Is there anything cuter than little kids collecting shells on the beach? Little Bella from Ocala was the first person I saw when I got to the lighthouse beach yesterday evening so I knew it would be a fun night. And it was…. because then I met newlyweds Bryn and Nathaniel who love to shell together so much that Nathaniel proposed to Bryn with a JUNONIA shell! Now that’s love! Congratulations to you!
Then I found out that she was the daughter of Robin from my post back in April Smiles For Seashells . She was there too and found a really nice size BABY’S EAR. I love that happy smile!
Robin’s close- up BABY’S EAR…..
Then Robin told us where the real action was. In the water. Sheri from Texas found a shellovely LIGHTNING WHELK by sittin-n-siftin in the shallows at the tip of the lighthouse beach.
This Texan gal found her state shell! You see she was prepared with her trusty garden claw for digging.
We dug around out in the water too and found all but the TULIP in the Sanibel Six ( the OLIVE didn’t make it in the photo).
So in the midst of our socializing, Clark and I were WENTLTRAP-ing and found a little DUSKY CONE along with a little candy and lots of good WENTLETRAPS.
Instead of the sky being black with rain clouds last night, there was a beautiful, colorful swirling sky right over the lighthouse…. magical.
PS- I’m trying to get into the “cool” blogger club (not really such a thing… or is there? Like Groucho Marx said “I don’t want to be a member of a club that would have me as a member” heehee) so I’ve added a few social buttons below each post to finally get into the internet world of 2011. You can now “Like” a post for Facebook, tweet this post if you have Twitter, if you have a google account (gmail) you can hit the +1 (Google’s answer to the “Like” button) or you can submit it to StumbleUpon. I would be grateful if you clicked any of them! We can be the cool kids together… wait, we already are- nothing gets cooler than the hanging out at the beach!
You are moving on up Carla! I don’t even know what Stumbleupon is & I just found out about the google+ thing a few days ago!
Beautiful lightning whelk BTW & I love all the wentletraps..they are 1 of my favorites!
Love all of the shell pics! I am finally getting around to minimizing my pics from May. Love the wentletraps, too!
btw, Pam – I already booked my shelling trip with Captain Brian, relaxandexplore@gmail.com for next May!!!
I miss going shelling. I grew up in West Palm Beach, but for the past three years have been landlocked here in Baton Rouge. Don’t get to the beach much these days. One thing I saw recently that was really cool was this gallery of pictures of sand under a microscope. Beautiful pieces of shell fragments, etc. Amazing. Anyway I like your blog.
+followed
This post warms my heart. I love the shell your Texas sheller found! And the next pictures are lovely, too…
Beautiful sky… we’ve been enjoying the sunset skies here in Miami Beach, too.
xo xo– enjoy your shelling and thanks for updating us on the adventures!
Pam , good morning from Missouri ! Yes it is time once again to get back to reality …UGH ! But I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for being a big part of my” Magical ” stay on Sanibel !! It was a great honor to meet you & Clark , the “shell stars” of the internet … LOL !! For everyone who has not had the pleasure of meeting Pam , her personality is as warm as a Sanibel breeze & her love for shelling runs as deep as the ocean . When I was talking with her she made me feel like we have know each other all our lives …she never meets a stranger . Thanks again for the magical moments Pam !!!
I not only brought back tons of beautiful shells , I brought back a feeling of peace & tranquility . I know when times get stressful ( reality ) , all I have to do is close my eyes , take a deep breath , draw upon those MAGICAL MOMENTS & let them all in & I can face another day !!! And thanks Momma for being there with me , I know you were !!
Carla – you said it best! Pam, you have a gift of making everyone you meet feel special! You and Clark are a great pair; we can’t wait to see you again next May!
Carla, I read your comment hours ago and I got choked up and just couldn’t respond right away. Your words are so thoughtful and touching….. but I tell ya, the pleasure is all mine when I meet such warm people like you when I feel like we have some kinship. It’s exactly why I love to meet shellers on the beach. There’s not a nicer group of people on the planet! Your Momma knew just what you needed.
Pam – love that lightning whelk! Looks like you found a nice one as well.
I have been learning the correct names of the shells by following your blog. However, the whelks give me me trouble. I cant tell the difference between the lightning and the pear. Is it the opening? On the left for the lightning and on the right for the pear?
Yes, the opening (aperture) is switched on the pear and lightning but they even have other different features too. The lightning has those beautiful knobs or blunt spines and the pear is smoother in it’s shape…. this is obviously not a scientific description ;) but take a look at this post that shows the two of them….. SUPER MOON and look at Courtney’s hand. You can always go to the SEASHELL IDENTIFICATION page to see so many pictures of both so you can easily see the difference. Hope this helps Roxanne! xo
I love the pic of little Bella collecting shells. I might be a little pejudice because I happen to be Bella’s grandpa! My family has been coming to Sanibel for 25 years now & love it more everytime we come. I have taken thousands of Sanibel pics & have many of them on my photo site at http://www.KeithBurrowsPhotography.com If you want to see some Sanibel photos that will make you say WOW.check it out!
WOW! Awesome photos — love the moon shots — the black & whites are cool, too! Thanks for sharing!
PS cute granddaughter!
That is a Beautiful Lightning Whelk!
You can dig in the water and find shells? Who knew? That’s an awesome way to do it…I usually just walk the beach or watch the waves bring up the shells. Tho’ since I’ve only been to Sanibel in December it’s a bit chilly to think about sitting in the surf to dig for shells! LOL Love the pics, Pam. Great work!
Hi Christine- My sister and I come to Sanibel in January and we have found the most AMAZING shells by digging in the surf (We were in wet suits in Jan. 2010 because the water temperature was 50 degrees!- but that was the trip when we found the best stuff!!) I found a Princess Helmet shell by digging in the surf that trip!! People walking by on the beach looked at us like we were CRAZY!! We had sooooo much fun- as we always do when we are there!!
Look at all those WT’s! You’ve always been too cool for school in my book (& I have a very high coolness threshold :D)
Oh how I wish I was there! Looks like it was a fun evening!
nice big whelk! cant wait to be there tomorrow!!
That’s gotta be one of the biggest baby’s ears I’ve ever seen. Nice find. Love thise wentletraps too.
I love the shells obviously, but as a photographer, I can’t help but comment on the clouds over the lighthouse. Beautiful!!