Fall is Here!!

Fall has finally made its grand appearance here in Jacksonville and we couldn't be any happier! All week I prayed for rain as I watched the looming clouds overhead, only to be disappointed day after day when the rain just wouldn't fall. It wasn't until late Friday afternoon that we felt the first few drops fall from the sky. Sayre marveled at my glee over the rain, but since he did not grow up in the south, he didn't know that rainy weather in the fall usually means that cooler weather is to come... and boy was I right!! Thank you, God!

Last night we had a wonderful evening at "Date Night" at one of the churches we attend here. I had almost forgotten about it, but luckily Sayre remembered! Anyway, they had a really nice catered meal of prime rib, green beans, potatoes, and "shrimp creole" (or an attempt at shrimp etouffee... it was alright ;)) It was really nice though because they had large tables set up everywhere which gave us a chance to meet a few new couples and spend some time getting to know them as we ate before going and listening to a wonderful orchestral concert. Listening to the musicians perform made me think about my days in band in elementary and junior high school and how enthralled I was by music back then. I really miss playing an intstrument. There's just so much peace and beauty to be found in music like that.

Today when we woke up and turned on the weather channel I squealed when I heard it was only 53 degrees outside and the high was only going to be in the 60s! Sayre laughed at me, but I know that deep down he was happy too. We decided to take full advantage of the beautiful day by taking a trip to the Jacksonville Zoo! It was a little crowded (probably because everyone else had the same idea as we did), but I was really impressed by the zoo facilities. It was really big (especially compared to the Baton Rouge Zoo) and they had some beautiful gardens and grounds to walk around. We took our time strolling around, riding the train, and seeing all of the things that the zoo had to offer. They even had a great pier that you could walk down to enjoy the water. We spent about 2 & 1/2 hours there and then grabbed an early dinner at CiCi's pizza before coming back to our apartment to enjoy the remainder of the afternoon soaking up the breeze on our balcony. Currently Sayre is reading a C.S. Lewis book as I sit here and blog :) Yes, we know, we are such an old married couple already haha but we wouldn't want it any other way!!


Click here to see more pictures from the zoo!