Out with the old and in with the new

This will be my last post on this blog. I am changing the way I blog, doing more opinion and review posts than my daily happenings. If you would like to follow, please see my new blog at
http://theway1see1t.blogspot.com/

Hope you pop by and take a peek!

Camping

I am not a camper. A bunch of friends go camping every year as a group and have a wonderful time. I don't miss it, and I don't want to do it. I am just not a camper. They do try to get me to go, and join the group, but I just don't like the whole tent business or outhouses, the no running water, bugs, etc.

I love the outdoors, and would go up for a day trip to visit if they camped close to home, but they usually don't and to make a two-three hour drive to spend a bit of time there, is just to much.

I have camped before, and I don't like the bugs, the dampness and all the work involved. I don't like camping, it is not relaxing or enjoyable to me at all.

So this year a friend of mine found this great camp site, where there are cottages to rent. So no tents, dampness, outhouses and there is running water and all the other comforts of home. It is close by and offers many amenities. Something I might consider next year if they choose to go there as a group.
I looked this place up today and thought it was a nice place to share with all of you. So here is the link to the website if anyone is interested.

http://www.cedarcove.ca/cottages.htm

Staycation

This summer we have decided we are having a stay-cation.
We are staying home for our summer vacation. Here is the meaning from Wikipedia

A stay - cation is a neologism for a period of time in which an individual or family stays at home and relaxes at home or takes day trips from their home to area attractions. Stay-cations have achieved high popularity in current hard economic times in which unemployment levels and gas prices are high.

Common activities of a stay-cation include use of the backyard pool, visits to local parks and museums and attendance at local festivals . Some stay-cationers also like to follow a set of rules, such as setting a start and end date, planning ahead, and avoiding routine, with the goal of creating the feel of a traditional vacation.

Since we just went away end of February to mid march, and hubby and I are going to be going away again this winter, we decided this summer to just take it easy at home, get some home things done and plan some activities to do and places to visit around home. I am looking forward to summer and many fun outings with the kids

Vacation over - more to plan for 2010

We are home now and had an amazing time. The vacation is over for this year, but we are thinking of going back to Panama City Beach next year with my family again. Hubby and I are also wanting to go away for our 10th wedding anniversary that we are celebrating this June. We are thinking of a winter getaway to an all inclusive resort in the Caribbean as I have never been to the Caribbean. So lots to plan for the upcoming year, travel wise.

Panama City - Our last day and review

This is our last day here, and we will be having a relaxing beach day. The weather is sunny and hot. Today's high 81F. One more day on the beach. I will miss this beach, the heat and sunshine the most upon our return home. I am not looking forward to the gloom and gray and rain and snow and mix of end of winter weather back home. I love it here. I love the sunshine.
However, vacations have to end.

This vacation has been really nice, truly relaxing, fun and beautiful. A nice winter get away. Panama City would definitely be a place I could visit again. It is very nice, great weather, great beach, great activities for adults and children alike. We stayed in a wonderful Condo called Splash. They have heated pools, kiddie area, water park, hot tub, work out room(gym), arcade and free DVD rentals. You are very pampered here. In the condo, you have access to full size fridge, stove, dishwasher and microwave as well as Washer and dryer, a must have when you are constantly at the beach bringing in sand. There are Televisions, and DVD players in the bedrooms and the living area. Very nice when staying with multiple families. It is nice to have these necessities when vacationing.

I would definitely recommend anyone looking for a winter or spring break get away or for the beach lovers to consider Panama City Beach. Great fun here. I would also recommend the splash resort as a place to stay.

Our overall experience here has been great. Definite must visit for those who have never been.

Things you didn't know about Panama City Beach - Panama City Beach is situated on the Gulf Coast of Northwest Florida. The metropolitan area is made up of 20.5 square miles of land, and 6.2 square miles of water. The average yearly temperature is 71°F... just about where most people would set their thermostats.
Panama City Beach is definitely a beach lovers paradise!

Panama City Day 10

Today is another gorgeous day. It started off with fog and mist and then once the sun came up it burned all the fog away within minutes.

Today we hung around the condo for the morning and walked on the beach. The kids swam in the pool for a little bit and the hot tub and then an early lunch.
After lunch we packed up and headed to the St. Andrews State Park.
It costs $5US for a car load to enter the park. It has a couple nice beaches and an alligator pond. We didn't see any alligators though. We hung around the kiddie area for a bit, where the water is blocked by rocks, so it is very shallow and gentle, and then over to the other side where all the surfers are. The waves there are huge and there must have been over 30 surfers in the water. We were there a few hours and enjoyed our time. When we left we popped over to Walmart to pick up last minute groceries and then home for dinner.

After dinner, we headed to the hot tub and pool for about 45 minutes and then upstairs to relax for the evening. Our last day is tomorrow.. It has been a great time here.

Things you didn't know about Panama City Beach -From the beaches one can simply enjoy sun-bathing and swimming or partake in more adventurous activity with the available parasailing rides, jet skis, catamarans, and seaplane rides. Boating excursions are also available for sight-seeing, dolphin watching, fishing, snorkeling, and diving.

Panama City Day 9

Today was another gorgeous sunny day. No wonder Florida is the called the sunshine state. We have been here 9 days and not 1 drop of rain. We did have some cloud cover when the storm blew by us,but no rain, and for the most part it has been sunny.

We did an early beach day today heading down at 10am. We hung out on the beach for about an hour, than the hot tub. We had an early lunch and then headed out to do a dolphin boat tour. We took the Sea Screamer on her maiden voyage of 2009. It was costly, for 5 of us it was $80US, but well worth it. We saw dolphins, pelicans, jelly fish and we were lucky enough to see a sea turtle. The captain sees them only a few times a year, so we lucked out by seeing one. The tour lasted 2 hours, and the kids had a blast. They were offered to drive the boat but did not, so I did and it was fun.

We headed back to the condo and had a quick snack and then down to the pool and the hot tub again. It was so nice. Then dinner and a walk on the beach and that was the day. We are wiped today, I guess a mixture of sun, wind and sand can wipe you out.

2 days left.. We are very sad:(

Things you didn't know about Panama City Beach - 13,000-15,000 people winter in Panama City, and 60% of those people are from Ontario.