Vacation!

We left for Florida on June 11 by car, making it to Chattanooga, TN just before dark.  Luckily, Nick was trying to drive us to the wrong hotel, so we got to see Lookout Mountain just before the park closed.  The kids thought the cannons were pretty  neat and there was a great view of the town from the top of the mountain.  We drove through the start of the Smokey Mountains before entering into Georgia the following day.  
 
Gracie with the big cannon

Gracie and Owen on the huge statue at Lookout Mountain.

Finally after about 22 hours of driving through seven states (Gracie memorized them all forwards and backwards) we arrived in Orlando.  The last 9 miles took forever, as we arrived right during rush hour on a Friday night.  After getting checked into the hotel, Nick made reservations at a restaurant in Downtown Disney and we headed out for some fun.  We found the Lego Store, a boat ride, and the Rainforest Café.

Owen, Gracie, and Nick riding the ferry boat across the lake
 

Gracie and Mom ride the boat

Owen found The Hulk at the Lego Store
 
Our first night out to eat was at Raglan Road Irish Grill and Pub.  This was so fun to take the kids to!  They had live Irish Dancer and music all night and Gracie got to get up and dance with them.  The food was amazing and it was a great start to our stay in Orlando.

Gracie on the stage with the dancers
 

Gracie with the dancers after they got done.
 
First day at the pool!!!

Saturday was the first day we enjoyed our time at the resort we stayed at.  Nick was able to join us in the morning before his meetings started shortly after lunch.  The kids and I stayed at the pool most of the day and ordered lunch by the pool.  It was great. We took a break for a little bit before Nick's mom, Norm, and Amber joined us at the pool for little while.  Around 4:30pm or so we decided to head back up to our room to make some sandwiches for dinner and watched a movie before calling it a night.  I tried to keep tons of sunscreen on both the kids, but Owen still ended up pretty burnt. Needless to say, the kids had no problem going to sleep that night.

Nick playing with the kids in the pool.

Owen and Mom resting in the shade at the pool.
 
Our second day was also spent at the pool.  The kids were very content playing there all day long.
 
Downtown Disney again...
Deb came back again on Monday to go with us to Downtown Disney.  We rode the boat again and had lunch at Rainforest Café.  This was very entertaining for Gracie and Owen.  They loved seeing all the animals and all the neat things there.

Gracie and Owen posing with the dinosaurs

The first night at Downtown Disney, Gracie and Owen would not go near the crocodile outside Rainforest Café.  Finally we convinced them it was not real and they were both willing to pose in front of it.  It was a mechanical one that moved, and they couldn't get over how real it looked.

Gracie in front of the elephant inside Rainforest.

Owen eating his lava mud dessert.

After Downtown Disney, Deb took the kids back to Tampa with her so Nick and I could go out to dinner with his board members that night.  We had a lot of fun at a Japanese Steakhouse right at the resort.  This picture is of Owen the following afternoon after swimming at Grandma Deb's all morning.  He slept there for well over an hour.
 
First time at the Ocean!
After letting Owen sleep for awhile, we headed to the beach for a picnic dinner of fried chicken.  The kids got to see the ocean for the first time and swim for a couple hours before sunset. 

Gracie running through the water
 
I love this picture of Nick and Owen. 

Gracie showing me the shells she collected.

Family pic!  What a great day!
 
Next Day: Busch Gardens!
 
The following day we decided to forgo Disney and spend the day at Busch Gardens and it was a very good choice.  We found that both our kids love roller coasters, which is great for both me and Nick!  Now we just have to wait until Owen is big enough to ride more of them.  There was one that went upside down that he could go on, and loved it!  He wanted to ride it over and over again.   Gracie went on one called the Cheetah Hunt that went super fast and upside down.  She went on it twice; once with Nick and once with me.

Gracie and Owen on one of the roller coasters.

Owen and Gracie at the entrance of Busch Gardens

Riding the train through the Edge of Africa to see all the animals out in the open. 


A tiger sitting on a glass floor. 
Gracie and Owen got a really close look at some of the animals.

Owen got to see an alligator...pretty exciting.

Owen in the hippo's mouth

Gracie and Nick posing with the hippos
 
We spent the whole day at Busch Gardens and could have stayed longer.  It was so fun and we were so glad that the kids loved all the rides.  But after a great day, we headed back to Merrills' new house and swam in the pool again.  Of course Owen fell asleep, but the 20 minute ride was all he needed to recharge for another hour in the pool before bed.

Grandma Deb swimming with Owen

Gracie enjoying Grandma's pool

On our last day in Tampa, we had lunch by the ocean at Jimmy's Fish House and Iguana Bar in Clearwater Beach.   Nick found this place and it was the perfect! So glad we could all be together! 

Nick showing Owen how to build things with sand

Owen's Hammerhead Shark!  Nick made a dolphin for Gracie, but the sun was so bright that the pictures didn't turn out very well.

Last family pic at the beach,.  After a full day at the beach and ending with some ice cream, we headed back to Merrills' house in Tampa.  Nick drove us over a really long bridge back toward Tampa, but the kids slept through the whole thing.  When we got back, of course, the kids had to swim one last time in the pool before bed.

Gracie and Owen with Amber in the pool
 
The following morning we started making our way back home.  Traffic through both Atlanta and Chattanooga this time was very slow and we ended up staying in a town just east of St. Louis for the night.  I think wen ended up spending about 16 hours in the car that day.  We arrived back home June 20 just before dinner time.  I won't ever forget the first thing Owen did was pee outside.  It was so funny.  I think he was happy to be back home.  We had a great10 day vacation and I look forward to visiting again!

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