For our Spring Break trip this year we planned a Walt Disney World Vacation and booked our 3 bedroom World Mark Resort a year ago – which seemed like forever. Since flights into Orlando were so high we looked at flying into Atlanta instead -- which was much cheaper for our family of 8. We got so excited about seeing our best friends, the Starbucks, visiting our old neighborhood, house, and ward. With a rearranged Georgia school spring break the Starbucks planned to come with us on our Disney Vacation which was SO MUCH FUN!
We flew from Denver to Atlanta on Friday night after work and got in WAY too late. The line for renting our 12 passenger van! was so long. By the time we loaded up and drove down to Columbus it was 4:00am. Monae, Brianna and Austin were awake to greet us. After a minute to visit and peek around their gorgeous custom home we headed to bed.
Saturday morning Aaron and all the kids woke up first thing and I could hear them playing outside in the big yard and on the tramp after eating a pancake breakfast. Chris and I and Monae slept in a bit and then had a real tour of the house. So fun to be hanging out with Monae and talking about every detail. It’s really sad that we’re not next door to each other – we would have been, had we not spoiled the plan and moved to Germany.
The kids picked up where they left off. Even Luke and Matthew who didn’t really know their cute little boys – Scott, Ryan and Ethan had a great time with their new best friends. We watched with excitement as the fourteen kids break off into three perfect groups and totally entertain themselves… THE TEENS– Ryan (16) Brianna (16) Katie (14) and Austin (14) THE GIRLS – Emily (12) Brooke (almost 12) Megan (10) Erika (10) and Abby (8) and THE BOYS: Luke (7) Scott (6) Matt (almost 5) Ryan (4) and Ethan (1).
At noon we and picked up Chick fil A for lunch and took it to one of our favorite places… FLAT ROCK PARK. Chris, Aaron, Monae and I ate at the picnic tables with the little boys and all the rest of the kids took their lunch over to the big rocks to eat. Here are all the kids except little Ethan…
So fun to walk around Flat Rock Park. We came here all the time when we lived here.
The girls on the Flat Rock Park swing.
After playing around in the streams at Flatrock, we headed down to the River walk downtown Columbus – another of our favorite places to visit. We walked along the river (which divides Georgia and Alabama) and talked and reminisced of the many times we’d been there before.
I love this one with the boys running to get back in the picture.
Katie and Brianna
After doing some jumping tricks off this rock, we headed back home – on the way stopping to take pictures of our old house, the golf course Chris was a member of.
Good memories! Then we cooked some pizzas and watched the last Hobbit Movie while the Starbucks finished packing.
On Sunday we were able to go to church in our old ward. It was so fun to talk with some of our friends who are still there… the Frasers, the Murphys, the Coates and the Shilligs. It was especially wonderful to be there for Riley Fraser’s homecoming talk – one of my favorite young women when I was a leader in the ward. So good to see her and perfect timing to be here on this exact Sunday. I also loved listening to Monae teach Sunday school – she’s fantastic!!!
Sunday after church we put the suitcases in the vans and headed down to Florida! We took half the Starbuck kids in our Party Van and the kids had a great time talking, laughing, singing Disney songs and doing Disney character quizzes.
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