So Much to Say!

I've been having problems with internet and blogger, so I haven't been able to blog lately.  I'll try to reconstruct the last few days.

Friday night Tonda's 16 year old daughter, Samantha, came to Boca Grande and spent the night with us.  I had invited her to ride with us to Sarasota.  I've watched Samantha grow up and I was excited to get to spend the day with her.  She enjoyed the bow seat.

 Meanwhile, Ryan and Evan were playing with the phones.  I think they were both playing Angry Birds.

Zachary was occupied with the Wii, we got Mario Kart in Key West and he had fun with that.  He had it mastered in a matter of days.  Since the boys were busy, Samantha and I had fun hanging out on the bow.

Yes, that's the bikini I got in Miami.  I plan to rock this bikini when I lose about 10 pounds (much easier to do off the boat).  That night Tonda and her husband Mike came to Sarasota to pick up Samanatha and we all went out for Mexican food.

We had such a good time.  Tonda and I have been friends since she was pregnant with Sam.  It was so great to see her, Sam, and Mike.  The kids completely fell in love with all of them.  They wanted Sam to move in with us.  They also wanted Tonda and Mike to stay on the boat with us.  It was sad to watch them leave!

The next day we took the kids to the GWhiz Science Museum in Sarasota.  They were having a pirate exhibit.  Gee - right up our alley!

Evan loves the Bernouilli Principle ball . . . or whatever it's called.

This is Zachary from 2006 when we visited before, he loved the ball then too.  He was a year younger than Evan is now.

Potty training is going well now.  Evan's had no accidents since that awful one in Boca Grande.  He actually woke up in the night once saying he had to go pee pee.  He's wearing a pull up for naps and bedtime yet wakes up dry.  Poop is another issue, but an expected one.  He is making progress and I'm pleased with that.

Sunday morning we were leaving for Clearwater.  The weather was good so we decided to keep going.  We pointed her North towards Appalachicola.  31 hours later we are here!  It was a pleasant crossing.  I saw lots of boats so I had to pay attention on my watch, but other than that it was uneventful.  The next morning I got up to relieve Ryan so he could sleep a little and we ran into a couple of squalls.  We saw a water spout - which was kind of exciting - but all we got was a little wind and rain off it.  I huddled with the kids down below giggling and singing "It's Raining, It's Pouring" while poor Ryan was up on deck getting soaked.  I did make him a fresh cup of coffee, and after we passed the weather we let him have a nap.

So now we are in Appalachicola.  We went out to dinner last night, and afterwards we went to the ice cream parlor.  The boys opted for lollipops, a cheaper option that they consume less of.  It was fine with me!

Behind them on the bench I saw this sign, and immediately thought of my father in law, Tony.  Tony, this one's for you!

The mood on the boat is melancholy.  Even the kids are asking if there is somewhere else to go before we go home.  It's been such a great summer and great trip, and it's more than a little sad for it to end.  I suppose it's better to end wanting more than to end with a sense of relief.

Today we are going to Crooked Island, if the Air Force isn't launching drones over it.  We have a friend checking on it for us so we should know sometime this morning.  If they are, we'll just stop in Port St. Joe for the night.  Crooked Island is truly a special place, and after all the places we've been, Ryan and I agree that it's still our favorite.  So hopefully we'll finish our trip there.  We plan to stay a couple of nights then head home for the weekend.  Maybe we'll stay longer, I just don't know.  We still haven't flown the new kites the kids got for their birthdays, and we have sandcastles to build and shells to collect.  This will be a nice way to end the trip.