Final Day in Florida, the Long Drive Home & Final Thoughts

Friday was our last vacation day. Thomas and I had tickets to see another Tigers game. First, we went to my dad's house to spend a few more hours with him and to say goodbye to him and Maggie. Then, it was off to the game. It was Thomas' third game of the week and my second. My sister graciously offered to watch the kids so we were able to get good seats and planned to enjoy an entire game. When we got to our seats, who did we see signing autographs but Alan Trammell, Thomas' all-time favorite player! We didn't have anything to get an autograph with and Thomas wasn't quick enough to get a picture with him, but it was cool to be just a few feet away from his baseball idol.

Alan Trammell signing autographs pregame.

The seats were great, we were in the second row along the first base line. Most of the players were big! We saw the coolest play ever--a triple play! It is amazingly rare to see 3 outs on a single play and it happened right in front of us! Bases were loaded and the batter hit an infield liner, the shortstop (Inglesias) let it drop and threw it to the second baseman (Kinsler). The runner on second didn't move, but another runner had moved from first to second, so there were two players at second base (you don't see that everyday!). Kinsler tagged the runner, then the bag and then threw the ball to first base to get the batter out. The crowd went wild. It was pretty cool. I have to admit that I didn't actually understand what was happening until Thomas explained it. It even took a second to sort it out on the field, Thomas was definitely the first in our section to understand what had happened. Unfortunately, it started to rain after the 4th inning and the game was cancelled. And, the Tigers lost. But, still, we had fun!

And, that's Miguel Cabrera, two time MVP

From there, we got the kids. Kara had thrown a royal fit at my sister's house.  It was over nothing, my sister simply asked her to switch chairs so my sister could rock Luke to sleep. It was her second major fit of the vacation. Although she enjoyed her time in Florida, the change in routine was really hard on her and she got pretty difficult. Kim and Marta definitely got to see her at her very worst.

We went back to Marta's to pack up. First, we stopped and bought a ton of junk food to sustain us on our drive home. Marta made dinner and we called it an early night. Everyone was in bed by 8, and the kids fell asleep fairly easily. I had an upset stomach and actually threw up a couple of times. Thomas woke up at midnight and he loaded up the last few things, then we got the kids ready. When Anna woke, she said her stomach hurt and she threw up! We were afraid we were in for a long drive. But, after a couple more bouts of sickness and some sleep she reported she felt fine. I had felt fine after I got whatever it was out of my stomach, so I was confident it would be the same for her. Thank goodness it was, can you imagine riding in a car for 13 hours with an upset stomach?

The drive itself was great! It absolutely could not have gone better. We hit almost no traffic, the kids were in a good mood and there were no accidents or construction. The kids slept for the first 6 hours of the drive, which made time go by quickly. Thomas took the night shift and I dozed off too. We stopped around 4 for gas and everyone went to the bathroom, then back to sleep. We didn't stop again until 9:30 and only then because we needed gas. No one complained, everyone was happy with their surprises from "the Big Green Bag of Mysteries," as named by Anna and Kara. They played Kindles, listened to music and had fun conversations. I don't know why no one needed to use the bathroom, everyone had a water bottle, but it just worked out that way. We seriously drove 12.5 hours and only stopped twice! That has to be some sort of record. We were willing to stop for a picnic lunch, we had all the supplies, but everyone just wanted to push through. We made it home by 1:15 and ate lunch at our own kitchen table. Everyone was so happy to get home! Thomas and I even unpacked, something that I normally procrastinate for days (maybe even weeks).

Final vacation thoughts: overall, it was an excellent vacation. We thought we would have so much more down time, but somehow we managed to fill virtually every minute. We got to spend a lot time with our family and it was sweet to see the kids with (some of) their cousins. Being far away makes me grateful for time I do get to spend with my Florida peeps. However, even with almost 9 full days in Florida, we still didn't get to do everything or see everyone we wanted.

Marta, Frank and Elizabeth were great hosts. It is hard to find someone with the space (and temperament) to allow our family of 6 to invade their home and we were thankful they were willing to put up with us. The trip was hard on Luke and Kara, who thrive on routine. Both had moments of intense breakdowns and I am hoping that we will be able to get them back into the swing of things without much difficulty. Anna and Jack were great. They were easy-going, polite and well-behaved. When I asked everyone their favorite thing about being in Florida, most referenced seeing all our friends and family. So, then I asked favorite activity.  Jack, Anna and Kara all said Legoland. Thomas loved all the baseball. My favorite activity was the walk through Circle B and seeing all those alligators. Luke most enjoyed hanging with his cousin, JD, who may be his new favorite person. It was definitely a success! But, it is still nice to be writing this final blog from the comfort of my couch in my own living room.

Nature Walk and Birthday Celebration

We had another fun day on Thursday. It started with a phone call to change our Royal Caribbean cruise, previously scheduled for Spring Break next year. Marta, Frank and Elizabeth are going to join us! Because of Elizabeth's school schedule, that meant moving up the cruise by a week. The kids will miss school and end up with 2 weeks off in a row. Hopefully, next year they will be healthier than they were this year and the extra absences won't matter too much.

We had an early lunch with Basille. We hadn't seen her in a few years and it was fun to catch up. Then, it was off to Circle B for a nature walk. It is a county owned property with over 1200 acres. They had an awesome nature center, with some really cool exhibits. After looking at all the educational stuff inside, we went on a 3-mile hike. It made me wish St. Mary's would do more with Elms. We saw lots of interesting birds, tons of alligators, turtles, and a snake. My sister saw wild hogs driving in, but we never ran into them.

The nature center was awesome! They even handed out maps with pictures of wildlife to look for. And, it was all free!

can you find the two turtles and the baby alligator?

He's just hanging out.

Another baby :)

This snake did not want us to pass. Thomas bravely walked by (after he lowered from striking position) and then the snake slithered into the lake and the rest us walked past.

A pretty bird

The path itself was even beautiful. The trees were classic Florida, with spanish covered moss.

The Wilsons with JD and Amanda.

Another cool bird, this one swims in the water looking for fish (we actually saw one with a fish in it's mouth, but I couldn't get a picture) and then has to wait for its wings to dry before it can fly off.

Last alligator picture. I couldn't believe how many we saw.

Thomas has spotted something special.

From there, we took the kids to get ice cream, then we went and hung out with my dad and Maggie. It was my dad's 74th birthday! Kevin turns 40 on Sunday, so we had a joint celebration. My sister made pizza and bought a delicious cake from Publix. It was one of my favorite days in Florida.

My Florida family. Thomas took the picture, so unfortunately, he's not in it.

Spring Break 2016: Tuesday and Wednesday

n Tuesday Thomas took Kara to another Tigers game. This time they were playing the Blue Jays and the stadium was overridden with Canadians. Kara was the only kid who wanted to go and she really enjoyed the alone time with her Dad. She kept score, using a notepad and writing down the speed of the pitch whenever anyone scored a run. She may create a new baseball statistic with that method. Thomas bought her a Spring Training hat and they had a great time. They sat in the bleachers again, surrounded by the Blue Jays fans. Thomas said the rumors about Canadians were true and the people around him were super friendly.

Kara and Thomas both got a bit sunburned, but still enjoyed their time at the game together.

Meanwhile, I went to lunch with my sister and brother. We went to my favorite Japanese steakhouse, Osaka. The service was really slow (we got there at 12 and didn't eat until 1:30), but the food was so good that I didn't mind, plus it was nice to talk with Kim and Kevin. After lunch, I went back to Marta's house and hung out with the kids while we waited for Thomas and Kara. It was a very relaxing afternoon in the midst of a super busy week.

Thomas and Kara got home around 4:45 and we lounged around for about 30 minutes until it was time to meet Debby at Olive Garden. We had a very nice dinner, even Luke was good! Then, we went and dropped the older three kids off at my sister's for their slumber party. This was the first night they've ever spent away from us and not in their own beds (we've gone away). They were excited! The night was made even better by the fact that their cousins just got a WiiU, something Kara and Jack have wanted for a while.

The slumber party went well. Anna especially loved it. Kara felt she missed out on fun activities with Amanda because she spent all her time playing the Wii with Jack and JD. She was ready to go by the time we picked them up and was very cranky, possibly from lack of sleep. My sister had sent me a picture of them eating breakfast at 7:15, which is considerably earlier than they've been waking during our vacation.

After we picked the kids up, we went to Kissimmee State Park and climbed trees, had balancing contests around the playground, and looked for wildlife. It was a beautiful day and it was good to be outside. 

With Marta and Elizabeth at the top of the observation tower.

Everyone liked climbing all the trees

Kara got pretty high...

But, Thomas got higher.

Kara carrying Luke and Thomas carrying Kara.

We had an extremely late lunch and went to my dad's, where Thomas fixed his door and then we walked to the miniature golf course in his neighborhood. Luke was pretty funny, every time we hit a ball he ran to pick it up to give back to us. Finally, we got him interested in his own club and ball and we were able to play.

Golf with Grandpa

He was holding 3 of our golf balls, but when I pulled out my camera he gave 2 of them to me before I could get the picture.

Jack and Luke got tired of golfing and decided it was time to sit and contemplate all of life's mysteries.

After golf, Thomas took the kids back to Marta's and I went to dinner with my dad, sister and brother. We missed my brother Jim, who lives in England and of course, my mom. We were meeting at 5, and my Dad did call-ahead seating. I thought it was very odd that he did so. How crowded is a restaurant going to be at 5pm on a Wednesday? The answer: very crowded! I had forgotten that the population in Winter Haven this time of year is overrun with snowbirds, who tend to enjoy early bird specials. Even with the call ahead, the wait for a table was 30+ minutes, so we went across the street to Longhorn. They don't have any early birds and weren't very crowded. We had a nice dinner, and even managed to discuss politics without any arguing (I can remember one election where we all canceled each other out by each of us voting for a different candidate). My sister then drove me around the some areas of town I hadn't seen yet and I got to see all the growth that has happened since I left. We had a nice conversation and it makes me wish we lived closer. Although, I am starting to feel a bit homesick for Maryland and my routine back home.

My dad and brother Kevin.

My sister and I.  See any resemblance/

Of course, while I was having a relaxing dinner, Thomas was busy dealing with 4 kids, none of whom got much sleep last night, and Luke never napped today. When he got back to Marta's house, no one was home and I had the house key. He managed to jump their 6-foot privacy fence and was able to get in, but then the girls somehow managed to let the dogs out. So, poor Thomas had to chase two dogs through the neighborhood, while still keeping track of Luke and the other 3. His evening was not quite as relaxing as mine!

Busch Gardens

I was really excited for our Busch Gardens day. We wanted to get there at opening, but were running a few minutes late. We pulled into their parking area at 9:55. At 11:07 we made it to the front of the security line. You read that correct, it took an hour and 12 minutes to get through the line to park our car and get through the bag check. When we went to scan our tickets, my ticket required a military i.d. for admission, which I had left with my wallet in the car (I had a free military ticket). They called over a supervisor who was immovable and not at all nice, she stated if I wanted to use the ticket, I needed the military i.d (even though the ticket said picture i.d. and I had my driver's license. I thought since I had verified military service with Troop ID online, I would be good to go).  Back to the car I went, then I waited for a tram, went back through security and finally joined the rest of my family. I was thankful that at least I had the i.d. in the car, but I certainly wished the supervisor was a bit nicer about it. Frankly, the less I say on the matter, the better--I still feel angry thinking about the whole interaction.

It was the six of us, my niece and nephew, and Marta and Elizabeth. We were a party of 10. I would like to say the day got better. And, I suppose it did. But, the crowds were unbelievable. I know it is Spring Break and I was expecting it to be crowded, but it was honestly ridiculous. The positives for the day were the ride on Skeikra, which is an awesome roller coaster, seeing all the animals, and being with people I love. The negatives were the lines, the lines, and the lines. We only got to ride one roller coaster because by noon, the wait times for the others were all over an hour (the one I really wanted to ride was 2 hours!).  Actually, I only got to ride 1 ride, period. The kids did have a great time climbing around on the two giant climbing structures and they all had fun being together.

Here are the pictures from the day:

The line to have bags checked

The ONE guy at the front of our line. There were a few different lines, but you would have thought there would be multiple people to manage each line.

One of the cool climbing structures

Luke loved seeing the zebras during the train ride

Luke on the swing, one of the 2 rides he went on (3 if you count the train)

The kids in front of a cool topiary.

Really, the less I say about the day, the better. I would never, ever, EVER recommend that anyone visit any type of theme park in Florida during Spring Break.

Bowling and Spring Training

Saturday was a comparatively quiet day. We had planned on going to the Florida Renaissance Festival with my sister's family, but the forecast called for several hours of rain so we decided to skip it. Instead, we had a leisurely breakfast with the Tilleys, then met my sister's family at Arts in the Park in downtown Winter Haven. They had lots of vendors with very creative crafts. We bought a really neat carved glass piece. It was much more affordable than the Arts in Park in Maryland we go to at Ann Marie Gardens. We were amazed that we could actually buy stuff at this one :) We also went into the library, where they have a book sale area. The kids and Thomas all found some interesting items. Anna chose a book about mythological creatures that has been a source of frustration for the past couple of days--the kids are constantly fighting over the book, with Anna wielding her power to determine readership like a cruel dictator ("I only said maybe after this page you could have it").

While we were there it began to rain, fortunately, it waited until after I had bought my Italian Ice. We decided bowling would be a good indoor activity. We could only do an hour rental, because their birthday parties were taking over after that. So, we bowled one game (I won!). It was really expensive. Two lanes and shoes for one hour came out to over 60 dollars for the 8 of us who bowled! I was bummed that we only got one game out of it. We had lunch at the bowling alley and took the kids back to Marta's to watch a movie.

I did not take many pictures. Here's one of Anna bowling.

And, one of Luke.  He loved it, everytime the ball hit the pins, he'd turn and say "yay" and jump up and down.

After the movie, Kim took JD and Amanda home for a few hours, while Thomas and I ran errands. Then, the kids came back so JD could help Elizabeth babysit, while Thomas and I took Frank and Marta to dinner. We went to a delicious Mexican restaurant. Frank also took us to his new building for his business. It has grown a lot since I had last visited and it was interesting to see all the machines and organization. Thomas and I were both very impressed. Frank has owned the business for 37 years and it has grown from one machine in his garage to 8 employees in a building they own with a lot of very fancy, high-tech equipment. It was a good example of the American dream and what you can achieve with a lot of very hard work. Luke will be wearing one of their creations tomorrow at Busch Gardens, so keep an eye out for his shirt in my next blog.

Sunday was Thomas' most anticipated day--a Spring Training game! The Tigers played the Nationals at Joker Marchant Stadium. We like to joke that it was my connection to Spring training that really brought us together, Thomas heard where I was from and figured the relationship might be good for a free trip to Spring Training country (this was before so many teams moved to Arizona). We have been to several games over the years, but this was the first since we had kids. But, I am getting ahead of myself. The game didn't start until 1, so after breakfast, we I took the kids on a Kori highlights tour. I showed them my old houses, drove them the route I would take my bike to get to a nearby lake and then the Elementary school where I went for 5th and 6th grades and met my friend Jennifer (who they know and love) and where their Uncle Kevin is now a teacher. Later, when talking about their day, Anna remarked that she couldn't remember the name of the school, but she thought it was "Memory Lane". :)

Anna has been asking to see an alligator, so we went to Lakeland to Lake Parker where I have frequently seen gators lounging around. Sure enough, there was a giant one in the grass as we drove past. Unfortunately, the kids didn't see it. We went to the park area and took a nature walk, but didn't see any others. We will have to try again.

I liked this picture so much...

I made them turn around, so I could take another with the alligator sign.

Finally, we got to the game. We had bleacher seats, but the best thing about Spring training is there are no bad seats and we had a great view of the field. Luke was difficult, but the other kids were good. We got to see Justin Verlander pitch. We watched him pitch in one of the first games Thomas and I attended and he has gone on to be a MVP, so that was pretty cool. On the Nationals side, Bryce Harper hit two home-runs! One of them was straight over the scoreboard, I think he may be in for a good year. The older kids actually watched some of the game this time, as opposed to just asking for ice cream and making multiple trips to the bathroom (of course, that happened too). Luke was cranky. It was his nap time and he was tired and hot and unhappy. He just wanted to wander the bleachers and couldn't understand why we didn't trust him to climb the concrete steps by himself. We took him for lots of walks, during one, he was lifting his shirt and sticking his belly out. He walked up to a stranger and said something and she responded by giving his belly button a little push (that sounds creepy, but it wasn't, he was all up in her personal space with his shirt up). After that, he kept trying to get other strangers to do the same, but no one else was biting.

A red-cheeked. unhappy Luke. We knew it would be tough, since the game started at nap time.

Even though we were in the bleachers, we still had a great view!

We waited for the 7th inning stretch and headed out after they sang Take Me Out to the Ballgame, which Kara always looks forward to. It would have been nice to stay for the whole game, especially since it was a kids run the bases day, but Luke was done and my dad was having everyone over for an early dinner.

We got my dad's around 4:30 and finally go to see Kevin, who has been sick. We had a fun clam boil, which is my most favorite meal in the world. It's a New England thing, possibly specific to the Portuguese area of Massachusetts and not to be confused with a clam bake. It was a good meal, although I was disappointed that the girls didn't like clams. I am sure Jack wouldn't like them either, but he is allergic, so he didn't even have to put up with me attempting to coax him into trying one. This was another dark time for Luke, he fell asleep in the car on the way over. We laid him down and tried to wake him up at 5:30. The poor kid was so exhausted he didn't want to get up and wasn't sure what to do with himself. Repeatedly hitting me in the face while shouting "NO" seemed like the logical choice. He would cry when anyone tried to take him from me, although Thomas did eventually get him to calm down. It was rough, though.

Finally, it was back "home".  We went with Marta and Elizabeth while they walked the dogs (4 kids, 4 adults and 4 dogs). It was another fun, full day.  Today, we are off to Busch Gardens!

Legoland!!!

Day two was highly anticipated, at least by me. The six Wilsons, my dad and Maggie, and JD and Amanda all went to Legoland. Unfortunately, Kim and Dave had to work. But, the 10 of us made a nice group.

We got there in time for park opening and then headed to the back to try some of the bigger rides. We were able to walk right on Coastersaurus and Flying School. We did a few more rides and then went to the water ski show.

The show is a vestige to Cypress Gardens, which was Florida's first theme park. It opened in 1936. It was 5-minutes from my house and we went several times when I was a kid. My sister even worked there at one point. Anyway, the park I first remember (late 80s era) had a water ski show, the Island in the Sky, a theater that ran a few different acts, a beautiful gardens area, a diving show, a boat ride on the lake, and a few other small rides. I was anxious to see what it was like now that it had transformed into Legoland. Unfortunately, I never could get my bearings. The place is completely transformed. There were a few things that remained, but they seemed out of place from where I remembered them, even though I know they didn't move two large stadiums or the Island in the Sky. All that is to say, I was excited both to visit Legoland and to see the remnants of my childhood park. While I never could quite place things, I did enjoy the water ski show, which was the top attraction back in the Cypress Gardens era. Now, while some of the skiers are dressed like minifigures, they still did their iconic jumps and pyramid.

Waiting for the show to begin

Skiing minifigs!

We got there early and were able to secure prime seats, center of the stadium, first row in front of a water canon. Unfortunately, it was a little too close for Luke's comfort. He got scared when the oddly dressed cast came out. I had to take him to the back of the stadium, which was a safe enough distance to make him feel comfortable. He actually had good timing, right after we left, Thomas and the kids got soaked!

After the show, we waited in an extremely long line to get our over-priced theme park lunch. Actually, in terms of tourist places, it wasn't that bad. They had $7 kids meals that had burgers or chicken strips, fries, a fruit pouch and milk or bottled water. From there it was more rides.

One of everyone's favorite things was Leog City. The 4D show was also very good. And, of course the kids enjoyed the rides. Luke never napped and got a little crankier as the day went on. After he went on one ride, he couldn't understand why he couldn't go on all the rides.

Anna in front of the DC area

We got ice cream around 5 then decided to see what remained of the gardens. My dad and Maggie left with JD and Amanda, so it was just the 6 of us, but before he went it was time for a picture.

Grandpa Lou with 6 of his 10 grandkids

The gardens were a lot like I remembered. I saw the old waterfall and gazebo and of course, the banyan tree. Kara remarked that she felt like she was in the rain forest and it definitely did have a unique feel. We saw interesting trees and plants. It was well-maintained and very beautiful. Of course, the highlight was the banyan tree.

At the entrance, next to a lego Southern Belle, when the park was Cypress Gardens, women walked around the gardens in these massive dresses.

The massive tree, it drops roots that grow into what looks like trunks that then send out more roots.

From there we made our way out of the park, stopping to get apple fries, which I had heard a lot about. They lived up to the hype. I took Jack and Kara on the Island in the Sky. It was wussified. In my day, once it reached its height of 150 feet, you could stand and enjoy the view. Now, you have to stay seated and they have netting all around, which makes taking pictures rather pointless.

An obstructed view of the Legoland hotel

We browsed the giant Legostore and left at 6:38. At 6:46, we pulled into Marta's driveway. I am not exaggerating when I tell people that Legoland is minutes from where I lived (my house was in the same neighborhood as Marta's, although my dad has since moved about 10 minutes away). Marta had a delicious dinner waiting for us, which everyone but Luke enjoyed. Unfortunately, he was exhausted and refused to eat. We got him to drink some milk and then put him to bed. The kids were in bed by 8:15. Thomas stayed with Jack and Luke in the poolhouse, since Jack was a little nervous to be alone, and I stayed up until 11 chatting with Marta, Matt and Frank. It was a fun day from morning till night!