Elizabeth and Kate's Tallahassee Visit
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Elizabeth and Kate flew into Tallahassee for a visit with us in September. Kate, at 2 3/4 years old, is already a seasoned traveler and has flown to California twice and even to Europe. She adapts well to her changes of location and living arrangements. She is shown at the airport, below left. This visit included relaxing and enjoying famliar sites and shopping. One familiar destination was Havana, Florida, which is home to a family-favorite antique center. As usual, we lunched at Oscar's Pizza and took our familiar table. Kate—shown below right seated at Oscar's. |
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Kate, below left, poses in an antique shop. The next day, my hair stylist was happy to meet Kate and Elizabeth. Kate had her hair trimmed, below right, and wasn't shy about accepting a lollipop. |
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Next day, we shopped at familiar stores and bought some clothing items for Kate, now fitting into size 3. Kate requested a pair of rainboots as well! Below left, she is shown in her new hooded jacket from her grandparents. Another day, we took the nostalgic family trip to Edward Ball Wakulla Springs State Park and Lodge, below right. |
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It was Kate's first trip there and she was especially excited about the boat tour. Birds, alligators, fish, plants and more: This boat trip is a real treat! The first two images are reminescent of those of Bill taking Elizabeth's photo when Elizabeth was Kate's age. |
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Alligators are always abundant at Wakulla. The image, below left, shows the first alligator we sighted this day. A little blue heron, below right, seems to pose for us. |
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A moorhen and her chicks swim among the reeds (below left) and a picturesque great white egret standing alert (below right). |
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| Crowded turtles (below left) are a common sight, and the cardinal flower stands out in September (below right). | |
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Regrettably, the Tarzan Tree of movie fame no longer stands, but it is memorialized by a prominent painting in the lodge (below left). We among many, many others enjoyed photographing it back in the day. The diving platform (below right) is a tamer version of its former self (courtesy of the Wakulla Historical Society), including when it was used to train soldiers for jungle warfare in World War II. A historical silent clip of some training exercises can be seen here should one have an interest. |
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On our way to the lodge for lunch after the boat tour, Kate runs and runs. Such carefree fun and happiness. (Bill and I are in the background on the right image.) The lodge-dining-room chef had just changed the menu following the power outage from Hurricane Hermine, which made landfall in Wakulla County early morning, September 1, 2016. Some vegetarian and vegan choices were added, much to our delight. |
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Relaxing around the homestead, Kate enjoyed touring our yard full of trees and other items of interest. She liked the old chicken house and nearby Chinese chestnut trees. (I had warned her of the prickly chestnuts so she kept a respectful distance.) She also enjoyed kumquats and found the nearby tractor fascinating—when she gets older, Granddaddy Bill will take her for a ride on it! Before leaving for the airport, Elizabeth made a photo of Kate with her grandparents, and we looked forward to our next visit. |
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