HAPPY 2015 !!!

Happy New Year !  Once again I have enjoyed all of the emails, cards, Facebook wishes and the list goes on.....this is a weak response.  All good intentions: I was to send a fabulous card with wonderful pictures,  great stories and exciting adventures planned for the new year.  As it turns out, life takes time and I ran out of it over the holidays.  The transition from the NC mountains to Florida has been exciting but a bit overwhelming.  We are now officially "snowbirds" and love this new adventure but "where do the days go?".   We will be 50/50 more or less (NC and Florida) and having a great time!  

For the holidays we returned to North Carolina and spent time with my family in Kenly...a special treat was the week after Christmas when we took Leslie & Bill and Andrea & Blake to Park City, Utah for a week.  What a wonderful week to spend with them;  such great memories.  The pictures only share a bit of the great times...hope you enjoy !

http://gsmackeen.smugmug.com/Family/2014

click Holidays with  Family and 

Park City, Utah Adventure

We wish you the very best for the new year....am now a Facebook fan.  Are you my friend?  Join in !

Update:  

Florida address November to May

314 Lansbrook Drive

Venice, Florida  34292

NC address May thru October

320 Meadowview Road

Glade Valley, NC 28627

HOW COULD I FORGET THE PARTIES ?

Yes, in addition to weddings there were parties-just for the ladies.  The annual ornament party with the memorable "Twelve Days of Christmas" featuring Cheryl Philo and her ...five golden rings...was too much fun to miss.  Since I will be in Florida during the holiday season, we celebrated in July. The pictures do not disappoint !   

Then sadly our dear friend Linda DeHart left the mountain for Vietnam-she and Mike are definitely having a grand time but she is missed.  We had one final "girlfriend" party to say Bon Voyage.

http://gsmackeen.smugmug.com/

Select Friends and 2014 

"Christmas in July"

"It's All About Linda"

I am reminded every day the importance of friendship-I will miss the Mountain Ladies as I will by City Friends....Florida is just a hop, skip & jump away!

So during this post I had the best party ever...a surprise with dear friends.  Going away/early birthday?  It did not matter but the sweet thoughts and sharing a great evening with girlfriends reminds me how lucky I am...life is good.  Thank you.  

I caved...now on Facebook!  Reason?   I needed to stay connected since am leaving North Carolina-no one sends me photos anymore-I just wanted to know what all the fuss was about.  Well I must say-it is fun!  

Farewell to the mountain and NC friends-will miss you !  See you in the spring.....

CELEBRATIONS !!!

WHAT A GREAT 2014 !

We have the best of both worlds...summer in the mountains and winter in sunny Florida.  

FYI ADDRESSES:

320 Meadowview Road, Glade Valley, NC 28627

314 Lansbrook Drive, Venice, Florida  34292

Such a wonderful weekend to celebrate Leslie & Bill's May 17 wedding in Asheville, NC.  Family and friends gathered for a long weekend which was just grand.  The extended version is available on Leslie's SMUGMUG......
http://leslieann.smugmug.com/USA/Wedding-Photos

Yes, another wedding.  Blake and Andrea got married at our mountain home on July 19.  Another wonderful celebration with family.  Again, the photo journey is available on Leslie's SMUGMUG....
http://leslieann.smugmug.com/USA/Andrea-Blake-July-19-2014/Wedding-Photos-color/

Duncan and I feel so blessed to have Bill and Andrea as part of our family;  that both Leslie and Blake have found a true soulmate is a real blessing!

WOW...What a great summer !

WINTER-WILL IT EVER END ?

Sorry but now it is spring-just seems that winter is everlasting!  We spent time in Florida-rain and cold-back to mountain-rain and cold.  This was the winter of 2014 !  ...but today the sun is shining...spring is here!

I must add to the latest post that during our Florida/winter journeys we were on a HOT DOG quest.....love a great hot dog.  Often think a blog about the perfect dog would be a great addition to the world-anyways we had a great dog in Venice, Florida at "Lucky Dog" but must ask for the bun to be toasted-much better that way.  Then a different dog at "Dairy Queen" in Venice-they feature a special with two dogs, fries and a sundae for $ 5-who can beat that?  Steamed bun added to our culinary experience....now on to Kenly, NC....my Mom & I were on a shopping trip and I Googled ..best hot dog in Smithfield, NC and was led to The Cricket Grill.  I must say it rivaled the dog of my childhood from the pool hall in Kenly, NC (no women allowed so my dad or brother had to go in for the order...red dog with great chili.)  Oh, did I mention the only way to serve a dog is with mustard, chili and onions?   Although not on this venture, a favorite is PB's in Winston-is close to a perfect hot dog.    Considering a separate blog that features the GREAT DOG-sadly not a healthy choice but delicious just the same.

Back to reality-great time with girlfriends in North Myrtle Beach-twelve years and counting with a great group for fellowship, golf and fun. The MAC-MAR Invitational goes on through cold, rain and wind.  Betty got the "Grand Trooper" award for being there after a terrible fall just four months ago.  Amazing!

Back to mountain and Merlefest (best bluegrass ever).  Leslie and Bill joined us and we enjoyed non-stop "pickin".  Some of my favorites included The Kruger Brothers, Scythian, Della Mae, I Draw Slow, Old Crow Medicine Show and Balsam Range.  If this is your thing, research and listen-well worth the time.  A highlight-The Wayback's Album Hour covering Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's  "So Far".  Yes, Alan Jackson was there as well.

A pre-wedding party "Say Yes to the Dress"-High Meadows girlfriends guessed the dress that Leslie will wear for the May 17 wedding....friends brought their wedding photos which was great fun to see. Surprisingly we all looked the same as our wedding day!  ...and yes there was CAKE !

I am blogging all current activities to make room for the spring blog-Leslie's wedding.  Two weeks and counting.......We are looking forward to a celebration in Asheville, NC.  Will share soon.

The next chapter?  Duncan and I purchased a home in Venice, Florida at Venice Golf and Country Club www.venicegolfandcc.com .  In the gated community is a garden home with a pool and lanai overlooking #17 fairway.  Golf, lots of dancing-we are looking forward to spending the winter in sunny Florida.    You are always welcome!

Be sure to browse http://gsmackeen.smugmug.com/  Select Events and Friends 

in 2014 to see the latest entries.  

WHAT IS MID LIFE ?

Consider what you count as mid life...is it a number?  While celebrating my birthday month and counting out the BIG number 65, I realize that only now do I consider myself turning older.  At forty the birthday was a "piece of cake" - literally - and so it continued until just this year when I looked back to realize that indeed there may not be as many good years of health ahead  as behind - no pun intended.  What a revelation - if this is mid life then I will be around quite a bit longer than the average person.....130 !!!  Seriously with a new regime of exercise (never have been a fan) but am giving it my best and slowing down a bit (Duncan says there is no need to rush-he has time) I may surprise the statistics.  

UPDATE:  We spent a part of January and February in Florida skipping from coast to coast and up and back to visit High Meadow's friends June & Bud Widdoes (Melbourne Beach) and Sally & Ray Earnhardt (Venice) as well as Winston friends Gail & Jim Bland (Naples) and Nan & Pat Currie (Naples).  We also had fun in Vero Beach with Carlette and John Anderson , in Naples with Sara & Dan Underwood and in Venice with Karen & Pete Morrow.  Yes we were free loaders extraordinaire.  Although there was  a limited amount of sunshine-who says "sunny Florida" ?  - we had great fun with all.  
Smug Mug:   http://gsmackeen.smugmug.com/Travel/2014/THE-FLORIDA-ADVENTURE
a great travelogue of our  host's beautiful homes.  

We returned to the North Carolina mountains in time to celebrate there and in Winston with girlfriends for my birthday.  So very special to have friends all around you....I am very blessed and then there was snow!  
SmuMug: http://gsmackeen.smugmug.com/Friends/2014/BIRTHDAYCELEBRATIONS

   

A picture cannot show ALL the fun ! 

Will continue to share with you - don't want to miss a moment in the next 65 !   

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2014 !!!

2014 begins as does a new blog site-I will not bore you with the reason for a change (basically chalk it up to lack of tech knowledge)...anyways the new year brings a new look.   

As already shared, 2013 brought about many changes for myself and Duncan. The mountain life suits us to a "tee"-literally since (weather permitting) we can walk out our door and begin a round of golf most any day.  Duncan is a braver soul than I and has a hardy group of men who will bear temps in the 40's to get a round of golf played.  My limit tends to be 50"s with sun and no wind.  On the chillier days I seem to stay busy so am content just looking at the course and not actually playing. 

A wonderful group of new friends have welcomed us into the High Meadows community  with lots of social activities.  We have joined in celebrating birthdays, ladies night's out, golf events, holiday parties, wine dinners and the list goes on.  We are truly blessed to have an opportunity to enjoy this later time in our lives  Duncan especially deserves this new experience after working so diligently for so many years.  Retirement?  I highly recommend it !

Leslie is soon to be back in the United States.  She had completed her post in South Sudan in late October 2013 (thankfully) and spent several months with Bill (the fiance) in Amman, Jordan completing several  projects before taking a year's leave of absence from USAID in January 2014. There is a wedding in May and the details are coming together.  What a great celebration it will be for friends and family in Asheville, NC.  

Blake has settled into his new home in Charlotte during this last year and is enjoying his return to Grant Thornton as a manager in the audit division. As a CPA he is getting lots of experience-thankfully he does not have too much travel involved.  He and girlfriend Kim have especially enjoyed  season tickets for the Carolina Panthers-what an exciting season it has been!

After our holidays with the family, we are  helping Leslie settle in Fayetteville (Bill will return from deployment late February) then we are off to Florida for a few weeks visiting friends-hop scotching from the East to the West coast.  We are looking forward to sunshine and blue skies before our return to the mountains mid February.

Wishing one and all a wonderful start to your new year!  The photo link (Smug Mug) is a link on the Blogger page.  Follow us with a photo journal of our past year!  

www.gsmackeen.smugmug.com

Browse most particularly Family & Friends for 2013-the most current photo montage.  Hope you enjoy!