Florida

We left for a week-long trip to Florida just a few days after Brian's birthday. This was our Christmas gift from Brian's Mom and Dad, and what a gift it was! We rented a three-bedroom house on Siesta Key, just west of Sarasota on the west coast of Florida. Even as a Floridian, I was totally impressed. The house had a great "Florida room," and a beautiful pool. We were able to catch up with some of Brian's family who live on that side of the state too. We spent time at the beach, which was about a block from the house, and it was gorgeous. Powdery white sand and totally clear water...it just doesn't get any better. Nathan LOVED the beach! He and Grampa ("Papa") made awesome sand castles, and he and Gramma were the shell-spotters of the beach. All in all, we had a wonderful time. From there we hopped in the van and drove across the state to see my Mimi and Grampa for an all-too-short visit. It was great to introduce Kyle and get another goulash lesson from Mimi (dang it if I'll ever get it right). We spend a day at Disney's new park, Animal Kingdom and confirmed our hypothesis that almost-two and four months are just too young for Mickey. We had a great day, don't get me wrong, but thing the boys will definitely appreciate it more in a few years. After Disney we went back to Tampa to rendesvous with Gramma and Papa Mills for one last night before we headed back home. The only bad thing about wonderful vacations is having to return to real life.