Fun in Florida

We took a last-minute whirlwind Spring Break trip to Florida to visit our grandparents and check in on Grandpa Hollewell who is recovering from a minor heart attack and double bypass surgery. When I say last minute, I mean packing at 11:00 PM and waking the girls up first the next morning saying, "Come on; get up! We're going to Florida!"

Grandpa Hollewell seemed to be in good spirits, having just moved into a rehab facility. Madeline helped him count during occupational therapy - backwards, and in Spanish! We stayed in St. Petersburg and visited him in Sarasota.

Franz's cousin has been keeping Grandma Hollewell company and driving her back and forth to the hospital. She is doing wonderfully since her hip replacement last fall.

Franz entertained family, residents, and staff with his wheelchair wheelies, while contemplating how best to customize wheelchairs with custom rims, turbo boosters, and chrome in all the right spots.

Next stop Estero, just south of Ft. Myers. Grandpa and Grandma Gottschalk stay there in the winter, just across the interstate from Aunt Connie.

We had a great time visiting with them, walking through the flower gardens in their park, and trying out the sunglasses Grandpa sneaked into Grandma's shopping cart for two little great-grand-daughters.

We had lots of fun with the glasses and, amazingly, we all left with our eyes intact, despite Madeline's "game" of pushing glasses onto other people's faces! :)It's hard to get Katie to sit still and smile. No, pretty much impossible.

From Estero, we drove to Winterhaven (near Lakeland) to stay with Grandpa and Grandma Forman.

Madeline and Katie got a huge kick out of the exercise bike.
We went to an Easter sunrise service at Cypress Gardens and the weather went from sprinkling to sunny and warm, so we were able to stay and play for most of the day, touring the gardens, taking in a ski show, and riding the rides. Not surprisingly, Katie loved the kiddie rides (roller coasters included) and wished to go on the adult-sized rides. More surprisingly, Madeline enjoyed them too!
They shaped the bushes into all sorts of animals.

Now, I am sitting in a hotel room outside of Orlando while Franz finishes up buying cars that the local highline auction. We are catching a flight back to Phoenix tonight, so I guess I'd better get packing!