Aunt Nichole Meets Baby Sara

Ken had a conference in West Palm Beach at the end of January, so it provided us with an impetus to go to Florida as a family. We flew into Jacksonville with Bryn and Luke on a Tuesday afternoon, and Ken and I left the kids with Nana and Papap early Wednesday morning to drive south so Ken could attend his conference and I could continue on to Ft. Lauderdale to visit David and Lori, and most importantly, meet Baby Sara. This was the first time that Ken and I had left both Bryn and Luke for a night, so many, many thanks to Gail and Ken, Sr. as we know what a handful the dynamic duo can be!
Ken and I arrived in West Palm Beach around noon. The meeting was at the Breakers, which is really stunning. I had lunch at the Seafood Bar, which overlooks the ocean. Most impressive of all was the countertop, which was a 4-inch high salt-water aquarium! My salad plate was seemingly set upon a brittle star and a coral bandage shrimp. I had an hour and a half to kill before driving another hour south to Ft. Lauderdale, so I walked around the Breakers, which seems like a place that might be kid-friendly, and I also read the New York Times and filled out a few postcards outside on a balmy 80-degree day. The resort offers a playground on site, complete with a climbing web like the one at Smith Memorial Playground. And while I haven't yet checked out the websites to see which of the following hold events open to the public, West Palm Beach offers a polo club, a cricket club, a marina, and a yacht club, as well as a zoo and a safari.
I had a lovely visit with David and Lori. I got to see the new, beautiful daycare facility that Sara attends, and best of all, I got to meet baby Sara, who is such a good baby. So happy and easy-going and cuddly and squeezable at 6 months -- now seven! David and Lori revolutionized the way that I'll make burgers from here on out by using French onion soup mix and Worcestershire sauce -- very flavorful. I left after dinner and stayed the night in West Palm Beach where I caught a five-and-a-half hour train back to Palatka the next morning. The train was easy -- and inexpensive! Just $32. But it was interesting to see 1) that the clientele was much different -- a markedly lower income class -- than what I'm used to seeing on the Washington, DC-to-New York corridor, and 2) how crowded the train was. This was the first time I've ever been assigned a seat upon boarding the train.
Ken, Sr. and Gail and Bryn and Luke all met me in Palatka, which is about 40 minutes from where they live in St. Augustine. Nana and Papap reported that Bryn and Luke were really good -- just took a long, long time to fall asleep Tuesday night.