Going to south Florida was not part of our original plan, but with Nathan getting called to DC last minute, and us being so close, I am very glad we were able to go and spend time with my parents, extended family, and friends. My dad has two sisters, Gail and Eileen, and they are sweethearts. Aunt Eileen on a whim (with 2 days notice) opened her home and let us stay with her for the week.
Aunt Gail and the kiddos.
We had also just learned that we would be going to a complete lockdown in Turkey for almost 3 weeks, and had various things to coordinate from afar. My dad and mom took the boys for a couple of nights, so I could have some downtime with Eliza and my aunts and get stuff prepared for our return to Turkey. They had fun times at the beach, swimming in the pool, bowling, finding iguanas, and spending time together.
Meanwhile, us ladies enjoyed a nice lunch out one day.
Eliza and I went to Butterfly World one afternoon. It’s a beautiful park with lots of...you got it, butterflies, birds, and insect exhibits.
There was a nice park close to my aunt’s house that we visited most days.
They love arcade games!
My aunt’s neighborhood that lots of space for the kids to play outside.
Aunt Eileen is a saint for many reasons, and each day she would help me with the kids’ school. Aside from one week off of school while we were in Illinois, the boys had remote school to complete each day. Aunt Eileen spent a lot of time reading with Benjamin and Caleb, and she introduced them a word creation game they could play on their kindles and are still enjoying back in Turkey.
This is my cousin Alexis. Although she is 11 years younger than me, we were close growing up and I love spending time with her. She loves kids and is so great with them, and they all equally enjoyed spending time with her. This is the park she used to play at when she was our kids’ age.
This is my other sweet cousin Ashley. She came over a couple times to visit with us and the kids enjoyed playing with her!
The boys especially liked playing with Ashely’s dog that she brought over.
Being with all this family was a treat for my parents too, because they just moved back from living in Hawaii for the past 8 years. They came over every day and spent time with us.
The day Nathan was returning, the kids and I went to meet up with my high school friends, and it was so wonderful to spend the afternoon with them. I met these ladies when I was 15 years old and transferred to Plantation High School in 10th grade. They are dear friends and I love every time we get to see one another. Lauren was kind enough to host the gathering at her house. This is one of the only pictures I have of the boys. As soon as we got there, they jumped right in the pool and started playing with my friends’ kids.
Auntie Paula showing Eliza around the garden. Lauren has banana, pineapple, and mango trees in the yard. It is a tropical paradise!
My bestie Marissa with Eliza and Sloane, her daughter that was born 2 weeks after Eliza. Her other son, Henry, is between Caleb and Benjamin in age. It was so fun for them to all get together and play.
Eliza and Sloane played nicely together, it was so cute to watch.
This is a hilarious video of Marina playing catch with mangos with Eliza and Sloane. Marina is Paula’s daughter, she was 8 months pregnant with her at our wedding. She is such a beautiful and sweet girl, and I remember when she was our daughters’ age.
Lauren has two dogs, and Paula brought over their dog. They got a lot of attention from the kiddos.
All the kiddos!
Us girls :). It was a fun afternoon of laughs and catching up! Nathan surprised everyone and came the last hour directly from the airport. The girls adore him and were happy to get to see him too.
Eliza is a daddy’s girl. She was very happy when he was back to play with her.
Checking out the Deerfield Beach pier before breakfast.
That afternoon, everyone came over to see us off, before heading to Miami for our flight.
It was such a treat and blessing to be able to see my extended family, have additional time with my parents, and show the kids more of the things I used to do growing up. So thankful for this time, and we will look forward to the next time we can visit again.
