So yes, we had a fabulous time with nothing on our agenda but enjoying the sun, sand and each other's company. It was truly perfect! These feet have walked many miles and with Tim each step gets sweeter and sweeter! I look forward to our life's journey together laughing, holding hands, remembering to cherish the moments and savor our relationship! I love you babe! 
The end...bye bye vacation....till next year!
WOWZERS!!! This place had AWESOME burritos and homemade guacamole!!! 
Nothing like cruising the beach after ice cream with my handsome prince!!! He's dreamy isn't he??? I saw you checking him out....!!! hahah!!
We road up and down Ft Myers Beach watching the sun go to sleep. So much fun! We even got a little race bug in us and raced up the beach on our bikes!!
This game was soooo simple and sooo fun! Basically you stand back and try to get the ring on the hook! Not as easy at it looks. Funny how in most simple things of life...they really are the best parts of life.
See what I mean???? Shells everywhere!! I was just beside myself!
This is Captiva Island...very beautiful! The pictures just don't give the place justice!!!
While on Captiva Island Tim spotted this street sign! Look Aunt Trish and Uncle Al...apparently you have relatives on Captiva Island...maybe we can get some free lodging!!??? Haha! We thought of you on our trip and took this pic for you!
We noticed a very busy little guy (actually kinda big) on the beach. He'd peak his head out of his hole to make sure the coast was clear. Then he would have a little claw full of sand and throw it to the side. He'd look around then scamper back in this hole. Tim and I must have looked so silly because we hovered over this sand hole with the camera in ready position staying as still as possible! Lots of Europeans on the island and must have thought us Americans were VERY STRANGE to stare at sand for so long!!!
While staying in Ft. Myers Beach we decided to cruise over to Sanibel...for guess what??? SHELLING!!!! We were told by Dan and Tree our Mango Street Innkeepers that Bowman's Beach was where to go and they were soooo right!!!
Tim is the most AMAZING shell hunter! He went a little deeper and scoured the ocean floor for great shells! You frequently find alive shells as the one below is. Of course we had to take a photo before setting Mr. Shell back into the ocean. We were soooo amazed at this little guy...well he was kinda big as you can see in Tim's hands.
I loved this flower on the trellis at the Mango Street Inn....SO UNIQUE! I'm hoping my grandma can identify it so we see about getting this plant in our yard. How cool is that flower???
The precious Mango Street Inn...we loved it here! If you ever go to Ft. Myers Beach...stay here! Wonderful hospitality, warm and friendly, Dan's a chef so we had gourmet breakfasts and I learned about jicama slices like french fries drizzled in lime juice with chili powder!!! DELISH!!! 
As you can see we were very busy on our trip. This begins our journey at Ft. Myers Beach, Sanibel Island and Captiva Island....AMAZING PLACES!!! This pup you see exhausted from a hard day of lounging is named Cookie. He is the proud owner of Dan and Tree at the Mango Street Inn in Ft. Myers Beach. :) 
Cookie loves to be pet but if you delay....he does this dance! Tim and I loved the dance...As you can see Tim picked up the moves quickly!
This pic of Tim above is a little out of order but very important! This was taken at the condo his family took them too when they were young in Long Boat Key! Tim found it on the strip and needed to stop and reminisce. It was really special for him since he had so many great stories and memories there! 
Back to our Ft. Myers portion of the trip. One day we took an Eco Tour of Estero Bay. We stopped of at Hickory Island for some shelling....MY FAVE!!!! As you can see...white sand beaches and clear water! I was in awww the whole time. The shells we found were amazing!!! They are everywhere!!!
We decided after the Dave Matthews Band concert in West Palm Beach we should stay in South Florida for a week to celebrate our one year anniversary. We both travel quite a bit with work and have been very busy with other engagements, home projects and just life in general. I have learned with being married how important it is to celebrate the love and relationship given to us by God. I find myself so much more in love with my best friend Tim as each day passes. We had originally thought to travel to the Dominican Republic but the thought of another airport and all the stress of that....why bother!? So we wanted to see our own state and support our local economy. 
Each evening we took in the West Coast sunset amazed at all the colors on the horizon. We would take our beach chairs and just wait for the sun to go to sleep. It was such a peaceful way to close our evenings!
I decided the best way to stay cool while reading home design magazines was to sit in the ocean!!! It was so peaceful! Of course the water can make magazine reading a little challenging but life couldn't have been better! My husbando must have liked the view because he took a bunch of pics of me like this!!!! hehe!
Our week away we wanted to break away from the hotel chains and try the local culture so we stayed at B & B's as rated on tripadvisor.com. What a way to travel! This is the Harrington House in Anna Maria Island. Gourmet breakfasts and wonderful hospitality!!!
On August 09, 2009 Michael Derek married Becca Townsend at The Oldest House in St. Augustine, FL. Of course, I sobbed..... Actually, I was sobbing because Michael D. was. See, his best friend Jason Calvert, whom he's known for 20+ years married them. The night before Jason collected quotes from family and friends. The last quote was one from our mom, "I'll love you forever. I'll love you always. For as long as you live, my baby you'll be." My mom has said that to us for years. Michael welled up in tears...what's a sister to do???
