last week was busy and spent recovering from our Spring Break away with kids. our very first family vacation! traveling since having babies has really only been limited to about 2-3 hours from home, so making the trip to Florida was an adventure that we were all SO excited for!  lots of family firsts over spring break and I’ve got about 800 pictures to show for it 🙂

when I connected with the amazing folks at The Grove a few months back inviting our family for a visit, Jordan and I contemplated flying, but after realizing that the cost to fly with 5 kids (three with paid tickets and two lap seating) was about 4 times the amount it would cost in gas + food, we decided to drive instead.  we broke the 15 hour trip into two days and honestly it went very well! lots of coloring books, magnets + cookie sheets, easy-read books, and of course movies on repeat (we have a TV in the car) helped to pass the time. it poured rain the entire 9 hours we drove on the first day, so the “pit stops” we planned along the way were cancelled. we planned out stops for food and bathroom breaks around Baylor’s eating schedule, so that worked out well to keep him happy and tiny bladders empty!   we loaded down the suburban with all the things we needed for spending the week away! I don’t know what we did before without this kind of cargo space!  finally we made it!! The Grove Resort is tucked away in Winter Garden Florida, just 5 minutes away from Disney. our first night here we could hear the fireworks coming from the park.. I didn’t realize how close we were! we gave good thought to making a trip to Disney for a day but honestly we weren’t sure how enjoyable it would be with the age spread of the kids and only the two of us to wrangle them. we have been planning to go to Disney for a few days next summer with Jordan’s parents and my niece and nephew, so we decided to save our first Disney experience for a fun time with the family, instead!

that being said, we will be back to stay at The Grove when we come to Disney! we stayed in the large 3 bed, 3 bath suite.. fully equipped kitchen, washer and dryer, and a large living area and table to fit our entire family. over 1500 square feet of space for our family of seven.. this “room” was bigger than the very first home Jordan and I bought after we were married! the food was really delicious! the resort has several options for food onsite! their main restaurant is called the Valencia and serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day. we ate all of our breakfast meals here and most of our dinners. Lunch was eaten poolside from the Longboard Bar + Grill and they even have their own pizza place that delivered straight to our door one night! Alfresco’s Market was also really convenient- we bought snacks and drinks for the room to have in between meals.

:: vacay vibes tee from the ever co ::   the weather was amazing during our stay! after having a pretty gloomy winter here in Texas, we welcomed the sunshine! our first day at the resort we headed straight for the the giant splash pad! the resort pools are heated and very comfortable but since the water in the splash pad was in constant rotation, it was not heated so it was a little chilly but didn’t stop us from playing our little hearts out! 

 we hit up the pool after lunch and stayed there the rest of the day.  this was one yummy Pina Colada!! served in a whole pineapple 🙂 :: my suit is from Albion Fit! use code MASSEY15 for a discount :: the lunch options were very delicious! the menu was huge and it was hard to choose because everything sounded so good! they had some of the best BBQ that Jordan ate every day and the kids stuck to grilled cheese and hot dogs with fruit while lounging by the pool.I was mostly interested in their hummus and guacamole- so yummy!after a busy morning of playing, Baylor and Brady took naps by the pool while Jordan and the girls hit up the lazy river.

:: my hat is gigi pip and necklace is from jays + jewels (use code AMBER15); Baylor’s suit is from Kortni Jeane! his “dude” trucker is from grom squad (use code AMBER25 for 25% off!) :: we spent most of our days at the waterpark and would come back to the room to shower and clean up for dinner. the master bathtub was HUGE and the perfect space to fill with bubbles!  the resort provided a crib/pack and play if we should need it, which was very convenient and allowed us to save the space in the car. Brady has never slept anywhere but a crib or pack and play but insisted to sleep with his sisters while were were there. he did AWESOME.. but still doesn’t change my mind about keeping him in his crib for as long as possible- ha!

our first day was FULL of fun and feeling so blessed to have such sweet kids. part II, with lots more fun AND a discount code for your stay at The Grove Resort, coming at ya tomorrow!