Our number was up. That is what Georgie told me when we returned to Chicago last night. He was referring to our having experienced 'record-breaking' cold weather while we were in Florida this past week. For the past nine years we've been fortunate in the perfect-weather-for-visiting-Fabi-and-Gonzalo visits to Florida.
We arrived at Midway Airport in the early morning hours of Tuesday, 3 February 2009. Boarding the plane was horrible because none of us had our winter jackets -- Georgie and I put all our winter gear in a separate luggage that we checked in. Such is how we travel during the winter months in Chicago to a warmer place; one empty luggage that is eventually packed with our winter stuff. As a side note, we're still using the luggage that we received from our Wedding Shower nine years ago. I think it's pretty cool -- at least we're using something that I registered for, but that's for another post. Maybe I'll talk about that sometime in September when we celebrate our tenth (10th!) Wedding Anniversary.
The night before we left -- I'm all over the place with this blog! -- I checked the weather in Florida for the time we were to spend there. The 10-day forecast called for temperatures in the 60's and lower 70's. Fine.
When we arrived and got our car rental, it was fah-reezing. Brr. I think I was in total denial about the 60's and lower 70's that I saw on the website. I really thought that it would be much warmer because it has always been much warmer when we visited Fabi and Gonzalo. Well, weather.com didn't get it wrong this time. I think it was more just in the 60's while we were there.
Highlights of our travel to Florida
Fabi served us pork chops, rice and lentils for lunch when we arrived. Yummy! And we were hungry! Well, I was. The airline only served us peanuts and drinks, I think, which we missed out on because we were asleep during the first hour of the trip. We had snacks for the babies though.
Tio Willie came by in the afternoon to visit with us. While at Fabi and Gonzalo's neighborhood, he and Gonzalo took Joaquin and Jacinta for a ride around the community in the wagon that Fabi and Gonzalo purchased for them. Jacinta and Joaquin loved riding in the wagon! Joaquin especially liked pushing (as opposed to pulling) the wagon.
Cezitar, Rosita, Cecilia and Dave came to Gonzalo and Fabi's house around 5PM. Thank you to you all for the gifts you gave to Joaquin and Jacinta. We will make sure to hang the growth chart in their room and have them use the cups for drinking. They love the Hershey Kisses that came with the cups. :-) Unfortunately, Jacinta fell asleep in my arms a few minutes before they arrived so they were not able to see Jacinta with her eyes open. And, Joaquin was busy watching either Ratatouille or Wall-E in the family room.
The next day, Wednesday, we had a relaxing time at the Sawgrass Mall. Georgie bought a red sweatshirt at the Tommy Hilfiger store. He is quite proud of the purchase because the original price was over a hundred dollars(?!). I was eyeing a couple of bracelets at the J.Crew store, but decided against buying them. The standout memory was Jacinta riding the mini-carousel (of various motor cars). She did not want to get off. She rode all three 'cars' that were a part of the carousel.
Another thing we did at the mall was go in one of those photo booths. It was hilarious! I could not stop laughing at all! I cracked up so badly because we tried to fit five of us (Fabi, Jqn, Jcnt, Georgie and me) in that small frame. In one of the pics, only Georgie's nose showed. In all of the pics, only Jacinta's eyes and nose showed. For some reason, I was not able to lift her up high enough so that her whole face showed. Now, I think it was probably because I was trying to get in the frame as well!
The next day, Thursday, our main agenda was to visit the Children's Museum -- similar to (same company a) the Kohl's Children's Museum in Glenview, IL. I must say, the museum was much more open and the 'exhibits' were much more accessible than the Kohl's Museum in Glenview. It may have been because we visited on a weekday. Who knows? But, it was nice to be able to go to the pretend grocery store and bank without having to wait in line to get in or leave after a set amount of time.
Pictures from the children's museum.
Afterward, we went to a restaurant that Georgie found via a web search. Often-times, I feel that Georgie's restaurant web searches are questionable. This time, he was spot on! Buena Vista Bistro's food was so enjoyable to eat and the restaurant itself was fantastic to take pictures of. It was right out of a 1950's Cuban scene, I thought. Loved it in every way. I ordered the scallops which were perfectly cooked. It came with mashed potatoes and ratatouille. Ratatouille! Georgie had mahi, Gonzalo had lamp chops and Fabi had salmon. Joaquin and Jacinta had something from each of our plates and a side order of fries, which everyone devoured. We also ordered an apple pie and creme brulee for dessert. Both were very indulgent and heavenly.
On Friday, we visited the Lion Country Safari. It was farther than any of us expected it would be, but it was worth the trip. The ads we saw indicated that we would see animals roaming >>this close<< to our car. We were hesitant and non-believers. We entered the safari area without disappointment. We were greeted by a llama as soon as we drove into the area. The llama walked right in front of the car. Then, as we drove on, a gymongous ostrich appeared. That's right -- HUGE! Well, he/she looked pretty huge in real life. I was camera-happy during our visit there. I was bummed that it was required for our windows to be closed at all times because that meant I had to take pictures behind the glass windows. After seeing the shots I took, I think they look pretty good. I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I had fun taking them. I think for this outing, the adults enjoyed it more than the children.
The animals that were fun to see for me were the ostriches, elephants and monkeys. I think we were all amused by the monkeys. At one point, one of the monkeys was climbing on a rope back to his 'home' while holding a plastic garbage can with one of his feet. Then, this same monkey was placing a cloth on a rope in hopes of hanging on it to be able to swing and land on top of the garbage can inside it's home. Oh, and there was this other monkey that picked up a plastic bucket by the edge of a watering hold. He/she scooped up some water into the bucket and walked a few feet away from the water. Then, he/she drank the water from the bucket. The funny thing was that a couple more monkeys walked towards her/him to share in drinking the water. It was amazing to watch.
That night, I was able to read more of Twilight while Joaquin and Jacinta visited with everyone in the house. (I finished the book a couple of nights ago and am now reading New Moon.) Tio Willie came by to say goodbye to us. I think Georgie and I bought Eagle Eye on cable that night, also.
The next morning, Saturday, after the babies and Georgie left the bedroom I got up and, sadly, packed our stuff. After breakfast -- thank you, Fabi, for cooking us breakfast every morning! -- we went to the neighborhood mall. I wanted to buy something for myself. :-) I also wanted to buy a gift for Krystal, who turned 18 on February 3rd. Happy Birthday, Krystal! I chose a necklace and earrings for myself. And for Krystal, I decided to get her a small gift -- certainly not something that one would give for someone turning 18! -- which turned out to be something she liked! I bought a brooch that came in a box. I skillfully placed a check taped to the gift receipt under the displayed brooch. As insurance -- in case Krystal didn't find the check -- I told Ate Trisa to make sure that Krystal checked underneath the brooch.
Highlights of our travel back to Chicago
So, now we're back and I still haven't finished writing out our thank you cards from Joaquin's 3rd birthday party. Forgive me!
Joaquin and Jacinta riding on the wagon that Fabi and Gonzalo bought for them. Here, Tio Willie was pulling them.
Pics of Georgie, handsome as ever.
We arrived at Midway Airport in the early morning hours of Tuesday, 3 February 2009. Boarding the plane was horrible because none of us had our winter jackets -- Georgie and I put all our winter gear in a separate luggage that we checked in. Such is how we travel during the winter months in Chicago to a warmer place; one empty luggage that is eventually packed with our winter stuff. As a side note, we're still using the luggage that we received from our Wedding Shower nine years ago. I think it's pretty cool -- at least we're using something that I registered for, but that's for another post. Maybe I'll talk about that sometime in September when we celebrate our tenth (10th!) Wedding Anniversary.
Still sleepy.
The night before we left -- I'm all over the place with this blog! -- I checked the weather in Florida for the time we were to spend there. The 10-day forecast called for temperatures in the 60's and lower 70's. Fine.
When we arrived and got our car rental, it was fah-reezing. Brr. I think I was in total denial about the 60's and lower 70's that I saw on the website. I really thought that it would be much warmer because it has always been much warmer when we visited Fabi and Gonzalo. Well, weather.com didn't get it wrong this time. I think it was more just in the 60's while we were there.
Highlights of our travel to Florida
- We literally went from the baggage check-in to boarding the airplane. The timing was perfect!
- Jqn and Jcnt loved the Moving Walkways and the escalators. It's cool that they are both not afraid of either.
- The last hour of the flight was a bit of a challenge for Georgie and me, especially the last 20 minutes. The people behind us
did some back-seat parentinginformed us that the reason Jacinta was having a meltdown was because of the pressure built-up in her ears. Right. Maybe so (and it wasn't), but still. - Jqn and Jcnt loving the escalators at the Ft. Lauderdale Airport. We went on them while Georgie got our car rental.
Fabi served us pork chops, rice and lentils for lunch when we arrived. Yummy! And we were hungry! Well, I was. The airline only served us peanuts and drinks, I think, which we missed out on because we were asleep during the first hour of the trip. We had snacks for the babies though.
Tio Willie came by in the afternoon to visit with us. While at Fabi and Gonzalo's neighborhood, he and Gonzalo took Joaquin and Jacinta for a ride around the community in the wagon that Fabi and Gonzalo purchased for them. Jacinta and Joaquin loved riding in the wagon! Joaquin especially liked pushing (as opposed to pulling) the wagon.
Cezitar, Rosita, Cecilia and Dave came to Gonzalo and Fabi's house around 5PM. Thank you to you all for the gifts you gave to Joaquin and Jacinta. We will make sure to hang the growth chart in their room and have them use the cups for drinking. They love the Hershey Kisses that came with the cups. :-) Unfortunately, Jacinta fell asleep in my arms a few minutes before they arrived so they were not able to see Jacinta with her eyes open. And, Joaquin was busy watching either Ratatouille or Wall-E in the family room.
The next day, Wednesday, we had a relaxing time at the Sawgrass Mall. Georgie bought a red sweatshirt at the Tommy Hilfiger store. He is quite proud of the purchase because the original price was over a hundred dollars(?!). I was eyeing a couple of bracelets at the J.Crew store, but decided against buying them. The standout memory was Jacinta riding the mini-carousel (of various motor cars). She did not want to get off. She rode all three 'cars' that were a part of the carousel.
Taken by the mall parking lot.
This one, too.
Another thing we did at the mall was go in one of those photo booths. It was hilarious! I could not stop laughing at all! I cracked up so badly because we tried to fit five of us (Fabi, Jqn, Jcnt, Georgie and me) in that small frame. In one of the pics, only Georgie's nose showed. In all of the pics, only Jacinta's eyes and nose showed. For some reason, I was not able to lift her up high enough so that her whole face showed. Now, I think it was probably because I was trying to get in the frame as well!
The next day, Thursday, our main agenda was to visit the Children's Museum -- similar to (same company a) the Kohl's Children's Museum in Glenview, IL. I must say, the museum was much more open and the 'exhibits' were much more accessible than the Kohl's Museum in Glenview. It may have been because we visited on a weekday. Who knows? But, it was nice to be able to go to the pretend grocery store and bank without having to wait in line to get in or leave after a set amount of time.
Pictures from the children's museum.
Joaquin was so ready to leave the museum at this point.
This one's for you, Mo.
Afterward, we went to a restaurant that Georgie found via a web search. Often-times, I feel that Georgie's restaurant web searches are questionable. This time, he was spot on! Buena Vista Bistro's food was so enjoyable to eat and the restaurant itself was fantastic to take pictures of. It was right out of a 1950's Cuban scene, I thought. Loved it in every way. I ordered the scallops which were perfectly cooked. It came with mashed potatoes and ratatouille. Ratatouille! Georgie had mahi, Gonzalo had lamp chops and Fabi had salmon. Joaquin and Jacinta had something from each of our plates and a side order of fries, which everyone devoured. We also ordered an apple pie and creme brulee for dessert. Both were very indulgent and heavenly.
On Friday, we visited the Lion Country Safari. It was farther than any of us expected it would be, but it was worth the trip. The ads we saw indicated that we would see animals roaming >>this close<< to our car. We were hesitant and non-believers. We entered the safari area without disappointment. We were greeted by a llama as soon as we drove into the area. The llama walked right in front of the car. Then, as we drove on, a gymongous ostrich appeared. That's right -- HUGE! Well, he/she looked pretty huge in real life. I was camera-happy during our visit there. I was bummed that it was required for our windows to be closed at all times because that meant I had to take pictures behind the glass windows. After seeing the shots I took, I think they look pretty good. I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I had fun taking them. I think for this outing, the adults enjoyed it more than the children.
The animals that were fun to see for me were the ostriches, elephants and monkeys. I think we were all amused by the monkeys. At one point, one of the monkeys was climbing on a rope back to his 'home' while holding a plastic garbage can with one of his feet. Then, this same monkey was placing a cloth on a rope in hopes of hanging on it to be able to swing and land on top of the garbage can inside it's home. Oh, and there was this other monkey that picked up a plastic bucket by the edge of a watering hold. He/she scooped up some water into the bucket and walked a few feet away from the water. Then, he/she drank the water from the bucket. The funny thing was that a couple more monkeys walked towards her/him to share in drinking the water. It was amazing to watch.
That night, I was able to read more of Twilight while Joaquin and Jacinta visited with everyone in the house. (I finished the book a couple of nights ago and am now reading New Moon.) Tio Willie came by to say goodbye to us. I think Georgie and I bought Eagle Eye on cable that night, also.
The next morning, Saturday, after the babies and Georgie left the bedroom I got up and, sadly, packed our stuff. After breakfast -- thank you, Fabi, for cooking us breakfast every morning! -- we went to the neighborhood mall. I wanted to buy something for myself. :-) I also wanted to buy a gift for Krystal, who turned 18 on February 3rd. Happy Birthday, Krystal! I chose a necklace and earrings for myself. And for Krystal, I decided to get her a small gift -- certainly not something that one would give for someone turning 18! -- which turned out to be something she liked! I bought a brooch that came in a box. I skillfully placed a check taped to the gift receipt under the displayed brooch. As insurance -- in case Krystal didn't find the check -- I told Ate Trisa to make sure that Krystal checked underneath the brooch.
Highlights of our travel back to Chicago
- Jacinta slept through the plane ride. Yes!
- Joaquin was mostly entertained by watching stuff on the laptop.
- I was able to read my book!
So, now we're back and I still haven't finished writing out our thank you cards from Joaquin's 3rd birthday party. Forgive me!
1 comments (add one!):
that was a lovely holiday, away from your normal routine.
hoping we can also visit you and your mom one day
love,
tita daisy
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