Renewal Leave - Part Fourteen - Disney Day #1

On Tuesday, Parker, Wesley and I headed for a Disney for a few days. It was so hot that there was a heat advisory!  All my makeup had melted off by the time I got this picture in the first ride line (Tower of Terror). 

Then the boys and I rode the Rock N Roller Coaster (newly themed with Muppets). It was Wesley's first time on the revamped ride. We did the single rider line so we didn't get to sit together but we did save time in line. 

Then we grabbed our new passholder magnets - Kermit the Frog! 

And then for our final ride of the day, we did Rise of the Resistance. Always so impressive! 

We ducked out of the park to go check into our hotel. I got a deal on Bonnet Creek for 2 nights. We ended up with an awesome location in Tower 5, right next to the entrance for the lazy river. 

After cooling off and getting some naps, we headed back out to Disney Springs for some shopping, dinner at D-Luxe burger plus allergy snacks. I finished up the day with some time in the lazy river. 

 

Renewal Leave - Part Thirteen - Sarasota Day

Monday of this week I spent time hanging out in Sarasota as a tourist. First up was Sarasota Jungle Gardens. This is just north of downtown. It's one of those old classic roadside Florida attractions that has been around since the 1930s. It was definitely a blast from the past of the kind of places I visited with my parents and grandparents as a kid. 

This bird is 57 years old! 

I went to the wildlife show and saw a ball python, a grey African parrot and a giant rabbit (I can't remember the breed but it was European). 

There was also a giant Monitor Lizard. 

There were peacocks wandering all around. 

The highlight for me was encountering this flock of flamingos (flamboyance!) and I was able to handfeed some flamingos. Such a cool experience! This is one of only 10 places in the world where you can handfeed flamingos. 

Afterwards, I drove a little south to the downtown campus of Selby Gardens to walk around for a little bit. We are members here. They are in the middle of another expansion but there was still plenty to encounter. 

First Day of Junior Year

Davis was the first one of the kids back to school this year. He started this morning at Riverview High in Sarasota. He took his car and drove himself to school! 

Davis is in their IB Engineering program. His schedule for this year is pretty impressive in terms of academics: IB Language and Literature, Honors Physics, Computer Integrated Management, IB Personal and Professional Skills, AP Precalculus, IB Global Politics 2, and AP US History. 

 

Beach Vacation

We were back at Horizons West on Siesta Key for our family vacation this past week. We took relatively few pictures this beach week and no family pictures. Most of the time we were out and about without our phones, just enjoying ourselves. There was a lot of rain, but a lot of great time for walking and hanging out in the pool. 

This is the ice cream truck on the water. It went up and down all week long. 

And our final morning. So beautiful.