Picture Download from the trip to the keys

Our trip provided us with lots of wildlife.  The water out our backdoor was so clear, it was easy to see the bottom.  We also saw fish and coral at Dry Tortuga National Park, but unfortunately it was too difficult for me to get good pictures with my iPhone in a waterproof case.























  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

St George Island "The Uncommon Florida"

Image
On Thursday morning our plan was to spend a few hours at the State Park on St. George Island.  The park was on the east end of the island.  The terrain and vegetation is much different here compared to our island paradise of Sanibel/Captiva. We had high hopes of finding some different shells.  We briefly scouted the area out on Wednesday afternoon and saw many different color variations of bivalves that we are not use to seeing on Captiva.  We also found several shark eyes on Wednesday but many were too broken up to keep. The park opens at 8:00 a.m. The cost to enter the park is $6.  There is about an 8 mile stretch of beach with several access and parking areas along the way.  There are two large parking areas with shelters and restroom along the beach in the park and several smaller parking with access to beach along the 8 mile stretch of the park.  The restroom and shelter areas were well maintained.  There are a lot of dunes ...
Read more

Soccer PaPa

Image
At the end of February, my life has changed.  No more 9 to 5 for me, every day is a vacation as retirement has officially kicked in!  My blog has been mainly devoted to our experiences on some small islands in southwest Florida, Sanibel and Captiva Island. While I hope to still visit and share more experiences from this magical place, I will be sharing other trips and experiences as we continue to navigate along Life's Highway.   Before, it seemed like I only wrote about the annual trip to that special place. My intentions were to share a bit of humor and to memorialize some of our precious memories and life's lessons we learned along the way.   Most recently, I have become a Soccer PaPa.  No, I don't drive a minivan, I'm not overly vocal when sitting in the stands, and I'm not jumping up to dispute the referees calls (although I have questioned the lack of a call from time to time).  My gosh, since when has soccer become wrestling at the Chase? ...
Read more

Pictures from Paradise

Image
Manatees behind Green Flash Well we made it back home.  Reality is setting back in only a few short days till back to the daily grind.  I have posted several pictures from the week.  We get to have our annual  contest and decide which ones get blown up and framed to hang on the wall till next years visit.  It gives us something to look forward to while we are waiting.    
Read more

Here's Your Sign

Image
 So today, my family and I got some terrible news, a close friend of ours passed away overnight.  Our family is of course devastated by this.   My blog has generally been about trips and experiences down life's highway.  Mostly about the good times and trips we have spent with family.  Occasionally I'll share a few life lessons I've learned along the way.   I'm typically not an outspoken person, but the blog allows me to convey what comes from my heart, and my heart is compelled to share this one with you. Let's start off with a little about faith and me.  My parents sent me to church.  We didn't go as a family unit.  I went with a neighbor.  Dad was typically not feeling well on Sunday mornings after spending most of his day and night on Saturday at the local bar.  I know he believed in god, but there were also demons that chased him through life. In his later years the alcohol and smoking took a toll on his body, he'd sp...
Read more

Beach Art

Image
So it looks like we are in for some rough waters this week.  I bet the shell seekers are loving this! Its got to be sending some treasures this way.  Most of our beach time so far has been at high tide so its not the best time for shell searching. So the beach angels and I tried our hand at a little Beach art today.  Meet Katy (momma turtle's name) and Lacey (Baby turtle's name) Beach Art 2013 Lexi, Taylor and PaPa   We are seeing a lot of rain so far this week.  After we completed the beach art the beach angels were ready to head back to the house and the pool.  No doubt as long as the water stays this rough their favorite spot this week will be at the pool.  Captiva Cutie has a nice Lanai (I think that's the correct spelling, back home we call it a screen porch!)  it connects to the pool deck its a great place to  catch the breeze and chill.  Also my place to sit and work on the blog.   Vie...
Read more

Shin-Zen-Bi

Image
The Bonsai represents the three virtues or Shin-Zen-Bi, which translate into truth, goodness and beauty. Saturday was our last day on the island.  We ventured out on another field trip.  This time to North Fort Myers area to check out Wigert's Bonsai Nursery. Not sure if I should call it a Hobby, Obsession, or Passion but I am a koi keeper.  My current pond has been up for around 4years now.  I have kept Koi for around 17 years. Our Koi Pond The gang I  have also always been fascinated with Bonsai.  I feel like the link between the Japanese art of Bonsai and keeping koi are so closely related that many Koi keepers also have a natural tendency to be drawn to the art. Since we were down in the Fort Myers area for the week I decided to check out Wigert's Bonsai nursery and maybe scratch this itch I have for Bonsai. This place didn't disappoint This was a very eye opening experience and to be fully appreciated taking a camera along is a must.  As many of u...
Read more

Heading to Paradise Ocean breezes, Frozen refreshments, Time to Exhale

Time is rapidly approaching for our annual adventures to paradise, Captiva and Sanibel Florida.  While nothing beats this place for true relaxation there's also a considerable amount of enjoyment in the days building up to the departure.  You can feel the excitement build daily as everyone starts getting things ready for the 1,200 mile excursion. While the drive is not my favorite part of the vacation the end result is worth the time in the car.
Read more

Some of today's "BS"

Image
 Today we started our day with some "BS".   B reakfast & S trawberry Preserves Our usual opening parlay into a week of eating out and consuming adult beverages. No better place to start than the Lighthouse Cafe. The crowds seem a little lighter this year.  Not sure why but I know people are dealing with a lot of "BS".  Hopefully my "BS" this week will make you smile. Waitress comes to the table "Hi you all ready to order."  Me: "You kidding I been waiting a year for this" I could go on and on about my breakfast choice but you've heard that before.  Today we'll focus on something else that the Lighthouse does really well.  They make their own strawberry preserves and serve it in a little container.  Take that hot buttered toast and dip it in there.  OMG it's pure heaven. We can't leave Sanibel without taking a few of jars home every year.  It's kinda become a tradition. Lighthouse Cafe "Beach Angel Approved...
Read more

Paradise Found!

Image
Ok we made it.  Got into Fort Meyers around 1:15 yesterday.  Stopped at Bahama Breeze for  lunch and a spicy Mango Mojito (Got to start putting this vacation in the right frame of mind). After lunch a quick stop at Wally World to pick up some things we'll need for the week then its windows down and proceed with our search for Paradise. It doesn't take long and you can smell it,  the salt air from the ocean paradise must be close.  Reach into your pocket and get out the best spent $6 bucks of the week.   Our home base this week is once again on Laika Lane.  Captiva Cutie is colorful beach themed ground level cottage.   It takes the beach angels about 10 minutes to get on swimming suits and head for the pool.  The first 5 minutes was spent checking out the lizard that was awaiting our arrival on the front porch.     We broke from our normal routine and hit the pool for awhile....
Read more