A One Day Vacation in Clearwater

A few weeks ago, Mark was taking a class in the Clearwater area and, after much schedule rearranging and finagling, we were able to go over and spend some time with him. It was a VERY short but restful time away from the daily grind for which I am truly thankful. We got there mid afternoon and went to the St. Petersburg Pier. It was basically a bunch of stores and restaurants with an Aquarium, fishing and boating thrown in for good measure. We didn't stay long, but did go to the top for the view. Of course, we also got a family pic looking out over Tampa Bay:



This is the Pier - kind of funny looking!


The view from the top of the Pier of downtown St. Pete.:


The girls thought that the "old fashioned" phone booth was hilarious - Mark and I remembered when the price to use one went from a nickel to a dime per call. Does that make us old?????!!!


Caleb tried to make friends with a local pelican, to no avail:


After leaving the pier, we went over to the gulf to catch the sunset over the water. If you have never seen this, you are truly missing one of the greatest beauties of God's creation. Almost as soon as we arrived, Holly found this:


We didn't find any other Sand Dollars the whole time we were there, but this one was in almost perfect condition.

We walked and walked and walked, watching the sun slowly sink in the sky. There is something so peaceful and relaxing about the beach. The waves gently crashing, the birds calling and the feeling of the water on your feet are all soothing to the soul. We were far from most people and loved feeling like we were on our own private island. It was a much needed rest. Here are some shots we took as we walked, talked and laughed while waiting for the sun to set:







Not yet:






Getting closer:




Almost down...


Getting closer still...


Waiting:


Set...


The next day while Mark was in class, the kids and I went over to the beach. We found a quiet spot with almost no people and set up camp! The kids played in the water:


Caleb climbed on this while I made lunch. It is hard to tell from the picture, but he is pretty high up there!


Here is what I did:


I watched my children play, I watched the waves, I watched the clouds - all while sitting, relaxing and soaking up some vitamin D. Other than wanting more time with Mark, we could not have asked for a better day. Pure bliss!