Boogie Boarding and Universal Studios

So after several attempts at posting some vacation pictures on Myspace and my blog, I have finally given up. Mental Note: check on my Snapfish account...

One of the great things about Cocoa beach is the miles of surf shops with super cheap beach goodies. We have had quite a good time on our $4.77 boogie boards. Other than a header into the shore, I think I am getting pretty good. Rye on the other hand has gone into early retirement after her header. We suspect she'll get back out there, because she is the best boarder among us.

On Monday, we had a blast at Universal Studios! We only waited in one long line (Jimmy Neutron) for 45 minutes. The rest of the rides we practically walked on! Other than a screaming Ryely on Jaws, all of us had a great time playing like we were 5 again.

Otherwise we've played with some wild animals and had an awesome dinner at The Rainforest Cafe at Downtown Disney with Brian, Dawnette and family (pictures to come soon).

Right now, we are waiting for something to happen at Cape Canaveral. We have a great view of the launch pad from our balcony, and everyone on the beach is standing in place with eyes glued to NASA. Soon we will be hitting the beach ourselves for one last day in the sun. Better start working the sunblock! Other than Todd's fiery red back, we did pretty well with keeping the burns at bay. I'd like to keep it that way- so I'm gonna go find the SPF 30!

Cocoa Beach

The weekend started off a little crazy.

Todd and I rolled out of bed at 5:00 am yesterday and started stocking up the coolers and the Element with the help of a 5 year old. Rye and I had to go work with Todd so we could leave for the beach right away. As soon as the Why Weight? Show was over at 10:00, we jumped in the car and headed to Florida. We made awesome time- and without Todd speeding. We arrived at the Orlando airport just as my mother was stepping out of the baggage area. She climbed into the Element next to Rye and we were off!

45 minutes later we pulled into a somewhat sketchy looking resort. We held our breath as we found our way to our condo for the week. When we stepped into the room, I let out a tremendous sigh of relief as Todd anxiously inquired from the hall: "How is it?" The condo is absolutely adorable with an amazing view of the beach.

We unpacked and stocked the kitchen while Rye showed my Mom pictures from Greyson's birthday party. I heated up some turkey chili for us to dine on before climbing into bed for the evening. It had been a long day and we wanted to be ready for another one- on the beach.

When we woke up this morning, the sun was shining and the blue ocean was calling us. We sat on the balcony in our jammies while the coffee brewed and Todd assessed where the cruise ships were. After some blueberry pancakes, we threw on our suits and hit the beach. The water was perfect, so we swam for quite awhile, but of course there was still time to search for seashells and build a sandcastle!

Now we are back at the condo and everyone is sound asleep. It is so nice to be here together with my Mom. Ryely is super-excited to have her here as are Todd and I. It is so funny to see a five year old with more excitement than her little body can contain. She is practically running in circles and is literally climbing all over Mom. She loves the beach and relishes every wave that knocks her over. Todd enjoys pointing out the odd looking people and tracking the cruise ships. Mom loves taking her walks and enjoying the sun. I love it all, and am so thrilled that this is only the first day. We still have a whole afternoon to enjoy in the surf today, and a day of fun at Universal Studios later this week. For now, I will just relax and listen to the ocean and quietly wait for everyone to wake up...