On Monday, we flew down to Fort Lauderdale, had lunch at a little Greek place, checked in to the hotel, had some free happy hour cocktails, and then headed over to Miami to see Grammy, Auntie Linda, and Drex. We spent a few hours catching up with our family and relaxing. It had been many years since I had seen all of them, and even more years since I had been to the house, so it was really awesome to be able to do that. I also got to meet their bird, Rusty, who is awesome and has a HUGE vocabulary, and sings Take Me Out to the Ballgame - awesome. Then Dad and I had dinner at the hotel restaurant, and went to sleep.
On Tuesday, we woke up earlyish to catch the free hotel breakfast (always about the food with me! haha) then drove to the indoor flea market to see if there were any good deals, as the weather was a bit cloudy. It started to get nice out, so we headed back to the hotel to go to the pool and relax and read. It was beautiful out, although a little hot. We took shelter in the shade for lunch, then I did a quick run and we got ready to head back to Miami. This time I brought our wedding photos to show Grammy, as well as our pictures from CO. It was fun, but a little sad because Grammy's memory isn't quite what it used to be. Auntie Margaret and Uncle Milford came over for dinner, and brought over some delicious homemade sauce & meatballs and lasagna. It was fun to spend time with everyone!
On Wednesday, we got up early again for breakfast, got ready and headed out to Hollywood Beach. The beach is beautiful and has a really nice boardwalk for walking, biking, and running. It also has lots of restaurants and shops. We decided to rent some lounge chairs and just relaxed on the beach. It was such a gorgeous day, and the breeze made it so comfortable to sit out for hours! I didn't go in the ocean, b/c the tides were crazy and there was warnings of "dangerous marine life", but I did stick my toes in! We then headed to South Beach in Miami, and had the most gigantic Mojitos I have ever had in my life! Lunch was delicious, and I had such an awesome time sitting and chatting with my dad for a while. We then walked around a bit, and then headed to my Grammy's house again. At Grammy's I got to see a friend that I used to play with when I was a kid, and it was fun to catch up with her 20 years later! It was sad to say goodbye to Grammy, because I'm not sure when I will see her again, but this trip made me realize how much I miss that sweet lady - so hopefully it won't be long! After we headed back to the hotel, and had dinner at this amazing Irish pub across the street. I swear, everyone in the place was actually from Ireland, and the food was delicious!
On Thursday, we got up and had breakfast and relaxed by the pool for a bit before we got ready to leave. We then took a drive to Fort Lauderdale beach, and then had a quick bite at the German place my dad had been eyeing all week. Then it was off to the airport to head home.
It was really a wonderful trip - I was so happy to see my Grammy and family in Florida, and also get to hang out with my dad. I learned a lot about his childhood, and other parts of my family's life that I didn't know before. I loved it :) It was a great way to spend my spring break!
Grammy's house in Miami
Grammy and I
Auntie Margaret and Uncle Milford
Auntie Linda and Grammy
Hollywood Beach
Dad and Mojitos
Me and Mojitos
Me in South Beach
