Summer Road-trip 2018: Part 2

It was only a 6 hour drive to Orlando.  We checked into the same hotel we stayed at 2 years ago, Loews Royal Pacific Resort.  Once we got settled, we walked over to Universal CityWalk to eat at the Toothsome Chocolate Emporium and Savory Feast Kitchen.  The portions were huge and the food/desserts were yummy.

Everyone's eyes were bigger than their stomachs

The next morning we were up bright and early for early admission into Universal Studios.












 Really, the crowds were minimal and our Express Pass for all the rides ensured we didn't have any wait times.  We ate lunch at the Three Broomsticks and shared the great feast - which was more than enough for the 5 of us.  A big mistake we made that day was not switching into our flip flops for the water rides. Walking around the park in wet shoes is not fun and led to very smelly, damp shoes the following day.  We did almost all of the rides in both parks the first day so we could spend the second day just hitting up our favorites.  We returned home that first day completely exhausted.  Tom and I ordered room service and whispered in the dark while the kids slept.

Ellie chose to sleep under the desk instead of on a rollaway

The next day, we were again at the park gates for early admission. 

We had heavier crowds on day 2, which was odd since it was a Tuesday.  The kids hit their favorite rides (mostly Harry potter rides) multiple times.









 We ate lunch once again at the Three Broomsticks.



 The kids loved the rides, especially Sam.  Tom and I were ready to leave by 3, though.  There is nothing quite so exhausting as theme parks.  We picked up our luggage from the hotel and drove 4 hours to Tallahassee.  If I had realized we would be leaving the park so early, I probably would have booked a hotel further away.  We had pizza delivered to our hotel room for an easy dinner.



The next morning, we were up bright and early for our complimentary breakfast and then drove the 11 hours home.  My kids did great in the car - there was minimal fighting and very few bathroom stops (1 on the way there and 2 on the way back).  The unlimited screen time kept them fairly content.  How did our parents do road-trips without tablets and movies?

Summer Road-trip 2018: Part 1

Last summer I described our road-trip as "epic."  This summer it wasn't quite so epic since we only had 2 destinations and both were in the same state, but it was still quite the undertaking.  We left early Tuesday morning (6/5)...and promptly got stuck in rush hour traffic.  Oops. 

10 hours later we arrived in Destin. We immediately changed into our swimsuits and hit the beach.

 I chose to stay at the same place we stayed at 4 years ago, Jetty East Condominiums.  We really like how family friendly it is. Plus, the location is awesome.

View from our balcony

Next time, however, I will not get a condo with only 1 bathroom.  It worked for us 4 years ago when our kids were small, but this time we needed one of the 2 bathroom units for sure.

Once in Destin, we quickly got into a rhythm.  We would eat breakfast in the condo and then go to the beach for several hours.

 Then, we would come back and shower. The kids would play on their tablets, Tom would nap, and I would sit on the balcony and read (and do laundry and cleaning). Around 3:00, we would go into Destin to explore and grab an early dinner.  This left us enough time to come back and play in the pool or at the beach for a couple more hours before bed.

Sam spent more time in the pool/hot tub than he did the ocean!

We would end each night with Tom and the kids playing Mario Kart on the Nintendo Switch while I straightened up, did laundry, and got outfits and swimsuits ready for the next day.
  
Once the kids were in bed, Tom and I would stay up late and binge-watch Netflix.  It was the perfect schedule for us.

The kids' room

We learned after the 1st night to let Sam fall asleep in our bed before moving him over with the kids

Places we ate:

Lulu's - the kids' favorite, but very pricey

A.J.'s - we liked it last time, but this time we weren't impressed

Boshamps - great food, great view, and a beach for the kids to play on

Boshamp's awesome beach

McGuire's Irish Pub - no view, but huge portions and yummy food

Things we did:

Explored Destin Harbor Boardwalk

Dolphin Cruise

Dolphin cruise - we saw so many dolphins right near us

Crab hunting in the dark - we weren't very successful

Playing in the sand - Free sand castle lessons courtesy of our resort

We left Destin 5 days later, on the first bad weather day we had there.  We had fun in Destin, but were really excited to get to our next stop...Universal Orlando!

A Surprise 70th

I'm playing a little catch up here.  June 2 was my father-in-law's 70th birthday.  He thought we had already left on our vacation so I sent him a little pre-recorded birthday message that morning.
In reality, Tom's brother had organized a surprise party for him with the family and some of his close friends.  Tom's sister even flew into town,even though her dad was just visiting her in New Jersey the week before.  We had the party at his favorite spot to eat, Beck's Prime.  He was so surprised and happy when he arrived and found all of us there.