May 31 - June 7, 2008
Our home away from home:
Our gang:
(which includes: our five, my parents, The Maglinger Crew: Steve, Vicky, Sue, Jennifer, Paul, Shannon, Evan and Elizabeth, The Garcia Crew: Daniel, Lisa and Samuel, The Pogue Crew: Jackie, Lois and Kenton, and The Wilson Crew: Micah, Brittany, Luke and Tucker)
Day 1: We woke up at the crack of dawn, 4:30 a.m., to be exact, and headed for the beach. We arrived at 3:30 p.m. and broke EVERYTHING in all at once bouncing from one pool to the next, one hot tub to the next, one water wing to the next. We dined next door at the River City Cafe and crashed. It was a long day (mainly spent in the car).
Day 2: We spent most of the day in the sun and then took the kids to Rainbow Falls for some miniature golf. Miles was THRILLED to have his very own club and green golf ball which he clutched with a death-grip the entire time. We ate at Zaxby's and then I caught up with the girls for a late movie.
Day 3: Shannon, Lisa and I did some shopping while MeMe kept the kiddos at the condo. The guys spent the day playing golf. The ladies spent the day in the sun chasing kids around. It was Steve Mag's birthday so we celebrated at Red Lobster that night. Karson made him the most precious drawing complete with Steve's mustache =). We also managed to get a great shot of all the kids too.
Day 4: More sun, more golf. My Mom took the kids to an activity time at the hotel where Karson and Isaac made us Koozies. They were very proud of their glittery, gluey creations. We took the kids to Ripley's Aquarium at Broadway on the Beach that afternoon. Miles was foul the entire time we were there. And, although, I would've loved to hung around with my sis, Paul, Matt and the kids, Miles was wearing me down. There's nothing like a screaming kid to make you want to jump off your balcony. I decided to pack him up and call it a night. He went down at 6:20 and didn't wake up until the next morning at 6:20. 12 hours of beauty rest certainly helped his temperment.
Day 5: More beach festivities and sun (thank goodness for wonderful weather). BIG bummer on this day--I stumped my big toe playing around in the kiddie pool. Ugh. It started bleeding pretty bad, and I do believe I will be losing my toenail at some point. Yeah for a big black toenail just in time for summer sandals =). Karson wanted to hang out with her cousin Elizabeth for dinner and eat spaghetti. We (me, Matt, and my parents) took the boys to Joe's Crab Shack at Broadway. Matt took Miles home afterwards to avoid another meltdown. Pops, Meme, me and Isaac went to IT'S SUGAR a gigantic candy store and dentist's nightmare. It was awesome. Then, we took Isaac to see Sea Monsters in 3-D at the IMAX. He really liked it, but I think he liked his M&M semi-truck more =).
Day 6: Karson started to get brave in the water and jumped in. For those of you that know Karson's water fears, that was quite a feat for her. She was VERY proud of herself. I was happy for her too and would love to see her warm up to the water more. She has improved immensely this week. Hopefully, we can enjoy some summertime pool fun this year without two kids sitting on the steps the entire time. Happy 9th Anniversary to Matt and I. We went to the Bonefish Grill for dinner which is definitely in my top 5 favorite resturants. We did some shopping at the outlet mall and went to ColdStone for some ice cream. Pops and Meme took the kids to Broadway to ride rides. Mom called to tell me how much fun Isaac was having. He's fearful of rides and has never liked them (not even the carosel or Christmas train at the mall). She told me he was riding everything. Hooray, we can do Disney now. I'm not about to tackle a trip like that with a kid who doesn't enjoy rides. Miles spent the evening dancing in front of a dutch accordian. He danced for an hour solid. They told us he pretty much entertained the entire park with his moves.
the music maker
9 baby!Day 7: Our last vacation day. The kids were starting to wear down at this point and lounged around the condo with Matt resting and watching TV. I braved the ocean with my sister, Steve and Vicky. The salt water seemed to help my bum toe. We all went to Captain Bennett's Seafood Buffet at dinnertime for one last hurrah! Miles was foul again and decided to squeeze his styrofoam cup and busted Sprite all over himself. He can be such a little turkey sometimes. He has quite a temper especially when it comes to food and beverage. He thinks NOTHING of dousing you with a CapriSun or hurling food through the air. One time this week, he got REAL mad and picked up a handful of Fruit Loops and threw them. He did this two more times before we took action, and he ran out to the balcony (which became his solace this week). We spent the remainder of the evening at Broadway riding rides.
Day 8: The LONG trek home. The kids did great traveling. When we got back, we went to visit Nana in the hospital. She had a partial hysterectomy on Friday. We showered her with flowers, drawings, chocolate band-aids (from IT'S SUGAR), kisses, hugs, a balloon and magazine. It's good to be back, and my flowers aren't dead thanks to my kind neighbor Jennie =).
