Nine Foot Hammerhead Shark Caught by 16 year old Girl

So says the headline.  Well, at least of this blog.  But first, dinner Monday night at Bubba Gump.  Actually before that, a day on the beach.  A full day.  In the sun. Watching children run from the pool to the sea and back again.  Playing paddle ball in the surf, combing for shells, staring in wander at the black sea of fish that was waiting for us.  The girls and I swam through it and managed to catch a few little ones.  We weren't sure what the black line was from the balcony but once below on the beach it became quite clear.  It wasn't sea weed or oil.  Those were all fishes!

 

 

The three Dads manning the tent.  Chairs set up, coolers close by and a perfect view of the sea.  This became their club house, or something like that. 

 

Notice the hammam towel over Steve's legs, poor guy had some fairly severe sunburn on his knees from the day before.  Smart move covering up like that.

 

Boys in the water, girls digging for sand crabs

 

All smiles, what handsome fellas

 

So that was our day on the beach.  We showered the sand away and headed to St. John's Pass; Where the marina is, and ice cream and restaurants and shops. And here we are all cleaned up.  Well the girls anyway.  We had the girls in our vehicle, boys in another.  That seemed to be the way the week went.  Look at these beauties. 

 

Eva, Thing 3, Thing 2, Siobhan and Thing 1

View from St. John's Pass

My man and me, I think we caught the sun

Grown up table again!

 

The infamous sign- when the table is all good the sign looks like it does above and when the table is in need of something you flip the sign and it says "Stop Forrest stop".  Just like the movie.  Yes, we are easily amused.

 

From This point on in the evening the chatter seemed to be all about the fishing charter taking place the next morning.  There were to be no sleep overs or late nights, all the boys and Daddies and Thing 1 were rising early to hit the high seas and bring home dinner. 

 

Here are my three fishermen, bright and early.

 

Love them.  The other two Things were sound asleep and had to be woken for breakfast actually.  I was on my own for a few hours, listening to the waves crash and reading.  Bliss. 

 

The fishing crew, ready and eager for a successful day on the boat

 

Thing 1 and Husband Jared, absolutely love this photo

Husband Jared with his catch, not too bad for a self proclaimed, "unfisherman".

The boys, once again, all smiles. 

 

This must have been taken after all the grouper and mackerel that they caught.  They trolled for fish and came up with a good catch and then they went to a buoy, about fifteen miles out from shore.  It was there they snagged the shark.  There's even video of the crew's reaction.  Each kiddo had a turn on the reel with Thing 1 spending about fifteen minutes battling with the hammerhead.  In the end they wouldn't' have been able to bring it on the boat due to it's size and it ended up snapping the line itself after running circles around the boat.  Quite a feat nonetheless and a story that is sure to last a lifetime for all aboard. 

 

Thing 4 and the first mate, Monkey

Monkey and Thing 1 working on bringing the hammerhead shark in, the one you see in the photo below...Wow!

 

THE SHARK

 

Us girls that were left behind enjoyed a slow morning on the beach, pausing for a pasta lunch and waiting patiently, or maybe impatiently for the fishermen to return to hear the stories. 

We had no word from them all day.

 

Shortly after our lunch all the little boys meandered in with glum looking faces.  Not sure how to react us Mums starting asking questions to which the replies were all the same, "it was so boring", "we didn't catch anything". Ho hum they went.  For about five seconds.  Then they burst out yelling, "we caught a shark" over and over again.  Just to make sure the entire building heard them and possibly anyone on the beach within twenty feet.  To see the look on their faces was almost too much for me to handle.  They told the stories just like true fishermen and when Thing 1 walked in with the Daddies they were all complimenting her on her strength.  What a day.  Definitely a once in a lifetime experience. 

 

We all regrouped in the afternoon and hit the beach again, knowing that fresh grouper awaited for our BBQ that evening.  Fresh fish.  Filleted for us by the captain and his first mate.  Fish that was caught that very morning by our loves.  What a gift.  And so the evening began.  The grill on the balcony, happy kiddos together once again and the adults preparing food.  Some things never change.  Only the view was the sea this time and the back drop the sunset.

Fresh catch of the day

 

The kiddos, gathered around, eating, all except for Thing 4 who had passed out from exhaustion before he even ate.  I carried him up one flight of stairs and into bed, well before any of the other children.  He woke for only a minute to kiss me and say goodnight, oh and that he had a great day!

Playing cards, the Hungarian card game that Annette had taught us, I think she was wining here and we, well at least Brien, Steve and myself had conspired against her.  This was yet another laugh until your belly hurts kind of night.  The kind where you walk away shaking your head because your stomach muscles hurt and you didn't even work out.  Yeah, that good.