We have made visiting Florida a yearly tradition. Its wonderful and this year was a really fun and full trip. Since getting across the country is a big task, we really wanted to make the most of our time there so we decided to start at Fort Myers and see Grandma and Grandpa, then head up to Tampa to see Uncle Daniel, Aunt Laura and Zoo Tampa, and then finish our trip in Jacksonville with our North Carolina cousins!
It took a lot of thought and planning and a little bit of adventure seeking but we did it and it was such a great vacation.
We arrived in Fort Myers and quickly found ice cream and Grandma and Grandpa's house. Grandma Lynn had books, journals, and all sorts of fun activities ready for the girls. They LOVE their room in Grandma's house and even managed to keep it reasonably picked up under penalty of Mom's wrath.
There had been several storms prior to our arrival, and usually the shelling is magical after the storm, so Grandpa did some research, got the shell secrets from a friend, and we headed out to a special spot on the beach to see if we could find some good ones.
Grandma and Grandpa set us up with some super cool gear and we spent the morning enjoying the ocean search!
Grandpa managed to find this incredible shell, but unfortunately, the shell was still inhabited. So we took a picture and set it back.
WE found loads of clam shells, and Dad even managed to get his finger caught in an angry clam. It only cut the tip of his finger, but it became really clear that the good shells still had tenants so we moved on to castle making.
Our morning was full of creating, handstanding, and soaking up the ocean sun. Its just our favorite place.
We left the beach to head out to lunch at The Island Cow. I won't lie, this place has such a special place in my heart. Its such a cute and eclectic restaurant out on the island, with colorful chairs, games, and funfetti muffins for snacks.
The girls tried gator bites and loved them. The general feeling was that they taste just like chicken!
We enjoyed a lunch while Dad had to finish a conference call.
Unfortunately the call was lasting a really long time so we decided to find the island library and it was AMAZING. Lily found 8 books right away, hunkered down and entertained herself. Evie was all annoyed with the thought of having to read for any length of time so we ended up playing out in the rain.
We finally made it home after the call, got all showered and headed out for a night at the bowling alley! What a blast.
The girls loved bowling. I think we should do that more. We played in the arcade and the best part of the night was playing 2 rounds of laser tag. Gosh that was so much fun!
We were up bright and early the next day for our day on the pontoon! Grandpa rented a big pontoon boat for the entire day and we had such a fun time.
The weather was magical and we were able to just hop ourselves up the coast stopping wherever we wanted to.
We stopped at one beach a couple of times and managed to find ourselves some little ocean friends. I love starfish. They are such resilient little creatures and so cool to hold.
Evie was just anxious to find ourselves a spot in the ocean to park so that she could jump off the boat. She took over the drive to find the perfect spot. How cute is this little firecracker?
WE jumped and played and pushed each other and swam, and did all the things Evie was hoping for.
Towards the end of our trip on the boat even Lily was feeling tired!
We made a final stop at the starfish beach only to discover a mermaid in the water and crazy currents forcing us to be very careful.
The pontoon was so much fun.
On our last full day in Fort Myers I got to do my most favorite thing which is to run to the local beach near Grandma and Grandpas. Its about 6 miles round trip and it was so fantastic.
Grandma set up an awesome day with one of her girlfriends who lives right on a pier perfect for fishing and who owns an fantastic jet ski.
The fishing was awesome and within 5 minutes the girls were hauling out fish from the bay. We were using small shrimp for bait and both girls were mastering the casting, hooking, reeling, and dehooking.
Even Grandma and I managed to catch a few. We gave most of them back to the ocean but a few we gave to a couple pelicans who were poaching our pier. Can't blame them......easy snacks.
Cathy took both of the girls for hours on her jetski, looking for turtles and dolphins. They loved every second.
For our last big event we went to the Edison museum and grounds. We really didn't have that much time before closure but it is something I have wanted to do every since learning it was in Fort Myers.
Edison's and Ford's estate is really incredible. I think what amazed me the most is that those two men were titans during their time, and their wealth and luxury by comparison to current standards was so different. We spent the evening walking the gorgeous grounds, seeing all of the buildings and staged rooms. Lily kept telling me how cool it would be to tour inside and I have decided to bring her back for a full day of exploring the place.
We enjoyed a rooftop drink and appetizers followed by pizza at Capone's to finish out our time in Fort Myers.
Fort Myers never disappoints! Now onto Tampa!
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