Because Tropical Storm Andrea has forced us to stay indoors and because I’ve already eaten too much Blueberry Morning cereal and drank a bunch of coffee and killed off some Oreos and read for a bit and stared out the window at the rain, there’s really nothing else to do but play (another) game of UNO, or check in with you! Greetings from Sanibel Island where despite the fact that it has rained every single day since we’ve arrived, we’re still making the most of it. (I am Very Good at UNO.)
I recently read David Sedaris’s latest book, and I had to laugh when he mentioned that people tend to get bored with stories of other people’s travel woes. Long Story Shortened: Our flight from St. Louis to Florida last Friday was delayed a total of sixteen times before it was finally canceled. Sometime between the fourteenth and sixteenth delay, the terminal was evacuated and we were forced to hole up in a family restroom with a few strangers to wait out a tornado that supposedly hit the airport at some point during the evening. While in the bathroom, Harper chugged a Sprite, and Meredith frantically journaled the adventure.
Because all direct flights on Saturday were booked, we decided to fly into Ft. Lauderdale and then drive to Sanibel. We arrived at the condo at 11:00 on Saturday night, and here we are.
We’ve had a pretty amazing week with sea turtle lectures and incredible veggie sandwiches and we’re currently under a tornado warning and the sea turtle nest next to our condo has been destroyed by the tide and I know I’m sort of all over the place with the happy and the sad, so let me just continue with that. (I just ate a bowl of Doritos! Let the party begin!) On Tuesday afternoon, we took a dolphin and wildlife cruise, and despite the captain’s announcement that “We’re off to hunt dolphins!” we had an amazing time.
(I’ve never been around dolphins before. It was squealworthy. We could learn a lot from dolphins, because despite the fact that they might be really pissed off, they always seem happy!)
One more thing before I try to convince the girls that we’re not going to be sucked up into a tornado: Fuzzbee Yarns is holding a contest on Ravelry, and the winner will score a braid of fiber. To enter, you submit a photo of something that shows colors you would like to see in a braid of fiber. I submitted the Puppy Yin-Yang photo, and I won the first round of votes. BUT, now there is a poll. And I’m LOSING! In order to win a braid of fiber dyed to look like our foster pups, I need to win that poll. (I’m feeling very long-winded and semi-whiny today. I apologize.) If you have a Ravelry account, please consider following this link and voting for whichever photo you want, but please know that I’m offering up virtual hugs and high-fives if you vote for Yin Yang Puppies. Because I would really like to spin up the fiber and knit a hat to remind our family of our first fostering adventure. (We keep our winter hats in one big shared basket. First come, first served.)
Enjoy your Thursday, and thank you for your patience. You’re just like a dolphin, you know. ‘ ‘ ‘text/javascript’>
Dolphins! I have petted them at Sea World! They feel rubbery, like an innertube that is alive and awesome. I expected them to be covered in some sort of special invisible sea fur? Because they’re mammals? But no!
Hope Andrea leaves beautiful weather in her wake for you. Sanibel! Now I need cake from the Bubble Room.
I voted. Now you are winning!
I’m so glad I could put my Ravelry account to good use!
Way to make lemonade! We had hurricane Allison on our honeymoon to St. Petersburg and it rained everyday. We managed to keep ourselves “occupied”.
Virtual high five! I went to Sanibel for my honeymoon 23.5 years ago. It was lovely.
Um, you’re not supposed to take the tornadoes with you. Didn’t anyone tell you that? And Doritos? Nom nom nom!
I remember a childhood vacation hunkered down in a lakeside condo while it poured outside for a week. And it was still fun to me!
I totally AM like a dolphin.
But thanks for reminding me.
That is some vacation saga – kudos to you for remaining upbeat. Now I’m off to vote at Ravelry.
I miss the dolphins! I used to see them hunting in the tidal creeks when I lived in Charleston. It never got old.
Oooh, dolphins!
Just so you know, we once took a vacation like that. It was to Wyoming. Caught in a sudden violent thunderstorm while sleeping in a campground with no tent. Spent the next night in the car in a parking lot because all the lodging shuts down on Labor Day. Snowed in at Yellowstone (in early September). Hole in our gas tank from a rock. On and on. Every day a different “disaster”.
Thirty four years later, that is the one vacation we talk about (and laugh about) most.
So it’s good to see that the Pudding Family is building wonderful memories that an ordinary vacation never provides. “Remember that time we went to Sanibel Island? How many times was our flight delayed, Mom? And after we holed up in the bathroom(!) with a bunch of other people to avoid the tornado, we finally flew to Ft. Lauderdale instead and drove the rest of the way. How many games of Uno did we play that trip? Hey, we got to see those dolphins…”
These are the things your grandchildren will want to hear when everyone’s gathered for family holidays. Continue to enjoy your trip!