Florida

We are home. We made it through all of the airports, airplane rides, long car rides, etc. without too much of an issue. However, we are all exhausted today!

We spent a lot of time swimming, one day at the beach and most days at the pool. We opted not to do Disney this year. We took Layla for a day last year and, although she did great, she was ready to leave by mid afternoon. We had to wait in a 30 minute lines for 5 minute rides and saw toddlers everywhere having meltdowns. It was hot and sweaty and the crowds were maddening. Dave and I looked at each other and knew, we would not go back until the kids were older! Probably more for our sake than theirs!

But, we still got to see parts of Disney, just not the theme parks. We went to the Wilderness Lodge and saw the wild animals and also went to the Beach and Yacht Club where we got to take a boat ride in the harbor and ride a 4 person bike around the boardwalk. We also went to downtown Disney where the stores are amazing!

The highlight of the trip was definitely Sea World. We waited to go until Sunday and Monday, so the last week of spring breakers were gone. We did not wait in any lines, Layla and Cooper could ride all the kids rides and Layla most adult rides. We saw amazing shows and exhibits and the kids were captivated. Plus, we got discounted tickets that allowed us a free second visit within 7 days. It was glorious! The highlights for me were......

Layla rode one roller coaster 9 times. And, it wasn't until the 5th time that I realized she was challenging herself to keep her hands in the air the whole time and not hold on. She nailed it on the 5th time. Cooper loved it all and really enjoyed petting and feeding the dolphins. The best part, however, is when we went to see the walruses in the underground tank. Those suckers are so huge! And when one of the walruses came nose to nose with Cooper through the glass, Cooper said, "woo" and took 2 steps back. That's the first time I've ever seen him back down from any person, animal, thing or noise!