Month: September 2017

 

This year we have several different clubs. We started a Marine Ecology club to help grow the kids on the Marine Team. We had a lot of fun trying to catch fish.

Sadly the only thing caught was a puffer fish. But it was really neat looking.

We attended the Forest Ecology Clinic in Gainesville and learned about compass skills and more about plant and tree ID.

There was a freak rainstorm in the middle of our hike and we collected samples and raced for the shelter.

We did a little mock contest and I feel really good with my plant ID ability for this year. We have expanded the team like marine and hope to do well at the event this year.

We have had a few fun days of critter catching with our club. I am amazed how much we find in the grass beds in the intercostal.

Look at the size of this lightning whelk!

We were up early and in line at COSTCO to try to get some supplies before the storm arrived. This was no fun to arrive home from summer vacation to. The lines were long and people were mean. I was OVER it quickly. We got what we needed and headed home.

We were all nervous when the storm kept shifting to cover the entire state!

We prepared the lanterns and flashlights knowing we would loose power. We have a generator but during the storm you dont want to go outside and start it. 

Irma grew closer and closer.

We went for a long walk about the neighborhood before the storm to get the wiggles out knowing this would be the last trip outside until Irma safely passed and we were safe to go outside. 

The winds were really strong all night but thankfully the palms out back broke the worst of them from the house. In the morning we found lots of fronds ripped from the trees. Palm trees lined the street blocking access. Neighbors awoke and came out and used ropes and trucks to drag the trees out of the road. 

We got the yard cleaned and enjoyed the cooler weather that followed the storm.
We found the owls. They must have rode the storm out in the trees in the backyard. They were wet but alive. We had to bring Luna home since the AC stopped working due to a surge during the storm. The house was without power for 5 days. Dad finally got parts and fixed the AC a few days later. We offered our generator power to neighbors to charge up their phones.

We snuck away to sweat over at Disney Animal Kingdom rather than at home. We enjoyed our first trip to Avitar World and bought banshees too.

We came home to a resourceful Dad who was using a portable AC unit to cool the master bedroom. We could sleep in the house and not the RV tonight. But it was too loud. Dad retreated back to the motorhome. We toughed it out and got a good nights sleep. 

We are watching the tropics and more is brewing. Lets home it all misses us! We spent some time working on 4-H sewing projects while we waited for school to start back up. Mom figured if the public schools were closed we should have the time to do other things.

I got my service project of making dog toys done and delivered to the Humane Society. 

We arrived back is hot Florida and I decided enough was enough. I hemmed and hawed for a week and finally decided that it was time to say goodbye to the long locks I’ve had most of my life.

Ms. Alyssa, Mom’s dresser, was awesome. She knew just what to do and went shorter and shorter to let me make sure I wouldn’t regret my choice. I am very happy with the short hair. It is SO much easier to care for each day. I didn’t like the new part location so it has slowly moved back to the middle.