Cards? What are those?

Yes, I do remember what cards are - I know I haven't posted any for a while, but with summer here, our schedule is not a norm.  I don't find that I have as much time in the evenings to stamp - I'm either too exhausted by the day's events or I still have too much to do around the house.  With the kids home all day, I don't get as much done so it creeps into the evening.  But, I have been stamping lately - especially with the release of the new catalog!


This card is one I made for my July 16 birthdays - my grandmother who turned 97 and my sister in law (I'll keep her age quiet!)  It features a new paper released in the Stampin UP! catalog called Greenhouse Gala.  I love the colors of this new paper collection!  It will be one that I can use all summer and even into the fall.

I also used the new extra large scallop circle and adorned it with some dew drops.  The sentiment is from the butterfly set "Flight of the Butterfly" (#111564).  The ribbon is a retired ribbon from several catalog releases ago - but it accented this card really well!

Here's another card I made as a thank you for a friend's kind words and support at church.  Being the president of our council has been a challenge and it is wonderful to have people that let you know that they appreciate you - it seems so thankless some times!  I wanted it to have a "fruits of the spirit" theme, so I used "Tart and Tangy" (#111514) as a focal point with the background being more paper from Greenhouse Gala collection.  I also incorporated some paper from the free hostess 6x6 pack from last catalog.  Trying to use up the retired stuff!  Nice that it coordinates with the current paper!

I will post more cards in the upcoming days, but I have not completed our vacation collection nor some more recent events, so I want to give them some attention as well.

So, when I left off of my vacation review we were beginning to head north out of the Keys.  We wanted to give the kids one day of true BEACH fun - sandcastles, boogie boarding etc....that you don't get at the Keys since they don't have many waves.  So, we stopped for a night on Singer Island in West Palm Beach.  It was a really nice beach - very fancy hotels!  Ours was an old Hilton - and we weren't very pleased with the accommodations in comparison to the Marriott we had just left behind, but since we were there for beach it was fine.

 As we left the Keys, we took a quick side trip into the Florida Everglades to get a stamp in our National Park passport books.  I wasn't sure that we would see much - I've always heard that the best time to go to the Everglades is in the winter but we had a great time.  Lauren really lucked out this trip - first a sea turtle while snorkeling and then the first thing we see in the Everglades is this Florida loggerhead turtle.  He was moseying back to the waterway. 

 I posted this photo onto my Facebook page while we were gone with the comment that this is not something we see everyday back home!  I still can't get over the shock of seeing that they have panther crossings the way we have deer crossings!

 The beauty of the Everglades, while not what we usually prefer (mountains) cannot be denied.  I think the most fascinating attraction is the biosphere that you find here - we saw more birds, alligators, turtles, bugs....in just a very short walk.  But it was oppressively HOT and humid!

 We were talking about the animals that are not indigenous that are now causing problems to the ecosystem in the everglades - monkeys and boa constrictors that have been released by people who can no longer manage their pets.   It's so sad that folks have no sense of responsibility!   We didn't see any - but thought it would be funny to take a picture of Lauren with Jason's snake!  He brings it along in the car to give back support in the seat.

Now on to West Palm Beach.  We drove through Miami and up I-95.....

This is the beach as you approach it from the boardwalk on the back of the hotel.  There was a restaurant right on the beach that we ate dinner in the night we stayed there.

We were able to find all kinds of shells on the beach - especially after the big storm that came through that night!  Mostly clam shells, but I did find a few others, including a small conch shell.

Hmmm....not sure I really want to post this one, but Dave likes it!  I sure look lonely - no one else on the beach.  My glowing white skin must have blinded them all away!

This is a good place to insert some "Wipeout" music.

Dave is really fond of the taste of sea water.

Last day of beaching.  Before we left we went shell hunting from the storm.  It was such a lovely day we hated the thought of climbing into the car for one of our longest days of the trip - 10 hours into the pan handle of Florida on our way to New Orleans.....but that will have to be an update for another day!

Hope you are all enjoying your own vacation days!

Smiles,

Susan

Break from Vacation updates - current updates!

I'll post more vacation stuff tomorrow, but I wanted to post these pictures I took here at home since we've returned.    These are the invitations we've been passing out to Lauren's birthday party at the end of the week.  She is having an ice cream theme - with an ice cream bar along with her cake.  So, appropriately we made ice cream bar card invitations.  I've seen these done many times - but usually a real ice cream stick is used.  We didn't have any so we made our own!  They turned out really cute.  When we deliver them, she asks them to "pick a flavor".

  Being a goof as always!

This is a picture I took that I thought just turned out really cute of the kids - unusual!  Our community recently lost a 22 year old in Afghanistan that was a graduate of Jason's High School.  They were asking people to line the streets in support of the family during the funeral procession.  I thought since all we had going that day was the pool, we should go.  It was very emotional.  He was buried at the National Cemetery with full military honors.  Please keep the Mahler family in your prayers.

And of course, the biggest event of this weekend was getting Jason ready for the National Youth Leadership Training (NYLT) camp.  He is taking the "Pack and Paddle" course which means that in addition to having to schlep all his stuff all day, sleep in the woods, and create his own shelter, he'll also have to help carry the canoes overland as needed.  It will be a good lesson in endurance for him.  I'm hoping it will build his confidence and initiative.   It was amusing listening to Dave and Jason trying to pack up the bag efficiently.  Packing, unpacking, practicing how to protect it from rain....where did you put your sunscreen?  Why in the bottom of the bag?  What if you need it while walking?  On and on....for half the day.  But, his dad had him really ready for anything by the time he left!




Here he is all ready to go!  Going away a boy and coming home a little bit more manly!

Still looks like a little boy to me!  

  Back to vacation review tomorrow.


Susan

 

The last full day in the Keys we took a road trip to visit Key West.  We did a little exploring along the way, to see the other Keys and make mental notes about where we might look into staying if we ever returned, and to visit some of the sites.  This is Bahia Honda Beach.  It is supposed to have been ranked as the second most beautiful beach in America, and it could well earn that title.....but it would have to be in the "natural" category, as there was a lot of seaweed that day.  I can't get over those long legs on Lauren- looks just like me at that age!

Lauren was a little hesitant about going swimming with the seaweed because of having been stung by that jellyfish on our second day, but she bravely persevered!  Fortunately all was well.

  This is where we finally got to use the big umbrella we bought at Costco before leaving.  I know we'll get plenty of use out of this through the years, but we didn't use it much on vacation - most beaches provided them at the resorts we stayed at.

It was VERY hot this day, and sporting a sunburn on my back from snorkeling (despite the 70 spf I used!) I decided to hold down the fort while everyone else went swimming.  Dave kept his shirt on for the same reason!

We had lunch on the way down the Keys at this Cracked Conch Cafe and it was superb!  Dave and I got a fresh fish sandwich blackened - OMG so good!  It was open air, but a good iced tea and the smell of the food was worth it.

The night before we had Conch Fritters and Conch Chowder, so the kids didn't opt for that this day - it was met with cool reviews.

Finally making it to Key West, the first thing we did was to go and take our picture at the Southernmost Point of the USA.  Only 90 miles from Cuba - closer than to Miami!  These crazy geographic landmarks are kind of fun - like the 4 corners out west and the Continental Divide - we've seen many of them!

This was the funniest thing we saw down there - this guy surf paddling with his dog in a life jacket  - but not him of course!  We wondered if this was rush hour commuting for Key West!

It wasn't long after parking that we needed something cold - did I mention it was HOT that day?  So we stopped at a stand and Dave and I got Key Lime Sherbet Freezes - OMG good!!!!!  The kids opted for frozen strawberry lemonade.  Very refreshing.   This is the square down by the water.  The restaurant behind us is the Red Fish, Blue Fish where we later returned for dinner.  The boat is home to a crazy rooster that tries to jump from the boat into that tree behind it....not successful while we watched.  There were roosters all over the place - I think it must be the Cuban influence.  And there were also "ShipWreck Castaways" as I called them.....long haired, sunburned, dred locked, seriously looked like they were Robinson Crusoe wannabees on every corner making some kind of palm leaf sculptures for cash.  The kids got embarrassed when I called them that, but I was in a motherly way trying to express my disapproval should they choose that lifestyle!  I refrained from taking pictures of them though....they probably would have charged me for it!

 After a fantastic dinner at the restaurant I mentioned - I had this salad - we headed toward the water to kill the last bit of time we had left on the parking meter.  We ended up at the Sunset Celebration that is held every night on the boardwalk.  It was really fun.  Lots of street performers, and artist displays that were charming.  Lauren got pulled into this "magicians' act.  He was quite foul mouthed

despite the number of children around and we wandered away quickly.  He gave us a CD for her participation, but I haven't let the kids watch it yet - we may need to preview it.  He was really funny when he kept it clean, so I almost felt like it was uncontrollable in some way.

This guy was making gigantic bubbles and had a golden retriever in boxers that chased them to pop them.  He would yell "Watch OUT" each time he made one so that people didn't get hit by them.   They were pretty as they caught the sunset colors.

So that was our day at Key West.  It took ALL DAY to travel the 90 miles to get there - of course we did stop, but still I wish we had returned sooner to enjoy our last night at the resort.  Key West was too commercialized and touristy for my tastes - we liked our Key Largo area better!  But it was fun to say we've been there and I always enjoy seeing local architecture etc....and if you want to shop, that is the place in the Keys to do it!

Still to come - our trip begins heading back north as we work our way home, but we still have several stops along the way - tomorrow I'll post Singer Island beach day.

Smiles,

Susan

Snorkeling!!!!

The whole reason for our trip, and the part of the trip that I most dreaded, was the day we were going to go snorkeling.  Now, for those who don't know this about me - I have had a phobia about deep water ever since encountering a shark off the North Carolina coast while in High School.  It plagued me through all my years of working for SeaWorld.  Difficult to be enthusiastic about "Terrors of the Deep" to your clients when you want to pass out in the exhibit!  And I had not been in the ocean beyond my knees for over 20 years now!  So, needless to say I didn't want to go.

The night before we were supposed to go out, Lauren got stung by a jellyfish out in the resort lagoon.  They have a lot of seagrass in there, and apparently these little nettles called upside-down jellyfish feed in there.  David, Jason and I all were stung, but they were just mildly irritating.  Lauren had been stung already, when she got stung badly on her back.  She was up all night with an allergic reaction to it - felt itchy inside she said and couldn't hold still.  So, I was partially thinking I would have an "out" on our excursion and have to stay behind with her.

No such luck.  She recovered quickly the little stinker, and nothing would keep her down - unless I lied to her and told her she might be stung again.....hmmmm?  So out we went.  This is the boat ride with the resort behind us.  A trip through the mangrove forests of the Pennekamp state park, and then out to clear water.....

Oh!  So blue!  It was as if the water had some sort of luminous glow.  We went 5 miles out to sea and stopped at that buoy you can barely see on the horizon - the "Molasses Reef".

I still had some reservations, but thought I would at least try to just swim around close to the boat.    At first, I had trouble getting my breathing under control.  It brought back to many memories of asthma attacks as a kid, and I had some mild anxiety about it, but soon got the hang of the breathing.  Jason and Lauren jumped right in - no looking back, no hesitation!

  Eventually we were all in the water, and when I saw how far my kids were from me, my mother instincts overrode my fear and I went out with them.  I wouldn't say the phobia is conquered, but it seems to have more to do with not being able to see what's in the water with me, and this was so clear that I was ok.

This is the classic snorkeling butt shot.

Soon, Jason learned how to hold his breath and prevent the water from going up the snorkel and was able to dive down to get a closer look.  This is truly his idea of what heaven would be like.  He has always said that he wanted to be a marine biologist, and we thought maybe this trip would cement that dream enough to get us through HS science!  He was the only one of us to give up the noodle and swim on his own the whole time!

We were able to get some underwater cameras at Walmart and they worked pretty well.

David peeking!

The cameras did a good enough job to capture the sea turtle!  Lauren was thrilled - it's her favorite animal next to a horse!  We also saw a sting ray but didn't get a good picture.  Lots of barracuda too!

And I heard later, that there were some nurse sharks seen, but fortunately not by me!  I would not have been this far away from the boat if we had!










It was a fabulous day and an experience that I'll never forget!    I think it's probably the first of many trips where we might try to find an opportunity to do a little snorkeling!

Smiles,



Susan

Missing that view!

I can't believe that this was the view I woke up to each morning just 2 weeks ago today!  I wanted to trim that dead palm leaf or photoshop it out, but even that blemish can't ruin this wonderful place!  This was the view off of our balcony looking into Florida Bay from the Key Largo Marriott Resort.  It was beautiful!   I'm so glad that we went despite our concerns about oil - we saw none!  They drastically over estimated the speed with which it would reach the Keys, and the tourism is suffering.  We were there right before their peak season began, which made it really wonderful because this is about as crowded as it was at the beach whenever we went down there!



Don't we look relaxed and rested?




Here's why:

Favorite place to hang out!

Comfy!

Great sleeping quarters!

Take me to your leader!

Alien invasion on the beach!

Happy kids!

Exhausted from snorkeling all day!














A beautiful sunset beauty!

An evening view from the room.

I think David was there - though you wouldn't know it from these photos!   We spent many hours drinking margaritas and listening to Jimmy Buffet - I hope he has a nickel for every time they play one of his songs!

I hope this relaxed you a little while viewing.  Tomorrow I'll post our snorkeling excursion.

Smiles,

Susan