Vacation recap

Ok, so here we go. A two week vacation summary.  :)

First things first.  The day before we flew out, we still hadn't decided what stroller(s) to bring with us.  We kinda needed one (especially for the airports) but didn't want to bring two.  Long story short, we decided to bite the bullet and buy a double stroller.  We got one that will last us a long time.  It came with 2 seats and we got a car seat adapter as well.  So, for now, E rides up top and Abs in the front, but once E gets a little older, we'll be able to use the two seats in a myriad of combinations.  It's pretty awesome.  As far as double strollers go - it was important for us to have a compact one for maneuvering around on trains and through the city - and this one is about as compact as they come.  So, while I may have to sell a kidney to eventually recoup the cost, it has been very nice to be able to stroll both girls around with ease. 

At the airport, ready to go with our new ride. 

...also, the last time we saw that snack tray as it didn't make it out of the plane. :( 

Once we got to FL, Kyle and I split ways for a bit.  Kyle spent the first week at the annual National Federation for the Blind convention and the girls and I hung out with Kyle's parents at a little condo in Orlando.  Our week was low key and laid back.  It included shopping, trips to the pool and playground, chick-fil-A, and a good bit of down time. No complaints here. 

For the 4th of July, we drove to Cocoa Beach to celebrate with some family friends.  Abs made a little friend about her age and they had a nice time together.  

Papa, Ouma, and E on her first 4th of July

we had lots of accessories 

Abs and her friend - we're in love with our patriotic sequin cowboy hat.  ;)

bffs...for a day. 

Later in the week, we all packed up and took a trip to the mall.  The trip was two fold.  Our first mission was to find me something to wear to Kyle's fancy NFB banquet later in the week.  The second was to take Abs to the M&M (her favorite candy) store.

Well, I found a dress and Abs found some candy.  She had a blast in that store - she was bouncing here and there and everywhere trying to see everything and take it all end.  It *is* a pretty colorful store.  She got a few souvenirs (and we all got some candy, of course).  It was fun!

M&M World

Friday night came and I got to join Kyle for the NFB banquet.  The whole affair was really nice and I had a great time.  The convention hosts around 3000 attendees, so there were at least that many in attendance at the banquet I'd guess.  It was really neat to see so many blind people in one setting - all perfectly capable of, well, everything.

Kyle went to convention as one of 30 scholarship finalists.  All week, the finalists meet with various committee members, and at the end of the week, the committee votes on who wins what.  So, you're basically trying to convince everyone that you deserve the big scholarship all week.

When it came time for them to announce the winners at the banquet, all 30 finalists stood on stage as they read off the names, starting with the lowest amounts.  Well, when there were only 5 scholarships left to be given and Kyle's name hadn't been called yet, my heart started pounding - much to my surprise.

4 left.  3 left.  2 left.  *holding my breath*  and then they announced the grand prize winner - Kyle Shachmut.  I was so proud.  It was a bigger deal than I had imagined.  Everyone cheered, lots of people stood up, and Kyle got to give a speech to the whole convention.  He did an Awesome job.  I was so happy for him.

After the banquet, we hopped around from group to group as Kyle was a semi-celebrity for the night.  Everyone wanted to congratulate him and I think maybe everyone did.  We had a great time.  It was fun to get dressed up and to have a kid-free night.  And of course, prizes and scholarships never hurt either.

(sorry, no banquet pics, I only had a tiny purse ;)

The next day, Kyle's sister and her boyfriend had joined us as well and the whole lot of us moved from Orlando down to Cocoa Beach for the remainder of our trip.  Staying in Cocoa was nice - the resort was nice and Abby loved both the beach and the pool.  Well, she loved the sand.  She was down right terrified of the ocean.  More on that later.

We enjoyed the low key days and managed to get out, kid-free, more than a few times as well.

Awww.  Hanging out with Kyra & Blake at the Pier

twins

We bought Abby a seashell.  I know, I know - bought?  But there were NO shells on the beach this year.  That's always my favorite part - hunting shells.  Abs would have loved it too, but no go this time.  So, we bought her this one.  We taught her how to listen to the ocean, and she loved it.  The next morning, she ran to the sliding doors that looked out onto the beach and said "I see the ocean!  But, I can't hear it."  Then she went and found her shell, came back, looked out the doors with the shell on her ear and said "there we go, that's better"

It made us laugh.

Elizabeth made it out the beach a few times as well.  It's so much work to get the kids ready for the beach - especially with E.  The amount of prep time vs. the amount of time she can be outside was a little  disproportionate.  But, we did take her out, and she liked it.

E's first beach nap

awake and happy

Abby went down more often, and she could make sand castles and dig all. day. long.  The girl was so so so sandy all the time.  She loved it.  But the ocean?  No thank you.  She flipped out.  I mean, I get it. It's big and loud and endless and, well, scary.  One of the last days we were there, Kyle and I worked and worked and eventually we did get her in the ocean.  We discovered that she was not afraid of the water, but the waves - specifically.  It took some time and lots of coaxing, but she came around and she and Kyle had an especially fun time jumping over waves and playing in the water. 

...and we dug holes.

The 13th was our 4th anniversary.  Whoo-hoo!  I think Kyle and I both agree that it seems like it's been longer that 4 years - but not in a bad way.  It's just that, well, we have 2 kids.  Once again, we were told to go out without the kids and have a real date.  And we did!  We had a nice dinner and then decided to go play putt-putt and drive go-carts.  Kyle beat me by just a hair at putt-putt, and we both really had fun with the go-carts too...I'd never tried that before.  Mario Kart makes so much more sense now.  We wrapped up the evening with ice cream and headed back.  It was nice.  Happy 4 years to us. :)

The next morning I took Abs and my camera out to watch the sunrise.  Abby liked the sunrise, but was extremely upset about being taken so close to the water (this was before our wave break through).  She cried the whole time.  That made for poor pictures.  

she's actually crying her eyes out in this picture. ha!

good morning sun!

Despite her fears and tears, we stayed anyway and she enjoyed seeing "the sun wake up"  Eventually, I gave up on getting any good pictures of her and we headed back.  Once she had some distance between herself and the ocean, Abby was happy again.  She found some flowers and insisted on picking one for everyone in the family.  So, that allowed me to get some pictures after all.

 my wonderful little girl

 Eventually, everyone headed back to the airport one by one, and then it was our turn.  It was a great vacation and I was so happy that Kyle's parents and sister were able to spend some time with Abby and Elizabeth.

That's the "short" version of the past 2 weeks.  We all got home on Saturday.  Kyle and Abs were sharing a cold that E has picked up on as well.  I'm holding out as the healthy one in the house for now.  Wish me luck.  It's back to the daily routine now and hopefully a bit more blogging as well. :)