Summer Recap

Today marks the beginning of a new school year, and in a sense, the end of summer.  As I enjoy the peace and quiet of having the house to myself for the first time since May, I'm compelled to look back (and share) some photos of the terrific summer we had!

It all started with a terrific trip to Colorado to see my brother graduate law school.

It was also wonderful to be able to revisit many of the places we visited as kids.  Colorado was our typical vacation destination growing up, so we took the opportunity to stay in Colorado Springs and take our kids to the places that held such good memories for me.

...such as the Pueblo Cliff Dwellings!

...and Garden of the Gods (where Dax and I got to celebrate Dax and Melanie Love Each Other Day!).

...but mostly we got to spend time with family.  I love my siblings!

Back home in Florida, we prepared to a summer full of visitors!  First out were my good friend, Sarah, and her lovely daughter, Lily.  With them, we made it to Disney World for the first time!

Following her, was Linda and Mackenzie's second visit of the year!  (3rd if you count the time they were here visiting Dax before the kids and I ever got moved to Orlando!)

We went to Gatorland, which is a must-see Florida attraction!  My kids have been to LegoLand, Disney's Animal Kingdom, Disney's Magic Kingdom, and Gatorland, and Gatorland is their hands-down favorite!  (and for the $10/person ticket price for Florida residents, we'll definitely be making several return trips!)

And we got to experience our first Fourth of July at the beautiful Lake Eola in downtown Orlando...

As the Linda and Knz were leaving, my brother came to take over the role of houseguest.  He stayed with us for three weeks and it was a really, nice, low-key visit where we did things like multiple beach trips...

and Dax got to enlist Evan to help him build a loft for Mazzy.

Finally, the last trip of the summer was mine alone.  I went back to Missouri for a few days to celebrate my amazing Grandma's 99th birthday!  While I was there, I got to spend a lot of fun, quality time with the sibs (especially during the dance party at Gina and Jason's!)...

...and I got to see Sarah again too!

I went to a casino for the very first time....(that's a pic of the INSIDE!)

....where I lost $27 while Gina won over $100.

But like I said, the trip was about my Grandma.  It was so wonderful seeing her!  She's doing so well, and I know she's getting up there, but I'm counting on a lot of years with her still!  She said to me, "Aunt Eliza died in the spring at 106.  Do you think I can beat her?"  Heck yeah, Grandma!  I do!

Busy busy summer!  I'm looking forward to a great autumn!  We already have company scheduled for September (Sarah's coming back!  Yay!) and two trips in October.  For today though, now that I've done my reminiscing, I'm going to take advantage of the quiet and take a nap!