Every summer we have been blessed to go on a family vacation of some sort and this year was no exception. One night about 2:30 am Monty woke me up and said, "I just bough us tickets to go to Florida. It was a great deal and I couldn't pass it up." So...it wasn't pre-planned, but none the less gave us something to look forward to. After purchasing the tickets I found out that the job I was hoping to get for this coming school year, was not going to be open as the person decided to stay. So, I decided to go back to school. The first day at orientation we were told we couldn't miss a day of school. I was hopeful my classes would be online during the summer and it wouldn't conflict with the trip, but it was not the case. However, we decided Monty would still go on the trip with the boys and I'd come for a few days. Although I was beyond worried about this idea, it worked out perfectly. When there is a problem, I can't see the solution because I tend to focus on the problem. My husband sees problems as just solutions waiting to be found and he'll hunt and hunt until he's found a solution that will work. I admire that about him and want to be more like that. We also knew this would be our only trip for the summer as school was going to be crazy, so he told me I should invite Mammy and Grandpop to come. The agreed and we had a fun trip.
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| The boys had tons of fun in the gift shop. |
Disney World was out of the question. We've been to Florida before and never gone to Disney World, but...when Monty got to the Hotel, which was on Disney Property Makai said, "Wow...Disney World!!! But, it doesn't matter. We aren't going to go." Makai is the only member of the family that has never been to Disneyland(well, and pretty much Trey as he was only 6 months old the last time we went). When Monty was trying to figure out what to do with the kids the hotel presented him with a deal and he decided to buy a three day pass to DisneyWorld. He said Makai is just getting older and if you would have heard his voice when he said, "But it doesn't matter..." You'd of given in too. It proved to be such a fun and magical day and I'm so glad we did it. We may never do it again, but everyone was old enough and now we have a fun family memory...which is what family trip are all about. One of the first rides was Pirates of he Caribbean.
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| It's a Small World--classic ride. I loved that Makai wanted to get Mickey Ears. He said to me, "Mom, I know Mickey ears are like for 6 year olds, but I kinda want some." It was then that I caved and we got him some ears. |
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| But just as in life we have moments that we were not expecting, Disney World is the same. Towards the middle of the day there was a rain storm and Makai just wanted to go home. He didn't enjoy being wet. In fact, he hated it. He was crying, it was raining and for a moment the day seemed like a flop. |
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The older boys covered Makai to keep him from feeling the rain. This didn't really help, but it sure was kinda sweet.
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It sure wasn't the happiest place on earth for Makai in that moment....
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| But once we got out of the rain, things started looking up. |
Splash Mountain was a hit, and it was a that point Makai started having a blast. I think after concurring Splash Mountain he began to feel like one of the big boys and the rest of the day was a blast. We stayed until close. One things the boys always talk about was the last ride. Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs. They don't have this ride at Disneyland, but we decided to ride it last. We waited in line for a while and the ride was actually better than we thought it would be. The crowning moment was when we came out of a tunnel and fireworks were going off above the castle. Everyone loved that moment and said it felt like we were in a commercial. It doesn't get better than that moment when you are together as a family and everyone is happy, smiling, and feeling alive.
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| The next day was Hollywood Studios. These goof balls were ready for a a day of fun. |
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| One movie we can all agree on is Toy Story. Any of them. When the boys were younger they loved the Toy Story ride at California adventure, so we went to the Toy Story ride, not realizing there would be a while Toy Story LAND! It's pretty cool! |
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| I can't even imagine how hot these guys must be, but it's fun to see them march through Toy Story Land. |
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| Frozone's suit was a hit. |
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| Trey, photo bombing a picture with Tyler and Kyle. He walked right through at the perfect time. |
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| That's Trey...he's our goofball! Everyone thought it was funny. |
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Let's talk about this ride. Grandpop got a picture of the ride. I've never been on this ride and had NO desire to go on it. But no one chickened out, so I had to. I thought for sure Kory would, or maybe Makai, but nope. They decided to give it a go. I sat by Tyler and didn't open my eyes once. I just held onto him with all my might. Such a wimp. Grandpop said his hat and Mammy's hat were hovering near their faces after they placed them on their laps. Thankfully, the ride goes fast.
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The rest of the day was fun. Minus Star Tours! Star Tours might be the worst ride ever. It was hot with no air flow and I think most of us go off that ride feeling a little sick. If I had to choose Star Tours or Tower of Terror to do over, I'd go with Tower of Terror--and that is saying something. By the end of the night the boys wanted more and more roller coasters! They couldn't get enough. Instead of the show on the water, they wanted rides. By that point I was done with rides, so Mammy, Grandpop and I went to the show. Everyone left happy. And a bit tired.
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| McDonald's afterward was a bit too much for this guy. |
Three days at Disney parks had everyone feeling a little tired. Sunday, we decided to go to the beach. Monty looked up a beach that looked like it would be perfect and it was. I don't have one picture of the beach...I'm sure someone else does...but it was a perfect day. We spent hours in the water just playing and talking and swimming. It was the perfect temperature and we saw some crabs, a dolphin and even a crazy conch. We'd never seen one and his one claw. Being at the beach is something we all love. We left only because of a huge rain storm and lightening. It was Father's day and a perfect way to spend it. I felt pretty lucky to get to spend the day with my dad and the father of my children. Pretty memorable day! After the rain, we went to a place called the Mellow Mushroom. It was a pizza place my parents had heard was good and man was it good!
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| Everyone loved it. The Shiitake Pizza was so good. Thanks for the fun dinner!! I thought it was funny that afterwards the boys were concerned if I had tipped well. When I asked why, they said, "Because our waitress was cute." What a great way to end a great day. |
That night when we got home we went to the pool. We just hung out in the pool area for a few hours and enjoyed the last little bit with Mammy and Grandpop. They had to leave the next morning, but we had so much fun with them and are glad they got to spend a few days with us. A forever memory. They left the following morning.
I had to leave that day too, but later in the day. I was flying out of Tampa, but had to skype into my class that morning. It was kinda a bummer, but it worked. I had a presentation to give that day, so they boys swam while I watched everyone's presentations and did mine. Makai helped with mine and I was thankful for his willingness to help. He was a hit! Then we drove to Tampa. We took a river walk and enjoyed ourselves.
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| These boys are the best!! When they are smiling and enjoying one another my heart melts. |
Tyler finally got his Fish and Chips...
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| Along with some alligator. Kinda chewy. |
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| But everyone liked their fish and chips. |
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| and Santa spends his summers in Florida... |
I would have enjoyed them more if I wasn't worried about missing my flight. I'm such a worrier. I was sad to leave my family, but had school the next morning. I was so glad I was able to spend part of the trip with them. I need to get some pictures from them to add the rest of their trip. They went to more beaches, found shark teeth and had fun. Good, good, memory. Thanks again dad for an awesome trip. One for the record books.
