Our daughter Julie, her husband Lake, and children Madison and Micah arrived on Serendipity Wednesday night after a looooooong car trip from Georgia. It takes some creativity to sleep 6 people in 36' of sailboat (especially when the quarter berth has been converted into a garage), but it can be done. Since our son-in-law has been a Marine for 15 years and has endured three tours of duty in Iraq, he can sleep anytime and anyplace.....and he chose to sleep in the cockpit. We felt bad about his decision at first, then realized he was the smartest one on the boat. Both grandchildren were sick, and all three nights on the boat were filled with everything but sleep. But the kids were troopers, and everyone still had a good time enjoying Twin Dolphin's pool, a goodbye potluck for some dock neighbors, and the surrounding areas (including the last farmer's market of the season on Saturday morning).
Saturday we headed for a condo in St. Pete to visit for a few days of the week they planned to stay. Thankfully, the kids were feeling better so they could take advantage of the gorgeous, wide white beach and great weather. We dug in the sand, played in the ocean, paddled in the pools, ate too much, watched some gorgeous sunsets, and thoroughly enjoyed the time with family. Lake bought a big canopy on the second day, which made spending all day on the beach much easier (complete with chairs, blanket, towels, coolers). Naps are good with the sound of the surf in the background. Beaches are good under almost any circumstances, but especially when seen through the eyes of a child. Plus, it gives us a great excuse to play (and pretend like we're doing it for them!).
We came back to Serendipity on Wednesday evening, in time to enjoy sushi night at Mattison's, the restaurant at Twin Dolphin. It was hard to say goodbye to them after a good week of visiting and playing, but they're excited about visiting Sesame Street at Busch Gardens on Thursday. We'll be taking vitamins and sleeping for a week or two....
Hey, I TOLD you there'd be grandbaby pictures!
