Florida Getaway: Days 3 + 4

The five of us (Andi, Tory, Aden, Janie and I) woke up Sunday on a mission. A severe storm was forecasted in the area later that day, so we planned to capitalize on every minute of sunshine the day had to offer.

After breakfast in our beach villa (yogurt parfaits for the grown-ups and frozen waffles for the kiddos), we hopped in the golf cart and set off to explore the southern part of Palm Island. We cruised along the quiet roads and looked at old-style Florida beach villas lining the streets. I loved this sign near the entrance of the island - if this doesn't sum up island life, I don't know what does?

 
Andi parked our golf cart near the docks, and we wandered out to the water to look at the boats. The tree-lined walkway was so peaceful and serene; we had the whole pier to ourselves.

 
Tory was itching to get to the beach, so we drove back to Stump Pass - the same place we'd gone the morning before. The weather was sunny but windy, and we hoped to find a protected spot along the trees. First though, we stopped by our condo to grab ice cream cones. Who says you can't have ice cream at 10:00am on vacation? Aden threw a little tantrum when he realized I'd thrown away the last drippy bite of his cone before he had the chance to finish it. Oh, life's rough when you're three.

A pod of dolphins swimming by were enough to change his attitude. As we walked onto the beach, we saw a dozen dolphins swimming past us about 30 yards away from shore. It was an amazing sight! The kids weren't as impressed, but Janie, Andi and I were in awe of their beauty.

The five of us spent the rest of the morning hours playing at the beach. A girl could get used to this! It was quiet, calm and absolutely perfect.

Aden began to fuss around Noon because he was hungry, so we packed up our beach spot and drove our golf cart to Coconuts Restaurant on the property. We sat outside and enjoyed a big lunch of coconut shrimp, ribs, shrimp tacos and grilled mahi mahi. The kids had chicken strips and french fries, so naturally they were in heaven.

After lunch, we headed to the pool for our afternoon swim session. There were two other couples there - busy, ha! We swam, read books on our Kindles and laid in the sun. We could tell the storm was moving into the area around 4:00pm when the skies clouded over and the air around us grew increasingly windy. I washed up the kids from the pool and Janie made them dinner. Then, Andi and I went to the property's fitness center for a quick workout. Janie, Andi and I made turkey burgers for dinner with grilled zucchini and brussels sprouts. It was the perfect end to another great day at the beach.

Monday, the weather was super windy and cool. We packed up our beach villa and headed into Fort Myers to spend our last few hours of vacation. Our weekend trip was a short one, but a perfect getaway to relax and enjoy time together as a family. I'd definitely recommend this piece of Florida paradise: Palm Island was quiet, secluded and absolutely beautifiul.