Friday, February 26th.
Our original plan was that I would leave work at 2pm and as soon as school was out, we'd hit the road, with the hope that we could get to Alyssa's around dinnertime (barring too much traffic). A few days before Friday, though, the weather report turned ominous. Another freaking snow storm was on the way! It looked as though it was going to start snowing on Thursday afternoon and continue right into Saturday morning. I'll be honest - I was not a happy girl. Frustrated and tense are putting it mildly. We tried to formulate a Plan B and decided that in the worst case scenario, we could leave NJ early, early, early on Saturday morning and drive through to Savannah in one day. It wouldn't be ideal, but it would put us back on track as far as our schedule of reservations.
Anyway, it turns out the snow came earlier than predicted and the girls and I ended up with snow days on both Thursday and Friday. I spent Thursday packing and as soon as the snow stopped (noon on Friday), we were out of there! We made it down to Maryland by about 4pm and enjoyed some extra time hanging out and relaxing with Alyssa, Jim and Kayleigh. So, it really worked out better than the original plan and we felt we lucked out (this would become a recurring theme on this trip).
More than a little excited about the trip!
Saturday, February 27th
At 3:30a.m., the alarm sounded and Evan and I got up, put the overnight bag in the car, drank a cup of coffee...tried to stay positive despite the fact that it was, yet again, SNOWING...briefly debated waiting for the snow to stop before leaving...then decided just to go for it. We picked up the sleeping girls, loaded them in the car and by 4am, it was official...we were on our way and on vacation!
The drive down to Savannah (10 hours) went so much better than I could have hoped for. It was so peaceful to be on the road at that hour. We made incredible time and I guess we were both too amped up about the trip to feel sleepy. The girls slept until 8:00 and we stopped for breakfast by 8:30 in Weldon, NC. It was there that I got to introduce Evan to the wonder of Waffle House. I hadn't been to one since my days of traveling to Charlotte for CogArts (1998), but it was as good as I remembered. Evan was leery of stopping there but three bites in, he was sold.
We stopped again at around 1pm for a late picnic lunch somewhere in South Carolina. The weather was warm and the girls were happy to get out and run around for a bit. A last little stretch in the car and we pulled up to our hotel in Savannah at 2:55 (for a 3pm check-in...nice timing, right?). The girls wanted to hit the indoor pool, but we convinced them that there would be time for that later...Evan and I were determined to make the most of our one afternoon/evening in Savannah. So we headed out to explore. What a beautiful city! I can't even really describe the ... aura (?) that emits from that place. Very seductive. I stupidly didn't bring my camera, but I don't think photos can accurately convey the beauty of that place.
Our first stop was at Moon River Brewing Co., where we ordered apps and beer and toasted our first night of vacation. We then walked along the river walk, popping in and out of shops and admiring the enormous cargo ships that came up the river. I had my heart set on eating at a place I had read about and we took a liesurely walk through the city to get there, only to find it closed until the next week. :( We decided we'd just walk around until we found something, or if all else failed, return to Moon River. On our walk back, we came across a restuarant that had been recommended to us by my parents and decided to give it a try. It was fabulous. Evan and I weren't terribly hungry, given the appetizers and beer we'd had only and hour or two before, so we ordered the girls dinners and shared an appetizer between us. I also had a really yummy 'peartini' there.
The drinks, the fresh air, the walk all on top of being awake since 3:30am finally caught up to us and we headed back to the hotel at around 8. Since we had promised the girls a dip in the pool, we headed down there and gave them 20 minutes. Then, it was up to bed. I'm sure I was asleep before my head hit the pillow and I imagine everyone else followed suit instantly.
At 3:30a.m., the alarm sounded and Evan and I got up, put the overnight bag in the car, drank a cup of coffee...tried to stay positive despite the fact that it was, yet again, SNOWING...briefly debated waiting for the snow to stop before leaving...then decided just to go for it. We picked up the sleeping girls, loaded them in the car and by 4am, it was official...we were on our way and on vacation!
The drive down to Savannah (10 hours) went so much better than I could have hoped for. It was so peaceful to be on the road at that hour. We made incredible time and I guess we were both too amped up about the trip to feel sleepy. The girls slept until 8:00 and we stopped for breakfast by 8:30 in Weldon, NC. It was there that I got to introduce Evan to the wonder of Waffle House. I hadn't been to one since my days of traveling to Charlotte for CogArts (1998), but it was as good as I remembered. Evan was leery of stopping there but three bites in, he was sold.
We stopped again at around 1pm for a late picnic lunch somewhere in South Carolina. The weather was warm and the girls were happy to get out and run around for a bit. A last little stretch in the car and we pulled up to our hotel in Savannah at 2:55 (for a 3pm check-in...nice timing, right?). The girls wanted to hit the indoor pool, but we convinced them that there would be time for that later...Evan and I were determined to make the most of our one afternoon/evening in Savannah. So we headed out to explore. What a beautiful city! I can't even really describe the ... aura (?) that emits from that place. Very seductive. I stupidly didn't bring my camera, but I don't think photos can accurately convey the beauty of that place.
Our first stop was at Moon River Brewing Co., where we ordered apps and beer and toasted our first night of vacation. We then walked along the river walk, popping in and out of shops and admiring the enormous cargo ships that came up the river. I had my heart set on eating at a place I had read about and we took a liesurely walk through the city to get there, only to find it closed until the next week. :( We decided we'd just walk around until we found something, or if all else failed, return to Moon River. On our walk back, we came across a restuarant that had been recommended to us by my parents and decided to give it a try. It was fabulous. Evan and I weren't terribly hungry, given the appetizers and beer we'd had only and hour or two before, so we ordered the girls dinners and shared an appetizer between us. I also had a really yummy 'peartini' there.
The drinks, the fresh air, the walk all on top of being awake since 3:30am finally caught up to us and we headed back to the hotel at around 8. Since we had promised the girls a dip in the pool, we headed down there and gave them 20 minutes. Then, it was up to bed. I'm sure I was asleep before my head hit the pillow and I imagine everyone else followed suit instantly.
Sunday, February 28th
Sunday morning we got up around 8, showered, loaded up on breakfast and headed out. We were going to make a short stop in Jacksonville to visit my cousins and hoped to roll in to Disney by mid afternoon. After being in the car all day on Saturday, it was a little hard to do it again so soon, and the relatively short drive to Jax (2.5 hours) seemed longer than it should have, I suppose. We had a nice visit/lunch with Phil and Leslie and family and were back on the road by 12:30. The two hour drive from Jax to Orlando was smooth and the kids were so keyed up and excited that they found everything (look! dead armadillos on the side of the road!) fascinating. We pulled in to our hotel at 3pm sharp and happily said goodbye to our car for the next few days. We spent our first afternoon hanging by the hotel pool. It was not exactly warm, but that didn't stop the girls from going in. I knew that the next day was supposed to be considerably warmer, so I was able to get out of swimming by swearing to them I'd go in the next day. So, without me there to hold her, Eden had to develop some bravery about the water pretty quickly, and the result is that she seemed to grow fins.
The girls spent the rest of the afternoon in the pool, while Evan and I enjoyed drinks, poolside. That night, we explored the boardwalk area. We had dinner there, then strolled around enjoying the various 'street' performers. We even rented a surrey bike and rode the girls around, somewhat drunkenly (us, not the girls). Lots of giggles ensued. I knew we had a big day ahead of us, and I was determined that we were going to make it to EPCOT for rope drop (9am), so by 9pm, I had hustled us back to our room and in to bed. We all went to bed happy to finally be there, and excited for the next day. For the 2nd night in a row, I think I was asleep first and only moments after lights out.
Monday, March 1
The alarm went off at 7am and I sprung out of bed. We were all up, dressed, breakfasted and ready to go by 8:20 - a record for us, for sure. We were on the ferry to the park by 8:30.
And waiting for the park to officially open by 8:45.
We had debated whether or not it was necessary to rent a stroller for Eden. After all, she hadn't used one since her naps at the beach last summer. In the end, we decided $15 was more than a fair price to pay for not having to carry an exhausted child around. I'm so glad we did! She ended up riding in it a lot, as the park is big and we covered a lot of ground.
Our first stop was Soarin'. I had been dying to go on this ride ever since we planned on returning to Disney, and had, in fact, added EPCOT to our itinerary for just this purpose. The ride did not dissappoint. I'm not even really a 'ride' person but this experience is phenomenal. Evan and the girls loved it, too, and we ended up riding it again later in the day.
The crowds at the park were minimal and we ended up riding everything we wanted to in Future World with no wait. After lunch, we stopped at the character greeting area so the girls could meet some friends...
...and then walked back to the hotel to take advantage of the warm weather. After all, a pool and a poolside bar were calling our names! Plus, the night before, as I was putting the girls to bed, I asked Eden what her favorite part of the day had been. "Going down the water slide," she replied, "which I will do tomorrow!" So, she was on a mission. I don't think it is an exaggeration to say those girls went down that thing a dozen times each. Who are these brave girls????
That slide is HIGH!!!!
We headed back to the park at 5. This time, we focused on the World Showcase. We loved exploring all of the different countries, and especially loved the boat ride in Mexico.
Sadie did not love the ride in Norway (Maelstrom), but that was the only ride she was really afraid of during the entire trip - a very different experience from the last time we were here! We had a late dinner in Germany at Biergarten (fun!), then ended the night watching Illuminations, which was spectacular.
We were back to the room, exhausted but kind of high from the whole day by 9:45. We felt so lucky to have had such a hassle-free, fun day...one where everything seemed to work out just as it should. We looked at the weather report for the next day and saw the prediction for rain. The girls got anxious that we couldn't go to Magic Kingdom in the rain. "Don't worry," we assured them, "we brough rain ponchos and rain just means the crowds will be smaller. We're still going." I went to bed, content about the day we'd just had, but secretly anxious myself about the day to come. Would we still go in the rain? And even if we did, how could we top the amazing day we'd just had?
Tuesday, March 2nd
At 6am, I was awaked by thunderclaps and realized it was torrentially raining outside. My heart sank. Rain poncho or not, we couldn't go to the park in this weather. Aside from the dissapointment of not going, I couldn't help but think about the non-refundable money I had just shelled out on tickets only a day before (note to self: never, EVER, buy tix in advance. I thought I was being smart by not buying the tix before we arrived, but in hindsight, we could/should have just purchased them when we arrived at the park.) I started trying to devise a backup plan in my head. Maybe we could stop through Orlando on our way back up from Sanibel and use our day 2 tickets. This would push back our arrival in Athens, though, and once I whispered the idea to Evan, he quickly shot it down. I decided to take a shower and clear my head and readjust my attitude before the girls woke up, so I could present a positive spin on things, if necessary.
When I stepped out of the shower, the rain has quieted down, and, after looking at the weather channel, we decided it looked like we had maybe a three hour window before it started again and that we'd better get moving. We quickly woke the girls, ate, dressed and packed up our belongings (we were checking out) and were in the lobby waiting for Evan to pull around with the car by 8:30. By 8:45 as we pulled in to the parking lot, the clouds had dissappeared and the sun was shining. We couldn't believe our luck. These things usually don't happen for us!
In addition to the luck of weather changing, it seems that for whatever reason (time of year? day of week? weather forecast? who knows...?) everyone stayed away from Magic Kingdom that day. Seriously, the park was empty. We walked on to every single ride (some, multiple times). I had gotten Fast Passes for Big Thunder Mountain and we never needed to redeem them. In fact, most attractions didn't even have their FP machines available. Sadie overcame her fears and rode Pirates of the Carribbean, Big Thunder Mountain, Stitch's Great Escape (all things she was terrified of last year), and Eden...well, what can I say about her...she's a daredevil, for sure. The scarier the ride sounded, the more she wanted to go on it, though, we did have to find the emergency exit at the Haunted Mansion (another story for another time). The only wait we had anywhere in the entire park the whole day was about 20 minutes to meet Ariel. Last year, we waited over an hour (much to my aggravation) for this. I can't overstate how perfect the experience at MK was. I'm certain I'm ruined for future trips, as not waiting for anything is unheard of.
We had originally planned to stay as long as the weather held out, but by 2pm, we had done everything we were hoping/planning to do, and instead of hanging around for the 3pm parade, we decided to hit the road for Sanibel. Left to my own devices, I think I would have stuck around for the parade, as I remembered what a thrill it was for the girls last year, but Evan seemed itchy to go and in the spirit of just going with the flow, I agreed. The girls seemed wiped out and made no objection to leaving, so before we knew it, we were back on the road, this time headed for South Florida. We left on such a high, thankful for our luck in having a non-rainy, empty day at the park, when earlier in the morning, it had seemed as though we weren't going to have any day there at all!
I should note that a couple of days later (in Athens, GA, actually), it occurred to Eden that we never saw the parade, and she was not too happy about that! Oh well, an excuse for a return trip someday, I suppose...
The drive to Sanibel went smoothly. Both kids konked out and slept much of the way there. We crossed over the causeway bridge and arrived on the island around 5:30pm. We checked in to our hotel...
Right on the beach!
Wednesday and Thurday, March 3 and 4
We woke to a somewhat sunny day, which was good. However, we quickly learned that the sun and even the temperature don't matter much when there is a strong, steady WIND blowing off the gulf. That wind blew the entire time we were there, only subsiding the night we left (grrr....!). We explored the island, the nature preserve, rented bikes and rode around, walked on the beaches (which were teeming with the most incredible shells and live creatures) and the girls swam in the pool (not me!). We tried to make the best of it, but the truth be told, it just isn't that thrilling to be on a beach vacation when it is too chilly to really enjoy the beach. The big dissappointment of the trip was learning that the dolphin cruise we were booked on was cancelled due to rough seas. :(
It is ironic because the whole trip was centered around going to Sanibel and yet, after the excitement and fun of Savannah and Disney, that part of the trip fell flat. I learned two important things, though. 1) I will never again plan a vacation to a place that is solely dependent upon good weather. It ended up being fine for the 2 1/2 days we were there, but it would have been a disaster of a vacation if we had planned an entire week there. 2) As wonderful as the idea of a beach vacation sounds, I realize that we are really more of an 'active' family. Maybe it is because we have the beach here whenever we want it, but I think that even if we'd had 'beach' weather, our two days there would have been enough. By Thursday evening, I think we were all looking forward to moving on to the next adventure. We did enjoy a last dinner out at an exceptionally good restaurant then headed back to the hotel to pack up and get ready for another middle of the night departure. We had a long drive ahead of us, and Evan and I planned to wake at 3:30 and repeat the routine from the trip down. We were all asleep by about 9:30, I think.
Unfortunately, I didn't stay asleep. That afternoon, I had felt a sore throat coming on and though I did my best to ignore it, by midnight it was obvious I'd been hit with a head cold. Sleep was impossible for me, and, by extension, for Evan. Finally, at 2:30am, we decided that rather than lying in bed waiting for 4am to arrive so we could leave, why not just leave now? So, crazy as it sounds, we brewed a pot of coffee, loaded up the car and were on the road by about 2:45am. Ironically, as I stepped out on to the balcony to collect Eden's swim vest, I noted that the winds had dissappeared and the ocean and sky were the calmest they'd been our entire visit. Even the temperature seemed warmer. I'm certain that Friday probably blossomed into one of those perfect beach days, but oh well...we were ready to move on.
Friday March 5
I drove for the first few hours, then slept for a couple while Evan did. I woke up in way north Florida around 8am. I looked and felt like a zombie, as this ended up being the worst day of my cold (the lack of real sleep probably didn't help). The drive day went smoothly once again, following much the same pattern as the ride to Savannah. We rolled in to Athens at around 3.
It was so great to see Paul and Megan (and Sophie). We all picked up like we'd just seen eachother the day before. Good friends are like that, I guess. We had a mellow afternoon and evening. Paul cooked us a beautiful dinner and as soon as I got the girls to sleep, I took a hefty dose of NyQuil and put my sorry ass to bed.
Saturday March 6th
Saturday dawned a gorgeous, sunny, warm day. Warmer than in south Florida! I'd had a great night of sleep, my cold seemed to have turned a corner and best of all, it was my birthday! What better way to celebrate your birthday than by being on vacation?!?! It was also neat to get phone calls and Facebook messages with birthday wishes from people near and dear. Gotta love technology.
After breakfast, we headed out on a walk into downtown Athens. Athens is a great little college city. It reminds me of a cross between Eugene and Denver. Lots of funky shops and a beautiful university right in the center of town. We had a nice lunch out at a cute diner where I tried (and loved) a Georgia specialty: fried pickles! So delicious, I'm definitely going to
We got back to Paul's at around 2 and the rest of the afternoon was spent hanging out in the yard, shucking oysters and drinking beer. Low country living for sure! A great, relaxing way to spend my birthday. My memory of settling down for the night is a bit fuzzy (must have been all those oysters!) but next thing I knew, it was time to get up and face our last, epic day of driving.
Sunday March 7
We rolled out of Athens right on time (4am) and sped through Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina before the girls woke. We stopped for breakfast just over the Virginia border. "Virginia," I thought, "that's one of those close to Maryland states...I think we were through the whole state in four hours on the way down. We're really cruising on this drive." Ha! Who knew that Virginia, especially when approached from the very southwestern corner, is a very. big. state.?!?!? Lots of people, I'm sure, but not me. It was a long day of driving. I knew that the trip home would be harder than the trip down (isn't that always the way), and it was.
For the amount of time the girls spent in the car over the 10 day trip, they did amazingly well. But somewhere around noon on Sunday, when we still had another 2-3 hours ahead of us, I think we all were just ready to be done. At this point, Evan had caught my cold and was feeling miserable.
So, we arrived at Alyssa's (where it all began!) at around...wait for it...3pm! Alyssa made us a fabulous dinner ( I believe Eden declared the steak 'the goodest ever') and we all had an early bedtime. The trip was essentially over at this point, and it was just a matter of getting up and driving home on Monday.
Monday March 8
We pulled into our driveway at noon on Monday, thrilled to be home and just as thrilled to see that all of the snow that had blanketed our yard for a month was GONE! The sun was out, the air was warm, the birds were singing...it was like we had brought spring home with us. The girls ran around the house squealing, "my room! my tv! my couch!" and I unpacked, cleaned out the car, did laundry and basically got ourselves in order. I'm glad we had the better part of the day to do those things, as since we've been back it has been like being thrown right back onto the merry-go-round of busy, daily, life.
All in all, it was a fantastic trip - perhaps the best I've ever experienced. I loved the adventure of driving, of getting up in the night and driving and driving and arriving in a different part of the country. It definitely appealed to my hidden adventurer side.
I loved all of the different experiences we had, and I'm so thrilled to have had them as a family. I'm certain I've never been so relaxed and content on a vacation in my life. My usual M.O. is to have rigid expectations and plans and set myself (or others) up for dissappointment or frustration. There was none of that this time. I really set myself up to just go with the flow, and to model that for the kids. Every morning before we headed out on the day's adventure, I would ask each of the girls and Evan what was their hope or priority for the day - the one thing they really wanted to do that day. I would then tell them mine. Then, we made a point each day of making our best effort to hit them. Some days we had very specific priorities (riding Soarin', swimming in the pool) and some days were more general (explore, relax, eat at a fancy restaurant). This really worked well, because I think it left everyone feeling like their desires were being fulfilled, and it also forced each of us to consider what was important to us that day. This is definitely a strategy we'll employ on future vacations (and yes, we're already talking about where we'll go next year. and yes, we'd even do another driving vacation, if the destination allowed for it).
So, all in all, a fabulous time and a wonderful start to 2010.
Sunday March 7
We rolled out of Athens right on time (4am) and sped through Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina before the girls woke. We stopped for breakfast just over the Virginia border. "Virginia," I thought, "that's one of those close to Maryland states...I think we were through the whole state in four hours on the way down. We're really cruising on this drive." Ha! Who knew that Virginia, especially when approached from the very southwestern corner, is a very. big. state.?!?!? Lots of people, I'm sure, but not me. It was a long day of driving. I knew that the trip home would be harder than the trip down (isn't that always the way), and it was.
For the amount of time the girls spent in the car over the 10 day trip, they did amazingly well. But somewhere around noon on Sunday, when we still had another 2-3 hours ahead of us, I think we all were just ready to be done. At this point, Evan had caught my cold and was feeling miserable.
So, we arrived at Alyssa's (where it all began!) at around...wait for it...3pm! Alyssa made us a fabulous dinner ( I believe Eden declared the steak 'the goodest ever') and we all had an early bedtime. The trip was essentially over at this point, and it was just a matter of getting up and driving home on Monday.
Monday March 8
We pulled into our driveway at noon on Monday, thrilled to be home and just as thrilled to see that all of the snow that had blanketed our yard for a month was GONE! The sun was out, the air was warm, the birds were singing...it was like we had brought spring home with us. The girls ran around the house squealing, "my room! my tv! my couch!" and I unpacked, cleaned out the car, did laundry and basically got ourselves in order. I'm glad we had the better part of the day to do those things, as since we've been back it has been like being thrown right back onto the merry-go-round of busy, daily, life.
All in all, it was a fantastic trip - perhaps the best I've ever experienced. I loved the adventure of driving, of getting up in the night and driving and driving and arriving in a different part of the country. It definitely appealed to my hidden adventurer side.
I loved all of the different experiences we had, and I'm so thrilled to have had them as a family. I'm certain I've never been so relaxed and content on a vacation in my life. My usual M.O. is to have rigid expectations and plans and set myself (or others) up for dissappointment or frustration. There was none of that this time. I really set myself up to just go with the flow, and to model that for the kids. Every morning before we headed out on the day's adventure, I would ask each of the girls and Evan what was their hope or priority for the day - the one thing they really wanted to do that day. I would then tell them mine. Then, we made a point each day of making our best effort to hit them. Some days we had very specific priorities (riding Soarin', swimming in the pool) and some days were more general (explore, relax, eat at a fancy restaurant). This really worked well, because I think it left everyone feeling like their desires were being fulfilled, and it also forced each of us to consider what was important to us that day. This is definitely a strategy we'll employ on future vacations (and yes, we're already talking about where we'll go next year. and yes, we'd even do another driving vacation, if the destination allowed for it).
So, all in all, a fabulous time and a wonderful start to 2010.
