April in Marco

How lucky are we to be able to spend time with Chris and Devin twice in a month? Son the Elder joined us on Easter Saturday after challenging weather Good Friday cancelled his flight to RSW. He made it finally and joined us and Devin in Marco for some family time. It was a nice balance of activities, games, meals and togetherness. Will was able to make a few appearances, too. 

Sadly, Bill was bit by a dog on 4/17 and was in disabled mode all week. It's been quite a recovery from a wound infection, with two trips to the urgent care center, two shots in the butt and multiple prescriptions. 

Easter has come and gone. The island is clearing out and hints of summer weather are beginning to emerge. Life is good. Thanks be to my God. 

Will with Devin. The teen's first golf lesson and 18 holes

Chris and Bill

Super windy round after the storm blew out. Bill was my caddy.

Dinner at Fin

Quality Family Time in NJ

An Uber picked us up at the Moxy Hotel on Ann St. for a schlepp-free, hour-plus journey to Allendale NJ. The boys were excited to take us to their favorite restaurant Friday night: Mt. Fuji Japanese Steak House in Hillburn. It was similar to Benihana, offering hibachi table dining with a silly-chef-sideshow. Lots of laughs. We had a fireside night cap back at the ranch and off to bed.

Saturday morning found us snug around the fire and at the beginning of a long round of Monopoly. We took a lunch break at The Shannon Rose in Ramsey for pub grub. Back to the sofa for fireside games. Saturday was sunny but cold outside. Ally and Paul made a delicious dinner and corked some awesome wine. After clean-up, the six of us watched "The Greatest Showman." The very entertaining 2017 musical drama inspired by the life of P.T. Barnum. No doubt we'll come back to take the family to the show when it's on Broadway. Great music and dancing. A full day of lazy family time. The best.

Springtime in NewYork

Early flight Thursday, NYC shopping for a warm raincoat, hanging out at the Moxy Hotel again...it’s good to be back in the greatest city in the world. Ally recommended Escala in Soho for dinner. Typical of her suggestions, it was an amazing dinner of exotic small plates in a very small, loud space. We paired our food selections with an Eastern European wine. It was unusual but a perfect complement to our meal.

Friday found us out in the cold rain again. We took the #7 subway to the all new and ritzy Hudson Yards at 30th & 10th. A state of the art mall and lifestyle community in NYC; home to the city’s first Neiman Marcus store. It was over the top! 

Florida: A Big State with Lots to Do

This is the year of exploring the state of Florida. From Miami to Jacksonville, Key West to West Palm and Port St. Lucie (PSL), I've covered some territory over the last couple of months. A few NJ friends met in PSL for a spontaneous sleepover Sunday and round of golf Monday at St. Lucie Trail Golf Club. A nice public course, well maintained and challenging. And then there's the food. We enjoyed fine dining at Tutto Fresco at PGA Village in PSL after much needed showers. It was unseasonably hot and humid on the course. We're not used to that weather in late winter. The girls worked off some calories on a bike tour Tuesday morning. It included a couple of detours: First Data Field, home of the NY Mets spring training, and the beautiful St. Bernadette Church. A sunny lunch followed at the lovely RH Rooftop Restaurant in West Palm. Super fun getaway with the girls.

Jill, Pat, Lauren and Kat

Love your neighbor. No exceptions.

RH Rooftop Restaurant

Kathryn's famed selfie

Foray into Hydroponic Farming

Inspired by the southern most farm in the United States, the Townsend Family Farm in Key West presented a compelling case for hydroponic farming. Marjorie & Justin Townsend provided the greens for our OITF dinner on Stock Island in January. They were so enthusiastic and genuine about their love for this method of growing crops, I convinced my gardener and bloghusband that a tower garden may just be the solution to growing fresh produce at home on the lanai. He's on it!

Townsend Family Farm Towers

Rogers Family Farm Tower

Cooking and Computing

Some days I spend hours on my Mac. Between organizing photos, working on my two websites, building my cookbook, reading news and research, I get lost in time sitting in front of my big screen. Experts have warned that prolonged sitting can cause chronic health problems. Making a recipe that requires hours until completion removes the risks of sitting for long periods. This caramelized onion recipe, a family fave, has me up every 15 minutes to stir. It takes almost five hours, but the end result is ahhh-maz-ing! And I'm equally amazed to see a massive pot filled with five pounds of raw onions turn into only two cups of the most flavorful, rich and useful ingredient for pizza, potatoes, pasta, soup, bread etc. Be good to yourself and your dinner guests!

Family Visit in Miami

Home long enough for a special dinner in Marco Thursday, Bill and I took Will to Miami for lunch with Sister the Elder and Hubs on Friday. Joe's Stone Crab in South Beach is still amazing. I will be on a serious diet starting Saturday.

The Grand Finale: Deluna's Food Truck

The culinary adventure continued into Thursday morning. Because the Lapland ladies were in bed so early after our fab dining experience with OITF, we were early to rise and ravenous. Haha. Just a short walk from The Perry Hotel, we were once again enjoying local cuisine: an amazing egg sandwich on freshly made Cuban bread from Deluna's. Simple and delicious! We said our good-byes to the NJ girls and hit the road about 10am. What a magical few days with uplifting friends.

Deluna's on Stock Island