We did a thing while we were doing a thing.

 Because why not do Disney when we should actually be doing the school thing?!

{We hit the road bright and early for Orlando with the expectation that we would be in the park and at the rope drop by 8AM when the park opened (rides open an hour later). But... it turns out that the Disney day trippers don't get access to the parking lot until about 8:15. And... there actually aren't rope drops anymore, neither of which we knew but would end up working to our advantage. We were on and off Big Thunder Mountain 15 minutes before the park opened. Doing Disney how we do Disney!}

{We had big plans to spend the day at Hollywood Studios because we wanted to see the new Star Wars area and because the Tower of Terror is the best ride ever. But that didn't happen because it was sold out. Womp. Womp. So instead we went to the tried and true Magic Kingdom where we were able to ride 13 rides in 10 hours, including Big Thunder Mountain three times!}

{The Tomorrowland Speedway was the one ride that we went on that was closed during our last visit. Jacob drove solo while Caleb and I rode shotgun with the other two.  And after avoiding whiplash from being slammed against the rail for the entire lap around, I think it is safe to say that we are both thrilled that neither of those two will be behind an actual wheel anytime soon!}

{We went on Space Mountain twice. Last time we went to Disney, this was a favorite of Camryn's. But after the first go round this trip, she had second thoughts. So we dragged her on it again for good measure, and she loved it once again. Indecisiveness is a theme that runs deep in this family!}

{It was 90 degrees at Disney the day we went, so the line to get on Splash Mountain was miserably long. But then it broke down, the line dissipated, and we were able to hop back in the queue just as it reopened. What had been a consistent 105 minute wait cost us only 25 minutes in line. This was Jacob's (and my) favorite ride, so we were both bummed that this was a one and done ride for our family. No ride is worth that long of a wait. When we were leaving the park several hours later, there was still a 90 minute wait!}

{The crowds were thick during our day at Disney. It was hard to gauge, though, if there were fewer people that day than in visits past as wait times were high (because there were no fast passes being issued) and lines were long (because everyone was standing six feet apart). In all, we were able to play Disney as we always do. The hardest thing we had to do was locate a restaurant that was open. Once we figured out how to order our food ahead of time, it was a breeze! Disney did an amazing job of making its guests feel safe without sacrificing any of the "magic." I never once saw a guest not wearing a mask correctly. And all guests had to stay in one place while snacking without a mask on to help eliminate the spread of germs. Perhaps our country could have used Disney as a prototype on how to effectively get through a pandemic. Just sayin'...}

{Disney closed for the day at 8PM, and shortly after we got in the car these three were out cold! Jacob clocked over 30,000 steps and my watch said that I walked 11.2 miles. I'm so glad that we took this last-minute field trip!}

We did a thing.

We spent the first half of the third quarter remotely learning from Florida, and we managed to squeeze in a bit of fun in between classes!

{The kids set up their remote learning stations on the back porch with a view of palm trees in the background. They did an amazing job logging on and managing their school work each day. The use of noise canceling headphones kept fighting over who was being loud and annoying to a minimum.}

{My mom had a birthday, and what better way to celebrate than with everyone singing to her live rather than over the phone?!}

{The temperatures were unseasonably warm during the entire time we were there, which paired nicely with the unseasonably cold temperatures we escaped back home. Deciding which beach to visit nearly every day might have been one of our hardest decisions!}

{When not at the beach, we spent a considerable amount of time at the pool and relaxing in the sunshine at the condo. Yes, Mason hiked up his shorts to avoid tan lines...}

{We went for miles-long walks nearly every day and spotted more gators than we have ever seen before. Lots of "googly eyes"--as the kids called them--in the water along our walks!}

{I did call the kiddos out of school so that we could hit up our favorite flamingo zoo. Way more flamingos than I remember there being, and such bright colors! Jacob blended in with the birds, and Mason enjoyed feeding them treats as if they were dogs learning to stand on their hind legs.}

{We planned to catch the sunset at the beach one evening, but by the time we arrived to the ocean the fog had rolled in so thick that you couldn't see the water, let alone the pier in the background. So much for that idea!}

{Two weeks into our trip Caleb showed up. We spent the last week enjoying the warm weather!}

{Caleb, the boys, and my dad went on a fishing expedition where they hardly caught anything until the very end of the trip. And the big guy that Jacob reeled in wasn't in season until May (picture with the captain). Bummer. But the boys caught a bunch of fish that don't grow in the retention ponds near our house, so one point for that!}

{It wouldn't be a true family vacation if one of our kids didn't barf. Camryn blew chunks out the window of my mom's car on the way home from beach yoga one morning. Not sure why that happened, but thankfully it was a one and done thing that no one else caught. And even more thankfully, it all landed outside of the car. We were not financially prepared to replace the Tesla with a puke-free model!}

{And then we came home. Nothing can prepare you for a very snowy return to reality. Yuck!}

The three weeks in Florida was an amazing escape for us.
My parents, however, may not have the same opinion... 

Thanks, Covid, for providing yet another one-of-a-kind experience for our family.
Making lemonade out of lemons!

January Bits

 The pieces of our January puzzle. 

{Camryn yanked a tooth all on her own. It wasn’t loose until she used her mouth to open a glue stick. Yikes!} 

{Jacob just finished up a semester of art. His final project was to construct an animal out of trash. We all had fun brainstorming this beauty made out of a paper towel roll, Gatorade bottle, and cupcake liners.}

{When she isn’t slaying it on the tumbling mat, this girl is killing it on the ice. It’s so fun to teach her some of the same things I used to teach my tiny little students many years ago!}

{Bernie showed up to Biden’s inauguration, and so did his mittens.}

{We went to Florida. Where we are now. And where we will be for 22 days. Remote learning for the win!}