Lake Lure Visit before Hurricane Helene

This year's summer vacation took us road tripping to Lake Lure, North Carolina.  Hurricane Debbie had just left Florida and was slowly heading to South Carolina as we left on our trip.  In fact, the storm was so slow that we caught up with it in South Carolina, and then it reached us again the next day at Lake Lure!  Never before did we experience one storm in three different states!
 

We got to enjoy the mountains and Lake Lure, nature at its finest!  

 

The reports, pictures and videos of Lake Lure and the surrounding areas devastated by hurricane Helene are unimaginable and heart breaking.  The people we encountered were pleasant, upbeat and also hard working.  With their resilience and strength, they will rebuild and we hope to one day return again!

Morning views from the cabin, rain moving in for the day.

Started raining, but we went out exploring Lake Lure.

Cabin views, we spent a lot of time just enjoying the surrounding mountains.

Cabin house was picturesque!

Side yard of the house.

New day, exploring the beach area after dinner.

Lake Lure Inn & Spa.

Approaching the marina, a beautiful evening stroll.

The marina was well taken care of.  Boat rides were booked days in advance, so we didn't get to go on any rides.  If planning on a lake ride, it would need to be booked as soon as arriving in the area, especially for a short stay like we had.

 

 

Nighttime house view.

 

Lake Lure Morse Park was beautifully maintained.

Lake Lure by the marina entrance (Morse Park).

Another Morse Park area by the marina.

Lake Lure shore by the marina park.

Lake Lure was booming with boats!

Another stunning display of nature.

Climbing the winding roads.

Walking through the woods was a dream!

Last night at the cabin house enjoying the sunset over the mountains.

Sea Watching at Vinoy Park Beach

Florida is heating up and so the beaches are filling up.  We went for a little walk and sea watching in the evening time as the crowds dissipated.  The weather was perfect, not too hot and trees provided some shade.  We watched sail boats cruise around and inhaled the salty sea air, the perfect mind rest.  The beach has volleyball nets to play in the sand and palm trees close enough to tie a hammock to, it's a spot we enjoy visiting.

Vinoy Park Beach, St. Petersburg, FL

I encourage you to seek balance in nature.  The high vibration of nature lifts us up by helping our bodies find a healthy, energetic balance and where there is balance, there is health.

With love,

An Evening at Fort De Soto Beach Florida

A lot has happened since my last post and as I was browsing through phone photos, I came across these from last August that are too beautiful not to share.  Plus, it is winter time and it's cold across the country, including Florida with last night's low of 32F in St. Pete, so the beach photos give us something to look forward to this summer!

This was an unexpected trip to the beach and a beautiful time as you will see in the photos.  The views were breathtaking and as we got there after 6pm, the beach only had a few visitors left, which cleared out shortly after our arrival.  Aside from the birds picking at shells and other critters, the beach was ours to enjoy.

I didn't want to go in the water, but rather browsed around and watched schools of little fish in the shallow end.

With love,

Sunset Watching at St. Pete Beach Florida

Taking time out to see the sunset and breathe in the salty sea breeze is one of my favorite ways to end a day.

Every time we do go watching the sunset on the beach, we witness not just the spectacular show in this little part of the universe, but what it evokes in people.  Most sunsets we see, people that have gathered to witness it, applaud as the tip of the sun sinks below the Gulf's horizon.  It triggers a feeling of wonder and fascination.

Time spent in nature is never a waste of time.  Whether it is a beach, forest, a lonely tree in your back yard or a flowering meadow, take the time to connect with nature and experience your true soul waking up.  It makes everything else less relative; the material things, the gossip, hurt, blame and all these things you are not meant to be feeling nor doing.

For this beach trip, I didn't bother dragging my camera with me and used the phone to capture a few beautiful moments in hopes to inspire you to connect to your surroundings.

Sunset at St. Petersburg Beach

With love,

A Day at Universal Studios Orlando

A cloudy day was the perfect day to be out in the Florida heat, as the clouds made it very tolerable.  My husband received two tickets to Universal Studios in Orlando and we made our way to the park ready to have a good time!

As we entered the park, we grabbed the park map and figured out which presentations to hit first.  The wait times ranged from 15 - 60 minutes and if you purchased a Universal Express Pass, you could skip the lines at any of the participating rides and attractions.  We only went to the rides with wait times under 30 minutes, because neither one of us wanted to stand in line longer than that.  If you wanted to experience the whole park in one day, I would recommend the Express Pass to cut down on wait times.

    

Anywhere we go, we always have a good time and this was no exception.  In between rides, we stopped to eat and relax.  There are plenty of food options throughout the park.  As the day progressed a lot more clouds rolled in and by the time we were ready to leave it has started raining.

We then ended up getting stuck in traffic, driving about 3 miles in one hour.  The above photo is of the slow moving traffic and the sign of Apopka, a town name so cool I couldn't get out of my head!

With love,