Eatin' his name

Another weekend of fun was in store for us.  The kids finished up week with 2 days off split around a week of half days for exams.  So, we planned a short drive up to Holiday, FL to visit with grandpa/great grandpa Chester (and little Suzzie) was sure to greet us with many stories of flea market and garage sale purchases.  No sooner did we hit the driveway and we were looking at the latest haul.  All I can say is that it keeps him busy and entertained, so that's fine with me.

We drove over the SkyWay Bridge over the gulf and the kids were thrilled. Up over the choppy water and seeing some para sailing, the view was awesome.  Plan to make another trip up later to spend some more time and maybe actually enjoy the bridge as it was too windy and cold for the day.

Not my picture but pretty damn awesome.

After messing around at grandpa's we headed out for some supper with him.  Of course, we passed a restaurant called Cody's Steakhouse, so at that point, there wasn't a real option for where the kids were going to ask to go.  Thankfully, grandpa likes the food there so we were good.  After a yummy meal, we dropped grandpa off and headed back home.

Cody and Grandpa Chester.....who's the oldest in that picture??

Making plans to go back in a few weeks to spend the weekend and hit the sponge docks get grandpa lined up with some extra dinners.

Living the Salt Life

I guess one of the crazy benefits that we've missed for years is having weekends to make plans.  Time to have fun, time to do things as a family and just have...well, time.

Heading out to Sanibel Island to see some birds, see where Jenny works (Bailey's General Store), cruise around, soak up the rays and dip the toes in the water.  We hit one of the beaches and saw some massive osprey nests.  Not quite as imposing as Eagles but darn, those things look nasty.

Dang that sucker was big....

Next we popped over to the beach to see the original light house on Sanibel beach.  Not open for tours, not that there would be room, but still cool to see.  Being that old, I'm sure it has stories and would give a haunting a big thumbs up.  :)

Someone forgot to change the bulb....

Both Amberlyn and Cody had different agendas on the beach.  Cody was hard at work continuing his sea shell collection while Amberlyn was determined to build the perfect sand castle.  Off we went and managed to accomplish both.

Yeah, like she wasn't born to live on the beach.

Lost in thought....I bet it is something about Star Wars.

We stopped to see Jenny's store and grab a bite to eat (Island Cow - yummy!!!).  The kids got to see more of the island and we snagged another beach spot on the way before leaving the island.  Different side of the island and more shells for Cody to grab.  Amberlyn was all about soaking up the tan at that point.

At the end of the day, we had a fun and relaxing day with lots of fun things to see.  All that being said, time to give everyone The Bird!

It's been a year???

Holy cow, what happened to 2010?  It has been a long and trying year but one that we've put behind us and are looking forward.  The kids had to contain their excitement through the Winter break in order to get to Christmas.  Their lists were long (and sometimes obscure) but we been lucky to have them be pretty happy with whatever they've opened.

Cody's big ticket item was anything Nerf related and he was able to come away with that in spades.  An adjustable Nerf gun that can be made multiple ways will keep his brain occupied.  Oh, the stories that have already spun out of his head.  Add to that, multiple Star Wars and Bakugan (don't ask, just nod and realize this is a game that boys his age love) and the boy was in Christmas heaven.  Sprinkle a dash of Scooby Doo on top and he'll be set for awhile.

Amberlyn, heh, anything Taylor Swift is good in her book.  So big brother came through and found a T.S. calendar for her.  And the fashion girl that she is, the Sketchers TwinkleToes shoes (pink with charms and lightup) were a must have.  And the big ask for her was a new bike.  And in true Red Rider BB Gun fashion, it wasn't under the tree when the main presents were opened.  Great to see that some kids can still get fooled.

So, now that Christmas has come and gone, they're back to school and remembering how much "fun" the school grind can be.  But at least in the evenings, they have some fun things to do!