Gilmore Reunion - July 21, 2016

Our last full day of the reunion, so everyone wants to make the most of the day.  It's another sunny, glorious day so most everyone is out on the beach.  Sweet Bailey has agreed to babysit David and Lily while we go out to lunch with our Army buddies, Sandy and Pete Dabrowski who live nearby.  We enjoy a delicious lunch at The Wharf on St. Pete Beach.  Afterwards, I head to the beach to enjoy the last few hours. I savor the scene before me - Lily and some new friends riding in a paddle boat while David and cousin Arora build a sand village while the sunny is sparking on the gorgeous glistening water.
Our final dinner destination is Bubba Gump's where the last 25 "die-hard Gilmore clan" enjoy great seafood!  Then, we gathered at Maria's and Kevin's condo for our last official get together.

Sherry Jo, Maria, Lori and I have one more "Gilmore Girls" photo taken and vow that we will not wait so long to have another reunion.

Gilmore Reunion - July 20, 2016

Awww - the sweet, slow pace of beach life!  Lots of fun and excitement AGAIN today, including beach creatures:

We moved to the pool for more fun.  Then, we had a little quiet time in the condo, before heading to Agave Mexican Restaurant, St. Pete Beach.  Afterwards, it was party time again, this time is was "Ava's Dance Party"!

Gilmore Reunion - July 19, 2016

We started our morning playing with all the cousins on the beach and decided that we needed a picture of the current generation of Gilmore cousins:

Then we moved on to the pool for some more quality time relaxing, visiting, and of course, playing. Our dinner destination was the boardwalk at John's Pass, where we enjoyed dinner and some other "locals" -

Back at the resort, Lily and David decided to relax just a bit:

Time to stroll the beach at sunset.  We found shells and creatures on our walk.  Everyone was right, these sunsets are amazing:

BUT, equally was amazing was the moon rising:

After our walk, everyone got together at cousin Maria's for snacks and games.  And, another great day at the beach ends.

Gilmore Family Reunion - July 18, 2016

There is something about waking up at the beach that soothes my soul!  This morning, while everyone slept, I drove over to Publix to purchase a few groceries, unloaded them back at the condo, made coffee, and still had plenty of time to read on the balcony overlooking the Gulf before anyone stirred.  Luxury, pure luxury. Finally, with everyone fed, we headed to the beach.  It was such fun to meet up with family to enjoy a beautiful, sunny Florida day.

Later, we all met at the American Legion, Post 423, for an evening of dining outdoors, watching the legendary sunsets of this area.  All 53 of us posed for various pictures including, first generation cousins,

second/third generation cousins

,
and finally a group picture.

Gilmore Family Reunion - July 17 - 22, 2016 Treasure Island, FL

July 17, 2016



Many, many years have passed since a Gilmore (Lou Smith's - Lana's mom) Reunion, so the excitement is high as we leave Marietta around 0800 for our destination - Sunset Vistas, Treasure Island, FL!  David and Lily are happy to share the back seat with Meme as we travel along on a gloriously sunny day. Eight hours later, we arrive on this charming island, and in record time, we unpack, put on swim suits, and dash to the beautiful Gulf!  The sand is powdery white, and the water is clear, calm and best of all - warm!

 After frolicking on the beach, we decide to visit the resort's pool, where I spot several of my cousins!  It was AWESOME to see cousins that I have not seen in decades, as well as meet their children and spouses!  We visited until a rain storm appeared, then everyone decided we'd meet up again tomorrow.
   We had hoped that the rain storm would disappear while we showered, but no such luck, so we decided to order pizza and stay dry in our very nice condo.

Freedom of the Seas - Royal Caribbean Cruise - 2016

May 28, 2016

Bubbie, Zaydie, Lily, and David left Marietta around 0930 hours to begin the journey for our second cruise.  We had a pleasant, uneventful road trip to Ocala, FL where we spent the night at Country Inn & Suites.  David and Lily enjoyed the indoor pool where they played with new friends.

Afterwards, we enjoyed dinner at Carrabba's, followed by ice cream at the Twistee Treat, a recommendation from our server. We slept great in anticipation of tomorrow's travels to our cruise ship!

May 29, 2016

After breakfast, we started our travels to Port Canaveral to board the beautiful Freedom of the Seas!

Our cabin, 9602, would be our home for the next week.  After quickly dropping off our luggage, we headed to have some lunch, and explore!

We had a fabulous dinner, where David fell in love with shrimp cocktail!

May 30, 2016

Coco Cay - our first port!  It was a gloriously sunny day, and we were off to our first excursion, Stingray City.  Lily and David loved the speedboat ride!  First, major find - starfish!

Then, the stingrays zoomed over, and the real fun began!

No one wanted to leave, BUT the speedboat was leaving, so.......

Back on Coco Cay, Zaydie went back to the cruise ship while the rest of us played on the beach, ate a picnic lunch, and Lily had her hair braided.

Back on board, David and Lily went to the Kids Adventure Clubs for dinner and fun!  Happy Memorial Day.

May 31, 2016

A wonderful day at sea.  While at the pool, the Dream Works Characters had a little performance which David and Lily loved.

Then, a rare opportunity happened - David and Lily wanted to learn how to do Michael Jackson's Thriller dance and a four part class was being offered!  While they were by far the youngest students in the class, they were quick studies and VERY EXCITED!

For dinner, Lily opted to dine with her friends at the Adventure Club, but David wanted to eat with us because he wanted more shrimp cocktail!

June 1, 2016

St. Thomas, U.S. V.I. - our second port!

Today's excursion was to Coral Sea World where we boarded a type of glass bottom boat that allowed us to see the world below the surface!  We saw several coral reefs, lots of brightly colored fish, and plenty of other sea creatures.  Next, we explored the exhibits of sharks, stingrays, sea turtles, and several iguanas roaming around the park.

Back on the ship, the kids and I attended an awesome ice skating show before dinner. We all dined together tonight, but David and Lily left quickly after dinner to go play with their friends at "the club." Our late night snacks at the Starbucks is starting to become our nightly tradition! 

June 2, 2016

St. Martin - Another gorgeous day in the Caribbean, and life is good!  Our third excursion was to a Butterfly Garden on the French side of this island shared with the Dutch. The beautiful butterflies entertained all of us.

Back on the ship, we enjoyed the pool, had a lovely evening, and crashed into bed, relaxed and happy.

June 3, 2016

Ah - a day at sea - the BEST! We started our day with a breakfast among the Dream Works Characters.

Our day was packed!   Next, on the agenda was ice skating.  While David and Lily quickly learned how to ice skate, this 62 year old grandma hugged the wall! One's second attempt at ice skating should not be on a rocking, rolling cruise ship!

On we went to watch some fruit carving.

And finally, some relaxing by (in) the pool.

June 4, 2016

Our last full day on the ship, and we hope to make every minute count.  The four part Thriller Dance class was drawing to an end.  The wonderful teacher informed everyone that tonight there would be a "flash mob" performance of Thriller.  The final rehearsal took place on the helipad, which was such fun!

The rehearsal went great, so everyone was free to relax and enjoy the afternoon.  We played at the pool, had our daily ice cream, and then went to watch the Dream Works parade.

After dinner, David and Lily quickly got ready for the flash mob performance on the main promenade deck.  It was such a hit, that a second performance was done at one of the local clubs! Everyone loved David and Lily!

It was the perfect ending to an amazing cruise  Tomorrow, it's home we go!