Labor Day Weekend at Longboat Key

This was our first time at Longboat Key. We stayed right on this amazing beach with a group of friends. I didn't have my camera out during the day much, but got it out after we all got baths and had dinner. I learned after the first night, giving the kids a bath before we were absolutely ready for bed, was simply not worth it. But I love seing my usually very cautios kid getting in the ocean at the end of the day with all his clothes on. So much fun!

Oh, and it ony takes a bit over 2 hours to get there from Orlando.

Blueberries

We had so much fun picking blueberries last weekend I thought I would share. I don't normally like blueberries but there's something about picking them yourself straight out of the tree that just makes them taste better –the boys agree.

Here's the info if you're interested:

Tom West Blueberries
324 E. Orlando Ave.
Ocoee, FL 34761 

Open April 20th - End of May
Saturdays and Sundays 9-5

www.tomwestblueberries.com

It's very family friendly, they provide buckets for picking, prices are great, and the best part – they're pesticide free.

Casa Feliz

Casa Feliz is a historic home museum in Winter Park. We first discovered it when we were trying to find a spot for our wedding reception. Last weekend we took the kids there during their public open house time (Sundays 12-3) The weather was awesome so we were able to play outside for a while. We brought our picnic blanket and a ball and the kids had a blast running around on the bocce ball lawn.

I've always had a thing for brick walls, so I'm hoping to go back soon and take some more pictures of the house.

Downtown Winter Garden Cars and Dinner

We went to downtown Winter Garden the other night. It happend to be the third Saturday of the month, so they were having the Cruz-N-Car Show. After walking through Plant St. and enjoying the cars and their engines (Owen was particularly interested in the engines) we decided to try The Chef's Table for dinner. We sat in their "Tasting Room" and were the only family with kids. At first, I thought we weren't gonna make it. Owen was kind of going limp and throwing himself on Kellan and myself. There was no kid's menu or colors, so I had to improvise. Telling him all about my first car (a 1969 red VW Bug) did the trick. Then, the cheese plate arrived and completed Owen's happiness. We ended up having a really nice dinner. On our walk back to the car we made a quick stop at Sweet Traditions and got a cookie each. And, we of course stopped to press the button and watch the train go next to the theater — We never leave Downtown Winter Garden without doing that!

St. Pete Beach

We took a little trip down to St. Pete Beach for father's day. Originally we were planning on a simple day at Cocoa, but we ended up finding a really nice last minute deal for the Don CeSar Hotel. We left early Saturday morning and came back on Tuesday. The beach was amazing.The water was super clear, shallow, and there was practically no waves — perfect for kids. The sand was really white too. We pretty much spent every minute out on the beach. 

I really enjoyed that hotel too, beach towels, and noodles, and pool toys, and "citrus infused" water was all provided by the pool. The Don CeSar also had umbrellas and chairs for rent on the beach, but, for a hefty price. We just brought our Quick Shade, not a pretty thing, but it works great.

On the way back we stopped at the Florida Aquarium. It was pretty neat. We saw all the fish and funky sea creatures, played in the water area, and headed back home.

BTW, it's a only a 2 hour ride from Orlando to St. Pete Beach. If you ask me, it's well worth it.

* Also, as parents we're always trying our best to protect our children, so, we cover them on sunscreen. However, I recently found this scary research on sunscreen. You can use this website to check out the brand you're using (thanks Sarah!). We realized there's not a lot of options at the regular shops. Whole Foods has some good ones though. And, yes, we still need to cover them in sunscreen, just not one that's full of harmful ingredients.

Improv Picnic

 
How awesome was the weather this weekend? I hope everyone got to enjoy it. We had a lot of fun — the egg hunts, egg decorating, a birthday party, and finally our little improv picnic Sunday afternoon. It's been really hot the past couple of weeks, so the nice weather couldn't keep us inside this weekend. After we were done with our Easter fun, we decided to go to Park Avenue, grab lunch at Panera, and eat at the the park. Baby Kellan happily snoozed in his carrier the whole time. Owen enjoyed the passing of the train, the airplanes flying by, and the houses under those big funky trees (the one at the end of the park, if you're walking towards Fairbanks, is bigger and better). Before we left, Will and Owen walked over to Kilwin's and brought some delicious ice cream back to our spot. Sooo good!

Go! Get the ball!

If you've never seen a team of 3 year olds playing soccer, you're really missing something. It's so much fun to watch these kids. We had our first game today. The coaches are just going "Go that way, that way, no, turn around this way.... get the ball, get the ball" We still "won", despite all the goals scored on the wrong side of the field... I'm really enjoying this whole thing. Does that make me a soccer mom?

By the way, if you have a mini soccer player and can't find small enough gear at the local shops, visit soccerpro.com. They do carry the small sizes.

Splash!

It is way too hot to do anything outside that doesn't involve water. We LOVE the Splash Park in Downtown Winter Garden!

Swimming Lessons

Swimming lessons didn't really go as planned. I took my 3 year old to his first lesson at the Roper Y. After the instructor let him go and told him to reach for the wall, he went under water and came out terrified. For the next two lessons I sat and watched the other kids learn while mine refused to go anywhere near the pool (Even thought I was bribing him with a surprise). So, this really frustrated mom decided to see if something could be done. I was referred to Chad, their Aquatics and Family Director. He proposed I bring him to him the next time and he would try one on one. Without a lot of hope, I did. And it worked! Chad had the right approach. My kid was still hesitant but got in the water and gave things a chance. Second lesson with Chad was all smiles. He's loosing his fear, which I think is huge when you're trying to learn a new skill. Now, I know not all kids need this kind of approach. But I also know enough that do, and finding the right instructor just makes the biggest difference. Besides Chad, I have heard Brandon, also at the Roper Y, is great in this kind of situation.

The Bribe: I bought a $15 box of Legos. I used the same bag they came in, cut it and divided the Legos into the amount of lessons he'd be having. My brilliant bribe didn't get him in the pool but it did make him very happy after Chad's successful efforts. I needed an excuse to buy legos anyways...

This schedule might be handy if you're planning on doing some lessons this summer.

4th of July in the Wilderness

We had such a fun 4th this year! Very last minute my husband surprised us with a cabin reservation at Disney's Fort Wilderness. We went there on Sunday the 3rd, checked into our cabin, got on our bikes, and with a very excited 3 year old, started our adventure. There's just so much to do at the Fort. The main pool has a little splash area with a couple of slides for the little ones. There's also several playgrounds throughout the resort. You can rent a boat at the beach, or rent some canoes at the back bay. There's also a petting zoo, some horses and some pony's kid's can ride on. My favorite activity at the Fort thought is the campfire at the end of the day. Chip n' Dale make a special appearance at the campfire. Supposedly they don't show up until 7:30pm, however, they don't announce this, but they could show up at 7:00. The good thing about knowing this, is there's no more than a handful of kids there at that time, allowing for one on one play with the characters, which I think is priceless. At 8 pm they start the fire and it's time for S'MORES! They put on a little show and some music while everyone enjoys their "delicious hot schmoes". At 8:40 they play a Disney movie on the outdoor screen. If you want to see the 9:00 Magic Kingdom fireworks, you hop on your bike, electric car, or walk over to the beach and watch the show from there. Anyway, I think spending a night at Disney's Fort Wilderness was totally worth it. We all loved it, and I'm thinking it might become a once a year family tradition. 

Tip: Bring your bikes! If you don't bring your s'more supplies you can purchase a kit at the campfire. The cabins have a grill and an outside area with a table for a nice cookout, or there's a few places to eat around the resort of course... There's a little shop that sells certain food items also, like milk, cereal, etc. 

Warning: Some of these campers take things very seriously and decorate every inch of their area, wheater that's a tent, RV, or sometimes even the cabins, oh and their vehicles too. A bit crazy, but fun to watch while you ride through in your bike.