First I apologize for not being around for a while. I have a really great excuse:  I have been cruising the Western Caribbean. Yup. Eating my way through Mexico, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.  If you haven’t done that, I highly recommend it.  Go on at least a one-week cruise.  Plan to be committed to being completely lazy, then have tons of fun, and expect to gain, well, tons of weight.  Our cruise director announced on the first night of the cruise that the average cruiser gains between 7 and 14 pounds on a one-week ocean-going cruise.  NO KIDDING! That was my reaction too.  I couldn’t imagaine how a person could eat and drink their way into that much extra fat and flab in such a short time.  I was certain I would NOT be one of those foolish gluttons.

Hi, My name is Criss, and I’m a Foolish Glutton.

There.  I’ve confessed.  I gained 8 pounds!  In one week!  It was truly “The Agony and the Ecstacy.”  I ate eggs benedict frequently, had a lovely country-themed-based lunch each day (Mexican, Greek, Chinese, Thai - all lo-cal….. NOT). Then I went to my cabin and prepared my mind for dinner: lobster tails, chateaubriand, rack of lamb, salmon and more.  I cannot even begin to describe the potatos, sauces, breads and cheeses.  And desserts?  OMG!!!!! Some evenings I had two!

So now I’m a bloated, stuffed, plump Christmas Glutton.  No more treats for me. I’ve already stored up more than my fair share of holiday extras.  Ellen and Sally, I should have taken my health-conscience chicks with me. Perhaps I would have only gained a couple of pounds.

Okay. Diet time it is…. back to eating healthy…..

While visions of sugarplums dance in my head.

It’s been a difficult week.  Well, maybe a week and a half?  We got back from Disney and Luke comes down with bronchitus and Lauren has such bad stomach pains that she was crying herself to sleep!  I ended up taking her into the ER just to be safe, but of course, they have no clue what it is.  I am trying to wean her away from dairy to see if that helps.  She actually is already feeling better after starving her for a morning and giving her only the activated charcoal. (Thanks Joan for the suggestion.)  Now I’ll give her the probiotics to see if that helps.

Other than sick kids, this week has been tough because my neighbors (who also attend our small group Bible study) just lost their 5 year old daughter to cancer two days ago.  All I can say is “I’m praying for you.”  I end up with such a loss of words.  I know God has his reasons for her early death, but it is tough to comprehend while here on earth!  May God be glorified through this difficult situation with their family.  Death does make you look at everything and to view your priorities differently.  I am so blessed to have three great kids.  Thank God for His blessings.  The Lord giveth the Lord taketh away, blessed be the Name of the Lord.

Anyone ever go apple picking when they were young?  I remember going into the barn after picking the apples.  The smell of hot apple cider!!!!!!!!!!  So good!!! They would always have freshly dipped carmel apple also.  It was called Moo Ma’s Farm where I grew up and went apple picking.  I wish there was a place like that in south florida.  I guess I will have to go orange picking. 

Antoinette

It’s 11 pm in a sweltering South Florida August.  It’s hurricane season and we’re waiting to see what Dear Fay will do.  Will she become a Cat-1 hurricane or stay a tropical storm?  Will she visit the east coast of Florida or just mess up her dear friends on the west coast?  Should I put up shutters and buy gasoline for the generator I have not cleaned up from last year? Or maybe I will just hope for the best, hunker down for the night and see what the morning brings.

Ah, the joys of living in a tropical paradise.  But I won’t complain. I don’t have to shovel the humidity.  My car won’t slide off a frozen highway into a ditch. And I don’t have gray gloomy days for much of the year.  What I do have is palm trees, ocean breezes, sandy beaches and sunshine nearly every day.  I don’t know about you, but I need sunshine everyday - sometimes it’s my biggest reason to smile!  I love the blending of cultures and ethnicity here, the ability to hop on a cruise ship for a 3-day get away, or to take a drive to Disney with the kids or to South Beach for some grown-up nightlife.

So as I sit here, watching the “storm track” waiting to see if I’ll need to be concerned, I will continue to count my blessings and be ever thankful that I live year-round in the tropics.