PBnJ5 Adventures

When we started out on November 20th Luke asked all of us what was the one place we were looking forward to seeing on our adventure. Tucker said New Mexico and I said the Florida Keys. Well, we made it!

We stayed on Fiesta Key which consists of an RV resort, that’s it. My sister Tammy came and spent 5 days with us and we touristed hard. We usually try and take every other day off from doing an outing as it just seems to kill us on the back end from exhaustion, but we went hard for 3 days straight (and literally 6 days later are still paying for it).

The first day we had a fun visit from my Great Aunt and Uncle who happened to be in the Keys at the same time. It was fun to show them our house and hang by the pool for a little bit with them. We took Sunday easy as we try not to do much on the weekends, but we were ready for Monday.

On Monday our first stop was Aquarium Encounters in Marathon. We got to pet sting rays, see lots of fish, turtles, alligators, sea horses, star fish, urchins, pelicans, and sharks. The boys won over one of the divers who works there with their charm and he gave them each a real (and very sharp) shark tooth from the tank. They were so excited! After a few hours of all things sea creatures we headed over to Sombrero Beach. It was our first beach of the whole trip where there were only small waves and Zac actually got in and went swimming. He has been terrified of the waves up until this point, but Aunt Tammy is very fun to play with in the ocean and he loved it. So we are three for three on ocean lovers. Thankfully Tammy likes the ocean too so we didn’t have to get wet this time ?. After the beach we went to a great place called Porky’s for dinner. They serve a mix of Seafood and BBQ, what could be better. It was all delicious and the boys had their first sushi, thanks Aunt Tammy! We finished the day off with our first taste of Key Lime Pie, it was not that great. But we were told to try it multiple places in the Keys because they all have a little different spin on it, so more to come on that.

Tuesday took us north to Islamorada. We went to a great place called Theater of the Sea. We saw a dolphin show, sea lion show, and a parrot show. They also rescue sea turtles and alligators. The dolphin show was one of the coolest shows I have ever seen. It might not have been as glamorous as Sea World be we were feet away from the dolphins and the show was awesome. They also had an open bottom boat ride that the dolphins swam in the middle of the boat and did tricks and jumped along the outside of the boat, they were so close. It was the coolest thing, the boys loved it. It was, however, very humid and hot and we were starting to melt after a few hours there. So we continued our Tour de Taco that we have been on across the country and had some great tacos at Bad Boy Burrito. Small little place, but super delicious. We headed back to the RV because I had to make cupcakes for Luke’s birthday! Tammy took the two older boys swimming while Luke and Zac took naps and I made cake. We watched a beautiful sunset and destroyed any sort of peaceful ambiance for the nice people around us trying to watch it as well. The screams of delight in watching the sun drop were priceless and I think it enhanced the experience for everyone within earshot. Happy Birthday Luke, that was one for the books.

Wednesday took us to Key West. It was an hour and a half drive from Fiesta Key across the famous 7 Mile Bridge all the way down to Key West. It was beautiful and so crazy to think that some people drive that everyday. After debating how we were going to get around and see as much of Key West as possible we ended up renting a GOLF CART! It so was awesome!! It was a six seater and of course to be safe and legal we had to put carseats in it. So we are loaded down with three car seats in our little golf cart and I am sure we were a comical sight. But it was hands down the best way to see Key West for us. Our crew is not exactly the best at walking anywhere quickly or without touching everything. And if you add a little heat and humidity the walking gets really slow. We only had a few hours since we had to get Tammy to the airport so we showed her how we see most things, we drive by it and call it good. Traffic and people were crazy in Key West, as to be expected, but we could go down all the tiny streets and flip u-turns and enjoy being as close to walking around as we could be without having to walk. We even got Zac and Max to take naps driving around. We continued our Tour de Taco for lunch at Mellow Cafe (amazing food and fun atmosphere) and headed to a bucket list place for Luke and I for some Key Lime Pie. We are big fans of the show The Profit and have been wanting to go to a place he invested in called the Key Lime Pie Co. It was SO delicious. We got to watch them make their chocolate dipped pie lollipops and I have to say their extra tart pie was simply amazing. We drove past the Southernmost Point, Hemingway’s House, Truman’s Little White House, Mallory Square, all of it. We even took Tammy to the airport in our little golf cart! We also drove down some of the residential streets and alleys that really give you a feel for the non touristy parts of the Key. That was probably my favorite part of the day. I love looking at real estate and getting to see different architecture all over the country has been so fun. We said our goodbyes to Aunt Tammy with quivering lower lips and watched the sunset from our rear view mirror in the truck with a backseat full of overly exhausted little boys.

Thursday we did not leave the RV resort. The boys swam, I did copious amounts of laundry, we hung out in the 5th wheel because it was HOT outside, and we fussed and picked on each other because we were so tired we didn’t know how to function. And when I say we, I mean those 5 and under in our house. Although I probably was fussy as well.

Friday we packed up and hit the road. Our goal was to get back to the Gulf side of Florida were we will spend the next couple weeks, but there is this giant area called the Everglades between the Keys and our next stop. We have figured out what our limits are in a traveling day and making it all the way was not an option that we really wanted to take. So we found a campground in the middle of the glades to stop. As we are driving through the Everglades you can literally see gators sunning themselves all over the place. We were warned by some friends to make sure you check under your RV in the morning for snakes and gators because they like to hide under there, are you kidding me? No. So just when I think the wildlife was reaching my maximum we come across a sign “Panther Crossing – Next 5 Miles” and what do you know our campsite is in one quarter mile. I have never even seen a sign for Panther Crossings let alone exactly where we are setting up for the night. We pulled into our Boondocking site, which means no water, no power, no sewer hook ups, and literally there is an alligator trail that goes across our site from the swamp to the pond. Luke! Where have you taken us!! (by the way, he booked this site, not me) This was our first time Boondocking in the 5th wheel. We learned many things and how we are really not prepared to Boondock yet. We didn’t bring enough fresh water with us and ran out, we had no power in the RV other than lights which was a shocker to me when I thought our batteries would run the fans. Turns out you need an inverter for that. And we were so tired leaving the Keys that I didn’t go to the store to buy food. So we got real scrappy real fast. I had to put on my big girl panties and try not to complain about how hot the RV was, and sit and try and enjoy the cool breeze outside. It really was lovely and once again God blessed us with some lovely neighbors who loved the boys and let them show them all their trucks and tractors. Just when you need a break for the constant talking there are wonderful people in the middle of nowhere who are kind and sweet with little boys. We also learned that if you throw rocks in the water, our favorite pastime, the gators will swim towards you. Okay boys that is enough, let’s run away. It turned out to be a fun quick stop and our first time to sleep with the windows open. (Which as I sit here and listen to the roar of I-75 outside my window with them closed and the air conditioner running, the middle of no where sounds kinda appealing.) Tucker was super brave and checked for snakes and gators under the RV in the morning before heading out to play trucks but came up empty, and we did not get to see a Panther much to Luke’s disappointment. So we headed out and made our way to Bradenton.

As we were driving we started playing a “game” of which animal would win in a battle. It started based on who would win Panther vs Gator in a battle – please feel free to give me your answer in the comments below I am interested in your thoughts. And as most things do the game continued on for several rounds once the boys get into it. My favorite round and subsequent quote of the day was in the Tiger vs Panda round. Luke says, “I am gonna go Panda on this one because he would kill ’em with cuteness.” When I get tired things get real funny real fast, and I have to say that one was hilarious to me. Luke is a funny guy. It’s a fun game you should play it sometime on a road trip, if you need suggestions just ask Tucker.

Well we are settled into our RV resort in Bradenton for the next 8 days. Which is the longest we have ever been in one spot. Unfortunately, we are also in probably one of our least favorite resorts so far on our whole journey. But we will make the most of it and explore the area and hopefully see some cool things while we are here. Stay tuned for the next update on that.

Being so busy and running around the Keys left little time for journaling and reading so I don’t have many great thoughts for you this week other than this: Time is precious and how you choose to spend it and those you choose to spend it with matter. We all get the same amount of time each and every day. Finding a balance in what you do with it is so important. Do the things that fill you up and cut out or at least cut back on the things and people that drain you. I am learning to find life in the little moments and cherish the adventure. Not everyday is exciting and I am okay with that. Getting sweet little boy kisses and snuggles make for a great day too. But let’s also be real they are never sweet for a whole day, you always get the good and the bad, but time is everything. Time also doesn’t wait for anyone so don’t waste it.

Live your Adventure,

Julie