Recruiting Day-Cook School

About two weeks ago I went to visit Sue . . . I had the pleasure of going to school with her on Friday (She teaches Kindergarten). We took a field trip to the planetarium, had extra recess, and enjoyed a lovely story at the end of the day. The AU athletic department graciously donated 27 Auburn shakers that I brought with me and we read Pat Dye's children's book, "War Eagle." The pictures below tell a wonderful story of the promise and young talent just waiting to make its way to the Plains . . . heh heh. The best part was they all lined up in their bus lines to go home, chanting "War Eagle! War Eagle!" Priceless.

Off to Boston for Sambo . . . on the chair for Bricks

Samson left last Thursday . . . he has found a new home (via J&L Rescue where we adopted Bricks) in Boston, MA. BOSTON! How sad-he's so far away. He will be missed but we are so glad he has a forever home.

Even Bricks was glum . . . now answer me one question . . . why is it that an 85 pound dog finds it comfortable to curl up in a small wicker chair?

Samson

Last Wednesday I brought home with me another foster dog, Samson. He is a 6-7 year old Golden who is extremely overweight. It's very sad, he can barely fit through our doggie door. But he is the happiest and sweetest boy. He loves cheing on sticks and sunning in the yard. He is a delight!

Happy First Birthday, Cole!

Last weekend (March 4th), we all celebrated Cole's first birthday. He really liked his cake!

Back in Old San Juan for one more day

El Convento Hotel -historic and gorgeous hotel across from the Cathedral.

I took a picture of this sign because I wanted to remember the name of this place. We had the best meal of the trip here-excellent tapas and sangria. Highly recommend this restaurant if you are ever in Old SJ!
End of an old street . . . and the end of our trip. Back to the U.S. in time for work on Tuesday-we had a blast and feel rejuvenated.

St. Maarten

Sunday, Feb. 25th (Gary's Birthday!), we sailed down to St. Maarten. We went horse back riding and walked around Front St. and the surrounding areas.

This place we had lunch, Talouloa Mango's, we later found out was named after the family's Golden Retriever . . .

Last dinner on the ship. Gary won his hand at craps later on at the casino.

Turtle Beach, St. Kitts

We then got on a cruise ship and sailed down to the island of St. Kitts. We took a short cab ride around the southern part of the island over to Turtle Beach. It was a perfect day to lay in the sun, have a few rum punches, or Nectar of teh Gods as some people chose to call it, and relax.

The sister island of Nevis is featured in this picture.

Formal night on the cruise.

El Yunque Part 2

View from scenic lookout.

Little restaurant leaving the park-look closely at the dog on the roof! The had tasty fish, crab or shrimp tacos and other local dishes.

Day 3 - El Yunque National Rainforest

We took the old Hyundai Brio to the Rainforest. We hiked up the Yunque trail to the scenic overlook (about 950 feet). We passed some lush vegetation and colorful lizards along the hike.

Post Dinner in Old San Juan

After dinner we went to a local salsa club . . . I couldn't get Gary to show me his dancing moves. Out hotel lobby/lounge-Hotel Normandie was designed after the old ship, "Normandie."

Parque de las Cavernas del Rio Camuy

The next day we drove to Camuy Caves . . . expansive natural caverns jsut west of San Juan. The caves were beautiful and although the wait in line for the tour was long, it was well worth it.

Fort San Felipe del Morro-Old San Juan, Puerto Rico

On Feb. 21st we flew to San Juan, PR for a little vacation. After checking in to Hotel Normandie, our first stop was tromping around Fort Morro in Old San Juan. The sun was setting as we were exploring and it made for some very nice photo opportunities.

Turning Yonder 27

This past Friday found us in Atlanta, for dinner and a concert at the Tabernacle. We went to see Yonder Mtn String Band-they played 3.5 hours and it was a great show. They have added a mandolin to their instrument line up. However, much to Gary's chagrin, they did not play Death Trip Baby. They did play #4 #3 which made up for the lack of the Death Trip though.

Dinner at South City Kitchen in Midtown . . . Jennie, Tricia, Katie, Ali, Joel, Joy, Yancy, us, & Diana. It was a fabulous 27th birthday weekend! Here's to Gary's 28th birthday coming up in a week. We leave Wednesday for our Caribbean trip-back to packing . . . will post upon our return from the Southern Seas.