Key Largo Trip As Told By Daddy (Plus Pearl's First Disney Visit)

So, Nana and Bumpa came down to Florida for a visit last week all the way from Northern Michigan. It was nice for them to be a little warmer for a week, and of course it was super nice to visit with the little monkey (Pearl). They arrived on Friday and on Saturday they came to our house to see Pearl for the first time since November, oh how much she had changed in that time. Pearl was not complaining at all having more people to tell her that she is a beautiful, smart, and well adjusted little lady. Of course Nana and Bumpa brought presents for Pearl, some clothes and a couple of toys, because that's what grandparents are supposed to do. On Monday we loaded up the car and drove down to Key Largo, aside from a little grumpy/hungry crying from Miss Pearl, she did outstanding on the 4.5 hour trip in the car. We got to Key Largo to our hotel "Sunset Cove" and did a little exploring and went out to dinner at an Italian restaurant which was quite tasty indeed, Pearl had her own food that we brought with us (I can't wait until I get to have Pearl try all kinds of foods, I am a Chef after all). Tuesday was a nice relaxing day of swimming and grilling later on in the evening. Nana bought Pearl a little boat for her to float around in the water, Pearl absolutely loved playing in it. I don't know if it was the cute little swim outfit complete with hat AND sunglasses, the nifty boat, the uber cuteness of little Miss Pearl, or a combination of the 3 but she certainly was the talk of the hotel, how rough to be told how cute you are everywhere you go. Wednesday, we all piled in the car to go down to Key West and had lunch and walked around a little, we only stayed for a couple of hours. Nana and Bumpa went to Hemingway's house and I went to the top of the lighthouse and then we headed back to Key Largo. We stopped on the way for some scallops, shrimp, and a few other things for dinner that evening. Thursday, we went out on a catamaran sailboat to go snorkeling on the coral reef. Mommy and I swam out to the coral together and looked around and saw lots of fishes and what not. Went back to the boat and mommy fell asleep and Pearl played with Nana. Little Miss Pearl got all kinds of compliments on the boat including one from the Captain who said she was the best behaved baby they ever had on the boat. Back on dry land we went back to the hotel had some sammies, relaxed a little bit, and Mommy and I packed up for our journey back to Orlando. The trip back was a little bit more rough for Miss Pearl, but once she fell asleep it was smooth sailing. We got home not too late and everyone went to sleep, we were all quite tired. It was a very nice time and I am glad we were all able to go down to the Keys together. Nana and Bumpa live so far away so it's a nice when they can get here to see Miss Pearl (and us too!). I wish they lived closer so they could be around more, and I am sure they do as well.







Yesterday was another really big event, it even made Mommy and I a little misty more than a couple of times. Pearl, Mommy, Mimsy, and I all went to Disney for the day, my friend Mike that works there was a great guy and got us all in for free (even free parking, woot!). We went to Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and the "park formerly known as" MGM. We missed the Magic Kingdom, so we'll have to go back again real soon. Pearl was amazing at Disney, she did so well, she slept a little and when she was awake she just looked around with big eyes and the "ooooh" face. I never imagined being at Disney with my own child, it certainly makes me misty thinking about it. We didn't ride many rides as the parks were quite busy, and we always try to do too much in one day. Next time we go we are going to do ONE (may be 2) and ONLY ONE park, that way we get to see more and do more of the park. At Epcot: Mimsy and I rode on "Soarin" thanks to 2 fast pass giving strangers. Mommy, Mimsy, and Pearl rode on "Living With The Land" boat ride while it was my turn on "Soarin". Finally, Mommy, Mimsy, Pearl, and I all went on "Journey Into Imagination With Figment" which I havn't been on since I was a little guy (my oh my, how it has changed since then!). At Animal Kingdom: I rode on "Expedition Everest" while Miss Pearl ate some lunch with Mommy and Mimsy. We all saw a little parade on our way out of the park which was quite cool looking actually. At Hollywood Studios (The park formerly known as MGM): We were quite hungry so we decided dinner was first on the list. Mommy and I took Mimsy and Pearl to our favorite place to eat in all the parks the "50's Prime Time Café". After dinner Mommy and I took a ride on "The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror", checked in with Mimsy and Pearl and ran over for a spin on the "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster". On the way out we got embroidered ears for the whole family, that I have to return and have them change actually. I got pink ears for Mommy and Pearl, 2 different sizes, they put the wrong name on the wrong ears. We were all just so tired, I didn't really feel like waiting another half hour for them to fix their error (luckily we live "close" by and I can go get them fixed soon).

I made a short film from the video I captured while we were in Key Largo, there is a little of everything in it. I must warn you that at the end of the film there is a live lobster being made into dinner, it's a little graphic and could be upsetting for some viewers. If you wish to skip that part just stop the playback when you see me sharpening my knife, enjoy!!!