I am not going to be adding to this journal everyday now that we are back in Florida, there would likely not be a lot to be saying if I did, however I will record, at least on a weekly basis, what we have been up to, and if I remember what beer I have been drinking.
Our first day back here was spent emptying our suitcases, catching up on all the clothes washing, we had bags and bags of it and preparing for Katie to join us, she is coming over as it is her birthday tomorrow and she wants to go to a Disney park and spend some time with us now that we are back in the USA.
At first she was coming for a few days and then leaving us to return to Fort Lauderdale before heading up to Canada for a couple of weeks with the family she has be Aupair-ing for to then return to us for a couple of weeks at the beginning of August before we head back to the UK. An issue at the airport when she returned from Mexico with the family last weekend however changed all that. Katie did not have all her forms on her and was stopped by immigration, she was given 30 days to submit all her paperwork and get it sorted or she has to leave the country, her passport has been stamped with a 30 day exit limit, over-riding her visa. Even if she gets this sorted she is now nervous about leaving the country in case she has any problem coming back in next time as it would mean she may not be allowed to leave the airport. It is a shame, the couple of weeks in Canada would have been a great experience, though I can fully understand that after an hour and a half in the hands of immigration officials she does not want to run the risk of going there again. So now Katie is likely to be with us for most of the summer as there is no reason for her to be in Fort Lauderdale in an empty house.
Katie and her friend Rachel arrived at around 4pm after having driven up from Fort Lauderdale, even though she is effectively not working for them any more the family she worked for are letting her keep hold of the car they provided until she leaves the country at the end of August, very good of them and great for Katie as it does mean she retains a high level of independence.
Tuesday was Katie’s birthday, she had already had her main present from us, we replaced her laptop with a Macbook when it got stolen, we did however have a number of little things for her, many of them items we had picked up on our travels. Katie and Rachel spent the day at Animal Kingdom and when they got back we went out to Chilis for dinner, not the best performance from the restaurant, Baggage’s Pizza was undercooked, as was the one they replaced it with, still we got it free, plus a free sweet and free Margaritas to compensate. I had got hold of an alarm company, well single installer in reality, to see about getting an alarm fitted and he came around today to discuss the options. We decided on a system, agreed on a price and he got the system on order for us.
On Wednesday we mainly just chilled around the house. Lisa and Baggage did go to the Library this afternoon as there was a craft session there, Baggage made a pom-pom caterpillar and then helped the smaller children make theirs.
Thursday was another day in, all this time I have been sorting out the stuff from the locked cupboard we keep here that was broken into and I have also fitted a second lock to it’s door making it a little harder to get into than before. I have also bought a further dead-bolt for the pool bath door that I will fit where it cannot be reached through the window if that is smashed, this was how the thieves gained access a couple of months ago! After supper we all watched ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ which we had bought Katie for her birthday, Baggage and Lisa had read the book together whilst we were travelling but Baggage still cried.
On Friday Billy came to install the alarm system. All the girls went out in the morning to an English shop and the library and bank and I stayed in whilst the system was being fitted. We changed the design of the system a little before it was installed and Billy needs to order some extra components but what he had he installed so that it is working, even if not all there.
On Saturday we spent the morning at the house and then went to Universal studios in the afternoon. We went on a few rides, Jaws, Men in Black, The Mummy and Shrek 4D then watched a concert in Universal’s summer series, Natasha Beddingfield. Katie was particularly excited about this as she has liked her music for a number of years. It was OK, though I would not go out of my way to see her again. Baggage was very tired by the time the concert started and spent most of the time sat on a kerb and not bothering to watch.
Sunday saw a day at the house and Lisa and I decided that after being here for a week we ought to clean a bit, we therefore stripped all the beds and washed the sheets and cleaned all the bathrooms and toilets. The house is still very disorganised, we do not seem to have got on top of things this visit. We were going to go up to Lake Ridge winery this afternoon, but Baggage was not keen to go out as she was talking to her friends on MSN so Lisa ended up staying in and I went up the road to Walmart to get a few supplies that we needed. I did manage to catch the MotoGP this evening, it was the race from Assen in Holland and Rossi won his 100th Grand prix, quite an achievement, it is good to see him leading the championship again also.
As for the beer, the Honeymoon went down very well and when gone to replace it I bought a Michelob wheat beer sampler pack, two each of three different beers. Honeymoon is a wheat beer, based on Blue Moon but with honey added into the brewing process as the name suggests, a very refreshing drink for a hot place. As to the sampler pack it contained, Honey Wheat, similar to Honeymoon though a little sweeter, Shock-Top a belgian style beer with various spices and a strong citrus tang, again very refreshing and Dunkel Weisse, a clear, dark, wheat brew. All three different beers proved very good. Time to pick up something different again!
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