You, Me & the Sea- Spring breaking with my favorite teen- Part 1

Donnie didn't feel like he could get away from work (he's still super busy though at least he isn't working several hours on Saturdays anymore...) and Alyssa really wanted to go somewhere (more specifically a beach in any warm weather locale) for spring break so the "job" fell to me to find a beach and for us to go there together. It was a tough job but we got 'er done.

We decided to go to Clearwater Beach in Florida. We picked it based on the price of airline tickets from Cincinnati/ Dayton during our spring break. I checked several other non northern Florida cities with direct flights from Cincy including Fort Lauderdale/ Miami and Fort Myers and Clearwater was the winner. We'd never been there which was another draw. And it was Gulf side which is my favorite. So, we felt pretty good about the choice prior to going.

We were gone from early Monday to very early Friday. It was a quick trip because I felt bad enough about leaving Donnie.  I didn't want to gone the weekend that started spring break. And I didn't want to be gone Good Friday or any of Easter weekend. 

We had a few adventures prior to even getting to Florida. Goodness, what would a trip be without adventures? 

The biggest adventure was almost not getting to go. I wrote about it in this post so I won't belabor the event here too much. But, basically, I misplaced my driver's license shortly before the trip. By happenstance, I looked for my license two days prior to the trip. I couldn't find it in its normal spot in my wallet. Donnie found it for me in an obscure place. Normally, I verify that my driver's license is in my wallet prior to leaving for the airport. But, if I'd had waited until the morning we left, I doubt Donnie or I would have found it in enough time to still make our flight.  If I'd had an up to date passport, I could have used that if my driver's license could not have been found. However, my passport was expired and I had in, fact, very recently submitted paperwork by mail to get it renewed. I had a harrowing fear that I'd inadvertently placed my driver's license in the envelope with my expired passport and sent them both in the mail. Thank goodness that was not the case! 

Every day that we were in Florida felt even more special knowing that we had come close to not getting to go at all!!

The next two items aren't really adventures, rather some interesting commentary we received en route to Florida. Our driver from the parking lot to the Cincinnati airport (we parked at a parking lot near the airport that provides shuttle services to the airport) was a woman (we'd never had a female driver before (not that I care one way or the other- just an observation)). After she helped get our suitcase out of the delivery vehicle once we were at the airport, she turned to us and said, "Oh, you two are mother- daughter right? At first when I saw you, I though you were friends traveling together but now I see that you're mother and daughter. I guess I was flattered that at one point, anyway, she thought we were contemporaries rather than mother and daughter (though of course I don't mind when someone perceives that we are mother- daughter since, you know, we are!).

When at the airport, when going through security, we had another mother daughter interesting commentary event occur. We gave our driver's licenses to the guy checking them at security. After looking at both of the licenses and after looking at us, he said, "Oh, you have the same last names. Of course, your're mother and daughter. Also, you look a lot a like so it's easy to tell that way, as well." Alyssa and I looked at each other and laughed. No one has ever told us we look alike. One person, when Alyssa was a baby, told me she saw a resemblance of me in Alyssa. But no one has told us that we look alike. If people have met Donnie and they comment on likeness between Alyssa and a parent, it's to say that she takes after him. But not me. So after the guy in security told us that we look alike, we quietly demurred. "Quietly" because we weren't going to get in an argument with a guy who had the ability to deny us moving through security at the airport. The guy was persistent, "It's the nose," he declared. "Your noses are similar." Now I don't know if he was flat our trolling us or not because our noses are two of the most distinguishable features between us. But again, this was not the time or place for a disagreement. He thought our noses were similar? Ok! Thye're similar then. I mean, I wish I had Alyssa's cute button nose. I could get on board, pardon the pun, with having similar noses.

Speaking of on board, once on the plane, we realized that we were seating in the emergency row exits. I've sat in these rows before and know that they entail being committed to assisting should an emergency occur. But this was the first time such a strong emphasis and long explanation was given to those of us sitting in the rows. It was almost alarming, as if the crew was privy to or prescient of, something nefarious happening during the flight. We were very thankful, upon arriving in Florida because it meant that we were in Florida and nothing bad happened in flight. Because let's face it, if the emergency row seaters are called on to assist in an emergency during a flight, that airplane is likely not going to end up intact at its destination.

Alyssa in her seat, dramatically demonstrating her willingness to assist with opening the emergency door should the need (hopefully NOT!!) arise

About ready to leave dreary, bleak Ohio for the Sunshine State and very happy about the idea of being in sunlight for multiple days in a row. Though I won't throw Ohio too far under the weather bus. The day ended out being a beautiful one in Ohio- Donnie said it got quite warm and the sun came out. But I'm pretty sure the weather was mostly cloudy/ rainy in Ohio the rest of the time we were gone.

 After all of the rigmarole of travel- from the time we left our house to the time this was our view- about seven hours had transpired. We were so grateful to have arrived!

This is why comments directed to me such as, "Alyssa looks like you," are so far and few in between. It's because she looks so much like Donnie. Here is Alyssa holding a picture of Donnie when he was approximately the same age is she was when the picture was tken.