Hello Everyone!

I thought I would make an attempt at catching up a little.  We have had visitors coming and going constantly and other things going on, plus a few health issues mixed in.  The island has still remained very busy, even after the normal season was over.  I've heard that the amount of tourists is expected to drop off a little due to school starting again.  We could certainly use a break.  Even business owners that normally take a vacation during this time of year, have not been able to do so yet.

One fun thing that happened was our 7 member team won the Road Rally this year!  We've done it every year since moving here, and this year we got lucky!

         

The Sanibel Captiva Optimist Club puts on this very entertaining event each year on the 4th of July.  It is tremendously fun, so you should plan a visit to take part sometime!

Since today is National Lighthouse and Lighthouse Preservation Day , that prompted me to share some cool photos of our Sanibel Lighthouse during refurbishment that began at the end of June and planned to be completed during the month of September.

We were driving across the Sanibel Causeway on July 13th, and noticed the lighthouse looked a little strange.  From that distance it looked sort of like a lighthouse with an enclosed base.  It peaked my curiosity, so we drove there and took photos.  It was uncovered again a week later.

In the U.S., skeletal lighthouses, like the one at Sanibel, became popular with our government because the cost was less than half the price of a stone or brick tower.  They were assembled from prefabricated sections and taken to the location to be assembled.  The first onshore skeletal lighthouses in the U.S. were built in 1861.  There is an interesting story about our lighthouse.  It was fabricated in the north and then shipped to Sanibel.  The ship sank just two miles from shore, but the crew, with help from divers, were able to recover nearly all of the pieces.  Sanibel Lighthouse was erected in 1884. 

 You can read more about the Sanibel Lighthouse here.

As usual, the Summer months have brought lots of beautiful clouds, plenty of rain, rainbows, sun rays and sunsets!

I'm a little disappointed that I didn't get to help with sea turtle nesting program this year, I was willing, but my feet were not.  There are a large number of nests here on Sanibel and Captiva this year, a total of 471 at this time, and 71 hatches.  Some got washed over with extra high tides from Tropical Storm Andrea, but many are hatching.  Most of the nests here are Loggerheads, but this year has set a record for Green sea turtle nests, 7 here and 2 on Captiva. 

In case you are wondering, the critters in our home are doing quite well.  Puffin has become quite studious, that is, when he isn't scattering toys all over the house or laying around sleeping, which is most of the time.

The parrots, Lexis and Lotus, are also helping keep us entertained. 

I hope all of you are doing well!