.a plane ride, and then some.

Phew....I have a lot to get to so lets just get to it.  Florida, Roy's little piece of earth.  We decided to get ourselves on a plane while Finn still flew free to see Roy's fam, and to feel REAL heat.  I made lists and double checked websites for any advice for flying with toddlers so I felt ok about the flight, and for the most part Finn did really well even if he only slept 30 minutes.

The blue painters tape was something I read was a good toy to keep kids entertained...it worked pretty good.

We splurged on our rental car and got the GPS.  All I can say about that is LIFESAVER!  It was nice to not stress about how to get around on the strange roads of Florida.
I was so tired after an early morning (4:30), and the long day of traveling that I just wanted to crash when we got to Roy's parents house.  We unloaded all of our luggage and prayed that Finn would be ok sleeping in a strange place.  Of course he really fought it that first night.  He didn't fall asleep until around 9:00, when it got dark, and woke with the sun at 5:30...ughhh.  Needless to say he slept nearly the whole car ride to St. Augustine.

I'm always joking with Roy that we never do anything touristy when we go to visit Fl.  So this time I made sure we got to see that side of Florida.  Roy suggested a day trip up to St. Augustine, which is the oldest European settlement in the United States (a good 55 years before the British settlement of Jamestown).  I can't pass up a good old historical sight, so off we went.

 Our first stop was the light house on the coast.  We had to take turns going up because we couldn't take Finn to the top

 Roy at the top in all his glory.

 From the top looking down on my boys.  I could hear Finn squawking from the top of the lighthouse.

 A view from the top

 With all those stairs, it was a good thing Finn wasn't allowed up.

 Finn and daddy explored the museum including the oil pans, and the cannon shot.

 Thought Finn's lighthouse sticker was cute.

 After the lighthouse we headed for some lunch, in which Finn enjoyed the balloon much more then the food...go figure.
We decided to take a good ol' nap at the hotel before we ventured back out for the day.  The hotel was our saving grace for the day.  The room was dark and quiet just the way he liked it, and he slept really well, to the delight of his parents who also enjoyed a nap.
Once well rested we headed out to the fort that the Spanish had built.  Finn and daddy enjoyed all the old cannons...especially this "Finn" sized one.

 But I think Finn enjoyed the pigeons most of all.  He kept calling them ducks...close enough I guess.  After the fort we just walked along the old streets and saw the old houses and shops.  We munched on some Popsicles from this fun organic shop.  That had all this interesting flavors including pineapple/cilantro which is what I had...SO GOOD!!!
That night we made a short trip up the coast to see one of Roy's good friends and his family.  The kids played at the park (Finn was more interested on chewing the rubber pieces on the ground really, while we enjoyed a good pizza and good company.
This is as good a place to stop for the night.  I'll get to more of our adventures in Florida tomorrow.