A Kayakers Paradise

March 28, 2007

One morning a group of us decided to take our kayaks down the river, south of Ocean Resorts, a kayak back. A group of us started together, but then we decided to go in different directions.

So Nancy White and Joni paddled a little further south to the Fort Pierce Inlet, where the river meets the ocean and boats can get into the ocean from their docks on the river. The water was very clean and rough, a little too rough to kayak in. So at that point we started to head back.

We came upon 4 dolphins, being very playful. Actually, Nancy said they were probably mating. They were jumping up high and having a real good time. It was hard to capture pictures, but we did the best we could. They started coming straight towards Joni and actually went right under her, but didn’t even stir the water. It was a neat experience.

As we traveled on down the river, we stopped for lunch on an island with a beautiful sandy beach. As you can see, it was paradise. As we passed some of the islands in the river, we noticed quite a few families camping. They just boat out to the islands and set up camp with their tents. What a way to vacation and have quality time with each other.

Delton and Tom Win 1st Place

March, 2007

What a Tennis Season!

The Ocean Resorts Mens/Womens Doubles Tournament was held in March. Teams were formed by the chairman of the tournament according to abilities. Joni and her partner, Georgia, didn’t do very well, but Delton and his partner, Tom, WON!

It was a 2 day event starting on Saturday, with the finals being held on Sunday.

Also shown are the womens 1st and 2nd place winners.

It was a great day and the crowd got to watch a great match.

A Hole In One

March 12, 2007

Delton Did It!!!! He got his first Hole In One!!!!

He was playing with his regular Monday morning group from Ocean Resorts, Florida. It was the 2nd hole of the morning – hole #11. The Monday morning group plays 9 holes, so they started on #10.

It was a 120 yard par 3 at Fairwinds Golf Course designed by Jim Fazio at Fort Pierce, Florida. Delton hit a solid wedge shot straight to the hole. It landed right in front of the pin and then all of a sudden it disappeared. Was it behind the hole or was it in the hole. IT WAS IN!

Pictured is Delton playing golf in South Fork, Colorado. We did not have a picture of the course in Florida.

Delton had to buy favorite beverages for each person in his foursome. When the word got out at Ocean Resorts, Delton got lots of congratulations! Now he is finally in the “Hole In One Club”.

A Manatee Experience at Ocean Resorts

March 11, 2007

Joni loves to kayak, as you already know. It’s not only fun to paddle around, but there is much to see in the waters – manatee, dolphin, sea gulls, lots of flying fish.

Pictures in this article were taken in Key Largo - February 2006. You can see how gentle the manatees are. They like fresh water from the hose and will roll over to get their bellies rubbed.

One afternoon, while kayaking with Fran Baxter, Joni came upon a sleeping manatee.

She was in very shallow calm water, about thigh deep. The manatee was startled as Joni glided over him. He couldn’t dive down because it was too shallow, so he came up, lifting Joni and her kayak up out of the water onto his back. Fran laughed a lot as Joni was horrified. Fran said the look on Joni’s face was pure horror.

As Joni was lifted up, she tried to paddle but didn’t even reach the water. Then as she slid off the manatee’s back, she almost tipped over. The manatee displaced a lot of water as it rose up and created a huge wave which came up and over Joni and her kayak – drenching Joni. It left Joni “all shook up” and shaking. She felt like the Lock Ness Monster was coming up and was about to gobble her up. But, manatee are very gentle creatures and he was probably as scared as Joni.

It was just another experience in this RVing adventure.

Revelation Bible Study

December 2006 – March 2007

Delton taught a Bible Study class at our home church in Texas, just before we sold our house to go on the road. It was a 12 week study of the Book of Revelation. Delton’s desire was to teach that study while we were on the road, all over the country. We needed to stay in one location long enough in order to have enough time to get through the whole book. WE HAD THE TIME IN OCEAN RESORTS!

The Ocean Resorts Rec Hall would have been the ideal place to hold the class, but we encountered some problems when we found out that the bi-laws of the co-op would not allow the use of the rec hall for religious purposes. Some in the community were very upset about this and controversy was stirred up. Christians continue to be persecuted! We held our study in people’s homes – a different home each week. It worked out great. Our class became very close as each week went by and we all became good friends. We averaged 18 people each week.

Delton studied very hard and used all resources he had to address all questions: the Bible, his brother Larry, our pastor Greg, our education pastor Ken, and many books. Our class consisted of a variety of religious faiths which made for interesting discussions. Delton did a great job of teaching God’s word.

Spouses Tennis Tournament

February 17-18, 2007

Another day in Paradise… and yet another tennis tournament!

Ocean Resorts has many tennis tournaments, both within the park and outside the park with the traveling team. We have entered each and every one that we could. Delton and I have been partners and had other people as partners. But the one we loved the best was the Spouses Tournament. It was our first tournament as a team.

It was a double elimination format. You had to lose twice to be out. Unfortunately we lost our first match. We were then placed into the consolation bracket. There was a losers or consolation bracket and winners bracket. But, we won every match after our first match, so we WON the consolation bracket.

Our prizes were: a gift certificate, a box of candy and 3 roses. It was great fun and the best part is that Delton now has the tennis bug. He claims he still likes golf better but now he loves tennis too.

Kayak Poker Run

February 15, 2007

During “I love Ocean Resorts” week…. We had an event called the Kayak Poker Run. Of coarse anything that had to do with kayaking was something Joni was not going to miss. Pictured are all of us gathering to begin our run.

As you can see, it was a chilly morning, but that didn’t stop us. Notice Anita with the white ear muffs on. She looks cute, doesn’t she?

And we're Off!

Pictured is Joni getting her first card.

There were about 20 people participating with their kayaks. We each took a playing card at the beginning of the game which began at the boat ramp, then we paddled to various spots around the river. Some spots were on islands and some were boats that were anchored in the river. We picked another card at every spot. After we had 5 cards we paddled back to the boat ramp for our final card, if we wanted to turn in a card and get another in its place.

Prizes were given for the best poker hand. Joni ended up with two 10s, which gave her 2nd place. Fun prizes were also given out. We had a great time.

More Activities in Ocean Resorts

February 13, 2007

A group of us from Ocean Resorts, went out to diner for Valentine’s Day this year.

Pictured is our group in front of the Italian Restaurant where we ate.

We play bridge twice a week. Sunday’s is same partner bridge. We play 6 hands and then move to a different table to play another 6 hands. We do this 4 times during the evening. Wednesday is change partner bridge. We do the same thing, but when we change tables we also change partners. High points win for the night. Delton and I win sometimes and lose sometimes, but we always have fun.

Pictured is Joni in a ladies doubles tournament in Ocean Resorts. Here our opponents were from another RV park.

One week in January, Joni’s brother Rich and his wife Adele, visited Joni’s Mom in Coral Springs. We all went out to eat one evening. Pictured are all of us with some of Mom’s friends.

Joni's Son, Ken, Visits Us

February 3, 2007

We had a surprise visit from Joni’s son Ken. Ken used to live in West Palm Beach, Florida, but now lives in San Francisco, CA. He was in Florida helping his Dad in Boca Raton and was able to come visit us one afternoon. He also visited Joni’s Mom, his Grandma, in Coral Springs. We don't get to see Ken very often and Joni was very excited to spend the afternoon with him. She wished he could have stayed longer.

First thing we did was go for a kayak ride. Our friend, Mary Jane Mulaski, from Trophy Club joined us. Usually we see plenty of dolphin and manatee, but we were disappointed that we didn’t see any that day.
It was also a windy day so the water was choppy, so we didn’t have the best of conditions. It was Ken's first kayak ride and it took him a few minutes to get used to how to paddle, but he got the hang of it pretty fast. He originally used a kayak we borrowed from Nancy ( a friend of Joni's), but Joni and Ken switched kayaks after a while. Joni's kayak was more comfortable because the cockpit was bigger and Ken could stretch his legs out. Also, Joni wanted to try out Nancy's kayak.

After an afternoon kayaking on the river, we went for a walk along the beach.

It was so good to see Ken and we enjoyed showing him what our lifestyle was like now. We hope to travel up the California coast next year and visit him in San Francisco.

Joni Wins 2nd Place / Delton's 1st Tennis Tournament

Ocean Resorts Mixed Tennis Tournament
January 27-28, 2007

The first tennis tournament of the season was held at Ocean Resorts in January. We were looking forward to this tournament because it was Delton’s first. We wanted to be partners, but the teams were picked at random, as well as the order of play.

Joni’s partner was Mike and Delton’s partner was Lois. The format was an 8 game pro set. That meant that the first team to win 8 games was the winner. Also, you had to win by 2 games. Sadly, Delton and Lois lost their match and were immediately eliminated. Joni and Mike made it to the finals. Our friends, Mary Jane and Dave Mulaski had finally arrived at Ocean Resorts and they were also entered in the tournament, but they also lost in the first round.

The final match was played on Sunday afternoon with a large crowd of spectators. Joni and Mike were playing against Tom and JoAnne. Tom was the reigning champ, so Joni started out very nervous.

Joni and Mike were down 4 to 0, and it looked like they were going to be blown away. (See the sad look on Joni's face). But then they rallied. Slowing making their comeback, they steadily climbed up, until the score became 7-7. But then Tom and JoAnne went on to win 9-7. It was a very exciting match and the crowd was entertained. Joni won a tennis tote bag with the Ocean Resorts logo on it.

Joni's Black Eye

A Kayak Accident

As your know, Joni loves to kayak and uses the boat ramp at Ocean Resorts often to get in and out of her kayak. Many of her friends have told her to use the ladder to get into her kayak and warned her that the boat ramp was slippery and dangerous. Pictured is the scene of the accident - the boat ramp.

On January 6, 2007, after a wonderful kayak ride on the Indian River, Joni paddled to the boat ramp to remove her kayak from the river. Her fellow kayakers, Nancy, Fran, and Mary had proceeded to their private docks along the river, so Joni was by herself.

Paddling to the edge of the water onto the ramp, Joni started to get out of her kayak. The tide was low, the water’s edge was dirty, murky, muddy, and full of algae and pebbles. Joni slipped in the slippery muck as she tried to exit the kayak. Her face took the entire brunt of the fall, landing on the concrete ramp. As she stood up, she noticed the blood dripping from her face and realized she was hurt.

Joni went to Fran and Bob Baxter’s house, right next to the ramp, for help. As she knocked on the door, she noticed the reflection of her face in the glass. She had two golf ball size swellings, one on her cheek and one above her right eyebrow. A mixture of mud and blood covered her face and right side of her body. Fan and Bob welcomed her into their clean home anyway. They helped her wash the wound and gave her ice to keep the swelling down. Bob located her husband, Delton, and within 45 minutes they were at the Fort Pierce Emergency Room.

Joni received 9 stitches above her right eyebrow and a big black eye. Her visit to the emergency room lasted six and one half hours. What a fun way to spend a Saturday night!

Delton was often teased about socking Joni to keep her in line. It was a fun filled week as her black eye got bigger and darker. Everyone at Ocean Resorts seemed to be aware of the accident.

Then it was time to have the stitches removed. The doctor at the emergency room said there was no need to return to the hospital for the removal of the stitches. Even Delton could remove them. Joni wasn’t so sure about that!!!! Joni discovered there were some retired nurses living in the park. Betty Bonita volunteered to help her out. When the time came (10 days later), it had turned into a surgical procedure involving 3 nurses.

On Monday, January 15, Joni went to the “clinic” at Claudia’s house on Beachblanket Circle. There she was joined by Nurse Betty and Nurse Lou Ann, and stitches were removed. Betty even brought some smelling salts because Joni said she almost passed out as the doctor in the hospital was cleaning her wound.

Is it Gillgan's Island??

January 3, 2007

Kayaking is very popular in Ocean Resorts. Many people have kayaks and there are many kayak outings.

One afternoon a group of us decided to go across the river to one of the islands and have lunch. There were 6 of us kayaking, 1 pontoon boat and 1 little blow up boat with an engine. Joni kayaked and Delton rode in the pontoon boat.

The river is very shallow in many parts, so they had to be drudged so the boats could get through. The islands were created by the drudging. Looks like Gilligan's Island, doesn't it? It's actually called Jaudon's Island. See the sign erected in the sand. The island is pictured behind Joni and 2 of her friends kayaking back to Ocean Resorts.

On the way back there were a couple of dolphin playing in the water. Delton was able to catch a few pictures which are hard to do. They are up and back down so quickly.

Sometimes they very close to the kayaks. Joni has seen them playing, feeding and even mating in the river.