Our Florida Vacation

We just got back from a wonderful vacation to Florida where Amy (Dan's sister), Jason, and Aidan live. Our stomachs were a little unsettled for most of the trip, but we tried not to let that get in the way of having fun and making the most of our stay. We almost didn't think we'd make it there. The day before we left, Donovan and I had a stomach bug and were throwing up among other things, and Elliott got diagnosed with an ear infection. I already started feeling sorry for the passengers of our long flight who would get an earful of fussiness. I'm glad I was wrong. Besides Dono being nervous about the bumpy aspects of flying, both boys did fantastic! Boy was it a LONG day! We got to the airport around 6:30am and with transferring planes, renting a car, and driving another hour and a half, we got to Vero Beach, FL around 7pm. Just enough time to eat and go to bed.

This was our rental car, a Chevy HHR. Dan said it looks like an Element that wanted to be a PT Cruiser. Either way it is such an ugly car, but it had the storage we needed and good gas mileage.

On one of the days, while Amy and Jason worked, Dan, the boys, and I went on a road trip. If you know Dan, then you know he has a passion for maps. Well, Florida has 2 attractions on the map that Dan was determined to see. So we set off to see what we could see. The first stop was Lake Okeechobee.

There you go. A lake in the middle of nowhere. It was pretty, but there wasn't much to see.

Continuing on down the state we wanted to have a gander at the Everglades. We weren't willing to drive for 5 hours just to see the grandeur of the marshy swampland, so we decided to drive on the northern highway that runs alongside the preserve. Well, that was the plan. You see, I don't love gazing at maps as much as my darling husband and I, unfortunately, was the navigator. We somehow took a wrong turn in the "lovely" town of Belle Glade. To my credit, even Dan said that the signs were confusing. The streets looked a bit run down and scary and we were the only white folks to be seen. A kind post man helped us gringos find our way back to the highway. On the highway we did get to see a bit of the Everglades. There was no way to stop on the road and there weren't any turns except for farmers of the sugar cane fields.

So, if you look really hard, beyond the green, there are watery marshes. I guess the movement of the car didn't let the camera capture what our eyes could see. Too bad we couldn't get closer.

On our way back to Vero Beach, we found out that Amy crushed her finger while opening the door for her students. She ended up in urgent care to get this hot pink splint on her hand. Oooh, pretty! But then, Amy can make anything look cute.

Jason and the boys.