A Synopsis

 I'm sorry that I have been lax in my posting this trip. The shelling hasn't been great but I have had a few little adventures....and there is always the BEAUTIFUL Sunrises and Sunsets...and the wildlife never disappoints! Most of the low tides were in the evening, and that is generally when we do our 'Walk and Talks' but I did get to the Lighthouse for the sunrise a couple of mornings. 

(These pelicans decided to photobomb my picture!) :) I love these guys!  

The lighthouse is normally my place to go to see a beautiful sunrise, wildlife and birds... sometimes shells and nice walk on a nice flat beach. 

This trip I've seen some cool stuff....Like this Calico Crab...I love these little guys...

Since (then Tropical Storm) Sally came by we had a weekend of rain...(13 inches reported on Sanibel) and some pretty strong winds...it brought in some interesting things

A Live Angel Wing!....this is an unusual sight as they usually bury themselves deep in the mud...

We also saw a few of these Sea Cucumbers (I think) up on the beach

I believe this guy is called a Lesser Puffer fish...sadly, he didn't make it....

and lots of Moon Jellies all over the beach....Cheri and I spent a lot of time putting them in the water and flipping them right side up! These guys are really big!!! 

I did find a few special shells.... Love those Flats!!! (Zig-Zag Scallops)

I picked up all these Wentletraps in one spot!!! 

I love the minis....these are from another trip!

I absolutely love these Atlantic Winged Oysters...the inside is Mother of pearl iridescent...impossible to photograph!! This one was live, so he went back into the gulf...the first live one I have found!

I did find one Alphabet Cone...so far!  This is as found....do you see it? Always look for spots!

Not a great point on it, but of course I kept it!

and who can resist the Orange Scallops?...not me!!

Another favorite is a Gaudy Nautica....Just look at the colors on this guy! Cheri Picked this one up....it's perfect!

On one of our 'Walk and Talks' we saw a pod of Manatee...These are such awesome creatures....and HUGE!! 

Many years ago, Jess and I took a trip down here to Florida and we actually swam with them! It was awesome...and pretty scary at first since they are so very large, but they are gentle giants, but I would never get too close to them in the wild. If you see them, just look, don't try to touch them or hamper them!

I did have a one great day shelling....Here are the highlights!!

That's a gorgeous Horse Conch, a Baby Scotch Bonnet !! and a nice Lace Murex!! The Horse Conch is soaking in bleach water and is cleaning up very nicely!... Look at that gorgeous color!!! 

(BTW, that is an Atlantic Winged Oyster right next to it in this picture, and you can barely see that Iridescent inside!)

Besides the beach walks, I have pretty much remained home, making a trip now and then to the grocery store and a couple trips to Sanibel Shellcrafters...It's different since we have to maintain the distance and wear masks....but still fun...I made a few of these puppy dogs from local shells...aren't they cute??

I also have been painting....and hiding more shells...it has become addicting and Great therapy!  Our trip is quickly coming to a close, we are heading to our other home in only a few days, I intend on posting again before we leave so stay tuned!

::Shelllady Hugs::

PS....Let me leave you with one of the Beautiful Sunsets of Sanibel...

 

Fall Beach and Shell Painting Therapy!

Hi all! I hope this post finds you well and adjusting to the new way of doing business...i.e quarantine! Hubby and I have stayed home, just trips to the store as needed and I've learned how to be a housewife! I worked full time, so was never home enough to do that! I'm kinda like this!! This housewife and househubby needed a break so we headed down to our place in Fort Myers for some R&R!

Let me start out with a Beautiful Sunset!

 Haven't been for a Sunrise yet, but it's coming....

The shelling has not been great, but you know how I am, the beach therapy is! I've only been able to go every other day, due to afternoon thunderstorms...so the last couple of days Team Cheri has gone earlier. There are a couple of small storms...The weather Channel calls them Invests that we should get this coming weekend which hopefully may stir things up a bit, hopefully improving the shelling.

Team Cheri did take a quick trip out looking for Wentletraps...(We call it Wentling) and it was somewhat successful...

I put the penny in there to show sizes...I LOVE the minis! (I forgot to take pics of Cheri's finds)

As usual, every time we go out, we have a little bit of an adventure....Cheri found these eggs...I believe they are Octopus eggs! How cool is that? These haven't fully developed yet, and we don't know if they are still thriving, but we have found them when you could actually see them inside!

We always like to see live stuff during our walks, here is a Live Sunray Venus...

...and a live Lightning Whelk and Sand Dollar!

Most of my time in Virginia, (and a lot of time here) has been spent painting shells and, as we call it, sprinkling them on the island! I came down with 2 boxes full I had painted since last trip...over 200 shells!!

This week I started getting ready for Halloween...and what fun!! I know, I know, it's a bit early...but I won't be here then!!

Here are a few I have been working on!

A Mumingo!!

So fun, and Highly Theraputic...then you get to find new areas to hide them for people to find!! Some areas do this with Rocks....on Sanibel they do it with Shells...of course!

Hopefully I have more adventures to post while we're here....

Stay Tuned and Stay Safe!

::Shelllady Hugs::

Highlights from This Week's Adventures

I have been lax on my posts lately so I decided to post some favorites from this week's Walk and Talk Adventures.  

I am continually trying to learn all I can about my local area, and saw this growing in a courtyard leading up to one of the grocery stores on Sanibel...If I'm not mistaken, those are Bananas or Plantains?!! How cool is that?!...and check out the 'flower' at the base!! I go into this area nearly everyday, either hiding shells or shopping...This hangs fairly high up, obviously I haven't been as observant as I thought!! I just really thought it was interesting!

I love the birds on Sanibel, and Cheri is a self proclamed 'Bird-Nerd' and keeps me educated about them, this guy is one of my favorites, a Reddish Egret, though they are not always red! He does this wonderful little dance while he feeds in the shallow water....

This is a Yellow-Crowned Night Heron...isn't he beautiful?? This was one of the first time I have seen one of these!

and who doesn't love a Pelican?! This one was on the roof of the pier watching us as we were walking beneath it!!

This tiny little crab, came out with both claws drawn as we slowly walked by him, can you see him?

This is an egg casing for a tulip...

another casing for a Kings Crown....

These egg cases are 'fastened' onto a large rock

This is one of my favorite shells..a Wentletrap

I did find a nice sized Flat Scallop,

...Check out the size of this Tellin!!! They are usually much smaller and daintier!

Cheri and I hit the jackpot on this trip I counted over 80 of them when I got home.....They were everywhere!!....the two smaller ones in this pic are called Crested Tellins

 I thought the way the water washed away this tree trunk was interesting....Look how high the water has gotten on this one!!!

This is all that is left of this tree....hours and hours of the Gulf just slowly washing it away!

Cheri found a live Quahog clam, I don't think I've ever seen one....this guy was sticking out of the shell when she picked it up, he had nearly drawn himself back into his shell by the time I got the picture!

Can you tell what this is?? It is covered in slipper shells, barnacles and all kinds of things....

It's a Florida Fighting Conch!! (we call them Fighters)

Can you see it??

Jackpot!!! A beautiful small Alphabet Cone! I can't tell you how long it's been since I found one of these!

...This was my day...I found 2 more!!!

Cheri found this guy just sitting by the edge of the water!!!! A beautiful small Scotch Bonnet!!! It's perfect!!!

I would say this was a Good Day!!! 

Cheri and I ran across this ferocious little Blue Crab in a tidal pool....we had to keep our eye on him....he was ready to fight....even with only one claw!!!

That's enough for now....I will try to update more often while we are here in paradise! 

Happy 4th of July, I hope you were able to celebrate with your families!!!

Stay Tuned!

::Shelllady Hugs::