Orlando Wedding and Cocoa Beach
Our travel plans worked out that we would be in Florida this month. And Jonnie has a sister who lives in Titusville now, and her daughter just happened to be getting married on Friday, Dec 9th. So, Jonnie and I were able to attend the sealing in the Orlando Temple.
Jonnie and I with Cherie and Sam--
Later on Friday, Marie flew in for the wedding reception that was the next day. It was good for us to get to see her. This was kind of our chance to celebrate Christmas with her. We had invited her to join us for Harry Potter World, which is our Christmas present to the kids, so she was included in that! We are so glad that she could join us, and that we could have these number of days with her.
The kids made her a welcome banner--
pictures drawn by (left to right): Daxton, Colton, (Janson's handwriting), Ryah, and Sierra!
Our present to her was coming to Harry Potter World/Universal Studios with us, and she brought a gift for us--a game that she MADE! Thought it up, created it, and even had it professionally printed! She calls it "Wizard Blizzard"--it was very clever and well done! They had a great time playing it!
Janson and Marie arm wrestling, as one of the challenges in the game--
Wall-sit challenge:
We spent the afternoon hanging out with her at our campsite.
We enjoyed some Christmas lights in neighborhoods that evening.
This one was quite impressive!
Colton and Sierra, sitting on top of our parked car, watching the display--
Colton, Sierra, and Daxton got down and were dancing to the music the lighted house played!
At the reception the next day, Jonnie got a picture with his sisters and dad, who also came to the wedding:
The reception had a fairy tale theme....and they included Scottish kilts and sashes....That was interesting. Not sure how those ended up together, but since our kids are part-Scottish (from my side), they were thrilled about the tartan-sash that Marie passed on to us.... so regal! :)
Before the reception on Saturday, Jonnie and I took the kids to the beach! We headed over to the Canaveral National Seashore, and spent part of the day at Cocoa Beach!
Sierra liked to play in the water left from when the tide was high--
We had a great time playing at the beach!
Cocoa Beach Pier--
It was a beautiful day!
There is something so peaceful and relaxing about watching your kids play and enjoy the ocean--
Colton and Daxton digging away--
Ryah using Janson as a back rest...and Janson being totally cool with that! :)
It was a great time.
We also walked out on the pier, to enjoy the views--
Sierra, our awesome reader, read the "No Smoking" sign and confidently said:
"No Smacking....Hmm." That's true, too!
We watched the surfers out on the waves--
And enjoyed the sunshine--
We went in a shop to check out the magnets. We found one, but the kids were looking at these personalized ones, with names on them. With their not-so-common names, they often have a hard time finding theirs. Colton and Sierra found theirs, Janson and Daxton found their middle names (Kenneth and Tanner), and Ryah found "Ryan"...close! And Colton, the lucky guy, found his first and middle names--Colton Charles! They were pretty pleased.
Our campsite has given us some cool animal sightings!
On Sunday, we attended church at a ward in the Orlando area. Sitting in sacrament meeting, I saw someone we knew from our ward in Kentucky! Aline! What a small world. We didn't even know she lived here now! And there she was....in the sacrament meeting of a random ward we attended!
I sat with her in Relief Society and we got to talk a bit. Then we all got a picture afterwards, with her and her 3 children. So fun!!! Love when the world feels a little smaller....
So....being in the area, we had originally intended to visit the Kennedy Space Center. However, after learning the cost for tickets, and how it would cost our family over $600 to go....we had to let that idea go. Hey, we can't do it all! That will have to be a visit for another time!
We got our tickets already for Harry Potter World (Universal Studios), which included 2 days + 2 more days free! This was a big deal for us. None of the 5 of our kids have ever been to a big theme park. They have been to smaller ones, like the Beech Bend one in Kentucky, or Hurricane Harbor in Phoenix. But, we haven't ever done Disneyland or anything like that with them. So, this is a rare opportunity. We timed it well--old enough to remember it, as we will not be returning again and again.
We are excited. Especially because we have enjoyed the Harry Potter books together. Though I usually wait until my kids are older to read the books to them, I decided to go ahead and read Book 1 to Sierra before this visit. I wanted her to have some background, so she could enjoy the fun along with everyone else. So, I read Book 1 to her (with a little bit of 'editing' on the part that could've been scary for her). She loved it! The fun of magic!
