Florida!

Jeremy and I have been talking about going back to Florida to visit basically since he got home from his mission. This is such a special place for him and I know a day doesn't go by that he doesn't think about it. We figured a trip would be best way to celebrate both our graduations and the new phase of life that we are entering into with a new baby and grad school not long after. Even more exciting was that Jeremy's parents agreed and wanted to do the trip together! So the four of us booked tickets for January 29th-February 5th. 

We spent the whole first day traveling and were exhausted by the time we arrived. 

This must have been at the beginning of the flight. I don't think we looked so happy at the end!

Day One

Our first day of the trip, Jeremy had planned to see one of the families he was closest to from his mission, the Castros. He was so excited to see them again! I was a little nervous about how things would go since Jeremy told me that they don't speak much English, but I was looking forward to meeting these people I heard so much about. The language barrier wasn't too bad except for with their little girl Natalie. I don't think she totally understood that I didn't speak Spanish. I was playing with her and then she started to whisper things in my ear so that Jeremy couldn't hear. I felt so bad that I had no idea what she was saying! She just laughed but wouldn't repeat what she said to anyone so we could translate...first motivation of the trip for me to learn Spanish!

Falling in love with Naomi

Other than the fact that this family is just amazing all around, Hermana Castro happens to make one of Jeremy's favorite foods: baleadas. He was adamant that I learn exactly how she makes them since hers are the best!

Natalie showing me the ropes

Trying to get down the technique

First bites of this deliciousness...and Jeremy was right...they are AMAZING!

PHOTO SHOOT

After visiting with the Castro's, we headed down to Key Biscayne. Jeremy was never in the area that covered Key Biscayne so he hadn't been there before. After a little bit of research, we decided to head to Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park. It was beautiful!

The first of many iguanas we saw in South Florida.

After only being able to look at the ocean every day for two years, he finally got to go in!

Looking for seashells

Nice butt shot

Of course Dad and Jeremy had to get in a little bit of volleyball!

When I told Tisha that we were visiting South Florida she mentioned this pizza place on Key Biscayne that their family likes to eat at. We decided to try it out, and it was delicious! The garlic bread was probably one of the yummiest things we ate all week. Thanks Tish!

We wanted to time our plans so that we could stop and see the sunset on our way back to Miami Beach. We pulled over just in time to snap a couple of pictures and watch the beautiful sunset.

Day Two

We had set aside our second day in Florida to visit the Keys. None of us had ever been, so we were really excited to head down there and see more of Florida's beauty.

 Our rental van for the week. We had actually reserved a midsize car but they didn't have any more of those, so we got the minivan. What a blessing! We were in this thing a lot...especially driving all the way to the southern most point of the country and back in a day!

Our first stop in the Keys was at John Pennekamp State Park on Key Largo. It's known worldwide for diving among the coral reefs, but Jeremy had planned a little bit of a different adventure and we rented kayaks to explore the mangrove creeks. It was so fun!

We had a hard time navigating the route that was given on the map but that didn't dampen our spirits! The rain however did dampen us a little so once we found our way and saw a bat ray swimming right next to our canoe, we headed back to land.

 They told us when we rented the kayaks that there might be some areas where we had to push ourselves through; how right they were!

They also had a visitor center and small aquarium at the State Park, so we decided to check that out.

 There was a panel of clear plastic about six inches from the actual glass of the aquarium. As we were walking around it, Jeremy thought it was pretty cool that all of the fish were gathering around him. He leaned in to point out a fish but forgot that the outer panel was there and smacked into it! It was pretty funny! And the fish really did flock to him!

This is basically what the entire drive down through the Keys looks like; the Gulf of Mexico on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. Out in the super blue water were tons of little islands. It was quite a beautiful view!

Our next stop was Big Blue Hole on Big Pine Key. We were on a quest to find the Key Deer that Jeremy had heard about. We didn't know we would spot our first alligators of the trip!

A helpful park guide we talked to suggested we head over to No Name Key to try and find some key deer. 

 We were a little discouraged after driving for a bit and not seeing any, and then we spotted this cute little guy! I was beyond excited! 

We had about given up in finding any more and then we looked down a side street and saw this group of them just walking down the street! I couldn't believe it! They are so small and friendly! They just walk right up to you! It was awesome!

 Jeremy was pretty proud of this picture that he took. He snapped it right as these three deer looked over at him. It looks like a postcard!

After our key deer experience, we drove down the rest of the way to Key West. Of course we had to visit the Southernmost Point of the Continental U.S.

After our photos at the Southernmost Point, we had fun walking around downtown Key West.

Apparently the word "southernmost" is coveted in Key West. Everything, and I mean everything is the "southernmost" even if that means using it twice. 

Couldn't resist a picture where you can put your head through and be butterflies! Everyone laughed at us as they passed.

Jeremy was happy to be so close to Cuba!

We decided to fill our bellies at this yummy restaurant on the water. Our first taste of delicious seafood from the east coast! 

We couldn't visit Key West and not eat key lime pie. So we got a whole pie for the four of us at this place where Bobby Flay did a throwdown! It was so delicious we ate the whole thing on the long drive home! :)

Day Three

!!!Gator Park!!!

The one thing that I said I wanted to do while in Florida was see an alligator. So our trip to Gator Park was greatly anticipated. We planned for enough time to get there before 10 am because we had coupons for buy one ticket get one free if you were there before 10. However we did not account for roadwork! The time kept passing and we were literally just sitting there watching the hour get closer. As we pulled into the parking lot our car clock said it was a couple minutes past ten. As we were running in I was channeling my best negotiation skills. Miraculously their computer clock was slow and said it was 9:58. Hallelujah! We were so relieved. Of course being there so early we had plenty of time to spare before the first air boat took off. We spent it exploring the park

There were a couple of these beautiful birds just walking around the grounds! However all the alligators were lounging behind gates. 

Finally enough people had arrived to take the boat out. It was so fun! We had a great guide and were able to see a lot of animals. I was amazed at how shallow the everglades were. I didn't know that they completely dry up during Florida's dry season. So interesting! The trip was definitely worth every penny!

This is a nest of baby alligators! So amazing! There was one that started swimming toward our boat and I just kept wondering when the mama alligator was going to pounce on us. 

This is hard to see but that's an alligator under the water...the guide said it was one of the biggest he  had ever seen even with part of its tail missing.

Part of the admission ticket included a show. The guy doing the show was so great! He started by showing us a scorpion. He is walking around with this thing in his hand and then asks me to put my hand out to hold it. I do not like creatures so I was not having this! He kept trying but I adamantly declined. My fear made for a good show however and had everyone laughing. This made it really easy for him to tease me the rest of the show. Each time he brought something else out he would try to get me to participate. He was even laughing when I totally believed him that he wanted me to come try to wrestle the alligator. I'm so gullible. But in the end he did choose me to hold the three foot alligator. I reminded him that I was pregnant so he was putting two lives at risk. Thankfully no harm was done. It was such a cool experience! 

After the show Jeremy and his mom got to hold this little guy too. 

Gator Park was definitely a hit!

After Gator Park we made some stops at a couple places where Jeremy had lived on his mission. It was so fun to see where he spent his time during those two years. 

El Portal

Fountainebleu

We had an appointment to see some people that evening but they had to reschedule. This left some time to do some sight seeing. Jeremy had the idea of walking a certain part of South Beach. Unfortunately his memory of how far our destination wasn't quite accurate. We ended up walking a lot more than we had planned!

This picture is deceiving...after walking as far as we did being 6 months pregnant and only wearing flat flip flops, I was ready to cut my feet off!

We also did a driving tour through Star Island and saw some amazing houses but unfortunately no celebs. :( 

We ended the night at one of Jeremy's favorite restaurants: Las Vegas. It was my first taste of Cuban cuisine and I about died! It was so delicious! I was stuffed half way through so I saved the rest for a midnight snack later. Yum!

Day Four

We started the day off with the Reyes family, which is a really neat family from the El Portal ward where Jeremy served for a while. We first ate a yummy Honduran breakfast at a restaurant in the Pequena Havana. After stuffing ourselves to the brim we headed over to Bayside to enjoy the beautiful day. It was so fun to spend time with such amazing people!

After our time with the Reyes family, we went to meet the Mackenzie family. They, like most of the people we visited, also wanted us to try food from their native country. So off we went to a Colombian restaurant! Another super yummy meal! My first taste of chicharron (which is basically fried pig fat) was delicious! I could definitely feel the weight adding on! We had a very fun time eating with them and visiting with them at their house afterwards. 

We had some time before meeting up with another of Jeremy's friends so Dad suggested we head back down to Bayside in the evening. It was really pretty at night and we had a fun time listening to live music and walking around the shops.

We then headed to Dolce Vita, a really yummy gelato cafe in Miami Beach, and met up with Jeff. Jeremy baptized Jeff and became really close with him during his time in Miami Beach, so it was fun to meet him and visit for a little bit. 

We considered each getting our own individual gelato but getting the big tub was cheaper so we thought it was a good idea and then we could save some for later. It was a good idea but it definitely didn't last till later!

While putting this blog post together, it has become quite apparent that we ate a lot on this trip! And the scales proved it!

Day Five

Jeremy had planned on visiting two of the wards he served in on Sunday, but we found out the day before that it was going to be stake conference! So we were able to see quite a few people at one of the buildings where it was broadcasting. That was a treat!

One thing we were really looking forward to was seeing the construction site for the temple. We were also really looking forward to seeing Ana, a girl from Miami Lakes that Jeremy baptized. So we called her up to see if she wanted to come. She was a trooper and stayed the whole day with us as we visited lots of people. We love her and all the families we saw!

It is such a beautiful building and we're excited for the wonderful people of South Florida to have a temple so close to them now! 

After the temple we visited the Cordoba family. Hermano Cordoba was the one who introduced Jeremy and his companion to Ana. Their family has been super supportive of her and they are absolutely amazing! I started getting choked up talking to Hermana Cordoba as she shared the story of how she brought the gospel to her husband as a youth. He then went on a mission and their children have all gone on missions. So many people have received the gospel because she was brave enough as a young woman to open her mouth.   At that moment I was so grateful for what I have and even more grateful for Jeremy's service as a missionary. So blessed!

Another family that Jeremy really wanted to visit while we were in the Miami Lakes area was the Chavez family. On top of all the great things he had to say about them, he raved about a food that Hermana Chavez makes; pupusas. He told us she made some of the best ones he'd ever tasted and he wanted me to learn how to make them. Pressure! They were absolutely delicious but I think I will need a lot of practice to re-create them. Maybe we will just have to visit more often for a pupusa and Chavez fix!

As the day came to a close, we took Ana back home (even though we wanted to just take her back to California with us:) and were able to spend some time with her mom as well. She was just is sweet as her daughter! 

It was so special to be able to meet and spend the day with so many amazing people. We have so much love for each of them and hope to see them again soon!

Day Six

With how busy we had been all week we hadn't taken the time to check out the beach that was right behind where we were staying. When we finally did, we were not disappointed! The water was absolutely beautiful and the beach was covered in amazing shells! We decided to share our little beach with the Castro family and make a day of fun in the sun! :) 

Natalie and I gathering shells

Natalie loved gathering shells and kept putting every one she found in my bag so I decided to get her her own bag. Each time she found a shell I would tell her in English to put it in her bag. Then her dad found this really cool shell. She came up to me with it in her hand, offered it to me and said, "You bag." I tried to resist but she was persistent repeating the phrase "you bag". It was so sweet! Talking with her really motivated me to learn Spanish! Especially when she asked Jeremy, "She (referring to me) doesn't really speak Spanish does she?" He got a good laugh out of that. Hopefully the next time we visit I will be able to talk a lot more with her!

After a day in the sun we quickly changed to go see some more amazing people. Unfortunately in my haste I burned my fingers ridiculously bad on my straightener which put us behind on our visits. However, we were still able to see the people we had planned on visiting.

We met up with Juan and Arleen, who were in Jeremy's first area, at their office right on the Miami River. It was such a beautiful place to visit and drink fresh lemonade. They are really special people and their story is just as neat. One day, Juan was watching television when a commercial from the Church came on and a free dvd was offered. He called the number, asked for the video, and waited a few weeks for it to arrive in the mail. To his surprise, it finally arrived not in the mail, but was delivered by two missionaries (Elder Evans and Elder Carrillo). This began a very special friendship that has only strengthened with time. 

We then drove up to enjoy dinner and family home evening with the Torres Family. Hermano Torres was the branch president of the Miami Beach Branch while Jeremy served there, and they live in El Portal, which is another area that he served in. Presidente Torres was one of his favorite Church leaders to work with, and he told us several times how much he loves this family. So we were very excited to spend our last night in Florida with them! Hermana Torres is Cuban and Hermano Torres is Mexican so they each made some food from their country. It was all so delicious! 

The American part of the meal: monkey bread for dessert!

The family home evening was so special. The spirit was strong and I was amazed at how in tune the kids were. Their oldest, Ricky, had some very insightful responses. It was apparent that they are being raised by some amazing parents. I love having people like this in our life to look up to. They are incredibly strong members of the Church and such great people! 

Day Seven

The morning of our last day, we went down to the beach for one last shell gathering walk. It was looking like it would be the most beautiful day so far, which didn't make it any easier to leave! Jeremy found some sweet conch shells as he was swimming around in the water, and probably could have found more but we needed to make our flight. We snapped a couple of pictures of our place and the amazing view from our window before heading out.

Dad has made it a tradition that he visits a Harley Davidson store where each of his sons have served missions and gets a shirt as a souvenir. So on our drive up to the airport, we stopped by to check out the one in Miami. 

 I got talked into posing on one of the bikes with my preggo belly by Dad and the store employees.

Before leaving we ate at one of our favorite restaurants, Chick-fil-A. Dad had never been, so of course this was our first choice. After eating Latin food all week it was quite a change to have something American, but still delicious!

Whew! What a week! Getting on the plane to go home was so hard! We loved every minute of our visit to Florida and are already looking forward to going back!