Magic in the Kingdom 2012! BIG 2/16/2014 FINAL UPDATE!

[kwitcherkicken99]

OK, that just made my day! Thanks so much for that.

I hope you guys are off to a great start on your trip!

It was a LONG week...

We were headed to BBB and I saw your FGM. I asked Lucy if she wanted to stop and she said no. I told her we were stopping anyway because I had a message to deliver.

When we got up to her, I said, "Janet and Katie say hello". I think I caught her off guard because as we walked away, she said, "Make sure to tell them it is THEIR FGM!" I told her I knew it was her, and that's why we stopped! She had the biggest grin on her face.

And congrats to Timmy! I can't believe Katie is your only one left!

 

[lvcourtneyy]

What beautiful shots of graduation! Congratulations- what an exciting time!

 

[Finally08]

I have been avoiding the dis like the plague because it just makes me sad, but I broke down tonight and your photos make me sadder...I am so homesick!!!

 

[Caretames1]

This reply is ALL Carey's! So glad to see you posting a little more. I know it's been a tough spring for you, and I sure hope you're ready for some doses of Disney again.

aww thanks! I've been incommunicado lately, which I hope to rectify soon, but YES, I'm ready for some Disney.

Good for you taking a "me" day. But since that was almost a month ago that you posted that, I bet you're due for another one!

I have a whole summer of ME now! And I'm enjoying it greatly!

OK, so did you go for Tusker House? We think it's just the best way to start a day at AK. It's so hard though when push comes to shove and you have to pare down that list at ADR time..........

Nope, it lost out to a 1900 PF dinner. Which now I wish I could have made into a BOG becsue we ARE going to MVMCP!!!!!

So aren't you glad I've added even MORE stair climbing to your next trip? Are you staying at AoA?

We went with POP. AoA seems to be excluded form discounts and I'm hoping for FD. I wish they'd hurry up and release the fall discounts already!

Katie had seen Up before, but didn't get what happened at the beginning either. I explained it to her when we watched it together. I'm sad we never did their M&G either. We stopped to see the Wreck It Ralph characters this year, even though we still haven't seen that one. One day maybe my DIS friends will shame me into that one too!

Wreck It Ralph is pretty decent. I've sat through it a few times already.

You have clearly been neglecting your daughter's Disney education. Now get on the ball before I report you! Opening night tickets are $10 and if you act quickly, you can get GREAT seats for that price. Of course, I always feel bad by depriving them of more ticket dollars, so donate some more cash buying a $15 snow cone!

Maybe next year when we are feeling the no trip withdrawals! Then I'll feel better about the $15 ice cream, and $20 popcorn in collectors bucket!

Still, I have heard MANY more stories since getting back that people were able to get more than one shot. In fact, later in our trip we got some individuals. But I would have liked them in the red gowns that way too.

Kadence will be in her Belle gown, so I think it should be a good picture. I'm hoping I can get the girls separate.

We're all very happy to have Timmy moving forward with his college choice. We have to go down in June for enrollment. It's been a long year. But it's coming to a close and while I'm ready for summer (so is Timmy!) it only moves us closer to August. I'm sorry, but you guys are going to get really tired of hearing me say that. I'm going to try hard not to cry at graduation, but I'm sure I will. It will be different than it was with Robbie because he wasn't gearing up to leave home.

Salutatorian! Congrats to Timmy!!! That's a lot of hard work and dedication. You pictures are awesome! How'd you do during the ceremony?

Have fun in Florida!!!

 

[mom2rtk]

Hey everyone!

I'm finally coming back up for air. We got back from Florida last Tuesday, had a day and a half to change gears, then headed to Rolla, MO to enroll Timmy for the fall. I'm travel weary, and happy to be home to chill out a bit before we start worrying about getting him ready to move down there.

We had a great trip, rain and all. It wasn't until a couple days into the trip that all that rain started making sense....... when we found out it was named Tropical Storm Andrea. I actually didn't mind that much, since it gave me a chance to be in Florida in June without sweltering. But the rest of my crew was a little disappointed with all that rain. Never fear though, there was a silver lining as Mother Nature churned up more shells than we have seen in a long time.

I think I'll incorporate a short report here on the summer trip before getting back on track with the December one. I've already done a fair number of photos, so I'll start posting some in a bit.

Thanks to everyone for hanging in there with me through such a busy spring!

Beautiful graduation shots! You must have been so proud of your salutatorian. That was a fast lens!

Looking forward to more of your TR -- and some new FL photos coming soon? Are you going to get a Disney day in June?

We arrive via Autotrain June 12.

Sharla

Thanks so much. It really was an awesome lens. Not something I'd want to lug around for any length of time though, so renting it was a perfect solution.

You must be in WDW right now. I hope you're having a great time. We were in Sanibel from 6/3 through the morning of 6/9. We drove to Orlando that day and spent the evening in the MK! Be sure to let us know how your trip went!

Congrats!!! Your pictures of the graduation are wonderful! Good job momma!!

I've been a little busy in "real life land" so I'm glad that you clearly waited for my life to slow down!

Thanks so much! It really was a proud day.

So was that enough "slowing down" for you? I hope you're ready to get going with me! And thanks for the heads up on your new PTR. How exciting to have a new trip to plan for!

It was a LONG week...

We were headed to BBB and I saw your FGM. I asked Lucy if she wanted to stop and she said no. I told her we were stopping anyway because I had a message to deliver.

When we got up to her, I said, "Janet and Katie say hello". I think I caught her off guard because as we walked away, she said, "Make sure to tell them it is THEIR FGM!" I told her I knew it was her, and that's why we stopped! She had the biggest grin on her face.

And congrats to Timmy! I can't believe Katie is your only one left!

Ahhh....... what a sweetie you are to send greetings to our FGM! I got an email from a mutual friend later telling me she had seen you guys. We actually planned our day in the MK so we could see her in the afternoon parade. Her meets were over for the day, but she saw us on the sidelines and threw pixiedust our way. And seriously....... who doesn't need a good dusting of pixiedust every now and then?

I can't wait to hear all about your trip!

What beautiful shots of graduation! Congratulations- what an exciting time!

Thanks so much. It really was an exciting spring here. I'm looking forward to life slowing down just a bit for the next month or so though.

I have been avoiding the dis like the plague because it just makes me sad, but I broke down tonight and your photos make me sadder...I am so homesick!!!

Awwww........ I hate that the photos are making you homesick! I sure hope you find a way to get back soon. Is there no stealth plan bouncing around the back of your head somewhere? How was the rest of your trip after we left you that Saturday night?

I have to say, Katie really loved running into you guys. I'm so glad they got to ride the carousel together.

 

[mom2rtk]

Well, where have you been? I've been waiting for you don't you know. All these people have been waiting on my trip report. I was ready to go but just refused to post anything else until Carey showed back up.

OK, OK..... just kidding. But I'm glad you came back at just the right time. I hope all is well with you.

aww thanks! I've been incommunicado lately, which I hope to rectify soon, but YES, I'm ready for some Disney.

YEAH! I hope to start seeing you posting more again. Mostly because that means you're ready to talk about your happy place.


I have a whole summer of ME now! And I'm enjoying it greatly!


Now I'm seriously jealous. But you deserve it.



Nope, it lost out to a 1900 PF dinner. Which now I wish I could have made into a BOG becsue we ARE going to MVMCP!!!!!

YEAH! You're going to love it! I'm going to DLR in December and am still disappointed I won't be at WDW for MVMCP!



We went with POP. AoA seems to be excluded form discounts and I'm hoping for FD. I wish they'd hurry up and release the fall discounts already!


Katie and I stayed back at the POP again for this quick summer trip. It felt like home to us. Fingers crossed that free dining comes through for you.


Wreck It Ralph is pretty decent. I've sat through it a few times already.

I still haven't seen it. Maybe this summer with things finally slowed down a bit??????



Maybe next year when we are feeling the no trip withdrawals! Then I'll feel better about the $15 ice cream, and $20 popcorn in collectors bucket!

Just start saving now. And maybe you can get both.


Kadence will be in her Belle gown, so I think it should be a good picture. I'm hoping I can get the girls separate.

Fingers crossed they are easier to get along with on this now. Can't wait to see Kadence in her beautiful Belle gown with the Beast!



Salutatorian! Congrats to Timmy!!! That's a lot of hard work and dedication. You pictures are awesome! How'd you do during the ceremony?

Thanks Carey. It was a pretty awesome way to end his high school experience.

I did fine during the ceremony because 1) I was so focused on getting the photos that I didn't let my mind wander to the emotional parts of it all and 2) Katie was mortified that I mentioned that I might cry. She kept turning my way and checking to make sure I wasn't tearing up. "You're not crying are you?" "Just checking" "Don't you do it". She had it all under control. Shocking, huh?

Have fun in Florida!!!

Thanks Carey. We did have a great time. Weather and all.

 

[mom2rtk]

TRIP REPORT WITHIN A TRIP REPORT:

Monday June 3rd:

Timmy's favorite travel destination is........ brace yourselves..........NOT Disney. Sigh. I know, I know. I've failed miserably as a parent. But the lad loves the beach. And he especially loves Sanibel Island in Florida. It killed me to think of going all that way, half way across the country, and be a few hours from the parks and not go. So we worked out what he wanted for his trip, then I worked out a plan for Katie and me to tack on a couple extra days at the end so we could all get a little of what we wanted.

We left Kansas City on Monday the 3rd around 11 AM. Fort Myers is the preferred destination to fly into for Sanibel. We usually fly Southwest, but they dropped Ft. Myers a few years ago. So we were on AirTran, their new partner in merger. What a mess that was. It caused me nothing but headaches throughout our flights. Our first leg was booked through AirTran but was actually a Southwest flight. On our way home, Katie and I were booked through Southwest but on an AirTran flight. And neither airline wants to solve the problems on the other. I sure hope that all settles down before we have to fly anywhere again.


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And finally....... we made it.


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[mom2rtk]

Tuesday June 4th:

We really don't have a highly structured schedule when we go to the beach. We stay right on the gulf, with easy access to the beach, so the plan is to hang out on the beach looking for shells and wildlife as much as possible. We don't bring chairs. We don't sit and read. We don't build many sand castles any more. Mostly we're there to comb the beach looking for shells and wildlife. I'm there to see what Mother Nature can offer me in the form of photographic opportunities.

My plan was the same as on prior trips........ to be on the beach for sunrise and sunset every day. So when I went to bed that first night, I set my alarm for 5:45. That should give me just enough time to wake up and head down to the beach. It had been a long travel day the day before, so I went to bed early. Little did I know I'd be back awake again a few hours later at 12:30 AM when the people in the condo unit above us arrived. They had 2 small kids and apparently they had been cooped up in their car a little too long that day. They proceeded to run back and forth in that unit over and over. Then they dragged chairs around on the tile floors. We heard it all. After giving it about a half hour, I went upstairs around 1 AM to remind them there were people in the unit below trying to sleep. Not that it helped. It continued for another hour. I turned my alarm off and gave up on that first sunrise opportunity.

The next morning it was overcast and threatening to rain. So we decided to try our favorite rainy day activity on Sanibel and headed for the Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge. It's a nice drive with opportunities to watch for wildlife from the car, or at various stops along the way. Through the years we have seen a variety of creatures there, including a fair number of alligator sightings. We always go into it hoping for another gator sighting. But alas, that was not going to be. We drove up to find a sign saying it was closed for the season so they could repave the road. They suggested a nearby walking trail, so we gave that a try. We didn't see much though.

There were signs warning of gators, but no gators to be seen:


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Part way through the walk, it started to rain, so we ducked under a shelter and Timmy went lizard hunting:


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We called it a morning and escaped the rain by stopping at our favorite burger joint Cheeburger Cheeburger. After lunch, we headed back to the room. We made a stop in the front office so I could ask if they could have a word with our upstairs neighbors. They assured us they would take care of it and move them if needed. A short time later the manager knocked on our door to tell us they had spoken with them and assured us it wouldn't happen again. I was still tired after my poor night of sleep, so decided to take a nap while the rest of the troops headed down to the beach. I had barely fallen asleep when it started again. It sounded like the kids were running a footrace right above my head. Back. And forth. And back. And forth. I know it was the afternoon and I couldn't expect quiet, but it gave me no faith it would be better that night. So off I went to the front office. They offered to move our room.

This is the view we had from our first room:


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..... which I was just fine with. But they moved us to the building on the right, so we were even closer to the Gulf. Here's the room we ended up in. It actually wasn't quite as nice as the first room, but was considered an upgrade because of the better Gulf view. All I really cared is that it was blissfully quiet and I was completely unaware of our upstairs neighbors in the new location.


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I somehow missed photographing the second bath, but there was indeed a second one, a lifesaver with 4 of us in the unit.

Even though we had a full kitchen, I don't cook on vacation. OK, let's face it, I try hard to never cook. but with 3 kids and a limited budget, I don't get out of it as often as I'd like. But we did make a run to the island grocery store and got a few provisions. We picked up a big box of fried chicken and sides in the deli and went back to the room for a quick bite to eat before heading back out to the beach again.

Our favorite spot on the island is the lighthouse. It's the western-most point of the island, the farthest point of the island out into the Gulf. So the shelling there is usually pretty good. And I love the photographic opportunities offered with the lighthouse and fishing pier there. It also gives me the chance to get Gulf access on the North, South and West.

I took these photos in 1999 at the lighthouse beach and have been in love with the spot ever since:


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Ever since that night in 1999, I've been chasing after another golden glorious sunset. Most nights we have fun shelling, but no golden sunset. It just sort of gets dark. But every once in a while...... a winner comes along. We didn't last long enough for sunset that night. But everyone had a great time beach combing.


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We made an early night of it after a quick stop at our favorite island ice cream shop:


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[KCmike]

Great update. Look forward to all the pics and events especially mean old Tropical Andrea.

I think I posted right when you started another update....

Awesome first entry and I have to say that my heart melted when you posted the shot of your little ones holding each other watching the sunset. How cute is that?

 

[francis6306]

How funny! I had some friends at Sanibel during that time!! I would love to go to the beach… but like you, I don't really want to cook while on vacation! That looks like a nice condo though! Sorry for the kids! I know how hard it can be to keep kids quiet and how annoying it is to have to hear that! I'm shocked that they let them make so much noise at night though!!!!

 

[Finally08]

So glad we got to see you too! Did I read correctly that you are doing DL this year instead??
I am always hoping and praying for a WDW trip come fall/winter but no plans of booking things now. My business is dying a slow painful death, so money has been tighter this past year than ever before. We made some drastic cut backs and I am afraid Disney is going to be another victim.

 

[mom2rtk]

Great update. Look forward to all the pics and events especially mean old Tropical Andrea.

I think I posted right when you started another update....

Awesome first entry and I have to say that my heart melted when you posted the shot of your little ones holding each other watching the sunset. How cute is that?

Thanks Mike.

Andrea wasn't as picturesque as I might have hoped. She sure had her silver lining in what she dredged up in the Gulf, and I got a great sunset later in the week, but the sunrises all pretty much stunk. Just gray. Wet. And windy.

And those shots of the boys are some of my favorites ever. I was still shooting film back then and that was out last night out on the beach. I still remember I was low on film but stopped for another box of 4 rolls. I shot almost all 4 of those rolls that night. It was just an amazing sunset.

How funny! I had some friends at Sanibel during that time!! I would love to go to the beach… but like you, I don't really want to cook while on vacation! That looks like a nice condo though! Sorry for the kids! I know how hard it can be to keep kids quiet and how annoying it is to have to hear that! I'm shocked that they let them make so much noise at night though!!!!

Isn't that funny! Last time we were there we were swimming at our resort pool and found people swimming with us who were close friends with Timmy's best friends down the street. I'm sure glad I wasn't bad-mouthing them!

That family came in a mini-van from Pennsylvania. I can only imagine what a long day they had cooped up in the car. The kids probably slept a good while in the car too. But to let them run like that in the middle of the night. After someone already knocked on the door to explain that it was a problem....... I just wasn't willing to give up a second night to it. The sunrises are what I look forward to most. I was quite happy once we moved. I never had to even be aware that we had neighbors.

How did your friends do with Andrea?

So glad we got to see you too! Did I read correctly that you are doing DL this year instead??
I am always hoping and praying for a WDW trip come fall/winter but no plans of booking things now. My business is dying a slow painful death, so money has been tighter this past year than ever before. We made some drastic cut backs and I am afraid Disney is going to be another victim.

Awww..... I'm so sorry the biz isn't going well. I'm sure everyone considers themselves a professional photographer these days. And this economy isn't helping.

I sure hope things turn around for you soon and that you can get back to the place you love. I'm glad you're back on here again in the meantime, until you figure out how to get a trip of your own going soon.

We are planning on DLR in December. I don't have anything concrete yet. But I'm pretty set on heading west. Park for park, DL really is my favorite. The castle is a little slow for my taste, but they have SO many more attractions.

 

[mom2rtk]

Wednesday June 5th:

On our last trip to Sanibel in 2009 we booked a fishing excursion out into Tarpon Bay. Everyone had a ball with it so that was a priority again for this trip. Today was the day we had that scheduled. I was up at 5:45 to check out the sunrise. Like the day before, it was really just gray and windy, but the water was rather choppy. It wasn't actively raining, so we had to make a judgment call. Knowing that it was supposed to rain for several days, we decided to go with it and take our chances.

We actually had pretty decent luck with the weather. Radar showed more rain coming, but it looked like it wouldn't be for at least a couple hours. So we ended up with a cool overcast morning for fishing. Timmy caught the first fish. From there on out, it was a constant competition. I mostly just preferred to take photos, but did try fishing just long enough to reel in one of my own.


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Over the course of the time we were out, our guide also tried to get us a view of some of the wildlife in the area. Last time we had gotten a good look at some manatee. He tried this time, but no go. We did have a couple of dolphins hanging around the boat. It was a mother and baby but I could only manage one shot of what I think was the mom. I think they hung out to get the fish we kept throwing back in.


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It sprinkled on and off all morning but didn't really get going again with the rain until we were on our way back to the dock. We got lucky and were able to have our fishing outing without too much trouble from Mother Nature. Thankfully I had a rain cover for my camera along so was able to keep shooting.

Later that day we headed out for the Captiva end of the island to a landmark restaurant for dinner. It's sort of a whimsical eclectic place full of various memorabilia.

This isn't the restaurant, but is right across the street. I was completely in love with these trees. Anyone know what kind it is?


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I don't have a single photo after dinner, so I think it must have rained all evening.

Another rainy day in the books. But I was glad we at least got the fishing trip in.

This restaurant his its own separate gift shop:


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[francis6306]

They had a good time. I think the weather messed up the last part of their trip, but overall they had a good time. They stayed at the Island Inn? She got a bunch of seashells and posted a lot of beautiful pictures from the beach!

 

[francis6306]

Oh and they went fishing at Tarpon Bay as well! But they were in canoes…

 

[jenseib]

Janet, it looks like you got the biggest fish. Did that make the men a little mad?

I'm loving the pictures. Heck it makes me want to just fly to Florida for a couple of days and actually not do any parks and just hang out. I think I went crazy there for a few minutes.....

Those trees are pretty. I love flowery trees.

 

[mom2rtk]

They had a good time. I think the weather messed up the last part of their trip, but overall they had a good time. They stayed at the Island Inn? She got a bunch of seashells and posted a lot of beautiful pictures from the beach!

I'm not sure where the Island Inn is, but I doubt there are any bad places to stay on the island. We have stayed at a variety of places all over the island through the years.

Hunting for shells is the real reason we visit. We brought home quite a few again this trip. The might be a few chairs in the house without bags of shells stuffed underneath, so I'll need to find those spots for the ones we brought back this time.

Oh and they went fishing at Tarpon Bay as well! But they were in canoes…

I'd be afraid of fishing from a canoe. We went kayaking the next day and was afraid we'd topple over the entire time!

Janet, it looks like you got the biggest fish. Did that make the men a little mad?

I'm loving the pictures. Heck it makes me want to just fly to Florida for a couple of days and actually not do any parks and just hang out. I think I went crazy there for a few minutes.....

Those trees are pretty. I love flowery trees.

They weren't keeping track of who got the biggest fish. Just who got the most. And Katie won! She started slow then came through in the end. I think I only caught the one. I really just wanted my camera in my hands.

I worry every time we go down that I won't find enough to do that I like. You know..... since I'm used to the fast pace of Disney. But every time I have lots of fun and really do find a way to enjoy myself.

 

[tinkerbellandeeyor]

I love the mini trip report

 

[mom2rtk]

I love the mini trip report

Thanks! I'm going to try and plow through the mini-report so I can get back to the regularly scheduled December trip report!

 

[mom2rtk]

Thursday, June 6th:

Another day, another 5:45 AM wake-up call. And more hope for that longed for beautiful sunrise. So what did I find as the sun rose? It wasn't raining, but it was still very gray and stormy looking. Just look at those clouds!


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Still, I turned around and from the other direction, I could see some sun and remained hopeful:


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Still not the gorgeous sunrise I had hoped for. But it wasn't actively raining so maybe we could get something done that day. The day before we had talked about taking a kayak tour of the mangroves around Tarpon Bay. We didn't know if the weather would be better in time to do all of what we wanted to later in the week, so we decided to go with it. We hurried out the door and headed back to Tarpon Bay Explorers to see what we could do.

They told us they were watching the radar and thought the next round of rain would hold off for a couple hours. So we decided to give it a go. Our guide gave us some information then asked who had seen the big group of manatee right off the shore. Huh? I had no idea. And we had spent some time the day before looking and come up empty. So that sounded really interesting.

I decided to take a calculated risk and bring my good camera along on the kayak tour. I had a rain sleeve so was good for water coming from up above. But if we toppled over, it would likely be a complete loss. I probably would not have tried that with a brand new camera, but mine is several years old, probably on borrowed time compared with other cameras I have had. So I gave it a try. Since Timmy and I shared a kayak, you won't see any pictures of us.

They reviewed safety procedures. Someone asked what to do if we tipped over. The guide suggested standing up and getting back in the boat. It seems that Tarpon Bay is mostly around 4 feet deep. That wouldn't save my camera, but it did put my mind at ease with Katie out there paddling away.



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We paddled out just a bit and pretty soon one of the manatee broke the surface right near out group. The woman in the kayak right next to it was caught offguard and yelled "HOLY S***" and we all cracked up. She apologized and we all settled down. Various manatee broke the surface all around us. We were really just floating right on top of them. They were all over the place. I just wish the sun had been out so we could see better into the water. It really was quite cool, and one of my favorite experiences of the trip.


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Eventually we had to leave the manatee and head for the mangroves. It really wasn't as hard to paddle as I thought it would be. So off we went.


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The tour was mildly interesting. Honestly though, the best part was the manatees at the beginning. I thought we'd see more wildlife, but really we didn't. We did get an interesting talk from our guide on the mangroves. And we saw some cool little crabs. And a couple of birds. But that's about it. Near the end of the trail, our guide got a call from shore. He was supposed to turn us loose at that point to explore on our own, but it seems like a big "red and yellow blob" was heading our way on the radar so they were asking for everyone to come back on in. No problem. I was ready anyway. Now hard could it be? Well, it turns out that the trip out had been WITH the current. The trip back would be AGAINST the current. Oh..... and it started to rain.


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Then it started to rain harder.


IMG_0479 by mom2rtk, on Flickr

It really was a long trek back. Our guide offered to tow anyone back in for the price of a beer, but nobody in our group wanted any part of that deal. Well, I think Katie would have been all over it, but Drew wouldn't.

We were all pretty worn out and soaked when we got back to shore. But I'm still glad we did it. And to be honest, I'd much rather do it in rain than blazing hot Florida sunshine.


IMG_0481 by mom2rtk, on Flickr