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Happy St Patrick's Day!

Happy Easter!

We have a lot of fun things planned for this month that I will be writing about!

Have a happy Spring!  Lamb or Lion?  For us I think it was a lamb this year, it's been relatively nice, mild calm weather. 
 

Friday ~ March 7th:  Today was spent mostly recovering from travel...doing some shopping for groceries and of course, we hit the beach!  The wind was kind of chilly but it didn't stop me from jumping in the water!  I am not afraid of it anymore but I will only go in so far.  On my first trip down to the water (with Mommy, of course - you kind of have to beg Daddy to get in it) I took 3 steps back and said "ooh - it's a sting ray thing!".  Mommy laughed and said, "no, it's probably just some trash that washed up".  The closer we got though we quickly realized that it was a jellyfish!  A Man-o-war one!  They sure are pretty but can be deadly if you are stung badly and don't seek medical attention (which we didn't learn until we were sitting in the airport waiting to fly back to PA).  We were careful of them and didn't get too close.  As a matter of fact quite a few of them were washing up on shore - they were all dead but they can still sting you.  The tentacles were sooo long! We scooped a few up and moved them to a safer spot where people would not be walking.  Daddy and I began constructing the first sand castle of the trip!  Can you believe that Uncle Mark still had all of my stuff I left from last year, in the same place I left them in his garage?  Including all of the sea shells I had collected!  That made me smile a little bit!  After a few hours playing in the sand/ocean it was time to head home.  Lisa would be coming home from work soon and we were going to go out for dinner.  We ate at  RJ Gators - we ate there last year and Mom and Dad had alligator bites!  This year we (yes, you read that right -WE - I ate some and actually liked it!) tried Conch Fritters!  I think Mom told me that it was sea snail!  Not sure if I will eat it again though.  We had a fun day and night but we all had a big day planned for the morning, so we all went home and headed to bed early!

Saturday ~ March 8th:  Today was the big Dino Dash 3K at the Brevard Zoo!  Lisa is a runner and she was already planning on participating and after Mom and Uncle Mark had discussed it (long before our trip) they were signed up as well.  Mark's parents were in Florida for the winter season and his Dad likes to walk/run too.  It was for a good cause since all the money benefits the zoo.  Dad decided after seeing Mommy's shirt and everyone talking about it, that he wanted to do it too and I guess they thought that I would, well, I guess I had too, since there would be no one to watch me.  Anyway, we were all signed up, we all had our own numbers and cool Dino Dash shirts!  We had to be at the zoo by 7 in the morning!  Well, I was actually excited about being in a "race"...there sure were a lot of people there.  There were 636 participants!  The horn sounded and off we went....Mommy stayed back with Dad and me!  She was supposed to run with Uncle Mark but didn't...guess she wanted to have fun with us and see how I would do.  Well...I RAN!  I ran as fast as I could in some places and then just jogged almost the entire race!  We did have to stop once to get a rock out of my shoe!  I didn't tell you the best part, the race was thru the zoo and in places where the normal public is not allowed to go!  Uncle Mark tried to trick me in the beginning by telling me that the animals were going to be set free and would eat all the slow runners in the back first!  HA HA!  He's so funny.  Anyway, I ran almost the entire race, just did some walking at the very end but then picked it back up (people were all along the path cheering me on!) to cross the finish line before Daddy! (Oh, Mom had gone ahead when we thought that I was done).  After the race we waited around for the awards.  Everyone did really well...only Mark's dad got an award!  Lisa was beat out for 3rd place by one person!  
Our stats for the race were: (*award winner!)
Mom - 27th out of 28 in her age group - 563 overall - Time: 27:05
Lisa -  3rd out of 22 in her age group - 123 overall - Time: 14:18
Mark's Dad - 3rd out of 4 in his age group - 456 overall - Time:  22:19*
Dad - 21st out of 21 in his age group - 573 overall - Time:  28:10
Uncle Mark - 14th out of 16 for his age group - 375 overall - Time:  19:22
ME - 31st out of 33 in my age group - 572 overall - Time: 28:09

Everyone was so proud of me!  I just was a bit confused as to why I didn't get a prize!  Mom tried to explain it to me...I kind of understood and was much happier when I saw how many people I beat.  Then she showed me how many people beat us...so then I got it.  However, I was treated to my own special award - 2 Lego BIONICLES!  YAY! 
After the race we all went out for breakfast - I had the best chocolate chip pancakes and bacon!  I guess things just taste better after a good run! 
After breakfast we stopped by the Wildlife Preservation Society because Lisa was going to adopt an owl!  Just a fancy way of making donations...but because she was doing that we got to meet the owl - Gonzo was his name - up close!  He was so cute and neat looking.  He reminded me of a robot. 
After all of that and some running around to Wal-mart for said Lego's....I fell asleep in the car on the way home and that was it for me!  Passed out - pooped!  Mom stayed home with me while Dad and Uncle Mark did some geocaching. 
They brought home some pizza (from Pistilli's, of course!).  Mom got me up for that and I am glad she did!  It was the biggest pizza I have ever seen in my whole life!  It was just as good too!  I spent some quality "guy time" and a dip in the hot tub and then it was time for bed!  Yes, another big day planned for tomorrow!

Sunday ~ March 9th:  Today we went to a Washington Nationals spring training game against the Cleveland Indians at Space Coast Stadium.  We went to a game here last year and well...I enjoyed it just as much as last year.  Needless to say, I heard Mom mentioning that we won't plan going to one next year!  HA!  The weather has been very nice but cool and breezy while we have been here and it was very chilly today.  Everyone bundled up in jackets.  However, once we had our seats the stadium must have been blocking the winds and the sun was right on us - we could feel ourselves beginning to cook!  Of course, no one had sunscreen on!  Oops!  What were we thinking!  Mom and I did have some on our faces so thank goodness for that!  Mom kept me covered for most of the game and we did eventually move to seats in the shade so we were not so hot but then we were sitting directly under the laud speakers and they sure do call those LOUD speakers for a reason!  I think my ears are still ringing!  Other than the crazy sun, it was a good game.  The Nationals did win and we did get to see a few home runs!  The beginning of the game was interesting because a bird was on the in-field and pretty much hung out there for the first few innings before flying away.  I think it was a Heron or something long legged like that.
After the game we headed over to Mark's parents house, they live in Florida now during the winter months!  I wish I could live in Florida - I really like coming here and hate leaving.  We visited for a little while, toured their house, showed off our sunburns...ouch!  Mine was only on my legs and not that bad.  We decided to head on over to the canals to see if we could catch a glimpse of a manatee or two.  Boy, was it windy and cold standing there!  We only got to see one this year but he was big!  Mommy tried to take a picture of him but it didn't come out so great. 

Monday ~ March 10th:  Today, Lisa had to go back to work and Dad was going to have to head back to Orlando for his Microsoft Convention.  We decided to go to the Brevard Zoo.  I haven't been there since I was very little so it was all new to me!  We visited all the animals.  Mom fed the giraffe's, I wouldn't do it this time, but I watched.  They sure do have long tongues!  I wanted to see the big rhino but he was being shy and I think taking a nap...I could see him thru the branches of some trees!  I liked watching Dad and Uncle Mark feed the birds, they were landing all over the place.  I may have freaked out if one landed on me but they didn't.  One big pink bird got on Uncle Mark's shoulder and tried to eat his sunglasses!  The zoo lady had to help us out!  It was funny.  The alligators were quiet today and we saw one that had this huge wound on his leg that was all gross looking, when we asked a worker there about it he said it was "mating season" (whatever that means) and that no one messes with them this time of year.  The next stop that was my favorite was the otter.  He was so silly - he would climb to the top of this log, climb down, then get on the "slide" and into the water, swim around down there and then come back up this hole near the top of the log and do it all over again and again and again!  There were 3 different viewing platforms to observe all of this so I had fun running and trying to keep up with him.  We must have stayed in this area for a good 20 minutes!  We rode the train ride around the zoo and then stopped for some lunch.  It was then time for my dad to leave...he was going to be gone for a week!  Mom, Uncle Mark and I finished the zoo visit with a trip to watch the silly monkeys and then some yummy ice cream before it was time to head home!

Tuesday ~ March 11th:  Our day started VERY early and by early I mean 2AM!  Why?  The space shuttle Endeavor was scheduled for a launch to the International Space Station at 2:30!  We were headed out to Uncle Mark's beach to watch!  Mom had told me before we even had gotten to Florida that we would be doing this, so when she first started getting me out of bed and dressed I knew what was going on.  That did not mean that I actually was awake!  I vaguely remember Mom carrying me out into Uncle Mark's living room and his TV being on.  They had pictures of the astronauts getting suited up and showing all sides (up-close) of the shuttle and all these guys wearing headphones "checking" things.  I was sound asleep again in no time, even during mom putting me in the car....but as soon as we pulled into the beach parking lot - I WAS UP!  There were a few people there on the deck and quite a few people on the beach, but it was so dark you really could not see anything.  THEN all of the sudden - the entire night sky just lit up!  It was incredible...I could see everything just like it was daytime!  WOW!  Sadly, it only lasted for a few seconds because it was so cloudy!  Bummer but mom got a good enough picture.  Uncle Mark said normally you can see it go all the way across the sky!  Oh well...at least we got to experience some of it, we will never see anything like this in PA.  It isn't very often that NASA has night launches so this was special.  We waited around for a few minutes and then we heard it...roaring over the already loud roar of the ocean!  Cool.  We went back home and I was very interested in seeing it on the TV - good job Uncle Mark remembering to record it!  I stayed up and watched that and went right back to bed!  Zzzzzzz.....
After that eventful "morning" - we got up and moving around today and just decided to head to the beach!  Mom and I discovered these "shimmering" things on the sand after the waves would pass...upon closer inspection they were little muscles.  If you watched them really close you could see them reach out of their shells and dig themselves back under the sand.  We spent most of our time digging them up and collecting buckets of them!  No worries, we kept them alive while we were playing with them and set all of them free when we went home, well all but the ones I gave to Lisa.  I picked out the ones with pretty shells for her, she put them in her fish tank.  Mom packed a picnic lunch for all of us and Uncle Mark did some fishing.  He didn't catch anything this time.   Mom and me built a big sand sculpture of just walls and holes.  I like to dig holes and then try to protect them from the ocean waves!  A bit of engineering in my blood I fear!  HA! 
After our long day but so much fun!  I love the beach!  We all were invited to go to the Teshendorf's for dinner.  We had a nice time - Amber is getting so big and she showed us how good she is at doing puzzles now.  We also got to meet her new baby sister Allison.  She was born in July just like me!  It was too cold to get in the pool this year so no fun cannonballs!  It was nice seeing them again - too bad Daddy missed them this year.

Wednesday/Thursday ~ March 12th - 13th:  These two days were spent on the beach!  Uncle Mark and I dug a hole close to the water and made what he called "drip castles".  That is when you let the wet sand "drip" off and form a mound.  Uncle Mark did some fishing and caught a sheep head fish - well, it kind of caught itself!  That funny fish had teeth like me!  He took the hook out and set it free!  Uncle Mark's Dad came and helped us build a trench for the water to get up to our hole we made....so that was fun.  It was getting cold so I mostly watched and stayed bundled up in my towel.  The next day on the beach, some of Uncle Mark's friends, Carol (along with her son Camari and her brother) and Dave met us on the beach.  Later, Mark's mom and Dad both came.  So we had a nice time just sitting around visiting and playing in the sand.  We dug a gigantic hole, big enough for me to stand in!  Then I got buried up to my neck!  It took Mom a long time to dig me out!  Again, a nice long day on the beach - we went home and got ready to go out to Pistilli's for dinner.  I was getting excited because tomorrow we get to go pick up my Dad!

Friday ~ March 14th:  Uncle Mark had some errands to do today so Mom and I thought we would try out the pool!  Well....that was short-lived...it was FREEZING!  I was toughing it out though....my teeth were chattering and Mom said my lips were purple and she still had to convince me to get out!  We walked back to Uncle Mark's house and just relaxed - we had a big night planned. 
We drove to pick up Lisa from work and then to pick up Daddy at his convention!  Well, this place was huge!  He had been telling us how nice it was there and that he had been doing a lot of walking.  We visited in the car on our way to Medieval Times!  Mom had told me we were going to a castle for dinner and that we would be watching knights fight for the King!  Well....we had soo much fun!  Although, we had gotten there really, really early....we had fun exploring the medieval village they had set up outside.  It showed us what places looked like back then...my favorite room and I think everyone agrees - was the torture chamber rooms!  WOW - they sure did come up with some scary awful ways to punish people for being bad!  I would not want to have been caught lying to Mom back then!  After we toured we hit the gift shops...I got a cool sword and shield.  Daddy, Uncle Mark and I all got special drinks.  Mine came in a mug shaped like a knight!  We got our crowns and seat tickets - we would be cheering for the yellow knight.  Before we headed in to our seats they gathered everyone in the lobby and it was sooo loud - people were yelling and cheering - my Uncle Mark fit right in!  We sat down and our section was roaring!  It was crazy loud but fun!  All of that before the knights even came out!  The show started and we got our food!  I thought it was "awesome" when they slapped a half a chicken on my plate and then this half a baked potato (mom told me it was a giant French fry so I would eat it and I did!).  The show was great, we watched the knights do different games, like catching rings on their lances, jousting, and fighting with swords and other medieval weapons.  Our knight did pretty well during the games but he lost his sword battle to the green knight (boo!).  The show ended with the Princess's boyfriend defeating him - so that made everyone cheer!  Oh, Lisa got awarded the Queen of Love and Beauty banner from our knight!  YAY Lisa! 
We had a fun time, more than we had expected to have and I think Uncle Mark and I may have lost our voices for a bit!  So, if you enjoy knights and castles and just having a loud fun time, you really need to visit a Medieval Times!

Saturday ~ March 15th:  We started our day out early with another local race!  Yes, you heard me...another race!  This one had 2 races in one.  First there was the Eye of the Dragon race, which was a 10K - Lisa and Mark's Dad were participating in that one.  The rest of us did the Tail of the Lizard race, which was a 2-mile stretch over the bridge!  We enjoy running in Florida because it is flat and they have no hills...except for their bridges....ugh!   It was tough.  Mom ran with Uncle Mark and she said she stayed with him for the most part but then couldn't keep up on the bridge.  Well...I knew what "racing" meant now and did not really want to do it, so Dad and me walked.  (we found out late that I should have gone to the bathroom first - but you know me I like to refuse to go and would rather be miserable!).  Anyway - Uncle Mark finished, then Mommy, then Dad and me, Lisa and then Mark's Dad.  We weren't going to stay for the awards, because we had big plans for the afternoon (camping) but Uncle Mark place first in his age group and MY DAD placed 2nd!  It was an exciting moment...even though there were only 2 people in their age group participating!  HA HA HA!  Not to make light of things, Lisa placed too and got a prize!  Great job everyone!  Mommy didn't place but she was glad to see that she beat her zoo time. 
 
Here are the final results: (*award winner!)
Mom - 5th out of 7 in her age group  - Time: 21:07
Lisa -  5th out of 16 in her age group  - Time: 51:13*
Mark's Dad - 5th out of 7 in his age group  - Time:  1:09:39
Dad - 2nd out of 2 in his age group - Time:  37:04*
Uncle Mark - 1st out of 2 for his age group  - Time:  19:31*
ME - 4th out of 4 in my age group  - Time: 37:04

So, it was time to head home and get ready to go camping on Samson's Island!  We went there last year and had so much fun that we had planned to do it again!  It was a perfect day!  Uncle Mark invited his friends, Dave & Rosa and another buddy - Capaldo who brought along his 2 year old son this time.  Everyone loaded up their gear and boats and off we went.  We had the big canoe again this year and I must say that Dad and Mom did a much better job of steering that thing this year!  We only had some trouble the closer we had gotten to the island as the canals were really low, we actually bottomed out in one section and Mom was paddling thru the muck!  We made it and had the whole island to ourselves this year!  We all got our tents set up and decided to do some exploring and we did find a geocache.   We got back to the campsite and Dave made a fire by only using brush that was still warm from people who left it the night before!  That was neat!  We ate some hot dogs and of course, we made s'mores! 
I was so tired from the race that morning that I had no troubles falling asleep!  I like camping out!  I hope we do it more often when we get home!

Sunday ~ March 16th:  We all got up and moving around and I wanted a hot dog for breakfast!  Mmmm....I did have a bagel too!  Hey, last year we made s'mores for breakfast!  We spent some more time exploring the island and we climbed "the hill" from the top you could see pretty far!  It was kind of a joke, as I had mentioned before...Florida does not have hills!  Dad and I took the canoe out for a ride and we saw dolphins swimming around.  That was cool.  Later, Dad, me, Lisa and Uncle Mark walked out on this sandbar that took us pretty far out into the river!  We had to learn to do the sting-ray shuffle with our feet, so we wouldn't step on them.  We saw horse-shoe crabs, manatees, sting-rays, other kinds of fish and crabs.  It was a weird feeling standing out in the middle of the water!  We took our time but it was soon time to head back home.  We are discussing staying for more than one night next year.  We actually cut our trip a little short as we had not packed enough water to drink and we were running out!  Oops!  We think the race had dehydrated us more than we thought which caused us to drink it up faster than usual.  All was good and it was a great weekend!
We got home and cleaned up and met Mark's parents at (drum roll please!) Pistilli's for dinner.  This was Mark's parents last night in Florida as well...they were moving back up to PA for the warmer months!  Mark's Dad and me split a pizza - it was tasty!

Monday ~ March 17th:  Happy St. Patty's Day!  We spent our day on the beach!  It was our last day in Florida so that is what we wanted to do!  It was a nice relaxing day and not too breezy this time and no jellyfish!  HA!  The fun event was digging a hole with Uncle Mark and Dad - then building a wall around it to protect it from the ocean waves!  Who knew digging a hole/wall was so much fun!  Anything done with my Uncle Mark and Dad is fun!  I am sure we took one to many pictures of this.  Our wall held strong for a long time until the tide started to come in.  Oh, and it was a loud day on the beach as they were rebuilding the dunes, there were huge construction dump trucks  driving back and forth the whole time we were there.  I had to be careful not to get run over! 
After our day at the beach, we got cleaned up and went miniature golfing!  That was fun and I did pretty good!  The lady gave me free candy when I was done!
We spent a relaxing night together, playing some pinball and I took one last dip in the hot tub with Dad!  Mom was busy packing up everything!

Tuesday ~ March 18th:  Not supposed to be an eventful day and we arrived at the airport in time to grab a lunch and then head to our terminal...only to find our flight delayed...with no idea of how soon it would be...since it hadn't even left Philly yet to come and get us!  I entertained myself by reading Captain Underpants and drawing pictures.  Dad had work to do on his laptop....5 hours later....we were on a plane home...well, to Philly, we would still have to drive home!  Our flight was half empty, it took 3 hours instead of 2 because of the rain and then they had to keep circling us around the airport!  Once, we were headed in for a landing when all of the sudden we shoot straight up like you do for a take-off!  Hmm...that was a weird feeling....but eventually we landed....then had to taxi forever, waited for our luggage forever....then drove home, getting in the house right before midnight!  Thank goodness I did not have school in the morning!  HA! 


I love going to Uncle Mark's....I love going to Florida!  We thank him and Lisa for being such gracious hosts and allowing us to invade their home for much longer than a typical guest should stay!  You guys need to come to our house now!  I can't take you to the beach but we have Chocolate World and good hiking paths with no sand or saw palmetto's!  :)