We made it

As the title suggests, we are in Florida.  

That was a hard journey.  We left Simpsonville at 8.30am.  

I drove the first leg, and managed to go till nearly 11am.  We got into Georgia, before I needed a driver change

Paul drove for about another hour and a half before we stopped somewhere in Georgia for a McDonalds for lunch.  Not the best McDonalds, but the boys enjoyed the break, and the chance to play.  We ended up stopping for about 45 minutes, after many toilet breaks.... 

Paul was able to drive for about another hour before he needed to stop.  I jumped into drive, and managed to do a good 2 hour stint.  This got us out of Georgia (thank goodness, something about that state I just don't feel comfortable with), and a good chunk into Florida.  We were about 160 miles from our destination when we stopped again.  We stopped at a Starbucks for a coffee, the boys had some juice and a cookie, while we indulged in some good coffee.

Paul drove for the final chunk.  In our whole 550+ mile journey, we ran across  only one accident on the final stint.  We decided to go via Atlanta, inland, away from the coast road,as we thought it would be too busy.  We think we made the right decision, after doing the coast road to get to Tybee Island and experiencing lots of traffic.  

We did not count on the toll roads though.  It would appear a lot of the major roads in Florida are tolls. We are used to this in France, but it is not something I did not anticipated here.  Thing is, we cannot figure out how they work.  I am sure we will with time.

So we arrived at the house at 7.30pm, a whole 11 hours after we left Simpsonville.  As I say, a long, hard drive.  I am eternally grateful for purchasing the DVD players for the cars, they really helped the boys.  Both Isaac and Seb slept, though neither for very long.  But they did watch a lot of movies.

So the house...... We drove into the sub division thinking hmmmmm.... Lots of kids out playing, lots of cars in the road.  It appears to be a good mix of residential  and rented properties.  We have neighbors pretty near on both sides, no back yard, but a lanai covered pool.  We came in, the living area is large, connected to the kitchen area, again large.  Both these areas have tables that seat 6. The sofas are ok, the tv is a flat screen.  We are able to park our car in the garage which helps.  The master bedroom is lovely with a big shower, and a comfy bed.  There are 2 other rooms, one a double, the other with 2 singles.

We got settled, unpacked, and gave the boys a party plate dinner.  They eventually went to bed at about 10pm.  Paul and I got in the pool.  It was cold.  Paul stayed in longer than me.  

The boys woke up usual time this morning.  We watched the British Grand Prix, awesome race, but tires are a concern.  After, we let the boys in the pool.  They loved it.  There are loads of noodles, and other pool toys here, so they had plenty to play with.   We got them out just before lunch time, and went for some lunch, then for some shopping ( food stuff only).  As they all fell asleep in the car, we used the time to explore the Disney area and get a feel for where everything is.  We drove past Seaworld, around the Magic Kingdom, and very near to Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios.

We returned back to the house.  I had a sleep, Oliver and Paul watched the rest of the NASCAR, while the other boys played.  We would have gone back in the pool, but the thunderstorms just kept on happening.  Once I woke up, I gave the boys their goodie bags, they loved them.  

The boys had a sandwich dinner, and we put them to bed at a slightly later than usual time.  Isaac is still awake, and letting us know it.  We are enjoying drinking holiday alcohol, and not enjoying putting Isaac   back to bed.

So tomorrow is Magic Kingdom.  We are planning on leaving here at 8am.  That should give us plenty of time to get there, get the boys creamed and pick up our tickets. Then we await the rope drop, and the walk up Main Street with the Disney characters.  Paul and I are both really excited.  Lets hope the boys behave, and we can have a good day tomorrow.

Watch this space....