Friday - And Then There Were Three

It wasn't a very long cruise, but it was, after all, our practice cruise. It would be terrible to be stuck on a boat feeling seasick for a long week. In this case, four days was perfect for dipping our toes in the cruise world. Turns out, we love it. There will definitely be another cruise in the Cazier future.

Friday dawned and we were back in Miami.

Turns out, you can get off the boat earlier if you are willing to carry your own luggage. We had to be willing because Beth had a plane to catch first thing in the morning. See, Beth overbooked her weekend and she was flying into Vegas to meet up with a bunch of her girlfriends to see a Back Street Boys concert. Jonny was giving her plenty of grief for leaving us...for a boy band. We told her that we were going to go to Harry Potter World without her. (We thought about it, but didn't have the time sadly.)

This is our last group picture. :(

We finally found a shuttle to the airport. Beth is sitting there editing our video since we only had moments left together. Goodbye Bethany. See you on the other side.

We had an almost four hour drive to look forward to, so we got on our way. This time around, we managed to use roads that avoided tolls, so we saved ourselves a little money. Somewhere along the way, we stopped at a roadside stand. They were selling peaches, oranges, and gator jerky. We had wanted to take an air boat through the glades and maybe spot a gator or two, but we didn't have the time, so gator jerky was the next best thing.

I hate to disappoint, but it was nothing to write home about. In fact, we are pretty sure the guy just bought beef jerky at the store and then stuck it in ziplock bags to resell. The orange and peach samples were pretty tasty though.

Eventually we needed to feed ourselves some real food. Two Cazier's against one Jonny meant that we got to choose the restaurant. (Well...honestly, Jonny isn't going to complain much if there is food involved.) We chose Thai and ended up at a place that I can't remember the name of. (Big surprise.) But I will tell you the food was amazing! (Sorry Beth.) And the waitress seemed to be trying to pick up on Jonny. (Sorry Beth.)

Florida weather was actually not too bad in my opinion. It was humid, but I liked the warmth and let's be honest...it was April, so it wasn't sweltering or overly muggy. And there were squirrels. What's not to like?

Although we didn't have enough money time to visit Harry Potter World, we did take ourselves to an art museum. The first thing we noticed was the amazing tree out front. It was basically cooler than all the art we later saw inside. (Mother Nature: art since the beginning of time.)

There was art outside as well. Some of it was strange.

Some of it was poorly named. This piece was entitled, 'Big Red Dog'.

Some spoke to us.

Some looked like us.

Big Red Dog inspired Jonny. When we went inside we invented a new game. One person would choose a piece of art and the other two would rename it. The 'adjudicator' would decide which name they liked better and the winner would choose a new piece of art. This kept us entertained for quite a while.

There were two artists highlighted at the museum. One was quite forgettable. All his stuff looked the same to me. The other was remarkable. (Although technically I forget his name as well. I had to ask Jonny.) It was art by Bo Bartlett. Go look him up in Google. He really has a classic style. This picture, Halloween, in particular caught my attention.

I really love it. Another one (I grabbed the picture online) was Lifeboat. Simple, but amazingly complex. I don't think I could ever paint water.

We had a good time walking around. The last thing we saw as we left was a mural on a back wall.

We told everyone to find their double. Tyler won.

Then it was on to the airport and aboard a plane headed back to home sweet home. Our flight wasn't nearly as late, so I watched movies on the trip. Jonny sat next to me and edited my movies. The first time he changed my channel, I was surprised. Why would he do that? It only took me a second to realize he was skipping a racy scene. (Isn't that thoughtful?) He tried editing some profanity too, but that is a little harder to catch.

I watched Passengers and La La Land. I liked both of them, although I was not happy with the ending to La La Land. Jonny said it had to be that way, but I disagree. Tyler slept for the trip. He doesn't like when I watch movies without him, but I think he'll forgive me this time.

We arrived home late enough that everyone was asleep. It was sure great to see all the kids in the morning. We gave them gifts right away. I found these swimsuit covers and thought the kids would like them. Guess that means we need to hit the pool this summer. I think that is in the cards.

And so ends a great adventure. I'm so happy we went. It was so relaxing. I believe I gained weight from all the amazing food. I couldn't ask for better company. Five stars for sure!

*Beth got back home the next day. She had a great time in Vegas, although I'm sure she is sad she missed seeing the squirrel.