Florida Getaway

Perhaps everyone should have at least one set of inlaws in Florida or some equally sunny locale, the better to facilitate recuperative trips there when the weather elsewhere is cold or wet.

Oh, I know our 50-degrees-and-misty (or, in today's case, high 60's and sunny) hardly compares to the winter weather in Boston, or Rochester, or Duluth.  But it has been sort of raw and rainy lately around here, and so it was a welcome change when we arrived in sunny, breezy Palm Coast to visit Stacey's mother and stepfather.

The reward for getting up at 3:00 AM for an early flight? Watching the sun rise over the clouds.

I recently read an article in the New York Times about good choices for airport food, so I was excited to have a connection in Dallas-Forth Worth, one of the airports they reviewed.  The top DFW pick, an outpost of the Fort Worth chain Cousin's Bar-B-Q, was located in neither the terminal in which we landed nor the terminal from which our second flight was departing, but priorities are priorities. After a quick call to Stacey's father, who performed some key research for us, we made a detour to Terminal B for chopped brisket sandwiches and sweet tea.

We were encouraged by the sign at Cousin's proclaiming it to be one of the Top 50 BBQ Joints in Texas, which is saying something.  We enjoyed our sandwiches and tea, although Stacey remains unimpressed, claiming she preferred the chopped beef sandwich she had at the Houston airport on the way to New Orleans a few months ago.  We planned to hit up Dickey's Barbecue Pit on our way home for the recommended hot links, but it turned out we were too tired for BBQ detours today.

We had a good time at Stacey's mom's house, doing the kinds of things we never have time for in Real Life: watching Oprah, eating home-cooked meals, drinking pina coladas on the patio.  We went shopping.  We played with Benny, who resisted my repeated attempts at capturing his portrait:

We also went up to St. Augustine, which I believe is the oldest city in Florida, for lunch and shopping. You can see the fort in the background below. We didn't check it out this time around but did hear the cannons go off, which was a bit startling to say the least. They should warn people about those things!

Sadly, our time at the O'Malley Resort had to come to an end, but vacation was not over yet. We drove down to Orlando, where we met up with my father, stepmother, and sisters, who had flown in from Boston to spend a few days with us.

I finally got my shot at pirate-themed mini golf, but Stacey and Susy both beat me. Drat.

We also paid Mickey a visit or two. The whole family rode the carousel, below. It's not that comfortable anymore!

Overall, a fun trip, a nice break from work and life, and my last chance to recharge before my last semester of grad school. Tomorrow, it's back to the daily grind. Thank goodness for long weekends.