The Remainder of the Christmas Vacation

Since we've been home from vacation for weeks, I must push through and finish blogging about the trip?
Early Sunday morning we woke up to the sound of the fire alarms going off. We evacuated while the guys tried to figure out if anything was wrong. Imagine if you will, being up with all the kids in your extended family in the middle of the night. Not so much fun! Most of the kids got in my mom's van where it was warm. After about an hour the alarms were turned off and I went back to bed with Judah. I think everyone else was up for a bit longer.
Sunday morning we were a little slow getting around. We didn't go to church as we had originally planned. I think we went to the pool that day. Not real sure. Also, I think that was the night that James and I went on a date. We went to the Pelican Cafe in Stuart. We sat on the dock and had a great dinner. It wouldn't be a date unless we went to Target! That seems to be our typical destination. We also picked up some groceries at the Winn Dixie!
Monday is the day we went to Palm Beach. Oh, it was beautiful! The sky and water were both an incredible color of blue. What an amazing creation! The whole family went to the beach and we had a blast. Judah enjoyed playing in the sand and chasing the birds. The boys also crawled into some holes Daddy dug in the sand. They watched as sand castles were built and then happily destroyed them!

There were millions of shells at this beach. The waves were great but unpredictable. They would randomly come in much higher. The current as the waves went out was also very strong. James tried to take me out further from the shore. I nearly drowned. It was pretty fun to stand out there and jump in the waves but when a huge wave came, I was doomed! Not a pretty sight. Melinda talked me into going out with her. Again, lots of fun until big waves came! Mom even got her toes in the ocean!
Tuesday we didn't do much. The kids played on the playground and we made gingerbread houses. That's about the extent of the fun.

Wednesday Margee's family again went to Sea World. (Shamu!) The rest of us also drove up to Orlando and went to the Citrus Parade. I think it was almost as cool as the Rose Bowl Parade (not). We did enjoy seeing some good bands (one from Olathe, KS and a bagpipe band), old cars, a few floats with oranges that all looked the same and some crazy Shriners. On our way out of Orlando we had lunch at Zaxby's, a new fast food chicken joint for all of us!

Thursday we went with the Stonebrakers to a local aquarium. It was actually a marine ecosystems exhibit. Not all that cool. But it entertained the children for a while. Later we went swimming. Judah almost had fun. Almost. Asa had a blast. He spent part of his pool time hanging onto a tube and could float around on his own. For New Year's Eve, we watched football and had numerous snacks. It was also a time of packing and cleaning out the house since we were planning to leave first thing in the morning.

Friday morning we said goodbye to sunny Florida. We knew that the longer we drove, the colder it would get. James and I stopped in Chattanooga, TN to have dinner with our friend Jenna. It was a nice break along our long trip. We tried to stop at a Jack in the Box (James' favorite) in St. Louis early Saturday morning. No luck. The first one was updating their computers and the second was not yet open. We saw a White Castle and got an early breakfast. We got home at about 8:30 Saturday morning.

Now the question is this: Did you have fun? Would you go again?
Yes, we had a blast. There were a few stressful moments but you'll have that when sharing a house with 13 other people. We would definitely go again. Warmth in the middle of winter is great! And we love the beach!