That Point Where the Sea and Sky Run Together

And on the last day, we woke up to sunny skies and crashing waves.  I went down at 7am to claim our umbrella but the people we had been sitting by all week must have gotten there at six because they were already seated and settled and ready to talk.  I don't really speak in the first hour or so after waking up so I think my clipped, tired answers offended their Southern dispositions.  Oh well.  I left a towel and spread out a few things in front of the second umbrella from the end before heading back up to the room for a couple more hours of sleep.

After a slow hour of coffee and appreciating our fifth floor view, we headed down for a relaxing last day on the beach.  We didn't get to relax very long, however, due to a pack of middle-aged men carting all manner of chairs and coolers that decided to stop right in front of us.  I had run out to stand in the spot they were heading but didn't make it in time.  Mom saved the day though by yelling out to ask them to move over by about four feet.  Our view of the water was saved!

We started working on a sandcastle right away, keeping it fairly small though because it was just the two of us.  The water was pretty choppy and had a strong undertow to the left, so when not working on the castle, we were enjoying beach beverages under the umbrella.

A few hours later some pretty formidable dark clouds rolled in, and with it came a short rain shower.  People fled the beach fairly quickly, including our frat boy reunion poachers, but the rain ended shortly after.  It stayed cloudy, but I stayed down for a while longer to finish up the castle.

What a lovely last day.  We were lucky the two rain days were in the middle of the week, which gave us a break from the sun, but then we got to enjoy the beach once again before leaving.  I had a lot of fun hanging out with Mom and Dad.  It was a different kind of vacation without the rest of the family, but we had a great time making the 12-hour drive down, eating lots of seafood, constructing sandcastles, watching movies, and enjoying cocktails on the beach.

And later that night, Mom and I were treated to one last sunset for the ages.

The next morning we woke up early and headed home towards Nashville.  We stopped there overnight to see the newlyweds.  For some reason the drive took forever so we were pretty exhausted upon arriving, but we went to a cool burger place for dinner and then saw Andrew play music at this little place under a billboard.  Doesn't it look like a movie set?!

The following morning we had brunch at a delightful little coffee and brunch place where I had a delicious plate of peach waffles and good, smooth coffee.  The black, white, and pale pink theme looked extra good in picture format.  It was nice to see Andrew and Juliana, and was the perfect way to wrap up our last minute Florida getaway.  Until next summer!

(photos by e.hunt)