Where I've Been - Florida

For two weeks in February, Dan and I were beachside in Florida. We had gorgeous weather the entire time! Lots of sunshine, perfect temperatures, and not a drop of rain.

Our one-bedroom condo was on the second floor of this quadriplex called "The Nest."

Since our son, daugher-in-law, and 10 month-old grandson live in Tampa, about 45 minutes from here, they came out to the beach to visit us on weekends. It was the first time Austin saw sand and waves... and experienced bright sunshine!

Austin and "Bapa"

He was a little uncertain about the feeling of sand underfoot. He kept lifting his feet off the ground!

Austin and "Nana"

On their second visit, Austin wore his UNI (University of Northern Iowa) t-shirt that was given to him by our Cedar Falls, Iowa, friends. Go Panthers!

And the second time we took him to the beach, he felt the ocean water, and didn't like it very much - probably a bit cold.

Austin in my arms. Doesn't he make me look tan!?

We did quite a bit of walking... that's much nicer than walking in snow. It's probably no surprise that I really appreciate the palm trees. I thought this one was especially nice-looking. The white ibis in the foliage beneath the tree was scarfing up geckos for a mid-morning snack!

Several evenings found us walking across Gulf Boulevard for dinner. Motor traffic can get pretty heavy on the weekends and during spring break, presenting a challenging for pedestrians waiting at the cross-walks. This was something I'd never seen before, but what a great idea! We "waved ourselves" across more than one cross-walk.

Almost every evening, this was our balcony view across the Gulf of Mexico. 

Some quilters have a pretty rough life.