Sneaking away for a short Spring Break - lots of fun with a theme of "Winter."
Carmaggedon
This might have been the most traffic I've ever personally experienced today. Ironically, we drove straight through Atlanta and up 400 without any problems whatsoever - and all that with the Final Four and a Braves game going on. But the entire length of Henry County - and then some - was nothing but traffic. Seriously, this thing was close to 40 miles long, and moved about as fast as a honking, slow-moving, 40-mile long ...thing.
Madison didn't really notice, of course. Neither did Mommy. The two had their hand-held devices, playing Scrabble and watching movies like "Wreck-It Ralph" and "Rise of the Guardians." It was an epic drive today, whereas the typical drive is more like "routine."
Today was not "routine." We left mid-morning, after saying some brief goodbyes - we'll see Ba-Ba and Nana again in a few weeks when they come up to visit. We made it up to Georgia rather quickly, so much so that Daddy was worried about getting to Atlanta right in the middle of rush hour. He didn't have to worry: all the traffic before Atlanta prevented that from happening. Yes, every bit of "Spring Breaker" traffic we encountered was all before we actually got to the big city.
Still, we didn't know that. So we spent some time at those discount bookstores in Valdosta, where Daddy picked up a few books really cheap. Madison got a few Bible story books that she wanted to read (and actually started reading out loud in the book store). We also got some Star Wars picture books and the latest Theodore Boone book. Daddy's always been a big John Grisham fan, for what it's worth. There are a few books he didn't like so much, but for the most part, they're easy to read and strangely addictive. I think I was hooked back when "The Firm" was still just a book and not a movie, which was about the time Michael Chrichton and even Tom Clancy were still pretty big. This was the golden age of reading for Daddy, who was never really much of a reader at first. But these popular novels sort of opened the door, and soon enough Daddy was also reading classics as well as Discworld stuff from Terry Pratchett. Don't forget those "Heir to the Empire" books too - those were fun to read. In fact, just a few posts ago, a Timothy Zahn novel was listed. Generally, we've been into the English novelists from over a century ago - the Victorian authors and even those before that time. When younger, these seemed so hard to read and yet suddenly it was as if I had a key to a door that opened up a whole new world. So we added a few more books to the collection today anyway - but Daddy couldn't read quite yet. No, first we had to get home. And that was a long, long wait!
Because of the immensity of our journey, we stopped at a few rest stops along the way - just to get out and stretch our legs. We stopped at #13, which is one of our favorites, near the wonderful city of Vienna. I'm thinking of writing a review of all the rest stops along I-75 in Georgia. This one in the heart of Dooly County is a personal favorite. Of course, this classical city of Vienna is best known for it's sausages, but how can one forget this lovely place of respite! With clean restrooms and lovely picnic tables, Rest Area #13 is a great place to meditate and find peace as the roar of traffic goes by. There's not much from the vending machines, but if you're prepared and well-packed, this would be an ideal location for a romantic picnic.
We got home pretty late, obviously. And pretty tired. We trudged in with all our stuff, checked up on emails and so forth, and soon after collapsed into bed. It was a long journey - but it was a special week, a Wonderful Winter Vacation!
It was there that Madison trained under the watchful eye of Ba-Ba, who was actually teaching even Daddy how to swing properly at a tennis ball. In the end, Madison was getting it - probably a lot better than Daddy was to be honest:
She looked ready for tennis, even though that wasn't the plan when coming down here. Mommy dressed her well - even she got in the act, lobbing the ball back and forth with Nana. Since the weather was threatening throughout the day, we had all the courts to ourselves - this was great for Madison, who was doing really well, actually. She was hitting the ball back, drilling it towards Daddy and giggling the whole time at her success. She's got the timing down well, and we're now thinking we'll be hitting the tennis courts down the street from us a bit more often!
The rest of the day was largely watching movies, reading, and playing games on the Kindle. Mommy and Nana went to a consignment shop at one point, while Daddy and Madison actually took a little nap. Outside, the weather was just right temperature-wise, which made for a nice, relaxing day.
Nana made a delicious dinner for all of us, grilled salmon for herself and Daddy. We even had some ice cream for dessert. As you can see, we didn't do much for the day, but that was the plan. It was nice and relaxing!
Today was all about this friend we met late this afternoon:
This is somewhat of a tradition for Madison, the face-off with Pirate Stitch. He squirts out water in random directions and times, and Madison has the greatest time avoiding the splashes. Or is she avoiding them? There are other fountains of water that shoot up out of the concrete where the kids love to march around - Madison joined them this afternoon, at one point getting splashed pretty good. It wouldn't be the last time today - more on that later.
In the meantime, it was time to continue shopping!
Here she is at Tren-D, a place that Mommy likes to look around in. It's got a lot of neat stuff in there, and sometimes it's just great to look around and get ideas for crafts, projects, and a general look that we like. The next step was obvious: Ghiradelli's. Yep, we got ourselves a couple bowls of "Strike It Rich," and Madison got a chocolate ice cream with chocolate sprinkles. Yes, chocolate is the "in" thing now. We got a place outside and ate our ice creams as we watched the people go by.
As for people, the whole Downtown Disney was not busy at all. Despite the fact that it is Spring Break, things were quite moderate at Downtown Disney. Evidence of this was how easy we found a seat at the ice cream place. And also: how easy it was to walk around. Daddy took plenty of pictures inside Trend-D, something nobody can do usually. Point is, it wasn't too crowded at all. And, as a bonus, the weather was absolutely beautiful!
When we were done with the ice cream, it was time to keep up with the winter theme of the week, and we did that by going to Winter Summerland Mini-Golf course, a Disney mini-golf course nearby. We'd never done their mini-golf before, but we were so glad we did it this time. The courses were so creative, and everyone had such a great time!
Santa was there, as well as plenty of ice and snow. The holes were very creative, with the traditional drawbridges, secret tunnels, and statues of Mickey and Minnie. There was even a snowman that squirted water when your ball went into the hole.
Madison didn't see that one coming - she got soaked again! As you can see, we had a great time at the golf course. In fact, next time, we might try their other themed golf course. But when we finished this one, it was pretty late - and time to head back home again.
We got back pretty much in time for bed. Everyone was a little tired, but smiling at the memory of what we a perfectly pleasant day!
Carmaggedon
This might have been the most traffic I've ever personally experienced today. Ironically, we drove straight through Atlanta and up 400 without any problems whatsoever - and all that with the Final Four and a Braves game going on. But the entire length of Henry County - and then some - was nothing but traffic. Seriously, this thing was close to 40 miles long, and moved about as fast as a honking, slow-moving, 40-mile long ...thing.
Madison didn't really notice, of course. Neither did Mommy. The two had their hand-held devices, playing Scrabble and watching movies like "Wreck-It Ralph" and "Rise of the Guardians." It was an epic drive today, whereas the typical drive is more like "routine."
Today was not "routine." We left mid-morning, after saying some brief goodbyes - we'll see Ba-Ba and Nana again in a few weeks when they come up to visit. We made it up to Georgia rather quickly, so much so that Daddy was worried about getting to Atlanta right in the middle of rush hour. He didn't have to worry: all the traffic before Atlanta prevented that from happening. Yes, every bit of "Spring Breaker" traffic we encountered was all before we actually got to the big city.
Still, we didn't know that. So we spent some time at those discount bookstores in Valdosta, where Daddy picked up a few books really cheap. Madison got a few Bible story books that she wanted to read (and actually started reading out loud in the book store). We also got some Star Wars picture books and the latest Theodore Boone book. Daddy's always been a big John Grisham fan, for what it's worth. There are a few books he didn't like so much, but for the most part, they're easy to read and strangely addictive. I think I was hooked back when "The Firm" was still just a book and not a movie, which was about the time Michael Chrichton and even Tom Clancy were still pretty big. This was the golden age of reading for Daddy, who was never really much of a reader at first. But these popular novels sort of opened the door, and soon enough Daddy was also reading classics as well as Discworld stuff from Terry Pratchett. Don't forget those "Heir to the Empire" books too - those were fun to read. In fact, just a few posts ago, a Timothy Zahn novel was listed. Generally, we've been into the English novelists from over a century ago - the Victorian authors and even those before that time. When younger, these seemed so hard to read and yet suddenly it was as if I had a key to a door that opened up a whole new world. So we added a few more books to the collection today anyway - but Daddy couldn't read quite yet. No, first we had to get home. And that was a long, long wait!
Because of the immensity of our journey, we stopped at a few rest stops along the way - just to get out and stretch our legs. We stopped at #13, which is one of our favorites, near the wonderful city of Vienna. I'm thinking of writing a review of all the rest stops along I-75 in Georgia. This one in the heart of Dooly County is a personal favorite. Of course, this classical city of Vienna is best known for it's sausages, but how can one forget this lovely place of respite! With clean restrooms and lovely picnic tables, Rest Area #13 is a great place to meditate and find peace as the roar of traffic goes by. There's not much from the vending machines, but if you're prepared and well-packed, this would be an ideal location for a romantic picnic.
We got home pretty late, obviously. And pretty tired. We trudged in with all our stuff, checked up on emails and so forth, and soon after collapsed into bed. It was a long journey - but it was a special week, a Wonderful Winter Vacation!
Thursday, APRIL 4, 2013
Tennis Lessons
Today there was absolutely nothing on the schedule - the weather sort of shifted our plans around this week, which worked out okay for us in the end. There was a lot of rain after midnight, and an occasional shower throughout the day, although not as much as we've been experiencing in Georgia. During one of the windows of brighter weather, Ba-Ba and Nana took Madison out to court: the tennis court!
It was there that Madison trained under the watchful eye of Ba-Ba, who was actually teaching even Daddy how to swing properly at a tennis ball. In the end, Madison was getting it - probably a lot better than Daddy was to be honest:
She looked ready for tennis, even though that wasn't the plan when coming down here. Mommy dressed her well - even she got in the act, lobbing the ball back and forth with Nana. Since the weather was threatening throughout the day, we had all the courts to ourselves - this was great for Madison, who was doing really well, actually. She was hitting the ball back, drilling it towards Daddy and giggling the whole time at her success. She's got the timing down well, and we're now thinking we'll be hitting the tennis courts down the street from us a bit more often!
The rest of the day was largely watching movies, reading, and playing games on the Kindle. Mommy and Nana went to a consignment shop at one point, while Daddy and Madison actually took a little nap. Outside, the weather was just right temperature-wise, which made for a nice, relaxing day.
Nana made a delicious dinner for all of us, grilled salmon for herself and Daddy. We even had some ice cream for dessert. As you can see, we didn't do much for the day, but that was the plan. It was nice and relaxing!
Wednesday, APRIL 3, 2013
Winter Vacation
Today was all about this friend we met late this afternoon:
That's Winter the dolphin, a celebrity amongst dolphins - and a movie star as well. Her story - for the most part - is told in the movie "Dolphin Tale," which is a great movie. Last week, we showed just a few segments to Madison when trying to figure what we should do one day this week. The choice was between meeting Mulan and seeing EPCOT, and checking out Soarin' - or going to see Winter at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Daddy didn't "talk up" either choice, but left it up to Madison to decide what to do. You can see what choice she made by looking here, obviously!
None of us had ever been here before, but we were all very happy we came. It wasn't so much a traditional aquarium as it was more of a marine life rescue facility. We first saw the Dolphin Tale Adventure exhibit, which was pretty much a museum dedicated to the movie, complete with plenty of props from the movie, and even a hurricane exhibit where you can feel winds and noise and so forth. It was all pretty neat - they even had a place where you could write a letter to Winter, and put it in a mailbox.
Madison did just that. She hadn't even met Winter yet, but that was about to happen shortly. We left the one building, at which point we hopped on a trolley and went across a long bridge to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. That's where we immediately met Winter.
It just so happens there was a presentation with her right there and then - all about her life story. Madison was great - it was so crowded, but she's a little girl and has that ability to push past people and right up to the fence where she had a perfect view of the whole presentation. She was smiling the whole time, looking down into the pool at Winter, who has inspired so many. Not only did she get to see Winter from above - she also saw her from below.
They had windows down below, where you could see the dolphins swimming in the water. Madison enjoyed this a lot. You can just barely see it in the photo above, but she's holding on to a stuffed animal of Winter - this has been her best friend lately, with her all the time.
Of course, there were plenty of other rescued animals here. If you've seen the movie, you've seen a lot of the areas we got to tour through, outside and in. Here's the family, looking in a sting ray pool on the outside deck. That pool is pretty much the spot where Winter was in the movie:
As said earlier, this isn't so much an aquarium as it is a rescue facility. There was a sweet spirit about the place, as visitors saw all sorts of animals that have been rescued and taken care of. Ultimately, the goal is to release them back into the wild - and that happens frequently. But some animals like Winter simply cannot survive outside of the aquarium anymore, and so they've made their homes here at the aquarium. There were otters here, and even sharks here. There were plenty of sea turtles, mate. These tugged at all of our hearts the most, as some were hit by boats and simply couldn't swim like others can anymore.
The whole time, Winter was available for viewing - so Madison came back to see her again and again. One time, she was even making a painting!
Yes, Winter was painting with her brush some broad strokes and creating another masterpiece. Evidently, she does this all the time. Maybe we'll pick up a painting from Winter some day - it's neat when you understand the context of who the artist is.
When the day was done, we said our goodbyes to Winter and her friends, and then took a boat back to the parking lot. Can you believe we saw three dolphins in the ocean on our way back? It was a nice ride across the waves, and the weather was perfect outside. We were a bit hungry, and Daddy saw something on the road that we haven't seen in a while: a Joe's Crab Shack. Yep, dinner was seafood - and it was delicious.
We got home after dark, and Madison was very happy. She met Winter and had a lovely day, as did all of us.
Back in January, Daddy wrote up a three-point message based on Winter's story. The kids really enjoyed it, so I'm going to put part of it here below, along with some scriptures that went along with the message.
1. RESCUE. In the story of
“Dolphin Tale,” the dolphin named Winter was rescued by some caring people who
understood the importance of helping one another. When you see a need, offer to
help. We are all a part of a family, designed by God to help one
another through life’s challenges. Family is forever.
"But a
Samaritan came to the place where the man was. When he saw the man, he felt
sorry for him. Go and do as he did.” Luke 10:33, 37 NIrV
2. OVERCOME. Just because you’re hurting doesn’t mean you’re
broken. God can heal, restore, fix and make things better than before. But
you’ve got to change your attitude from that of defeat to that of an overcomer,
just like Winter did.
“No! In all these
things we will do even more than win! We owe it all to Christ, who has loved
us.” Romans 8:37 NIrV
3. INSPIRE! Disabled
children and adults are encouraged by Winter’s remarkable true
story. The very thing that was meant for harm, was something that
helped inspire millions of others around the world. Choose today to
set an example, and be an inspiration.
“Set an example for
the believers in what you say and in how you live. Also set an example in how
you love and in what you believe.” 1 Timothy 4:12 NIrV
“We know that in all things God works for the good of
those who love Him.” Romans 8:28 NIrV
“He has not forgotten the one who is
hurting. He has not turned away from his suffering. He
has not turned his face away from him. He has listened to his cry
for help.” Psalm 22:24 NIrV
“We are pushed hard from all sides. But we are not beaten
down. We are bewildered. But that doesn’t make us lose hope.” 2 Corinthians 4:8
NIrV
“You planned to harm me. But God planned it for good. He
planned to do what is now being done. He wanted to save many lives.” Genesis
50:20 NIrV
“I can do everything by the power of Christ. He gives me
strength.” Philippians 4:13 NIrV
“A man may have many plans in his heart. But the Lord’s
porpoise wins out in the end.” Proverbs 19:21 (New Marine Life Translation)
Tuesday, APRIL 2, 2013
Winter Summerland
We started the day with bacon. When the day starts out that way, everything else that follows should be easy.
It was a pretty relaxed day - that's the theme of the week here. Some time after noon, we decided to head down to the Downtown Disney, as we seem completely incapable of going to Florida without at least one visit to Disney. We took a back road, and at one particular rise, we were pretty impressed to see Disney from a whole new viewpoint: behind. Yes, we were behind the the parks, north of them and seeing all the buildings from the road from behind. Anyway, that was a little different.
Not so different: our usual trip to Downtown Disney. The five of us parked at Cirque du Soleil, which is something we considered going to until we realized it would cost us about $500. Not ready for that sort of investment on this trip, we opted to just shop in the store there, then grab the boat over to the marketplace side. There, we looked around the stores for a bit, stopping at the toy stores, Christmas shop, and the art store as well. It's always nice to look around - but watch out for sudden sprays of water!
This is somewhat of a tradition for Madison, the face-off with Pirate Stitch. He squirts out water in random directions and times, and Madison has the greatest time avoiding the splashes. Or is she avoiding them? There are other fountains of water that shoot up out of the concrete where the kids love to march around - Madison joined them this afternoon, at one point getting splashed pretty good. It wouldn't be the last time today - more on that later.
In the meantime, it was time to continue shopping!
Here she is at Tren-D, a place that Mommy likes to look around in. It's got a lot of neat stuff in there, and sometimes it's just great to look around and get ideas for crafts, projects, and a general look that we like. The next step was obvious: Ghiradelli's. Yep, we got ourselves a couple bowls of "Strike It Rich," and Madison got a chocolate ice cream with chocolate sprinkles. Yes, chocolate is the "in" thing now. We got a place outside and ate our ice creams as we watched the people go by.
As for people, the whole Downtown Disney was not busy at all. Despite the fact that it is Spring Break, things were quite moderate at Downtown Disney. Evidence of this was how easy we found a seat at the ice cream place. And also: how easy it was to walk around. Daddy took plenty of pictures inside Trend-D, something nobody can do usually. Point is, it wasn't too crowded at all. And, as a bonus, the weather was absolutely beautiful!
When we were done with the ice cream, it was time to keep up with the winter theme of the week, and we did that by going to Winter Summerland Mini-Golf course, a Disney mini-golf course nearby. We'd never done their mini-golf before, but we were so glad we did it this time. The courses were so creative, and everyone had such a great time!
Santa was there, as well as plenty of ice and snow. The holes were very creative, with the traditional drawbridges, secret tunnels, and statues of Mickey and Minnie. There was even a snowman that squirted water when your ball went into the hole.
Madison didn't see that one coming - she got soaked again! As you can see, we had a great time at the golf course. In fact, next time, we might try their other themed golf course. But when we finished this one, it was pretty late - and time to head back home again.
We got back pretty much in time for bed. Everyone was a little tired, but smiling at the memory of what we a perfectly pleasant day!
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