Trip to the West Coast of Florida

In August, we took advantage of Mark's last summer break and headed to the west coast of Florida. We lucked out because we got to go with some of our favorite people. We found out that our friends Sean and Amy were planning on doing the same trip that week. It was such great luck!

Here we are at Sanibel Island the first day. I told Mark that if he wore his favorite "vacation" shirt that he wouldn't be in any pictures. I know I am mean but I can't help it! I can just see an old man with a gross hairy chest walking around in it. Well sad to say that he wore it AND we got a picture of him in it. I couldn't resist accepting Amy's offer to take a family picture. It is not everyday that we have someone there offering.

These next ones are of me and Lucy hanging out on the beach. In the meantime, Mark spotted dolphins while he was by the water with Sean!







These are of cute baby Heidi...

and Sean and Kirk flying a kite.


We were able to see a ton of jumping fish at the J Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge before we left the island. Last of all, we ended the night having dinner at a Crab Shack. It was lots of fun eating a tasty grouper sandwich for the first time and not having the only baby who was making a mess under the table. You should have seen the crushed saltines and sugar packets we left under there! Our poor waitresses...hope Mark tipped her well.

The next day we saw Edison and Ford's winter homes right on the coast. I definitely couldn't complain about that kind of winter life! It was beautiful!


Odenwalder Family

Lucy was pretty good about missing her scheduled naps. One minute she was smiling and happy...

and the next minute she was taking a power nap in her stroller.

Before we left, we stopped in the invention museum where I got a picture of Model Mark with the Model T. :)


The next highlight was driving to Venice Beach where we found ancient shark teeth in the sand.
The sand was also a highlight for Lucy.

There were so many tiny shells for her to look at...

crawl around in...


sit in...

and hold.

We loved the shells on the west coast. However, there is nothing like the clear, blue water on our side of the coast. Oh how I will miss Florida and the fun trips we've have taken here.

Morikami Gardens

Our friends Elise and Anthony invited us to go to a Japanese garden called Morakami Gardens in West Palm beach. I loved discovering something fun to do that I didn't know about in Florida. These were some of the highlights:
Bamboo Forest



Grated Rock Garden

Bonsai Tree Collection


Cute Kid Collection


Exhibit on Japanese Life

Mark found his favorite thinking spot while in the exhibit.

He also made himself feel right at home...too bad it was a fake home...

...with fake noodles.

We had a great time with our friends. Perfect way to spend our Friday night!

July 4th, 2011

Our 4th was a favorite. We started the holiday off having Sunday dinner with friends, then took pictures of Lucy in a 4th of July sailor suit. Oh Jenny--How I love your hand me downs!

The next morning I had the best surprise! Mark got up with Lucy so I could sleep in. Then he made me a huge breakfast! When I first walked down the hallway, Lucy was sitting on the table, already dressed, with a big plate of breakfast next to her. Even though Lucy's shirt was on backwards, I was so impressed with Mark's thoughtfulness. The holiday was already a special one for me.

Our next meal was with friends at a place near our house called New River Groves. It is a fun little place with food Florida is known for. My personal favorite is the lobster bisque.





I was SO excited all day to go see the fireworks on the beach that night. Mark was really worried about parking but agreed to drive over and try. I am so glad he did because we found parking right on the beach!
We had fun waiting for the fireworks with our friends Heidi, Alex, Greyson, and Jeff.

I was all ready to get a picture of Lucy on the beach when she grabbed a hand full of sand and shoved it in her mouth before I could do anything. She still lived so I guess it was okay. Heidi got this cute picture of her enjoying it.



The firework show was one of the best I have seen. Not because it had amazing fireworks, but because I loved the reflections on the water. It made for such a beautiful and peaceful atmosphere. I also loved it because we were able to not only see the fireworks at Hollywood beach, but three other shows along the coast--from Miami all the way up to West Palm Beach.



It is so weird for me to think that this was our last 4th of July in Florida. It makes me a little sad because we have so many wonderful memories of holidays here. I am so glad we took the opportunity to see fireworks on the beach because it is something I will probably never be able to see again. What a fabulous 4th of July we had!

Busy Mark

Old dental students in my ward used to tell me that the last years of dental school were the best because when Mark was home for the day he was "home" and didn't have to study at night. I guess he doesn't have to study as much but I feel like he is always leaving. I complained one day when Mark was leaving after just getting home and this is what he did to console me...


Nice try Mark. A fake you is not quite the same. A distorted fake you is really not quite the same. It did freak me out a couple of times when I walked in the room though.
I should just be grateful for school holidays. What will I do next year? No spring breaks? No two week break at Christmas? How will I cope?

11 Months

The best words to describe Lucy at 11 months is that she loves life. Because of her pleasant disposition, she is an easy baby. I really have to keep track on when she last ate and slept because most of the time she is content and happy. I love the optimism her little spirit brings into our home.












Lucy often thinks that things are funny when they are not meant to be. We babysat her little friend Oliver and for 10 whole minutes she was laughing--at nothing. Lucy thought Oliver was hilarious. Oliver on the other hand was probably wondering..."What is wrong with this girl?" ;)