Swimming With the Sharks, Dolphins and Shark Week

 I am not one of those people who freak out about sharks while I'm swimming.  I am more concerned about doing the stingray shuffle! (see video below)  I was not scared by the movie, Jaws.  I can identify most types of sharks, and have even seen sharks while surfing and diving and not been terrified.  Did you know that sharks rarely kill people?  If a shark does bite a person, they don't like the taste, that is why you only hear about shark bites.  All this said, this weekend I was snorkeling with my daughter on a coral-y beach and when we were getting out, we noticed there were some fins in the water.  Some people sitting beside us on the beach said that they were dolphins, and had been playing out there for a couple hours.  Well, I have seen dolphins and I was not real sure that they were actually dolphins and not sharks.  First of all, there were only two and the fins were very small.  Where were their dolphin parents???  And second, I have never seen such small dolphins before.  So, I think there is a good chance that my daughter and I may have had our own personal "shark week" at the beach this weekend!  How do you feel about sharks?  

Dolphin Fins

Shark Fins

6 word Saturday

Just like swimming in an aquarium!

Snorkeling Grecian Rocks off Key Largo!
We had such a fun trip!

Can you describe your life in just 6 words?

Scalloping

Scalloping is such a fun thing to do with kids!  I like to describe it as an underwater Easter egg hunt.  We usually go every summer.  Here is what you need for a good time scalloping:
1)  Check the reports online and find out where to go!  Scallops like to hang out just north of where a river meets the gulf. 
2)  Round up your equipment: snorkels- check!  masks- check!  flippers- check!  shell bag and 5 gallon bucket- check!  dive flag- check!  fishing license- DOH! (had to renew mine at the last minute online!) 

 3)  Find the spot and start finding them!  Usually the water is pretty shallow when we scallop which makes it fun for everyone, even the kids, but it still helps to have snorkel equipment.  You can find them just hanging out in the grass and sandy areas out in the bay.  

4)  Head back in and find a shady spot to shuck!  We usually sit under a tree back at home, and have some cold drinks to help us along.  Shuckin' tips:  Dark side up, use a grapefruit spoon, sometimes ice makes them pop open, but sometimes just keeping them in their own water works better.  

 5)  Cook em up!  I dip them in egg and put them in a baggie full of panko breadcrumbs and shake it all about!  I put a little oil in a pan and fry them for about 3 minutes on each side until they are brown.  At the last minute, I pour 2 tablespoons of Rose's lime juice and a pat of butter in the pan and let it sizzle.  Serve over pasta or yellow corn grits.  Mmmmm!  
Are you ready to try scalloping?


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swimming and snorkels

After my daughter spent the entire summer swimming like a fish, I decided to sign her up for swimming in October.  I was never able to join a sport when I was young, so it was a big deal to me that my daughter be able to have that experience.  I even thought maybe I could learn along with her.  We could be a cute mother/daughter swim team.  People would look at us and say, "wow, who is that?!  Look at how good they are!" (I am a great snorkeler after all).  Well, after flailing around in the pool for nearly 6 months, I have decided that this swimming thing is just not for me.  I try to swim back and forth, but I am always gasping for breath, and end up doing the backstroke and watching the clock to see if my time is up yet.  I was telling my dad that I am either going to give up my swimming career, or have to just use a snorkel and ignore the "real swimmers" who will point and laugh at me for sure.  He assured me that it is not any worse than wearing goggles and a swim cap, that they would probably not laugh, and said, "Hey, we are great snorkelers.  We are just not swimmers."  At least I have figured this out before the lifeguards had to fish me out of the water and embarrass my kid!