Space Shuttle

On my last post, I totally forgot to mention one of the COOLEST "firsts" that we've experienced here so far. That's okay though, because it's worthy of it's OWN post. We were able to see the space shuttle launch! The AF base is about 30 - 40 minutes south of the launch sight (I think.), and people we talked to said we could see it from anywhere. So we went to a little park outside of our room to watch it. It was AMAZING! Matt's video clip really doesn't do it any justice. It was almost as bright as the the sun, but in the shape of a rocket (go figure!). It was totally quiet when we could see it, but once it was up out of sight, then we could hear the rumble. It sounded like rolling thunder (NOT to be confused with Ka-boom thunder) that could be heard for several minutes. The still picture shows the smoke trail the shuttle left behind. It lingered for quite awhile. Matt was attempting to get a still picture of the shuttle, but missed it, because he was video taping instead. So, enjoy the video and pretend you were there!

Firsts...

Since my last post, our family has encountered many "firsts." I accidentally loaded the pictures backwards, so I'll just start with the most recent, and work my way back.

Since our arrival in Florida,
I have seen a banana tree for the first time. I have also seen a whole orchard of mango trees, a papaya tree, a few growing pineapples (they do NOT grow on trees), and seen many other tropical plants/flowers I have not ever seen (except in pictures) before.

My boys have also gone to the zoo for the first time. We finally live close enough (about 10 minutes) that we can go fairly frequently, which is good. They loved it! Especially the kiddie land where they have a playground/animal caves to explore, a little water park, and a petting zoo!

Of course, you can't live in Florida and NOT go to the beach. The pic was taken from the balcony of a hotel we were staying in. I haven't been brave enough to take our camera to the beach, because I don't want sand in it! Anyway, Joseph has now been to the beach for the first time (and subsequent times), and Darren hasn't been since he was Joseph's age. And then, it was the Pacific ocean. So, all 4 of us have experienced dipping our feet in the Atlantic ocean for the first time! The beaches here are really nice. The sand is so soft and warm, and so is the water! I grew up in Oregon, where it's usually cold and windy on the beach, and forget swimming unless you have a wet suit. So, I'm loving the warmth of the beaches here! Darren loves playing in the water, jumping over the waves. Joseph doesn't like the water so much, but likes to watch the sand run through his fingers when he tries to pick it up.

On the 4th of July, Joseph experienced his first carnival ride, and LOVED it. He laughed and giggled almost the whole time! So much fun. Darren on the other hand, was afraid of them, and was MORE than content watching Joseph have all the fun. They both also experienced their first "real" fireworks display. Darren has seen some in Alaska (in the winter) from his bedroom window, and from inside the car, but never out in the open. Joseph loved them, and Darren was unsure and a bit scared until his daddy had him point out the colors he saw. Then he was fine. (Good job, Matt!) However, Darren LOVED the little individual firework display we had. Especially the little snappers. He was all over those! Laughing and having a good ol' time! As much as I love Alaska, I have to admit it was nice to let my boys experience fireworks on the 4th of July!

We spent the 4th of July weekend in Georgia with my friend Jessica and her family. That was such a welcome break from all the stress of moving! It was so GREAT to spend some time with them! On the 4th, they took us to Peachtree City, GA, which is quite possibly one of the most unique places I have ever been. That town is built around golf cart trails - seriously! People have golf carts instead of second vehicles! The parking lots ALL have designated golf cart parking, and not everyone with a golf cart plays golf! It's quite amazing. You can seriously go ANYWHERE in that town in a golf cart. We got to go for a ride in one, and the trails were quite pretty! It was a fun place.

We can all say that we have been to the southern states now as well. Actually, we can say we have driven from Alaska to Florida within about a 7 month time frame - with 2 small kids! We seem to be quite the novelty down here. It's not everyday in Florida that you see 2 vehicles with Alaska license plates, and a cord hanging out the front of them. We get MANY stares everywhere we go! Most have never heard of having to plug a car in.

For this move, we decided to do a full DITY (do it yourself), instead of having the military doing it. We have differing opinions as to whether it will be a first, or a first and last! The great things about it are that I will know exactly where everything is, because I packed similar items in the same box (now that's a novel idea!), and was DETAILED in my labeling! Plus, we've been able to make a little extra cash doing it this way, which of course, is always nice. However, it can be MUCH more stressful, especially if your hubby is stuck in school where the environment was VERY tense and stressful the last few weeks, with a graduation date that kept changing. This meant that I was unavoidably left to do most all of the packing by myself - with the kids trying to unpack almost as fast as I was packing! I am VERY glad and relieved that school and the packing is OVER!!

I know this is really long, but I'm going to add one more thing - and it doesn't even have to do with the topic. but I have to post our Coleman Family tradition. Whenever we move, we come up with a list of our 5 favorite things about that place. I will admit that because we knew we weren't going to be in Texas very long, I didn't try to make it "home." We've had to look a little harder for things to love than we did in Alaska and other places we lived. So, a little belated and in no particular order, here's our list for Texas in case you want to know:

1. FRESH homemade tortillas sold in little corner shops and even the bakery section of the grocery stores. SOOO much better than regular store-bought tortillas.

2. Fabulous Mexican food.

3. The HEB grocery store - grocery shopping became FUN! Live cooking demonstrations, free samples, fabulous produce section, HUGE selection on everything, they gave kids balloons to keep them occupied while shopping, etc.

4. The birds. I have never seen such a variety of birds. Our backyard was filled with all kinds of birds everyday! We enjoyed listening to them and watching them.

5. Texas was a little greener than I expected.