Hot Roddy's: Florida baby...

We may not be living the dream as far as our housing goes but as far as our weekends go I think we are pretty close! I had expressed to Jack shortly after arriving here in Florida that we should set a goal that for three weekends a month we focus on an activity, possibly rotating between a beach, a golf course, and a SeaWorld park. It was a way to have something to look forward to most weekends and a way to feel like we were really taking advantage of all that Florida had to offer... something I wish we had tried harder to do during our time in Ohio. For the most part we've stuck to the plan. Here are the beaches we've covered over the past few months:

Daytona Beach (Atlantic side): What we loved was they have parking right on the beach and the sand is so hard packed there is no worry of getting stuck. It was so nice not having to schlep all the junk from the car. It was a wide open beach, and never felt crowded even though there were quite a few people there. Waves were perfect for boogie boarding. We will need to return as we didn't even get down to the boardwalk and pier which we've heard is quite nice. Was surprised to see how gigantic the Speedway there is too. We told the kids we'll definitely have to take in a Nascar event here sometime!

Caspersen Beach/Venice Beach/Siesta Beach (Gulf Side): I targeted this area of beaches (specifically Caspersen Beach) because I had read they were popular places to hunt for shark teeth and shells which I thought the kids would enjoy. It seemed crazy that one area of beaches along a coast would be known for shark teeth but that's what they say! What we didn't know however was that it's usually best to bring a colander to search through the sand with when trying to find the teeth. There were people all over the beach combing through the sand with all sorts of various home made devices. Unfortunately it was a bit windy and the water was choppy and churned up so we were told it was a bit trickier to find them. So after little luck finding shark teeth, we decided to head to a couple other beaches.

Venice beach was a great big beach with lots of shells and we loved beach combing here. I overheard several people saying how churned up the water was here also and judging from the fact there were waves when there usually aren't I would imagine that was true. We still had a great time here.

Siesta Beach was our last stop on this day. I was curious to see what made 2017's "#1 Beach in the US" so special. It was definitely a nice wide beach with probably the finest sand I had walked on but being the water was also churned up and choppy here, I'm certain it didn't look as good as it would normally look. But Sage was ok with that because she was dying to get out and tackle the waves. She cracks me up. No fear and completely ok being the only one going out while Connor and Ty rested!

Caladesi Island State Park (Gulf Side) : This beach had been on my list and it's definitely one we'll return to. We spent the day here with our friends the Tervorts and that made it even more fun! It's actually not far from Tampa but by far the prettiest beach we've been to in Florida. You take a small ferry over to the island and then you do have a small walk to get to the beach but it was worth it! When I think of Florida Gulf side beaches, this is what I imagine. Fine white sand, turquoise waters, and little wind...

After Jack's sandwich got snapped out of his hand from one of these birds it became a game to hold chips up in the air and watch as the birds came in for the grab! Sometimes it was a little scary as you can see from how quickly Connor tried to escape...lol!

Who would have thought with the weather we had at the beach that within a half hour of heading home, we'd drive straight into this storm! That's Florida summer weather for you!

Jetty Park at Cape Canaveral (Atlantic side): This is where we spent the last Friday of summer before the kids started the new school year! The Morris' had invited us to join them and how fun it was. The kids all had a blast, so much that we had to plead with them to come in because not only had we been there all day and were supposed to be back in time for swim practice but also because it was clear we probably had a bunch of lobsters on our hands since although everyone had polished themselves with sunscreen earlier, heaven knows it wasn't going to have lasted all day.

Shortly after we got all set up on the beach this loomed in the distance...

While we waited for the storm to pass and the seas to calm this crazy gang went hunting for crabs...

But within thirty minutes all was well and the boogie boarding began...and seemed to never end...with the exception of a brief lunch break.

We won't mention how badly burnt everyone was by the end of the day as they will all tell you it was worth it and I have to admit, for this view I'd say it was all worth it too!

Toronita Ave Beach Park (Wilbur-by-the-Sea) (Atlantic side): Gotta love a ward party at the beach! The kids have some really great friends they've met here in our ward which warms my heart! It was actually a nice break to have an overcast day where we didn't have to worry as much about sunburns as it was a thick cloud coverage until the last hour we were there. This beach was great because even though it was a weekend it was totally dead, the waves were great and of course the beach big with parking right across! The only casualty? Jack's wrist which he managed to break on the skim board...I will refrain from saying "I told you so" because I know he always has the best of intentions when he decided to buy it a couple weeks ago but I always thought these boards were a recipe for disaster. Thankfully I don't think we'll have to worry about it making another beach appearance. Maybe we can make some cool outdoor shower for the house with it...