We had a chance to visit with my great uncle, as well as some cousins, while on vacation. It was great to see them all, especially my uncle.

I had to run just to keep up with him. I think he’s getting the whole bike-riding thing.

Yesterday was a low-key day. Other than going out for lunch, we didn’t do too much, which suited me just fine. It was quiet, and relaxing, and I think the sunset we got describes illustrated the day perfectly.

I have gotten a little behind on the daily vacation photos, so here, in a single batch, are vacation photos for days 10-14.

Day 10: Santa in a Tree

Seen while walking through the old part of Naples.

Day 11: Mini-golf

Our attempt to keep the kids busy as the pre-Christmas anxiety built up.

Day 12: Christmas Eve

Day 13: Christmas Morning

Subtitle: The Aftermath

Day 14: The Beach

We also had lunch at the beach and the Little Man tried (and enjoyed!) his first gator bites.

Whew! I’ll try not to get that far behind again.

Last night, Kelly and I had an evening away from the kids. We stayed at a hotel in Naples¹, ate dinner at a nice Italian place, and wandered around the streets of Old Naples.  While there, we came across Santa resting in a tree.

It was in the upper 80s around here yesterday, which made it necessary to cool off. Fountains seem very practical for this when you are 4 years old.

We ended the day by taking the kids to the pool and allowing them to burn off some energy.

The Little Man and I took a leisurely walk yesterday. We were stalked by a steamroller, had to hike past a backhoe, and finally got to throw rocks into a small lake. In other words, a tailor-made adventure for the Little Man.

Today was mostly a day of relaxation and decompression after four days of driving. My morning walk was particularly peaceful.

Before Legoland, there was Cypress Gardens. The gardens are still there, and they are actually quite beautiful.

I think Miniland has been my favorite part of Legoland so far. I think the job of building all of those Lego replicas of cities and buildings has to be one of the coolest jobs in the world.

Our first day in Florida, and our first vacation sunset in Florida, caught while walking from the hotel to dinner this evening.