A brand new (to me) door

So we finally MOVED! Yup. That's why I haven't been posting many pictures. Too many boxes, too much of a nasty cold, and too many decorating decisions. Take this picture for example. That is our neighbor's door. So Florida. So snowbird. What am I to hang on our new doorway? Hmmm. A wreath of fake oranges? A Pelican silhouette? I need help!

Ghostly apparitions at the aquarium

We took the grandchild (accompanied by responsible parents) to the Florida Aquarium and Rich was brave enough to walk through the scary mist. We had just witnessed the eerie beauty of the largest stingray I have ever seen. All of us enjoyed the visit. This is an easy to navigate and very interesting museum. Through the plexi-glass we watched the ducks dive underwater and the sea otter slide through the water. All up close and personal. Can't wait for the next grandchild to be born and alert enough to go visit again!

Vaaarrrrroooooom!

How much fun is the racetrack? The rumble and buzz of the cars zooming past sets the tone and the madness of them jostling for position along a sinuous curve at high speeds is exhilarating! I'm just glad I'm not the one in the car :-D

This past weekend Rich and I went to Sebring, Florida to watch his friend race. We were keeping track of the blue car in the bottom right of the picture. He came in fifth after being bumped on this turn, spinning and then pulling right back onto the track. Way to go Larry!

The ride to and from the track was interesting as well. Sebring is orange and cattle country. We passed row after row of orange trees and acres of land being grazed by cattle. Sunday morning when we drove out early for breakfast the icicles were joining the bottoms of the orange trees with the earth. Abnormally low temperatures were threatening practically every kind of farming in Florida this past weekend. It was pretty though, the way wicked things sometimes are.

Moseying on a Sunday afternoon

Finally we've had time to do some more exploring in our own neighborhood! We spent Sunday at MOSI - the Museum of Science and Industry in Tampa.

We visited the Mind Bender exhibit first and felt very not smart as we exited. Sheesh! I had really been eager to see Disasterville, which was entertaining and who knew half those facts? We left Disasterville feeling much smarter.

The IMAX theater and Planetarium were dramatic as expected, but more entertaining were the children in them. Responding to the narrator, crying, laughing, wiggling...

We couldn't resist taking part in the exhibits either. In Disasterville we rode in the fire engine and you can see Rich's new hairdo in this Warhol-ish photo taken in the tornado simulator.

Totally Tea

My brother in Indianapolis sent me home with a knot for a pot of my favorite tea - jasmine. And as the package and he promised, with some just-about-boiling-water it blossomed. And over a steaming cup of incredible smelling tea my daughter and I shared secrets on a sunny afternoon. Not just tea, but time too. It was so much fun I thought I'd share it with the world. On a plate as it were.

Barbie meets the dinosaur

Barbie is checking out the dinosaur. Yup. She is looking over to check him out. How could I resist the tension? This Children's Museum is the coolest looking building I have ever seen. If only I had gone inside...

Holly Jolly

Rich and I just experienced the bone-chilling cold in Indianapolis and Chicago. It was well worth suffering a little cold to have the chance to visit with family and it can't be denied that Santa's reindeer were creating quite a scene as you can see in this picture over the hood of our car! What kind of decorations are taking over your neighborhood?