Castillo de San Marcos (Castle of St. Marks)

We also went to America's oldest masonry fort, the Castillo de San Marcos which has overlooked the waterfront of historic St. Augustine for more than three hundred years. It was built to defend Spain's conquests and interests in the New World, and though it was attacked several times, its original walls still stand. This is its aerial view:
Outside the fort walls is a mote and this is the area you see in the pic above on the right side.Inside the fort. . .

A closeup of the original walls. They were made using coquina. (co 'Kee nu)

On top of the fort overlooking the inter coastal waterway.

Are we having fun yet?!

It was so humid from the rain of TS Fay--we were cookin'!

Stairs to the top of the fort.

Colton was a good soldier for us--we sunscreened him up so that's the shiny glow on his face.

There are huge cannons placed throughout the fort. The range on these puppies was 3 1/2 miles!!!!!

The Matanzas Inlet

Our Saturday was going to be spent at a flea market in Waldo 15 minutes from home, but we got in the car and decided to keep on going to St. Augustine, an hour and a half away. GREAT CHOICE! We drove out to the Matanzas Inlet and played on the beautiful white beaches which Colton loved every second of. It was gorgeous and we learned that this is where the Spanish massacred more than 200 French prisoners in 1565 (retrieved from www.exploresouthernhistory.com/staugustinebattles.html). Here's a view of it:Crossing the bridge you can see in the picture above.

Holding my baby as we enjoy the sand.

They let you drive out onto the beach. We're definitely coming back with swimsuits next time. It made me laugh--it unnerved Blaine all day long not to be prepared and have more definitive plans--we kind of just came on a whim. While I side with him on the being prepared thing, we still won because the important thing is WE WENT. Hope y'all are doing the same! Life's too short to miss the beaches of life because we have our heads buried in the sand.

Go Away Fay!

Outside our front door.
Blaine being the Captain Yellowstone I love and adore outfitted our Lieutenant Yosemite with his very own rain boots--pretty slick!!

Little Man admiring the new apparel--any form of footwear makes this household smile.

Mommy's present: a Colton proof gate, without which waiting out this storm would be impossible. Thank you very much!!

Wouldn't you know that we would move to Florida during hurricane season and the same year a major tropical storm would hit! The news is calling Fay an epic storm with record breaking rainfall of 24 inches in some places and devastating flooding forcing hundreds of people to seek refuge elsewhere. It has been raining relentlessly here today and our backyard is looking more bayou than before. Hopefully, as the eye of the storm stretches out the rain will subside and this storm can blow out of here.

It's a Shore Thing

View of the Gulf Coast. It's more like a lake without waves.Blaine and Colton

Hillary and Colt

Colton playing after a nap. . .really pumped for it.

Dirty birds, dirty beaches, dirty water. . .that is our estimation.

Today we went to Cedar Keys, a small fishing town that lies on the Gulf Coast just an hour away from Gainesville. Blaine had played ball here on his mission and I wanted to see it. It rained HARD there and back, compliments of Tropical Storm Fay but was sunny just long enough for us to walk the beach and take some pics.

Like a Sore Thumb

By this point he was done with the whole affair and ready for a nap.

Blaine invited Colt and I to tag along to his graduate school orientation this last Monday and we went. Boy were we in for a show and who knew that we were going to be the main attraction? The graduate program alone at U of F is just shy of the size of our last college's enrollment and we were the only ones present toting a baby stroller. Everyone looked at Colton like, 'what is that thing' and 'are you serious'. It made us laugh all the stares and comments--hey they are the ones missing out. We are lovin' life!

Neptune Beach Trip

I have yet to try boiled peanuts, but I'm going to!

Blaine and Colton just arriving at Neptune Beach. The sand is beautiful but the water isn't clear like in California; however, it wasn't cold so Colton loved it!

Colton loved the beach and by the end of our time he was a sandy mess!

Our Family: Hillary, Colton and Blaine

We decided to go see Jacksonville this Saturday, do some shopping at Costco and hit Neptune Beach up for fun. We were able to see two of Blaine's former mission areas (Starke and Jax Beaches) and it made me really appreciate all of his hard work on the mission. I'll never know how he biked in that humidity with a suit on (Way TO GO all you missionaries!!) In my experience, I've seen a lot of flea markets, side stands with boiled peanuts and produce, billboards galore (not always decent ones), firework stands every two miles, and a whole lot of churches since arriving in the South. We are loving every minute of our time here and trying to take every opportunity to enjoy the experience.

It's Official--We are Gators (Not Seminoles!)

Blaine is officially a student at U of F and gearing up for a long, long, long semester of hard work.

Day 3 St. Louis, Missouri to Nashville, Tennessee

The three of us at the base of the Arch.

View of St. Louis from the top--Our hotel is on the right with the red looking window covers.

Blaine and Colt in front of the old courthouse across from the Arch and next to our hotel.

Day three and still going strong. We walked over to the Gateway Arch in St. Louis and rode in this cramped little pod-like conveyor up to the very top of it(630 ft.!). The view from the top overlooked all of St. Louis on one side and the great Mississippi River on the other. We also toured the Thomas Jefferson museum there and then hit the road to make it to Nashville by late afternoon. We were exhausted by nightfall and after dinner at Applebees we hit the sack hard!

Day 2 Ogallala, Nebraska to St. Louis, Missouri

Are we there yet???

Hooray! Missouri was so green and the drive was pretty.

Finally almost there!

Our second day of driving to Florida went great and Colton was really good for us. (Probably due mostly to the fact that he had a rash and we were giving him Benadryl) It was rainy through Nebraska with terrific lightning storms and St. Louis was amazing to see at night. Our hotel was directly across from the Gateway to the West Arch right on the river.

Day 1 Mudlake, ID to Ogallalla, NB

Talk about being torn in two directions!

Colton bolted straight for the phone when we opened our hotel room door.

We enjoyed the good life of Nebraska for about a day. . .no complaints. Lots of corn, though!

The exciting territory within Wyoming. That was a long drive. . .

Our goal for the drive to Florida was to drive hard (750 miles) two days and span out the last three days. We made it in good time the first day to Nebraska and Colton was terrific but once we hit that hotel room he was a live wire. There was no way he was going to bed for an hour or two but he got his wiggles out and we slept great for another hard drive the next day.

Time with Furness Family

Uncle Jordan with Dad and meEeeeahh! Does that accurately describe my expression?

Hali and the Cheerleaders. Go West J!

Grandpa Furness and Colton enjoying the parade.

After we left Washington, we went straight to Idaho to spend four days with my family. They were so excited to see us they arranged to have a parade with the whole town (How nice!). . .NO-not really. It was fair time and my little sister Hali is a cheerleader so we went and watched her march but either way it was fun and great to see everyone come out for it.

Goodbye Washington

Colton has Barb wrapped around his little finger I'm afraid, and we were so excited to see her before our move and enjoy lunch together. We'll miss you!

Hooray for DVD's in vehicles. Colton enjoyed some of Scooby Doo on our way to Tri-Cities with the Calaway Fam as we gathered for our final dinner with all the kids before the big move.

Dallin, Ashley, Bradley, Blaine, Hillary & Janelle
Devin, Jeff & Colton, Derek, Valerie

We surprised Grandma & Grandpa Calaway with a last minute visit on our drive to Idaho. It was great to see them and visit one more time. Thank you for your support and encouragement!