Leaving Tampa

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard from the flight deck... My fore father's... My head's in the clouds. Here we are at the airport anticipating a good flight home. So far the most interesting thing that happened was when we returned our rental car. We were told that there was only $80.53 worth of charges and that it was likely some mistake, and that he could not give me a receipt. Hmmm? I can't help but think this will end up in some sort of mess. I told Mindy as much. There was little sense in arguing over it now, however. We're heading home after 6 days in the sun. More... As we sit here in the terminal awaiting our flight (while i type this) , our departure time just has been bumped back 45 minutes to 7:30pm in lieu of the original 6:45pm. I hope that's it!The day started for all of us a little earlier than all the others. We were all out of bed by 7:15am eager to begin our last day here in sunny Florida. I had my exercises behind me, a cup of coffee and some blogging done well before 8:00am. I left for a run at about 8:30am and made it a long one. I took John's advice and ran back through Starkey State park which is a lot like Alum Creek but in Florida. It was very jungly. I was gone for almost and hour.When I returned I was very, very hot. Ceremoniously, I jumped immediately into the pool. I could feel the body heat leaving me almost in an instant. And just like all days prior, breakfast was ready. Mindy is such a good mother and girl friend. I am getting spoiled to be sure.The kids were a little fussy this AM. but then again, I expected it after 6 days in the sun and pool. After breakfast i did a little packing and cleaned up a lot of the mess we had made before heading out to the sun and pool. I was in my chair with a cool drink by 11:00am, and so was Mindy.We hung by the pool the rest of the day until about 2:45pm when I went in to shower and finish packing. Sometime around 1pm Jacob and I went on a lizard hunt. We found plenty but couldn't quite manage to catch one of those little beasts. We tried several more times but always failed. It's just as well. They generally don't live long back in Ohio. We continued to graze on the food we had bought for our trip and continued cleaning our mess as we went not wanting to leave Craig and Jeff's house a mess. Our goal was to leave it the same or cleaner than when we arrived. It is a beautifully taken care of home. We washed all the bedding and towels we used last.By 4:05pm we were all packed, loaded, and ready to go. I could tell Mindy was a little sad, but so was I. We had a lovely time minus the Disney experience (kidding). But... we've got to go home to start building a lifetime of vacations, memories, and fun! Off we went.We stopped at the Hess Gas station to fill the tank on our rental which was just outside the housing development. Soon we were on the toll highway destined for TPA. Our flight took-off from Tampa just after 7:30pm as promised. It was smooth take-off and a smooth flight all the way home. Both kids slept most of the way. It’s always funny coming home – a bit of the time warp effect. No sooner did we land then Ashley phoned to check on our status. She indicated that she’d be heading home instead of waiting up for me. After gathering up all of our luggage we made our way to the Blue lot shuttle where we would be whisked back to familiar surroundings. I took Mindy and the kids home first. Once there, I helped unload their gear, made sure Mindy was comfy, and then left for my own home. It’s always a pleasure arriving home after being away for awhile, and that’s why I always insist on cleaning the house before I leave. I don’t want to spoil that sensation. Nothing like returning home to a bright, cheery, clean home. The house, the yard, and Ykraps all seemed to be in good working order. Nothing out of the amiss or out of the ordinary. GREAT! The first thing that I did was walk Ykraps even though Ashley indicated that she’d already addressed his evening walk. More than anything, I just wanted to reacquaint myself with the yard. The flower all seemed well soaked (great job Ash!) and the lawn looked lush, although it was dark. The recent rain here in Columbus seemed to do the trick. After a drink of water and securing the home I went to bed. What a feeling it was to snuggle up on my own mattress!