VEGness: hello florida!

Long time no talk! I know, I know... I let vacation get the best of me! But, don't you worry - I'm back! And all I can say is vacation was awesome! We just got back from the Sunshine State... Florida; sunburns and all!

I moved to California five years ago (remember!) and when I left, one of my reassurances to my family was that I would be back for the holidays, no matter what. Obviously, now I am in a relationship; so Jams and I had "the talk" about holidays and we both found it important to be together. Since his work didn't allow him to take any time off around Christmas, I was stuck between a rock and a hard place to make the decision of maintaining that tradition or creating my own. It was a personal struggle of mine to make that decision. I came up with a solution that I thought would work for everyone. I would go home before Christmas for a few days so I could see my family and then spend the holiday with Jams! A win-win! Well, part of my solution was to also go visit my grandparents (let's call them Nonny & Poppy) in Florida sometime in the Spring. So... here we are!

All Jams keep talking about before the trip was how he couldn't wait to have a mojito. I swear as long as I have known him, I have never seen him drink one but he swears now that they are his favorite... he's so cute :)

It's always different when you spend time with family when they are in their element. We really got to capture the moments and see how they live day to day. I mean, come on! Look at my grandparents! Pushin' 80 and they are more active than we are. Riding bikes everyday, doing water aerobics in the pool... we realized that we definitely need to step it up!

When I would go visit as a kid, we would always go to the big Flea Market in Daytona Beach. Look at this place! It's HUGE!!! They have food vendors everywhere, and lots of little knickknacks that you impulsively need. They also have an amazing produce section with all the local fruits and veggies... YUM!!!

It's a good thing we only had one suitcase and hardly any room to bring home souvenirs because these were super cute... I would have bought way too many!!!

I was very spoiled growing up (yes, I said it) and we went to Florida at least twice a year. I take for granted the small stuff and probably don't appreciate things the same as someone who hasn't been as fortunate. This being said, Jams has never been to Disney World. Eeeek!!! We had to go.

And just to add... I definitely won on Buzz Lightyear! I never usually win so I was stoked! Look at that concentration!

I absolutely luv It's A Small World. I probably took 100+ pictures in there (I will spare you). We got lots of cool and unique arts and crafts ideas!

I thoroughly enjoyed Tom Sawyer's Island and the bridges I had to go across. Yes, I was acting like a five year old.

LOOK AT ALL THESE STROLLERS. Sorry to yell, but seriously?! No wonder Disney always seems so crowded... half the walk ways are taken up with them!

And finally, per my sister's request :) we got a caricature! It actually came out pretty cute!

Family, Disney and Valentine's Day all in one week! Woah! This was our first Valentine's Day together! *Aw* I made Jams a special breakfast with all his favorite things... onions, eggs, mushrooms and peppers. Can you dig the tomato heart?!

Nonny and Poppy took us to dinner at The Garlic which was a very cool and yummy Italian restaurant near their condo. We had many drinks and many laughs. It was awesome to spend Jams and my first Valentine's Day together with my grandparents who were spending their 64th together. Let this be a reminder to all of us that true luv is real.

It just so happened to work out perfectly that my Mom was in Florida too! Her and my step-dad Will have a condo down on Singer Island which happens to be just a few hours south of us. Road trip!

Jams made Will a "Work1n" tie to promote his new song Work1n... keep your eyes peeled for these, you might be seeing lots of them in an upcoming music video (foreshadowing...?)!

Anyway, the water was beautiful. It reminded me of Hawaii, you could see clear down to your feet! And it wasn't that cold either!

The last night we were there, we went to a restaurant called Seasons 52. It is an organic restaurant and the cool thing is that their menu changes weekly to highlight the freshest ingredients - brilliant! It was simply delish!