So, to continue my weekend with my Grandkids - on Saturday afternoon I dropped Kennedy off at home and picked up Gavin for an overnight in The Palms. We arrived around dinnertime, and Gavin loves breakfast, so we had breakfast for dinner:
Hot chocolate, fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, bacon and Cheerios.
He at every bit! We had little battery operated candles - gotta add some ambiance when you're having breakfast for dinner! After dinner we watched one of the DVD movies he brought. Gavin wasn't interested in having Katie sleep with him, so I got her back that night. :)
The next day Gavin was determined to swim, since Kennedy had been in the pool the previous day. When we went over, though, there was a man with his daughters looking at the pools. There are three, the large pool, a smaller one, and the hot tub (not for kids). He said the smaller pool was solar heated. (Wow, sorry Kennedy!) Gavin really lucked out, and he tried the smaller pool; it was still pretty cold, but not as cold as the larger pool.
Gavin swam back and forth a few times, played a little in the water, did a cannon ball, then got out. He was pretty cold. I had the heater in the car fired up to get him warmed up!
We also went to the playground so he could try out the various climbing and sliding structures.
This one was really cool to climb on - both kids liked it.
I'm going in, okay?
He fit inside - and discovered spider webs and ants!
But I love this picture of Gavin. So typical little boy.
Of course, Gavin also fed the ducks - I bought enough the day before with Kennedy to have some today for Gavin, so off we went to feed the ducks. And do a little birding. Gavin was a good birder. As I was driving around the park, he spotted some birds that I didn't see, and we'd stop and get some photos.
This is how it begins.
The birds went wild - swimming and running and flying as fast as they could get there.
Gavin ended up with quite a crowd-they kept coming until the seed was gone.
And finally, more birds we saw during walks and driving around the park. I fell in love with the Blue Herons and Egrets.
Beautiful Blue Heron
Funny little Egrets
This Great Egret was perched on top of a tree
Double-Crested Cormorants - this is the first time I've noticed these birds:
These two Cormorants were very snugly, they must have been paired up.
Dusk - lots of Cormorants roosting
And finally, a few more shots to end the Santee Lakes photos:
I don't know what this next bird is, he was perched behind the fence near the last lake. At first I thought it was an owl, but he doesn't match the photos of the three kinds of owls listed at Santee Lakes. He has a very small beak. Anyone have a name for this guy?
NOTE: I had a couple of suggestions of White-Tailed Kite, and looked again at the "Birds of Santee Lake" sheet. The only Kites listed are White-Shouldered Kite and Black-Shouldered Kite. I checked both photos on-line, and he looks just like a Black-Shouldered Kite. Thanks for steering me in the right direction. I've never seen a Kite before, and never would have looked that name up. Unless I hear otherwise, I'm going with the Black-Shouldered Kite.
Black-Shouldered Kite
Wooden float in the first lake in the RV area. Always birds sitting there.
On Sunday evening Tom, Trish, Kennedy and 2-year old Graydin came down and took us all out to dinner at a local steakhouse. I wanted to post a photo of the family at dinner, but the restaurant photos were fuzzy. It must have been the lighting. When they went home, it was pretty quiet around here!
Monday I just took it easy, surprisingly I wasn't tired after having a few really busy days! Tuesday was super busy - drove to town to shop, get gas, then the laundry at the park. Dumped the tanks, filled the water tank, generally got ready to leave the park, heading east to the desert.
Next time I'll post about the Hot Spring LTVA and have some photos of this area for you.
From Me and Katie, have a great Sunday, everyone! :)
