Family Vacation 2012

Some of my fondest childhood memories are those spent at the Outer Banks or Ocean City, MD with my family. For me a family vacation is not just my immediate family, but aunts, uncles and cousins too. I love being with my family, and when you add the beach, it truly is paradise. This year we did something a little different when my immediate family joined our aunt's family in Florida. It truly was a blessed time. Here are some highlights of the trip.

  Well after the long 18 hour or so car drive, we finely reached our destination. We spent the first day taking it easy to catch up on sleep after driving through the night. Monday was the first day we ventured to do anything exciting. We all headed to Gatorama which serves as a wildlife preserve of sorts for thousands of alligators and crocodiles.

     There we witnessed the feeding of the crocs and gators. I would not want to have this lady's job, and the sign didn't really help my nerves. However, it was amazing to learn about God's creatures. We got to see them leap for their meat, and one even broke a board on the boardwalk. Let me tell you how comforting that was.

    The most exciting part of the whole experience was holding a baby alligator. The guide muzzled the mouth, so all I needed to look out for was the tail. This little guy had a soft underbelly and a pretty rock hard top. His feet felt strange. I always enjoy getting to take part in these random experiences.

   Later in the week, we ventured to Mayakka State Park. I saw 2 alligators out in the wild which was pretty neat. I saw a deer standing out in the swamp too. The wildlife in Florida is amazing! During the course of the week I saw all kinds of birds with beaks made for spearing fish, wild boars, armadillos, and a racoon that joined us for lunch one day. The squirrels seemed a little too friendly at times as they had no fear when it came to human contact. I was also close to several ravens which was exciting. They had bobcats and a cougar at Gatorama which were neat to see.

   Another amazing experience was kayaking. We traveled through mangroves. The point of the trip was to see manatees and dolphins. Though we did chase down some dolphins, we did not see any manatees on the trip. That was okay because we saw one at the beach. We also saw a turtle while kayaking too. So much fun!

  There were so many moments of this vacation I loved. I could say a lot more about it, but most of you who read this probably saw my pictures on facebook already. Another special time was a heart to heart with my daddy. At this point in life, we both stay pretty busy. It was such an encouraging time as he related to different things I am going through. Honestly this summer I have relished in the wisdom of my parents, aunts and best friends. The Lord is so good to me, and I am thankful for the encouragement He gives when things get hard. I don't know how many family vacations like this we have left, but I soaked it all up. What a great week!