A Night in Tampa, This and That

The past two weeks have flown by! On Sunday evening (June 15), Thomas and I went to Islands of Adventure. We went on 5 rides and 4 of them experienced technical difficulties, including a pretty scary experience on Velocicoaster. Right before we got on, it shut down. It was down for about 10 minutes and then reopened and we boarded. There is a point on the ride where it accelerates into a huge top hat. But, the ride came to a halt. We were stopped for a few minutes, then it started rolling backward slowly. Then, it started backing up fast before reversing course and accelerating into the uphill climb. I am not doing a great job of describing it, but it was scary. Several people on our car started screaming at the fast backward motion that is definitely not part of the regular ride. The other delays were more minor. Regardless, we still had a nice visit. They recently opened up the express lane for Hagrid's. Our pass allows us one express after 4 on each ride and it was so nice to use it for Hagrid's. The park was surprisingly empty, so the wait was super short, I believe around 20 minutes. 

Last week Luke had a baseball camp. He went with a friend. They drove Mon-Wed and we drove Thurs/Friday. There is little I appreciate more than a good carpool! Luke enjoyed the camp and somehow the boys convinced both sets of parents to stop at Wendy's for a frosty after camp each day.

We did not pick up the girls last weekend, because we had plans to go to Tampa and watch some baseball. It was a Rays/Tigers series. We generally don't like to root against the home team, but we couldn't pass up the chance to see the Tigers. Right now, the Rays are playing in a minor league stadium, so there are no bad seats. We drove down Friday after Luke's camp and our half day at work. Waze said it would take an hour and 50 minutes. It took 2 hours and 20. But, we made it to our hotel to check in and rest a few minutes before heading to dinner at Chick-Fil-A. We got to the game just in time for them to announce a rain delay. I would say about a third of the crowd was Tigers fan, which makes sense as they Spring Train about an hour away. We saw some really great plays, but the Tigers lost (score was a crazy 14-8).

Only picture I took, Jake Rogers batting. He tossed Kara a ball back when he was in the minor leagues and we've rooted for him ever since. I sent this picture to her (unbeknownst to me, Thomas did the same thing). Also shows how good our seats were.

We went back and did it all again for the Saturday game. It started at noon and we had an early lunch at Chick-Fil-A. Why mess with a good thing? We had some trouble getting into our car, but a quick trip to WalMart for a new key fob battery thankfully fixed everything. For that game, we sat right behind the Tigers dugout, which was really cool. Unfortunately, they lost again.

The drive home went well, right around 90 minutes, which is best case scenario. I don't think we did anything Sunday.

The next week was uneventful. Luke went to camp at the middle school along with two neighbors, so once again a great carpool! Thomas missed a couple of days at work, which made my days extra long and boring. And, there was some type of emergency that required them to carve up one of the roads we use to get to work and the detour added 15 minutes to our commute each afternoon. With the return to office we discovered a Tropical Smoothie in a neighboring building and have been going there once a week for lunch. I love, love LOVE the watermelon mojito. Unfortunately, it is only around for summer. Probably better for my wallet (and waistline).

Today is Friday. Thomas and I took the day off to take Luke and a friend to Aquatica. They were giving our level of passholder $20/beach bucks (used like cash in the park). And, right now, we have 10 passes, so $200! If you're wondering, our family has 5 passes (everyone but Jack). They expire on July 1. But, it was cheaper to buy a new pass than to renew the current passes. So, I canceled the current passes and bought 5 new ones. But, there's a few days of overlap. Hence the $200. We bought some new drink cups, lunch, ice cream, walking tacos, water shoes for Luke, and cotton candy. And, we had 10 quick queues that they used after lunch when the lines got long. If Luke's friend, Gael, ever goes with us again, he is going to be sorely disappointed by how cheap the visit will be in comparison. 

In final news, I can't resist a mom brag. Jack got a 1510 on his SAT! He studied completely on his own and made a nice improvement. He already had a 1400, which is good enough for Bright Futures, but he felt with a little studying he could do better in math. He was right. His superscore is now a 1540! He isn't sure what he wants to do and is not even sure if he is ready to go away to school, but this score along with his grades and activities should open some doors if he wants to.

A few bonus pictures. I enjoy facetiming with the girls. Anna calls every day during her break. Kara calls most days. And, both girls sent me their schedules. I like to randomly look during the day and see what they're doing. We are picking them up tomorrow and I am looking forward to spending some time with them. They are now halfway done!

A very full schedule!

CITs & The Start of Summer

The girls were both hired to be counselors-in-training at the Elks summer camp. It is the sleepaway camp they went to when they were younger. They both went through periods of nervousness, regret and excitement. Fortunately, it was mostly excitement. We did last minute shopping on Saturday, May 30. Then, Thomas and I drove them up to camp on Sunday. The camp is about an hour and fifteen minutes from our house. The first 50ish minutes is just highway, then the rest of the drive is very scenic country. There are lots of horses and hills and it doesn’t really feel like central Florida. The camp is in a beautiful rural area.

We said our sad goodbyes and their summer adventure began. Their first week was a training week. They learned the rules and expectations and did many of the same activities as the campers. They both enjoyed the week, but said it went by slowly. They were also able to regularly check their phones.

 

Meanwhile, it was the first full week of summer for Jack and Luke. Luke went to summer camp at the middle school. One of his good friends was there and he made a couple of new friends and had a good time. They even had a field trip to Universal—complete with express passes! They weren’t there very long, but he managed to do some fun rides and had fun, except they left him in the bathroom. He went in, came out and his whole group was gone. This was stressful for a couple of reasons, one, the obvious “what do I do now” type feeling (Luke doesn’t have a phone) and two, they had warned the campers that if they wandered off they would be in serious trouble and would not be allowed to go on any more field trips. Luke hadn’t wandered off, but he didn’t know if they would think he had. So, he walked around for a bit, found another group from his camp, who were able to call his group and he was reunited with no issues. I am not sure they even knew he was gone. Seems like they need a better system!

 

Jack’s week was a little quieter. He studied for the SAT and did some volunteering at the high school where he learned how to give tours to new students. And, he tutored his first client—a 3rd grade boy he is helping with reading and math. He said it went well, the mom told him she was impressed with how prepared he was and promised to leave him a good review with the company. Jack thinks he will be able to add more clients, if he wants, after he demonstrates he is reliable.

 

On Friday, Thomas, Luke and I went to Busch Gardens with one of Luke’s best friends and his mom and sister. They have played on the same baseball team for a few years and have similar interests/personalities. We had a very fun day. The drive there was unexpectedly long and it was a little more crowded than we expected, but the drive home was unexpectedly easy and the crowds cleared out as the day wore on.

Saturday, Jack took the SAT and we picked up the girls for their 24-hour break. It was nice to see them and hear all about the camp. I was impressed by how professional it all is. The counselors are background checked and drug-tested and the week was full of instruction (what to do if a camper is homesick, how to tell if a child is being groomed, etc.).  Some of it seemed intense. And, as mentioned, there was also time for fun to do some of the camper activities, like the ropes course.

 

We went to lunch on the way home at Steak n Shake, then mostly they rested. Saturday night, the boys went to a Flying Tigers game where they were handing out Tarik Skubal bobble-heads, the girls and I hung out for a quiet night at home. 

I asked Thomas for a picture of the crowd. This is actually quite a bit more than we usually see. Bobbleheads are a good draw.

Sunday, we had to drop the girls off at 1045, then we had to hang out until 130 when we could also deposit Luke. We went to a nearby park and practiced baseball and went to lunch. Then, we dropped him off for his week of camp. We saw both of the girls in their professional capacity; it was much easier to leave Luke knowing they were there.

 

The girls get a 2-hour break each day, which is the only time they are allowed to look at their phones. Anna has had some ups and downs. The counselor in her cabin only speaks Mandarin and does not engage with the kids or follow the cell phone rules. They assigned another counselor to be with them during the day, but Anna feels like she has to do all the work in the morning and evenings. Fortunately, the CITs get to switch cabins after two weeks, so hopefully her next counselor is more proactive. Kara is having a better experience. Both girls love their little campers and are going to miss them when the week is over. They see Luke occasionally and he appears to be having fun.

 

It has been quiet with just Jack. Jack said it is a little lonely and he would not like to be an only child. He has cleaned in the house, hung out with friends, gone running and will do his second tutoring session today. Thomas and I are going to work, just like any other week. We did go out to dinner one night. 

It's taking me a while to finalize this (I always write and then go back and add pictures), so I can update. Friday night, Thomas, Jack and I went to Epcot. We rode Guardians twice. We also went to the aquarium and rode Living with the Land and we saw the nighttime show! We almost never see the evening shows, usually we are hopping in line for something. But, the timing worked out. We all thought the fireworks were good, but the song choices and voiceover was not our favorite. 

Saturday morning, I rode up to Elks camp with my friend Kaitlin (one of the 3 if you remember my previous pity party post). Her daughter Ella was also at camp this week. She and Luke were in the same track and it was so fun to hear them discuss the week. They both loved it! And, they are both going the same week later in the summer. Luke had another two friends there from school in his track (we have told lots of people about the camp) and he said everyone had fun. But, his "best camp friend" was someone he met there, named Wesley. He said Wesley also lived in Orlando. I thought that was great and asked Luke if he got his number. Luke did not. Ella said that she got the numbers of all the girls in her cabin. I thought that was funny and wonder if that is a difference between boys and girls or just Luke and Ella? My recollection is that both Anna and Kara also communicated with their camp friends after camp and that Jack did not. 

We had to pick up Luke at 830 and the girls said they would get dismissed between 11-1130, so Thomas drove up separately for them. They both enjoyed their first week with campers and it sounds like they both did a great job. Anna made up a story, Ratanna, that she would add to each night as a bedtime story. I think she said she turned all the girls into rats and gave them rat names and they loved it. A couple of girls even said that was their favorite part of camp. Kara's counselor asked her to be a little meaner because all of the girls liked her the best :) One week down (two if you count training) and 6 to go! And, update on Anna's counselor who doesn't speak English--she quit. Anna is not sure what will happen now. 

It was nice to have everyone home for the night! Kara baked cookies with Jordyn. Anna and I went for a walk. 

End of School Year!

Picking up where I left off, we had Luke’s fifth grade promotion ceremony on May 22. Luke cleaned up! He received a ton of awards for his academic achievements, including being the only kid in 5th grade to receive a perfect score on the ELA FAST (he also had a perfect score in science)! We were very proud of him.

The other kids also had strong finishes to their years. Anna and Kara had straight As for the semester. Jack got his first B; it was in Spanish and he is at peace with the end of his Straight-A Streak.

May 23rd was fifth-grade day for Luke. Thomas and I took the day off to volunteer. The first thing they did was a clap-out, where the fifth graders walk the halls by all their old classrooms and the teachers and kids come out and clap for them. They had the parents in the lobby and there was a ton of us! They handed out noise makers and the parents all cheered, clapped and made noise as the kids came down the stairs into the lobby. They all looked so excited and surprised, it was an amazing moment. Luke gave me a big hug and it was actually a bit emotional. We missed some of Jack and Anna’s 5^th grade events when we moved to Florida and Kara’s were all canceled for Covid, so this was a first for our family.

After the clap-out, they had some bounce houses and two gaming trucks for the kids. Then, they went inside for lunch and a glow dance. It was a pretty great day to be a 5^th grader.

Last walk home as a student at NLPCS. Hard to believe we've been doing it for 6 years and now it is over. Very sad.

After school, Thomas, Jack, Anna and I went to Hollywood Studios. We had a great time, we rode all our favorite rides, including Slinky Dog at night. They had a preview of the new Villains show, which we all liked. And, we got to see Muppet Vision 3D one last time. I am going to miss that show! We didn’t go every visit, but we went multiple times a year and it was one of our favorites. It makes me sad thinking about it!

On Sunday we had a nice visit with my dad and then went to a Flying Tigers game. Luke ended up with 6 foul balls/home runs. And, he actually caught one of the home runs as it came over the wall! It was very cool and the crowd (of about 100) went wild! It is a shame the Flying Tigers can’t get a better turnout, it is such a fun time. The other home run ball that Luke got was the player’s first. So, they sent staff to get the ball and gave Luke a different one that he was able to get signed after the game.

He caught it!

Luke and Stephen Hrustich

The last day of school was May 28th, but most of our kids (all but Jack) didn’t go the last two days. Their teachers told them that grades were final and they didn’t need to show up, so they didn’t. Therefore, our last day of school pictures are kind of weird, but we did them, just not on the last day. 

On the 30th, to celebrate another year in the books, the whole family went to Epcot. We had a great visit and rode Guardians of the Galaxy and got Thomas’ favorite—Disco Inferno.

This is probably getting a little long, so I will pick up with Anna and Kara become camp counselors in my next post. Right after this bonus picture of Luke. Sunrise, sunset. 

Disney, Baseball, Mother's Day, Wisdom Teeth, Golf

The kids are down to their final days of school. The teens have basically stopped going. They have turned in their computers, their teachers have stopped teaching and grades are final. May has turned into a month of testing and once those tests are done, so are the kids. At least for the high school.

Luke has also wrapped his testing. He got perfect scores on the reading and science assessments and only missed math by one question. Tonight is his fifth-grade promotion and tomorrow is fifth-grade day, I am sure I will write more about those later.

 We upgraded our Disney passes so we can now go on the weekends. In honor of Mother’s Day, I dragged everyone to Magic Kingdom on Saturday, May 10^th. We had a really fun visit. The boys, Thomas and I spent some time on Tom Sawyer’s Island. I appreciate the need to make room for new attractions, but I am going to miss the island. It was kind of an oasis away from the busyness of the park. I wouldn’t say we spent a lot of time there, but we always had fun when we went, and it was nice knowing it was there. I remember how much our big kids loved it when they were little.

Maybe our last picture at Fort Langhorn

The double entendre here makes me laugh.

Shooting their shots

Bonus of our twins looking somber like the Haunted Mansion twins.

On Mother’s Day, we planned to go to Busch Gardens, something I have been talking about for years (usually Luke has baseball). We can go to Busch Gardens anytime, but I have noticed that on Mother’s Day, crowds are low and it’s something I have wanted to do. I was pretty excited it was finally happening. Unfortunately, Thomas was sick. I didn’t really want to go without him, so Anna, Kara, Luke and I attempted Epcot. Unfortunately, some rides were down and our plans were thwarted and I was kind of cranky about the whole thing, so we didn’t stay long.

 

Kara got her wisdom teeth out on Thursday, May 15^th. She was much quieter than Anna. The only comment she made was about how quick it was, which is very similar to what she noted when she had her appendix removed. She was a little nauseous on the day of, but her pain level never got too high. She was also swollen right away, which was different from Anna; but her swelling was mostly gone by Monday and she was back to school. Timing was tricky, as she can't play lacrosse for a month. And, both Anna and Kara are going to be counselors-in-training (CIT) this summer at the Elks camp, so we needed to get it done before camp starts to not interfere with fall lacrosse. Fortunately, it is over and it went well.

Right after surgery.

Luke had another baseball tournament. He had his best game ever hitting and went 4-4, including another over-the-fence home run. Unfortunately, his team still lost. Their record this season is an abysmal 4-26. Most of the kids on his team are really good, there are a couple of weak links, but they aren’t really responsible. I am not sure what has made them so bad this year. Many of those games they’ve only lost by a couple of runs, so it’s not like they have been completely overmatched; I’m not saying they should dominate, but they aren’t so bad that you would expect them to lose as often as they do. In my opinion, losing begets losing and they are deep in that cycle (expecting to lose). There is one more tournament left in the season and then hopefully we can have a fresh start in the fall.

 

While Luke was playing his amazing game (and Kara was still recovering from surgery), Anna and I went to Epcot to redo the Mother’s Day fiasco. This time, no rides were down and we had an amazing visit. We rode Soarin’, Living with the Land, and then Guardians—where we got September as our song. We sat in the front row and it was amazing! Then, we walked around the World Showcase and got a couple of snacks and lunch. We did a Twinings tea garden tour in England and Anna bought a little tea box. They were offering free customization, so she had lilacs and her initials painted. I hope it something she keeps for a long time to remember our fun day.

 

Yesterday, Thomas, Anna, Luke and I had a fun night. We got take out from Huey Magoo’s and then went to the Drive Shack. We had a really good time. We played some Bejeweled game, which I dominated (99% luck). Thomas is the only one of us who actually knows how to play golf, but the rest of us did okay. Luke and Anna loved it and both want to go back soon. Jack and Kara were off with friends or I am sure they would have joined.

SeaWorld! Epic! And More

I always have to look at my blog to see what date I last wrote. Then, I have to go and look at my pictures to see what we’ve been up to. If it wasn’t picture-worthy, I have probably forgotten about it.

 Anyway, the Wills left and we were sad, but we consoled ourselves with a fun Friday night at SeaWorld. SeaWorld gives passholders some great benefits. On this particular day, every member got 2 free food samples from their Seven Seas Festival. Plus, they gave us $10/each to spend how we chose. So, the five passholders (not Jack) went and had a fun night. The weather was beautiful! We mostly enjoyed our samples. I got a lobster roll that was amazing. My other sample wasn’t great. Luke spent his money on pizza and redeemed his two samples for a huge cupcake and a giant meatball—he enjoyed both. Anna and Kara got footlong pretzels. I can’t remember everything we got, but it was all pretty good (or great, if we take into account the $0 price). We rode a couple of rides, saw a few of the animals and left when the park closed at 7.

Luke went to a fun birthday at Drive Shack (similar to Top Golf). He had a great time. I have said it once, I’ll say it now, and I am sure I will repeat it—I am very glad that all my kids have good, kind friends. Also, Luke was surprisingly good at golfing. I am not sure if it was beginner’s luck or he has a knack for it. I stayed and practiced my Spanish (I don't know much) with one of the moms, so that was good for me. The birthday family is from Brazil and the desserts were amazing! They brought a traditional Brazilian carrot cake (not at all like American carrot cake) and multiple types of brigadeiros (almost like little balls of fudge). I really hope Luke stays friends with this kid and is invited to his birthday again next year!

 

There was more baseball. They actually won a game! It was a brief respite from their losing streak. Kara went along to a game and took pictures, I shared them in the parent chat and the parents were impressed. She got some great shots.

 

One of Kara's pictures of Luke

Jack had his final band concert. It was really good. They played music from Jurassic Park, a western piece called Kowboys, and one of their MPA pieces. Kara went with me and we both enjoyed it (Luke and Thomas were at baseball).

 

On Friday, May 2, we all skipped work/school and did a preview of Universal’s new park—Epic Universe. We were very, VERY excited about this. The park opened at 11, we got there around 1030 and were ready when they dropped the ropes. We didn’t get to do everything we wanted. Sadly, the new Harry Potter ride was down most of the day and we couldn’t get a virtual queue. And, we waited for the Harry Potter show for 40 minutes and then it was canceled. We saw the How to Train your Dragon show, but it had some technical difficulties. So, the day was not perfect, but it was pretty awesome. We loved all the rides we went on.  For favorites: me and Jack chose Monster's Unchained; Luke, Kara and Anna chose Stardust Racers;  and Thomas picked Hiccup's Wing Gliders. For lands, Anna said Celestial Park; Thomas, Jack and Luke said Nintendo; I said Isle of Berk; and Kara can't choose between Nintendo and Dark Universe. We'll see if any of that changes with time.  

 

The theming of the entire park was amazing and even though we stayed until closing, we didn’t get to explore it all. We all hope that they let us do it as an add-on to our annual passes soon (not likely, but one can dream). We ate at two different restaurants, Moon Pizza and Toadstool’s Café (Nintendo themed). Both were good. In conclusion, everyone agreed that the park is beautiful and well-themed. We were very impressed with everything and can't wait to go back. 

The Monster's Unchained queue was unbelievable. (Kara's picture)

The Nintendo portal was like stepping into a game.

The week following Epic was relatively uneventful. It is now Friday. The older kids had AP tests. So far, they think they are going well. Kara got a 5 on her FAST exam. Luke also had his standardized testing. He got a perfect score on ELA and was one question away on math. His ELA teacher actually called to tell him, which was pretty fun. We planned to go to Magic Kingdom tonight, but the forecast was bad and we don't like getting trapped there. Instead, Jack to Luke to see the Minecraft Movie, which Luke has been asking to see since it came out. It is nice having Jack drive. On their way home, they picked up pizza. Anna, Jack, Thomas and I played the National Parks Game and then Kara and I watched a movie. It was a nice night. And, it was a good call, because it is crazy storming here right now, which is good, because we are in a drought. 

And, to conclude, a couple of other pictures from my phone:

The cranes that live outside our office building had a baby. We watched a hawk swoop in and try and snatch him/her. It was pretty cool to see how the parents protected it by moving it under a bench and standing guard. 

Luke was inducted into his elementary school's honor society.

Wills & Friendship Pity Party

The Wills spent their Spring Break in Orlando and we were super excited to spend lots of time with them. They arrived on Monday and came over for dinner Monday night and we caught up on all the Maryland news. Tuesday, they were at Aquatica and Luke and Anna skipped school to spend the day with them. Kara’s lacrosse districts were Tuesday night and Jack is missing a lot of school lately for band and track, so unfortunately, they had to pass. But, Luke and Anna had a great time. The wait times were manageable and of course, the company was fantastic. In fact, they had so much fun, that they decided to do a repeat on Wednesday (sans Anna, missing two days of high school is not as easy as two days of elementary).

 Tuesday, after Kara’s lacrosse game, Luke left with the Wills and spent the night in their vacation rental. Then, they were back at Aquatica on Wednesday. By all accounts, they had another fantastic day. The Wills brought Luke home and stopped to pick up pizza on the way. So, we got to enjoy dinner with them three nights in a row.

 

Thursday and Friday they had alternate plans (including a day at Discovery Cove, which sounded amazing). But, we met up again on Saturday and spent the day at the Orlando Wetlands and Fort Christmas. At the Wetlands, we walked for 4.5 miles and saw 35 alligators, tons of turtles, fish and birds, a brown snake, 3 baby racoons with their mama, and a baby sandhill crane with its parents. Then, we had a picnic at Fort Christmas and the kids played various tennis games and basketball. Luke crowned himself king of tennis knockout--thoroughly annoying the other kids. The girls practiced lacrosse and Jack and Ben toured the Fort. Thomas and I mostly visited with Kayce and Trevor, although we did do a little tennis.

Kara's taking a picture of those two gators.

These kids have known each other a long time.

We took a rest break for a couple of hours and then met back at our house, where the boys had a nerf battle. Then, we all went to dinner at Tijuana Flats.

 

Easter Sunday, they came over in the morning and the kids did a little egg hunt. Over the course of the day, the boys played video games, chess, wiffle ball and swam. The girls went to the neighborhood tennis court. The adults cooked and we all enjoyed a low-key Easter lunch. After lunch, the adults played an escape room type game. That lead to us deciding to do a real escape room. We booked a spot and headed out. We successfully escaped the haunted house with 15 minutes to spare! I don’t love escape rooms, but it was fun. We then returned to the house for a dinner of leftovers. The Wills headed out around 7 and were all sad to see them go.

 

We first vacationed together back in 2017 with a long weekend in West Virginia. Since then, we have done a cruise, Tennessee, North Carolina and Florida (twice). Our boys get along like family and pick up like no time has passed. Kolten was just 18-months old when we first met and Luke and Ben weren’t even born!

Throwback to our first trip in 2017.

It is fun to have people in our life that we have known for awhile. It makes me a little sad that we left Maryland. We had more close family friends there and kids that our kids could say they grew up with. I think part of it is stage of life. I was a mostly stay-at-home mom, with more time to devote to fostering friendships. And, we moved into a small neighborhood that was just being built, so the families all moved in at the same time with similarly aged kids. We did lots of stuff together, both with our families and without. We also had friendships with members of the church we attended, some of which persevered even after we stopped attending. I still miss Alecia and think of her as one of my closest friends. And, there are a couple of others that I think I would occasionally hang out with if we still lived in Maryland (or at least I would want to). I also had work friends and our trusty nanny, Summer. Lately, I have tried to find a friend who might enjoy Halloween Horror Nights with me, so I don’t have to rely solely on Kara, but it hasn’t happened yet. So, basically, I (to make this all about me) had three friend groups in Maryland: neighborhood, church, work. Here, I have 3 friends (not counting family). I am sure I could try harder, but we are busy and I am older and more tired, so I just accept it for what it is and try to remain grateful for the friends I do have. Anyway, this took quite an awkward turn. So, I will just reiterate that we had a fun week with the Wills and I am thankful for friendships! Also, this is inspired me to tell one of the three that I haven't talked to in a while that we needed to catch up, so we are meeting for a walk in a little bit. :)

To conclude, some of Kara's photos from our day at the Wetlands:

Baby crane!

Opposite of cute and fluffy.

I love how camouflaged this gator is.

I think this one is peaceful.

This and That

 Highlights from the last few weeks:

Luke had a baseball tournament in Plant City on March 29/30. Plant City is very close to my dad, so on Saturday, I dropped off Luke, Kara and Thomas and visited with my dad. After baseball, we went to Twistee Treat; it was a good day. Sunday, Anna decided to come. On the way, we saw a billboard for “Parksdale Farms”  a fun looking strawberry-centered farmer’s market type roadside attraction (obviously, I’m not quite sure how to describe it). Mapquest revealed it was only 10 minutes from the field, so we dropped off the boys and headed over. We had strawberry shortcake, which was good, but not as good as it looked. We enjoyed the visit though. It was neat place, with lots of strawberry treats, plants, produce, garden flags, etc. If Luke plays in Plant City again during strawberry season, I would definitely go back; next time we are trying the strawberry milkshake. Our plan was to be back in time for the start of the game, but they started early. We got back just as Luke was up-to-bat. And, as we were walking to the stands, we saw a ball come over the fence. It was Luke! He hit his first over the fence homerun!  I was sad to miss it, but Thomas was recording, so we have the video. He was crowned the “Home Run King” for the day.

The regular season for lacrosse ended. The girls finished 13-1! It was the school’s best record for girl’s lacrosse. Unfortunately, they lost the district championships. The final score was 17-10, but it was a lot closer than the score board reflected, at least until the 4^th quarter. Marta, Elizabeth, Travis and the Wills all came to the game and Kara enjoyed having everyone there. More about the Wills visit in another blog.

Track is also winding down. Their last meet is April 18^th. Jack did well but hasn’t quite met his goal of running the mile in under 5 minutes yet. He’s got one more try!

On April 4^th, we had a fun evening at Animal Kingdom. We got there around 4 and the park closed at 7. We rode Dinosaur and Everest twice. Did the Safari, had dinner, and rode Flight of Passage. It was the shortest wait times we’ve seen in a long time. I think we happened to hit a small lull between Spring Break crowds. The weather was nice and it was a super fun night. We even stopped for ice cream on the way home.

We are so sad that Dinosaur is closing!

Luke had another baseball tournament last weekend. It was up near Daytona Beach and everyone went, which is very unusual. We stopped at Buc-cees, which may have helped entice some of the Wilsons. Kara has been working on her photography and got some really good pictures. Unfortunately, the team lost. They are still in a terrible losing streak. I think some of the kids are starting to feel pretty frustrated. I try to keep the bigger perspective in mind, but I am tired of 1-game Sundays. These are long drives for just one game (it is single elimination on Sundays).

One of Kara's cool shots (Luke pitching)