Better Late Than Never

I can't believe it's taken me this long to write about our trip to Florida. Both girls are taking naps today so now that my Primary stuff is done I can get to this.

When Scott's parents were called on their mission they told us all that our Birthdays and Christmas's for the next 3 years would be a trip out to see them in Orlando. They paid for flights, took care of Disney, Gatorland, Food, Housing...the works!

A year ago during the month of February we had soooo much cabin fever we decided that we would be going to Florida the next February and that's exactly what we did. We were able to coordinate with Marcus and Brittanie so we could be there at the same time which was great because it had been about 18 months since we'd seen them too.

We flew in on Monday, February 23rd. The girls did really well on the flights even though we had no movie/tv options. The planes we were on didn't even have in-house movies and our portable dvd player doesn't have a battery just a car adapter. We arrived around 10:30 pm EST. It was a great reunion seeing Mom and Dad as well as Marcus and Brittanie.

Our first order of business on Tuesday was the beach. Even though it was a bit chilly, like 65 degrees, we couldn't help but enjoy it. It was windy but just to be at the beach and ocean in February felt wonderful.

Aubree loved the ocean. She ran and played despite the chilly temperatures. We were all in our swimsuits while the native Floridians were mostly jogging with long pants, jackets and hats on. At least we had Cocoa Beach all to ourselves.

This is in the car on the way to the beach. The girls were so excited they could hardly stand it. Syd enjoyed the sand more than the water. This picture cracks me up. Scott was pulling Aubree around on the boogie board and Aubree had her nose plugged fearing she would be "landin' in the drink". She didn't realize she was not far enough in the water and was "beached" on the sand.Scott and Marcus decided to try and be "Surfer Dudes" by renting boogie boards. They had a hard time catching waves but they sure tried hard.On Wednesday we went to Disney World. The girls really enjoyed it despite Scott's attitude. It was fun and magical. They loved seeing the Princesses. Aubree and Reagan had a great time getting to know each other and loved being together at Disney World. The teacups are always a favorite. Scott actually took the girls on them twice while Marcus and I ran around getting fast passes. Aubree was a pretty good little driver in these little cars while Sydney experimented with the "no hands" technique. The cars still go, you just get jerked around every time it hits the middle thing that keeps the cars from going off course.

Thursday we went to Zone Conference with Mom and Dad. Mom got a babysitter for the girls so we could actually listen to the meeting. I don't think the missionaries would have appreciated the noise that 4 little girls could have caused.

It was fun to be in a Zone Conference again. You could see Mom and Dad in their element as they gave instruction to their missionaries. Scott said this was his favorite day. It was a little more relaxing and great to be able to spend some time with Mom and Dad as missionaries.

Friday Scott and Marcus visited the Kennedy Space Center while Brittanie and stayed home and took the girls to the park. Since all 3 days of Zone Conferences were over Mom was able to relax and enjoy the day too. We have no pics of the Space Center because I wasn't there to take them.

We do have a few of the park though. Aubree and Sydney don't get to see Reagan and Ainsley very often so it was valuable time to spend getting to know them. We also had to say good-bye to Marcus and Brittanie because they left early Saturday morning. We were soooo glad we came at the same time. It was great hanging out with them. I just wish they lived a little closer.

Saturday we spent the majority of the day at Gatorland. It's this fun park that is all about alligators. It's amazing how close you get to them. This picture almost looks fake but they are real 'gators.

We had to take numerous shots of all of us at Gatorland and I just couldn't decide which to choose so here goes. Aubree and Sydney would have been happy to play outside the gate. I love this picture of Sydney with her Grandma Darrington, whom I think she still remembers...6 weeks later. Syd was only about 6 months old when they left so she didn't really know who her Grandpa and Grandma Darrington were. She always prayed for them but didn't really know them.

We all had to have our picture taken with this little alligator cut-out. As I looked at it, it was a little gross. Dad had to take a couple of pictures with me coaxing me to put my chin down on the cut-out like 50 million other people had done. This was as close as I got.

This is the view out Mom and Dad's backyard. I still can't believe it was February. It was so hard to pack shorts when it was snowing outside. I just knew I was going to freeze...but we didn't.

Here's Aub and Syd helping Grandma make Strawberry Shortcake. Grandma is so good about finding jobs for them to help out with.

We wanted to try and get a picture of the girls with their Grandpa and Grandma since they probably won't see them again for another year and a half but by the time we got around to pictures the girls were about done. They were both being stinkers. They progressively acted worse throughout the week. I don't know what the deal was, but I guess they were vacationed out. Anyway, this is the best we got.

It was a great trip. We had a wonderful time and are so thankful to mom and dad for making it possible. They are a great example to our family and serving their mission has blessed our lives.