Vacationing

and blogging don't mix. To my few and faithful readers, I apologize for not updating more frequently.

We've had a lot of company..and been pretty busy

 

Building a sand castle..

A fishy story..

As I mentioned in a previous post, Sam and my niece Ingrid went to the fish market yesterday.

One of my favorite things about Sam is his ability to fracture a  cliche. When they came back, I'm not sure how the story was unfolding, but he was having a good time teasing Ingrid about their visit to the fish market.

 

 Sam enjoyed sending Ingrid in to negotiate their purchase of a large grouper who was our dinner last night.

He thought he was really clever when he fed her a line that made her believe it was her role to negotiate the deal.

He proudly announced that she fell for it, "Sink, line and hooker."

Charlie the Grouper

So Sam, Ingrid and Lacy made a trip to a fish market to find something for dinner. They came home with this--and a story of a very interesting local shopping experience...

 

 

We've named him Charlie. He's our dinner tonight. Someone will have to cut off his head eventually. The recipe says we should save the head and use it for fish stock. Uncharted territory, here we come...

Expectations

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about expectations--the unfulfilling, disappointing, unmet kind. For example, I'm not supposed to have to dress like this in Florida

 

But then I realize that I need to look at the big picture

And I realize that less than perfect weather is perfect when enjoyed with people you love. And who love you back.

Who have left this

 

for this

and this

and this

I didn't expect to have to spend two days getting treated for an eye inflammation 

But I enjoyed the treat for being a big girl at the doctor's office

We expected to enjoy this weekend with Lukas and Denise. But they will not be here--because of bad weather, no standby flights were available for them.

By now I thought Sam and I would have a nice tan and logged many hours of beach walking. Instead, we bundle up and walk when possible.

For me, it's about forgetting my expectations--and realizing that perhaps this month will not be remembered for its perfect weather, but rather for its perfect moments

 

  

And at the end of the day, a great piece of homemade lemon meringue pie and a beautiful sunset are really all that matter

Starfish Part 2

We made another trip to Starfish Company when Addie and August on Thursday night--this time we managed to get a few photos of our food.

This is Louise's grilled grouper dinner--all of the dinners are served in boxes delivered piping hot to your picnic table

Here is my favorite dinner--the shrimp and grits

  

Sam had the Cortez special with scallops and fried oysters--indescribably delicious

 

Another satisfied customer

 

And, yes, I know. Mom is sunburned. She and Louise stayed at the beach too long, didn't wear sunscreen or their hats. They had a bunch of excuses along the lines of "We didn't think we would get a sunburn" and my favorite, "It wasn't sunny when we went down there"

 At least at 91 years 10 months, she's not too worried about wrinkles anymore...

Sunset Symmetry

Wednesday was a beautiful day here on the island. We haven't done anything exciting. Mostly we read, eat, go for walks, putter around the house etc. On Wednesday night we were treated to our first real sunset..

We called Zac and Amber from the beach and I talked to Olivia as we waited for sunset. We didn't talk long because she wanted to go outside and play while Amber was shoveling the sidewalk. Zac said she got ready all by herself. She was sitting on this snowpile yelling "Giddyup horsie" when Zac snapped this photo.

We watched the sunset together.

When you wish upon a starfish

This is where you end up

 

Carefully seek out the maitre d' for the best table

Exchange pleasantries with the locals at the bar. Who ignore you. So you toss your hair and laugh heartily at your own joke..

 

"Excuse me sir, could we have a table for four, please, on the water?"

"How is this, sir? Oh, no, no. No tip necessary--but I would not turn down a discreet public display of affection."

Order from the extensive wine list: White, pink or red

Peruse the elaborate menu

Bask in the warmth of a propane-enhanced tropical evening 

And when food arrives, dig in like pigs at a trough and forget to take a picture of the best gulf shrimp and cheese grits you've ever eaten 

I'm sorry, 

But we'll be back there several more times and I promise to post photos of our food.