AFGHANISTAN

It's hard to image that it has been four years

since my oldest son, David, came home

from his tour in Afghanistan.

We had so many emotions that day.

I remember so well that I was on pins and needles

waiting to see him coming in with

the rest of the soldiers from the 3-19th.

My brother, mom, future daughter-in-law,

and Chris, my younger son, and husband

were all there to greet him and hug him.

I was so overjoyed to see him coming in.

There were several television stations

recording the homecoming.

It was funny because you could hear me

over everyone that was there!

The Indiana Patriot Guard ever faithfully welcoming  our soldiers home.

Jorge and I made sure that all of the soldiers had food for their bus trip.

They are finally here!  So many people cheering!

We are finally all reunited!

Two great friends.

I remember that wonderful day when my son came home,

I look forward to when my other son, Chris, comes home next year.

Chris is now serving also in Afghanistan.

Chris and his unit at the airport with the Patriot Guard Riders.

It was very hard saying goodbye to him.

I pray everyday that God will keep him safe

as he serves his country.

GOD BLESS THE USA!

OUR NEW LIFE

Jorge and I are adjusting every day to our new life in Florida.

We are still living in the apartment.

Dotty really likes the dog park that is in the complex.

She has made friends with the maintenance workers.

They love on her a lot and she loves them.

I'm grateful that there is a gym in the complex.

I can go and use the equipment.

It really helps because I'm not used to running

in this weather yet.

I did not take this picture of the bridge.

This bridge is the Dames Point Bridge.

Jacksonville has four bridges to get across St. John's River.

The longest bridge in Jacksonville is the Buckman Bridge.

That particular bridge is a little over three miles long.

The skyline in Jacksonville is gorgeous.

We learned that this time of the year it rains a lot.

Just about every afternoon we have rain.

This is an alligator and no, I haven't seen any.

That has been one of my fears by moving to Florida.

The real estate agent told me that there won't be any

alligators coming out because they are located in the swamps.

Since all of my sewing things are in storage,

I'm so glad I have my yarn and crochet and knitting needles.

I've been busy knitting and crocheting things for Christmas.

As we wait to close on our house, I'll keep learning about Jacksonville

and adjusting to the weather.

YARN STORIES

A week before my husband and I moved to Florida,

one of my closest friends came over to help me pack.

We spent the whole day packing.

After a day of hard work, we treated ourselves.

She and I went to Muncie, a town near where I live,

and stopped at a local coffee shop

and sipped a delicious cup of coffee

and enjoyed sitting outside and talking.

We were waiting for a shop to open for us to check it out.

The name of the shop is Yarn Stories.

Their address is

119 East Charles

Muncie, IN 47505

765-744-5867

yarnstoriesmuncie@gmail.com

www.theyarnstories.com

Lisa and I fell in love with the shop.

We found out that the shop is new.

The owner is Katy Turbeville.

She has a wonderful selection of yarn.

Her classroom is a great size

and a wonderful place for lovers

of yarn to come together and stitch.

Her little partner is an angora rabbit named Stitches.

He loved to inspect our purses.

He ate his treats out of our hands.

He also loves to cuddle.

 Stitches is such a cute rabbit

I love the way this infinity scarf turned from the yarn I bought at her shop.

When I'm back in Indiana,

I'll definitely be making a stop here.

HONEY BEE QUILT GUILD

I was able to make it to visit a quilt guild last night.

The ladies in the guild were very nice ladies.

The guild was celebrating their 27 birthday.

They are an active group of ladies.

They meet in a church in Jacksonville.

These fine ladies are getting ready for 

an upcoming quilt show next month.

I plan on attending other guilds

before I make my mind on which

one I want to become an active member.

Fun and games to celebrate the guild's birthday.

A STROLL AT THE BEACH

Jorge and I finally made it to the beach yesterday afternoon.

We went to Jacksonville Beach and just walked.

It was a beautiful and sunny day.

 A house for sale there for $780,000.

It blew my mind because it was a

small house compared to all the other ones we saw.

 I found these seashells.

Jorge thinks this is a shark's tooth.

It does look like it.

We had a great afternoon. 

The only thing that went wrong

is that I did not have sunscreen and I got sunburned.

My back has the pattern of the blouse I was wearing

and my shoulders are sunburned.

Lesson learned. 

Always have sunscreen on!

A NEW ADVENTURE IN FLORIDA

My husband and I have begun a new adventure.

Never in our wildest dreams did we ever think 

that we would move from Indiana to Florida.

We have wonderful memories from living in Indiana.

We are now making new memories here in Florida.

I am so grateful that I have GPS so that I don't

get lost when I'm learning the area.

 Our temporary housing until we find a house.

I'm hoping that we can find a house soon.

 I ate for the very first time alligator tail.

Jorge told me that it is really good.

He was right.  I was apprehensive at first

but I'm glad I did.  It was delicious!

 Our dinner was grits and shrimp.

It also was very delicious.

 Jorge's new place of employment.

He works for SAFT America.

He's loving his job.

 Our dining area and the kitchen in the back.

I love the pantry.  It is large.

 Our living room.

Our bedroom has a king size bed.

I love it!  it also has a very large closet.

It's bigger than what we had in Indiana.

I know that Jorge and I will be making wonderful

memories here in Florida just like we did in Indiana.

CROSSROADS COUNTRY QUILT SHOP

Today had been a very long day for me looking at houses

for Jorge and I to move in to here in Florida.

I was tired and my mind was tired from looking at the houses.

Then a little surprise was on my way home.

I saw the words quilt shop and I knew I had to stop.

Bob and Lynn are the owners of the shop.

They both made me feel so welcomed.

I told them that I was moving from Indiana to Florida.

Bob was so helpful in giving me the

contact information  for the quilt guilds in the area.

He also told me of an upcoming quilt show in September.

There is a wide variety of fabric and I did not leave empty handed.

I do plan on coming back to there shop.

CROSSROADS COUNTRY QUILT SHOP

799 Blanding Blvd. Suite 3

Orange Park, Florida

904-276-1011