Sunday on the Water

Many Florida kids go back to school tomorrow and though my sister and I are many years removed from high school, today felt like it was one of those perfect “last days of summer.”

We rounded up the whole family and our designated boat dog, dubbed “Shark Bait,” and spent nearly six hours out on the water.

My dad took us in and out of canals and around some houses.

Doesn’t my parents’ house look nice from the back?

Totally kidding. If that were really my parents’ house, I’m pretty sure Ryan and I would move into the guest house on the left hand side with Sadie and be permanent freeloaders. I’d offer to make meals and Ryan could earn his keep by doing yard work or something. Sadie would provide the fertilizer. We’d make it work juuuust fine.

Our time on the boat was spent speeding through Tampa Bay before deciding it was time to swim. We anchored up about 75 yards off shore of the Fort DeSoto dog beach.

My mom and sister took Sadie there last weekend (remember my mom’s recount of their visit?) and Ryan and I were both anxious to check it out.

The minute Ryan dove into the ocean, Sadie jumped right off the boat to join him.

Sadie is actually a fantastic swimmer, but we strapped her in the doggie lifejacket for extra safety.

I hopped in quickly after them, with my mom, dad and sister joining us a couple minutes later.

Once on the beach we spent a good while walking around and saying hi to the other dogs before playing in the waves.

My mom and Ryan also found a bunch of sand dollars!

Eventually it was time to head back, so we swam to the boat and headed home. Before pulling up the anchor, we ate a bunch of snacks from the cooler. What is it about swimming that makes everyone so hungry?

We were about an hour from home, so everyone fell asleep on the boat while my dad sped through the water and got us home safely.

Once home, my mom prepared a delicious late lunch of lobster and fish that my dad got on a scuba diving trip to the Keys last weekend.

I took a picture of my lobster tail while waiting for everyone to join me at the dinner table, but then totally got sidetracked and didn’t snap any more pictures. Woops.

It was a good meal though! Any kind of seafood caught by my dad and prepared by my mom is a winner.

We hung out for a while longer, doing laundry and being lazy, before saying our goodbyes.

Of course it was sad to say bye to everyone and Sadie, but I will be back at my parents’ house on Wednesday because I fly out of Tampa for a trip to Philadelphia for the Healthy Living Summit on Thursday morning.

Now we’re back in Ocala.

Home sweet hotel.

Hope you guys had a fantastic weekend!

P.S. The Fashion page was updated this evening.