My Favorite Photos From Our Family Vacation To Florida

The end of a vacation is so funny. I spend all this time prior to it excited, eager and anticipating all the days ahead, then the vacation itself seems to fly by, and when it’s over it feels like it somehow never happened. Do you ever feel like that too? I suppose it’s the prime example of time flying when you’re having fun! Which was definitely the case when we visited Florida for a little sunshine, and quality time with the family.

Don’t get me wrong. There was a little stress in there, too, as traveling with two kids under 3 will do. Highlights include two accidents at the airport from a potty-training Grace, some epic meltdowns due to over-tired kiddos on a plane, and the realization for Doug and I that we may not have another relaxing family vacation until the girls are 18. But I digress. 😉

Honestly though, it was amazing to spend 10 days of non-stop, quality time with our girls and our family! In typically Charron fashion, we kept things interesting and were in a few places throughout our time there. First we started on Captiva Island with my mom’s side, where we had a ton of beach time and the shell-finding was epic. Then we went to Fort Myers with my dad’s side, where we again spent lots of time on the beach and also celebrated my cousin’s wedding at the Edison & Ford Winter Estates. (The estates are so beautiful and a must-do if you’re in the Fort Myers area!) Last, I had to work at a worldwide conference in Orlando, so Doug and the girls came with me to hang at Disney resorts while I worked during the day. Phew! 

Here are some of my favorite photos and memories from our trip.

Captiva Island

If you haven’t been to Captiva Island, it’s a must! Easily one of my favorite places in the country; I love how serene it is, and the shell finding is unmatched.

We honestly did nothing but sit on the beach, lounge around the pool, and have lots of great nights with our family hanging out. Scrabble and cards were played, each night a different person took a turn cooking, and we all got to have the best quality time chatting. I forgot about my phone and honestly enjoyed every minute of it. The girls took long naps, and had so much fun playing in the water/sand. Grace and Jo both went into the pool, the first time this year for each of them, and though they were intimidated at first they loved it in no time!

The highlight for me on this part of the trip was when we rented a boat and cruised along the inner coast of Captiva Island. We saw dolphins, went fishing, and jumped into the refreshing salt water. A sunny day at its best!

Oh! And of course Grace and Jo in bathing suits. Can you even?! They were so cute I wanted to gobble them up! 

Fort Myers Beach

More beach time, more long walks, more quality time with our family, and more happy days with our girls.

Gracie and Jo’s favorite part was definitely the pool – after practicing being in the water in Captiva, they started to be more brave! Grace even started jumping in on her own (floaties on, of course!) One of my favorite parts from Fort Myers were the sunsets – one night in particular, we walked out and meandered in the water with our family, enjoying the colors and no agenda. My ideal night.

Orlando

Orlando for me was a lot of work, though it was so much fun to do it all at Disney! We stayed at the Disney Beach Club Resort, which was the perfect place because it was so kid friendly. I loved that it was near the Disney boardwalk, because there were lots of great restaurants (and ice cream shops!) to try with the girls at night. Gracie and Jo even got to meet Minnie Mouse, Daisy and Daffy Duck, and Goofy at breakfast one morning! (Grace was ALL about Minnie but was NOT into Goofy. Ha!)

During the days I was tending to a social media booth at a worldwide conference, so it was honestly pretty exhausting because it was non-stop conversations all day. Though, Dougy was of course an all-star dad and managed Gracie and Jo solo all day every day while I was working, so it was definitely lots of work for him too.

One really cool part of this part of the trip, was that work rented out all of Universal Studios for the employees at the conference to attend! On that night, Doug and I got a babysitter and had a date night out with my favorite coworkers. It was so much fun to go on all the rides; the Harry Potter experience was insane and so well done. (Anyone else a total Harry Potter nerd like me?!)

All in all, it was such a fun trip and we’re already planning our next family adventure. Where to next?! Have you traveled anywhere with your family that you’d recommend? Would love to hear in the comments below!

PS – Our tips for traveling with kids + A long weekend in Charleston + While on island time.