A Day Trip To The Coast 

    Last week Brian and I started talking about taking a road trip on the weekend.  One of the things we have set as a goal is to get out at least a couple of times a month and see some of the many, many things Florida has to offer.  On Saturday we decided to drive to the east side of Florida and look around the area and Air Force Base where we used to live.

    After deciding to take the "scenic" route we headed out at about 8:30am.  When you have the time, I always recommend taking the road less traveled to get somewhere.  You really get to see the places that most tourists never see.  

    Many do not realize it but, Florida has rolling hills, tall pines and absolutely stunning scenery.  In fact, the central part of Florida is home to over 600 thoroughbred breeding horse farms.  There are over 70,000 acres of farms, most of which are in the central Florida part of the state.  We are planning a trip to Ocala at the end of this month.  I'll be sure to post a blog about that trip!

    Back to our trip east.  We have been working on the decor in our new home and much of what we like and need is antique.  Melbourne has quite a number of antique stores, so we planned to visit a few on this trip.  

    We arrived in Melbourne at around 10:00am  which was perfect as most places don't open before 10:00.  (Antique stores that is!)   We stopped at America's Antique Mall www.americasantiquemall.com and spent about 90 minutes looking around a giant of a store!  

    A few weeks ago, Brian and I were antiquing and found a large model schooner that we both loved!   We didn't really have a place for it or we would have bought it.  We've talked about it several times since and were absolutely tickled to find a smaller version that was just perfect for over the front door 

       

         

    We had made plans to have lunch with a friend and so at about 11:45 we headed to lunch at Meg O' Malley's Irish Pub.  Lunch was spectacular!  Brian got a triple play which was a sampling of Bangers and Mash, Shepherds Pie and an Irish Beef Stew.  It came with a side of cabbage which I happily ate!  I had a Cesars Salad with grilled salmon.  My friend and I shared some scones while Brian happily enjoyed a delicious bread pudding.  

    After lunch we visited another large antique store.  We didn't find much there but also didn't spend a lot of time as we wanted to get to Satellite Beach where what used to be Patrick AFB (now Patrick Space Force Base) is.   I'm not sure what Brian and I anticipated but, I'm pretty sure we weren't prepared for the number of changes that have been made in the last 36 years!  

   This is where our house used to be.  All of the base housing has been torn down and all that remains are wide open fields.   It made me a little sad as I sat and looked at   the place where so many memories were made with family and friends.  

    I could almost picture Rachel and the (12) little ones that I babysat playing in the yard.   I remembered bringing our second baby, Brianna, to the home that used to sit in the spot directly in front of us.  
    We pulled the car into the parking lot of the softball field that was directly across from our home.  It was quiet and looked dilapidated.  A place that used to be so full of life and laughter now left only in our memories.  
                                                                 

    We did, after quite a bit of uncertainty find 

Brian's old shop.  Some of the landmarks have     

been moved around  and roads have been renamed so we weren't quite sure at first and actually wondered if they had torn that building down as well!  

    We took a quick trip into the BX to look around and then decided to drive on up the coast to I-4 and head home.   Driving along the coast, up through Cape Canaveral brought back so many memories.  Aside from the addition of sooooo many hotels, condos etc along the beach, not a whole lot has really changed.  

    It turned out to be a really nice day reminiscing, antique hunting, wonderful food and most importantly spending time together.

Until Next Time!

~ Sue