Who would have thought that a hobby like metal detecting would pay off with a $40,000 “Easter egg?” Here’s my story! It was Easter morning 2011 while we were on vacation in southern Florida with our youngest son and his family, when I found it. We would normally not frequent a hotel of this caliber but since we were invited to spend time with our distant family and new granddaughter we jumped at the opportunity. We figured that "babysitting" on our vacation would allow us to grow closer and bond as a family. When we arrived we got checked into our room and met our family for dinner. Everything was just as we had imagined and we looked forward to our time together. Next day, it was beautiful Easter morning. I remember the splendor of the sunrise over the calm ocean waves as they reflected the first light of day. I sat on the hotel balcony and enjoyed a cup of coffee while I read my bible and prayed before going out for a couple hours to look for treasure’s that others may have lost in the sand or ocean waves. My Minelab Excalibur is a great water detector and I would usually spend my time in the water’s edge where I have found lots of jewelry and coins on past excursions. But this time I was limited in where I could search. I couldn't pack my long handled scoop on the flight from our home in Virginia. At the last minute I grabbed a small plastic scoop from my hobby shelf only because it fit in our luggage just fine. So this trip most of my metal detecting time was spent on the dry sand part of the beach. I found lots of old corroded coins just deep enough that most detectors would miss the signal but not my Excalibur. It wasn't long until I became tired of so much digging with my little plastic scoop. I felt a little embarrassed when other hobbyist came by searching and carrying their long handled scoops. I followed right behind them picking up coins that they had missed. After about two hours I decided I would head back and get a bite to eat with the family. That's when I got the signal; a strong clear tone that I knew would be a good target. I scooped several layers of sand before I felt it in my scoop. I didn't even have to look; I knew it was a ring from the sound of shaking out the sand. When I looked into the scoop I saw a large dull stone on top. My first thought was it looks too big to be real. And it is probably a Cubic Zirconia like most people would wear to the beach. I guess it was also a little dull from settling about ten inches down in the sand for who knows how long. I quickly estimated that the ring could be worth a few hundred and would be added to the many others I had found. Boy was I ever wrong! When I got back to our hotel I took a little time to clean the stone and study the characteristics of the ring and the setting. The engraving inside the band was "platinum." The more I looked, the more I realized it was a good find; no, it was an "excellent" find. I spent the next few days searching even harder for more treasure. I found two more rings, a gold coin, a watch, earing, and about $15 worth of change. All the time I was searching, I couldn't help but think about the big sparkling ring I found on Easter morning.