We have arrived in Florida for a fun-filled getaway. On Friday we arrived around 4:30 and just hung out having fun with my Dad and stepmom. We had yummy chicken parm for dinner and my Dad's fresh baked bread! He's trying out this new book Artisan bread in just 5 minutes. It really works and is so good.
SaturdayOn Saturday we got up and headed straight for the beach. Owen's new found love of the sand and ocean still held up and he was so excited to play in the sand.
Owen really enjoyed smashing the sandcastles. Not sure about his demonic voice...Later in the day, we hung out at the house and played in the back yard. This is the view of the marsh from my Dad's house.
Owen is fascinated by bugs.And bubbles.
Sunday
On Sunday we headed back out to the beach for a little while. Owen and Papa Mo enjoyed making sandcastles on the beach. Owen also had fun playing in the water for a bit, that is until a big wave washed over him and Daddy. Which caused him to puke all over Daddy. Yuck. At least they were near a lot of water!
At night we went out for a yummy dinner. I just love all of the fresh seafood. Gotta love Owen's tongue in this picture as it is exactly the same thing that Brett does:)
MondayOn Monday we decided to take a break from the beach and went to the Jacksonville Zoo. I have to say, it was one of the best zoos I have ever been to. It was beautifully laid out and the variety of animals was great. We didn't even get through it all.
We started out on a train ride of course which Owen was super excited about.
We saw an ostrich.
Some monkeys.
Elephants.
At the end of the elephant exhibit they had some big metal elephants to take pictures on. Owen looks so small!
Cute family shot. 
There was a lily pad pond. For some reason I just love these.
Lions of course.
Some really cool looking bird.
Bongos. (Not to be confused with the instrument of course!)
Rhinos. 
And one of the highlights of the day was the giraffe exhibit. 
For $2 you could feed a giraffe. Money well spent! Look at the baby giraffe, so cute!!!!!
Waiting in line to feed the giraffe. 
Owen was a bit tentative at first. 
But then he got into it.
Enjoy my Dad's lovely bit of parenting advice;)Their tongues were so long and velvety feeling. So cool.
Another major highlight for Owen (probably the biggest actually) was petting the goats. I think that he must have come to like them during the petting zoo at school. I thought he would be afraid in the beginning but he just went right up to them. He really wanted to look them in the eyes for some reason. It was really adorable.
They had a big treehouse area for kids. Owen had fun going down the big slide!
Contemplating life...
And of course we had to go on the carousel before we left. The first time around Owen rode on the Manatee. 
Then on the second round he rode on a lion after much deliberation and trying 5 different animals (including the lion which we tried twice.)
Here Owen and Papo explore the birds.
There was a Jaguar of course since this is Jacksonville.
BIG Fish!
Pretty Parrots
Overall it was a really fun day. After the zoo we had to take Brett to the airport so he could go back to Chicago:( At night we had wonderful spaghetti with white clam sauce and just relaxed. It was great. Owen and I will be here until Sunday so check back for more updates.
