mlk day in chilly florida

to escape our mild nyc winter we booked a trip to sunny florida for the long weekend. of course it was much warmer than home but we were a bit whiny about the mid 60 degree weather.  

as always, andrea and i took advantage of mom's hot rolling skills. 

dad brought home tons of juicing oranges from a neighbors yard so... i squeezed. it was delicious and even though we had to wear more layers than we would have liked to we sipped it in the sun.

we spent an afternoon at the clearwater aquarium. it was a bit heartbreaking but good to see all the great work that is done at this rescue and release organization. 

the waters were filled with disabled or rehabbing turtles and dolphins. below is the poor dolphin, winter, who was found in a fishing line and lost his tale. a recent disney movie was inspired by his story and has brought tons of publicity and money to the aquarium. 

can you even believe mom was willing to touch the rays? 

we will have to go back and enjoy the warmth and beach again soon! 

lunch, flat tire, missed ceremony, reception of a lifetime

 

after a mediocre lunch at gaspar's grotto in ybor city...

a flat tire on the way to the hotel caused us to miss joe and folake's wedding ceremony. the boys weren't devastated, after all, "nobody cares about the ceremony". i on the other hand am in love with anything that has to do with love so...i was upset. 

we made our way to the reception despite our cab nearly breaking down...

for more on the beautiful bride and groom

traditional nigerian attire, food, music, and nearly 500 people made this the most unique wedding reception i have ever experienced...

the bride and groom were constantly being 'sprayed' with money by family and friends while they danced. can't you just see the excitment in joe's face!

rob and i had a blast dancing to the live nigerian tunes and i was absolutely thrilled and honored when one of the women 'sprayed' me! husband was jealous! 



'lingo'

we spent friday night in tampa at the 'lingo' household aka lindsey and ingo(rob and i would kill for such a cool paparazzi name).

cute little family

world of beer!

so much fun 'seat dancing' and singing to the one man band...you make me want to shoop lindsey.

24 hours

rob and i spent the weekend with family, friends, and celebration in sunny florida. the weekend began with a quick 24 hours with mom & dad.

we headed to the beach from the airport on thursday to check out the supermoon but were disappointed. i guess it would have been best to watch it rise during sunset on saturday (we missed that).

friday, mom and i spent a few hours shopping. it was so nice to enjoy the 'mother-daughter time' we so rarely get. rob and dad went to the fish market and we all came together on the beach... 

rob got in the water...a true 'cape coder'...too cold for me

a tour of dad's new boat

bee in the lemon tree in the back yard

grilled grouper, steak, and vegetable kabobs and we had to say 'see you later'.

looking forward

looking forward to our upcoming (in two weeks) mini trip to florida to enjoy some of this...

and maybe some of this...

and of course my parents, buster (maybe doing this), lindsey, ingo, and the reason for the trip...joe and folake taking the plunge into wedded bliss

(off the topic but...looking forward to springing forward this weekend!)