Feeling Refreshed

I am back from my visit to daughter #1 in St. Pete and what an amazing time we had. I went down with my brother and sister-in-law because my brother was set to run a race on Sunday morning. So glad we went down on Thursday so we could have some extra visiting time. And, I will say, I think we had some of the most perfect weather here in Florida that I can remember in a very, very long time.

As usual, we did lots of talking, laughing, eating and walking. On Thursday evening we ate at the new Datz' downtown. My grand daughter was able to join us before she headed off to FSU for the weekend.

 On Friday we actually walked more than 7 miles-which must be some kind of a record for me. Lol

In any case, here is just a sample of the fun we had.

We started Friday off with an early lunch by the water.

Then, we headed off to explore various shops downtown. Jasper loves posing all over the "berg". 

St. Pete has done a wonderful job revitalizing the entire downtown and the beautiful murals everywhere certainly add to the new vibe.

We did enough walking that we were ready for another stop on our way home. We love Casis and their homemade potato chips and charcuterie platter were perfect for a late afternoon bite!

Saturday morning we were off for more adventures. The plan was to take a picture of me in front of this huge banyan tree but Jasper is a bit of a people magnet and just as we were ready to pose, these two adorable little girls ran over to ask if they could pet him. They were so cute and chatty that we just visited for a bit and gave up on a more "formal" picture.

 

We were off to the outdoor market which was the most crowded I have ever seen it-guess everyone had the same idea in this gorgeous weather!

 I am always drawn to the flower vendors. If I lived down here and could visit this place every weekend, I would be broke!

The day of the race finally arrived.

The race actually started and ended at the end of my daughter's street so while the results were tallied, this was our view.



My brother won second place in his age category. Jasper is sporting his medals in this picture-kind of hard to see in that golden hair.

It is always so hard to leave St. Pete. Kris lives in the perfect place as everything downtown-including the beautiful water- is just a short walk away. Who knows...maybe once all of my grand children are grown and have lives scattered hither and yon, I might just make the move too.

There are still three days until Valentine's Day, but since our big celebration is already over, I feel like it just might be time to move on to St. Pat's. I'm fighting the urge because I don't want the neighbors to think I'm crazy...but, we shall see. Stay tuned.