Fall in paradise

Okay, so nowhere on earth is truly paradise, but I like to believe that where I currently live (and, not-so-coincidentally, grew up) is as close as I can get to shangri-la.

Alas, my paradise doesn't really have any distinct change of seasons...unless you want to count the annual migration of the northern 'snowbirds,' (i.e., part-time retirees who come down just for the winter months), as indication that Winter has arrived. They get here literally the weekend after Thanksgiving and stay until right after Easter (their departure is another indication, this one that Spring has sprung).

And while the official arrival of Winter is still two months away, meaning we've got two more months of being able to go out to eat dinner at a decent hour without waiting to be seated (which will not be the case once all of the snowbirds arrive), for me the arrival of Fall means lazy weekend days spent enjoying the beach, not frying alive on it as is the case during the Summer months.

So, can you guess how we spent yesterday afternoon? (And yes, after this Xmas card photo session, bathing suits were donned and much fun was had by all--particularly the littlest little, who learned that sand tastes good...well, to her it does.)