A Short Staycation(ish) and First Day of "School"

We almost always do a weekend (or week) away right before school starts. Last year we had a super fun trip to Atlanta. The year before was Boston, and before that was Philadelphia. This year is weird. There is no where to go and the schedule was unexpectedly changed. The original school start date was 8/10. Then, it changed to 8/21. Then, two weeks ago, they changed it back to 8/10. The whole county was pretty unhappy about how it was handled. We didn't have any plans, so it wasn't a big deal for us, but it meant we had to throw something together quickly. Thomas and I decided to take a couple of days off from work and to hang out here. 

Thursday, we went to Islands of Adventure and Universal. We were hoping it would be less crowded than the previous Saturday. Fortunately, it was. We went straight to Hagrid's and rode twice in a row and then worked our way around the park. Luke tried everything he was tall enough for and was disappointed that he couldn't ride the drop tower. We took the Hogwart's Express to Universal and rode a couple of rides there and left when the park closed. It was a much better experience than when we went on a Saturday. To make it extra special, we even stopped for Voodoo Donuts on the way out (Jack's favorite).

Friday we went to SeaWorld. We haven't been there since March, so it was nice to be back. SeaWorld is my favorite park. It is just so much easier than the others. It is close to our house, easy to park, easy to get in, laid-back, and we always have fun. We rode a few rides and walked around to see the animals. We visited the penguins, manatees, dolphins and sting rays. We also tried something new--feeding the sea lions. You buy trays of fish and toss them in, so it isn't as cool as feeding the sting rays, but they seemed much more aware. One of them stood away from the crowd and was waving his little flipper at us. It was super cute. Unfortunately, I didn't think to get a picture until our fish were gone and they had all dispersed like we had never even been there. There were 10 baby sea lions out and they were adorable. We also saw baby manatees. The baby manatees were all rescued orphans. They will stay at Sea World until they are big enough to be released. I have seen Black Fish and read a few books about animals (whales in particular) in captivity. And, while I don't like it, I also think Sea World does a lot of good and I have no guilt in supporting them.

Saturday, we just stayed home. We went in the pool and played for a few hours and had a lazy day. Sunday was similar, but we went out for ice cream and played games. All in all, I think it was a nice little break.

Today (Monday) was the first day of school. But, not really. The kids are all doing virtual learning for two weeks. Then, some students in the county will return for face to face learning. As I've mentioned, Luke will go to school and the rest will stay home. It seemed to work pretty well. The middle schoolers were all assigned classes and followed the normal bell schedule. They were able to log into each class and have a virtual lesson. We don't love that they're sitting in front of a screen all day, but it still seems like the best option. Luke's class isn't really doing anything, I think they are just biding their time until face to face begins. Hopefully, there are no issues and he is able to go in two weeks, because it is really hard having him as the only one with nothing to do. I had a marathon phone call today (5 hours!) where I was an active participant. Thomas also was working and the older kids were logged into their classes. Luke is not very independent, he likes sitting with people and talking, so it was hard for him. Kara is the only one of our kids who has always been able to entertain herself. Even as a toddler/preschooler, she could play happily alone for long periods of time. Obviously, she also enjoyed playing with the other kids, but she could make up games and entertain herself, the others always wanted to be right where we were, which was totally fine. But, it makes it more challenging with Luke in these weird times. And, I know that like the others, he will outgrow this and I will miss the day when he was my little shadow. 

So, without further ado--the back to school photos: