Sunday, December 17, 2006
The Miller Family
Here's a picture of Julianna before heading home and a picture of the family. I really like the family photo. 
Amber
Congratulations to Annie on the birth of her daughter, Amber Noel, born on Dec. 14th weighing 7 pounds, 10 ounces and was 20.5 inches.
Jacob
Here's Jacob ready for a day of shopping with Mommy. Today brings watching football with Daddy!
Thursday, December 07, 2006
We Have Another Baby!!
Congratulations to Jamie and Jess! Julianna Marie was born 12/7/06 at around 7:15 pm (exact time unknown as I write this along with her length). We know she is 7 pounds (even) and she has a full head of dark brown/black hair and Jamie said she has big feet! I can't wait to see pictures of our newest grandchild and I'll post them as soon as I get some!
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Black Friday
As we all know, yesterday was "Black Friday". Christmas Shopping Hell to some. To others it's Christmas Present Treasures. Jamie and I did this shopping spree once many years ago. It took alot of convincing to have him come with me but he did. He kept telling me how stupid and crazy I was and there would be nobody at the stores and blah, blah, blah.
When we came over the hill that overlooked the mall and he saw the sea of cars, he couldn't believe it. I told him to put that Christmas spirit behind that this was war!! All those crazy women out there were only there to get the best deals as quickly as they could (including me!). We had such a good day. We shopped, we laughed, we at breakfast and lunch at the mall and we got all our shopping done in one day. I can't even tell you what year that was but it was a long time ago.
Seven years ago, when Taylor was 15 months, there was a certain toy that Corine wanted to get her for Christmas. Of course, Mimi was bound and determined to get it, so Jamie and I were at Toys-R-Us very early in the morning to make sure we got it......well, we didn't - they were all gone by the time we actually got in the store! I called my girlfriend cause she told me she saw them in some little off the way store. My friend Robin was the hero that Christmas. She got out of bed and went to the store to get the present. Can I remember what that "so special" present was? Nope!!!
Jamie and I are so excited about spending Christmas with the kids this year, that we decided it would be fun to go shopping on Black Friday to relive that hell! LOL We had a ball. Jamie looked through all the sale flyers that came in the Thanksgiving paper. We made a list, mapped our plan of attack and by 0440 Friday morning, we were on the road to the mall!!
Even I was surprised at the amount of cars. It's been awhile since we'd done this, but holy cow! Talk about traffic jam! Circuit City and Toys-R-Us had lines probably about 1/4 mile long of people waiting to get in and let me tell you that the temperature Friday morning at that time was about 25 degrees with a heavy frost! I don't know how long they'd been waiting outside, but I'm sure it was probably 30 minutes to an hour.
We had wanted to go to Toys-R-Us first, but when we saw the line, it wasn't worth it to me. The toy we wanted to get Michael, I had already purchased, but T-R-U had it on sale for 1/2 price which was a huge savings. When we saw the line, we decided we were happy to at least have the gift already. We did stop by there a couple of hours later and they were all sold out! But we went by our list and hit all the stores. Except for just a few small gifts, we were able to complete our shopping. We were home by 1130! And last night, I wrapped just about everything!
As I was wrapping gifts, I started laughing because when the kids were all home on Christmas morning and we passed out the gifts, Benny always had the biggest pile. We always spent the same amount on each kid, but for some reason, buying stuff for Benny always proved to have the best sales going and therefore, he got more. It won't be any different this Christmas. Matter of fact, I can already hear the kids saying something about it!
We will certainly miss Jamie, Jess, Andrew, Corbin and Baby Miller but their gifts will be in the mail this week!
As fast as this year has gone by, the next month will creep by as I wait to take all these Black Friday treasures to my family.
When we came over the hill that overlooked the mall and he saw the sea of cars, he couldn't believe it. I told him to put that Christmas spirit behind that this was war!! All those crazy women out there were only there to get the best deals as quickly as they could (including me!). We had such a good day. We shopped, we laughed, we at breakfast and lunch at the mall and we got all our shopping done in one day. I can't even tell you what year that was but it was a long time ago.
Seven years ago, when Taylor was 15 months, there was a certain toy that Corine wanted to get her for Christmas. Of course, Mimi was bound and determined to get it, so Jamie and I were at Toys-R-Us very early in the morning to make sure we got it......well, we didn't - they were all gone by the time we actually got in the store! I called my girlfriend cause she told me she saw them in some little off the way store. My friend Robin was the hero that Christmas. She got out of bed and went to the store to get the present. Can I remember what that "so special" present was? Nope!!!
Jamie and I are so excited about spending Christmas with the kids this year, that we decided it would be fun to go shopping on Black Friday to relive that hell! LOL We had a ball. Jamie looked through all the sale flyers that came in the Thanksgiving paper. We made a list, mapped our plan of attack and by 0440 Friday morning, we were on the road to the mall!!
Even I was surprised at the amount of cars. It's been awhile since we'd done this, but holy cow! Talk about traffic jam! Circuit City and Toys-R-Us had lines probably about 1/4 mile long of people waiting to get in and let me tell you that the temperature Friday morning at that time was about 25 degrees with a heavy frost! I don't know how long they'd been waiting outside, but I'm sure it was probably 30 minutes to an hour.
We had wanted to go to Toys-R-Us first, but when we saw the line, it wasn't worth it to me. The toy we wanted to get Michael, I had already purchased, but T-R-U had it on sale for 1/2 price which was a huge savings. When we saw the line, we decided we were happy to at least have the gift already. We did stop by there a couple of hours later and they were all sold out! But we went by our list and hit all the stores. Except for just a few small gifts, we were able to complete our shopping. We were home by 1130! And last night, I wrapped just about everything!
As I was wrapping gifts, I started laughing because when the kids were all home on Christmas morning and we passed out the gifts, Benny always had the biggest pile. We always spent the same amount on each kid, but for some reason, buying stuff for Benny always proved to have the best sales going and therefore, he got more. It won't be any different this Christmas. Matter of fact, I can already hear the kids saying something about it!
We will certainly miss Jamie, Jess, Andrew, Corbin and Baby Miller but their gifts will be in the mail this week!
As fast as this year has gone by, the next month will creep by as I wait to take all these Black Friday treasures to my family.
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Michael's Brithday
Happy 4th Birthday Michael "Bubba" (11/21/06). Mimi and Papa hope you have really, fun day!
Jacob Tyler
Welcome to our world Jacob Tyler. Jacob was born November 12, 2006, 4:18 pm, weighing 7 pounds 3 ounces and 20.5". He sure is a handsome little guy. I loved spending the week with Marchelle and Tyler and look forward to Christmas when I can hold this little guy again! Of course, I can't wait to hug all my babies!!!
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Tagged
As I was catching up on computer stuff this weekend, I noticed in Moriah's blog that she has tagged me. Now I need to come up with 5 interesting things about myself. Well, I'll give it a shot.
1. I'm very shy. When I tell people this they are usually quite shocked and they laugh as they know me quite differently. However, put me somewhere where I don't know anybody and for the love of God, I can't think of one thing to say! I even hate to walk in front of people that I don't know!
2. I've always wanted to play the piano but everytime I've tried, my left hand does the same thing as my right hand and vice versa. I can't get them to do two different things (except when I'm typing!) Is that weird or what?
3. If I didn't force myself to eat healthy, I'd be a junk food junky. I love junk food!! Guess that's why I have to LOSE 10 pounds!
4. I wish I had gotten into law enforcement years ago. I didn't realize how much I really liked it till they started with all those forensic and crime shows! Maybe secretly that's why I encouraged Marchelle to take criminal justice in college and not business! LOL
5. When I was a senior in high school, I was searching for colleges to go to. I finally found one in FL that I wanted to attend for business. Once my Dad told me to go ahead and look into it, I panicked! I couldn't move away from home, at least not that far!!
Moriah - just to let you know, I don't like odd numbers!! I'm an even number girl!
Ok, so who do I tag? I tag YOU!
1. I'm very shy. When I tell people this they are usually quite shocked and they laugh as they know me quite differently. However, put me somewhere where I don't know anybody and for the love of God, I can't think of one thing to say! I even hate to walk in front of people that I don't know!
2. I've always wanted to play the piano but everytime I've tried, my left hand does the same thing as my right hand and vice versa. I can't get them to do two different things (except when I'm typing!) Is that weird or what?
3. If I didn't force myself to eat healthy, I'd be a junk food junky. I love junk food!! Guess that's why I have to LOSE 10 pounds!
4. I wish I had gotten into law enforcement years ago. I didn't realize how much I really liked it till they started with all those forensic and crime shows! Maybe secretly that's why I encouraged Marchelle to take criminal justice in college and not business! LOL
5. When I was a senior in high school, I was searching for colleges to go to. I finally found one in FL that I wanted to attend for business. Once my Dad told me to go ahead and look into it, I panicked! I couldn't move away from home, at least not that far!!
Moriah - just to let you know, I don't like odd numbers!! I'm an even number girl!
Ok, so who do I tag? I tag YOU!
Saturday, November 04, 2006
Snow
We had our first snowfall on 11/2/06. Granted, it isn't much, but it did stick on the ground for a little while. While everyone knows how much I hate winter and snow, there's no denying that it is pretty, well ok, the first snow fall is pretty - 
after that - no way!!
after that - no way!!
It's Over!
On Thursday 11/2/06, the plant officially went on-line again. We set an industry best record for power uprate at 24 days and 15 hours and 17 minutes! We still have to come up to our "new" 100% power which should be in another day or two. We are back on normal hours again! Thank goodness because getting up at 1 am just seemed wrong! LOL
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
We Have A Baby Coming!
These are pictures of Baby Hoffman's new bedroom! Marchelle and Tyler did a really nice job painting and decorating. Tyler installed the shelf all around the room which I think gives it a great contrast. The top part is done in blue and Tyler sponge painted clouds. They did the rest in Pooh stencils. I can't wait to see it in person!
Sunday, October 08, 2006
SHUTDOWN!
Greetings everyone!
Well, our refueling outage is well underway. This will be a busy month for Jamie and I. Jamie has tonight off (the first night of shutdown!) and will start nights on Monday (6p-6a). I will be working 4a-4p or somewhere around that timeframe. I have to work an "outage job" and I have to do my own job (taking care of the VP) so I'm sure I will be very busy. I'll use this week to adjust my work schedule. I have to work my outage job from 0500-noon so I will not be able to answer any phone calls should you call me at work. But if you do need to contact me, use my cell - I'll have it with me at all times but only call if it's an emergency. You can send me an email at work and I'll be able to pick it up on my blackberry.
Hope you have a great month - I'll try to update my blog and let you know how things are going, but I'll be in bed early every night. Scout will be in heaven this month as we will be with her almost all the time!
Well, our refueling outage is well underway. This will be a busy month for Jamie and I. Jamie has tonight off (the first night of shutdown!) and will start nights on Monday (6p-6a). I will be working 4a-4p or somewhere around that timeframe. I have to work an "outage job" and I have to do my own job (taking care of the VP) so I'm sure I will be very busy. I'll use this week to adjust my work schedule. I have to work my outage job from 0500-noon so I will not be able to answer any phone calls should you call me at work. But if you do need to contact me, use my cell - I'll have it with me at all times but only call if it's an emergency. You can send me an email at work and I'll be able to pick it up on my blackberry.
Hope you have a great month - I'll try to update my blog and let you know how things are going, but I'll be in bed early every night. Scout will be in heaven this month as we will be with her almost all the time!
Sunday, September 24, 2006
September 25th - Happy 8th Birthday Taylor
We don't get to celebrate birthdays with the grandchildren too much so when the kids came up last weekend, we took advantage of the time to share in Taylor's 8th birthday. Here she is shown with the Birthday Hat on. My girlfriend made this hat and we're going to try to make this a new tradition for as many family members as we can. It just so happens that there are 8 candles on the hat and Taylor is 8 (she pointed that out to me!). She is showing off one of her new American Girl dolls - Molly. Happy Birthday Sweetpea! I hope you have the BEST BIRTHDAY so far!! I love you!!
Monday, September 18, 2006
Indian Summer!
You heard me say it in an earlier posting - Indian Summer! Sunday was it! It was beautiful - sunny and in the 80's. We thought about changing the shower to the house on the deck but after careful deliberation we still had it at the community center. But when we got done and went home, the kids wanted to go in the pool with Papa. The water was only 69 degrees but they all went in. Michael jumped in so fast and he couldn't get to the stairs fast enough! LOL - it was too funny to see his face - I just wish I could've captured it! Taylor really surprised me. She jumped in, got out and continued to jump in - what a brave girl!!
Tradition at Mimi and Papa's
Here's a tradition we always do. Soon after the kids arrive, they say "can we go feed the horses?" We have to have apples when the kids arrive. Sure enough, within 30 minutes, we were walking to feed the horses. On this day, we only had one horse that wanted the apples. The other two horses paid no attention to us and two horses were in their stalls. Taylor and Papa have a game they play (on the phone) where she asks him every time she talks to him if he's gone to feed the horses. If he says "no", she fires him! LOL If he say's yes, he's good for a little while. She even drew him a picture with stickers of horses on it that hangs on our fridge to remind him to feed the horses. It's a great tradition and one we always look forward to. We still have trouble trying to get the kids to actually feed them. Plus the fence is electrified , so if they touch it, they get shocked - not alot, but enough!
Baby Showers
Here is a picture of the cakes from both showers. Marchelle's step-mom, Chris, gave her one on Saturday. It's was nice to see lots of people I haven't seen in a long time - actually - a year since Chris gave her a bridal shower. Chris is an extremely nice person and I like her alot. On Sunday, I gave her a shower. Marchelle and Tyler received so many nice gifts from both showers. It was fun to watch them go through and look at all the gifts - they were so excited.
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Happy Birthday Gail and Happy Anniversary
Sept 13th is Gail's birthday and the 15th is Gail and David's wedding anniversary. They always spend this special week in Cape Cod and I know they're having a good time!
Happy Brithday Aunt Peggy!
My Aunt Peggy's Birthday was Saturday. Not that I forgot her birthday either, but I'm just now updating my blog!! Hope you had a wonderful day!!
Happy Birthday Gabriela
September holds alot of birthdays! This is Gabriela's party that we attended on Saturday. She is 8 years old and 16 days older than Taylor. Her dad and I met when I worked at Penney's and our families have been good friends ever since!
Happy Birthday Rhonda
9/11 is my friend Rhonda's birthday. How could you ever forget that birthday?? Rhonda and I used to work together but she quit so be a stay-at-home Mom - the hardest job ever! Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday Jodi
Happy (Belated) Birthday Jodi. Ok, no, I didn't forget Jodi - I just didn't update my blog on-time. Her birthday was last Thursday and she's 27 this year!
LuLu
Have you ever seen a dog so cute! Introducing LuLu, Jeana's newest puppy. At the time this picture was taken, she was about 15 weeks old. She's a minature daschund (I probably spelled that wrong). I can't wait to "meet" her in January when we go and meet our newest grandchild and see our other two cutie grandsons. 
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Fall
To those of us who live up North, you know fall starts the day after Labor Day - seriously. Any warm days after Labor Day we consider to be "Indian Summer". I have no clue what that is supposed to mean but I've heard that term my entire life. Here in NY, our whole summer is from the start of Memorial Day weekend to the end of Labor Day weekend. This is gospel! Never mind when the calendar says summer begins and fall begins.
August was a cool month and that makes me a little worried. I've seen geese fly already and my mums are blooming. Nights in August have been in the 50's. It seems that I remember as a kid August was the hottest month of the year - in the 90's and very humid. We called them the "dog days of August" and why we looked forward to fall. I'm wondering if we are in for a hard winter?? Last winter Jamie only had to shovel the driveway two times so I'm think this is going to be a bad winter. Yikes!!
I love the spring and summer. To go outside without a coat is a joy. I love driving around and seeing all the ways that people decorate their homes with flowers. I love driving and looking at the trees so full and swaying in the breeze. So many trees have great shapes - especially the big ones. I always enjoy looking for that perfect shaped tree.
I was extremely impatient for spring to begin this year. I couldn't wait to see the green again and I am equally impatient for fall to begin. Don't get me wrong, fall is a beautiful time of year. The colors of the leaves when they're at their height is so beautiful - but that means soon the leaves will fall and we'll be stuck looking at sticks in the air for six months - agghh!!
This weekend some people (like my neighbor) will cover their pools. We wait as long as we can because it's just such a finality to summer and it's depressing. I still sit on the deck when I can. If I could, I'd bring the fire pit up there to keep warm so I could sit longer. September is such an "iffy" month. It could be 75 one day and 40 the next. It's the transition month. Even October can be beautiful but in October, you are just plain lucky for warm, sunny days.
Marchelle, Corine and kids will be here in a couple weeks for Marchelle's baby shower. I'm sure they'll be freezing as they're still getting high temps and humidity. I'm hoping it's warm enough and rain-free that we can enjoy the deck and the fire pit. Jamie and I are looking forward to that - just a nice and relaxing time for all.
August was a cool month and that makes me a little worried. I've seen geese fly already and my mums are blooming. Nights in August have been in the 50's. It seems that I remember as a kid August was the hottest month of the year - in the 90's and very humid. We called them the "dog days of August" and why we looked forward to fall. I'm wondering if we are in for a hard winter?? Last winter Jamie only had to shovel the driveway two times so I'm think this is going to be a bad winter. Yikes!!
I love the spring and summer. To go outside without a coat is a joy. I love driving around and seeing all the ways that people decorate their homes with flowers. I love driving and looking at the trees so full and swaying in the breeze. So many trees have great shapes - especially the big ones. I always enjoy looking for that perfect shaped tree.
I was extremely impatient for spring to begin this year. I couldn't wait to see the green again and I am equally impatient for fall to begin. Don't get me wrong, fall is a beautiful time of year. The colors of the leaves when they're at their height is so beautiful - but that means soon the leaves will fall and we'll be stuck looking at sticks in the air for six months - agghh!!
This weekend some people (like my neighbor) will cover their pools. We wait as long as we can because it's just such a finality to summer and it's depressing. I still sit on the deck when I can. If I could, I'd bring the fire pit up there to keep warm so I could sit longer. September is such an "iffy" month. It could be 75 one day and 40 the next. It's the transition month. Even October can be beautiful but in October, you are just plain lucky for warm, sunny days.
Marchelle, Corine and kids will be here in a couple weeks for Marchelle's baby shower. I'm sure they'll be freezing as they're still getting high temps and humidity. I'm hoping it's warm enough and rain-free that we can enjoy the deck and the fire pit. Jamie and I are looking forward to that - just a nice and relaxing time for all.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Monday, August 14, 2006
Birthday Flowers
These are flowers that Jodi and Rich sent to me for my birthday. They are so beautiful that I wanted to share how pretty they are. I love getting flowers. Thank you Jodi and Rich!!
Happy Birthday!
Happy 30th Birthday Mike and Happy Birthday to Me!
My son-in-law Mike and I share the same birthday although I wish it was me turning 30 again!
Hope you have a great day Mike!
My son-in-law Mike and I share the same birthday although I wish it was me turning 30 again!
Hope you have a great day Mike!
Monday, August 07, 2006
Our Vacation Hotel......
Let me tell you about Westgate Lakes and Resorts. DON'T stay there!! What a rip-off. They have many "resorts" around the country. Maybe some of them are run well, but I can tell you that the one in Orlando, Florida is not good (and they're are a couple of them). The one I'm referring to is at 10000 Turkey Lake Road.
I don't know about you, but when I think of a resort, I think that people are going to treat you like you're they're only customer in the hopes that you'll spread the word about how good they are and WANT to come back.
This particular place was HUGE. Buildings upon buildings. Many pools to choose from. I thought right from the time we stepped in the lobby that it was going to be great. The lady who welcomed us was very nice. The young lady at the desk who checked us in was very nice. That's where it ended.
Granted, it's a time share. Jamie and I didn't take the discount price b/c we didn't want to sit through the spiel so we paid the full price. Now, you'd think that somebody who paid full price might be treated good....NOT! Didn't really matter if you paid full price or discount price. If you took the spiel in the beginning of your vacation, you were considered "owners" or were VIPs. There was no way to tell if you weren't either unless you went to breakfast and had a VIP sticker on you. SO, all week long you were treated like a piece of doodoo. Wouldn't you think they would treat everybody good in the hopes that maybe, just maybe, I would like the place so much and decide while I was there to BUY a timeshare? Apparently, this thought has not crossed anyone's mind there.
Marchelle and Tyler, after 3 days (they were staying a week) called the front desk to see if someone might be coming to clean their room. The girl was very rude to Marchelle said "uh, this is a resort and if you want your room to have a partial cleaning, that will be $35". Can you believe that one??? Have you ever heard of a RESORT that charged you to have your bed made and clean towels put in your room? I've stayed at some mediocre places before and all came and made the bed and put clean towels in my room for FREE - every day!! Finally, they came with a garbage bag of towels and handed them through the door!
Jamie and I came back to our place one afternoon and the radio on the clock was playing. Neither of us had touched the clock/radio since being in the room. Nothing was missing, but the tip for the maid was still lying on the pillow on the unmade bed. We think somebody may just have been sitting in there while other people thought they were working. The next afternoon, we came back and the tip on the unmade bed was left again, but this time we had clean sheets and towels within those sheets just thrown on the bed. They did, however, pick up the dirty towels.
As in my previous blog entry, Cheryl called about the BBQ Pits which we were told were all taken out, however, in the welcome packet was an advertisement to come on Thursday's to the "xxx" pool for a cookout (this I didn't look at till after Tuesday). They advertise it on the web and in your welcome packet but they don't have this feature anymore. Apparently, somebody forgot to mention it to the Welcome Packet people.
Cheryl also had a problem with ants. The little red ants the south is famous for. You know the kind....they bite!! When she called to complain about the problem for the 2nd time - they hung up on her!
They also advertise bars at each pool - this was true. BUT, they also advertise they a "working bar"...WRONG! At our pool, the bar was never opened. Never. Not during the day and not during the night. Course the rules say you couldn't bring anything in there but then again, you couldn't purchase anything cold to drink. We ignored the rules. Guess what? Nobody bothered us. And, that was after 2 workers sat at the bar for 4 hours (yes, 4 hours) and chit-chatted. Oh and then there was the ice cream social. The 3 young ladies brought ice cream out to the pool where they served the guests. Oh, I'm sorry, I mean the new owners. If you weren't an owner or a potential owner (ya know, somebody who paid full price like me), you had to pay $4 for bowl of ice cream. It really bothered us when the worker drove up in his golf cart, got out, got a bowl of ice cream and then proceeded to talk to the young ladies for an hour. You should know too, that it was lightening around us this whole time. I mean we were seeing chain lighting. Not close and we weren't in the pool but everyone else was. After 2 hours of this, the worker who finished his ice cream decided to come over and tell us the pool was now closed. Although he didn't know it, we were leaving anyway. When we stepped out of the pool area, this very unfortunate other fellow stopped us to tell us they had just been given the OK and the pool was still open and we should go back and have fun. Did I tell you that Marchelle was with us when this most unfortunate man came to tell us this news? Poor guy. Marchelle laid into him!! And then she and Jamie walked away leaving nice Tyler and I standing there listening to this guy.
So, nobody in the family had their "spiel" till the end of the week and were all treated horribly. We paid full price and were treated horribly. My conclusion....don't stay at Westgate Lakes an Resorts - it's aHUGE RIPOFF. You get treated horribly no matter who you are.
I don't know about you, but when I think of a resort, I think that people are going to treat you like you're they're only customer in the hopes that you'll spread the word about how good they are and WANT to come back.
This particular place was HUGE. Buildings upon buildings. Many pools to choose from. I thought right from the time we stepped in the lobby that it was going to be great. The lady who welcomed us was very nice. The young lady at the desk who checked us in was very nice. That's where it ended.
Granted, it's a time share. Jamie and I didn't take the discount price b/c we didn't want to sit through the spiel so we paid the full price. Now, you'd think that somebody who paid full price might be treated good....NOT! Didn't really matter if you paid full price or discount price. If you took the spiel in the beginning of your vacation, you were considered "owners" or were VIPs. There was no way to tell if you weren't either unless you went to breakfast and had a VIP sticker on you. SO, all week long you were treated like a piece of doodoo. Wouldn't you think they would treat everybody good in the hopes that maybe, just maybe, I would like the place so much and decide while I was there to BUY a timeshare? Apparently, this thought has not crossed anyone's mind there.
Marchelle and Tyler, after 3 days (they were staying a week) called the front desk to see if someone might be coming to clean their room. The girl was very rude to Marchelle said "uh, this is a resort and if you want your room to have a partial cleaning, that will be $35". Can you believe that one??? Have you ever heard of a RESORT that charged you to have your bed made and clean towels put in your room? I've stayed at some mediocre places before and all came and made the bed and put clean towels in my room for FREE - every day!! Finally, they came with a garbage bag of towels and handed them through the door!
Jamie and I came back to our place one afternoon and the radio on the clock was playing. Neither of us had touched the clock/radio since being in the room. Nothing was missing, but the tip for the maid was still lying on the pillow on the unmade bed. We think somebody may just have been sitting in there while other people thought they were working. The next afternoon, we came back and the tip on the unmade bed was left again, but this time we had clean sheets and towels within those sheets just thrown on the bed. They did, however, pick up the dirty towels.
As in my previous blog entry, Cheryl called about the BBQ Pits which we were told were all taken out, however, in the welcome packet was an advertisement to come on Thursday's to the "xxx" pool for a cookout (this I didn't look at till after Tuesday). They advertise it on the web and in your welcome packet but they don't have this feature anymore. Apparently, somebody forgot to mention it to the Welcome Packet people.
Cheryl also had a problem with ants. The little red ants the south is famous for. You know the kind....they bite!! When she called to complain about the problem for the 2nd time - they hung up on her!
They also advertise bars at each pool - this was true. BUT, they also advertise they a "working bar"...WRONG! At our pool, the bar was never opened. Never. Not during the day and not during the night. Course the rules say you couldn't bring anything in there but then again, you couldn't purchase anything cold to drink. We ignored the rules. Guess what? Nobody bothered us. And, that was after 2 workers sat at the bar for 4 hours (yes, 4 hours) and chit-chatted. Oh and then there was the ice cream social. The 3 young ladies brought ice cream out to the pool where they served the guests. Oh, I'm sorry, I mean the new owners. If you weren't an owner or a potential owner (ya know, somebody who paid full price like me), you had to pay $4 for bowl of ice cream. It really bothered us when the worker drove up in his golf cart, got out, got a bowl of ice cream and then proceeded to talk to the young ladies for an hour. You should know too, that it was lightening around us this whole time. I mean we were seeing chain lighting. Not close and we weren't in the pool but everyone else was. After 2 hours of this, the worker who finished his ice cream decided to come over and tell us the pool was now closed. Although he didn't know it, we were leaving anyway. When we stepped out of the pool area, this very unfortunate other fellow stopped us to tell us they had just been given the OK and the pool was still open and we should go back and have fun. Did I tell you that Marchelle was with us when this most unfortunate man came to tell us this news? Poor guy. Marchelle laid into him!! And then she and Jamie walked away leaving nice Tyler and I standing there listening to this guy.
So, nobody in the family had their "spiel" till the end of the week and were all treated horribly. We paid full price and were treated horribly. My conclusion....don't stay at Westgate Lakes an Resorts - it's aHUGE RIPOFF. You get treated horribly no matter who you are.
