Ethan’s Journey

 We have begun planning our next tropical trip with Andy and Diane. We are in the beginning phase of planning. We are throwing around ideas. I was invited to “Taco Tuesday” at Avery and Kendall’s. I finally got to meet the infamous Poppy, Kendall’s grandpa. He was so much fun. He loves Jiminy, so I brought Jiminy over to hang out too! Avery’s cat Pluto, was so curious of Jiminy’s. He was almost stalking him. Avery made the taco meat and browned the taco shells. It was delicious! I enjoyed spending time with Kendall’s Mom and brother as well. We are getting saturated  with rain!  There is so much. One corner of our basement is quite damp. Ugh! The dogs are so gross after they go outside. But here is what I am thankful for. Ethan shared that he finally feels like he is in a spot where his medical issues aren’t looming over him. This made my heart warm!

 Things I am grateful for today: I got to see Mom and Gene and give them hugs.  The weather was pleasant. Paul was making me laugh this evening (by trying to annoy me). Avery and I had a wonderful chat about planning for her future. Avery is pretty sure she is going for her doctorate. She knows it will be 7-8 years of schooling but knows she will benefit in the long run. She was throwing out ideas of what she has been thinking of. I was throwing out ideas of logistics. We talked about she and Kendall potentially buying a house to build equity while still in school. She had thought about leaving the state for her schooling and how that could affect Kendall and the life they are building together. We were brainstorming ideas of funding her doctorate degree and she shared the research she has done so far.  We did this all while doing our exercises (my physical therapy) and muscle building. She has made no decisions. But I think things will fall into place as they are suppose...

Today was spent getting ready for the week. I also need to get back into a sort of exercise/ stretching routine since vacation is over. No coffee on the beach today, sad face. My coffee was overlooking the squishy yard and trees with no leaves.  I had a long list of things to do today and picked away at them one by one. All the bags are unpacked, dog bedding washed, adult chore. April is going to be a busy month. The next trip to look forward to, is in May.

Happy Birthday to Sarah!!!! My finger has healed nicely. Kudos to my immune system for vacating the bee venom! The swelling is down and redness has subsided.  I took a nice long hour walk on the beach today with my coffee. There really isn’t any dead fish on the beaches. The ocean life eats it before it makes it to the beach. Here is what I saw this morning that was exciting. I really enjoy finding the big sand dollars, shells, life, unalived animals, sea glass and more on the beach. I have done my total assessment of this island. I would like to come back some day. I enjoyed the small restaurants that offered beach side tables. I liked the location of our rental house, close to the airport, in the middle of the island. I like that every beach felt like a private beach. It wasn’t people-y at all. A great place to go and beach hop. There are a lot of abandoned buildings and abandoned hotels all over. It’s like a resort graveyard. We learned that hurricane Dorian really impacted thei...

  Today was even warmer than yesterday. I might go through a huge sunshine withdrawal when we get home. Ugh! As I drank my coffee this morning, I stood on the dock over looking the canal. I saw a mini octopus. I got to see it swim away. WOW! I was so excited! My finger redness has not grown. It is holding steady at swollen, difficult to bend, not painful. I consider that a win! Andy found a cool beachside restaurant we could go to and eat but also enjoy the beach. We packed a cooler and headed out to explore yet another beach. The beach was amazing. The best beach yet! Beautiful blue and sparkly water. We were able to walk out pretty far on a sandy path. I found two alive shells that I watched bury themselves in the sand. Nature’s tv! Paul and I walked the sandbar way out to explore. It was like a runway! The view and colors were just so pretty. The water felt warm. At one point I stood with my eyes closed, and filled my lungs with the sea salt warm air. I felt the sun shining down...

 I woke up this morning and my bee sting finger was so swollen I couldn’t bend it. It doesn’t hurt, just a little itchy and tight feeling. Hopefully it wasn’t a poisonous bee ha ha. The more I looked into, I think it was a “killer bee”. It looked just like one. Either way, my middle finger is swollen and red. I am watching to make sure the redness doesn’t start creeping up my hand with a systemic infection. Fingers crossed (except my non-bendable finger)! I don’t mind flipping Andy and Paul off to show them my swollen finger. Ha! Today’s activity was swimming with the sringray This morning was another relaxing morning. I sat outside with my coffee, listened to the birds, logged into work briefly. I then took a leisurely walk on the beach. No one was around. Perfect! Excitement was in the air for our boat tour today. We had about an hour ride to the boat launch. We didn’t know what to expect. We were told that we might see sharks, cool, and see a conch nursery, neat! The fact that t...