A Limo Night

Exactly one week ago today I was blogging about our anniversary celebration with the kids at the Chapel Grill. Unbeknownst to me, Darin had a little surprise up his sleeve for our actual anniversary on the 20th.

After my last class at school on Tuesday I got a text from Darin saying "on my way" then a few minutes later another text saying "almost there." Meanwhile, I am thinking "what the heck is he talking about?". One of my colleagues walked into my classroom and said "there is a limo in the bus loop, is it for you? You are the only person I know celebrating something special today".

Yep, she blew the surprise! It was Darin and he was there to whisk me away for magical evening.



Darin thought of every detail. He had sushi from our favorite Sushi Bar and a special wine waiting for me in the limo. He took me to the mall to shop and dropped me off at a nail salon for a pedicure before dinner. We had an amazing seafood dinner at Roy's.



We even had time for sunset at the pier before our limo turned back into a pumpkin.





And if you are wondering about the kids, they were not forgotten. They were even in on the surprise, those turkeys! They each had time to go for a quick spin in the limo. The fact that Darin arranged the kids' after school activities without my knowledge took this surprise to the next level. After 25 years, he is still a romantic at heart. The next morning it was hard to go back to reality. I could totally get used to riding in a limo with a driver at my beckon call. It will remain as the best memory from our 25th.





Sorry for the poor quality of pictures in this post. Since this came as a total surprise I didn't have the dslr camera charged and ready to go.

Goin' to the chapel ...

... and we're gonna get married. Gee, I really love you and we're gonna get married. Goin' to the chapel of love.



To celebrate our 25th Wedding Anniversary we went to the chapel last night ... The Chapel Grill to be exact. The Chapel Grill is the former First Baptist Church, a 65-year old Naples landmark that has been restored and renovated to its original glory to offer guests a restaurant featuring fresh local seafood and specialty steaks. It has been on my dining bucket list since it opened in 2012. I decided to surprise Darin with a special evening there to honor our silver anniversary.



Darin was a little shocked when I mentioned that the kids were going with us. Typically we dine alone on our anniversaries. However, I decided that the kids should join us since we were celebrating such a big milestone. I brought along our old wedding photo albums to share with the kids. It was great to have a picture for each memory we were discussing. The kids enjoyed trying to place a name next to each relative in the photos.





I pre-ordered a small wedding cake from a bakery to match the cake from our reception. It was a basket-weave white cake with raspberry filling. I even remembered to bring the cake topper from our reception. Darin thought the cake tasted exactly the same as our wedding cake.



Mason ordered Kobe beef for the first time and thought it was the best meal of his life. Mackenzie ordered a specialty grilled cheese that ended up having cheeses that were a little too high end for her tastes. The kids were super impressed by the fact that the chef brought us complimentary appetizers and wished us a happy anniversary. Of course the kids weren't up to eating tuna tar-tare.



Our actual anniversary is August 20th which happens to fall on a Tuesday this year. With work and after-school activities such as band and football practices we will be lucky to grab a quick drink at a happy hour. But, until then ...



... Bells will ring
The sun will shine
(whoa-whoa-whoa)
I'll be his and
He'll be mine
We'll love until
The end of time
And we'll never be lonely anymore
Because we're

Goin' to the chapel and we're
Gonna get married
By the Dixie Cups (1964)

Let the waves hit your feet...

... and the sand be your seat. I think one of the most enjoyable activities for the Morgans was seeing the sunset each night at the beach, especially at the pier.



The Morgan kids are the perfect ages for our two kids. Kate and Mackenzie (the teenagers) hang together while Ashlan and Mason (the kids) enjoy similar activities. It is so sweet to see how protective and concerned Mason is for Ashlan's well being. I think he enjoys not being the youngest for once.





We were blessed with some amazing sunsets each night of their stay.





We "shore" did have a great time with the Morgans and look forward to their next visit.

Exploring the Everglades

Since we didn't make it to Dallas this summer, Darin's brother and his family decided to visit us in Naples for four nights. High on their bucket list was an airboat ride in the Everglades.



We picked the prefect day. It was totally clear and the water level was above average allowing the airboat to get up to high speeds. At one point we actually did a 360 degree turn.



We chose to visit an airboat company that operates in the middle of the Big Cypress National Preserve. Along with the airboat tour the company also has an animal sanctuary where you can hold small alligators.

A few of us stepped right up to plate without hesitation when it came to holding the alligators.





Others well, not so much. But in the end everyone eventually came around.













Don't you just love the smile on this alligator!

Next post: Let the sand be your seat ...

Shucking Scallops

I had completed a lot of research prior to booking our scalloping charter. The one thing I had neglected was what I was actually going to do with the scallops once we had harvested them. Luckily, our boat captain had it under control. He was able to call a local who agreed to meet us at the dock once we arrived back at the marina. This local resident (Maria) brought all of her proper equipment and immediately began the process of cleaning the scallops. Since we were newbies she agreed to give us a lesson.



Turn the shell so that the darker side of the shelled scallop is facing upwards. Take a sharpened spoon and insert it between the top and bottom halves of the shell. Pry the shell open. Throw the top half of the shell away once you have cut away the attachment.



Clean the inside of the scallop shell off everything but the muscle.



After 45 minutes we had over 3 1/2 pounds of scallop meat rinsed and bagged on ice for our return trip home. I had requested to keep all the shells. Maria was kind enough to bag them up separately and even explained the easiest way to clean and polish them once I got home. Sadly, when arrived home later that night I discovered that the bags of shells had accidentally been left on the dock. I was so broken hearted.

Luckily we had some very special visitors arriving a few days later. I knew their presence would cheer me up.

Next post: The Morgans have arrived

Scalloping

We have been talking about it for two years and finally decided to do it, we went scalloping! I was first introduced to the idea scalloping by my Uncle Jim from Stuart. He thought it would make a great family activity for us. Let me tell you, it did not disappoint.

Since we were staying at the Plantation Inn, I decided to book a private charter through their Adventure Center. It was just the four of us along with our captain, Marrio. We left at 8:00 am and rode for 45 minutes through the Salt River until reaching a spot in the Gulf.



Even though we were in the Gulf of Mexico the water was very shallow because scallops live in only 3 to 8 feet of calm water.



Unlike diving for lobster you only need a mask and fin to snorkel for scallops. It is like an underwater Easter egg hunt.



It is important to have a catch bag with you at all times.



Most of the time scallops will close shut when they sense danger which makes it easy for you to pick them up. Other times, they will try to swim away from you which is kind of comical.



Do you want to see one in action? We found the following video online.



We found that the fish were quite curious and often followed our catch bags.



Besides fish we saw dolphins, manatees, sea turtles, stingrays, small sharks, and even starfish.



We were on and off the boat for about 5 hours and caught our limit.



Look, we even made the Facebook page of the Adventure Center.



I wish I could vividly describe the way they felt swimming in our catch bags or even the chatty noise they made while on the boat. Would we do it again? Absolutely! It's probably a good thing that scallop season is very short (July thru September) otherwise we would probably be back a couple of times a year.



Aw shucks, now I gotta clean them? We'll leave that for the next post.

Adventure Kayaking Tour

Our summer is quickly coming to an end but we found time to squeeze in one last mini road trip. We headed back to Weeki Wachee for the Adventure Kayaking Tour.



The Kayak Shack dropped us off at the top of the spring and we kayaked for 3 1/2 hours (over 5.5 miles) downstream back to our car.



This spring has the clearest water I have ever seen in Florida. Talk about cold, it is 72 degrees year round.





Along the way Mason decided to try one of the many rope swings.



Well, how do you think he did? Take a look for yourself. Video may not play on all mobile devices.

After kayaking we headed north for 30 miles until we reached Crystal River. We stayed the night at the beautiful Plantation Inn.

photo credit belongs to the Plantation Inn

We spent a few minutes exploring the town of Crystal River and then enjoyed dessert at an ice cream shop that overlooked the bay. We were all in bed by 9:30 pm in order to get prepared for our next early morning activity.





Next post: Scalloping