The Return to Florida

After a shocking 5 year hiatus, it was time for Team Cohen to once again descend upon Daddy's birth state, visit family and friends, and have a Team Cohen vacation in the Sunshine State. Before we could even depart from Austin, the state of Florida needed to open up its air space which was closed for the launch of a 3D rocket. We found ways to pass the time.



Hour 3 at the airport obviously called for ice cream, and then we finally got to board the plane!


Several hours after originally scheduled, we made it and were reunited with doting grandparents.

Between changing time zones, daylight savings time, and travel delays, we were all happy to sleep in the next morning.



We spent the first part of our awake morning exploring all that our Airbnb had to offer.


When your Airbnb has a pool, you jump in before you even have breakfast on Day 1!


After breakfast, we headed to Grandma and Grandpa's house for more Florida swimming, just in another pool.

before

after

Uncle Harris and Aunt Gail (unpictured 😔) drove in from Ft. Myers to spend a few hours with our family. It was a lovely visit.

Grandma was loving being reunited with her grandchildren!

Spencer taught Grandma mancala.

The Cohen crazies were quick to discover the exact same entertainment at Grandma and Grandpa's house that Daddy and Uncle Jason explored in their youth.

(I hope this is how Daddy and Uncle Jason finished their fun as well.)


It had been a long 5 years:

our most recent snuggles in 2018

Snuggles resume in 2023.

We woke up the next morning still in Florida. So naturally, we went in the pool!


Day 2's field trip took us to the Museum of Discovery and Science.







We took a break outside for our picnic lunch and a game of Telephone that got out of hand.




Back inside for a little more exploring and discovering.




That evening, we were excited to get together with cousins Rebecca and Grayson.


It was evening. It was morning. Day 3 in Florida.

We loved taking advantage of the Airbnb's game room.

Weren't we surprised to learn that Jacob, Dan, and Shubhada also ventured to Florida for Spring Break?! On Day 3 of our trip, we met them at the Paradox Museum in Miami which included certain fun for all ages, a challenge on the brain and eyes, and way too many picture opportunities.













{Warning: The following images may be disturbing to some viewers. Discretion is advised.}








We were grateful for our Texan reunion in Florida and gave Jacob extra squeezes before parting ways.



Day 3 evening brought us to Uncle Jason and Aunt Alana's house for swimming, dinner, and playing with all of our Cohen cousins!

It was especially nice to spend time with the newest cousins Nolan and Logan, one of whom we hadn't even met before.

From left to right: Rylan(13), Logan(2), Spencer(6), Gabi(10), Landon(15), Nolan(3.5), Ethan(8), Ashlyn(16)

Ethan and Ashlyn played an epic basketball game.

brothers!

On Day 4, we went to Butterfly World in Coconut Creek.

Daddy, Gabi, Spencer, and the butterflies

Ethan will guide you through the attraction.

Some of us started to get droopy. Some of us were ready to keep going.

We got a second wind when it was time to meet the lorikeets.

Ethan wanted to recreate this gem from 2016.

We were very excited to meet up with Uncle Joshie and Shari and FINALLY meet (not-so-baby-anymore) Eliana.



With a rainy afternoon and some extra time before meeting friends in Boca Raton, we found a mall to blow off steam.

Ethan was excited to pass this establishment.

We enjoyed dinner with longtime pal Jared and his family.

On our last full day in Florida, Grandma and Grandpa treated us aboard the Jungle Queen Riverboat for some waterfront sightseeing.






When Daddy went out for bro time with Uncle Joshie, I introduced the kiddos to one of my favorite non-people parts of Florida: Jaxson's Ice Cream!

Which is bigger, Spencer's face or our ice cream?

Mommy's happy place

We couldn't possibly return home to Texas without at least dipping our feet in some Florida sand.

My instructions were, "We're going out to dinner right after this. I do not have a change of clothes for you. Do not get wet." Hilarious wasted breaths...


Bon voyage, Florida! Hope to see you again before another 5 years.

Perhaps it was time to return to routines...