Wow, what a busy last couple of months it has been!! Since Easter, we've had birthdays, a vacation, a mission trip etc....Since our 1st family vacation as a family of 7 took place shortly after Easter, I'll start there......
As a family of 7, we had been on the look-out for a family friendly, warm, relaxing yet fun place to take the kids...we hadn't yet ever been on a vacation with all of our kids! After figuring out our frequent flyer miles, we were so excited that our dream of taking the kids somewhere warm wasn't looking so dim after all..thankful for all the miles that have added up from our trips to Ethiopia, we were happy to say the least that we had 7, (yes 7) free tickets!!!! After we crossed that hurdle, we started looking for a place to go! Since Florida is a favorite vacation spot of ours, we thought we'd look into Disney...well, that was a no-go! 5 kids & 2 adults just wasn't in our budget! And, we were totally ok with that!! We finally decided on Clearwater Beach! So, we had our tickets, Kasey's United miles covered our vehicle & so we had to find just the right place to stay:) Little did we know that we wouldn't find the place until 4 days before we were to leave for our trip!! Nothing like last minute:) We were thrilled with our find & it fit the needs of our family & my parents too!! (my dad had meetings in Tampa, so they joined us for the majority of our time in Florida!) Fun memories!!
Our home we rented was tucked right on the beach, stunning views of the Gulf & seashells galore!! We arrived later in the day & once settled into our place, we walked the shore & had dinner at a fun, little, outdoor restaurant called "Frenchy's!" Ageze had his first ever Alligator tail for his meal & Kasey had his share of grouper!! We were so content to be sitting outdoors, soaking up the heat, enjoying being together with no agenda & feeling so thankful that we were all together!
We spent our mornings with our doors open, listening to the birds, walking the shore, collecting a lot of shells, running from the seagulls & taking in the beauty that was in front of us! Can you tell that I love Florida?? I always have...growing up, it was our families favorite vacation destination & it still is:) We spent a day at Busch Gardens, Adventure Island Water Park, Caladesi Island State Park( a must do if you are in the area!!) Clearwater Marine Aquarium(visited Winter the dolphin from The Dolphin Tale!) ate at many yummy outdoor restaurants, visited friends we had met while in Ethiopia & spent a day with my cousin Brian & his fiancé! Kate was so hoping she'd see dolphins in the ocean & while we were taking the ferry back from Caladesi, we looked out & there were the most beautiful dolphins gliding through the water...that definitely made her day!!!
On one of the last days there, my parents decided to surprise the kids by taking us all to Walt Disney World for the day!! It was a fun filled day, a day that our kids are still talking about!! As we were on our way there, the kids had no idea where we were headed & they started to get a tad frustrated when seeing the entrance signs to the park...Kates words were..."Mom, I can't believe we have to drive past all of these signs & not be able to go there!!" Once we arrived in parking, they caught on & were ecstatic!!
And, while it was blizzarding here at home, our thought was...gosh, wish we could stay for just one more day!! Well, went to the airport for our flight home & found out our flight had been cancelled until the next day because of mechanical issues!! Normally, I would've been disappointed but we were thrilled to be spending one more day in the sun!!
(while writing this, my heart feels conflicted with what I just experienced again in Ethiopia...as much as our family enjoyed our vacation, it doesn't take away the need, poverty, lack of daily necessities that so many in our world live with on a day to day basis. In fact, after having just returned from Ethiopia 3 days ago, I feel guilty that we were even able to experience a vacation like this, after seeing so many that go without food, water, clothing, shelter...)
Hope you enjoyed a glimpse of our 1st few days...it was so fun to see our kids experience the ocean for the first time!! So thankful for a little time away as a family!! xo
As a family of 7, we had been on the look-out for a family friendly, warm, relaxing yet fun place to take the kids...we hadn't yet ever been on a vacation with all of our kids! After figuring out our frequent flyer miles, we were so excited that our dream of taking the kids somewhere warm wasn't looking so dim after all..thankful for all the miles that have added up from our trips to Ethiopia, we were happy to say the least that we had 7, (yes 7) free tickets!!!! After we crossed that hurdle, we started looking for a place to go! Since Florida is a favorite vacation spot of ours, we thought we'd look into Disney...well, that was a no-go! 5 kids & 2 adults just wasn't in our budget! And, we were totally ok with that!! We finally decided on Clearwater Beach! So, we had our tickets, Kasey's United miles covered our vehicle & so we had to find just the right place to stay:) Little did we know that we wouldn't find the place until 4 days before we were to leave for our trip!! Nothing like last minute:) We were thrilled with our find & it fit the needs of our family & my parents too!! (my dad had meetings in Tampa, so they joined us for the majority of our time in Florida!) Fun memories!!
Our home we rented was tucked right on the beach, stunning views of the Gulf & seashells galore!! We arrived later in the day & once settled into our place, we walked the shore & had dinner at a fun, little, outdoor restaurant called "Frenchy's!" Ageze had his first ever Alligator tail for his meal & Kasey had his share of grouper!! We were so content to be sitting outdoors, soaking up the heat, enjoying being together with no agenda & feeling so thankful that we were all together!
We spent our mornings with our doors open, listening to the birds, walking the shore, collecting a lot of shells, running from the seagulls & taking in the beauty that was in front of us! Can you tell that I love Florida?? I always have...growing up, it was our families favorite vacation destination & it still is:) We spent a day at Busch Gardens, Adventure Island Water Park, Caladesi Island State Park( a must do if you are in the area!!) Clearwater Marine Aquarium(visited Winter the dolphin from The Dolphin Tale!) ate at many yummy outdoor restaurants, visited friends we had met while in Ethiopia & spent a day with my cousin Brian & his fiancé! Kate was so hoping she'd see dolphins in the ocean & while we were taking the ferry back from Caladesi, we looked out & there were the most beautiful dolphins gliding through the water...that definitely made her day!!!
On one of the last days there, my parents decided to surprise the kids by taking us all to Walt Disney World for the day!! It was a fun filled day, a day that our kids are still talking about!! As we were on our way there, the kids had no idea where we were headed & they started to get a tad frustrated when seeing the entrance signs to the park...Kates words were..."Mom, I can't believe we have to drive past all of these signs & not be able to go there!!" Once we arrived in parking, they caught on & were ecstatic!!
And, while it was blizzarding here at home, our thought was...gosh, wish we could stay for just one more day!! Well, went to the airport for our flight home & found out our flight had been cancelled until the next day because of mechanical issues!! Normally, I would've been disappointed but we were thrilled to be spending one more day in the sun!!
(while writing this, my heart feels conflicted with what I just experienced again in Ethiopia...as much as our family enjoyed our vacation, it doesn't take away the need, poverty, lack of daily necessities that so many in our world live with on a day to day basis. In fact, after having just returned from Ethiopia 3 days ago, I feel guilty that we were even able to experience a vacation like this, after seeing so many that go without food, water, clothing, shelter...)
Hope you enjoyed a glimpse of our 1st few days...it was so fun to see our kids experience the ocean for the first time!! So thankful for a little time away as a family!! xo
