How did January get to mid-February SO FAST?! Oh, I know. It took a LEAP! 😉😉
Here’s the recap of our last six weeks:
- 525 miles traveled in the RV, from our southernmost point in Ft Lauderdale to our northernmost in Fernandina Beach
- 5 family members visited, including a cousin we hadn’t seen in almost 8 years 😊
- 125 friends visited and more new friends were made! Disclaimer: 65+ of our friends are our home church family
- 3 driveways surfed with friends
- 1 farm stay with 2 horses, dozens of free-range chickens, wild turkeys, goats, and cockatiels!
- 4 State Parks camped in and visited – Savannas Preserve State Park, Sebastian Inlet State Park, Anastasia State Park, and Fort Clinch State Park
- 2 rocket launches from Cape Canaveral on January 7 & 8, viewed from our campsite in Sebastian Inlet State Park! This was serendipitous, for sure. We had no clue about these launches, but the campground was abuzz about them when we pulled in. We walked out of our RV and set up our chairs along the inlet, facing ENE, for a perfect view! The first was around sunset. We watched it and heard it roar for miles and miles! The second was at 2:18 AM, yes, AM! Being the adventurers that we are, we set our alarm for 1:45 AM, bundled up for the chilly 50o night, and watched from the same spot. I think we were the only two people out there, but it was a spectacular launch in the night sky! Who needs sleep?!
- 1 behind-the-scenes tour at the historic Hippodrome Theatre in Gainesville with our BFFs, Donald & Rosalie. It’s a super informative tour, including an adult beverage to sip & stroll with, and we highly recommend it!
- 1 visit to the Florida Museum of Natural History in Gainesville, again with our BFFs, plus a lot of dinosaurs, sea creatures, and Calusa tribe exhibits!
- 4 churches worshipped in, including our home church, Grace Church in Yulee/Fernandina. How very special to be with this church family again for a few weeks!
- 70 miles walked/hiked (it’s been so great to walk with my Amelia Island Walkers!! Also, we made the hard decision to put our bikes in storage. Going forward, our travel pace will be quickening and the terrain won’t be bike-friendly for the most part, so we’ll be hiking more, but not biking)
- 1 birthday celebrated, Stacie’s. Last fall, we won a two-night stay at the Hampton Inn on the downtown riverfront in Fernandina, so we saved it for this occasion. We had a full suite with a fireplace overlooking the marina! We ate at some of our favorite restaurants, went to the Amelia Island Museum of History, and strolled and shopped like tourists…so fun!
- 1 famous Nights of Lights Tour in St Augustine! The historic district (and the whole city, actually) is transformed into twinkle twinkle-light paradise. The highlight was hearing young Thomas ooh and ahh through the 3D glasses that turn the streetlights and car headlights into reindeer and snowflakes…so cool!
- 1 big project completed: Tom and our BFF, Donald, completed the DIY installation of solar panels (800 watts) on our roof. That was a logistical feat of engineering to be sure! Tom’s next feat is to get them all wired into the battery bank and inverter.
- 1 fun project for young Thomas in St Augustine! Papa Tom designed and built a backyard playground apparatus for him. He calls it the T-Tower, Phase 1 and includes a slack line. He had help from a local friend (thanks, John K!) and they finished in one day. Phase 2 will happen when we return over the next couple of weeks and will include a climbing wall addition!
- No RV crises or failures to report, thankfully, but we did have some unexpected repair work needed on our suspension that required us to leave the RV in the shop for a few days and stay in a hotel. We had spare hotel points to cover the cost, so all was well. 😊
Our final sunset at Ft Clinch State Park did not disappoint! We’re now back on the farm near Meredith and our grands for a couple of weeks! Then we’re northward bound out of state, through many states!
