A Day at the Beach

We arrived in Orlando yesterday afternoon and picked up Brent and Grandpa Fennema from the airport.  It was so good to see Brent again after three weeks away.  The kids couldn't wait to get hugs and kisses and even made him sit in the back seat just to be closer to him.  It also means that for the first time in three weeks I won't get to drive every time.  Not sure I like it, riding in the back seat, but what are my choices?.

The Air Force boys

Today we went to Cocoa Beach for the Air Force Air Show.  This was a free show over the water and all we had to do was show up with food, drinks, and sunscreen.  Too bad we forgot to put the sunscreen on our bodies.  We're all a little bit redder this evening than when we started out this morning.  However, this is the way to watch an air show.  Between acts, the kids could swim and play in the sand and nobody ever said "I'm bored!!!"  Evan and Brent are much better at identifying planes and jets than I am, so I won't even try.  I did hear words like Confederate Air Force, Phantom, Trainer, F-22, C-130, but they mean nothing to me, nothing.  I've just been informed by my boys that we saw the F-18 Super Hornet break the sound barrier (great pictures here).  The noise was incredible and the shock wave was visible.  I've never witnessed it first-hand until today.  The final group to fly was the Thunderbirds.  This group of precision pilots flew maneuvers for about 30 minutes over the Atlantic waters.  Amazing, totally amazing.

The diamond formation

All six planes flying in formation

Something scary happened to Evan, and to a lesser degree to Aidan, while they were swimming.  The boys were stung by a jellyfish.  Evan was stung in several places, including his armpit, knee, and ankles.  Aidan only had one sting on his knee.  Evan said it felt like a sensation of hundreds of needles or pins piercing his skin, but was not exactly painful.  After coming out of the water and complaining of the sting, they talked to the lifeguard who applied vinegar and gave instructions to take a white vinegar bath when we returned home.  The bath has been taken and the sting doesn't hurt anymore.  We will send both boys to bed with a dose of Benadryl as an extra measure of caution.  We did some research and think they were most likely stung by an Atlantic sea nettle, which average 12" across.

How big was that jellyfish?

The blue flag was flown after the boys were stung.
It means dangerous marine life present in water.

What stop to Cocoa Beach would be complete without a stop at Ron Jon Surf Shop?  We walked away with a few hats and t-shirts, so we did our job to support the local economy!

Standing by Ron Jon's PT Cruiser

Just an update for the space shuttle launch.  NASA has delayed the launch until Wednesday at 3:00.  We're trying to figure out if/how we can still see the launch.  Stay tuned.

That's me and Evan... I'm finally in a picture!

Today's trivia questions:


32. At what Air Force Base are the Thunderbirds based?


33. What two space shuttles have met with disaster?  (Do you remember where you were when you heard the news?)