Florida Fun

 This story starts last September. We had booked a week at SeaWorld, Discovery Cove, and Aquatica for the week following our September Disney Cruise. But we got quarantined coming off of the cruise so we had to reschedule our Discovery Cove week. They also refunded our cruise to apologize for the inconvenience. So we scheduled a new cruise for the first week in March and rescheduled Discovery cove for May. Then, Tony got diagnosed in February and we needed to move our cruise again. In total, we moved the cruise 6 times trying to find a week that would work between Tony's treatments. Miraculously, the week we had rescheduled Discovery cove for in May never changed. We flew to Florida on Mother's Day. The pass we had purchased (more than a year ago now) included SeaWorld, Aquatica, Busch Gardens and one day at Discovery Cove. So we started the week with Aquatica. Jack and Kevin had gotten sick coming off the plane on Sunday, and ended up puking in the rental car, so they opted to stay at the hotel with Tony for the first half of the day. Cody wasn't all that sad about having 3 adults to himself all day at his favorite place in the world. 

I drove back to the hotel after lunch to get Tony, Jack and Kevin and we finished off the day all together. Jack and Kevin were both very done by the time the park closed, so it turned out to be good they only came for half the day. Tony also slept for most of the morning, so he would be feeling up to a full day the next day. 

While we were at Aquatica, we got news that the genetics test had come back negative. This means that he does not have the gene that indicates he is predisposed to Leukemia. Because of this, we do not have to test his brothers for the same gene, and we can move forward with using any of his 3 brothers as related half matches. We also found out there are several unrelated full matches in the BeTheMatch registry that are options as well. 

Day 2 was spent at SeaWorld. We got to see all 3 shows: Dolphin, Orca and Sea Lion. The boys always wanted to be in the middle of the splash zone. After 2 shows of not getting very wet, Cody insisted on being in the front row at the Sea Lion show. It paid off, because he ended up being chosen to come up to the front and feed the sea lion. It was a very cool experience for him. 

Day 3 was the long awaited day at Discovery Cove. For those that want to plan a trip to Florida, this is the place I recommend the most. It is nothing short of magical. The food is free and unlimited, there is an amazing snorkeling reef, you get to swim with dolphins, you get to feed exotic birds, and the "lazy river" is like nothing we've ever experienced before. After a quick breakfast we headed over to the atrium via the river. We were one of the first families there so the birds were quite hungry.

After the birds, we headed straight to our dolphin appointment. Our dolphin's name was Yoko and she was so much fun. The trainer talked to us about how Yoko has actually invented some of the sounds and tricks and the other dolphins have learned to copy her. Our favorite trick was when she stuck her tongue out at us. It was such a unique experience to be able to interact with her. When we initially bought this package we had ordered the picture package with it. I had forgotten it came with a picture frame and a photo book as well as all the digital copies of the photos. So that was a fun surprise. 

After our experience with the dolphins, we at lunch and then went snorkeling at their reef. It is a beautiful reef with tons of tropical fish and rays. Everyone tried at least a little of the snorkeling, but Kevin preferred the shallow water, and cut out a bit early to take a midday nap. 

We spent the rest of the day exploring the river which included stops for otters and marmoset monkeys. I think it would be difficult to find another place quite like this. It is absolutely amazing, and I'm so grateful we were able to do it. 

Day 4 was spent at Busch Gardens. It was a little more than an hour drive from our hotel since it's outside of Tampa instead of Orlando. After arriving to the parking lot, we discovered that Kevin hadn't brought any shoes. So Tony, Jack and Cody went into the park and Kevin and I went to Walmart to hunt for shoes. Once we were all reunited, we had an incredible day. Busch Gardens has some fantastic rides. It also has a great kid zone that all 3 kids enjoyed throughout the day. 

Kevin and Cody and I hung out at the kids zone while Jack and Tony rode all the biggest coasters. Jack ended up getting motion sick by the end and took a turn sitting out for a bit while his tummy settled. Then after some confusion on where the train stopped, we finally met back up together and rode a ride everyone was tall enough for. Miraculously, Kevin loved it and ended up riding it on repeat 5 times. 

The miracle continued as we were able to convince Kevin to go on a rollercoaster that went upside down. In the end, he didn't love it, but we were so proud of him for trying it. Afterward, Kevin said the coaster made his nose drool. We thought that was such a funny description! Tony, Jack and Kevin went back to the kiddie section while Cody and I went over to the brand new ride, the Iron Gwazi. It was a very intense roller coaster and Cody just absolutely loved it. So we rushed back to the kid zone and Tony and Cody decided to ride it together while Kevin and Jack and I slowly headed toward the exit of the park. But Cody's heart was broken when they told him he wasn't tall enough for it (even though he had just barely ridden it. He is right on the line, so some employees say yes and some say no I guess). Tony was able to try it out while the rest of us slowly exited the park. It was a very fun, full day. 

On our final day, Tony and I went back to SeaWorld and the boys did the hotel waterpark with Grandma and Grandpa. We enjoyed being able to try out some of the big rides at SeaWorld. And the boys really loved playing in the pool. Overall, it was a perfect week with low 80 temperatures and no rain.