Florida Trip, Part I

Its time.  Time to recap our time in Florida.  I came back with more than a couple photos and its a little daunting to think about posting it all.  But, like I always say, something is better than nothing, right? :)

Shaun's grandmother lives in St. Petersburg and has always graciously hosted us when we've gone down.  Once the kids came along, the trip became that much more of a priority to us so that they could also have the chance to build a relationship with their great-grandparents.  Over the years the group has grown and Nana now tries to coordinate as much of the family visiting at once as is possible.  Not easy, but fun to try. 

First stop, the airport!  The kids were squealing and exclaiming over the planes and all that was going on.  As I watched them, I wondered how they could be any more excited.  The other big highlight for Avery is our rented mini-van.  Its the little things.

 Getting in a little school while we wait.

 We arrived with no problem and Nana was out the door to greet us as soon as we pulled in.  We hung out with them for a bit and then got settled into our hotel.  The next day we hit Busch Gardens in Tampa.

 Amanda was anxious to hug everyone...

 ...the other two thought she was crazy and we happy to hang back.

 It was a hot day, especially having just been in CT the day before, so as soon as we spotted water, Amanda was soaked head to toe.

 The other two took it a little more slowly, but eventually did get wet, too.

 We have a roller coaster junkie in the family.  Guess who?

 Each day we were out, Aiden did a great job catching a nap in the stroller.

 Checking out the giraffes...

 ...and large turtles.

 Us!

 Shaun's grandparents.  His brother was also down there during some of our stay.

 This is Amanda re-enacting the roller coaster ride.

After a yummy dinner, it was back to the hotel for bed.   The girls shared this double bed and Aiden had a little corner of the floor.  Everyone was happy with their bed mate. :)