Forever isn't long enough...

13 years ago my life changed forever.

I was living in Minnesota and Mike was living in Indiana. We met in a chat room (cringe) and he was the first person that popped up on my screen. We bonded over the fact that we were both going through tough divorces and for the next 6 months, we shared everything about our lives with one another, the good, the bad and the ugly.  We became best friends and through our deep friendship, we fell in love.

6 months later, on October 7th 2005, we met in person and had our first date in Chicago. I didn't tell anyone that I was going except for my sister, and I didn't tell her much except that I was flying to Chicago to meet a guy I had never met. As I was coming down the escalator to baggage claim at O'Hare, I saw him waiting for me at the bottom. My heart caught in my chest and I knew in that instant that this was the man that I was going to marry.

After an amazing weekend together in Chicago, as we sat holding hands in the airport, waiting to catch flights to different states, we decided that this was it. We were going to figure out a way to be together, no matter what.

Two weeks later Mike flew to visit me for a weekend in Minnesota and the next time I saw him he was moving in with me. We spent 5 days together TOTAL before he moved to Minnesota to live me on November 15th... 39 days after we had first met in person.

We kept two separate apartments because I was too scared to tell my parents that I met a guy online who was 20 years older than me, flew to Chicago to meet him alone, and had let him move in with me. We lived together in one apartment, the other was his office/hideout for when my parents came to visit. Of course, after the first time they met him, the fell totally in love with him. So much so that I joked if it came down to it, they would choose Mike over me!


2 years later on November 28th, 2007, Mike proposed to me. I was down in the basement of our
house in Lake City, running on the treadmill. I was sweaty and gross and grumpy. Mike called down the stairs to say that he had a treat for me. My first thought was "oooooo, chocolate I hope!" I came upstairs and was met with two champagne flutes and some champagne. My second thoughts was "so, no chocolate then I guess" ;)



On the dining room table was a large wrapped gift box. I unwrapped the paper and opened the box, to find another box, to find another box, to find another box, to find another box, until I came to ring box. With tears streaming down my face, Mike gets down on one knee and asks me to be his wife.  I stink...I am so sweaty and smelly but in that moment I had never felt more special or more loved.

3 years (and 4 moves later) we got married in the backyard of our first home in Texas under a beautiful wood arbor that Mike made himself, especially for us.

The day before the wedding, my best friend Melissa and I went to JC Penney and bought my dress off of the clearance rack for $15. The morning of the wedding Mike and I picked up donuts for breakfast and our car broke down on the way home. Later that morning, Melissa and I purchased all the flowers from the grocery store down the street. We decorated the house with decorations that I made myself the week before. I did my own hair and makeup and wore a flower clip from Target in my hair. Mike wore shorts and Birkenstocks that he had that were older than me.

There were only 10 guests, including Mike and I. There were 12 if you count the officiant and the photographer...14 if you count the dogs, Lola and Sandy.

The officiant allowed us to write our own ceremony word for word, which we painstakingly did, picking out the most perfect poems and just the right words...which he then proceeded to do NONE of and just did his own thing.

After the ceremony, in all the excitement, my Mom threw handfuls of confetti RIGHT in my open mouth and I almost choked from laughing so hard.

We had food catered in from a local BBQ joint and a local woman made cupcakes (in her own kitchen) for us instead of a traditional cake. This was before cupcakes were cool.

There were touching, tear-jerking speeches and cheers and toasts all around.

We played darts and bocce ball in the backyard and drank champagne and sweet tea.

It wasn't fancy. It wasn't traditional. Things went wrong.

It was small and intimate and filled with SO much laughter and even more love.

It was absolutely perfect!

10 years and 6 more moves later, here we are. Our 10th wedding anniversary. Some were skeptical at first. We were both coming off of unhappy marriages, not to mention the 20 year age difference but none of that ever mattered to us. We knew the minute we first laid eyes on each other in the baggage claim at O'Hare that this was where we were meant to be. Neither of us have ever doubted it for one second. It hasn't always been easy or perfect, but nothing ever is. It has been a life filled with too many adventures to count, and more love than I could have ever dreamed of.

10 years ago, I married my best friend. The man who makes me laugh until my sides hurt everyday. The man who loves me just as I am, scars and all. The man who I didn't even see coming.

We have a sign that hangs in out house that pretty much sums up our relationship...

"Once in a while, right in the middle of an ordinary life, LOVE gives us a fairytale"

Find Your Passion

So I haven't posted for ages! It's not that I don't have anything to say because I do! It's just that I have been so busy FINALLY doing what it is I was meant to do! Woo hoo!

For those of you who read my blog (all 3 of you! Hi!) you know that I have struggled as an adult to find my "thing".  The thing that I am supposed to be doing with my life. Well, praise the lord y'all because I have found it and I couldn't be happier.

I am a certified children's yoga teacher! WHOOP WHOOP!

The thing that I wanted to share with y'all about this though is that it is never too late to be who you might have been. I am pushing 40 (eek!) and I was freaked out that I was never going to find my passion. But the truth of the matter is, I already knew what my passion was, I just wasn't paying attention.

I went to school and got a degree in Child Development. I worked at a before and after school child care program at an elementary school (still one of my favorite jobs I have ever had). I worked in an infant room at a intergenerational learning center. I worked as an Assistant Center Director at a child care center. I nannied. See, the recurring theme here? KIDS! Kids are my jam! I LOVE being an Auntie more than anything in the world and I love working with children of all ages.

And y'all know I love yoga! Not to repeat myself (but I am going to repeat myself), yoga saved my life 7 years ago. We had just spread my Moms ashes and I was spiraling...fast, and one day I found myself on a yoga mat in a studio in Austin and my life changed forever. I know it seems so cliche but it's true. I had been sitting in the parking lot of that studio for a week, too scared to go in. So many doubts and fears and sadness. But that day that I finally decided to step through those doors into a HOT yoga class (nice slow introduction there Becks) I knew I had found where I belong. I sweated, I cried (literally) and I felt so much release inside of me. I knew in that  moment at the end of class, laying on my mat in savasana that I was going to be ok.

I have thought for a long time that my path was teaching yoga. Heck, I have signed up (and paid) for TWO yoga teacher trainings, one in Ohio and one here in Texas, and I quit. Ugh! That stinks to say that out loud but I did quit. Let's be honest. I was afraid of so many things. And I thought that there was only one way of doing things and that if I didn't do it the way I was "supposed" to do it, then why even bother doing it at all.

While I was still signed up for the teacher training in Texas, my sister asked me to come and teach yoga to the kids in her summer program that she runs. I was super excited about it...and scared shitless! But I was signed up for the teacher training so I thought but the time summer rolled around, I would be ready. Well, we already know how that turned out. I backed out of the training but I had made a commitment to my sister (I am great at keeping my commitments to others...myself, not so much) I already had a ton of kids yoga books at home because it was always in the back of my mind that I would like to teach yoga to children someday. So I figured, I can probably squeak something out that the kids will think is fun.

The first day I taught I was sick to my stomach with nerves and self doubt. Same old Becks was rearing her ugly head. I can't do this. The kids won't like me. I don't know what I am doing. But the minute the first group walked into my class, all my nerves and fear just melted away. I taught that class, then I taught 4 more that day. At the end of the day, I knew...this is what I am meant to do. I am actually good at this! WHAT?!

I immediately went home and started researching ways to get certified as a children's yoga instructor. There is the traditional way...to become a certified registered yoga teacher through a 200 hour Yoga Alliance approved course for adults, then go on to take an additional 90 hour course through Yoga Alliance to become certified to teach kids. But that just wasn't going to work for me. I already knew that the traditional training wasn't the way to go for me (hence, quitting TWICE) Finally, after A LOT of research, I stumbled across Cosmic Kids Yoga which is based out of England. First of all, the woman who runs it Jaime Amor is adorable and listening to her accent just brings me back home, and secondly, the courses were laid out in a way that I did it mostly on my own. My own time, my own pace, and my own way. That's what I had been looking for all along. To be able to find my own way to do something that made me feel comfortable and confident. The courses were amazing, so informative and the materials that were available to me were brilliant. After I completed all the coursework, I uploaded a video of me teaching for her to evaluate. My sweet nieces helped me make the video and it was an agonizing 3 weeks waiting for the results. In that 3 weeks of waiting all my old doubts and fears resurfaced. You aren't good enough. You are not going to succeed.

Finally, my video evaluation arrived and I couldn't believe it. Here was Jaime, on video, saying all of these wonderful lovely things about me and my teaching. I think I watched that 10 minute video from her like 50 times. It's quite nice hearing someone say nice things about you :)

So I came up with a business name, I designed a website, I designed a logo, I made business cards and here I am. Becky May, certified children's yoga teacher AND owner of my own business, Little Lotuses Yoga!

My whole point of this story is just that it really is never too late to be what you might have been. Sometimes fear can be a huge roadblock, but take it from me, it will never get you what you want. Figure out your passion and fight to make it happen for yourself. If you are 21, almost 40, 65, or 92. You are in control of your own destiny. You hold the key to your own happiness. Go out and do it! Fear be damned!

(Shameless plug...check out my website at www.littlelotuses.com or my FB page Little Lotuses Yoga)

Fight

There is a recurring theme in my life that plays itself out over and over again.

I feel inadequate.

I search for a "thing" to do to make myself feel worthy.

I start said thing.

My anxiety kicks in and overwhelms me to the point that it's hard to function.

I quit said thing.

I feel relieved for a moment.

I feel inadequate.

I search for a "thing"to do to make myself feel worthy...

Over and over and over again. It's exhausting!

I go through these waves or cycles. I feel great for a while and then once I start to feel comfortable with myself, I start to self sabotage. Something in my by brain kicks in and says "Whoa, hold up there missy...you aren't good enough so don't go convincing yourself otherwise"

Some days I can shut that voice up and some days I can't and it totally consumes me.

I put on a brave face. I post positive messages on Facebook. I work and I work and I work to try and push myself through to the other side.

I have this AMAZING life! I am surrounded by people who love me and support me but instead of focusing on those awesome, wonderful people, I tend to focus on my shortcomings. All of the things that I am "supposed" to be doing.

I am "supposed" to:

Be a mother

Have a traditional job

Be a certain size/weight

Have a certain hair length/color

Be a perfect yogi

Be a perfect wife, sister, auntie, daughter, and friend

I put so much pressure on myself to be the way I think that I am "supposed" to be, that I miss out on actually just being me.

It's exhausting. It's a waste of time.

I know this deep in my heart but my head...boy does my head have other ideas.

I carry a lot of anxiety and guilt over things that are irrelevant.

If I don't practice yoga in a studio 5 times a week, am I really a yogi?

If I don't have a traditional job like everyone else, am I worthless?

If I am not super skinny and don't have long hair like all the images I see in the media, am I even a real woman?

If I don't make everyone in my life happy at all times, am I a failure?

As I type these words I know how stupid they sound. If any one of my friends said these things to me about themselves, I would tell them that they are out of their mind.

Who makes the rules?! Who says there is one right way to do or be?!

We get to decide the rules for ourselves. We get to decide how we live our lives. But it is so damn hard to put the into practice.

I just finished reading "Girl, Wash Your Face" by Rachel Hollis. Now I didn't agree with everything she had to say in her book (and I don't have to) but there are multiple things that she did say in her book that completely resonated with me. Like, when I was reading them, I had a "Whoa" moment.

1. "Your life is supposed to be a journey from one unique place to another; it's not supposed to be a merry-go-round that brings you back to the same spot over and over again"

Well damn. This is exactly what I do to myself. I keep circling around to the place where I feel crappy over and over again.

2. "You'll try out some different tool and techniques, and while some of them will feel okay, maybe one will like the answer and then thirty-seven different others will feel like garbage"

I often beat myself up for trying things that don't work out. I feel like I have failed if I don't complete certain things. But not everything will be for me and that's okay. The key is that I keep trying new things. I keep exploring. If I don't find the right fit for me, that's not the end of the world. I just pick myself up and keep moving forward.

3. "Life is not supposed to overwhelm you at all times. Life isn't meant to be merely survived-it's meant to be lived."

YES! THIS! Sometimes I get so caught up in my anxiety that I miss out on all the good stuff.

4. "You must choose to be happy, grateful, and fulfilled. If you make that choice every single day, regardless of where you are or what what's happening, you will happy."

I have this AMAZING life and so many things to be grateful for. I have to make a conscious choice to focus on all that awesomeness. Turning my attention to the good will help me forget about the bad.
Practicing gratitude is so important.

5. "Comparison is the death of joy and the only person you need to be better than is the one you were yesterday"

I constantly compare myself to others when I should be making sure that each day I am the BEST version of myself that I can be. No one else is me, and that is my gift.

6. "Someone else opinion of you is none of your business."

Such powerful words for someone who tends to hold others opinions above my own. What others think of me is their problem. What I think of who I am is what matters the most and most days I am pretty awesome :) I don't have to make people like me or make them understand why I do the things that I do.

7. "If you don't look for the good that came out of what you've lived through, it's all wasted. Because what's the alternative? We live through something crappy, and that's it? We're done for? We allow all he hard, ugliest parts of our lives to color everything else?"

NO NO NO! I refuse to let the ugly color my life! The beauty that came out of my abusive marriage was that I met Mike. If I hadn't have gone through that, I wouldn't have been where I was when I met him. I wouldn't have been open to a relationship with an older man. I wouldn't have appreciated what a true partnership was. I found love in a completely unexpected place because of what I went through. Honestly, if someone had told me that I would have to go through all of that trauma and awfulness to be able to live the life I have now, I would say "Bring it on!" And I need to remind myself of that every day when I feel down. I have what I have now because I survived and it is 100% worth it!

8. "You can live through something that rocks your world off its axis. You can survive losing a piece of your heart without losing the core of who you are. More than merely surviving the loss, you can thrive. You can do it because it's what you deserve."

I do deserve to thrive. I do deserve this wonderful life I have. I am a survivor and if I can survive all of that, the rest is a piece of cake. I know that I have seen and been through the absolute worst and letting fear get in my way is a waste of time.


I know that I over share and I constantly put myself out there. But I do it because when I read things that make me say me too, it makes me feel so much better. It makes me feel less alone. That's why I write and share, the good AND the bad. Because if one person reads something I have shared and it makes them feel less alone, then I have done what I came here to do. To share love, to share life, to be a part of something bigger than myself.

Being successful in life has a lot to do with waking up and showing up. Asking for help. Being able to fail over and over and over and over again. It's about fighting for yourself every single day. I am worth fighting for. Some days will suck and some days will be so amazingly wonderful but that's what life is all about.  I refuse to give up myself. You shouldn't give up on yourself either.

Helping Others Grieve

It's a funny thing, grief. Some days it leaves you alone completely and some days it decides to wrap itself around your face like an octopus and you just can't seem to shake it.

I had conversations last week with four different women, all of whom had lost a parent recently. Another family member of mine just recently experienced a loss so unimaginable and painful that it got me thinking about grief and what we can do to show up for those in our lives that are experiencing a loss.   

We all will experience grief sometime or another in our lives. Some people are lucky enough to go through most of their lives without experiencing a traumatic loss. Some of us will experience losses so difficult that we can hardly breathe.

Everyone deals with grief differently. Some want to talk about it, acknowledge it, sit with it for a while and others want to ignore it completely and run. There is no right or wrong way to deal with grief. Just like there is no right or wrong way to express your sympathy to those who are suffering.

The biggest thing that I learned dealing with my own grief is that it's ok to be sad and mad and throw a tantrum. You don't have to be strong all of the time. It's okay to fall apart every once in a while. That's what friends and family are for...to help you pick up the shattered pieces and survive. What helped me the most was just knowing that I was loved and supported. That there were people in my corner who were there, should I need them or not.

So, what can we do to help?!

Let those you love know that it's okay. It's okay to just be. It's okay if all they did today was wake up. That's where you come in. To stand with them and walk with them. To be a hand holder, or a shoulder. To just be present and share your love. Some people might not want that, they might push you away and it's up to you to be okay with that. The griever has experienced something so hurtful that they don't have time to worry about how you are feeling. But, it is your job as someone who loves them is to just stand steady and be strong for them, when they can't be for themselves.

Be honest and stick to the truth. It hurts. It sucks. It's awful. I'm sorry. I'm here for you. I love you.

I love you.

That's the most important one.

Show up. Say something. Do something, even if you're not exactly sure what to do. Be willing to walk through this with them, no matter how awful it may feel for you...it's worse for them. Be okay with not having all the answers. Listen. Listen some more. Be present. Be a friend. Be love.

Because after all, love is the thing that outlasts it all. Love is the thing that can reach into the darkness and show us the light.  Love  makes the world a better place and if you are able to share your love with someone who needs it...then you have given them the most precious of all gifts.

Mirror, Mirror

It's so easy to look in the mirror and blame our bodies for not being what we want them to be. Too skinny, too fat, too short, too tall, too wrinkly, too whatever it may be. I am guilty of this almost everyday. Why can't I be more like this or more like that?

Ugh, what a waste of energy and time. Life is WAY too short to use up our precious time wishing our lives away.

I hate my hands. They are ugly and misshapen and they remind me of a time when I was really sick and struggling to just survive each day. I am embarrassed by them. They make it hard to do certain yoga poses because they are short and they are often painful. I waste so much energy being angry about them and trying to hide them. It's something that I have no control over and cannot change, no matter how much time I spend wishing they were different.

We all have things that we want to change about ourselves. But what if we decided instead to embrace the skin we are in? To celebrate our strengths and honor what our bodies have done and continue to do for us? To take some time to appreciate the things that we do like about ourselves rather than focusing on the things that we don't.

Gratitude can change the way we see things. And the more gratitude we can extend to our own selves, the way we see and love ourselves drastically changes.

So here goes...

I appreciate my hands for allowing me to be able to hold my husbands hand, to be able to write and draw, for the giving me the ability to cook, to stroke Goldies fur...my hands do so much of me every single day. Instead of hating them, I am embracing them.

I love my arms because they allow me to wrap my family and friends tight in a nice BIG hug. They hold me steady when I am in plank, although they shake and beg me for mercy. They are strong and allow me to carry way too many grocery bags into the house (because who wants to make more than one trip?!)

I am grateful for my strong legs that are able to carry and support me from one yoga pose to the next. They supported me when I ran a half marathon, they kicked and swam in the ocean when we lived at the beach for a year. They allow me to take a walk with my husband every morning and they hold me up (or at least try to) on late nights dancing with friends.

I appreciate the way my eyes twinkle when I laugh really hard.

I appreciate my loud, goofy, sometimes embarrassing laugh.

I like my smile because when I smile, others smile too. It also reminds me a little of my Mums smile and boy could she light up a room with her smile!

I am grateful for my soft round tummy because who needs a 6 pack anyway. Goldie thinks it's an excellent resting place for her head when snuggling on the couch and without it I wouldn't have a place for all my favorite chocolate to go.

The thing I am most grateful about myself for though, is my heart. I know it's not something that's visible on the outside of my body but that's what makes it even more special. My heart beats strong. It beats strong to keep me alive but it also beats strong with love.

Because that's what I am good at it. Love. And in the end, none of the other things will matter. I won't care what my outside look like. I won't care about my wobbly bits or my scarred bits. I will care about the love I gave and received. The lives I touched, even just a tiny bit, with my heart.

So, today, when you take a look at yourself in the mirror and you are prepared to sling some insults your own way, think again. Take a moment to appreciate and be grateful for the body you're in. The body that allows you to live, think, dream and love. The one and only body we get, for our very short time here.

Listen To Your Heart

Gosh, life sure can throw us a few curve balls can't it?!

I am an open book. I overshare and most people know everything about me. I like to think that's what people like about me, my openness and honesty, my authenticity. Because after all, if we aren't real, then what's the point?

All I can ever be is honest and true to myself. Often times, that leads us down paths we never expected. Just like making our way back "home" to Texas, which was an unexpected path for sure, our paths are constantly changing and evolving and just because you choose to walk one way, doesn't mean you aren't allowed to turn around and walk a different way instead.  

I thought that yoga teacher training was my dharma, my path. It was what I was supposed to do because I love yoga and all of the gifts it has given me. I love yoga, no one can dispute that fact. Yoga saved my life once and I am forever grateful for it. I need yoga in my life. I need to practice daily and connect with myself on a spiritual level for my own sanity. We all know that I am my own worst enemy.  I excel at taking care of others, but myself...not so much. It's exhausting and frustrating to constantly be at war with yourself. I thought that teaching yoga was the answer. But after much agonizing and anxiety and tears and tantrums, I have realized that just because I love to practice yoga does not mean that I will love teaching yoga. 

The anxiety is overwhelming. It cripples me from within and manifests itself outwardly. The tears come in waves but when they come, they’re like a flood. Uncontrollable and vicious. I feel sick to my stomach. My head hurts. I'm having trouble breathing steadily. I am having panic attacks more frequently. My skin is breaking out and has a mind of it’s own. My weight is skyrocketing because I turn to food when I am unhappy or uncomfortable. Things that I used to take pleasure in are now just a chore.  

My own yoga practice is suffering. The anxiety has taken the joy and the fun out of it for me to the point where I don’t even want to go to class. Anything that causes me to take a step back from my own practice is never a good thing.  I know nothing worth having ever came easy but when my own well being is at stake, I have to stop and take notice of what my soul is telling me. I am a true believer that if something stops making you happy, then you need to stop doing it!

Do I want to teach? That’s really what it all comes down to, isn’t it? Do I want to teach yoga to others?

I loved doing the 60 Hour Immersion and having the opportunity to delve deeper in my own practice and focus on the history and philosophy of yoga. But if I am honest with myself, I knew from the beginning that IF I did decide to teach (because it's always been an IF) I wouldn't want to teach yoga in a traditional setting. 

I know that ultimately I want to help and inspire others. From someone who has been through hell and back and came out the other side, mostly intact, I want to help others realize their potential and to thrive. But in order to help others I have to help myself first. I have to get my own shit together. I have to put on my own oxygen mask before I help my fellow passengers. I need to work on, once and for all, stopping the noise and nonsense in my head. I am done being a victim of my past and being trapped within this emotional roller coaster. 

A constant theme within me is that I have to find my "thing". The thing that gives my life purpose. The thing that shows me I am worthy of being here. I always feel like I need to prove to the world that I belong here. I'm not a mother, I don't have a fancy important job somewhere. I help my husband run his business, I take care of our house, my husband, and our dog and I give myself to others...all of which I love doing.

Sometimes we listen to others thoughts about what we should do and where we should go instead of trusting in our guts and our own hearts. I know that everyone has fears. Fears of trying new things, fears of change. I also know that even if I do complete the training program I am not obligated to teach. But I am constantly striving to find my my own purpose and I often feel like if I don’t pick yoga, then I have nothing. But I am so much more than any one thing. One of my dearest friends said to me, your “thing” is emotions. You create feelings within people and that is what people will remember in the end. 

My heart is my gift to the world. When will I learn, that it is more than good enough? I don’t have to be anything other than who I am. I just need to be myself and be content with that.

I am not sure where my path will lead me at this exact moment but I am sure in my heart that teaching yoga in any traditional sense is not that path. I have taken on this task twice now and each time I have come to the same conclusion. I think that it's time that I take notice of these feelings and follow them.

And that beautiful, sacred yoga space I created for myself. It will still be just that. A beautiful, sacred yoga space for myself or for anyone who wants to join me. I am not giving up yoga. If anything I am giving myself over to yoga even more. I am making more time for my own practice, more time for my own inner peace and happiness. I am making more time to actually put a plan into action to make myself feel better. It's time to listen to my own truth, my own heart and follow it and trust in it's wisdom. To just be me. A woman who is worthy.

A Year at the Beach

The last few weeks have been a bit rough around here. Getting ready to move and everything that comes with it is stressful enough but we have had some hiccups that have made this time around (it's only our 10th move in 12 years) a bit harder than usual. Thankfully today, it has all been ironed out and in 10 days we will be Texas bound.

So, as our year at the beach is coming to a close, we have spent some time reflecting on what a wonderful adventure it's been. We are both so grateful to live a lifestyle where we have been able to experience so many wonderful things together. Life is short and unpredictable but the heart of life is good and man, has it been fun!

Here are some of my favorite things about this past year we have spent living it up on the beach:


*Watching two bald eagles build their nest on the cell tower across the street from our house. Then watching their babies grow, test out their wings, learn how to fly and leave the nest.

*Watching a mourning dove build her stick nest in our garage, laying two eggs, hatching them, and watching the babies grow.

*Walks along the beach, hunting for shells and other treasures.

*Amassing a collection of shells so big it caused me to use 3 rolls of packing paper to wrap them up for the move

*Snorkeling in the ocean and watching a sweet little seahorse bobbing around attached to a piece of seaweed.

*Snorkeling out to a sandbar 50 yards in the ocean and being surrounded by dozens of starfish

*Taking a ride on Loop Road, a 25 mile long dirt road in the Everglades, and observing hundreds of alligators in their natural habitat, less than 30 feet away from us.

* Visting Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, watching the famous Mermaid show and seeing a mama manatee and her baby up close in the Springs.

*Going with friends to Crystal River and Three Sisters Springs to snorkel with the manatees. Rubbing a manatees back and having him roll over so I could scratch.

*Swimming in the ocean while manatees passed right by, close enough to touch.

*Countless dolphin sightings

*Going to see the Christmas Lights at the Tampa Bay Zoo

*Walking down the beach to the beach cafe to have Thanksgiving Day dinner in the sand.

*Spending Christmas on the beach with my family

*Finding a Great White Shark fossilized tooth during one of my shell hunts

*A Motorcyle ride along the coast and catching an amazing sunrise

*Watching the sunset from the beach or our deck

*Hearing great live music from the bar across the street while relaxing on our deck

*Stand up paddle boarding

*Kayaking

*Hiking Robinsons Preserve

*Seeing Roseate Spoonbills, Wood Storks and Sandhill Cranes

*Seeing Bon Jovi and Stevie Knicks in concert

*Going to see a preseason baseball game for the Pittsburgh Pirates

*Dressing up as a Mermaid and a Pirate and coming in second in a costume contest

*Riding my bike to get groceries

*Getting the BEST sandwiches from a great local deli

*Ordering sandwiches from a different great local deli and having them delivered to us right on the beach

*Amazing visits and adventures with our friends and family who came to visit

*Seeing stingrays

*Experiencing a Hurricane and floating in the street on my blow up raft in my swimsuit

*Saturday morning walks to the City Pier and stopping for breakfast along the way

*Mini-golf (which I NEVER won)

*Getting to see Snooty the oldest living manatee

*Doing a 5k on Siesta Key for sea turtle conservationan

*Doing a 5K Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot over the John Ringling Bridge in Sarasota

*Being surrounded by Monk Parakeets and feeling like you live in a Tarzan movie

*Going to the local fish markets where the fisherman unload their catch right off the boat

*Learning how to grill different types of fish

*Double rainbows

*Key Lime Coconut Cake from Hometown Desserts, a local island bakery

*Tuna sandwiches from our favorite little dive/bait shop, New Pass Grille

As I write this list, I am sure there are so many things that I am missing. Suffice it to say that we have had one hell of a ride this year. Here's to many more adventures to come in Texas...or wherever the Gypsy Caravan may roam :)