Florida in Feburary

You are a good two months into a Wisconsin winter. You are cold, pale and depressed. What better then a trip to sunny Florida? Even better when you have family you can shack up with for free. That is exactly what Mike and I did this February. We headed down to Fort MyersFL to hang with my sister and bro-in-law.

Just got in. Still dressed for Wisconsin weather.

It didn't take long to for us to adjust.

This is Kyle. One of my sister's 5 cats.

This guy with his half bald little tail just makes me laugh.

As you can see from his expression he isn't too keen about

being laughed at.

(BTW, I am pretty sure he has kitty OCD. Don't laugh, I am serious)

The next day after we got in we headed down to the beach.

We took a walk down the pier and this guy was just hanging out

looking for hand outs from the fishermen. And he got one.

We decided to hang out at a beach bar and grill to watch the sun set.

(No, Mike did not sprout an extra forehead since you last saw him. I wish

I could crop that guys head out of the picture.)

Me and my sis

Me and my sis with lucky Mike in the middle.

Looking out from the bar and grill.

Not a bad view. Beats watching snow fall through a window.

Ahh, there it is. A beautiful sunset over the ocean.

The next day we took a 12 mile bike ride around Sanibel Island.

As you can see I got stuck with the rental. We had to bungee the basket and load

it down with the backpack to keep it from rattling. After that it was a much more

enjoyable ride.

After the ride we hit the beach.

We had to work on that pale problem.

Then a stroll down the beach looking for shells.

Even the birds like watching the waves roll in.

You can't have Florida pictures with out some alligators.

This last one was good sized. Judging by the poor golfing stance Chris has

you can tell he is not really trying to hit the ball. It is more like...

"Hurry up and take the picture before he decides to eat me and I have to run".

Ok, back to cute and fuzzy.

Squirrels love it in FL too.

Back down at that same bar and grill on Wednesday

With Heather and Chris.

My cousin Marcia and her husband Jim, who with...

My Aunt Daine and Uncle Marty came over from their vacation

spot in Fort Lauderdale to hang with us for the day.

Wait a minute...what is Mike's dad doing here?

Anyone who knows Mike's dad is freaking out about

much this guy looks like him.

Maybe it is him....Senior you have some explaining to do.

Ahh, another beautiful sunset.

The next adventure was Zip Lining.

The boys are just getting off the "bus"

Heather and I heading to the first platform.

Can those harnesses make our butts look any bigger?

Mike coming in.

Good form Mike. Got those legs up nice and high so you

don't clip them on the platform.

Yes, I am having fun. I just always look this

serious.

Chris coming in backwards.

Turn, Chris, Turn.

Notice how there isn't a picture of Heather zipping in. Well, as long as I can remember there are

not any bad pictures of Heather. Come to find out, she throws out or deletes all bad pictures.

.

So, I can only assume she didn't like the one Chris took of her zipping in.

One last day at the beach before we headed back to snowy, cold

Wisconsin.

Salty, our sandman was trying to talk us into staying.

His open arms and sea shell hat beckoning us.

"Just look behind me, look at what you will be missing."

He was very convincing, but the tickets were paid for and

our jobs are back in WI.

I know, some of you are saying..."you used to live in FL, why did you move?"

First, that was Fort Lauderdale. A whole different ball game then Fort Myers.

Second, we might not have left if a certain job opportunity hadn't come up in Memphis.

And third, we have family to think about back in good ole WI.

(I could barely spit that last one out. Good ole WI, not family.)

Bear Hunting

January 23 2011 was open season on bears...Chicago Bears that is!!

It is legit, there is the license and everything.

It wouldn't be hunting with out some booze

A giant cookie is always welcome...even if it was made by a Bear's fan.

She was told that if it came with any blue and orange frosting it would be scraped off.

She opted for a neutral cookie.

Smart move.

The Bear fans.

See how they are huddled together for safety.
Don't be fooled by how cute they look in those sock monkey hats.

They are still the enemy.

Just a little food to keep us nourished and strong through the game.
Look how perfect that cheese and sausage tray is. One guess who put that together.

Hint, it wasn't me.

I agree, this isn't fair to do to a baby.

Dress her in a Bear's outfit...not stick her with Mike.

She does look a little ashamed to be wearing that outfit, doesn't she?

Enjoying the game and each other.

Notice how the Bear's fans are still huddled together, segregated from the group of real fans.

One push up for every point on the board.

Sweet Victory!!

Super bowl here we come!!

Packer's rule....

Bear's drool.

We tagged ourselves a Bear.
GO PACK GO!!

Bad Jez!

Look how cute. Jez basking in front of the fireplace. Head resting on her frog. The picture of innocence...NOT! This picture was taken yesterday.

Today is a different story. Let me preface this blog entry with a little background info. I have never owned a cat before Jez. My talents are in dog training not cat training. I know people say it can be done, but a cat is never truly trained. It is just humoring you for the moment. So, as you have probably figured out, Jez does what Jez wants.

Now on with the story. When I came home today I heated up some pizza in the toaster oven. I set the tray with a few cheese crumbs on the counter. I headed into the computer room. Some time later I hear the little "scritch, scritch" of a cat tongue licking. I assume she is licking the cheese off of the tray I left on the counter. I shake my head and ignore it. For you people saying "Eew, that is disgusting. She lets her cat lick off of a dish they eat on". I say, whatever. First of all, I do wash my dishes and second, with a cat like Jez you pick your battles.

When I go to put my plate on the kitchen counter I plan to remove the culprit. However, as I round the corner with a smirk on my face I discover my grave mistake. I have forgotten that I took the venison out of the refrigerator to thaw a little faster. The scene the lays before me is Jez sitting on the plate that the venison was on. She has pushed the venison onto the counter and is chewing through the plastic and eating what she can reach.

I scream "JEZ!" She looks at me like "What? You have lived with me for 15 years, don't act like this is the first time I have done this. Now, turn around and just walk away." I proceed to manually shoo her from the counter. Mistake number 2. After she jumps down I realize she has venison juice on her paws from sitting on the plate the venison was thawing on. Now I am screaming, "wait, wait". She is like, "yeah, right. I told you to just walk away, so now you will pay." I grab a rag and chase her down just as she reaches the carpet. I try to wipe her feet. Meows, snarls and hisses ensue. Good enough I figure after a brief wipe of each paw.

The next photo displays the damage.

Not too bad. Still have enough for dinner. Now you can say "EEW!" Like Jez said, this isn't the first time we have eaten her leftovers.
Aren't pets great?

What have we been up to?

It hasn't been too exciting, but here it is...

Went to Eldorado Wildlife Area for hike. We ended up taking a path less traveled. In fact, there wasn't a path at all, but there were a lot of mosquitoes

We saw a frog. I hope he got his fill of mosquitoes for dinner.

We has some crazy summer storms. Lots of hail, wind and rain.

Went to my nephews graduation party.

Had a Bear's fan over for the Packer game.

Went to see some fall colors.

Went to Cathy's(Mike's mom) retirement party.

42 years with the state.

Mike in action at the retirement party. Keeping everyone entertained.

Shoveling lots of snow.

Shoveling again after the plow came through.

I don't know why I am smiling.

So, that is what we have been doing.