Siesta Key Beach - Days Five and Six

Forgot to mention in our last post that on day four (Tuesday) while we were out in the water, boys floating in their rafts, that we noticed these two huge dark shadows coming towards us. Mommy didn't have her contacts/glasses so she couldn't tell what they were at first. But Daddy could. They were manatees! The boys were fascinated and the manatees cooperated by going by very slowly and often lifted their heads up out of the water.

On the morning of day five we awoke early to the sound of hard rain coming down outside. It was nasty. So we abandoned the idea of heading to the beach and decided to head to the movie theater. We drove down to Sarasota Square Mall to catch “Despicable Me” that Parker has been begging to go see. However when we arrived we were told that there were two summer camp groups there to see that movie and that the only remaining seats were in the front row. Not a great prospect. So we booked it uptown to catch the movie there. Parker loved it – it was a pretty cute movie! - Wesley as usual fell asleep. After the movie the weather was still cloudy and windy, although the rain was just a little drizzle. We headed out to St. Armand's Circle to drive around and ended up stopping for lunch. We took the boys to the Columbia Restaurant – they have a great open/outdoor setup there and we had a good time. Following our lunch we headed back to the apartment. Did we mention that we caught the drawbridge up on our way off and way back to the Key? Fortunately we were able to find about an hour of good weather to enjoy some time in the pool which made for happy munchkins. After dinner in, we headed out to Friendly's for some ice cream. Let's just say that the ice cream was wonderful as always, but the service left something to be desired. We didn't have to complain however, because the people at the two tables around us did enough of that, and in some very colorful language too! Parker had the Build Your Own Vol-Cone-O Sundae with rainbow sprinkles, gummy bears and M&Ms with vanilla ice cream. Wesley had the regular Build Your Own Sundae with the same toppings as Bubba but chocolate ice cream. Even with all the late night sugar, we had some pretty tuckered out boys at the end of the day.

Today we woke up blissfully late again (after 10am!) and after breakfast we wandered down to the beach. The weather today was wonderful – not blistering hot and a light breeze. Plus the beach is starting to empty out of people. The waves were a little rough, but Daddy and Parker had a lot of fun out there floating around and jumping in them. Wesley is finally beginning to get really adjusted to the water and is having lots of fun playing on the shoreline. Parker is now brave enough to run out in the water up to his waist without having Mommy or Daddy beside him. The boys also spent a lot of time collecting seashells today – they are working hard to find a nice shell to take home to Miss Eunice, who promised them that she would put it in her Sand Bar on her back porch.

After a great trip to the pool, lunch and naps, we headed out later to the Village tonight per Parker's request to eat dinner at the Dacquiri Deck. When Parker was younger than Wesley is now, we ate there with Grandmommy and Granddaddy, and he loves to hear the story of how he tasted his very first lemon wedge there. He was a happy camper: cheese pizza, Sierra Mist, eating outside on the deck, watching pre-season football on the big TV!