Skiing & Town Squares

So... does anyone want to guess which mug is mine and which is Ryan's? I noticed this on Saturday morning and absolutely cracked up! Can you say spot on?

 

Saturday was a day full of adventures and trying new things! We started at Lake Miona for water skiing, which my in-laws are now pros at and my husband wanted to try - I opted to sit this time out and enjoy the sunshine on the beachfront portion of the lake. I was not remotely surprised that Ryan picked it up immediately; he is so athletically skilled and also incredibly determined, so when you combine those two attributes - he was up and on his way, gliding across the lake like an old pro in no time!

I don't have pictures - but after a quick lunch of subs, we went and played pickleball and it was so much fun! It has definitely converted me and Ryan and I are looking into getting our own pickleball set, because we really enjoyed it! Given that while we were playing, the temperature was 97 with a heat index of 118 - I tapped out after one game and shortly after that, we spent the rest of the afternoon in the swimming pool! 

We had the most amazing breakfast on Sunday morning - French Toast with Syrup and Bananas and some to die for Brown Sugar Bacon my hubby made! We watched the sermon from Strong Tower church and just had a really nice, relaxing Sunday morning! A rainstorm moved in shortly after lunch and we enjoyed the rainstorm from the lanai... and happily, once it passed, we were able to hop into the golf carts and explore some of the Town Squares that make up parts of the The Villages.

We poked around Lake Sumter Landing and Spanish Springs - went into some shops here and there and just took in all the things there were to see as part of the each of the Town Squares. We didn't see any alligators, but we did see a huge snapping turtle in Lake Sumter! Eek!

Fun fact - the statue in the above picture is the founder of the Villages! The even more "fun" part of that picture is that his ashes are in the base of the statue! What?!? Yep - definitely a unique burial spot, wouldn't you say? We had a delicious dinner at the Havana Country Club (a part of the Villages) and spent Sunday evening watching some comedy and all ended up getting into bed fairly early.

Monday morning passed far too quickly - we were treated to a late breakfast at The Flying Biscuit, where I actually had a divine Grits Bowl - even though I am not really much of a grits eater! Then it was off to the airport to make our way through security, hop on our flight and head back to Virginia! 

It was another wonderful visit to Central Florida and it seems like we went in the nick of time, since Florida is now reeling from Hurricane Idalia. Thankfully my in-laws were spared the worst of it, but there are certainly parts of Florida that aren't doing so well right now - here's hoping aid will be offered for all those in need! 

Surprises, Sunsets & Sandhill Cranes

Twice in one week is kind of a record right now - isn't it? I decided I'd finally post about our recent trip to Florida and yes, that's right ... I've been to Florida twice in less than two months! Talk about living the dream! Ryan and I flew out early on Thursday the 17th to enact a grand surprise for his Mom, for her birthday! We had a smooth flight - our bag was waiting for us on the rotating belt at baggage claim - and our ride was waiting right outside the door we exited - it was all brilliant!

We made some stops to buy the goods we needed to treat Ryan's Mom to a birthday dinner, then headed to Doc's house on the lake and set about putting together a feast: steak, grilled chicken, shrimp, mashed potatoes, Brussel sprouts and salad - it was all delicious! We mixed and tossed and mashed and seasoned until around 4:45 and then it was time for the big surprise, so we hid ourselves and prepared to pop out!

 

The surprise went over wonderfully and we all enjoyed a wonderful dinner together - even Maggie got to have some delicious bites! After we were full, we headed out to Doc's dock (hehehehe) to watch the sunset - and let me tell you, it did NOT disappoint! It was absolutely breathtaking and of course, I took a ton of pictures... and most of them are below! 

How can you not take millions of pictures of a sunset like this? I mean - honestly, a camera can't ever quite do it justice but I was certainly going to try! I think my efforts are pretty admirable.

We finally headed to my mother in law's house shortly before 10 and when we finally got there, we were both pretty exhausted! We got up before 5 AM to catch out flight, so we both crashed as soon as we hit the bed and while my husband didn't sleep too late - I definitely slept till shortly before 9:00 and it was positively glorious!

We started our day (and each day) in my favorite spot, on the lanai with our morning cup of coffee. It was so wonderful to have my best friend with me this time and we really did enjoy such a peaceful beginning to the short vacation! 

We went to the pool - got our visitor's passes - got to feed the sandhill cranes - and I got to spend time reading on the lanai (yahoo) - before we had amazing leftovers for dinner and just enjoyed one another's company! It was a great way to start the vacation!

A Wonderful Weekend!

It was a lovely - full - weekend! Friday seemed like it started later... and that's because it did! My boss has decided that we will no longer be leaving work at three anymore, so I worked till five PM - *sigh*. Once I finally got home, Ryan and I had salads for dinner and watched the move Pilgrim's Progress, which is based on the best-selling book written in the 1600's! The movie (and I'm assuming the book) are very allegorical and describe the Christian journey - and while the animation was only okay, the story the movie told was really awesome! 

  

Saturday morning we were up early and had an amazing breakfast of French Toast and Brown Sugar Bacon before we headed into DC for the day - our main goal being to go to the Museum of the Bible! The Museum of the Bible was opened in 2017 and let me tell you that if you ever plan to go (and you should) - be prepared to spend a large chunk of your day at the museum to be able to see it all! We arrived at around 10:15 (the museum opens at 10) and we were there until 3:15!

 

The museum has SIX floors to explore - so when I tell you that you need some time, I'm not kidding! We started with something called Explore, which requires an additional ticket and is a virtual reality tour of the Holy Lands! It was so cool; please look at my goofy self in that VR headset, ha-ha! You were able to explore sights from the Bible in a 360-degree setting, all while sitting on a small stool and spinning around! 

After our journey through the Holy Land, we made our way up six floors to start our tour with the gorgeous views of DC that can be seen from the observation area! There was also a restaurant called Manna and a Biblical Garden, which we also stepped out into for a few minutes before heading down to the fifth floor to peruse the artifacts from civilizations like the Canaanites, the Philistines and more...

We were able to place our hands on a stone from the wall of David's Temple - what a fascinating thing to be able to touch! After perusing ossuaries, weapons, jars, jewelry, sling stones, burial containers and more - we cruised along to the fourth floor, which was filled with artifacts leading up to the first Bible and from there - numerous versions of the Bible throughout time, culture, language and more! It was pretty fascinating! 

 

The third floor was my favorite floor - but I only have a few pictures, and none of what I thought was the coolest part of the museum: a thirty minute walk through depiction of the Old Testament! It was amazing! We were also able to wander through a village that would have been similar to where Jesus would have done his ministries and watched a video production about the New Testament - it was such an amazing experience! 

The second floor had another separately ticketed attraction that had us "flying" over DC, showcasing all the places that have scripture included in the buildings - and there are a lot more than I realized! After flying around DC, we wandered through a large exhibit on how the Bible has influenced culture - from music and fashion to movies, architecture, literature and so much more. The final portion of the tour was the Bible as it progressed through the ages, all the way up to present day... and then it was the the first floor for the gift shop, ha-ha!

Once we'd finished up our time at the Museum of the Bible, my Mom and I took advantage of the ice cream truck parked outside and I got the first snowball (or shave ice) that I've had in years - and it was divine since it was a very warm Saturday! We made a stop at Roosevelt Island; a monument to Teddy Roosevelt, that I feel like is often missed but is a neat little gem - although it unfortunately looked much worse for the wear then it did on my prior visit three years ago. *sigh*

 

Please note - my husband's phone has a much better camera than mine - as evidenced by the incredible picture of a tadpole that he captured with his cell phone camera! You can even see it's little frog legs growing into place! 

After a long day in the city - we had a very chill evening with a stop at the Apple House for a BBQ dinner and then home to relax for a little while! Sunday dawned bright and sunny and while there was a chance for rain (which we need) - nothing ever fell! We headed to church and then went to the side of a road in West Virginia to catch the Martinsburg Air Show - because who wants to pay $25 a ticket when you can see the show from the end of the runway?

I didn't take a ton of pictures - all the pictures here that are of planes are from my husband - because I was trying to stay in the shade! It was a pretty warm day for West Virginia and while it was fun to hang outside and watch some epic airplanes, I was also glad to get back to the AC for a bit, ha-ha! As you can see - my hubby has become quite the plane watched (although the heat did make him sleepy between planes...)

We caught up with some sweet friends for dinner at our favorite Mexican spot and then headed home to get ready for the work week! Is anyone else looking forward to Labor Day Weekend and the Monday off? I know I sure am - I have been dragging lately! 

Y'all have a wonderful Monday and I'll try to share some Florida posts this week too! I have plenty of pictures and anecdotes to share!