 |
| Brenna and Ben |
 |
| Brenna and Muffy |
 |
| BBQ Spare Ribs! |
We celebrated Lyn's and Brenna's birthday our first week in Florida, driving down to Clearwater Beach with Lyn, an hour drive south. She wanted to have lunch at one of her favourite spots, Frenchy's, a typical by the ocean fast food place that was packed. The beach was crowded as well and it was gloriously hot. We visited Dad the next day at his assisted living home and spent 7 hours chatting and reminiscing. Although he seemed as healthy as ever, and had gained weight since we were down last April, we noticed just how much his memory was failing. On Saturday our new water heater for the camper was supposed to have been delivered but as delivery had been delayed till Tuesday we decided to go camping for a few days. Don suggested Sarasota, a few hours south of here on the other side of Tampa. We stayed at the Sarasota Sunny South RV Resort, a mile or so from the famous Siesta Key, where the beach sand is supposed to be the best in the USA. It was like talcum powder, very white and soft to walk on, with hardly a trace of shells typical of many Florida beaches. A manatee was feeding from the seagrass just offshore when I went in the water and I had the great thrill to come up to her/him and feel his/her rough skin. The lifeguard blew her whistle to let us know we were not to touch the manatees but it stayed around for another hour, attracting even more curious bathers. We took the SCAT (Sarasota County Area Transit) bus back and forth our second day for 60 cents, spending that afternoon strolling Siesta Key beach and swimming in the 79 degree water. We had thought we might stay late to watch the sunset but decided we had better get back to make sure Ben was ok. It was 92 degrees and very hot.
 |
| Lyn brushing Ben |
 |
| Lyn and Marie, Clearwater Beach |
 |
| me, Frenchy's Rockaway Grill, Clearwater Beach, Florida |
 |
| Dad, Spring Hill, Florida |
 |
| Happy Birthday, Grandma |
 |
| Ben at the entrance to Lyn and Don's place |
 |
| Marie, Siesta Beach, Sarasota, Florida |
 |
| swimming with the manatees, Sarasota, Florida |
 |
| Sunny Days RV Resort, Sarasota, Florida |
On the way back to Brooksville we met up with Lyn and Don at John's home in Land O'Lakes. They had brought Dad with them but he remembered little and I really wondered if he knew where he was. We hadn't been there for years, since Dee and he had separated. John's mother, Irene, was there as well and she looked good, having changed little. The property though had changed quite a bit, the pine trees along Alpine Road having grown from small seedling to over thirty feet high since we had last seen them. After Lyn and Don had left with Dad we stayed another hour or so talking with John and came to realize how much he still loved and missed Dee. The next day Marie and I spent the day at Pine Island, near Bayport, one of our favourite sandy beaches close to Brooksville. I remember having taken Mom out there years ago and how much she enjoyed herself wading in the warm, shallow water. Hopefully our water heater will arrive tomorrow! It will soon be time to think about heading back north.gws
 |
| lunch by the Hillsborough River, Temple Terrace, Florida |
 |
| John & Lyn, Land O' Lakes, Florida |
 |
| Pine Island, Bayport, Florida |
