The Great Szerminski Adventure

Galveston Island state park was wonderful. It had just everything that we needed and so close. The comfort station was near and not too far away, and it was only a three minute drive when we wanted to go to the beach. The water was awesome, and one of me and Lucys favourite things to do was walk around the beach to look for Sand Dollars and shells. Lucy is the shell master though. Me and her have invented currency in shells. Shell Currency. We buy shells from one another that do not belong in our currency. Lucy normally would only collect shells that she likes and does not already have, but now she collects most currency shells so that she can buy more things from me. Me and Lucy also used some fabric from old shorts that don't fit me to make Lala and Purple Bear new dresses.        Anyway, the beach itself is wonderful, and it seems to have some sandbars. Me and Lucy walk out for quite awhile and finally the water came back to our knees. We never even ended up getting to a spot

After leaving the Everglades we spent three days ‘escaping’ Florida. It’s not that we were not enjoying Florida - it had been spectacular - but rather that Florida is just SO BIG that it takes a long time to drive its length. We stayed in two campgrounds and one hotel, and enjoyed two magnificent beaches on our way north and then west. We left Topsail Hills State Park in Florida on Tuesday morning, drove through the southern parts of Alabama and Mississippi, and arrived in New Orleans around 3:30 PM.  We stayed at a hotel in the French Quarter and were struck right away by the narrow streets and beautiful buildings and railings. It felt very European. We unpacked a bit then went out walking, checking out the neat shops (like Foot Candy - Miriam’s favourite) and taking in music from buskers. We tried to get in line for the 6PM show at Preservation Hall but the line was so long that we would have had to wait until the 8PM show and we were not in the mood for a 2h line! We went out

We left home four weeks ago today. The trip will be 18 weeks long, so we are 2/9 of the way through our adventure. It seems like a good time to reflect on the day-to-day reality of being on the road. Driving hasn’t been too bad so far. Some days in the car have been long, but the highways have been great and traffic has cooperated. There was that one day we had to get the back brakes replaced...but that’s not a very exciting story. When I was planning out our route and considering the length of some of the drives, I often imagined us leaving a place by 9AM so that a 4-hour drive would have us arriving at another place by 1PM. In reality it can be difficult to eat, get everyone ready, and have the text packed up by 9 depending on the weather, the activities of the previous day, and the quality of sleep we have had. The result has been that traveling days take a bit more time than I thought, but we try to make the best of them. For instance, on the long drive from New Orleans to G

As we are behind on blog posts, here is a family effort to share some highlights from our trip to Everglades National Park. Landscape The Everglades were far more vast and flat than we had expected. I’m sure we won’t see scenery like this until we hit Saskatchewan in June! This sign gives you a good idea of how close we were to sea level as we drove throughout the park: Signs that were new to us:    Snake Bight Trail (3.6 miles) This was the straightest trail we ever hiked. It was longer than Miriam would have liked and hot in the parts that were not shady. We loved looking at the beautiful flowers, cacti, and trees along the way. The trail ended at the ocean, which helped us cool down and gather our strength for the return trip. Anhinga Trail (0.8 miles) We saw lots of alligators on this trail, probably 20 in total. We also saw turtles, birds, and fish. The anhinga birds struck neat poses to help

       There is so much to write about on the subject of Universal that I might have to do two blog posts. I don’t even know where to start.        I suppose I can start at the beginning. Universal was a complete surprise to Miriam and I, and as were later notified, the biggest surprise for the whole trip. We didn’t know until we were in the parking lot and Mama said to us: “So, girls, we’re at Universal Studios, which has little places from all the movies that Universal has done, and that means it basically has Harry Potter land.” This sent Miriam and especially me into a state of excitement, and it grew as Mama explained how we were staying in a hotel that meant we’d get entrance to the park an hour early. We couldn’t go today, of course, because there wasn’t enough time left in the day. That didn’t mean we had nothing to do, because as Mama and Daddy waited in line for our room key, they let us explore the gift shop. I think Harry Potter is probably the most popular part of Uni

After our visit to Universal  (which I realize hasn’t been blogged about yet...it’s not my fault...the kids have dibs...but many thanks to Tara and Paula and Addi for being great hosts...I hope I got your spelling correct little cousin!!!) we arrived at around 9PM at Manatee Hammock Campground in Titusville, Florida. It was too late to check in, but we set up in the dark and were so exhausted that we fell asleep almost immediately. In the morning we were delighted by the view from our campsite, and could even see our destination across the water. We tried to check in to the campsite before leaving for the Kennedy Space Center, but were not able to as the office wasn’t open until 10AM. We had a short drive to the Space Center, and arrived just in time for the playing of the Star Spangled Banner at the entrance to the park, accompanied by a countdown on a large digital countdown clock, which we later found out was the original clock used at the rocket launch viewing site. I am the onl

We went to swim with the manatees very early in the morning on Wednesday March 9th. It was a very dark morning. Everyone was very, very tired and even the muffins and the oranges were not quite enough energy for four sleepy people. But, it was totally worth it, and after we got in the water we were not even that tired any more. Not me at least. Anyway, swimming with the manatees was awesome. The first manatee came up to me a lot because it liked me so much, (and we were only supposed to touch them, with one hand, if they do come up to us) and so I let it do what it wanted and floated by it. Really. The title was swimming with the manatees but it is really floating with the manatees. We float beside them, letting them make all the choices and watch as the beautiful creatures swim by.  After swimming with the manatees, we drove over to a surprise place. Universal Studios. I had know idea that this place even existed! It has rides and places, from the movies of Universal and that

       Today was one of the the best activities of the trip so far. One of the very first things that we planned for this trip was to go swimming with the manatees, an activity that was first discovered by Miriam as she looked through one of our research books. Everyone has been looking forward to it for a long time, even though we had to get up pretty early in the morning. And it was worth it.        Mama’s alarm clock woke us at five-thirty , at which time we had to scramble into a bathing suit, grab our clothing, and go. Swimming with the manatees is best in the morning, which is why we had to leave early. We ate three hurried muffins in the car and arrived soon after. It was still pretty dark when we got to the building, so we just went in to wait for the manatee to start. Luckily, hot chocolate was provided.        Soon, a woman guided us and several other people into a room to watch a movie about how to behave on our tour. (Don’t touch the manatees unless they come to you,