February beach weather?!

 Soft white sand. Warm weather. New sunglasses and a long stick. What could be better for the boy who is turning 2 in a two weeks? He LOVES the beach as much as I do. As a matter of fact, when he sees a plane or birds flying, he says they are going to the beach. He'd ride his little tricycle there if we let him.

It has been so nice out, we went to the beach this weekend. The water is still cold. I like it better in summer when the water is about 80 - 85 degrees. Tyler does too. He kept saying "Told water!"

We had beautiful blue skies and mid-70s temps.

This is us. Papa took the picture. This is what I love about Pensacola. The sand is so perfect. The water so green and clear.

We were having so much fun on the beach park equipment and on the beach itself that we missed the Mardi Gras Kiddies and Kritters Parade we had gone to see!

Lunch at Flounders Chowder House was the perfect finish to our morning. Come on down to the Gulf Coast if you want a nice place to vacation. You won't need a passport to get here! You can eat great seafood, shop and even play miniature golf right at the main beach!

http://www.made-by-rae.com/  Today wraps up the Celebrate the Boy 2011 on Rae's blog. (Sorry Rae, I can't manage to borrow the button here) So many cute ideas again this year. It got me in the mood to sew clothing again.
  I have started making Tyler's new summer wear. Pajama pants and appliqued tshirts are really nice to lounge in after visits to the pool or beach and I can't resist all the adorable kiddie fabrics. Here is the first of this year's crop for him to relax in.

Until next time, happy sewing, and I hope you are having fun, whatever your weather is like.

A picture is worth a thousand words

Pensacola Beach is beautiful again! We went for several hours Saturday and today. Tyler and his mama came with us for a little while today and did he have a blast looking at the thousands of little minnows, finding sea shells and sand crabs, and trying to get the birds to come to him. He ran in and out of the waves laughing and smiling the whole time. And as usual, I forgot to bring the camera. I took this pic with my phone on Saturday.

What a gorgeous, perfect weekend it has been! This is why we say we have the most gorgeous beaches. You have to experience the sugar white, soft sands and the clear sea glass green waters for yourself to know what I am talking about. We have been celebrating my birthday with family, and being back on our beautiful beach for a whole weekend was totally what I needed! This is what I love most about Pensacola!

We saw lots of fish, a ray, a sea turtle, 2 jellyfish (instead of swarms of them), pelicans and sandpipers, and just miles of crystal clear, calm, warm water. Most of the time it was like a great big swimming pool. No waves. No sound. Thankfully no one anywhere around with a boom box. So peaceful! Just a 30 minute drive from the house and we felt like we were in the Caribbean.

Yes, I am fried. All I can say about that is "SPF 60" my ass. Hawaiian Tropic is going to be making it up to me with their aloe containing lidocaine formula for the next few days! Also, I don't know why there are still mobs of tractors and 4 wheel drive carts and clean up crews going back and forth all day. There is nothing for them to do!

We ate a late lunch at Peg Leg Pete's Sunday with my dad, and that wrapped up a great weekend.

PS I had a wonderful dinner Saturday night at 7:30 with Bryan, my dad and his girlfriend, Sandy. Too late for Tyler and his mama to join us. We ate at Hemingways, then listened to music at Crabs. This has been the best birthday weekend in memory!

I hope you enjoyed your weekend!

Signs of Spring Coming

It is almost the end of February already, can you believe it? It has been a cold winter here. The centipede grass is like dry brush. It crackles when you walk on it and makes me think of walking through deep woods with a layer of fallen leaves. Crunch, crunch, crunch.

The Sego palms are no longer green. They did not like the frost/snow/often below freezing temps this Winter any more than I did.

But, there are signs of Spring ahead! The Baby's Breath bushes have little tiny leaf buds and so does the blueberry bush. My neighbors Japanese Tulip Tree (or Teacup Magnolia) is turning pink and by next week, it should look like this...

and this...no fragrance. Just beautiful pink buds covering the tree. No leaves yet. And when the flowers drop it will leaf out and provide nice shade for the hot Summer. I need my little baby one to take off so I have the pink in my front yard too.

There are just bunches of birds now. We've had the cardinals back for more than a month. Little finches and wrens and stellar jays, have been fighting over the feeder. I must have missed the mass landing of robins that come every year. It is usually just one day and there they are, hundreds in the yard, then they are gone! The biggest, fattest robins I ever saw!

So, everything might look freezer burned and brown and sorry now, but soon it will green up. Then we are back to sweltering again til November. Fun!

At least we have the beautiful beaches and rivers to cool off at! Ahhh! White sand, emerald water, and a tan! That's the ticket!