st. george, on the water!

Although the beach we were staying at was pretty enough, we got the opportunity to visit a barrier island with the clearest, greenest water -- perfect for snorkeling & keeping an eye out of jellyfish! We rented a pontoon, nothing as deluxe as the one we rented on the Lake Nanta., but large enough for quite a group of us. We didn't think that the younger ones would do well on the boat all day, so we decided to the leave the babies at home with some babysitters on shifts. Jen, Lydia, and I went with the boys in the morning, and we had a blast! We didn't actually brave the ocean, but explored the bay at Port St. Joe. (Apparently, pontoons & ocean waves don't make a good match!) The first place we stopped for snorkeling had clear, green water, and although there was a current, it did not feel like you were swimming in the ocean until your face or eyes dipped in. It was so hot, we practically HAD to jump in just to cool down. Lydia did very well, even when we saw fish & jellyfish in the water. Thankfully, since the water was so clear, we were able to avoid any contact with them. The barrier island was beautiful! It would have been an incredibly romantic place to take a long, uninterrupted walk with gorgeous surroundings, but I was hanging with Jen & Lydia & the boys were all exploring the waters surrounding the barrier island.

We had lunch on the boat.

Do you need a flipper, Josh?

Jonathan was the first to find some photo-worthy underwater life. I had never seen or touched a live sand dollar. The texture was a funny - there were little cilia or something all over so, it wasn't smooth. And, the color itself was a bit surprising. Several people thought they remembered that it was illegal to remove sand dollars, so we didn't bring it home.



Andrew found a largish hermit crab & I wanted a picture of it so badly that I swam back to the boat, got the mesh bag that the scuba gear came in, swam back to fetch the creature, and then back to the boat where the camera was! He very obligingly came out of his shell & tried to high tail it off of the boat.


These jelly fish swam slow enough for me to see them, grab my camera, and take a picture. Unfortunately, none of the other fish (shark, stingray, or dolphin, and unidentified swimming fish) obliged us so well.



We got back in the boat & motored down the shore of the barrier island. We got into several large beds of sea oats (I think) & the boys were brave enough to snorkel even after we had seen a shark & stingray in the area! Though our glances were fleeting, it was definitely very cool to see creatures normally seen in the aquarium right next to your boat! The shark was approximately 2 or 3 feet long, so not that big, but still pretty exciting. The sting ray was pretty big, but booked it pretty fast! Lydia got so hot, we had to get in the water, but the girls stayed right by the boat, looking out for sharks, stingrays & jellyfish the whole time! Not relaxing! The water was much deeper, and was much darker because there was seaweed on the ocean floor, so it was harder to keep a good lookout. Thankfully, nothing happened!

This little girl didn't last long on our trip back to the marina.

Our fearless navigator!

Jen kindly thought to take a picture of Josh & I. We had such a great time that day, I would have done it again the next day!


We met Jenny, Lisa, Kate, Lauren, and Grandma at the marina, and then realized that we were going to be too many people to return back in my car. Unbeknownst to us when we had made the shift plan that morning, the power was turned off at the house for a few hours, and so Grandma, Mima, Jenny, and the girls all had to leave the house. We ended up driving home in Lenny & Jenny's 4runner, with Jen riding in the back cargo area! What an adventure! Lisa & Jenny enjoyed their afternoon on the boat with all of the guys.

On our last day, several of us rented jet skis on the ocean for a half-hour. Man! That was so much fun! Josh & I rode together. It was definitely more fun to drive than to ride. I got less water in my face when I drove for two reasons: I didn't drive as fast as Josh & I was further up the jet ski & that helped. That was the major drawback to skiing in the ocean -- the water in the eyes was killer. I think that if we had to do it again, we'd try to rent on the river. There aren't the waves to ride, but you'd have less of the salt stinging the eyes. Even with salt water streaming down my face, it was tons of fun & definitely worth it. Get this, though. Andrew took Jenny with him on his jet ski. And they both survived!

I love going to the beach & hanging out, but it was definitely fun to do some water sports as well. It just gave some variety to the week & was a way for Josh & I to have a lot of fun together. He doesn't get the same kind of kicks & giggles out of reading at the beach as I do.