...gator huntin'!  Yep, its true - we went lookin' for gators over the weekend and did we ever find them!

Maybe I should explain...every year about this time my husband and I get very popular.  I like to think that it has to do with our dynamic and fun-loving personalities but the truth is, it has more to do with our location and our Orlando address.  Being from the North, we have lots of friends and family that are at their wits end with Winter.  Just about this time each year we get calls and emails from people who we assumed had fallen off the face of the Earth, but all of a sudden they are eager to see us and to "reconnect".  It's all good - we don't mind.  We love spending time with our guests and offering the reprieve they so desparately need.  This year we had back-to-back guests so I've been out of my stamping routine for almost two weeks.  My last guest leaves tomorrow so I hope to be stamping later that day, but in the meantime I thought it would be fun to share our adventure with the alligators.  We took my friend to an alligator sanctuary about 10 miles from my house.  We took an airboat ride along the St. John's River and captured some great pictures of some of the alligators.  It's just about mating season, so they were everywhere!

I hope you enjoy the pictures.  Click on the photos for some great close-ups.  I'll be back to my "regularly scheduled program" as soon as I can.

This first picture is of me and my daughter, Rachel, on the airboat.  Headsets are a necessity due to the noise of the fans.

This picture is of the St. John's River as we make our way down to find some gators and other wildlife.

We spotted a bald eagle on our tour.  What an awesome bird.

How's this for a gator?  We were told he's about 8 feet long.

Lots 'o gators.  They were getting a little ticked with us for disrupting their sunbathing.  We counted over 31 gators along this bank.  Click the photo for a better view.

Close-up

At the end of the trip, everyone is allowed to hold "Hollywood"  - a 2-year old gator.  Here we are a little wind-blown but relieved not to have been a gator snack!

It was a great day.

Thanks for stopping by and taking a peek.

Mary Ann