Three Weeks in Florida Already!

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Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Since yesterday was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in America we had no school. We called it quits early today to watch the Inauguration Ceremonies of Barak Obama, the first black President of the United States. Listening to Aretha Franklin singing, "My Country 'Tis of Thee," and watching veterans crying, brought tears to my own eyes. It's sobering to think that even this event will be "history" some day and long after we are gone from this earth, others will be reading about it and watching the news clips in school and in historical books.


Homeschooling continues each day, although Nathanael finds it difficult to concentrate with all the activity going on around him. The Dobberstein's have a very busy household.

We have gone shopping only for grocery necessities but while we were out one day we found the movie "Mama Mia" for a very good price. The girls in the household enjoy it thoroughly and we find ourselves singing Abba songs throughout the day. Diana also stopped in at the "Pit Stop" for a hair cut since it was just getting too long to handle, or to wash in only a cup of water.

Beth took us to tour the Sugar Mill Botanical Gardens which back on to the Dobberstein's property. It is a lovely garden containing many special features, including the ruins of the local sugar mill which was destroyed during the 1836 Battle of Dunlawton Plantation in one of the Seminole Indian Wars.



Saturday, January 24, 2009

The Dobberstein's took us to a weekly, local flea market where we bought two bags of oranges. The two species we got were Red Navel and Sugar Navel. Nathe likes the red but I find the sugar to be sweeter and juicier. After the flea market, which was in Daytona Beach, we were given a short tour of the area and got to see the Daytona 500 Race Track and the tourist strip along the Atlantic coast. There were lots of incredible boutiques and hotels. It was such a warm day we stopped at a park and let the children roll up their pant legs to wade in the surf. We even went home for swim suits and went back to the beach to play and collect shells until 17:00. It's hard to believe that here we are playing at the shore on January 24th. Truly amazing to us Canadians.



Sunday, January 25, 2009 was the day I sang, “Do Not Let Your Hearts Be Troubled,” number 759 in the Christian Worship Supplement, as a part of the worship service. I sang the verses while the congregation sang the refrains. We also made an announcement following worship to set up a temporary choir while I am in Port Orange which will perform several numbers over the next few weeks. About ten people volunteered. The next Sunday, February 1, I sang in church again, this time the middle verse of "Lamb of God," the first hymn.



Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Today the temperature rose to 80 degrees Fahrenheit (25 degrees Centigrade) so we worked on our lessons outside in the sunshine. (I thought I'd put that in just to make everyone back home drool with envy.) Sadly, however, by the end of the day we had rain which lasted for the next two and a half days. We even lost power for a few hours.

One evening I prepared a turkey dinner with all the trimmings for the Dobberstein's to show our appreciation for letting us stay in their lane way. It wasn't up to my usual standards but everyone enjoyed it just the same. There were enough left overs to make home-made turkey soup.

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Photos

Inauguration Ceremonies
Since we couldn't be in Washington, we preserved the scene for ourselves.

Sugar Mill Ruins
Destroyed by the Seminole Indians in 1836 these ruins, from the Dunlawton Plantation, stand in the Botanical Gardens.

Confederate Oak
This oak tree has been standing since before the U.S. Civil War.

The Atlantic Coast
Saturday, January 24th, an unbelievable day at the beach for the Widdifield's.

A Day at the Beach
Nathanael tries to save his sand castle from the incoming tide.

Comments

[Lynnette]

DC is not the place to be!
Hi Diana and Nathe, We definitely didn't go to DC as we knew it would be crazy and it was for the inauguration. I was actually in New Ulm, MN and while it was cold there, at least I wasn't standing outside waiting for the activities or stuck in some tunnel. I admire our country and how we have such a peaceful transfer of power from President Bush to President-elect Obama. God has certainly blessed the USA! Hugs, Lynnette