Still at Clearwater Beach

So, we've now been here at Clearwater Beach for a couple of weeks. Once we were here for a week, their rate structure made it really easy to decide to stay...and now it is after Christmas and we are still here...but we think not for much longer.

The highlight of the last week has been our granddaughter Sarah's visit! She is not yet 6 years old, but traveled like a pro all by herself on a plane to and from San Francisco. Sandy and her parents spent a bunch of time discussing this plan, and working with the airline carrier to make sure that this was both doable and safe. And it turned out great....Sarah handled it really well, and we had a fantastic time with her for 4+ days. The most difficult part of the entire visit, was the timing of her flights. She flew into Orlando, and with her arriving at midnight there, Sandy had to leave the boat at 8pm, and didn't get home with Sarah until 4 am! And her return flight was at 8am, which meant that we were up at 3am that day, and Sandy didn't get home until close to noon.

But it was all worth it and the rest of the visit was superb! Lots of beach time, a movie (The Good Dinosaur) a visit to the Clearwater Rescue Aquarium, fingernail painting, puppy playing, and general horsing around. It was at times like one big slumber party!

4:15 am upon arrival at the boat!

9 am the next morning after about 4 hours of sleep!

Some quality beach time!

 

At the Clearwater Aquarium

A pit stop for an energy boost from some "health food".

And of course we took a short boat ride one day.

Exciting Stuff!

Hanging out on the boat with Nahni...

And Grandpa Newt.

These 2 paintings are original works of art by Sarah, who gave them to us for Christmas...they are wonderful! The top one is a nature scene for Nahni, and the bottom one is a lion for Grandpa Newt. And they now have a permanent home on our stateroom door.

A great time had by all, and Sarah arrived home safely on Christmas Eve Day in plenty of time to be home for Santa's arrival!

For Christmas Day, we had a feast. Five other boats on our dock were also here for Christmas, and we had a pot luck dinner that was fantastic. We had ham, turkey, prime rib, BBQ ribs, asparagus casserole, sweet potatoes, creamed corn, carrots, mashed potatoes, stuffing, scalloped potatoes, rolls, biscuits, and a wide assortment of desserts. We must have had enough food for 25 people by the time it was all said and done. We had a really nice time, and some wonderful fellowship that made our Christmas both memorable and special.


Panoramic shot of Clearwater beach on a typical winter day.

Sunset view from our boat...it would be a lot nicer without all of the buildings, but we didn't make it down to the beach in time to see it over the Gulf...maybe another night.