 Sarasota has the most beautiful, white sandy beaches and is a truly a year-round paradise! We have loved our time here so much! The highlight of this area, has to be Siesta Key beach, with sugary-white sand that remains cool to the touch and crystal clear blue water.      I took SO. MANY. PHOTOS. It was fun to have my big camera out again. I will put them in a slideshow form, for ease.... The water was COLD and I never took my sweater off, but that didn't stop the kids from going right in and riding some waves. They did so good!  Near by where we put our chairs, was a BIG sand castle creation. We decided to add to it's magnificance........ We all pitched in for walls and pirate skulls, moats and pools. Super fun! :) Slide show below: TA DA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! All done :)  As if they hadn't had enough water, we headed back to the RV resort to warm up at the heated pool. It's amazing how much warmer it is when you get away from the ocean breeze. More fun to come... Hugs, T 
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Today on the RV oilers blog, we continue on our Southern Florida trip.... Dale's precious Grandparents come down to winter in this part of Florida, so we spent some time with them Sunday afternoon, and went out to eat with them at Anna Maria's Oyster Bar on Monday, for some all you can eat shrimp and fish. Kids meals were a penny an inch. WHAT?! For real. They measure your kids when they first come in and write their height on the kids menu. You mean I only have to pay 58 cents for my almost 10 year old to eat? THAT. IS. CRAZY. AWESOME.   Tuesday was cooler since a front had pushed down, so we decided instead of the beach, we'd go to Manasota Beach to hunt for some shark teeth...... 
 We walked the beach a long time, looking for sharks teeth and found some awesome treasures! Have you heard about the Red Tide? Apparently its an algae that really makes you cough and cough. It literally took our breath away. We really oiled up when we got home! YIKES!
 
 Slideshow:  After all that, plus BLUSTERY winds, we were so wind weary, we just headed home to veg out and curl up for the night. Thank goodness, I had put chili in the Instant Pot before we left. Yummmmmm! And we grabbed some corn bread and fresh shredded cheese at the awesome little Amish shop on the way home.
The next few days were nicer, so we planned a trip to the oh so beautiful, #1 beach in the USA, Siesta Key! Oh my goodness, the white powder sand is AMAZING!!!!! I'll get the photos together soon.... Hugs, T We drove about 2 hours further south to one of our FAVORITE Rv Park, Sun N Fun. We were blessed to even get a spot! Their 1300 spot Rv park fills up a year in advance!! Fun fact, this now HUGE RV park, used to be not so big. I know because when Dale and I were courting, my parents brought him down here over Spring break in our RV, to drop him off with a traveling ministry team for 6 months. This was back in like 2000? I think. Cool, right?! Wish I had access to my photo albums, I could show you some pics. We were just babies back then! ;) Sun N Fun has a wood working shop, huge indoor and outdoor olympic sized pool, water park, shuffle board, kids playground, putt putt golf, glass working shop and loads of fun activities. Last time we were here, they had a residents prom. SO STINKING ADORABLE! Anyhow, while Dale was setting up the RV with boards under the jacks {because of the soft grass we parked on, borrrrring} we stayed up front and played shuffle board. These kids were SERIOUS. It was like Shuffle Board WAR!!!
We planned to kick back and relax for the week as a family. A little down time from all the classes and trainings we have been doing! We went for a family walk before bed, it was gorgeous out!  Next morning, we met Papa and Grammy at the Der Dutchman, our favorite breakfast joint in the area with homestyle Amish cooking. We take a picture on the stairs EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. This one was no exception!  With the sun shining and rain in the forecast, we packed up and hit the beach! 
 We finished the weekend out with some AMAZING rocking worship at Coastlife Church! 
More to come...we have another week down here!
Hugs, T We are already South for the winter, hallelujah! But we made the decision to go further south to get some beach time..... RV parks in southern Florida are VERY VERY full, so we were fortunate to even be able to park at all. The spots are small most of the time, so no room for our big 24 ft pull behind trailer. We left it at dad's and hit the road, that meant no garage for our car, or bikes. Time to drive! 2 hours later, I was thanking the Lord I don't always have to follow behind our rig. 3 hours later, I was calling Dale to tell him I was never following him again. Haha, that man does NOT slow down for yellows! Or give me warning when he exits!  Thank goodness we made it all in one, well, 2 pieces. First stop, to see our friends and team members at the oh so awesome, Bay Aire Rv park! That place is the most precious little town of lovely people you ever did meet. And of course, we got to see our beloved Mr & Mrs. B!!!!!! We hung out, did classes, swam, went for walks and just enjoyed our time with them.  
The RV park provided us with free tickets to the Tampa RV show, the largest in the USA! We met dad, Drea and Miss Harley there for a day of fun. Dale and I have always loved to walk through RV's, even when we were courting, we'd go and dream of someday. :) This thing is a big deal. The lines to get into the fairgrounds to park was a mile in every direction and the ticket line over an hour wait. We were sure thankful for our freebies so we could walk right in!  
There were musicians, magicians and all kinds of neat things to enjoy! Even a sneaky bush man scaring everyone that walked by.....
 According to my phone we walked, 10,000 steps that day! Phew. Felt good to sit and rest.  I DID find my dream RV, now to save up for it..... ;) A Foretravel with a gorgeous layout and theme. Funny, its the color scheme of our apartment. LOL! Guess I really like that look!
And those FLOORS!!!! Totally drool worthy......and the drool won't even show! ;) OR dirt, or stains. RIGHT, PAXTON CLAY?!!!?  Case in point, the carpet vs. Paxton and the applesauce. It's safe to say the Paxton Applesauce team won.  Sigh. Gotta love it! Anyhow, after a long hot day in the sun, we decided to stop at our FAVORITE restaurant in the area, Frenchy's. Holy cow, are their Fire Island Shrimp Tacos AMAAAAAAZING! We leave TONS of Trip Advisor reviews on our trips, so that when we are in the area again, we can remember what we liked and what we didn't like.  This place is so super cute and delicious too. Great atmosphere! HUGE portions. 
And just like that, our time in Palm Harbor was over. Thank you, Mrs. B for the pool pictures and RV pictures! Love you! Can't wait to see you all at Bay Aire RV again. We had a wonderful time!  To be continued....
Hugs, T We are adoring our winter home in sunny Florida! The weather is nice enough to wear leggings and quarter sleeve shirts, and even tanks and shorts somedays. Evenings are cool enough to open up or sit around the fire comfortably....HEAVEN! :) Now that Grammy & Papa have a fun porch area, thanks to some hand me down outdoor stuff from Uncle Chad's, we have an AMAZING place to do school, read and relax, or eat.  We are so thankful to be able to use Papa & Grammy's apartment kitchen, right next to where our RV parks, for some REAL home cooking in a REAL full sized oven. So comfort foods, favorite casseroles, baking and beirocks have been on the menu! https://4littlefergusons.wordpress.com/2011/10/21/easy-bierocks/  We get together with Uncle Chad, Auntie Lauren and the cousins, once a week for family dinner. Mostly at their house, but once in a while, we head out on the town for some yummy Mexican or something.
Our team here is growing and blossoming and it's such a JOY to work with these beautiful, empowered and pumped up ladies. They are all teaching and doing classes just fine without help, but since I am in the area anyhow, we decided to try a "Host A Table" event. This event is where each local builder hosts a table full of her friends and family, and passes oils around while I teach from the front. Everyone benefits and its fun for us all to learn together. Teaching gives me such joy and energy, I just LOVE my "job!"
 We offered Slim & Sassy, metabolic blend water, info on our awesome Trim Line, and then on the counter, a whole tower of Peppermint Infused Milk Chocolate Brownies, and Wild Orange Infused Dark Chocolate Brownies. What?! We figured they'd balance each other out? We had 40 attend and a lot that joined our team. YAY, Team Dorothy! :) Next event is planned for February 4th!!!! I love that work never feels like it! :) So, Grammy came to town with a bag of goodies....CROCHET stuff! It's so pretty and happy colors await us!!! We aren't very good yet, but we are all working on that. Drea is a good teacher!
My first attempt was not so hot. Apparently you have to carefully count stitches and I was mindlessly doing it and talking. Oops! We turned it into a little outfit for Flokie the dog. We were doggy sitting for Uncle Daniel and Torrey. He looks good in pink!
The kids enterain themselves SO well each day. There is lots to do, like tether ball, riding bikes, badmiton, and helping Papa around the place. The girls have been SUPER into "baking" in their fort and bringing their goodies out to sell at the countertop....
This quickly lead to an idea, a Poke Cake Bake off, just like the Food network kids baking tv show they got to watch recently. Each girl had to find her recipe, make a grocery list, go to the store to help me get the ingredients and then we turned them lose in the kitchen. The rule was, no adult help and I needed to not be able to tell they had even been in the kitchen, it'd be so clean, when they were through. Avery went back and forth and settled on a Chocolate Caramel Rolo Cake with caramel cool whip on top. Destiny knew right away she wanted less sweet, so she went with a Lemon Berry Poke Cake. It had a raspberry puree and homemade whipped cream. Both were garnished beautifully! I was so proud!  We compiled a panel of judges to taste and rated them on: *Their verbal presentation of what they were serving us, and how they prepared it *The appearance of their dessert *The TASTE  It was hard, both were SO good, but such different flavors.....our judges had their work cut out for them.  Can you believe the girls TIED? They both ended up with 78 points.  It was time to bring in some other opinions....Papa, Grammy & Uncle Chad & Auntie Lauren, all had a go at it. You are not going to believe this..... Still a tie.  So we brought in the nephews...... In the end, Destiny's berry cake won by ONE vote! They are already planning their next one. YUM! Hugs, T  I turned 35 this August. 35 just sounds so OLD. So GROWN UP. So ADULT. I decided to do something nice for myself, something daring. Something I had always wanted to do.... Get my nose pierced! Yup, good little Mennonite, Bible belt raised, me has always wanted some kind of piercing. Nose or eyebrow was what I was always thinking, but in the end, I decided NOSE for the win...... And then I chickened out. Again and again and again. Almost 6 months later, and still no nose piercing. Sigh.  Maybe it was never meant to be..... So Christmas has passed and we are in the lala land between it and New Years, and we decide to go downtown to see the lights and grab some supper at this little teeny amazing place in the square. It was awesome! We are just walking around enjoying the lights, in sandals mind you, which feels odd while looking at lights.....when what do we walk by but a piercing and tattoo parlor. Oh jeepers! Here we go. My heart is RACING!
 And of all things, its OPEN. My step mom, Drea and future step sis in law, Torrey, go in to see if they have an opening. I am on the sidewalk, as far away from the door as possible, deep breathing, and half praying they don't, and secretly wondering if they do, so I can just DO THIS THING ALREADY! They come out, she has an opening RIGHT NOW. Are you ready? O holy nose...... Ready or NOT, here we go!  Never been in a tattoo and piercing parlor before, it was pretty and colorful! And loud. While I signed papers, doused myself in essential oils and signed my nose away, a lady was shrieking and screaming from the back. This is comforting. NOT. Applied more oils like 3 times. Thank the LORD for Balance and On Guard!!!! Stress city for a germaphobe. And I hate needles, eeek!  It hurt, bad you guys. Not have a baby bad, which by the way, I told the lady before hand that I'd rather have a baby again instead of face her needle in my nose, but BAD. Like punch you in the face with a hot poker bad. But short and quick, then dull throbbing. Thank goodness Torrey let me squeeze her hand super tight. They would only let one other person in with me and she was nice enough to volunteer. The job was done, and now it was time for Lavender to the rescue!!!! My hot lip, red nose and puffy cheek, quickly went back to normal, thanks to it's awesome super powers. And I carefully cleaned it with melaleuca and on guard oil to prevent unwanted bacteria. It's healing up nicely and actually feels like I have always had one......kinda sassy and fun! Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday to me.....FINALLY! ;)  I hashtagged this photo on the RV oilers instagram page with #diamondboogers, and who KNEW that was a THING?! There are lots of posts with that tag! WHAT?!
Who "nose" what else is out there in the hashtag world..... ;) Hugs friends, T I started having a Word of the Year in a particularly trying time in my life, and the habit stuck. I find myself seeking the Lord the end of December, on what His word for me will be. It's so very accurate and prophetic too! If you used to follow us on the 4 little Ferguson's blog, you will remember these posts. They still make me cry! 2013: RESTORATION 2014: Balance 2015: Inwardly  2016: GUIDE I wasn't blogging at the time, but our word for the year was GUIDE. Boy, did the Lord guide us, as He spoke to use loudly in the sale of 3 big things in 3 days. Even more so, as we took the leap, and sold our house and worldly goods to hit the road..
HELLO 2017, and finishing our second full year on the road. What should our word be? Show me, Lord! I am thinking journey, travel, adventure, bold, bravery, courage.......ready to stretch myself as a leader and get myself out of the comfort zone I find so cozy, continuing to travel and explore. I crack open my FAVORITE devotional, "Jesus Calling", and what do you know! The Lord has a message for me...A confirmation in fact! :) I LOVE how this devotional is written as if the Father Himself is speaking to YOU, His beloved!!!! AND the scriptures listed, get you digging in God's word, which is very important. I highly recommend it. I got mine at Hobby Lobby on the sale rack, but saw them on Amazon too. I like the soft leather cover one I got!  Traveling, journey, adventure...becoming my one true self in Christ Jesus and also in my life and business. WOW, it's all in there! This was IT!!!!! So here it is: The Word of the Year for 2017 is "Courageous Journey". Moving beyond ME, and allowing me to be filled better with HIM, as we travel and grow. The best things happen when we are uncomfortable. That is when we are stretched the most! His power is made perfect in my WEAKNESSES, not my strengths. Empty me of me, Father and fill me up with you, that I may overflow with love (and skittles and sunshine) to everyone I meet on our journey this year!  Ready, set, go. Let's do this thing! What's your Word of the Year? I'd love for you to share! (I always welcome your comments, they are so fun to read!) :) Hugs, T  We had our second annual Horse Barn Christmas and I loved it. Such a humble little structure, so simple. No gifts, just a babe in a manger, surrounded by 2 Charlie Brown Christmas trees....
Good fun, amazing friends came to visit, and family; loads of fun! We actually celebrated Christmas eve instead of Christmas day....Drea always buys me the BEST stuff to decorate the barn with!!! Loved the theme and colors again this year! 
  Dressing Christmasy is HARD when its a very warm 84* out, but we did our best! ;)
I had the HARDEST time getting a shot of the boys...... I just don't know WHAT was going on?!    s Ornery Papa!! Praise the Lord he is feeling SO good! And back to his mischevious ways ;)  Because we were having a feast later, we made a bunch of appetizers for an easy snack lunch, while we made all the supper preperations. It was fun to have our new friends stop by and enjoy with us, then it was off to the breathtaking candle lit service before dinner....
It just doesn't feel like Christmas until we can go to one of those......   Then it was home to finish dinner prep and out to the barn we went.....all these photos are from Drea. I got my big camera out and then didn't even take ONE pic. Jeepers! I am fired!  I had a slide show uploaded here, of all the great photos Drea took, but the website is SUPER grumpy and not letting me post!!!
 The next morning we attempted to sleep in, ha, and then had a leisurely breakfast and just chilled the whole day, reading and playing games. Super nice!
   Well, thats enough photos for one day, hope you all had an amazing Christmas and Happy New Years!!!!
Back to life and back to reality....UGH. My kids have had a HARD time getting back into our school routine. Who am I kidding, this MOMMA has had a hard time too! Can't we keep living in the Lala land between Christmas and New Years, and keep eating all the leftover amazingness, and watching Christmas movies in our jammies? NO? Darn. Hugs, T |
Tonya Ferguson
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