After the wedding we headed to AMI for a little relaxing and fun! We just love this place and the time we get to spend with our friends.
But first donuts!
First leg of the trip!
Quick layover.
Second leg!
The first thing we had to do was take a dip in the hotel pool.
Dinner at the Cheesecake Factory in Tampa. Yum!
A huge candy cart we saw in the Tampa mall.
Rental car and Starbucks! Ready to hit the beach.
And finally we made it to the island! We were hungry so stopped for some burgers.
Last year we didn't get a golf cart big enough for all of us, this year, we did and it was HUGE!
While we waited for our house to open we took the kids to the Pier while the guys went for groceries.
And we finally got into our house and this was the view from the crow's nest.
We couldn't way to get to the beach!
After some time at the beach we loaded up on the golf cart!
No trip to AMI is complete without a trip (or 2 or 3) to the ice cream store!
I would say day one was a hit, bring on day two!
In this photo I see the wave coming....
...and this was the next photo!
Notice Natalie in front of Julia getting ready to boogie board.
See Julia boogie boarding and Natalie just smiling?
And then it happened! Julia ran right over Natalie!
Ha! Ha!
I love this shot of Jeff.
I had to give it a go too.
Cassidy couldn't resist either!
After some beach time we headed back to the pool. The kids found that they could "inflate" their swim shirts and float. It was hilarious.
The sunset was beautiful.
On Tuesday we decided to go jet skiing. We should have rethought that one. It was a little rough!
On Wednesday we decided to try a little slower pace. We went kayaking and it was awesome!
This island was a habitat for a lot of different birds. It was very interesting.
Our guide found a sea urchin.
And a little sea star.
And soon after the sea urchin and star we spotted a manatee!
We also saw a blue crab!
Natalie found another urchin and our guide picked it up for her.
And here we all are!
We stopped at a little beach and found some fun shells.
On the way back we saw a couple dolphin.
Thursday at the beach was another great day!
The waves were a little rough so thought we could try our floating island.
The island was all good and fun until it encountered a tidal wave.
We did also sneak off for some snorkeling and shelling at a different beach without the kids.
We took the kids to the Pier where we watched someone catch a shark!
Our house had an elevator and I just love this shot of Jeff with the kids!
We took the kids to the beach with great shells!
Another great sunset.
Our house had three floors and I was forever getting lost. First floor pool, second floor bedrooms and third floor kitchen. Bob very thoughtfully made this sign.
And another spin in the golf cart!
Friday morning Cassidy and I got up early and went to watch the turtle patrol excavate a hatched nest. They dig the nest up and count the hatched shells and eggs that didn't hatch.
What we didn't expect was a hatchling that had been cared for overnight that they had brought to the beach to release. It was amazing!
Here is a video of the little turtle making his way to the sea!
After he made it to the sea they finished excavating the nest. There were 80 hatched eggs!
We then went to a new nest that showed up overnight. It was incredible to see where the Momma turtle came out of the sea, laid the eggs and headed back out. To verify the next they dig down until they can see one egg. Then they rope it off to keep it safe.
And it was time for our last afternoon at the beach!
We also took the golf cart out for another spin!
And I couldn't not show a photo of my favorite dish - lobster mac and cheese! Yum!
Another great sunset!
And Saturday morning on the Pier, a little shopping and then heading back to Wichita!
Another fantastic vacation in the books!
