Florida Thanksgiving & Eddie Vedder

Hello & happy Saturday!! As I look through all of our pictures from our Florida trip, I'm a bit overwhelmed at where to begin. Our visit was relaxing, but it still seems like we did so much!!It was my 5th Thanksgiving with the DeFabrizios, but it was my first time actually being a DeFabrizio. We had a really great visit although we weren't in Orlando for much time at all. I was born and raised in Orlando, moved four hours away for college, then came back. It's a little strange no longer having a home base there, but it was just perfect hanging out in a quiet little beach town. We got to spend lots of wonderful time with Jimmy and Janet, go to a dog beach, and eat at cute little waterfront places. We even got to visit a friend who we realized lived super close by, so that was fun as well!

This year our Thanksgiving was at Uncle Tony's, so Janet got a break from cooking even though she still made sweet potato casserole and icebox cake. I didn't make anything which was also a change. I usually try to make at least something to contribute - mac n cheese or a dessert but it didn't work out with timing which was fine since there was of course tons of great food. As usual the eating part went so quickly, but afterward I loved getting to talk and visit with everyone.

We brought Lucy of course, and here she is going through security.

Cousins, aunt, & grandparents after Thanksgiving dinner.

Louis singing to his sweet Pop Pop. 

After dinner we went to Spatz (best chicken wings, smokey smellin, pool table, sports watchin, music jamming, dive bar in Winter Park) to meet up with some faves. So glad we got some hangout time even if it was only for a bit. 



Jen (skeb's fiance) & I were there too but I got no pictures of us for some reason! 

Tribute to Hostess. No, we didn't really purchase those cakes.

Lucy doesn't like other pups - she's extremely territorial but she did ok at the beach! Clearly she was distracted by the beautiful day and water. 

For my birthday Louis got me tickets to see Eddie Vedder in Jacksonville and a weekend stay at Amelia Island. Neither of us had been before so we weren't sure what to expect. We arrived at the resort and were so excited to see how different and beautiful it was. After checking in we drove down a long, winding road covered with canopy trees and lined with nature trails until we finally reached the Tennis Villas. The building had a pool right in front but it was too cold for swimming. When we opened the door to our room we were so surprised and delighted to find that it was so pretty and so big! There was a kitchen, living room, porch..it was practically our own little apartment for the weekend. Lucy raced around that place the entire time - there was plenty of room for sprinting and pouncing. She loved it.

There was a Christmas event going on the first night, the lighting of the tree! We got dressed up and decided to check it out before dinner. There was fun Christmas music playing, a Santa's workshop, tons of people walking around drinking hot chocolate and cocktails. We grabbed a couple of beers and enjoyed the scenery before heading to dinner.

Can you guess which dinner was mine?

 

After dinner we had super delicious ice cream. I can't remember what Louis got but I had a scoop of pumpkin pie topped with chocolate cookies and cream.

The next day we explored the historic district and had lunch on the water. God is definitely good...and rock on?

The Eddie Vedder concert was really fun - but the crowd was annoying. Luckily by the end of the show we weaseled our way to the front. Couldn't get any pictures at this show because the security was a little crazy and didn't allow any photography.

The next day we went back to the beach and explored downtown Melbourne, got some cookies, and a great lunch on the water.

These pictures of Eddie are from the Orlando Show at the Bob Carr. We had the most amazing seats as you can see by the photos we were so close! The crowd was much more subdued and the concert was fancy and beautiful. Afteward we went to Muldoon's for DeFab Jam Night. I wish I took more pictures of these guys playing, but I was too busy trying to capture it all on video.

After a week long trip we made it back to New York. Our friend Anna gave us some enormous avocados to bring home with us, and by the time we were home they were ripe and ready to eat. I was dying to try one so soon after we walked in the door I sliced one up and topped with salt and pepper. Oh. Man. It was the best avocado I've ever had, however it's so big that half of one is pretty much a whole meal.

I really loved our Florida visit this year and am so grateful we were able to spend time with a few friends and family. Even though it was different not being in my actual home town much, I enjoyed being able to explore some new areas. I'm also grateful for a wonderful life to come back to. Sometimes returning from a vacation and regular life can be a bit of a bummer, but I feel blessed to be back in this amazing city and that we get to enjoy all of the fun Christmas lights, markets, and get togethers that happen this month!