key west.

this weekend we headed down to my mom's hometown for mother's day weekend. she's a born and raised conch, so we thought she'd enjoy it...no personal interest in the matter whatsoever of course...

the keys were HOT and humid, as usual, but also lovely. we did everything my mom wanted to do, ate lots of cuban food, snorkeled, and of course did a ton of bike-riding. there is something about the tropics at night, riding a bike in the warm breeze that is just so right. while snorkeling we saw the biggest blowfish i have ever seen, lotsa colorful fish, two stingrays {told ya!}, a huge hermit crab, and a five foot barracuda {according to my dad, but we all know men exaggerate the size of fish}. i really need to get that underwater iphone case...oh and highlight of the trip for me: a rooster jumping out from under the car squawking as i opened the door. talk about a surprise. i think i laughed for about five minutes {although the rooster was not quite so amused}.

here is the trip via my instagram {@andreabelle}:

 tacky and famous lobster landmark of course.

the truman annex is my favorite place to bike ride hands down.

hemingway's house and six-toed cats. 

key west: where the roosters, chickens, and cats roam free. 

 the key west cat man. as crazy as ever.

snorkel site.

 key lime pie dipped in dark chocolate? i'm always on board. 

 best cuban food you'll ever eat in america. if you are ever down this way, seriously eat at El Siboney. it's a thompson family must.

 on momma's day.

broken-down old bahia honda bridge.

 old & new seven-mile bridge. 

and guess what? next month i am going back to the keys to help out with girls' camp as one of the leaders on high adventure! they are doing a three-day snorkeling trip to key largo! it'll be hot and fun. and i'm in the process of convincing my parents to take us back to key west again in july...after all, when will i be back this way again?! and then maybe i'll actually use the film cameras i brought with me instead of keeping them in my bag...until then,

happy mother's day!