Our Trip to Sunny Florida!

OUR VACATION TO SUNNY FLORIDA!

Well, I guess you could say that was an understatement because it wasn't all that Sunny! But, hey who needs the sun when you are surrounded by family and having a great time! The kids and I took a weeks vacation to Florida over the holiday weekend and really had a great relaxing time. Well at least I did, I'm sure the grandparents needed a vacation after we all left. We spent a few days at my parent' s house and then headed to Orlando to meet my in laws. We went to outback for dinner and then headed to Melbourne for the rest of the week.
For the record, the kids were fantastic on the airplane. The only blurb was that Connor had to go #2 on the way home and we all know how small the bathrooms are so the flight attendant was nice to hold Mara for me until Connor was done. I was so proud of my little boy to sit on the big potty with out his seat.

Day 1: We had a great flight to Florida and the kids did awesome on the plane. Then we took Mimi out to lunch and hung out at the pool and then went to dinner with the entire PGI clan. There were 20 of us and it was chaos because the kids were tired, but it was still fun to be with mom and dad. I was totally shocked that Connor actually stepped foot in the pool. He wouldn't even go near it last year. The kids had a blast playing basketball together, too.







































Day 2: We woke up to a sunny morning, even though it was supposed to rain we had a great day so we went to Venus beach and the kids had so much fun playing in the sand. After the beach we played in the pool and relaxed. Yeah! So who needs the Carribbean when you have Venus. The water was so warm and blue. We saw a few dolphins, too. Poppy took Connor up on the pier to watch the fisherman and check out the dolphins. He loves spending time with his Mimi and Poppy.

Day 3: The start of the rainy days! It was raining in the morning, but cleared up enough for us to go out on the boat and up and down the canals. The kids looked so cute in their life jackets. It was such a peaceful boat ride. It definitely brings back the old memories of "Final Quarter". I used to love to go sailing with my Dad on the weekends. Connor and Mara got to drive the boat with Poppy and we went really fast for about 5 mins and then Connor didn't like it too much so we had to slow back down. We got back to the house just in time for the rain to poor down in buckets. So the rest of the afternoon we hung inside and played. We finished the night with a great steak dinner.


Day 4: Off to see Gramma and Grampa! We drove two 1/2 grueling hours to Orlando in the rain and with Connor whining the entire trip. So if this is any inclination as to what our trip to the outer banks will be, Don, look out! We went to the Rain Forest Cafe (Connor was not a big fan of the restaurant, he was so scared during the thunderstorms that my Dad had to take him out in to the store) at Downtown Disney and then the rain came in full force so we went to the Marriot Hotel and waited for Don's Mom to come meet us for dinner at Outback and it was a great time! We were supposed to go to Sea World, but cancelled our plans because of the all time Historic Rainfalls on the East Coast. Hopefully, next time the kids will get to meet Shamu! At least we can say we were there and the kids got to give Minnie and Mickey statues a big hug!































Day 5: Woke up to another cloudy day, definitely not pool weather. Gramma and Grampa took us all to steak and shake to get milkshakes and lunch. I had an awesome butterfinger milkshake. Ummm, yummy. It was cute watching the kids with their hats and old time cars. Pamper me Mommy! I had a great time at the spa with my sister in law, Joan. We enjoyed a glass of wine together and got the best pedicure ever. I love the way they give the foot massages there. So Joan and I decided that when Don is done his fellowship we will treat ourselves to a full spa day. Can't wait for that. Uncle Doug went to see the kids and then when Joan and I got back we all hung out. When we got home the kids were so dirty from playing in the truck that they got to take a bath in Gramma's big tub. We had Chinese for dinner at 8:30 thinking it would be realizing to have a quiet meal and a glass of wine, but none of us really got to eat, because Connor wouldn't go to sleep and was very tired. Connor got to see Grampa's truck which was a huge hit, he played in the bed with all of his cars and pretended to drive it too.



























Day 6: We had a beautiful, HOT, sunny day(a bit muggy, but who's complaining at least it wasn't raining). Gramma has passes to the Brevard Zoo so we all went together to see the animals before our BBQ at Uncle Doug's house. The kids loved the animals and Connor got to go on a train ride with Gramma. While Mara was waiting for Connor to get off the train, she decided to explore the area and of course found a puddle on the ground and preceded to lick it. She is definitely as I said before a water bug. She must have been a fish in her previous life. It was really cute, she was chasing ducks, running on stones, exploring the trees and just having a blast being out of the stroller. We then went to Doug and Joan's to see their new beautiful home, had great food and fun. It is always fun to watch them with the kids. Uncle Doug is still a kid at heart and can't get enough of playing with them.





























Day 7: Finally a very Sunny, Florida day. We were going to go to the stores and to Gramma's school, but it was so nice that we decided to just lay out at the pool and have a great afternoon splashing around. Doug and Joan came over around lunch to go swimming and Mom made a fantastic Hot chicken salad lunch, which was so good. I can't wait to have it again. Connor did really good in the pool. He actually went past the steps as long as we were holding him. Mara on the other hand wanted to jump off the deep end. She loved swimming in the pool with her gramma and aunt and uncle. We had a little blip with Gramma and Mara in the deep end, but thank goodness she was okay. Aunt Joan saved the moment. After our swim the rain clouds came in and we took a ride to Gramma's school. Then we relaxed and got ready for our trip home. We all had fun spending time with everyone and can't wait to come back for Thanksgiving. I am looking forward to all of us being together for such a wonderful holiday. It is what Thanksgiving is all about and we will all be together.