This month I'm participating in the A to Z blogging challenge and posting every day in April (except Sundays) with the corresponding letter of the day. The theme I chose for this year is 26 Days of Gratitude. I'll be posting about people, places, things, and events in my life I'm grateful for. Today is the letter...
No, I'm not talking about Italy, sorry to disappoint you. Rather, I wanted to highlight another Naples, probably a little less well-known. I don't know how many of you are familiar with the southern, west coast of Florida--Naples in particular--but it is a beautiful place to visit. We are blessed that my husband's parents live there which makes for a nice vacation when we go down to see them.
Naples is located on the Gulf of Mexico with beautiful, clear, turquoise waters, white sandy beaches, and an abundance of palm trees. If you're looking for large waves for the kids to run and play in, then Naples beaches probably aren't the place to be. The water is calm and warm, and my kids have fun snorkeling for starfish, sand dollars, and my personal favorite, conch shells.
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| Photo courtesy of tourismnewsinfo.com |
I'm a conch shell junkie. Every year we go to visit and come home with a bucket of conch shells (no inhabitable creatures inside, of course). I think I enjoy looking for the shells more than my kids do! You have to be careful though. Sometimes, the shells have a "smell", especially the larger ones.
A couple years ago when I was pregnant with our last child, we went down to Naples for Spring Break. We rented a pontoon boat and drove to a small island where there was an abundance of conch shells in the waters just off the beach. It was amazing. We found several LARGE shells, about 10 inches in diameter. I was so excited! We packed them up and took them back to my in-laws house.
Once we were driving in the car and away from the salty sea air, I noticed the awful smell. Like something had died. My husband said there was no way we were bringing them back to North Carolina with us, a twelve hour drive, but I was adamant. There was no way I was leaving those shells behind. We washed them and cleaned them, but it didn't help. We quadruple bagged them, but still, not much help. But, it was better than nothing.
Needless to say, we endured the twelve hour trip with those stanky shells. I think my kids only complained about half the time, and I tried not to barf in the front seat (being pregnant and all). Once home, we bleached them (a couple times), set them in the sun to dry, and viola! They were good as new! Now my son has these awesome shells in his surfer-themed room, and we only had to endure a little discomfort...okay, maybe a lot...but it was worth it!
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| My mother-in-law showing off one of the large conch shells. |
There's a Naples in CA too. I guess there's a by-the-water theme for the name. I wonder why the shells stank so badly.
ReplyDeleteDon't think I've ever heard of Naples before, not even the Italy version, haha. The one in Florida sounds nice--how great that your family has a reason to vacation there regularly!
ReplyDeleteThat shell is huge! I've never found one that large. That was love that your husband let you bring those home.
ReplyDeleteI never knew there was a Naples in Florida, and it's so lovely.
ReplyDeleteI've always like seashells, but I don't know anything about conch shells. Are they usually so big?
There's nothing worse than a long journey with something smelly. I remember a sixty mile journey with our dog who had rolled on a dead fish on a beach - ugh!
How wonderful! Such a beautiful place. I have yet to visit Florida, but I will one day. Naples would be a perfect spot!
ReplyDeleteMy son gathered some pretty stinky shells. My husband flash boiled them in salt water (I hadn't brought bleach on vacation) and then left them in the sun. My mother in law picked up a shell and left it in her shut up car. The hot sun plus the stinky shell made it smell like someone died in her car. Just awful!
We love shelling, too! Sand dollars are our favorites. :)
ReplyDeleteMadeline @ The Shellshank Redemption
Minion, Capt. Alex's Ninja Minion Army
The 2014 Blogging from A-Z Challenge
Haha! And there's a Naples in Maine, too. Though, your Naples is much warmer. ;)
ReplyDeleteI've heard of it all my life, but I've never been there. We always visited Destin, Ft. Walton Beach, and Panama City because they were in good driving distance from Nashville!
ReplyDeleteI don't blame you one bit, those shells are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful scenery, and excellent find on the shells!
ReplyDeleteI've never been to Naples (any of them), but it sounds lovely. That's so weird that the shells stank so badly even though there was nothing inside, although it does make for a fun story about their origins. :-)
ReplyDelete(You asked on my blog about Lily, and yes, she is a golden retriever. Such a sweetheart of a dog!!)
Hope you’re having fun with the A to Z challenge,
Jocelyn
I love collecting seashells too but mostly leave them behind...This one was a huge catch! :D N I want to see a picture of the surfer themed room...wow!
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