I cannot believe it… We have been on the road for exactly six months and five days! It’s seems crazy to look back and see how much I’ve learned and all the people I’ve met. And then I think, I’ve still got six months left to go! Which means my brain is just going to keep on getting bigger and smarter…?
Anyway… we’ve spent the last week visiting with manatees, Christians, and our math lessons.
Manatees have no purpose in life, at least, as far as I can tell…? They move very, very slowly, just like they have all the time in the world, eat, and breathe, oh and sometimes they have babies…? They just laid on the bottom of the river and smushed their faces in the mud, eating. And when they had to take a breath they sssssllllllloooooowwwwwwllllllyyyyyy slapped their tails on the mud, and then they sssssllllooooowwwwwwlllllyyyyy ascended to the surface to breathe. Then once they had taken a deep breath they would, once again… sssssllllooooooowwwwwlllllyyyyyy sink back to the bottom, just to ssssslllllllooooowwwwwllllllyyyyyy repeat the exact same process all over again, a few minutes later. And don’t get me wrong here, they are really fascinating, but you can only watch the pattern repeat itself so many times before your eyes glaze over and your mind blanks.
A manatee, AKA a sea cow, and her baby! The water was perfectly clear, and so we could see every thing they did. Even their scars… They get these painful looking scars, caused by boats. As you all know now, they move rrrrreeeeaaaaallllllyyyyyyyy sssssslllllooooowwwwww, and so when they’re out in the harbour and and the water is black the boats just run right over them, and the manatees can’t go any faster to get out of their way… So all of them, except the babies, had propeller like scars running over their bodies.
If the manatees want to move anywhere under water they use their cute, and very tiny, at least compared to the size of their bodies, arms (or whatever they’re called) as feet. And, of course, they do that vvvvveeerrrryyyyy ssssllllooooowwwwllllyyyy, as well.? Now, just as a side note, if you noticed the line of fish at the bottom of the photo, I think they were on the fish highway. They just kept coming!!! Cassia and I would look as far as we could see, and the line of fish just kept going. I have no idea where they were going, but it must not have been too important because none of the fish were racing to get to the front of the line…?
This photo is just a breath of fresh air! (Pun intended…?)
The whole reason for the manatees wintering in Blue Springs State Park… Hot springs!!! That big looming black crack thingy in the water is where 100 000 000 gallons of water flows out every day!
This weekend there was a Bible Conference in DeLand, Florida. I had a great time, met a lot of new people, and ate some delicious food! One message that really touched me was one on prayer. The message was about how when we pray our prayer travels all the way up to heaven and God hears it right away, and then dispatches an angel with the answer, but sometimes the devil delays the angel so we don’t get the answer right away. I hope that made some sense to you, but if it didn’t, just know that I’m sorry I butchered it, but it really was a good message!?
A lady from the assembly in DeLand, Mrs. Flootsmen, hosted us, and our camper in her yard. It was lovely and peaceful and I enjoyed the minutes we spent there! Plus, her daughter knitted us scarves and touques! Thank you SO much Heidi, these will be incredibly handy!
And the best part of this weeks post… I met some awesome teens, MY AGE, at the conference!!! They are from Venezuela, and speak WAAAY better English than my “Spanish!” I hung out with them during conference, and then on Monday night there was a birthday party for one of their dads and they invited us to come!!! We had a blast playing Dutch Blitz and Kickball!!!
And the arepas, wow! Arepas are a Venezuelan food that is delicious. ? I’m not sure how to describe them, except that it is sorta like bread but they use corn flour. It is basically a cross between bread and a pancake, but it’s not sweet. And then they have numerous different fillings -that are also delicious!!!
Good friends!
You’ll never believe my blog post next week… But for now I’m just going to go work on my tan and relax in the pool!
Fascinating blog again. You are doing well ! Your readers are all getting a great education as well!!
But , where has the 6months gone . Love you!
Grandma S-G
Fascinating blog again. You are doing well ! Your readers are all getting a great education as well!!
But , where has the 6months gone . Love you!
Grandma S-G
Thanks! I know, the six months sure has flown by awfully fast!!! It is hard to believe that we’ve been gone from home for six months!
Do people still eat manatees?
As far as I can tell, it is illegal because they are endangered… At least they are in the USA.
Yes, I suppose it would be in the US. They seem to prefer eating fast food.
Lol!
Do people still eat manatees?
As far as I can tell, it is illegal because they are endangered… At least they are in the USA.
Yes, I suppose it would be in the US. They seem to prefer eating fast food.
Lol!
These are beautiful posts by the way. We love hearing how God has been blessing you in this experience! My wife and I have been praying about an RV purchase to pull off something similar. 🙂 never know! Keep up having fun!
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That’s awesome! I’m sure you would have an amazing time!!!
These are beautiful posts by the way. We love hearing how God has been blessing you in this experience! My wife and I have been praying about an RV purchase to pull off something similar. 🙂 never know! Keep up having fun!
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That’s awesome! I’m sure you would have an amazing time!!!
Love your descriptions of the manatees! And your fish highway. You are a very descriptive writer! Looking forward to joining you on some of your adventures. Love Grandma & Grampa
Thanks!!! And I can’t wait for our adventures!
Love your descriptions of the manatees! And your fish highway. You are a very descriptive writer! Looking forward to joining you on some of your adventures. Love Grandma & Grampa
Thanks!!! And I can’t wait for our adventures!