for the big 3-0 this year my family was awesome enough to pitch in for a ticket to miami where a couple of my bestest buds were ready and willing to take me in for a week, if they had only known :)
my first day mel got me right into florida culture by taking me on a trip through the everglades. i kind of thought, "boring, it's just a bunch of alligators" which it was, but something about seeing them in their natural habitat made it worth the trip. this is about as close as i was able to get to one, i only wish it had been the less smelly end!
they were all over the place, and they were all sizes too!
if you look closely you can see some babies in this picture, look for the stripes in the middle under the leaves.
that night they took me down to las olas, ft lauderdale for some yummy dinner and window shopping
these two are AWESOME!
we also went to key biscayne and climbed to the top of the bill baggs lighthouse. 
you could see for miles in all directions, it was amazing!
this is a turtle nest we found on our way to the lighthouse, they were all over the beach.
many days were spent lounging at the pool, what a life, i could get use to this.
my last day we went to hollywood beach. it was great! mel and i got a whole day in of shopping and swimming. after lunch the waves got pretty high which was awesome and a little scary. i got bowled over pretty good a couple times, luckily the lifeguards insisted we stay close, just incase.
thank you mel and stephen for your awesome hospitality! the trip was just what i needed and i can't wait to come again. love you guys!
