Sunday, July 22

Florida 2012

We had a great time on our little vacation to Florida.  We left early on Lucy's birthday.  I don't think she minded being in the car all day, the beach house is her favorite place in the world.



90+ degree water...



Nearly every minute was spent combing the beach for shells, body surfing, wave jumping or swimming in the pool.  Lucy wore herself out.  And even slept in one morning.


We took a dolphin cruise, which was so much fun.  I don't know why we've never done it before.



Our motley crew.





Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Henry




We did see lots of birds- herons, pelicans, sea gulls-- and a few dolphins.  There were three sets of moms and calves that followed us for a while.



The kids got to drive the boat and Capt'n Jackie even let them wear his hat.



Another thing we'd never done before was take this boardwalk trail through Deer Lake.  It's kind of marshy and we looked for alligators, but didn't see any.  The trail lets up by the beach.







Along the way, we met up with a BP crew who were looking for signs of residual oil damage and returns of wildlife.  They pointed out fresh sea turtle tracks and the start of an abandoned nest.  They also pointed out a few live nests and said the turtles were due to hatch any day.  I'd love to see that!



It's always hard to say good bye to the beach.  We were sad that Billy couldn't come and especially missed him on the long drive home.

4 comments:

kristin said...

i seriously miss our beach trips. your children are tan and beautiful. i love ya, sister.

Unknown said...

looks like a fun week, such a beautiful beach!

Janene said...

That is the boardwalk that Dad and I discovered when we were there! Lovely! And you did see turtles hatching in Australia, remember? They come out at night and the babies follow the moon's reflection on the sea. Oh, these pictures make me "homesick" for a place I have only been to once. So glad for your fun trip!

sarah said...

That looks like heaven to me. How fun for you guys!