Moonflower

or Flor D'Luna as Carlos Santana says... great song by the way. I planted this moonflower vine (Ipomoea alba) early this spring to wrap around a triangle trellis that my parents gave me. It is related to the morning glory but some call it an evening glory because these flowers only open... in the evening!... and by morning they shrivel up. The fluted flowers grow 5-6 inches across and are a pure, alabaster white. As if the flower isn't pretty enough, it also has a fabulous fragrance with the primary purpose to attract moths. All this and it is easy to care for - once it was established, I haven't had to do a thing to it. Sorry northerners, this one is for Florida only.
According to Grant there is a "seastar in the middle" - click on the photo for a better view of it.A not-so-good picture of the trellis (or flower), will have to retake this one...

NOW it's gone

It came out with breakfast this morning. Hopefully the tooth fairy will be more impressed than Harley is...

Going, going, GONE, and almost gone

Olivia's top front teeth have been loose forever but she finally lost one after biting into a pretzel. She smiled giddily through all the blood and crumbs... wish I had thought to take a picture of that, instead you just get the bloody napkin.So now we are left with its partner hanging on for dear life. For a child who practically yanked out her first one at the mere hint of being loose, she won't let us near this one. But she has tweaked it just enough so that she now looks a bit like a crazed pirate.She is waiting for it to fall so that she can put the two of them together under her pillow in hopes that the tooth fairy will be extra impressed.
Grant had to have his photo op with the tooth also.

Why do I miss south Florida

Let me count the ways...

#1 (by far!!) Nice Neighbors, but FABULOUS Friends

We never thought we'd stay in south Florida forever or even the six years that we did, but when it came time to leave it was brutally hard to say good-bye to people near and dear to us. For both of us that included friends, neighbors, colleagues - and some folks fit all THREE of those descriptions. WE MISS YOU ALL!#2 The Ocean

I am still in withdrawl stages of not living within biking distance of the ocean. While we visit a lot, it isn't quite the same. Especially this kind of ocean...#3 Jobs (really?!)
Who can say that they absolutely love their job? I did!!

Job #1: Broward Co. Department of Planning & Environmental Protection
For those of you who don't know (or can't believe it), you'd be amazed at what local government can do with the right leadership and staff. Many great mentors and friends there.

Job #2: Florida Sea Grant/Broward County... the one I adored...
and who wouldn't when you get to scuba dive, travel to the Caribbean and spend your days protecting the ocean.

#4 Shop 'till you drop
I love to shop. I admit it. So when it's Gainesville vs. south Florida - come on, not even close.

#5 Florida Keys
Drinking, Diving, Fishing. Someone once told me that if you don't enjoy these 3 things, you won't enjoy the Keys. I do enjoy these things, so no problem there. There is more to the Keys but I'm convinced that much of it is a state of mind. Some of my top 5 all time best memories have ties there and certainly Don and I wouldn't be together if if weren't for the Florida Keys.#6 The Everglades
A lot of people would never associate south Florida with nature but one would need only to read my top 10 to be proven wrong. Beautiful place. Unfortunate story. Promising Future??#7 Mangoes
There is no better fruit, and mango daiquiris aren't bad either. Our neighbors had a 60 yr old tree that produced the best tasting mangoes around - big, sweet, not stringy. They didn't like mangoes much so we had more than our share. It was a sad day when Hurricane Wilma knocked it down.#8 Let them eat!
Cuban, Jamaican, Persian, Indian, Thai, Greek, Seafood, Vegetarian, French, Brazilian, Peruvian, Cajun - to name just a few of our faves. We ate out ALL the time - way more than we should.

#9 Professional Sports

a. I was born a Packer fan (LaCrosse, WI circa 1969) and bred a Redskins fan. Go Skins! As such, there was no room for Miami Dolphins even if they have a cute mascot. But after 6 years of watching them play, reading about them in the sport sections, discussing them at the water cooler, working down the street from their practice facilities, going to some games... I did become somewhat of a Dol-fan (Ricky Williams saga and 1-15 season included). Now that we are 6 hours north and closer to the JAX Jaguars and TB Bucs, I still root for the Dolphins - and since the only allegiance in this town is to the Gators, I doubt I'll be switching anytime soon. Breaking news!: Jason Taylor was just traded to the Redskins!!! Maybe my chat with his wife started things in motion! (See Celebrity Sighting).

b. Florida Marlins (soon to be Miami Marlins)
As much as I enjoy sports, baseball doesn't do much for me. Too slow? Too boring? But we definitely had fun watching the 2004 Marlins team of no-names take the world series. Definitely caught some MLB fever that year (have since lost it... but it was a fun ride).

#10 My OB/GYN

I know there are a zillion potential jokes here...
However, really, he was just a great doctor and person as was his wife/office manager. They ran a small, family-oriented practice in a big city - hard to find genuine care like that any more. And he delivered both Olivia and Grant... or did the dolphins?????

Goodbye again, south Florida

We spent our last evening in south Florida staying on the beach until the sun started to set. All four of us were the most relaxed we had been in awhile.Other trip photos...

Time for some campaignin'

Send a JibJab Sendables® eCard Today!

Celebrity Sighting

One evening while enjoying the beach park near our hotel, we had a celebrity sighting. And not only did we have a celebrity sighting, but I also had a celebrity conversation. I recognized her right away - Don was clueless. Katina Taylor, wife of Jason Taylor. Okay, so a sort-of celebrity sighting. For not-in-the-know family and friends, Jason Taylor is a defensive end for the Miami Dolphins. But maybe you know him from last season's Dancing with the Stars - I'm not a fan of that show (SYTYCD is so much better) but I did watch it last season (who wouldn't with Jason Taylor on it?!). She is also the sister of Zach Thomas (former linebacker with the Dolphins, now with the Cowboys - yuck-boo). Anyhow, to prove it I took a picture, much to Don's dismay. However, I wouldn't make a very good paparazzo as I just couldn't bring myself to take a picture where she might notice me doing so. So... you get to see the back of her head, and their three kids. Our conversation was an interesting one too... we talked about the kids sliding, the nice weather and that neither her daughter or my son were wearing underwear because they both had pooped in them some time earlier that day.

It's all Greek to me

We met up one evening with Don's college friend, Doug Laurie for a boat cruise to eat at Taverna Opa, a favorite south Florida restaurant of ours. Now, this is not just a boat, it is a BOAT!, and then some. Check it out:

Olivia in the fighting chair...Don and Olivia on the flybridge...Olivia's favorite place was down below in the plush cabin. Unbelievably beautiful - both the boat and the weather that evening. Could the night get better? Well, yes it could. If you've never been to a Greek restaurant like Taverna Opa, you are missing out. The food is excellent, the staff is friendly and the dancing is fun. During our meal the staff did their line dance around the restaurant.Earlier that day the kids and I went to a "Geddy the Gecko" show and ironically the only picture I took was of the traditional male Greek line dancing.After line dancing, staff begin table dancing and shortly thereafter, invite patrons up as well. Olivia hesitated for just a moment before climbing right up. The girl never ceases to amaze me.
At another Taverna Opa (in Hollywood, FL) they smash plates on the floor but not here for two reasons: 1. they are right on the water and 2. they had a law suit. Instead, they throw napkins - you can see them here.Olivia kept wanting to dance, especially when Brian asked her...Should I be worried?

South Florida wild life

Oops, I meant WILDLIFE. Big difference between south Florida wildlife and south Florida wild life. As you can imagine, much of our time was spent on the beach, mostly swimming or beachcombing. We came across plenty of interesting things so I asked Grant and Olivia to post their favorite findings.

Grant's Fave - can you see it?

Blue buttons
(Porpita porpita)

These were new to us. They look like jellyfish but they aren't. Whereas jellyfish are single organisms, these creatures are colonial - the tentacles are individual zooids; each of which is specialized for a particular function, such as digestion, prey capture, or reproduction... making them more like a Portuguese-Man-o'war. They are a beautiful blue and were washed up everywhere for only one day.Olivia's Fave

Sea Turtle Nests

Tis the season for sea turtle nesting and they were everywhere. We saw mostly Loggerhead nests and a few Greens. Almost every morning we found a new nest that had been made the night before. At different times, Don and I used to work for the agency that manages the Broward County Sea Turtle program. I happened to run into the manager at the conference and he said this is only the 2nd year that they have left the nests in place. They used to relocate the eggs to hatcheries because bright lights from businesses, residents, and cities confused sea turtles (mostly hatchlings) on their return to the ocean (they rely on moonlight) . Many lighting ordinances are in effect now so more nests can be left in peace.

For those of you who have never seen a sea turtle make a nest or really never even thought about it before, I've included some pics below. At night (typically), the female crawls from the ocean, digs a hole, drops the eggs in, covers them and heads back to the ocean. What's most fascinating to me is that an individual turtle will nest within 5-35 miles of the region of where it was hatched from and/or previously nested.

Dig girl, dig!

Some 50ish days later, the hatchlings dig themselves out and crawl to the ocean with high hopes of being the 1 in 1,000 that survives.

Go baby, go!

Our return to south Florida

...if only for two weeks...

The kids and I are back from a 2 week trip to south Florida. First, we traveled to the Keys for just two days so that Don could wrap up a few things and help grad students move to new quarters for the rest of the summer. We did manage to squeeze in a couple of boat trips through the mangrove-lined canals in the neighborhood they live in. Back in the day (when WE were the ones in grad school) these trips were aptly named rum-soaked-canal-cruises. Actually, now that I think about it, that designation still applies. From there we headed to Fort Lauderdale. Don had to take some helicopter flights and attend the International Coral Reef Symposium. Ironically, I was on the local organizing committee for the conference through my Sea Grant job before we moved to G'ville. It was bittersweet to see how well it turned out. Anyway, the kids and I tagged along and the four of us stayed in a hotel for 12 days. Granted, it was right on the beach in downtown Ft. Ldale, but still, 12 days! Wasn't sure how it would go and was definitely sure that the kids and I would be returning home sooner than later. However, we kept busy and saw many friends/neighbors/colleagues so the time flew much faster than I thought it would. Don remained down south for another 12 days to attend to research in the Keys. I'll be adding some of our adventures in forthcoming posts.
Note: The pic is from our Isle of Palms trip, not south Florida but I liked it and forgot to add it to the IOP post.