Ken and I were up by 6 and after having breakfast and packing food and clothing for our day with Dave and Sharon, we were on our way to Goodland, near Marco Island, by 7:30. It is a little over 100 miles and traffic on I-75 near Bonita Springs was very heavy, so after one stop we arrived at their home in Goodland by 9:45. This is a trip we look forward to every year and this year proved to be another great one!
Their home is right on the water and so open and inviting!
 |
Dave and Sharon's Florida Home!
|
 |
| The back of their house. What a setting! |
 |
| Their tiki hut..... |
 |
| ....overlooking the canal! |
 |
| Some of the alphabet shells she has found! |
 |
These bookcases are home to so many treasures she has found
on the islands near their home! |
 |
This lot is 2 doors from them and you can build your dream home
there - lot cost is $375,000. |
After chatting and catching up on what is happening in our lives, we changed clothes and along with their dog, Daisy, we got on their boat and took a ride to one of the many islands to do some shelling. On the way there, 3 dolphins decided to "frolic" in the boat's wake and they gave us quite a show. They got so close to the boat I was afraid they would get cut by the motor. After about 5 minutes they were tired and decided to leave us, but Ken was able to get some amazing photos!
 |
| Daisy gets her life jacket and is ready for her boat ride! |
 |
| The dolphin how begins .....enjoy, for we certainly did! |
 |
| He/she performed upside down! |
 |
| You can only imagine how excited Ken, the photographer,was! |
 |
| There were actually 3 of them that performed! |
We docked at one of the islands and the shell hunting began. Dave spent the time relaxing on a beach chair because he has lots of knee pain and has trouble walking. He is having knee replacement surgery next Friday and we are praying for successful surgery and a speedy recovery! We didn't find any great "shell treasures" but Ken did find a large piece of a turtle shell (Sharon had found 2 pieces several days ago) and Sharon discovered the pelvic bones of the turtle today! The weathermen had predicted some rain in Goodland around 11 and again at 6, but boy were they wrong. It was a positively gorgeous day with lots of sunshine and temperatures in the 80's.
 |
| Heading to the island! |
 |
These dome homes were on an island that you could walk on
when we were here about 7 years ago! |
 |
Now they are the home for the birds including the
pelicans! |
 |
| There used to be 1 or 2 more! |
 |
| Just put in the anchor! |
 |
| Obviously, it is not a very busy area!!! |
 |
| Let the shelling begin! |
 |
Lots of shells, but not any that were
very unusual! |
 |
| The resident lizard! |
 |
| My back needed a rest, so I visited with Dave! |
 |
| So beautiful and peaceful! |
We were back to their home around 1:45, changed and then went to a restaurant only about 1/2 mile from their house that recently reopened under new management. We were able to eat on their deck and the food was delicious and very reasonable. We drove by the Goodland post office when we left the restaurant and it certainly is a quaint one complete with the old metal boxes and paintings on the wall of the area done by local artists!
 |
| Good food, good company and good food! What a combinations! |
 |
| The Goodland Post Office |
 |
| Hand painted window design that is changed on a regular basis! |
 |
| Love the old metal boxes - note the sea shells above! |
After leaving there we drove into Marco Island to see the turtles and the burrowing owls and passed so many beautiful, huge homes along the way.
 |
| He wanted to enlarge the entrance, so the sand was flying! |
 |
| Love these burrowing owls. |
 |
| They are fairly camouflaged! |
 |
| Just a small new home being built on Marco Island! |
In Goodland we also saw this papaya tree -
 |
| A rather unique palm! |
Back to their house to enjoy the small key lime pie we had bought at Publix's grocery store, for they are known for making one of the best key lime pie's in the area. We chatted for a bit and by 7:15 Ken and I thanked them for a positively wonderful day and headed back to Wilbur, arriving around 9. The drive to their home in PA is about the same distance that we travel to see them here in Florida, so we are hoping to get together some time this summer for a camping adventure.
 |
| What a beautiful sunset! |
 |
| Time to head back to El Joebean! |
After unpacking, Ken and I were in bed by 9:30 to do some reading. We were both very tired and ready for dreamland!
No comments:
Post a Comment