickey’s show.  I called Gary, but he was on the balcony and didn’t hear the phone.  I went in and enjoyed the show, then went back up to our cabin to get ready for dinner.  

Before dinner we assembled, with our fellow Tag’s, in the Promenade Lounge for a drink and some quiet conversation before dinner.  That proved impossible.  The dance floor in the lounge has been converted to a children’s play area before dinner.  A DJ plays Disney music at about a kajillion decibels and screams and chants at the kiddies.  The kids scream and chant in return.  A cast member who closely resembles the Energizer Bunny occasionally leads this screaming, chanting horde on a conga line through the lounge to ensure that those who have found a quiet corner are disrupted too!  I guess we’ll have to find a new lounge to meet in.  

This was our night at Triton’s.  It was terrific.  Our tablemates are John & Cathy and Brian and Lizzie.  It was an evening filled with laughter.  After dinner we decided to run back to our room and change into something more comfortable. We then left to meet John & Cathy on deck 9, the guy’s sipped scotch while we all watched the lightning out over the ocean. It wasn’t long before we headed back to the cabins, it had been a long day and everyone was tired.

Monday August 24, 2009

We had decided not to go ashore in Nassau today, we would just spend the day enjoying the ship. Gary went to the Bookwood’s Cove Café meet at 7:30 a.m. so he was up and crashing around at 7:00. After he was gone and I had a chance to sit quietly on the balcony and take some pictures as we pulled into Nassau harbour.  Gary had coffee with a few of our fellow Tags and then went to the bow on Deck 9 to watch our Nassau arrival.  I had a 9:45 spa appointment so I joined the group for a very quick bite at the Beach Blanket Buffet before I had to leave then and head to the spa.   

After the spa I went back to the cabin to meet up with Gary and then we both went down to the pool. It was a beautiful day, we swam for a while, then went in the hot tub and then swam some more. There were lots of our friends around, it made for a very enjoyable afternoon. We also had plenty to eat, including a couple of bowls of crab claws that our table server got for us. John and I managed to eat them all while Gary and Cathy ducked the flying shells.  

When we had had enough sun and water we went back to the cabin for a nap. We got up after an hour and walked around the ship a bit, putting in time until we had to meet up with the gang so we could all sit together for the evening show. The stage show was Toy Story The Musical.  We had not seen it before and it was very good. After the show we went back to get dressed for dinner, then went to the Cadillac Lounge.

Our dining rotation took us to the Animator’s Palate; it was fun to watch the walls change colour and the pictures take shape. The food was good although I liked Tritons better. After dinner we met up with some of the Tags on deck 9 for a while, then we all went off in different directions.  I went to the shops and Gary went back to the cabin.  Lights out at 11:30 – too much fun, sun and fresh air!

Tuesday August 25, 2009

SERENITY NOW!

When we woke the ship was pulling into Castaway Cay.  This is our favourite part of a Disney Cruise.  Neither Gary nor I are sun-seekers or big beach fans, but we love Castaway Cay!  The landscaping is magnificent . . . just as you expect from Disney.  It really does feel like an abandoned island paradise.  This theme is consistently applied everywhere you look.

We headed up to Beach Blanket Buffet for a bite of breakfast before heading ashore.  We sat with Betsy-Ann, Pam and Moley; they were as excited as we were.  In fact, Moley was so anxious to get serene that she was just humming with excitement.  She dashed off before the rest of us had finished breakfast saying, “I’m going to grab Marty Feldman, head ashore and reserve us some chairs at Serenity Bay.”  In a flash Moley was gone!

We made our way ashore about a half hour later.  On our way we stopped at the post office, mailed some postcards, took some pictures of the ship, pictures of the Flying Dutchman and pictures of the magnificent flowers along the trails.   Once we reached the central area we popped into a couple of shops and then hopped on the tram to Serenity Bay.  

SERENITY NOW!

Moley had “dun good” . . . she had staked out about a dozen lounge chairs directly in front of the bar and restrooms, and a stones throw from the barbecue.  Good job Moley!

It was a rigorous day . . . we soaked, we lounged, then we soaked and lounged again.  Sometimes for a change of pace we would lounge and then soak.  The weather was terrific.  It was hot and humid and the occasional passing storm cloud gave us some shade from time to time.  Not a drop of rain fell, but we saw plenty of rain in the distance and heard a few rumbles of thunder. We had some great food from the BBQ and then spent some more time in the water.  

By 2:30 our tender Canadian skin was beginning to protest all that sun, so we made our way back to the Wonder. I caught the shuttle and Gary walked back with John & Dave.

Back on board it didn’t take long for us to hit the sack for a nap!  All that sun and fun had knocked us right out.

Showered and refreshed, we made the rounds once again dropping goodies in the fish extenders and then walked around the ship and had a few pictures taken on our way to the Walt Disney Theatre.  We watched G-Force in 3-D and while we agreed it was cute, we were also happy we didn’t pay a lot to see it in a theatre.  There will probably not be a G-Force sequel.

After the movie we donned our pirate gear and headed to the Cadillac Lounge where we met John and Cathy for a drink before dinner.  We ate for a second night in Artist’s Palate with a special menu for Pirate night.  Once again we shared plenty of laughs with our tablemates . . . sometimes it was hard to get a bite amid all the laughter.  

After dinner we all headed up to Deck 10 for the Pirates in the Caribbean Party and the fireworks show.  We arrived a bit late and could not get anywhere close to the rail, so we watched the show on the big screen and got the occasional glimpse of live action on the stage.  It’s a very entertaining show (Mickey saves the day by defeating Captain Hook) and the live fireworks over the Caribbean are truly special!

By the end of the show Gary and I were fading fast, so I headed to the late night buffet to pick us up a dessert snack while Gary was supposed to pick us up a couple of cold drinks.  It seems that WDWNJ had different plans and he “forced” Gary to join he and Cathy for a nightcap at Diversions.

By midnight Gary was back to the room and it was lights out for the day!

Wednesday August 26, 2009

This was our “At Sea” day and we relaxed!  Gary was up bright and early and joined Pam for her Cove Café coffee meet.  The two of them were the only ones there!  Everyone else was smart enough to sleep in! 

We had a reservation for brunch at Palo’s so we got dressed for that and headed to the back of the ship, decks 10. I think half the restaurant was filled with Tags. It was an amazing display of food and we all enjoyed a leisurely dining experience. After we left the group we went back to the cabin and got changed, it was time to go to the pool and relax.

We lazed around the pool with several other Tags, watched Chef Lizzie participate in one of the poolside games, and then headed back to the cabin for a well-deserved nap.

We went to see the show before dinner, Disney Dreams.  It’s great, a terrific cast, incredibly good staging and effects.  It’s hard to imagine a production of this quality being performed at sea!  

Dinner was at Parrot Cay and it was once again a laughter filled time.  After dinner we said goodbye to a few Tags we might not see again, and then went to Shutters to select the pictures we wanted to buy.  We ended up sharing a 15-photo package with John and Cathy.  

Back at the cabin we discovered this night’s towel art – a terrycloth lobster.  I finished packing and we put our suitcases in the hall for pick-up on our way up to deck 9.  John and Cathy were waiting for us and waved us up to deck 10 where it was much cooler.  SuzyQ’s husband Del arrived within a few minutes and the men relished the last few sips of single malt scotch on our final night at sea.  

By midnight we were back in the cabin where Gary said, “I think I’ll take a picture of Larry the lobster.”  I replied, “It’s too late, I ate his eyes!”  We giggled about Larry for a few minutes before sleep overtook us.

Thursday August 27, 2009

Up and at ‘em this morning!  By the time we awoke we were moored at Port Canaveral.  We met at Parrot Cay for breakfast where we said our final goodbyes to the rest of our friends and then headed off to the terminal where we retrieved our luggage and cleared customs.  Our Quicksilver van was waiting at the curb and we loaded and got on the road immediately.  We made a stop at the airport to drop John and Gary, Lizzie and Brian.  John picked up his rental car and then took Lizzie and Brian home before taking Gary to Disney’s Car Care Centre to pick up our car.  Cathy and I went on in the van to POP Century Resort.  While we were checking in I discovered that I had Gary’s driver’s license.  Uh-Oh!  This will be trouble.  Fortunately we were able to text John and he turned around, picked Gary up and brought him to POP to pick up his license.  By 11:30 he had picked up the car and returned to the resort.

Our room wasn’t ready so we had a bite of lunch and then went to Downtown Disney.  We strolled through the Christmas Store then the Art of Disney Store before receiving a text that our room was ready.  Once in the room I quickly unpacked and we both had a nap.

We headed off to Animal Kingdom where we both rode Expedition Everest, and then Gary used the singles line to ride it again.  Dinner at Yak and Yeti was OK.  The first time we ate there it was a “WOW” experience for us, and we enjoyed it very much the next time to two, but this time it was just OK.  There was nothing specifically wrong with it, but it wasn’t a WOW!  

We did get a WOW though – at Kilimanjaro Safaris.  Two hippos were out of the water walking around, a black rhino was out very close to the road, three cheetahs were walking across the grass close to the moat, the female lion was laying out in the open on the rocks and around the other side the male lion was standing on the rock looking at us and posing.  The driver took his time and stopped many times so we could take pictures.  Guess what – we didn’t have Gary's camera with the longer zoom with us!  Dang!  

Back at the resort we met up with John and went for a swim.  I headed back to the room at about 8:15 p.m. but Gary and John picked up a drink from the poolside bar and stayed out for a while.  By the time Gary came back at 10:30 I had enjoyed an hour or two of sleep.

Friday August 28, 2009

We had agreed to meet John and Cathy at Disney’s Hollywood Studios for rope drop at 9:00 a.m. so Gary was up bright and early.  He brought me a coffee before heading down to the food court for his breakfast.  I have him well trained!  

When we entered the Studios we found Amymouse waiting for us and within a few minutes John and Cathy arrived.  I took all the tickets and scurried to Toy Story Midway Mania to get our fastpasses while the four of them got in line.  After our first ride we still had an hour to wait for our fastpass time so we rode the Great Movie Ride.  Once we finished a couple in the group decided they needed to experience the Great Potty Ride and while we waited for them to finish we ran into StarsInEyes4Mickey (Jean), Paul and their daughter Pam.  After yakking with them for a few minutes we headed over to the Animation Gallery to look at the hand painted animation cels and other Disney art.  I bought myself a couple of vinylmations, no cels this time!

After riding Toy Story again I had had enough of the heat and so had Gary so we left our pals and headed out of the park.  They went on to ride Tower of Terror while Gary and I went to Downtown Disney for another sandwich at the Earl’s joint!

We intended to take a swim before our nap, but we decided that it was even too hot to swim.  We read and puttered on the computer for a few minutes before napping.

By 4:00 p.m. we were on our way to EPCOT.  We stopped at the Art of Disney Store and browsed then went to the Canadian pavilion and watched the circlevision show “Oh Canada” before dinner.  We checked in at 5:25 for our 5:40 reservation and we were seated immediately.  Once again we had great steaks and a wonderful dining experience.  Our server was a delightful girl from Brandon, MB.  Unfortunately she could not get a Tim Horton’s coffee for us!  We savoured the Maple Crème Brulee before leaving Le Cellier and heading back to the resort.

Soon John and Cathy were back from the Magic Kingdom and we all went for a swim.  On the way to the pool we bumped into Tina and soon her husband Shawn and son Michael joined us.  We swam and then had a drink and yakked until about 11:40 p.m.   The Space Shuttle Discovery was scheduled to launch at 11:59 so Tina headed to the front desk to find out what direction we should look.  By 11:50 we were on the 4^th floor balcony directly above our rooms waiting . . . and at 11:59 the sky began to light up.  There it was . . . clear as could be.  We saw the first stage separate and fall away and then watched until it disappeared from sight.  WOW . . . I’ve been lucky enough to see four shuttle launches from Walt Disney World.

After the launch we had another quick dip and then headed off to bed.

Saturday August 29, 2009

Gary was up bright and early.   I heard him leave the room and thought, “Oh good, he’ll be right back with my coffee!”  Not so, he went to the Generation Gap Bridge to take pictures of turtles.  He was gone for an hour . . . and I had no coffee!

Gary dropped me off at the Settlement Bus Stop (near Pioneer Hall) and as I walked toward the Trail’s End restaurant I felt calmed by the natural surroundings.  This place really is serene.  Gary parked the car at the Outpost and caught a campground bus to the settlement.  As he got off the bus he spied three deer in the bush but was only able to get one blurry picture.  As he was snapping the shot the bus pulled away and frightened the deer off.

As he walked toward Trail’s End he saw John and Cathy get off the next bus to pull in so he waited for them.  They all arrived to find me in a rocking chair on the veranda.  I was so comfy and relaxed I didn’t want to get up.

After breakfast we wandered around the Settlement area snapping pictures of the butterflies flitting around the gardens, then caught a bus to the Meadows.  We walked past the tennis courts, pool, hot tub, kiddie’s splash pad and wound up at the Trading Post before we caught another bus to the Outpost.  

The gardens surrounding the Outpost have been designed and cultivated to attract butterflies so we stopped there for some more pictures.  We were in not hurry to leave, but the heat was becoming oppressive, so we hopped in the car and headed back to POP for a swim. After the swim it was naptime.  

After our nap we just sat around for a bit then the phone rang, it was John wanting to know if Gary wanted to walk back to the bridge to look at turtles, so off they went. When they got back we headed over to the Polynesian to have dinner with John & Cathy at ‘Ohana. While we were waiting for our seating time we got to watch King Mattua perform the torch lighting ceremony. We were seated for dinner a few minutes early and had a window seat.  It was nice to sit and relax while the food just kept arriving. We were about half way through our meal when Amy popped in for a visit, we had a good chat with her and took our time finishing our meal. When we were done we all headed off in different directions.

Gary and I caught the monorail over to the Magic Kingdom. We walked down Main Street and over to Adventureland. We rode Pirates, then Jungle Cruise, that was enough it was just too hot. As we were leaving we noticed there was no one at Aladdin’s so we hopped on a carpet and flew around for a while. We made our way down Main Street and out of the park to the monorail. By the time we got back to the hotel the heat had taken it’s toll on us and we decided it was time to crash.

Sunday August 30, 2009

Gary was up with the crows again today.  I heard him leave the room about 7:00 a.m. to return the rental car.  He got back before 8:00 with coffee and by that time I was dressed and finishing up the packing.  John & Cathy came over and we yakked for a while before saying out goodbyes.  At 9:30 we headed down to the lobby and checked our luggage then waited for our 9:45 pick-up by Disney’s Magical Express.

We had a non-stop trip to the airport, had a bite of lunch and before we knew it our Jet Blue flight took off ahead of schedule.  We must have had a tail wind . . . the video flight monitor showed our speed peaking at 621 mph at an altitude of 39,841 feet.  We landed ahead of schedule at Syracuse, NY and by 4:10 we were on the road!

We stopped at Watertown to gas up (gasoline is 30% cheaper in the US than in Canada) and at 5:30 we crossed the border into Canada.  We didn’t stop at home, I was missing my dogs too much, so we went straight to my parent’s house to pick up Zak and Zoë.  By 6:00 we had them in the car and we were home by 6:20 p.m.

Now the work starts . . . unpack . . . laundry . . . more laundry . . . did I mention that Gary’s a slob?  Thank God for the Tide sticks Cathy gave us, but there’s still a lot of laundry!

WOW . . . in less than seven weeks we’ll be on our way back for Tag-O-Mania!!  Can’t wait!