Sunshine, palm trees, chirping birds, blooming spring flowers, sand between my toes, swimming, enjoying a few beverages in the hot tub, shopping and Mickey Mouse - those rejeuvenating activities and items will make up my March Break. Yup, we're heading to the sunshine state of Florida.
I think my entire family needs this vacation. We're all tired and at least a little stressed by the everyday routine. We need different - and exciting - surroundings to have some fun and to chill.
Michael's parents have never been to Florida. My mother-in-law, Jessie, says she's always wanted to go and apparently, she's dreamed of visiting to Walt Disney World with her grandchildren. So this past fall, after my treatment was done, she proposed renting a house in Florida as our Christmas present. How could we say no?
Since Noah is in grade 7, we didn't think it'd be good to pull him out of school for vacation, so we decided to go during March Break. Yes, we realize the highways, restaurants and theme parks will all be busier, be we'll deal with it. At Christmas, March Break seemed eons away. Now it's only a few short days until we hit the road.
Michael and I have driven to Florida almost a dozen times. We use the 24-hour-drive-until-we-get-there strategy, which works for us. We've almost got it down to a science with each person driving two-hour stretches and the passenger navigating, doling out food or sleeping, depending on the time of day. I have to admit, my sense of adventure doesn't mind the drive and tooling down the semi-deserted highways at 4 a.m isn't bad.
My in laws said they'd be game for the long drive, and are being incredibly flexible about the time we leave and the 24-hour trip. It'll be a little cramped with six of us in the van, but we've got the roof rack secured to the top for our luggage, and we're all going into this with a sense of adventure, so I think we'll be okay.
A few weeks ago, Jessie, Michael, the kids and I completed a volunteer opportunity at the Tim Horton's Children's Camp as part of the Disney Give a Day, Get a Day program. This promotion provides anyone who completes a previously-approved volunteer job with a ticket to any Disney park. That Saturday, we cleaned bunkhouses (washed bed frames, dressers, window wells, doors, door frames, windows and light fixtures) to earn our tickets. The kids were awesome, never complaining once. They learned the value of volunteering and earned a fun day at Disney, which saves us over $400.
From the pictures on the Internet, the house we rented looks beautiful. It has four bedrooms (two master suites), a games room, its own pool and a separate hot tub. It's situated in a gated community with an Olympic-sized swimming pool, playground, tennis courts, basketball courts, a 58-seat movie theatre that shows free movies several times a day and a community centre. We'll be located only a few miles from Walt Disney World. It sounds ideal.
The weather in Florida seems to be warming up, despite a cool winter. I'm looking forward to temperatures around 20C and some sunshine. I'm anticipating hot coffee pool side and a few cold ones while sitting in the bubbling hot tub. I've packed music, cards and my credit card for some shopping bargains. We've also packed the laptop so expect a blog or two from the sunny south.
We're physically almost packed, mentally, we're ready to go. Only two more sleeps and we'll be on the road.
Tina
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