I think we all agree that an occasional respite is a must. Ours started a week ago when we finally decided on a landing point for a week of much needed relaxation.

As the kids are on their spring break from their schools, it was a perfect time to head out of town without any missed school time.

With our work vacation days secured, my wife and I decided on an Airbnb rental. A 50 foot sailboat docked in a marina on the Gulf Coast of Florida! Talk about building memories!

Once school and work were done Friday afternoon it was time to head south from the chilly winter of Michigan to the warm breeze expectations of a weary winter worn bunch of humans.

Aside of an impromptu stop at a gas station to ride out some gnarly spring storms through Kentucky, which came along with a car key induced flat tire, the trip was pretty uneventful. We took a lot of back roads in Alabama to keep away from the the hoard of spring breakers and of course we had to stop at Buc-ees(a gas station on steroids)!

After a day and a half of driving we arrived at our vacation destination. Our accommodation was as promised and we picked our sleeping arrangements, my 8 year old much more enthusiasticly than the rest of us. Weary from the trip, sleep came quickly for me.

Now, as I drink my coffee on the boat deck looking out from the marina and into the harbor as Brown Pelicans and Laughing Gulls fly above my head, we are ready for rest!

Birds seen with coffee:

• Brown Pelican
• Northern Mockingbird
• American Bald Eagle
• Killdeer
• House Finch
• Mourning Dove
• Eurasian Collared Dove
• European Starling
• Double Breasted Cormorant
• Great Blue Heron
• Snowy Egret
• Barn Swall
• Northern Rough Winged Swallow
• Osprey
• Eastern Bluebird
• Turkey Vulture