In the middle of training a new employee, I was trying to get ready for vacation. We were leaving to help the Mr’s good friend, Deuce, celebrate his marriage in Longboat Key, Florida. Very excited for the opportunity to escape from the winter doldrums of Iowa, we began getting ready for our vacation the way any good family does- by planning our plane snacks.
Extra important in this day and age of nothing is free, which means snacks on the plane are non existent. I stocked up at Trader Joe’s and Target on a little bit of everything.
For sweet we covered everything from chocolate to lemon with Butterfingers, Snickers and Twix for chocolate and Trader Joe’s Lemon Heart Cookies. We also had Trader Joe’s Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies and Chocolate Cats.
For neutral I grabbed some animal crackers.
For gummy I packed Dots, Jujyfruits and Target strawberry fruit snacks (I could literally eat these things every day).
To round out the group with salty I packed Snyder’s sourdough nibblers. Also addicting, these things could get eaten up very quickly and since I know the Mr. loves these, I packed double.
Once safely packed inside our carry on, we were able to move on with the rest of our packing. An entire suit case of swim suits, shorts and flip flops later and we were ready to go. Well, sort of. The Mr. hates flying. He’s not afraid of it, per say, but the thought of getting on a plane is something he absolutely hates. He did a pretty good job not thinking about it this time around too far in advance, but by the time we got to the airport on Sunday he was checked out. In advance we worked with our chiropractor who does acupuncture to maybe release some of that stress and help which may have helped, but it was still very touch and go while waiting to board the plane. No matter how many times you tell him its safer than driving to the airport, he won’t listen because for him its all about not being in control of the plane. While he wasn’t loving getting on the plane, he did it and we were off and going!
Smoothest flight ever and two and a half hours later we’re in the St. Pete airport (PIE- ha!). Palm trees and a warm breeze welcomed us as we landed and walked outside. We grabbed our luggage, drove the 45 minutes to the condo and were finally able to relax. We started our vacation with a trip across the way to “Five Guys Burgers and Fries”. They keep it very basic, burger- cheese burger- bacon cheese burger, single or double with all the toppings you could imagine but the product is very good and the fries only come from one farmer- their claim to fame.
I thought the burger was good, the cheese was melted just perfectly. The fries were only ok. I don’t think I’ll be craving them any time soon.
Monday was spent eating Waffle House, relaxing by the pool and soaking up some of that Florida sunshine. With temperatures in the upper 70′s-80′s all week, we sure got lucky knowing that the temperatures could range anywhere from 50′s to 80′s.
Pool Side
We also had the rehearsal and welcome dinner Monday evening, which were both fabulous. It’s hard to go wrong when you’re by the ocean and it’s in the 70’s!
At the welcome dinner, we had a chip bar which was really interesting. There were 3 types of chips – sweet potato, regular kettle chips and fried plantains- along with about 10 different kinds of salsas, dips, etc. I was a really neat idea. Following the chip bar we had a nice little BBQ. After a couple margaritas though, this girl was ready to call it a night!
Tuesday we went to breakfast at Yoder’s, a restaurant serving Amish food. It was pretty good. I just had your standard breakfast with eggs, toast and ham. It was an experience non-the-less! We were able to relax a little bit more by the pool and enjoy the beautiful weather before getting ready for the wedding.
When we got to the resort for the wedding it was perfect weather… slight breeze, sun shining… the chairs were all set up, so I took my seat as the Mr. took care of his duties as a groomsmen. They all looked so handsome/beautiful and the background setting of the beach was picture perfect. It was a beautiful ceremony. I, like usual, cried. They kissed, sealed the deal and we took a really nice group photo. Cocktail hour and dinner were great, but it was so good to go home and sleep. Basking in the sun really does wear a girl out!
Beautiful Bride
Wednesday, our last day on vacation before we flew back, we got up and ran a couple places before eating lunch at Phillippi Creek. It was some really good seafood. The Mr. had the steamed seafood platter (King Crab Legs for him) while I settled on the seafood kabob. Both were delish! I was happy to finally get some seafood in my belly!
After lunch we headed to Siesta Key Beach. The sand was like powdered sugar under my toes. It was so wonderful and relaxing. We slept, we walked, we shelled, we drank, we played. It was a great afternoon and as the sun was setting and the day was winding down, I was sad that we were having to leave so soon. I feel like we were just getting started with our vacation.
The good news is that we’re already planning our return trip and all of the fun and relaxing things we want to do… and the best part is that we can go back whenever we want! So, here’s to good seafood, great sand and drinks in our hands! Our vacation to FLA may be done for now, but we will return!
