The John and Mabel Ringling Estate and Museum, Sarasota, Florida

This is going to be a picture tour, for the most part.  We picked a cloudy, rainy morning to visit Sarasota and the Ringling estate.  It was raining cats and dogs when we arrived.  By noon the sun came out and it was gorgeous, as you'll see in the following pictures.  This was an amazing day, full of circus history.   I don't have memories of going to the circus as a child.  I do have memories of taking my sons to the circus.  Not sure they would remember it but I remember doing this when we lived in California.

The Ringlings liked to entertain, and dancing was among the favorite activities of the day.  Here is the dancing room...check out the ceiling in the two pictures that follow.  They depict dancers from different ethnic groups, framed in gold in the ceiling.

Once thru the dancing room, you enter the living room ~ complete with baby grand piano, crystal chandelier, amazing two story room with another unbelievable ceiling.

The next room had an interesting "twist" to it.  It's the breakfast room, where visitors were invited to share coffee and morning treats.  If you were on the "good" side of Mr. Ringling, you were seated looking out on the beautiful view, which is the Gulf.  If you were not on his good side, you were seated looking at the picture on the wall behind the chairs pictured here...and it was a painting depicting a not so pleasant scene of angry men fighting!

Next is the Valet's Pantry.

Then the kitchen.  It appears Mrs. Ringling was fond of dishes - like me!

The dining room table had an ungodly number of leaves that fit in the table, to seat about 30 guests...the room was paneled - too dark for my taste...but check out the ceiling!

We were told the heads come off the ducks, and she would use them as a vase, putting flowers in them.

Pretty crazy, eh?

Next we went upstairs.  You paid extra to be able to tour the second floor.  It was worth it to me, as this is where we got to see where they lived, their bedrooms and bathrooms.  Each quite special.  There was a third floor, too, that was referred to as the "game" room - but we opted to not pay another additional price to go up there.

First, Mr. Ringling's bed.  Someone asked why there were two beds...and we were told just because they were sold in a set of two.

Okay.

His bathroom caught my attention.  He had a 9 ft carved Italian marble bathtub.  And the walls were marble too!

On to Mrs. Ringling's bedrooms.  Someone asked why the separate rooms?  The guide said they had very different schedules or "routines."  He liked to be up late, pouring over his art books, she liked to go to bed early.  Thus separate rooms.  Nice answer!  (maybe this is why they had no children!)  We were told on more than one occasion how devoted they were to each other.

HELLO!

If you were a guest, you'd stay here, kinda small bed...but beautiful room complete with private bathroom and dressing room.

If you travel to Sarasota make sure you put this on your list of places to visit.  It took the entire day and it was very enjoyable!

First stop - Bradenton, Florida - January 2016

I flew away from chilly Rhode Island on Monday, January 4th.  To my surprise the weather in Rhode Island that short time I was there unpacking, was quite warm.  I didn't need jackets, hats, gloves, etc.  A nice warm spell for moving in.  Check out another post - soon to come - for a little more on the Rhody move in.

The motorhome was left in Florida in the middle of November.  There were thoughts that it wouldn't start when we returned after the holidays, so we arranged a hotel room for the night of our arrival.  The CRV was parked alongside the motorhome - waiting for our return to Florida at the end of December.

The flight down from Providence seemed long - maybe it was the crowded airplane, the fact that I was absolutely exhausted from unpacking in Rhode Island or maybe it was the boot on my left foot that made me cranky and tired.  Not sure...but it almost took us 3 hours to arrive in Tampa.

We hailed a cab at the airport when we arrived in Tampa and were taken to the storage lot where the motorhome and car were parked.  Sure enough, RV had a dead battery.  No problem with the car, it started right up.  We put the suitcases in the car and headed for the Hampton Inn, a short distance away.  We needed dinner and rest and would deal with the RV in the morning.

The next morning we went out to get in the car and the car had a flat tire.  REALLY?

So, warranty service was called for the Honda, the spare was put on and I drove over to Costco to have the tire repaired or replaced.  On the way I dropped Don off at the RV storage lot and he waited for service to come to deal with the battery issue on the motorhome.  Sure enough - "house" battery was dead.

Once the "house" batteries were replaced we were on our way south to Bradenton, only about an hour away.  Our reservation for the month of January is at Pleasant Lake RV Resort in Bradenton.  This first week we've had a number of overcast, cloudy days and one day with a whopping thunderstorm.  But temps are in the 60's and low 70's with evenings dropping down in the 50's.  No snow in the forecast here - so it's pretty perfect as far as I'm concerned!

This RV park has a mix of "park homes," RV motorhomes, Fifth wheel RV trailers, and a small assortment of other types of camper vehicles.  It wasn't hard to back in and get settled in our parking space.

The view out the front door...looking down the street towards the entrance of the RV Park.

The next day I took a ride around the lake to check out how big the park is and what's around the corner.  Here is the activity center.  Behind that white fence is a pool - I hear the water is really warm!

More views of the lake ~

The office, mail location, registration, welcome area:

All of the units are located around the lake and most have a lovely view of the lake.  There are a couple of streets where the RV camper or motorhome vehicle lots are located behind the park home sites.

Next you'll see park homes on the right and motorhomes on the left.  The park homes are neat and tidy and look very comfy! I can see my friends Walt and Laurie from Glenview in this park.  There are dogs everywhere and lots of opportunities for Walt to visit with guys and talk cars, trucks, bikes, etc.   Laurie and her dogs would be making new friends at every corner!  And there are wonderful paths and places to stroll.

I'm impressed with the amount of "park homes" in Florida at this RV park and at others we've seen. Park homes are quite small (tiny houses) but very well maintained and look very cozy.  I wonder if something like this is a better option than a motorhome?

The view of the street "where we live" for the month of January:

So far we really like this park.  The sites are roomy...we have a picnic table and room to pull the car up alongside the motorhome.  And the lot has shade!  In the summer these trees would really be helpful, I'm sure!  It's been cool here at night and in the mornings right now.

The gates to enter the park are locked at 5 pm, this is the exit to Route 70 leading to lots of stores, restaurants, etc.   This park is definitely on the list of places to return to if/when we're looking to return to the Bradenton-Sarasota area.

My Christmas Note, 2015

Andrew and Alicia - September 26, 2015, Geyserville Inn, Geyserville, California

HAPPINESS!!!

2015 was a year in which I experienced some of the most wonderful moments you can experience in life and some of the saddest – most heartbreaking moments.   What a year!

HEARTBREAK!!!

My brother in law, Bill, lost his 9 month fight with cancer.  We all miss him terribly.

And...leaving work and Illinois ~

Walking away from work at NorthShore University Health System in Evanston, Illinois, on March 13^th  was one of the most liberating experiences of my life.   I was FINALLY doing it…FINALLY moving.  The excitement of the unknown didn’t faze me.  Where would I live?  Would I work?  What would life be like?

This was the first time I made the decision to leave a job without having a job lined up.  I walked away from employment for the first time in many years, maybe ever!  Bittersweet for sure as I really didn’t feel like I was ready to stop working for the rest of my life.  And happy – to walk out the door and leave!  With my desire to relocate near family, my thoughts have been that I would work again once I’m settled on the east coast.  Turning 65 and being eligible for health insurance – finally – not linked to employment is what made this finally possible.  Otherwise I’d still be working in Illinois until I found a job on the east coast. Today I’m still not sure what the possibility of working looks like…it’s been a “work in progress” to figure out as the year has unfolded and as 2015 comes to an end.

For many, many years I’ve wanted to move back east.   I’ve made a lot of wonderful friends in Illinois.  Friends that are near and dear to my heart and always will be.  In Illinois I went back to college, finished a degree at DePaul and bought and sold a couple of houses as a single working Mom.  I started my career in Human Resources.  I made memories traveling all over the Midwest and exploring small towns with many motorcycle friends.   But it was time to move on and do what I hoped to do for a very long time - relocate near family.

March 13^th was my last day working at NorthShore.  On March 14^th I left early in the morning and drove to Rhode Island.  This is where I decided to make my next “home.”   I rented a furnished apartment in Wickford, RI for sIx months.  In those six months I wanted to be available to travel to NJ to be with my sister and her husband Bill, who was struggling with a terminal illness.  Also, I wanted to be flexible to travel to the west coast to spend time with Andrew, Alicia, and Tim.  Andrew and his beautiful fiancé, Alicia, were in the final months of wedding planning and I wanted to travel to San Francisco a couple of times to see the wedding venue and visit with my sons there. 

This is the first picture I took when I arrived in Rhode Island, and walked to the end of the street where I was staying.  I love the ocean and the little apartment I was renting was located in Wickford, which is part of the town of North Kingstown where Mike lives.

From March until the end of October, I had a thrilling six months near my grandchildren, Emma and Will.  I continued to travel, and in between trips to Colorado, California and Washington, I was able to enjoy dinners with Mike, Shelagh and the kids.  Mike loves to cook and I had the enjoyment of sharing many delicious dinners.  It was fun to be able to go to a school program and watch soccer games that Emma and Will were involved in.  In between all this my search for my next home continued and it turned out to be quite a challenge!

Rent?  Buy?  House? Condo?  Apartment?  Choices…choices.  I had my wish list and drove all around the small Ocean State, as Rhode Island is referred to, trying to learn neighborhoods and communities.  One thing I really wanted was a garage - that isn't expecting too much considering there is WINTER in Rhode Island?  Rhode Island isn’t Florida  - they have cold and snowy winers – and I was surprised and disappointed at the housing options that didn’t include a garage.  My six month rental was coming to an end and I was extremely frustrated that I was not able to find a place I felt I could call home.  And in the last week a condo became available in nearby South Kingstown (the next town south of Mike) that seemed perfect.  The deal was put together and I’m happy to say I will have a new permanent home – and address – as of December 21st.

After I quit my job back in March, I traveled around the country for almost two months.  From Illinois my first stop was Rhode Island.  Continuing south my next stops were in New Jersey, Pennsylvania,  North Carolina and Georgia.  After a little rest in the Atlanta area with friends that used to live in Barrington, I traveled west to Texas.  I enjoyed a fun visit with my sister Gail.   My road trip was a great adventure! From Texas I flew to California and spent a week with Tim and Andrew in San Francisco.  I spent my birthday in San Francisco, enjoying a cable car ride, a visit to the SF Apple store, dinner with Andrew, Tim and Alicia and visits during the week with friends from Moraga and a high school friend who relocated to the West coast and whom I hadn’t seen in about 40 years!

In April while I was visiting San Francisco, Andrew and Alicia took me to see the place they chose as their wedding venue, pictured below.  I stood there trying to imagine what it would be like at the end of September, vineyard in full bloom, with my son pledging his love to his beautiful bride.

It was fun to celebrate my birthday with Tim, Andrew and Alicia while in California.  I decided I could enjoy a "tour" of SF if I jumped on one of the cable cars in the afternoon.

Since Tim moved to California, he has taken up sailing.  While I was visiting in April he rented a sailboat and we had an amazing day sailing under the Golden Gate Bridge and in and around San Francisco Bay.

I had fun visiting old friends, Andrea DeLuca in the Atlanta area, Pam Pocklington in Moraga, California and Carol Zangwill in San Francisco.

Oh!  I almost forgot to mention a REALLY fun visit when I drove thru Texas!  My very first “boyfriend” and I met for dinner.  Thanks to facebook, he found me a while back and we agreed to meet some day wherever/whenever our paths might cross.  I gave him a heads up that I would be coming to his home area and we arranged to meet for dinner. 

It turned out to be one of those moments where you pinch yourself cause you can’t believe it’s happening.  I don’t even want to count the number of years it has been since I saw him!  When I was in 8^th grade my family moved from North Jersey to South Jersey…and that was the end of our little “relationship.”

New adventures began in this motor home mid year!  And yes, I drive it!  My friend Don and I took off on a three week tour in early July.  We traveled to Denver and enjoyed time with his son and family and then drove north thru Utah, Oregon and Washington state - where we spent a week in what I love to call "paradise" - the mountains of Washington state.  On our way thru Utah we were lucky to catch my nephew Jess and his wife for a dinner visit and meet their two beautiful daughters and new baby Jonah.  That was a highlight of our drive north for sure!

During our visit in Washington state we drove across the Canadian border to Vancouver and enjoyed an afternoon at Capilano Suspension Bridge Park.

Andrew, best man at his best man's wedding (Paul Ochenrider) in Beaver Creek, July 2015

I was honored to be invited to Paul Ochenrider’s wedding in Beaver Creek, Colorado in July (Andrew’s best man and high school friend).   We left the  Denver area and traveled north to thru the Rocky mountains in the RV.  What a beautiful wedding high up in the Rockies.   Driving the 40 ft. RV thru the mountains of Colorado was an experience in and of itself!

 Our destination for our final week of this trip was an hour or so north of Seattle to the town of Sumas, Washington, almost to the Canadian border.  Don’s daughter has family that live on a ranch in Sumas and they plan a camping cookout each year in August, with hundreds of local friends and family.  There were dozens of campers in various types of camping vehicles.  It was an amazing week outdoors – where cell phones and computers did not work!  I loved every minute of it.  At the end of that week we drove straight back to Illinois…a long 2,000+ mile trip that took seven days.  In the RV/bus we can cover about 350-400 miles a day, before getting too exhausted!

There was a car rally during the Campout weekend.

This old boat was strategically placed in a sand pit for kiddos to enjoy!

The entire Campout weekend is hosted by the Hammer family - these salmon steaks were grilled for the crowd.

We weren't the only motorhome that arrived to enjoy the event.

The "dining" area.

The best news of the year was Andrew’s wedding.  On September 26^th he married a beautiful California girl, Alicia.  What a fantastic wedding celebration we all enjoyed.  The week began with Tim renting a huge sailboat and all of us sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge out to the ocean to whale watch.   All of this fun just took my breath away!  My heart was singing to have this experience with my sons and grandchildren!  The kids got to see sea lions and dolphins swimming in and around the bay and ocean.  And, Will was the first one to spot a whale once out in the ocean!

Andrew and Alicia got married in Geyserville California in the heart of Wine Country.  Andrew had asked his brother Mike to perform the ceremony on what was a very warm, picture perfect day in Northern California.  Night dancing under the stars was magical thanks to mother nature providing a full moon above the vineyard setting.  

No words...just no words...

Big brother marries little brother!  Be still my heart....

As the year closes in on me, I’m feeling so very thankful for being able to make all these memories.  Some of the best moments are those that I spent visiting family and friends around this country.

May this find you happy, healthy and as ready as I am to make new memories in 2016.

Happy Holidays!