Gamble Rogers State Park, Flagler Beach, Florida
But the men (the two angels) inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door. ~ Genesis 19:10-11 Things have escalated to the point that the angels had to intervene. I don’t remember knowing that angels possessed this kind of power. Maybe I did, and I just forgot, or haven’t made the correlation – – yet. 😊
Armadillos. One of the strangest creatures God saw fit to create.
- Their name in Spanish means ‘little armored one’
- They’ve been nicknamed ‘Hillbilly speed bumps’ because they have a propensity for hanging out in the road and getting run over
- There are 21 species of armadillo (can you believe that?), the largest is 5’ long (Yikes! That’s about as long as I am tall!) The smallest is only 6”!
- Twenty of the species live in Central and South America. Only the nine-banded armadillo lives in America, and their range covers Argentina, and recently as far north as Missouri
- They are close cousins to anteaters
- Their eyesight is poor, but they have a highly developed sense of smell
- They use the wiry hairs along the bottoms of their sides and legs to ‘feel their way’ around
- They sleep about 16 hours a day
- They’re omnivores which means they eat both plants and animals
Why the short lesson on armadillos? We saw one today. Up close and personal! You’ll see just how close if you keep reading.
This morning, the bikes went on the back of the Jeep and we drove over to a really nice bike path at Lehigh Rails to Trail Park in Palm Coast, just a few miles northwest of us. Not only is it flat, but it’s also paved or boardwalked and has lots of shade. Something very desirable as the temperature rose into the eighties today.
Near the end of our out-and-back 14-mile ride, we saw two people coming toward us with grins on their faces. This seemed odd to me, because they didn’t appear to be together. And then . . .
Blaine was the first to spot it. An armadillo right alongside the trail! And he didn’t care a wit about the people in his neighborhood disrupting his lunch. Fun! Wonder what our Father will delight to show us next?!?
We left this place and drove over to the Palm Coast Waterfront Park. This is also a really nice Park with a paved path that runs alongside the Intercoastal Waterway. This time we walked – about three miles round trip. Once we got started, we remembered much of it from two years ago.
Is he dragging me along, or am I holding him back?
I call it “putting him on a leash”. : )
Back home, we cleaned up and headed back out again. This time, driving up the road to a restaurant we enjoyed two years ago – The Net. Our server was very sweet and attentive. The appetizer very tasty – and VERY inexpensive! When’s the last time you had an appetizer for $1.97? Nope. Not a typo. The smoky crab dip was honestly $1.97! Who can pass that up? No one sells anything for that price anymore, even if it is made of imitation crab. You can also buy it by the pint and quart if you want. We should’ve taken advantage of the great deal, but didn’t know how long it would keep.
The special of the day was fried shrimp. It was just okay. The breading was just flour and egg and had no flavor and wasn’t particularly crispy. But that turned out to be in my favor, as I picked the breading off. Much better for my waistline, I’m sure. The fries were homemade and tasty. So was the cole slaw.
The star of the show though was the dessert. Orange Cream Cake – one piece to share. The waitress described it as “like a creamsicle”. I’m not a fan of creamsicles, but I’m a huge fan of orange-flavored things, and of baked goods. It was delicious! Back home, I looked for a recipe because I was turned down at the restaurant. ☹ I found one on-line. Once I give it a try, if it’s any good, I’ll share. In the meantime, if you want to beat me to it, Pinterest has just about anything – including Orange Creamsicle Cake. 😊
