My Birthday!!!

September 19, 1980 is the day I was found behind a cabbage leaf, or so my dad always told me. That was the day this little princess was born. And...........29 years later we are still celebrating what a great day that was. Right? Unfortunately, Rico had to depart for Atlanta on my birthday to attend a week long work conference so he and I enjoyed a nice dinner together on Friday (the 18th). Having the great friends that I do, Carol, Jamie and I took matters into our own hands and went out Saturday for dinner and cocktails. Avery spent the evening with his best friend Jadyn and his Godfather Pat. They had a little party of their own at Jadyn's house.


Carol, myself and Jamie at dinner at Cha Cha Coconuts.

Ooooh, Carol, lookin so sassy this early in the evening. Is this a preview for coming attractions?

Jamie and Carol preparing to hit the dance floor in FULL FORCE.

"Drink up, Jess, we expect you on the dance floor with us." Says Carol

"Jamie, don't waste any time. Get on up there and shake your groove thang."

Oh, look who else didn't waste much time gettin up on the bar. "Avery, does mommy make you proud?"

"Careful, Jess, don't bump me off the bar with that booty of yours." Says Jamie

AND THE NIGHT ENDED THERE..............................!!! What fun we had.

Seattle or Sarasota???

The last few days have been nothing but RAIN, RAIN and more RAIN here in Sarasota. It feels as though we are living in Seattle. While we do need the rain, it sure makes us miss the sunshine we are spoiled to have generally year round. So, on a day like today, when it is ........raining......... we had to make the best of it. And............what better way then to gather up the neighborhood kids and PLAY IN THE RAIN. This was Avery's first adventure of playing in the rain. He just LOVED IT!!!! Note: it was pouring while we took these photos.


Brianna, Rebecca and Ashton

Ashton and Brianna "Vogue, Strike a pose, there's nothin' to it." Avery and Rebecca and Jesslyn watch from behind.

Going from house to house. The girls treat Avery like he is their long lost baby brother. It is precious to watch them pamper our little stud muffin.

"I will beat you all to the top of the driveway, ready, set, go!!!"

"Idea: Lets go splash in the puddles girls." Says Avery

Tampa Bay Rays Game!!!

Saturday Night the Alcala Family went to Tampa to watch the Tampa Bay Rays get SPANKED by the Detroit Tigers. Actually it was a great game until the middle of the 7th inning , thats when the Rays decided to sack the bats. Oh well, Avery had a great time watching all of the people, listening to the music and watching the lights. Tropicana Field is an exciting place to watch a baseball game. We had press level seating which included an all you can eat buffet. Avery ate more nachos and hot dogs that night then his mom and dad have their entire life.


In the elevate on our way to the "Press Level." Avery, don't look so thrilled.


Stuffing our faces with hot dogs, nachos, peanuts and pepsi.

Finally, in our seats. The game is about to begin.

He was so excited and laughed almost the whole time.

Daddy and Rico watching the game....very intense

Saturday Night Cookout!!!

Saturday was a very dear friend of ours, Doug's, birthday. To celebrate we made a whole day of it. They guys all went golfing while the wives and kids stayed behind and played. It was a great day. We all got to have some fun and hang with good friends. Then, at night, we all went to Dougs for a cookout, swimming and cocktails. The weather couldn't have been more perfect.


Avery relaxing in his stroller after a long swim with daddy.

Doug, Jud, Avery and I sit with stuffed bellies. Yum, what great food they had.

Carol, Chloe, Jamie and myself watch as the dads take the lil' ones swimming.

Daddy and Avery go for a dip.

Pat......yep, he definately needed to have another beer at this point. :)

Myakka State Park

This past weekend Rico took the entire weekend off work.....Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Woohoo!!! Let the planning begin. Friday turned out to be a beautiful day. Finally, a day where it stayed in the 80s.....seemed like a cold front to us Floridians. Anyhow, we packed a picnic lunch, put on our gym shoes, packed the stroller and went to Myakka State Park for some hiking, a picnic lunch, sightseeing, and we even did some research on some camping possibilities for the winter time in the future.


We saw several different wild animals....below are some wild turkey. Come one and come all to the Alcala house for Thanksgiving. We've got dinner ready!!!

You wouldn't believe all the alligators we saw. Too many to count, literally. Below is one of the biggest that we saw.

Bambi taking a stroll. We were so close to all these animals. Not sure who was more scared of who???

Rico climbing the stairs to the expansion bridge to take a view of the entire park. He said it was amazing. I stayed below. I am happy with my feet ON THE GROUND!!!

Avery and I along the hiking trail, but notice the palm tree right behind me....see the neat angle it has grown in.