Day 3 Living the Dream. Ticks, ticks, and more ticks. Can’t even walk through the yard. This property has been neglected. We should be good to go once we start maintaining the lawn. So today was bug killing day and setting up an outside table for lunch and breaks. We used a spreader and putContinue reading “Living the Dream Day 3”
Author Archives: deestimes
Living the Dream Day 2
Day 2 Living the Dream. We found the septic after a few hours of digging through hard dirt and huge roots. We then headed to the county environmental services office. We need a permit in order to use the existing septic for our new home. Fingers crossed they approve it. It has a newer typeContinue reading “Living the Dream Day 2”
Living the Dream Day 1
Year 1 Day 1 – “Living the Dream”. Sunday, 5/02/2021 Day 1 of our new adventure. Starting to build a new house. The old home will be demolished. We are setting the corners. In order to set the corners, we used a transit. Here is a link to a great one if you are interestedContinue reading “Living the Dream Day 1”
February 12, 2021 Road Trip – Lake Buena Vista, Florida – Day 7 – Day 12
On the road again, heading back to the cold snowy Northeast NJ, PA area. Hate to travel back to the cold, but have to have a little skin cancer issue taken care of. Driving out of town on Interstate 4 you will notice that Orlando is expanding up in a big way. The last 6Continue reading “February 12, 2021 Road Trip – Lake Buena Vista, Florida – Day 7 – Day 12”
February 5, 2021 Road Trip – Kentucky Day 2 – Day 6
Arrived in Danville, Kentucky on Monday February 1st. Danville is a nice size town and is only a 45 minute drive to Lexington. During our stay it was mostly cold. Schools were closed Monday and Tuesday due to the snow. It is funny how different it is here compared to the New Jersey, Pennsylvania area.Continue reading “February 5, 2021 Road Trip – Kentucky Day 2 – Day 6”
January 31, 2021 Road Trip – Day 1
We are officially on our new adventure. Due to the pandemic, homes in the PA Poconos area are selling very quickly at a premium, with most buyers coming from the New York city area. We sold our home to a nice couple from the Bronx. We hope they love their new home as much as weContinue reading “January 31, 2021 Road Trip – Day 1”
Avon, NC O’Sun Oceanfront Home Rental
Looking for a great extended family vacation? Try Avon, NC. It is a wonderful place to just hang with the family for a week. We always do an oceanfront house rental with a boardwalk walkway over the dunes to the beach. There are many other options for location (sound side, canal side, ocean side), butContinue reading “Avon, NC O’Sun Oceanfront Home Rental”
Traveling on the Cape May–Lewes Ferry
We just traveled from Pennsylvania to Avon, NC for a much needed week long beach vacation. We are so in need of a cruise that we decided that we would go for a little bit of a cruise experience to offset the covid-19 no cruising since March, 2020. That is seven months of no cruising.Continue reading “Traveling on the Cape May–Lewes Ferry”
Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
We got off the Cape May Lewes ferry at 11 am and continued traveling down the Delmarva Peninsula. It is about 140 miles from the ferry to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. This drive is through Delaware, Maryland, and then Virginia. The countryside is beautiful and filled with lots of really nice farmland. You will passContinue reading “Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel”
Fabric Decoupaged Clear Glass Plates and Cutting Boards
This a great idea to make for a gift or to do at a craft party. Look at how nice these look. The plates could be presented with cookies and the cutting board could be presented with some nice cheeses. The possibilities are endless here. They are so easy to make that just about anyContinue reading “Fabric Decoupaged Clear Glass Plates and Cutting Boards”
Cute Decoupaged Soap Bars
Do you need a gift for the up coming holidays or a fun holiday craft party idea? Why not make some great decoupaged soap bars. They are made from everyday party napkins and doesn’t everyone use soap. Materials needed are mostly everyday items and you may even have most of them already in your home.Continue reading “Cute Decoupaged Soap Bars”
Awesome Paper bag Decoration
We are in July, 2020 and cruises have basically stopped since March due to covid-19. These paper bag decorations are the best. Inexpensive, easy, and look great. They are amazing. Use your imagination and go for it. The images below are the two I made, but the possibilities are endless. Use them for seasonal decorations,Continue reading “Awesome Paper bag Decoration”
Dinner menus – 11 nights Serenade of the Seas
We have been home now for three weeks and I am so ready for another adventure. Our new normal life is staying home and working around the house due to the Coronavirus. President Trump has advised everyone to continue to stay at home until April 30, 2020 and a Stay-at-home order is in place forContinue reading “Dinner menus – 11 nights Serenade of the Seas”
Serenade of the Seas Day 12 of 12 – Disembarking at Fort Lauderdale
Friday, March 13, 2020 This morning we are docking at Fort Lauderdale. These instructions were left on our bed two nights ago. We left our luggage outside our door last night. Our tag number is three. We should be getting off the ship around 8:10am Breakfast at the windjammer and saying more good byes. TheContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 12 of 12 – Disembarking at Fort Lauderdale”
Serenade of the Seas Day 11 of 12 – Last day at sea
Thursday, March 12, 2020 Last day at sea with Cuba in the distance. What a gorgeous day. Can’t we just keep floating around. Reality is setting back in. Time to say good bye to Serenade of the Seas and to Lawrence. Good Bye Lawrence. You provided excellent service. We will miss you in the DiamondContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 11 of 12 – Last day at sea”
Serenade of the Seas Day 10 of 12 – at sea and the spa
Wednesday, March 11, 2020 Relaxing morning outside eating breakfast Then on to the salon. Waiting to get a gel manicure and a regular pedicure Love the spa onboard the ships. I have never had any of the massage services. Everyone raves about them though. Relaxing view of the jogging trail Love the manicure products –Continue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 10 of 12 – at sea and the spa”
Serenade of the Seas Day 9 of 12 – Willemstad, Curacao
Tuesday, March 10, 2020 Another beautiful day. There is a great walkway to the right when you come off the pier. So well maintained with a great view of the ships that are docked. This pathway takes you to a nice shopping mall with free internet. Stores there are mainly the same stores you wouldContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 9 of 12 – Willemstad, Curacao”
Serenade of the Seas Day 8 of 12 – Oranjestad, Aruba and Coronavirus on my mind
Monday, March 9, 2020 Well a new day in Aruba and the CDC and United States State department are now advising people to not go on cruise ships due to the coronavirus. Oh boy and this is our home for four more days. Took a packed elevator to get off the ship to go onContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 8 of 12 – Oranjestad, Aruba and Coronavirus on my mind”
Port Tampa Bay onsite parking
Rates as of 2/18/2020 Parking garage is directly across from the terminal Very easy pull in and park. You pay in advance. Then carry or roll your carry on items over to the elevator. We use this compact rolling cart to carry our items on the ship which includes a 12 pack of water. BeforeContinue reading “Port Tampa Bay onsite parking”
Serenade of the Seas Day 7 of 12 – Oranjestad, Aruba and thoughts of Coronavirus
Sunday, March 8, 2020 So today I am officially starting to get freaked out about the Coronavirus. They have brought the heavy cleaning out. At breakfast a man was coughing a lot at the next table. I had to get up and move. Oh and here’s the thing we were outside. Then walking around deckContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 7 of 12 – Oranjestad, Aruba and thoughts of Coronavirus”
Serenade of the Seas Day 6 of 12 – Cartagena, Colombia
Saturday, March 7, 2020 Cartagena, Colombia “The white city” . Didn’t expect such large buildings. Docked by the Shipping Containers Today’s tour Martin is our driver today Heavy city traffic with lots of motorcycles. Stopped at the Castillo San Felipe Fortress for a short time just for pictures or a quick walk around. Got offContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 6 of 12 – Cartagena, Colombia”
Serenade of the Seas Day 5 of 12 – Colon, Panama
Friday, March 6, 2020 Today is the farthest from home we have ever been and the closest to the equator. Our first look from our cabin at 6:25am on this cloudy morning shows a huge shipping area. This is our view from the rear of the ship at breakfast. Small boats with people fishing inContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 5 of 12 – Colon, Panama”
Serenade of the Seas Day 4 of 12 – Puerto Limon, Costa Rica
Thursday, March 5, 2020 We are approaching Costa Rica in Central America and it is partly cloudy. This is our first visit to Costa Rica and the early morning coast view is not very impressive. The ship bounces around the closer we get to shore and slowly turns and backs into dock. Medium well eggContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 4 of 12 – Puerto Limon, Costa Rica”
Serenade of the Seas Day 3 of 12 – At Sea and Top tier event
Wednesday, March 4, 2020 It is a lovely, lazy day at sea and the temperature is perfect. Breakfast today as like every morning is at 7am outside the windjammer. The wind is very high and you have to sit back from a railing a few tables. This class of ship has the best outside buffetContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 3 of 12 – At Sea and Top tier event”
Serenade of the Seas Day 2 of 12 – At Sea with balcony stateroom 8512 video
Tuesday, March 3, 2020 Today we went to the Windjammer for breakfast and ate outside. The fried egg station is fantastic. Eggs are not soaked in grease like the Brilliance. We are really moving to get to Costa Rica in 2 days. The seas are a little rough and it is very windy. Room attendantContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 2 of 12 – At Sea with balcony stateroom 8512 video”
Serenade of the Seas Day 1 of 12 – Fort Lauderdale welcome aboard
Today we drove from the Hilton Garden Inn in Lake Buena Vista to the Port Everglades Cruise Port in Fort Lauderdale. It took us about 3 1/2 hours. We took the Florida Turnpike and the tolls were $16.50. There was also a charge to get off the Turnpike at the Fort Lauderdale exit. The exitContinue reading “Serenade of the Seas Day 1 of 12 – Fort Lauderdale welcome aboard”
Brilliance of the Seas Deck 6 Starboard aft video tour
We recently were on the Brilliance of the Seas for nine nights and on the sixth day we finally found the Schooner bar, Chops, Giovanni’s, and the Colony club. How funny is that. Be sure and take advantage of the great picture opportunities on the way into the entrance of this area. The entranceway hasContinue reading “Brilliance of the Seas Deck 6 Starboard aft video tour”
Brilliance of the Seas Casino Royal video tour
This is the place if you like to do a little bit of gambling. The hours for your cruise will be posted outside the casino. Here’s a video of the Brilliance of the Seas Casino – Enjoy!! To view more about Brilliance of the Seas click here: https://deestimes.com/brillance-of-the-seas/
George Town, Grand Cayman
On Brilliance of the Seas visiting George Town, Grand Cayman. Lovely warm day. Everyone must tender into George Town. There is no dock. This is a picture of our ship sitting out in the water from our tender. There is talk of a dock being built and the cruise lines funding it. I have alsoContinue reading “George Town, Grand Cayman”
Brilliance of the Seas balcony stateroom 7534 video
Starboard forward Balcony stateroom To view more about Brilliance of the Seas click here: https://deestimes.com/brilliance-of-the-seas/