Menopausal Mother

Welcome to another edition of Fly On The Wall group blog postings hosted by Karen of Baking In A Tornado. Today, three of us are welcoming you into our homes to see what a fly night see---or overhear!

Oh, how I love the month of March! There are so many fun activities going on in the spring, and the weather is still "doable" in South Florida. This is the month of the Florida Ren-Fest along with my daughter's birthday,
and, of course, one of my favorite holidays--St. Patrick's Day! 

This is also the best time of year for us to go camping, so we've been exploring more state parks and RV resorts---we go about every two weeks now. And after 21 trips, Yoda has become a pro at traveling. 

We will keep up this pace until mid-July, when things start to really heat up, and the vampirish mosquitoes become relentless. Although last week at Sebastian Inlet State Park, the no-see-ums were out again! Of course, that was nothing compared to the alligator that tried to sneak up on us while we sat in chairs by the inlet to watch the sunset. I've never seen my husband move so quickly! Being the curious sort, I walked right over to the mangroves to find the gator, and I thought Hubs was going to have a heart attack. He wanted to "protect" me, but the gator slipped back under the water, and I continued to sip my wine and watch the sunset. No way will I let anything spoil my camping trips!!

The nosy fly was not amused by my antics, but he did listen in on our conversations......

We're off again next week on a camping trip with the neighbors, and then later on heading to North Florida. Hopefully, there won't be any no-see-ums or gators this time, but at least I'll have my side piece (or my back piece?) to protect me. 

***WANT MORE MENO MAMA?*** Over at AARP/The Girlfriend, I share 4 of the easiest and budget-friendly dinners ever that you can find HERE  Then I have one about the 4 things you should be doing for your dog that you can read HERE I also have an essay in AARP titled, "Things I Do To Strengthen My Relationship With My Adult Kids" which you can read HERE, or if that doesn't work (the main site links gets wonky sometimes), type in the title on the website and it should come up. 

 

Welcome to another edition of  Fly On The Wall group blog postings hosted by Karen of Baking In A Tornado. Today, three of us are opening our homes to give you a glimpse of what goes on behind closed doors. 

While the past month has been tremendous fun, it did have its difficult moments. We had to say goodbye to another one of our pugs---an unexpected ending that felt like a terrible gut punch. Brewski was just shy of his 13th birthday and the first pug pup we ever adopted. He started having gall bladder issues and before we knew it, he was at the emergency vet clinic, diagnosed with cancerous tumors on his liver. The prognosis was not good and the poor baby was in pain, so we had to make that devastating decision once again to let him go (only 1 1/2 years after losing our sweet Savi). The grief is still fresh but I'm trying to keep busy and focus on the good stuff.  We have one pug baby left---Yoda, who is seven, but I don't see any more dogs in my future after going through so much pet loss trauma.

We've also been spending more time with friends to stay busy and avoid feeling sad about Brewski. We are incredibly blessed to have such wonderful, caring people in our lives.

On a lighter note, one of the highlights of this past month was our weekends at the Renaissance Festival.  We didn't attend as much this year (wasn't up for it after losing Brewski), especially since I noticed a BIG shift in the crowds. Like.....now Mac and I are the old farts there watching all the "youngsters" getting wild and crazy. Damn, that used to be us....WHAT HAPPENED?? Still had fun though with the family and of course, met some interesting characters......

However, the best part of the month is spending time with my grandbabies. They are growing up TOO fast---12, 5, almost 3, and a 4-month-old baby. PLEASE STOP THE CLOCKS! I truly hope I live to a ripe, old age because I need to see what these kids will be doing in 20 years. 

And of course, there was our annual St. Patrick's Day celebration with the family and the neighbors. I made the traditional corn beef, carrot, cabbage, and potatoes in memory of my mother, who always spent the holiday with us. Not only did we wear green, but also served green beer and green champagne to our guests! Yeah, I'm weird with my enthusiasm for ANY  holiday.....

The next day we hopped on our tandem bike to burn off the green calories. Why do people laugh at us when they see us pedal around the neighborhood???

Lastly, I've been busy planning several RV trips this year since we finally have our "Lucy." I feel like this is the beginning of a new chapter for us, and I'm pretty excited! I finished decorating Lucy so she is ready to roll! But I don't know if the Florida Highways are ready for The Doyle mobile. A friend actually gave me a sign for our RV that reads, "If this RV is rockin', don't come knockin'!" Would the Doyles have it any other way??

***Want more Meno Mama? Check out my latest grandparenting advice column for Yahoo Life HERE and my recent essay on AARP/The Ethel about the 2 words that help me through life (you can read it HERE). If you like movies that feature the power of female friendships, I have an article about it on AARP/The Girlfriend ( you can read it HERE) and one on easy 4-ingredient meals HERE.

Be sure to visit the sites of the other bloggers participating in this month's Fly On The Wall post. They always have something fun going on!

 

Baking In A Tornado                                https://www.BakingInATornado.com

On the Border                                         https://dlt-lifeontheranch.blogspot.com/