Jet Setters

For Christmas this year, my amazingly generous parents gifted us a trip to Anna Maria Island, Florida for the second time! But this time, we even had the benefit of a few days overlapping with The Cousins, which made a wonderful trip even more incredible... Lucian couldn't stop asking when his cousins would arrive. 

The flight to Florida was exciting and fun for the kids, and they sure got their fill of screen time. Anything to pass the hours quietly among a planeful of strangers. Edith didn't sleep a wink the whole day of traveling, until we were within five minutes of the beach; this includes time spent at the airport, three hours in the air, and an hour in a car. She must have known something exciting was happening.

 

We were greeted by Grandma and Grandpa as we arrived at the hotel, and everyone was literally bouncing with excitement! We went straight out to the beach after unloading our luggage, and that's pretty much where we parked ourselves for the first half of the week. The weather was gorgeous, and several days it even got warm enough to swim comfortably in the ocean! Max tried boogie boarding and loved it. Lucian was content to stand near the edge and let the waves crash on him while he safely held the hand of an adult. Audrey dipped her toes a few times. Edith ran screaming every time the water came near her. But there was plenty of sand and shade for the less adventurous ones, and we even had a kite to fly when the weather was breezy.

 

 

 We picked up our Sunset Dance routine right where we left it off last year, and Audrey now refers to sunsets as "Sunset Dances"... they are one and the same to her. One night we decided to be adventurous and order pizza to eat out at the beach at sunset! It was a really fun idea, and I actually didn't end up ingesting too much sand. The kids couldn't care less about a little extra grit on their pizza, they were eating at the beach!

We took a few excursions throughout the week, especially as it cooled off later on. As a family, we took a walk through a beautiful park area on the bay side of the island, and the vegetation was just different enough that we could almost imagine ourselves as the Swiss Family Robinson stranded on a desert island.

Boardwalk through the swamp

We also took walks down the beach for ice cream, walks across the street for ice cream, and even drives across town for ice cream. However, the main reason for a drive across town was for a visit to the most amazing donut shop in the world! Another highlight was the museum in Bradenton, a nearby town. There were live manatees and dinosaur bones, a planetarium and a children's discovery room. A great way to spend a rainy day.

 

Donuts made fresh in front of us! 

As with last year, mini golf was a mainstay of the week. My dad brokered a deal with the mini golf owner, buying a pile of passes so that we could basically show up and golf whenever we felt like it! I'm pretty sure we were recognizable by the end of the week. Max worked hard on his concentration and putting skills, Lucian was all about the speed, and Audrey enjoyed getting help from whichever adult was nearest to lend a hand. She even snagged a hole-in-one! Edith was content to carry around a ball and drop it into whichever hole was nearest her.

 

In response to my request to strike an 'I love mini golf' pose

On our last night before the cousins arrived, we took a nice walk on the beach, chasing waves and finding seashells. All the kids started out dry, but those waves are tricky... and eventually everyone was wet at least up to their ankles!

Then the Radeckis rolled in, and all bets were off! Seven kids and their parents crammed into one apartment, it was beautifully chaotic. Mini golf was a hit with everyone, as was our visit to the Jungle Gardens in Sarasota. We got to wander around in a flock of flamingoes and feed them! There was also a playground to burn of a lot of energy, and Max attended a bird show and a reptile show, which he loved.

Pretty much every moment of down time at the apartment was filled by a raucous game of Uno or read-aloud time with Grandma. And of course, there was ice cream, ice cream, ice cream!

 

 

At the end of the week, we said goodbye to everyone and headed to the airport to await our flight home. I'm still not quite mentally healed from our four hour delay!!  Seriously, I may never fly again. But the kids did an amazing job, and were very patient. We arrived home much, much later than we had anticipated, but thankfully my dear friends Sara and John got us home safe and sound from the airport.

It was another amazing week on Anna Maria Island! Mom and Dad, thanks again for the wonderful memories!

Audrey obviously wasn't ready to leave