September 19; Day Nineteen

Today was the last sunrise walk on the beach. We walked up and down for two hours. We didn’t want to leave.

We finally went back to the condo, cleaned up and packed. We took the keys to the rental office, picked up some ice and snacks for the road trip back. Then we stopped one more time at the beach. The girls brought home a little bit of the sand. As we were headed back to the car, Liz turned back again and again, and went and dipped her feet in one more time. My heart was wrenching. Jessica and I both teared up.

The trip home was long. We ran into rain and road work. We ate Oreos as comfort food.

So ended an amazing vacation. The best one I have ever had. Maybe with this ending, it is possible the seed has been planted for a new adventure.

September 14; Day Fourteen

The plan was to rise early each morning and walk the beach to witness the sunrise. Being that I didn’t go to bed until 2 a.m. this morning, that didn’t happen today. I did wake up around 6:30 and open the blinds in my bedroom which face east. There was a hint of color and the clouds were silhouetted against the light. Sunrise was at 7:08. I dozed back off and woke up again at 7:20. Oh well, this vacation is about rest. I’ll be in bed as soon as I type this tonight, so I might make it to the ocean for sunrise tomorrow.

Since I already missed the sunrise, I went back to sleep. Got up 8:30ish and had coffee, read my devotional, checked facebook. I also did a tiny bit of work that I didn’t get to do on Friday. By then, the sun was past the balcony so I took a book and sat out there. Jessica showed up soon after that. We talked and painted our toenails. A little later, Liz showed up with a cup of coffee. We all chatted for a bit, then went inside to fix breakfast and had it on the balcony.

By 2pm, we packed up and drove over to the beach. We had no idea how close the beach was. We could have walked. When we arrived at the beach, we took our chairs and towels; set them down then went to walk up the beach. I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the sky, clouds, and sheer magnitude of the ocean. It affects me this way every time. Liz was ready to go into the water almost immediately, so in we went. I love being around water; not necessarily in the water, but around. After about 15-20 minutes, I left the girls and went to sit and read. 

I picked up my book and was about to read, but instead I spent the next several minutes looking out over the water, feeling the breeze through my hair, enjoying the sun on my skin. After a while, I read a little bit, then took a short nap. I woke up and read some more. Then went back in the water with the girls, then back out to read. Jessica and Liz stayed in the water the whole time we were out there which was about three hours.

We came back to the condo, showered, and ate dinner on the balcony. Then walked back over to the beach with the intention of a moonlight stroll. Except there was no moon. It was dark, but we could see a little. We also had flashlights to use when needed. There were so many stars. We just stood there looking up in amazement. We walked up and down the beach for about an hour; stopping and looking a shells, little crabs, and the remnants of sand castles that the tide had eroded. 

When we came back, we ended the evening with homemade chocolate chip cookies and a glass of chocolate almond milk.

It has been a really good day.

September 12; Day Twelve

We leave for St. Augustine, Florida tomorrow. I still can’t believe we are actually going to do this. Thinking about it today on the way home, I realized that this is my first vacation. “My” is the word to focus on. The first time that I will not be on any one else’s time table. The girls will be with me, but we groove together quite well. 

I’ve been praying and giving thanks all over the place. I found a nice gated resort condo with three bedrooms, two baths, and washer/dryer. All within walking distance of the beach.  I found a wonderful company that will take care of my pets. The girls and I met the lady who will be taking care of them and we like her very much. I’ve had the van readied for the trip by a trusted auto shop. Filled the gas tank this evening.

I’ll be packing in the morning before leaving in the afternoon. Jessica has been preparing extra food all week so we won’t have to do much cooking when we are there. Liz has taken care of cleaning the house. She is also writing all the information for the pet care taker. She and I measured out the animal food into freezer containers to make it simple.

Jessica and Liz purchased new beach towels and I borrowed some beach chairs. Oh, I will need to pick up some sunscreen tomorrow. I will take my camera and books. I plan on reading, sleeping, writing, thinking, sleeping some more. There is a pirate museum I want to visit; an old fort or two; and the old town trolley tour. Mostly, though, I want to sit and look out over the ocean. I want to be on the beach when the sun rises each morning. I want to stroll on the beach under the moonlight. I may even get to walk on the beach in the rain.

Tomorrow, hopefully, I will be writing this blog while sitting on the screened-in balcony on the third floor, hearing the waves of the ocean.

I can’t wait!