Thursday, March 24, 2011

Spring Break 2011~Naples Edition


When Shae asked me to meet her in Florida for Spring Break I was so excited!  But, I could not find a good deal on a flight!  Enter Susie Kramer....I started getting texts and Facebook messages with airline deals every day...from Susie.  I don't know how she did it, but she found me a ticket for just over $200.  A deal I could NOT refuse.



 Shae flew to Naples on Sunday and I joined her there on Tuesday!  I LOVED going to Florida on Spring Break when I was a Liberty girl!  Susie, Dawn and I have many happy memories form our times in Miami!
One of the biggest reasons I wanted to go was to meet this precious thing:
Cassie Rae Kramer is Susie and Bill's 13 month old!  I was shocked when Susie told me she was gonna have Kramer girl #4 when Kramer girl #3 was 13!  But, now I can see that something would have been missing without that bright eyed, VERY BUSY, expressive girl.
Shae fell in love with that baby!  She also enjoyed her time with Cassie's sweet big sisters!
Katie, Shae, Courtney and Kelly enjoyed {almost} daily visits to Rita's for frozen custard gelatis!  Yummy!!!
We could not have felt more welcomed.  The Kramers are wonderful hosts.  They were leaving to fly to Denver the same day I flew home, I would have been a frazzled mess trying to get ready...not Susie.  She made me feel as if I could have stayed another month!
It was a fun treat to see Susie's sister, Sally DeWitt, and her girls Danielle and Deanna, (and their roommate, Becca) all Liberty girls, when they drove over from Ft. Lauderdale.
We had lots of laying by the pool sessions! The Kramer resort is sooooooo nice!
We hit the beach, where the water is so much warmer than it is in California!
We did a little "house shopping"...
I found many options for us.  Now to save some money for our Naples vacation home!
We celebrated Deanna's birthday.  I held this beautiful girl when she was  just a few days old on one of my visits to Florida!  She is about to graduate with her Master's degree from Liberty University!
I simply adored each moment of uninterrupted time catching up with my girl.
The sunsets on the beach in Naples are incomparable!   I think I would have a daily appointment there if I lived 1 mile from the beach like Bill and Susie do.
As if it wasn't enough to see one of my best friends....
Dawn and Kenny walked in the front door on Friday! Oh.my.gracious. was I surprised to TEARS!  Shocked isn't even the word!  Dawn is VERY busy with work and I was planning to see her this summer in South Carolina at her house.....What an unbelievable treat to have a weekend together!  There is nothing like friendships that have lasted over the years and what torture to live so far away!
Susie has a precious neighbor, Miss Peg.  She was a home economics teacher for many years and is the most wonderful neighbor anyone could ask for. She loaded me down with some cute patterns and lots of cute ideas! She embroidered special shirts for us!  
Hilarious!
I feel like I have been refreshed and encouraged.  These girls have a way of making me feel VERY loved and special.  They love my family, are interested in my life and the little details and they understand and adore Lindsay.  We have a bond that will only grow closer as time passes.  The JOY of friendships that have The Lord as the common denominator cannot be compared!
I love that between the three of us we have 9 daughters, who are all friends! {funny that the tough football boys don't have any boys...and Bill is a football coach!}
Katie is graduating this year (she and Shae are only 2 months apart) and I am waiting on pins and needles to find out where she will go to school!  She has multiple offers to swim and she is VERY dedicated (swimming 7 days a week before the crack of dawn!) but I hope, hope, hope Liberty gives her an offer she cannot refuse!
Florida was just the place we needed for a week of rest and relaxation...
Shae enjoyed every minute!
We had WAY TOO MANY of Susie's yummy creations (her homemade waffle cones are out of this world!).  I am always challenged by her skills as a Mama.  Her lunches make me feel inadequate...I will be making better sandwiches and wrapping them her way too!!
We fell hopelessly in love with this little girl!
I don't know how I will stay away for long,  she has captured my heart!
Shae kept up with her "faithful employee of LU Baseball" status by watching the games online all week! And, I might add that I HAD TO WATCH and text updates to her while she was out with Katie!
"any good hits?"  "WHO scored?"
We were loved on...
Spring Break Naples 2011 was one I will never forget!!!
Thank you to the Kramers and The Smiths for making it Perfect. So perfect.
I came home to a perfectly clean , laundry all done, clean sheet house complete with roses,
and the sweetest notes..... the perfect ending to a perfect week!
Thank you to Scott for dressing, bathing, fixing hair and answering questions all week by yourself for Lindsay,  going to the orthodontist, the consignment store, driving to two different schools, cooking healthy dinners, making lunches, reading bedtime stories, going to Lindsay's IEP meeting by yourself, upgrading me to first class, giving me money to buy my college girl some goodies, and for making me feel like it was all "no big deal".  
YOU.are.theBEST and I adore you.


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2 comments:

Amy said...

Wow....sounds like you had an amazing break! And that Welcome back home.....You are SO loved! :-)

Grace Meeker said...

I LOVED your post Inger!!! =) and I loved all the pictures...the best one's were seeing you with your girlfriends and having such such a great time!! =)