Our first stop was in Crystal River to visit my parents. Emily had the best time chasing the water fowl, running through the blackberry rows, driving the golf cart and riding the 4wheeler with her Granny and Granddad. It was too cold to fish, but we still had a great time.
Ailill even came with us! We sure did find him in neat places while we were on vacation! Harley, the GBH, was out and friendly. I love taking his photo and I think he likes it too :) I got a bonus too! While I was shooting (photos) Harley, an otter swam by! The photo is a little blurry, but those suckers are fast! I was lucky to get what I did.
I made a collage to sum it up in pics :)
Next, we made the rest of the drive down to Plant City...ahhhhh! So nice to be back in familiar territory. Went to a 1st birthday party in the afternoon (I dont know what Emily enjoyed more....the cake or the animals they have!) and sweet 16 surprise birthday party in the evening, then had a family dinner the next day. It was so good to see so many people in such a short time! Emily enjoyed dancing and the gummy bears from the party...and GG surprised Emily with the disco ball from the night before!!
My aunt and cousins took us to a neat park in Lakeland too...Common Grounds. This park has something for kids of all ages and abilities. It was a little chilly the day we went so we were able to pretty much have the whole place to ourselves. Kika, Matt and I had a blast playing along with the kids. My favorite part was the papasan/hammock/swing. Emily enjoyed all of it, but I think the roller slide was her favorite.
Photography practice with my aunt was fun!! We did a little experimenting with candle photos, bokeh and action shots. Bokeh by far was the most interesting! The end result came out ok (the red hearts pic in the bottom collage), but I've got a lot more practice ahead of me.
We were able to visit my grandparents for awhile too. Emily loves her Papa and GG (Great-Grandma). Emily picked oranges with Papa and visited a bit with the cows. She was intrigued by the cows for sure. She had never been so close to a live one (that I can remember).
Next up was a trip to Christmas Lane in Dover, FL. Very neat Christmas light display and free admission (donations accepted). Emily loved the lights and displays so much, we made 3 trips around :) She wasn't too fond of the train this year, but maybe next year she will understand it a little bit better.
We had lunch with Tiff at Cracker Barrel the next day and then headed back to Crystal River. Had a nice dinner with the parentals, then re-packed our car and left the next morning. We did make a very important stop in Macon, GA---to Bass Pro Shops! Emily sat in Santa's lap and didn't cry at all! I was so proud!!
Another pic collage :) I'll be adding more pics on my facebook over the next week or so. Need to get back in the groove of things first. If I don't post again soon, I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!!
