Birthday in the hammock

All my life I thought there was only one definition of the word hammock.  But I’ve come to find out there are two:

1: a swinging couch or bed usually made of netting or canvas and slung by cords from supports at each end

2: a fertile area in the southern United States and especially Florida that is usually higher than its surroundings and that is characterized by hardwood vegetation and deep humus-rich soil

We learned about hardwood hammocks back in the Everglades and we were now staying at the Manatee Hammock campground in Titusville FL.

We stumbled upon this campground online and it seemed too good to be true:  full hookups, free WiFi, pool, and its the closest campground to Kennedy Space Center all for $25 per night plus tax! This is another county park and just like Larry and Penny Thompson park we loved this one right away.  We originally planned to stay 2 nights just to get a full day at Kennedy Space Center.  But Brielle wanted to stay another day so her birthday was not a travel day.  So we tacked on an extra day (had to move sites which was a bummer…BUT it was a much better site) and spent the day celebrating Brielle’s birthday and just relaxing.

After pancakes and a couple April fool’s day pranks Brielle opened her gifts and cards from everyone.  Later she got to do a video chat with her school mates back home and they sang her happy birthday.  Her cousins sent her a party package that had decorations, fun candy and three cans of silly string  for her and her brothers to have a silly string fight with.  Dacen and Steph took a quick trip to a nearby park to look for gators.  They came up empty but saw lots of birds…and one branch that looked like a bird.  We played at the pool, had birthday brownies, enjoyed some down time, and watched a movie. It was nice to have a day to relax and unwind from a full day at Kennedy Space Center yesterday.

Happy birthday my dear sweet Brielle.  You are a true gift from God and I am so happy and proud to be your Papa!!