Confirmed: Mermaids Are Real

Lydia loves mermaids.  LOVES them.  She is already planning her next (and 3rd) mermaid-themed birthday party in April.  She talks about them constantly.  Dreams of them.  And if she could, there is no doubt in my mind, she'd sell her voice to the sea witch for fins.  Eliza likes mermaids too but only because Lydia insists on it.  So you can imagine how elated they were when Nate took them on a special trip (while the boys and I were casting spells at Hogwarts) to Weeki Wachee park in Florida to see the only live mermaid show of it's kind. Lydia was in mermaid heaven.

At my request, Nate took a ton of pictures. And the thing I absolutely love best about all these pictures is the messy hair. For one, Lydia and Eliza have natural mermaid hair.  They look like they just swam out of the sea and didn't change a thing (well, except for maybe their legs). They fit in perfectly at the mermaid park. Second, their hair represents true vacation. Nate got the girls dressed, fed and ready all by himself.  Why?  Because I was at Hogwarts!  I was on vacation. And that thought alone makes me melt with happiness.  Thirdly, just looking at these pictures solidifies the fact that Smith girls are gorgeous - scraggly hair and all.  What can I say? I adore every free-flying strand of hair. . . and every free-flying smile that accompanies it.

watching for mermaids. . .

Here's a look at the underwater show.

After the show Eliza and Lydia got to meet a real mermaid.  It was a dream come true.

They also got to become mermaids themselves.

Lydia's expression says it all.  I am a mermaid.  So let it be known.

They chased the peacocks.

And played at the park.

And got mermaid sea shell necklaces at the gift shop.

Lydia's eyes look tired.  Did I mention we don't sleep on vacation?

And when they came back to the hotel for lunch in the afternoon, look who they found waiting for them - wands ready!  Happy happy day!

My Favorite Color is Oranges

 Our Florida vacation was short but packed full.  Call us crazy, but we drove all the way to Orlando for just one day at Hogwarts (with tickets only for 4 of us) and then we drove back.  But in between the drive time (lots) and the sleep time (little) we had lots of family time.  We saw Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, (thankfully not Georgia this time around) and Florida.  All in 5 days.  We went to the National Naval Aviation Museum, Stennis Space Center, Weeki Wachee Mermaid Park, Swimming, Universal Studios, New Orleans, three different hotels, lots of restaurants, gas stations, rest areas, and the Florida orange stands.  While looking at the oranges, another little girl (admiring Eliza's skirt) said, "I like your skirt.  My favorite color is pink.  Is your favorite color pink?"  Eliza, whose favorite color most certainly is pink, held up two oranges and said matter of factly, "Nope.  My favorite color is oranges."

After guzzling two containers of fresh squeezed Florida orange juice and three boxes of these. . .

We checked out the bongo-banging, maraca-shaking, pirate coconuts.

And the grandpa monkeys with sets of twins.

And the frogs and the fish and the wild boars.

Back at the hotel, we dined family cafeteria style and went swimming.

The pool was amazing and so warm - even at 8:00 a.m.

Someone at the hotel handed my kids balloons on the way out.  They were entertained by them the entire drive home.

Lydia is demonstrating a levitating spell with her balloon and Clayton's wand.

The kids lucked out when we ate at IHOP.

We traveled through long tunnels,

past cities lit up like Christmas trees,

past oil refineries that looked like fire shows,

across bridges,

through old cities still showing the marks of hurricanes,

over rivers,

over oceans,

and onto fold out beds in clean hotel rooms.

Where Lydia read the story of the three little kittens (from Despicable Me) with a lot of unwanted help from her siblings.  I love every second of this video.

A successful vacation!  Everything went smoother than planned and we had happy kids (and parents) all around.  No wonder our new favorite color is oranges!