My Top-Ten List of Reasons to Love Summer

Living in extreme heat conditions can make me forget about the wonders of summer. This is my sixth summer in the Phoenix area, and I still don’t think I’m used to it. Can one ever get accustomed to such harsh heat? I have to wait a few minutes after I start the car so the steering wheel can be touched without burning my fingers! And if you touch the metal part of the seatbelt, you’re going to feel it. Just letting you know.

I’ll tell you this, though. I would much rather deal with 113-degree temperatures and sunny skies than minus fifty and icy roads in North Dakota. I still don’t know how I did that for four long winters!

I remember as a kid, summer time was such a wonderful three months. I’ll mingle in my childhood reasoning along with some updated ones in my Top-Ten List of Reasons to Love Summer.

10. Pool Pass. Yes, I own a pool now. But owning a pool really stinks. I would much rather use the city pool pass from my childhood to swim all day, every day, with my brother and sister. We played mermaids, dolphins, pirates, hide-and-seek, and Olympic swimmers. And that was all just in the first hour. After a wonderful day of pool time, we then scrounged and scrimped and saved in order to buy some penny candy at Garrett Honda or some tater tots from Reed’s Drive-In across the street before the loooooooong bike ride home at eight o’clock each evening. It’s amazing how tired you get after nine hours of non-stop swimming!

9. Fresh Fruit. I love that the grocery store smells like peaches and cherries and watermelon as soon as I walk in. It makes me crave all that sun-grown goodness. Did I mention avocados? Because those are pretty stinkin’ awesome during the summer, too. I love them year-round, but they’re actually affordable when they’re in season!

8. The Ranch. They were the best two summers of my life, spent with siblings and cousins on a ranch with my grandparents, hours away from any civilization. We didn’t have electricity, we used an outhouse, and our drinking water came from a rusty tank buried in the ground. A tiny amount of Country Time Lemonade was used to tint the flavor so that we wouldn’t notice the rust. It didn’t work, and I still hate lemon in my water as a result! We played, swam in The Crick, ate, worked, swam some more, and simply loved life. I have such special memories of The Ranch and will always love summer because of it.

7. Softball. When I was a kid, I played softball alllllllll summer long. I was in the city’s Little League and couldn’t wait for that magical time each year when I got to don catcher’s gear and swing a bat. Man, I love softball. All of those summers paid off when I made the high school team for four years!

6. Green Grass. Of course, this isn’t a consideration in my present living conditions. We water it and it is green, but it’s way too hot to go outside to enjoy it. Back in the day, however, I loved green grass all summer long. It was especially fun laying on the cool grass under the clouds and pointing out shapes. Ah, the simple pleasures of a television-free childhood.

5. Ute Stampede. Each summer, in the small town in which I was raised, the largest event of the year takes place. The Ute Stampede Rodeo makes the town population quadruple as old and young alike come home to enjoy the three-day event on the second weekend in July. Rodeos, parades, craft fairs, fireworks, carnivals, Texas Tornado Lemonade. You want it, they got it. I always looked forward to the Stampede. It’s been years since I’ve been now. Check out this awesome video of the Stampede made by a school friend’s Hubby, Donny Martin. He’s a pilot, too, so I approve.

4. Ice Cream. But we all know that this is not just a summer treat for me. Somehow, though, it just tastes better when it’s hot outside. If we’re getting specific here, and I’m always fine with specifics when it comes to ice cream, then let’s announce my official favorite summer ice cream as the Schwann’s Silvermint bars. I always want to flag the Schwann guy down when I pass him on the street. Miraculously, this hasn’t happened yet.

3. Fireworks and Hubbys. Four years ago this month, some guy I’d been dating got down on one knee and proposed marriage to me. After a gigantic fireworks display. Pretty cool, huh? I said yes.

2. Family BBQs. Like the one I’m attending today to celebrate the Fourth of July. Swimming in the pool, eating delicious food, and enjoying sweet babies. What more could you ask for on a summer day?

1. Corn on the Cob. My new favorite vegetable. Just make sure there’s plenty of butter, salt, and pepper to go around. Holy smokes.

Happy Independence Day!

Snorkeling at Turtle Cove

Today was by far my greatest day on the island. I was feeling well enough to get out and do something, and of course, that something had to be snorkeling.

I’m rather fond of snorkeling, as long as I am transported to the snorkeling site in a properly-sized vessel.

Maybe this is too much information, but I ended up feeding the fishies on my honeymoon after we rode in a tiny boat through huge waves to get to the snorkeling location. I can’t really be blamed since it was really windy, which caused the giant waves. And we were in a boat the size of a small and useless bathtub. And they tried (and failed) to feed us warm bologna sandwiches. See what I mean? All of these things combined to make me want to throw up in the sea.

I still get teased by Hubby. And he was shocked to learn that I didn’t toss my cookies during this excursion in St. Thomas.

The appropriately-named Cat catamaran was a sufficiently-sized boat. It was big enough to fool my brain into not getting sea sick. Yes, it’s embarrassing to admit that, under the right wrong circumstances, I can get motion sickness. If my eyes can’t confirm what my brain and body are sensing, then it’s all over for me. I never throw up (unless I’m in the ocean and it just makes sense to share my agony with residents of the sea), but I do tend to feel icky.

As a kid on The Ranch riding in the back of the blue Toyota pickup truck with nine of my favorite cousins (cue the banjo music!), I got to sit up front for the long drives to prevent any motion sickness. No one liked me when I was sick. Weird, huh?

That was a lot of explaining just to let you know that I didn’t get sick on our 45-minute trek out to Turtle Cove.

I always forget this when I’m snorkeling, but I recommend going about a size smaller than your normal shoe size when selecting flippers. That way, they stay on without risk of slipping off during every kick. If I went snorkeling more often, I would probably remember such good advice. So now you know what to do next time you get paid to go to St. Thomas for a week.

There would be minimal complaining from me if I got to go snorkeling more often to help me remember to get small fins.

I sat at the very front of the catamaran. This was also a strategic move to prevent my brain from being confused with the motion. There were big waves to overcome out here, but I kept my eyes on the horizon to prevent the chance of getting sick with all of the bumps. The beautiful wind blowing on my face helped, too.

We passed several gorgeous private residences as we got out of the harbor. Can you imagine living here? Iguanas year-round?!

Turtle Cove was a popular destination. We parked among five other vessels to let the snorkeling commence. I think the cove was large enough for us all, as I didn’t feel like we were cramped by the other boats and their snorkelers.

These buoys are attached to the ocean floor, which was about twenty feet below us. The boats can then anchor to them while parking in the cove. We were told not to touch the buoys since some pretty painful coral can start growing on them as they stay in the water.

This is what we in the snorkeling world like to refer to as “Mask Face.” And I just made that up, since I’ve never been able to consider myself part of that world. We were in the water for about forty-five minutes. Most of it was a guided tour from our catamaran host. She showed us some sea turtles, and I got to see one come of for a breath of fresh air. They only need oxygen every twenty minutes, and he lumbered to the surface of the water while I got to watch.

I also got to see two sting rays glide beneath me. I was happy to hear that they prefer to stay on the bottom near the sand. I kept imagining the sting ray changing course to come straight at me! This could be the iguanas talking, though.

Because me ears were still recovering from being sick (they finally popped this morning), I didn’t risk diving down low to take a look. But my guide did! She brought up a sea urchin to love and squeeze and call him George. While holding him on my hand, he used little suction cups to attach himself to me. It was creepy and cool all at once. I had to pry him off to hand him to the next guy.

Not that I eat sushi or anything, but I would probably abstain from sea urchin from now on if I did. We had such a deep personal connection in Turtle Cove that I don’t think I could ever eat one.

It was a really nice snorkeling afternoon. I don’t think it qualifies as the best snorkeling I’ve ever experienced, but I got to see a few new things and enjoy the perfect water.

Am I the only one who swims through a warm section of water and wonders if someone else was recently in the same spot relieving himself?

I got to help raise the sails for our return trip to St. Thomas. This is Mary and Joe, our guide and boat captain. They were funny and made the day even more enjoyable.

While we were in the water, a few boats left and a few more arrived. This place was hopping all afternoon!

And this is their off-season?!

This very sail was raised by me. Workout for Monday? Check.

I was the only creepy lady on the boat who asked for a non-rum drink. Mine tasted way better, by the way. So tropical and refreshing after being in the salty water! I could taste some coconut and pineapple juice. It was delicious!

While disembarking, I saw a bottle of Sunny D at the bar. Does everything just taste better when you’re in paradise, or what?! Come on!

The wind took us home. It was wonderful. The radio blared some Caribbean music while the dolphins swam around us. Just kidding on the dolphins. But that would have been really cool.

They even gave us some snacks for the ride home. I had some blue tortilla chips and fresh cantaloupe and pineapple. Though it tasted wonderful, I’m pretty sure that this didn’t come out of a Sunny D bottle.

This was my favorite picture of the day as we are sailing back to St. Thomas.

I was one happy camper. But that’s because my back didn’t hurt yet from my snorkeling sunburn. It was a pretty fun day, all in all.

There was a cruise ship in the harbor every day of my sojourn. I guess during the busy season, they get about four a day. Can you imagine? I didn’t know that many ships existed!

I climbed twelve-million stairs to get back up from the dock. This was the sight that greeted me. See how busy the spa pool was the entire week? They won’t notice if I just help myself in, right?

I didn’t. But I wanted to do it.

This is the courtyard leading from the hotel to the pool area. The lighting was perfect this evening, so my camera was whipped out to chronicle the beauty.

Though I didn’t spend any time in the water near the hotel, it was very peaceful listening to it. I love how water sounds in any form. It’s always so relaxing!

If you have to eat dinner on a tropical island in the Caribbean, you might as well endure a lovely view with a sunset and mountains by the harbor. The airport is over that mountain, in case you’re wondering why it looks like heaven over there.

See? I wasn’t even lying! Twelve million steps to make it back to the hotel from the dock! And, if you look closely, the iguanas are waiting in the trees to attack each unsuspecting passerby. I knew that they were there and was armed, so they didn’t come near me.  This time.

With a beautiful view to endure while eating dinner, I enjoyed a dang chicken quesadilla at the hotel lounge on the fourth floor. It was pretty good, but there was too much chicken. I doubt that they get that complaint very often, so I kept it to myself!

Snorkel Day was my favorite. It felt great getting out to explore other parts of the surrounding areas. And the punch wasn’t half-bad, either.

Only Three Pictures?

Just a few weekends ago, we had lots of family in town for a baby blessing. It was a fun-filled weekend involving bra shopping, Joe’s BBQ, updated family photos by our wedding photographer (since we’ve all gotten married since the last one in 2002), swimming, and lots of good food and visiting.

My parents and two little brothers stayed at our house, and it was a treat having such pleasant house guests. I was gone for work when they left for home on that Monday, but Hubby said that they cleaned up so well that he got to take the week off of housework and just kick back.

Somehow, in all the fun and glory and eating, I managed to get a whole three pictures capturing the weekend. Three!

I know my excuse. One sub-family in my family prefers to stay out of the online spotlight, so pictures of them aren’t allowed to show up on my blog. I think that rather than try to work random photos without accidentally getting them in the shot, I resigned before the weekend even started to just enjoy the four days without taking pictures constantly.

This decision is regretted, of course. I wish I had more fun photos to document the great times we had, even if I couldn’t post them for all the world to see.

My memories of the weekend will simply have to be based on these three lone shots. Of four cute kids in swimming suits ready to jump in for the day. I have to admit, though, that they are really cute captures of really cute kids. Even if only three shots exist.

Thanks for coming down, everyone. It was such a nice weekend with you. I’m so glad that you’re my family and that you let me be a part of it.

My Last Day in Anguilla (sniff sniff)

With a little sunburn from Tuesday lounging around on a white sand beach, I tried to avoid direct sunlight on my last day in heaven.

This is the sign at the entrance to my resort. I still am not 100% sure how to pronounce it, but I think it is fran-gee-pawn-nee. At least, that is how the nice groundskeeper kept saying it! In a thick accent, so it was hard to understand everything.

I found a comfortable padded lounge chair by the infinity pool and pulled out my book to read. I actually got through 2.5 Harry Potter books this week on my Kindle app. I love reading but feel too guilty to do so when I’m home since there is always something more important that I should be doing.

Reading by a pool in the Caribbean? No reading guilt whatsoever.

I am so thankful for photography. It is going to be really hard to not be on a white sand beach next week. I am glad that I have these pictures to remember how incredible this week has been.

The infinity pool was cool and refreshing. When I got a little too warm, accented by the high humidity, I just hopped into the pool and laid on the lounge floater for a while. Again, I was very careful to keep my shoulders and legs out of the strong sunlight.

Staying underneath an umbrella is completely bearable. It was also a little cloudy today, so the sun wasn’t as much an enemy as on Tuesday.

Soon it was time for lunch. I walked a whole thirty feet to the Straw Hat once again. I know I should have tried somewhere else, but the convenience of being so close couldn’t be beat.

I had a turkey club sandwich.

With those incredible fries from my meal on Tuesday. I openly admit that they may have been a big factor in me coming back to this place to eat yet again. They were even better this time. Now I’m trying to figure out how to make them at home! Like I need more fried potatoes in this place…

And then it was back to my lounge chair. It was a pretty hectic day, as you can see.

I visited with this friendly little guy. He kept blowing out a yellow fin, but I kept missing it with my camera. And then I started to think of that scene in Jurassic Park where the cute, friendly little dinosaur turns into a monster and eats the fat computer geek.

So I backed away slowly, and we parted ways.

Several hours later, my stomach reminded me that dinner would be nice. I showered and changed into proper attire for dinner (shorts and a t-shirt), and walked down the beach by the water while carrying my flip-flops. I promise that I didn’t pick this eating establishment based on the colors alone.

About half a mile away was Blanchard’s Shack. Isn’t it bright and fun and happy? Doesn’t it make you want to eat some Mexican food?!

I fell in love with their tables and chairs immediately. Did you know that I love blue and green? These are the exact shades that I love so much, actually. I also loved the hanging lights above and the lanterns on each picnic table. Casual elegance at its best.

It took a while to look at their vast menu and decide what should be right for me. I knew I wanted Mexican food, so I decided on the shredded pork rice bowl. And, while waiting, I got a drink.

A mango pina colada, minus the alcohol. I’m glad that I only discovered this place on my last night here, because this drink was insane! So refreshing and cold and perfect with my Mexican dinner!

Everything tasted so good. Reading can really work up an appetite, you know?

The view from my table in the sand was gorgeous as well. I got to enjoy the sunset while I chowed down. I think this was my favorite meal of the week. And only $16 for the whole lot, too! Food here on the island was pretty expensive, so I was tickled to find something so delicious that didn’t cost a small fortune.

On my walk back to the Frangipani, I wanted to lock in memories of this beautiful piece of earth. I will happily reflect on this image every time my tan needs some work.

This is a picture of one happy camper. Too bad I don’t have any say in staying longer, huh?

Tomorrow will be showcasing the pictures of the flight home, so don’t miss it!