My family and I packed up and hit the road for Bradenton, Florida where my older brother Andy and his bride to be were to get married on July, 25 (Congrats!). We made a long vacation out of the trip. It was nice to unwind on the beach and just have a great time with my wife and son along with my parents and my siblings and their families.
I was honored to be a groomsman. We all enjoyed a beautiful wedding ceremony and reception at the The Powel Crosley Estate in Sarasota.
My brother Andy and his wife Sarah, and my family.
The whole crew!
This was the condo we stayed in on Holmes Beach. My parents and my family shared a two bedroom condo.
The view from the roof was awesome.
Here are some pictures of the beauty that is Florida.
Of course, we spent a lot of time on the beach. We enjoyed the sunsets over the Gulf of Mexico. I'd never seen the sun set over water before. Truly a beautiful picture painted by God.
Beautiful ain't it?
My parents taking a leisurely stroll down the beach.
My wife's uncle Roy lives near Ruskin, Florida and we met up with him for lunch at Rotten Ralph's. If you ever go, their cheeseburgers are really, really good. We walked around the nearby piers afterward and enjoyed looking (but not touching) all of the expensive yachts. Roy also took us to the Sky Bridge. It was truly an uncomfortable experience being that high off of the water on a narrow two-lane highway. There was some road construction on the upward climb that caused the roadway to become even more narrow. My door seemed to be nearly scraping the concrete barrier that kept us from plunging into the gulf.
We took a tour of the gulf outside of Sarasota. They threw nets overboard and we got to look firsthand at some really neat aquatic life. Aaron and my nephew Julian really enjoyed the experience.
One afternoon we were in the gulf swimming, I happened to look up and see about 5 or 6 dolphins come out of the water and go back in. I turned and yelled out "dolphins!" No one around me saw them. They jokingly told me I was lying about it. But on our tour, I caught some dolphins surfacing. Who's laughing now?
