Sunny Beaches ... Fresh Oysters

During Ryan's last week in Florida, my dad and mom flew out from Colorado, making it a family affair! We had so much fun together -- going out to eat, church worship night, a canoe trip, movie night, lots of card games and Liar's Dice, and of course a couple days out at the beach!

Considering sand dollars are my favorite finds on the beach, I was pumped to see the boys' spoils from snorkeling.

After the beach we went to a Panama City staple: Hunt's Oyster Bar. It's been in business since the '60s and has some of the best Apalachicola oysters you can find, and at only $4.95 a dozen, we ordered 4 dozen to share!

It's sad to think that this was our last time to have family visit in Florida, but I guess next time we'll just have to show them around SoCal! Love you guys, and thanks again for coming to visit us; we had a blast! :)

PS- Please forgive all the photo editing. Someone just discovered PicNik.com. :)

Running with Bears

So this morning I went on a run before work (I'm currently working as a kindergarten aide, so I don't have to go in until 8:30). I left the house at the same time Shaun left to pick up his carpooling friends.

It just so happens that as I was turning the corner of our street to run down the one in the picture, Shaun and his friend saw this huge black bear barreling across the street that I was about to turn on. Since Shaun knows my usual running loop, he and his friend drove the bear away and then circled back around to give me a heads up about the situation.

Boy, am I glad I didn't decide to run earlier this morning!

PS- If you click on the picture, it makes it bigger and you can see just how big that bear was.

Brotherly Love

My brother Ryan came out to visit for three weeks in July. This was his first visit to our Florida home, and will be the last since we're moving in December. Unfortunately many of his days were filled with Floridian thunderstorms, which allowed for lots of sleeping in, Netflix, and reading. Occasionally the sun would reappear, leaving us with the chance to go to the pool or beach. Here's some snippets from his trip:

The boys grillin' out on the playground next to our house.

We decided to try something new while Ryan was out with us -- renting jet skis for a 2-hour dolphin tour!

We got the jet skis up to 83 mph (which freaked me out as a passenger, helplessly hitting wakes and being thrown into my driver's back) and most importantly, spent time swimming alongside a mommy dolphin and her young baby. Shaun dove down and touched the mom, regretting that we left our snorkel masks in the car. We didn't have a camera with us either, but this picture I found on trip advisor gives a good idea of what our experience was like.

This photo of Sunshine Watersports of P.C. is courtesy of TripAdvisor

After a hot afternoon in the southern sun and water, one must regain energy through calories. And if those calories come in rib-and-pulled-pork form from a local hot spot (namely Sea Breeze BBQ's food truck on Tyndall Parkway), then all the better!

Brothers-in-law out for dinner on Panama City Beach before a worship night.

Shaun was happy to have a playmate at the beach. Though I will occasionally get in the water to cool off, I prefer the sand. With Ryan, however, Shaun had a partner in snorkeling!

Ryan came out during his 23rd birthday, which we filled with sushi at our favorite sushi place (note: raw conch is chewier than you'd think) and lots of ice cream!

We were honored that you chose to celebrate with us, Ryan, and that you took the time to come spend some time with your nerdy big sister ("Ryan, go stand next to the open sign!") and brother-in-law. We love you!

Oh, and when we move to LA, you better not wait 2 years before coming to visit! :)

Thunderstorms

There are few things I love more than waking up to a thunderstorm and having nowhere to be.

I woke up this morning in just such a scenario and took my own precious time laying in bed and listening to the rain hit my window. But what good is a storm without snuggling up in a blanket with a book and a steaming mug? So I came downstairs and, after opening all of our blinds, made some hot tea and grabbed my book.

Florida, hands-down, has the best thunderstorms I've ever witnessed. There are the peaceful morning storms that roll in off the water, like this morning, and then there are the powerful, wild ones that wake you in your sleep and leave you with pre-Edison technology. The rain comes in torrents, the thunder shakes the sky, and the lightning streaks through the clouds.

We had a thunderstorm a couple months ago that took our power out a couple of times. The rain was literally coming sideways. We stepped out on our screened-in porch to watch at one point, and in the blink of an eye, the wind shifted. We could barely make the two steps inside before we were soaked clear through our clothes! We took a little video of it from our front door:

Note that in the video, it is not 10 pm, rather 5:30 pm, and our door has a awning that stretches a good four feet from the door!

Alaskan Glacier Cruise

While in Seward, Shaun, his parents, and I went on a 7-hour glacier cruise. Don't let the clothing fool you, it still was in June, but the glacier's windy air required a few extra layers! We set sail on the Kenai Star and got settled in to watch the animals and amazing landscapes around us...

Our tour company for the cruise

This was the best evidence we had of the pod of humpback whales we saw. There was an occasional dorsal hump or tail that would break through the water, but it was impossible to time them. But this blast of spray is the best I can offer you. You'll just have to take my word for it.

The glacier was so cool... literally. Glaciers produce their own wind because of the temperature differences. It was surreal to have the captain shut off the engines and let us listen to the cracks and splashes as chunks broke off into the sea.

Can you spot the kayak right up there next to the glacier?

An otter!!

Puffins

So many sea lions! At one point, Dan counted over 70 of them. And this was just one of several spots where we saw a large group (called a raft) of sea lions.

Another raft of them

Our excursion was so much fun. Between laughing as we tottered around the rocking boat and marveling at the waiter balancing our three cups of hot chocolate up the stairs to our table, we found fun even within the confines of our boat. And we learned lots of new information for future trivia games! :)

For instance, why does glacier ice appear blue? Because the ice crystals absorb most of the visible light spectrum, but the blue light waves have more energy, allowing some of it to reflect off the crystals and appear blue. (If you win Jeopardy on that one, you're welcome.)

America's Last Frontier

Beware, this post has an abundance of pictures... It's going to be a long one! :)

Shaun's parents, Shaun and I all drove down to Seward, AK for a night. We hiked near a glacier and went on a glacier cruise before meeting up with Josh and Kelli in Cooper Landing, AK for two nights. This picture is from the drive out:

Photo ops from the drive out

In Seward, Shaun and I stayed in a yurt, which is basically a little tent set up with a sturdier frame. This is us in front of it and Shaun inside of it.

We went on the Exit Glacier hiking trail while in Seward. It was my favorite hike of the trip -- shady for most of the walking, waterfalls, and a glacier to cool you down when you're done! The trail started off with a convenient commentary on wildlife you might run into:

All packed up and ready to hike!

This plant is so lush and tropical-looking, not to mention TALL! All the plants in Alaska get huge because the sun is out for 22 hours a day.

Exit Glacier

Exit Glacier with the sunshine

The O'Bryants next to the glacier

Dinner post-hike, look at that view!

A little otter friend to entertain us from the window

The next day it was off to Cooper Landing, AK. We rented this house for two nights and took some time to see the area by land and by river!

Kelli found the rocking duck on the porch! :)

Josh caught it; Kelli cooked it; we loved it! Such a good salmon dinner!!

This wood-burning stove was in the middle of the cabin. Did someone say s'mores?

Kelli's idea of adding strawberries to the s'more was genius!

O'Bryant ladies

O'Bryant men

[Josh is O'Bryant by proxy] :)

On a hunt to find bears (and other wildlife), we took a river floating trip. Unfortunately, we didn't see a bear, but we saw lots of other animals, especially eagles!

On the raft with our guide Brad

Count the eagles that you see -- I see 3!

And what's an Alaska trip without some more wildlife encounters? Here's a couple of random shots:

This moose was practically on the side of the highway!

We saw them often from our cars, and even from our bedroom windows!

And to top this (extremely long) post off... a video of the salmon run!!