Moth Balls, Mardi Gras, Motorcycles and Babies... OH MY !!

February has proven to be an interesting month.

Early in the month one of our neighbors saw squirrels under our car.  Considering the fact that there are acorns on every square inch of the ground and squirrels everywhere, the squirrel sighting did not concern us.  However, our neighbor reminded us that squirrels love to chew on wiring and they suggested we get some moth balls and put on the ground under the car to keep them away.  Sounds reasonable right?  Well, working on the assumption that more is better (as he usually does), Bill bought and put moth balls under the car and motor home.  The smell was obvious right away.  I hate moth balls but how bad could it be???

We decided to take a short trip to Biloxi, staying again at Beau Rivage hotel and casino.  The Gulf Coasts' largest Mardi Gras parade is held in Biloxi on Fat Tuesday, so we got to see it.  We spent hours waiting for the parade to start. It lasted about 2 hours and by the end of the parade we had collected enough beads to last us for the rest of our lives.  I can guarantee no private body parts were exposed in any way to obtain them!!  This was our first Mardi Gras parade.  These parades have been going on since January so we were excited to finally see one.  It was not like any parade I have ever seen.  Only one high school band but each float was playing music.  Lots of costumes and beads, beads, beads.  All of the floats were made from the same design,.. two levels carrying people tossing beads, toys, and moon pies.  Some were painted fancy, others not so much, but everyone seemed to be having a good time.  The crowd watching was huge, whole families set up camp with chairs, coolers, even bbqs.  These folks were ready for a long day of partying. 













While in Biloxi we discovered that our clothes reeked of moth balls!!  On our first day back from Mississippi, Bill crawled underneath and scooped up all the offending buggers and threw them away.  Now we just hope the smell will GO AWAY soon.  We will take our chances with the squirrels.

On the last day of February Bill finalized the purchase of a used Suzuki C90t motorcycle.  This is another first... not the bike, but the purchase method.  He found the bike online, and purchased it from a dealer in New Hampshire.  He is having it shipped to Oklahoma.  Our friends in Bartlesville have been kind enough to store it until we get back there to pick it up.   The check was mailed yesterday and now we have figure out how to license the bike in WA while we are in FL.  So this bike has become a 4 state effort.  We are sending a big THANK YOU to our Bartlesville friends for making this possible.

Now BABIES!!!!  In February Emma. my daughter, had an ultrasound and found out that she is having a GIRL!!!!  I am thrilled beyond words.  What could be better than a daughter having a daughter?  We were told the good news while in Biloxi and I took some pictures of tutus at a shop in the Beau Rivage.  I can hardly wait to start shopping.  My daughter posted the ultrasound pictures on her blog and they are amazing.  They actually did a 3D one that shows her beautiful face.  Her name will be Penelope Juanita.  Penelope was Emma and Aaron's favorite and Juanita was Emma's late grandmother's name.  I have been given the OK to call her Penny....  but PJ sounds good too!!

Blessings and love to everyone

Bill and Cathy