Vacation Fun, Then Back to Work

Stephanie arrived late last Sunday, so we took this week off to have a little fun with her while she was in Florida.

On Monday we slept late, and then spent some time at the Florida Botanical Gardens.  I am always interested to see what is in bloom at each season of the year.  We happened to visit the Gardens when the azaleas were trying to outdo one another for color and the amount of blossoms.  They were gorgeous.  Stephanie got lots of great pictures, even adding a hibiscus bloom as a screen saver on her phone.

While we were at the Gardens, we purchased our annual beach pass for 2017.  We used it on Thursday when we had a picnic lunch on Fred Howard Park beach.

Tuesday found us in the car heading for Orlando.  We spent part of the day visiting one of the largest outlet malls in the state.  Orlando actually has three outlet malls, so while Disney tries to pick the pockets of the tourists, the malls do their share to help lighten the wallet load.  Rick and I bought some luggage better suited to our travels to and from Wisconsin, and I bought two more pair of Clark's shoes.  They make the best walking shoes I have ever found, so I have them now in a variety of colors.

Rick and Stephanie walk toward the new Heros and Legends
Exhibit at Kennedy Space Center.

Tuesday afternoon we drove as far as Cocoa so we would have easy access to the Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday.  We have been there before with Stephanie, but they add new attractions each year, so a visit is always interesting and informative.  We like it because the Center has wonderful displays, but it is never crowded.  Rick is dying to see a launch, so we may have to go back a couple of times in the next year.

The Rocket Garden is just one of the many
attractions at the Center.

A small, single-level room with crude computers and lots
of lights and switches somehow got men into space in 1962.

This year, we took a tour of a couple of launch control rooms.  We saw old computers that were used for the Gemini and Apollo programs.  What a risk those men took!  I have more computing power in my iPhone than they did with a whole room full of computers back in the 1960s and 1970s.  I am amazed that the missions were, for the most part, successful.

I kissed a robot!

The old computing equipment that started our quest for space.

Our tour guide showed us the control room used for the Space Shuttle program also, and we passed a room full of computers that were being programmed for a launch in 2019 or 2020.  The guide said that launches were now in the hands of three entities:  NASA, the military, and private companies such as Boeing, SpaceEx, and Virgin Galactica.  His speech almost sounded like a want ad for young engineers, mathematicians, designers, and computer wizards.  He said the old group is all retiring, and they were actively seeking new blood.  We really enjoyed the day, but we wanted to drive home that night, so we had to leave before we could see everything.

On Thursday we spent the day relaxing a little.  We drove north to Tarpon Springs for a little shopping, and we had the afore-mentioned picnic lunch at the beach.  The weather was wonderful the whole time that Stephanie was here, although she said that it was "a little too warm" for her liking.  Steve and Chris came over for dinner, bringing along pina colada mix and some wonderful lemon bars.  Thanks, guys!

We awoke early today to get her to the airport for her flight home.  She just called a while ago to tell us she arrived safely.  Sadly, I am not as worried about the flights being a danger as I am about spending time in the airports!  I hope that she had fun, and I am glad that she has the weekend to relax before she returns to work.

Our new areca palm fills the corner in the back yard.

After we returned to Gladys, we changed into work clothes.  Stephanie helped me pick out a small areca palm tree for the corner next to the backyard sheds.  We planted it today and gave it a good drink of water.  I also spent some time trimming and feeding my bougainvillea plants.

Row one of the pavers behind the shed will
eliminate the need for mowing or trimming.

Rick started to level the paver base that we had put behind the sheds last week so we could install the pavers that once served as our front walkway.  We need to cut the ones that are left to completely cover the area, and we need to purchase a few more to finish the job.  He really damaged his shoulder with all of the construction the last couple of weeks, so he was aching this afternoon.  I hurt my back last week when I fell, so I was not too far behind him in the pain department.  We both agreed to take the weekend off to try to let our poor battered bodies heal.