(not) a day at the beach

so back to vacation photos. you didn't think we were done did you? let's not be hasty here...i plan on stringing this sucker out.


i still have both florida and nebraska weather temps on my sidebar. at some point i should really take florida down. salt in the wound. specifically 68 degree salt in an 82 degree wound. but who's keeping track right? riiiight.


so--- cue wayne's world time warp fingers--- doodledoo doodledoo doodledoo....


i searched everywhere for a clip of this for those that have absolutely no idea of the reference i am making. like if maybe you weren't born until 1987 and therefore were 5 when wayne's world came out. (rachel) or maybe if you weren't allowed to watch semi raunchy slacker movies featuring mike myers at his best. (nate)

we got our VHS of  WW for 3.99 at mcdonalds in 1993. the cappy bought it for us..clearly without an inkling of the amount of time my sister erin and i would sit on his couch and watch it over and over and over again. don't judge. my humor was somewhat underdeveloped at that point. :)


so anyways--- let's let the time warp fingers bring us back to florida and learn something new with the babies shall we? mmkay.

it's true.. there is actually more to do than sink your toes in the sand...

for instance: a wildlife day at the local animal hospital/preserve and the aquatic marine center. 

as a fabulous side note arianna is picking all her own outfits and accessorizing her heart out. 

thus the large orange flower placed ever so carefully right up front, the handkerchief tied around her wrist and one of the necklaces she has been making out of our shell finds. i adore the fact she knows what she likes. and if (when) we get stares as we walk around i choose to believe they are thinking....

oh look at that well adjusted fulfilled little girl.she has a such a strong sense of self.

mmmhmmm.

this wildlife hospital is specifically for any native florida animal that is injured, rescued or won't quit living with humans.. so we saw everything from turtles to a florida panther. an albino raccoon to a black bear. florida is one crazy place.

arianna is a study of extremes. she has historically been afraid to walk across the bridge at the park.. but when an opportunity came up for close encounters of the snake kind? sure why not.. sounds fun. she was especially impressed with the snake handler. dreams of being in charge of snakes have entered her horizons. unfortunately i have a strict rule of no pets that eat other pets.

i have no idea who this girl is. but i am ridiculously proud of her at this moment. for her snake charming ways and her ability to rock that big flower sun visor.:)

grayson was not interested in touching the snakes. he did, however, enjoy the water fountain.

one of my absolute favorite parts of florida is the vegetation.. there is just nothing like it. it always kind of feels like you are one unruly vine away from being swallowed up.

i can remember my siblings and i racing through the forest on thick needle cushioned paths. the woods behind our house was deep and if you didn't know the paths you could easily get turned around in there.
but we knew every inch of those woods.
at least that was my best defense upon my mother's return one day when i was about 11 and she heard from the babysitter (who honestly was pretty annoying) that i had run off into the woods taking my siblings with me and wouldn't come out no matter how she called and begged. like i said she was annoying-- and i was particularly good at being 11.

the aquatic center had an amazing touch tank. the kids got to touch sea urchins and starfish, sea cucumbers and a lot of other weird stuff that i don't remember. ari would. i am pretty sure she wrote it in her 'diary'. :)

i believe our only all family picture... and the color isn't great. and cappy looks like i might have leprosy. and ari is doing the finger sweep on luci for wood chips and grayson is attempting to eat his own foot. good times. :)

next up on our non beach related activities would be a trip to the historic landmark seashell city. it has earned it's iconic status by looking and smelling the exact same way since i first frequented it's doors in 1992. i am sure it's been the same pretty much since it was established sometime in the 50's.

you want seashells or seashell related items?? you go to sea shell city. duh.

arianna has reminded me several times that in this rendition of 'a day at the beach', she is interpreting riding a dolphin. just in case you thought she was churning butter or something like that.

 the kids each got to pick something for cappy to buy. arianna chose a bottle opener. and then carried it around with us everywhere. because you never know right? it was filled with an oil and water and blue food coloring mixture that sloshed around inside the capsule while a tiny pink dolphin bobbed on the surface. unfortunately pinky the dolphins bottle opener home broke before i could get a picture. there are no guarantees at seashell city. grayson picked my dream car... and i only helped a little. :)

last stop on the florida animal adventure would be the turtle museum.
when i was a kid this was a shack with some stuffed seagulls and a tank with a bunch of turtles out back. it is now an amazing turtle rescue center and beautiful hands on museum. this turtle had been hit by a boat and when he was found had 2 lbs of sand and a live crab inside his shell! the yellow box with the tube is actually an IV. a turtle IV. they've come a long way since the stuffed seagulls.

luci looks like a baby giant. which makes me laugh. :)

 one of the best things to do while you're not at the beach is to go to the big tree. this tree is expansive. can you see little grayson all the way down there at the bottom?

 this tree is the best for swinging..

and playing hide and seek...

and shocking your kids with your mad tree climbing skills.

 and for climbing way high and making your mom come and get you down...

 i have sat in this tree since i was 12...i have carved initials in this tree. and now i have held my babies in this tree. i'm getting old. but thankfully i am pretty okay with that. :)

so just in case you were wondering what those babies were writing home about in their postcards... that is what you do in florida when you are not at the beach. :)