Friends!

This will be the last post from the Florida trip, I promise! Here are some of my favorite group photos.

The whole group - 7 adults and 5 kids

They may only see each other once a year, but they are fast friends each time.

Another full group photo

We told the kids to say goodbye. Awww

Play time in Florida

Any vacation with kids should have some down time and this was no exception.

Listening to books

Getting ready for an egg hunt

They are off looking for eggs!

Want to see a great magic trick? They all climb on his lap and...

Magic

Sarasota Aquarium

An aquarium on the ocean should be great right? We had to go see for ourselves.

My favorite aquatic creatures

Two finger touch tank

That's a big frog!

Learning how nets catch fish and turtles

Hi turtle!

Wordless Wednesday

Sarasota Beach

Sarasota is known for some of the best beaches in the United States, so we had to go visit.

The kids building sand castles

The big kids and the Dads build this castle.

Watching the horse walking down the beach was a highlight for Sweet Son.

Jungle Gardens in Sarasota, Florida

We took a fairly quick weekend trip to Sarasota, Florida and met up with some friends. There were 3 families there - the Dad's have all been friends since at least high school. Between the 3 couples we had 5 kids which is always a recipe for a good time. We started at the Jungle Gardens.

Feeding and petting goats

The goats weren't shy.

Her idea was for him to put his leg in it's mouth.

His idea was for her to put her head in.

Attempting to feed the pink flamingos.

Standing like a flamingo

I will have more posts from this vacation all week and one day next week. We had such a great time!

Islands of Adventure (2/2)

More Islands of Adventure! This park started out as something for me, but ended up being a favorite for all of us. After the Dr. Seuss area, we finally got the kids to the intended area.

I'm clearly the only one excited by the Hogwarts Express. One day they will understand.

This was the biggest roller coaster the kids had ever been on. They were a bit scared and almost backed out. Then we rode it 3 times back to back. I love when there are short lines!

This was another one they were a bit scared of at first. They couldn't just reach out and hold us if they got scared. Then they wanted it to go faster and swing more.

We follow directions well.

Two of us love spinning rides. This is when we learned that the other child doesn't.

Cute photo stop outside the park.

Another great photo stop.

 We didn't actually go into Universal Studios, but we did get the classic picture outside.

Islands of Adventure (1/2)

I wanted to see the Harry Potter section of Islands of Adventure, so I was excited to take the family. Luckily there was plenty for them to see and ride.

 The kids are finally catching onto what a theme park really means.

Dr. Seuss carousel is always fun!

One Fish, Two Fish is a favorite book. The lack of lines means I agreed to go on it before realizing we would all get soaked and as the adult I was required to be on the outside.

There was a play ground in this area as well. It only had one entrance/exit which made it very easy to monitor. There was also always a staff member visible and watching.

And to think that we saw this just walking down the street!

Another playground. This one was huge and had many entrances/exits so we were "forced" to play with them. Clearly a difficult task.

 This was our favorite playground.

Another ride with our family and Uncle A.

Come back tomorrow to see our favorite Harry Potter rides as well as a few others.

LegoLand Rides (3/3)

This will be the last LegoLand post, I promise. These are just a few other rides and photos that didn't fit in the other posts.

Did I mention the lack of crowds? I don't like dropping rides so I got out of this one.

 The other consequence of no lines is the rides last extra long.

A Lego train ride.

Wonderful Husband doesn't like spinning rides, but was willing to go with Sweet Son.

Clearly the girls are loving the spinning!

The beginning of the day pic. Yes, this was just as they were opening.

This was as we were leaving.

LegoLand Rides (2/3)

Like many kids, ours love the idea of driving. There are many options for them at LegoLand.

 No parents allowed on the track. They just let the kids drive around and earn their own Lego license.

 He's in the blue car wearing a blue shirt proudly declaring his "right turn" (well, it is a turn). She is in a blue car wearing a purple shirt watching everyone else and not where she is going.

 

Driving through the Lego safari offered more guidance.

This ride looked so exciting. They were so happy when they started.

The horse goes up and down as it travels along the track.

The ride was a bit long. She was ready to get off.

The ride clearly lost a bit of the magic by the end for him as well.