Emerson Goes to Boca Grande
Emerson goes to Boca Grande!
Mike, Emerson and I got to spend nearly a week visiting my parents in Boca Grande, FL a few weeks ago and we had the best time! The trip began with another early flight out of Lexington. If you’ve never been to Boca Grande, the closest airports are RSW or PGD (Allegiant) so we knew we needed a carseat for the drive onto the island.
I much prefer Delta and the drive isn’t that much longer, maybe an hour and 20 minute, so we flew into RSW. Since checking strollers does not count against your luggage totals, we checked the Doona at the counter and used our travel stroller in the airport. I love it so much more than the Doona in the airport because it has space underneath for my purse or her backpack and she can sit up and face forward. You also save time by being able to take it on the plane and collapse it versus waiting after deplaning for it to be brought back out. It is definitely worth the investment in another stroller.
Girlie slept on both flights in my lap and I brought these suction toys for the plane. They really only suction to the windows but I put them at her level at the condo, too.
My parents have always used the same driver, Dave, for their trips to Boca Grande and he is great. There are plenty of driver services but I can just text him a few days before to confirm and he is always early. I can happily share his number with anyone who needs it.
My parents are in a condo on the beach for February and March but happened to be staying at Gasparilla Inn the week we were there. This was perfect as we could have the space of the condo but use the pool at the inn! My mom handled all the rentals for girlie through Venice Baby Gear Rentals. I much prefer a crib to a pack n play and this one wasn’t a mini, which was great. I always bring a sheet from home and then if we need to use their backup, we’ve got two. We also had a clip on highchair for the kitchen island which we love using at home with her. Those were the only two items we really needed to rent.
We used my parents room for daytime naps (it was closer to the pool where we were going to be) and they got a pack n play through the inn. We had them bring the slumberpod with them since they drove down. I also ended up bringing our monitor from home so the sitters could look at it and sit outside on the porch if they were at the inn, or have it downstairs when they were babysitting at the condo.
We had sitters on three evening nights and three afternoons during nap. The Inn can help you secure these as the employees rotate on their off days. Our night time sitter is someone our family has used for years and she used to work at the Inn. She was so great and by the third night, Emerson was fully warmed up to playing with her before we left.
The great thing about Boca Grande is most people get around via golf cart. It was way easier to use that with girlie getting to and from town for coffee or the pool. She loved the pool at Gasparilla Inn because it was so warm. We also had this new pool float for her to try and it was perfect.
Day 1:
Dinner at Gasparilla Inn for Valentine’s Day
Day 2:
Lunch at the beach club - girlie loved her new remote toy.
Drinks at BZ’s
Great espresso martinis
Dinner at The Temp
Day 3:
Lunch at the beach club
Poolside lunch is my fav and their skinny spicy margaritas are a must-order.
Dinner at Boca Bay Pass Club
My parent’s very best friend, and neighbor in KY, is a member here and they have great food and fabulous views!
Day 4:
Lunch at The Pink Elephant
Their drinks are so festive with the tiny pink elephants on them. Highly recommend the fried shrimp appetizer.
Dinner at home
Girlie spiked a fever on the 2nd to last day so we decided to stay in and order takeout.
Travel Day:
On our travel day home it was pouring so we didnt feel too bad leaving. Girlie slept on the first flight and while she was tired during the second, she just couldnt quite get to sleep. Mike thought we could feed her earlier and all was well until we were descending and she threw up on me in massive, massive amounts. Thankfully, she was facing me so it really did not get on the airplane but just soaked into my sweater and pants.
The Lexington airport has a great new-ish nursing room that is super spacious and gave us all the amenities to change Emerson, change me (into Mike’s clothes) and get us in a suitable spot to drive home.
We can’t wait for our next adventure with Emerson which will be back to Nantucket in June. I am looking so forward to celebrating our 2nd anniversary while on island.
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