Carolina Dreamin'

Miscellaneous Sights

carolinadreamin — Wed, 05 May 2010 18:12:06 +0000

Just a few photos of some miscellaneous sights along Santa Rosa Beach’s 30-A and also Panama City Beach.

Lee's big king mackerel caught off of Panama City Beach's Dan Russell Pier

Miss Lucille's Gossip Parlor - ice cream and sweets

Crabby sign denotes flag colors for surf conditions

Panama City Beach Bike Week was last week

Saltwater Sail Catfish - crazy looking!

Sunset over the Gulf of Mexico

A patch of wild blackberries discovered along my bicycling route - yumm

Sea Shell Crafts

carolinadreamin — Wed, 05 May 2010 17:52:10 +0000

So, after taking a little trip to Mexico Beach and St.Andrews State Park, FL I have collected thousands of beautiful shells. Beautifully formed augers at St. Andrews State Park, also some florida fighting conchs. At Mexico Beach I found so many shells I had to buy a storage container to keep them in. Some of them I found were: scallops, coquina clams, pen shell, slipper shell, cockle, olive, jingle, turkey wing, apple murex, baby welks, sand dollars, wentletraps, jewel box, kittens paws, buttercup lucina, and duck clams. One might say I’m a bit obsessed with shells. I do love them. Now I have somey crafty ideas of what to do with them. One idea is a sea shell bird house. I couldn’t wait to get home to get started on this, so I went to the craft store down here, bought a little wooden, unfinished, birdhouse, a glue gun and some craft paint. Check out the pictures below of the process and completed bird house.

Some supplies for the project

I painted the unfinished wooden birdhouse

hot glueing on the shells

adding an unbroken, molted little crab shell

a roof of auger shells

finished!

finished back of birdhouse

finished front of birdhouse

Here’s a link to a great site for shell identification: http://www.pensacolasgreatest.com/SeashellThumbs.html

Earth Day 2010

carolinadreamin — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 22:06:37 +0000

In celebration of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, I’m uploading pictures of the trees and flowers I found along 30-A in Santa Rosa, Blue Mountain Beach, and Dune Allen Beach, FL. Enjoy and help save the earth…please recycle and treat the earth gently.

: rocky wall

: Wind-blown Pine

aren't they cute?

: Palms

shady lane

wind swept tree

azalea blossoms

hibiscus flower

cabbage palms

little blue wildflowers

sago palm

don't know what these little purple flowers are but they're so pretty

vine covered seaside cottage

Some items of interest:

http://greenupgrader.com/6385/plastiki-expedition-12000-miles-in-a-boat-made-from-plastic-bottles/

http://www.takepart.com/thecove/

http://www.greatgarbagepatch.org/

http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.aspx

Seafood Feast

carolinadreamin — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 22:56:31 +0000

Lee and I went to the Sexton’s Seafood Market in Destin and bought a bunch of pink shrimp, royal red shrimp, and some stone crab claws (my favorite!). Stone crab claws can only be harvested from October to May, and only one claw can be taken to ensure the continued survival of the species. The removed claw regenerates. Lucky for us we’re here when they’re in season! Royal red shrimp are a deep red color with soft, delicate texture and unique taste. They are found in cold, deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico, about 2400 feet of water and 40-60 miles off-shore. The pink shrimp have a firm texture and mild flavor. Took it all home and had the best supper ever. Lee made scampi from the white shrimp, and boiled (1 and 1/2 minutes, no more, no less), and chilled the stone crab claws. I made a delicious remoulade dipping sauce, and lovely tossed salad and some garlic bread. Wonderful!!! I’m hoping to be able to take a cooler of the royal red shrimp home with us next month. Sexton’s Seafood Market sells only locally caught seafood, is conveniently located in Destin and is amazingly clean and the people who work there are so friendly – and they’ll pack your purchase for travel!

Sexton's Seafood Market in Destin, FL

: Royal Red Shrimp fresh from the Gulf of Mexico

Fresh from the Gulf of Mexico seafood

Yumm Yumm

Stone Crab Claws

Secret Garden

carolinadreamin — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 00:17:13 +0000

Came acros this little secret garden along the Hwy 30-A bicycle path. Well, it’s not too secret as it has a sgn out front and it’s right along the bike path. Check out the pictures.

Front Gate

Vine covered archway

White Roses

Iris

: amaryllis ?

FL Hwy 30-A Bicycle Path

carolinadreamin — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 22:46:24 +0000

Biked along the Hwy 30-A bike path again today, such a pretty ride, passing by little coastal lakes, cottages, art shops and restaurants. It was perfect weather for bicycling. Stopped in at the “For the Health of It” natural foods store, got some organic garlic, oranges and limes. Also stopped by the “Artists at Gulf Place”, a quaint little artist community. All the shops are in tiny aluminum corrugated aluminum huts, each decorated colorfully. I found some great pieces of pottery and glass wind chimes. Each little hut contains the art of a different artist. Chatted with the owner for about 45 minutes about the art and the community in general. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

: The Artists at Gulf Place

The Artists' Huts

EVERYBODY loves Nemo!

: Wind Chimes

Artists' Huts

Coquina Shell Art

"Peaceful" Muffin Tin

Tree vines winding up the stairs at "For the Health of It"

Kites flying high over the Gulf

: Draper Lake

Old Florida Cottages

carolinadreamin — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 23:08:04 +0000

Just a sampling of the adorable, quaint Old Florida Cottages. Went for a bike ride this morning along the bike path of 30-A, nice ride, although a bit hilly. Beautiful homes and art shops along the way. Very nice ride.

Weather vane on Santucket

Majik Beach

Mermaids

Sea Cabin

Going to FLORIDA!!

carolinadreamin — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 23:38:48 +0000

Hula Girl and Dino on the road again

KOA Camping Cabin

Wakulla County, FL Loves Jesus

Worm Gruntin Festival in Sopchoppy, FL

WE MADE IT!!!!

Left home Saturday morning for Santa Rosa Beach, FL. Hula Girl and Dino got off to an early start, hitting the road with a fully loaded van!

Saw some interesting sights along the way, as evidenced by the photos uploaded. Stayed in a little camping cabin at KOA St. Marys, GA. Very cute, it was pretty chilly that night, temps in the 40s.

Santa Rosa Beach, FL

carolinadreamin — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 23:15:36 +0000

Back in Florida again, this time for a month. Staying at an adorable cottage in Santa Rosa Beach. The weather has been super, sunny, clear skies, temps in the low 80s. The trip here was long, about 14 hours or more. We stayed overnight in St Marys, GA at a KOA campground. Then took the scenic route here, along the coastal route through Apalachacola, St. Joe’s, Panama City. I’ll upload some pictures in a bit. Tomorrow my plan is to take a bike adventure. There are great bicycle paths here.

We stopped at a local seafood shop this morning and bought some shrimp for supper tonight. Uploading pictures from the shop. Hoping that Lee will catch dinner this week while he’s out on the piers.

Stay tuned for more to come.

Virginia Beach Hilton Christmas Lights

carolinadreamin — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 21:25:40 +0000

Stopped in at the Virginia Beach Hilton after walking on the boardwalk to warm up a bit. the lights inside were incredible! It looked like they used blue LED’s, white lights with blue and silver ornaments. Take a look.

Snowflakes

Bow and garland on bannister

Baby it's cold outside

Virginia Beach Hilton Restaurant

Blue Christmas