Returning Home

We had an awesome time on our vacation, but there is still nothing better than returning home. The feeling of sleeping in your own bed is perhaps one of the best parts of returning home, but at the top of the list must also include looking forward to seeing our happy cats (who are loving us to death today), getting to see friends and neighbors, and relaxing in my own comfortable seat and showering in my own shower after mowing knee high grass. OK, the last one included one thing that isn't exactly something I looked forward to.
Daytona Beach sunrise
I thought I would share some highlights of our trip:

  • Spending three days at Disney (four if you count Downtown Disney for one evening) as we celebrated our 20th Anniversary was incredible. There is a reason they call it the Happiest Place on Earth, but I doubt it is because of the many crying children in the afternoon and evenings after a day of overstimulation.
  • Waking up on the beach in sunny Florida for 6 days in a row, lounging in the pool and hottub, taking long walks on the beach, and spending lots of quality time with my family.
  • Having a bunch of teenagers you just met tell you that you look about 30 is something that money cannot buy. Of course, I am sure that after playing Whiffle Ball with me they changed their opinion about my age. Fortunately, I only had to run the bases a couple times because I kept hitting low pitches and popping out. Whiffle Ball does have the right name since it is the exact sound that your bat makes when you swing and miss (WHIFF).
  • Watching our teens interact with teens they have never met was very heartwarming. They did a great job of including others regardless of age or skills. They all did a great job of pretending they could not tackle a four year old boy while they played football. The boys' favorite game was nighttime hide and seek. The first night ended with them all running to tell us there was a hobo on the ramp leading down to the beach.
  • Listening to all of these teens share stories about their towns and schools was also fun. They each told our boys that they wish they could be homeschooled, except one girl who said her parents threaten her with homeschooling if she misbehaves in school. We told her that we threaten our boys with public school if they do not cooperate.
  • Spending time with my 75 year old parents was also great. We got to celebrate their 53rd wedding anniversary with them (a few weeks late).

Well, the rest time is almost at an end and I am preparing to hit the ground running on Monday.

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