last day here…

Today was our last full day on Anna Maria Island. It was spent on the beach soaking up the sun late into the evening hours. My favorite time at the beach is between five and nine in the evening. There is something magical about sitting, swimming, and playing as the earth slowly revolves just enough to hide the sun from our view. I am sad to leave this beautiful island. Our time here has been restorative… reminding both Davy and I of the simple things in life. A sand castle built by a small child. A precious shell. A nice cold beer to enjoy in the sun. An outdoor shower. A walk along the shore.  A school of fish swimming near your toes. A disappearing sun. A new friend. A precious secret shared.  A small house. Finding a new pet. A scraped foot. An ice cream cone that drips too quickly. A precious boy. A precious girl. A growing love. A time that will never be forgotten.

How many times did we cross this bridge?

The place we laid our heads.

We’ll miss it… but we’ll be back.

Does anyone else love this?

We have grown to love a little show that airs on the travel channel. 

Davy and I love the show “Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations.” It is so geeky cool. Do you love food? Do you love to travel? Do you like an authentic travel experience? Do you love abrasive, interesting, sarcastic people? We do.

Does anyone else watch this?

Ok, maybe it’s just us. Peace out.

Loving these mugwumps…

Let’s see… the last week has consisted of: 

Waking up

Putting on sunscreen 

Going to the beach

Napping (at least one child…)

Putting on sunscreen 

Going to the beach

Sleeping

Repeat

A couple of the cool things we have been doing… is entertaining friends we met down here. It’s pretty cool that they live next door, have a two year old, and are nice people. We had dinner with them the other night. We’ve also been to the aquarium in Sarasota multiple times. Whoopee for fish tanks. Davy and Ben love them! I do too, just not quite to the fanatical degree that the males in this family do. Also,  we have officially gone through ten bottles of sunscreen. It is the spray kind… but wow… I never imagined using so much sunscreen. I remember the days when I didn’t wear it. Also, I am becoming a student of the tides. You know, I always assumed that the ocean did pretty much the same thing every day. Apparently, I was wrong. Spending so much time near the water I have come to realize that the ocean is different every day. The strength of the waves obviously changes, but so do the direction at which they approach the shore. Every tide is different… not one is yet to be the same. Same days there are lots of big shells, other days there are millions of tiny coquinas. Today I saw a dolphin while kayaking… it was maybe 10 yards from my boat. I am coming to rely on the beauty and mystery of the ocean on a daily basis. I will miss this place immensely when we leave.

Below I have attached some of my favorite pictures of the last few days. Even with the beauty and mystery of the ocean literally at my doorstep, these precious children still capture my heart above all things…

Summer loves the backpack.

Father and son.

Ben and his new friend, Emily.

Behold the duck face.

Ben needs his beauty rest.

Avoidance and embrace! Love that smile.

I see you, Summer Sunshine.

A moment of many.

The family.

Loving the company.

Ok, am I the only one?

Ok am I the only one fascinated by the “code” you have to type in when posting comments on sites like Blogspot and Blogger? I think I love these words. I just typed the word, schizzle, krakger, and hamtin. Are these real words? (Of course, I know they are not real words… but how much would I like to weave them into my daily life?) Oh, and do you have to type these words in when posting on my site? The thought is quite vhortraking to me. I hope you have a phorischle day. You are a ganrey befder. 

My favorite photo

I have to post this photo because it is my favorite photo that I have taken of my two children together. It captures the essence of our two precious children and how they convey their individual personalities at this point in their life.