Good morning, Everyone! Pour yourself a cup of coffee. Let’s catch up.
You can join in the Inlinkz Link Party Weekend Coffee Share (free!) and share your news.
The big news is that I am on Hilton Head Island for two months-yes, two months! This is a tremendous perk to retirement. I secured an amazing deal for an amazing apartment in the Coligny Park area where the rooms are inviting, the kitchen is fully equipped, and the ocean beach is 600 yards away. My daughter, Robyn, and I took a two-day road trip in my fully loaded Jeep from Long Island. Matt arrived on Tuesday by air with his sister, who is visiting until Sunday.
Besides easy beach access, Coligny features a plaza of stores, restaurants, and an indie movie theater. Everything we could possibly need or want is within walking or biking distance. Matt found a terrific physical therapy office, so his rehab can continue.
It is cool here, but not as cold as home. Us northerners are very comfortable. I have been walking the beach at sunrise, improving my stamina, and taking pictures. It is a great way to start the day.
The best part of this adventure is that we get to see the grandkids EVERYDAY! A gift! I pick them up after school/programs and daycare. The kids come play and run amuck until their parents arrive. I put together a dinner, and then we kiss everyone goodnight and goodbye until the next day.
Another great perk about winter on Hilton Head Island is that I can write in longer stints. House cleaning is quick, and after a brisk morning walk, my head is ready to get to work. I spent a good part this week revamping my website and the Mailchimp email newsletter. I had help from my newly certified Digital Marketing and Analytics niece, DD Yanoti. She had given me great advice on how to make my site and emails more attractive to readers. Also, my very talented daughters, Robyn and Hallie, helped spruce up the header and showed me paragraphing and font tips and tricks. I am learning so much from these tech-savvy women. What do you think of the new look?
Robyn flies back to her home in Bend, Oregon, on Tuesday. She took advantage of her remote work situation and had an extended stay with us. It is always wonderful to have my girl nearby.
Today is a special day. It is my granddaughter’s 6th birthday. Amazing how that time flew by. We’re baking a cake this afternoon.
I am down to the dregs in my coffee and need a refill.
Have a good weekend and week, Everyone. Make it great.
Antoinette Truglio Martin is the author of Hug Everyone You Know: A Year of Community, Courage, and Cancer. The memoir is a wimpy patient’s journey through her first year of breast cancer treatment.
Stories Served 
More time with grandchildren is always a plus.
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That sounds to be a lovely getaway, a refreshing change in routine, sights and activities. Best wishes!
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Happy New Year, Antoinette! Having the ocean beach very close by is a real perk. (Unintended coffee mention:). Stunning morning photos. Yes, a great way to start the day. I really like the new look. I look forward to connecting in 2020!
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Looks and sounds like it will be a great 2 months. Have fun baking the birthday cake this afternoon and have a great week. Thanks for coffee.
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Wow, enjoy your time! Sounds fabulous!
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Hi Antoinette,
I love the new look but only have one contrary point of feedback. Fonts with serifs can be harder to read by those with weakening eyes. There are two fixes but both have downsides. 1) don’t use fonts with them, but altenatives; e.g.Arial, Calibri or Tahoma, all look a lot less rich or 2) increase the font size by 2+ points can easily take up more screen space than desired. I think that adding the bold attribute does not help but actually makes it worse due to the contrast.
Your beach hangout arrangement sounds amazing.
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Thanks for the feedback, Gary. I will pass along to my helpers.
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Sounds great! Cool sunrise photos.
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Hope you’re enjoying your time here in the south. It’s a little warmer this winter than normal. I was sweating yesterday morning on my run, 75 degrees on January 11th, but that’s the way it is. It’ll probably be a cold February!
The site is looking good! I need to do some revamping myself, but I hate to put the time into it.
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