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MIA

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I haven’t posted in two days….and this is why:

Yessirreebobandlarry, (that’s for all you Veggie Tales fans out there) we packed up the paci and lovey and sunscreen, bathing suits and plastic shovels and headed out to meet friends in Port St. Lucie for a long weekend.  We made it here safe and sound and are enjoying the warmness of it all.

Hooray for uber cheap vacations!  We plan on becoming beach bums, hitting up a local children’s museum and enjoying some local Floridain fare….but we are totally open to any suggestions if you are a local or a regular here.

Oh and I still have my posts coming on the landscaping…just hard to focus on plants other than palm trees right now 🙂

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  2. Oooo, have a good time! I was wondering how you fell off the planet? and was hoping it wasn’t terrible morning sickness. Can’t wait to hear/see all about it.

  3. You’re heading to my area of Florida! I’m actually from Jensen Beach/Stuart which is the town right below Port St. Lucie.

    Which Children’s Museum are you going to? Is in the one at Indian Riverside Park? I’d recommend the Dolphin Bar restaurant which is actually right by that museum. Also you may want to either check out the Environmental Studies Center (also in Jensen Beach) or the Florida Oceanographic Society (which is on Hutchinson Island) both are very family friendly places with lots of neat stuff like feeding sting rays, seeing sea turtles etc.

    Have fun!

  5. Oh my goodness, get to Tradition Field and see a Mets pre-season game!

    It’s a tiny cute field, and any seat is awesome, although the third base line has better shade from the sun and is closer to the live entertainment that they have in on a regular basis. It’s extremely new and comfy and completely fam friendly. Has Will ever danced to live music?
    Oh, and a pint of Guinness is always fresh and perfect.

    Coupons are in all the local supermarket flyers. Great cheap-o day!

  6. Sounds like fun! I love living near the coast (NC) so that beach getaways are fairly cheap!

  7. Dang it Katie! You should have come to Sarasota! That’s where it’s at! Have fun though 🙂

  8. Take the short trip down to Jupiter and go to the sea turtle hospital ( it’s free, donation encouraged) eat at Guanabanas. Visit the lighthouse and be lazy at Dubois park in the Lagoon.
    Glad your getting awesome wheather! Enjoy!

  10. Welcome to sunny Florida – where we have skipped Spring all together and went straight to Summer! 🙂 I live in Central Florida, which is quite a ways from where you guys are at. But, if you guys drove down, I’m assuming you’d take the Florida Turnpike back up to I-75 to head home? If so, there’s a Russell Stover’s Chocolate Outlet in Wildwood – right where the turnpike meets the interstate. I believe it’s literally the first exit on the interstate once you merge onto it. Should be on State Road/Highway 44; sorry, can’t remember the exit number. I’ve never personally been there (even though it’s literally 5 minutes from my place), but I’ve heard good things from many people about it. Might be a great place to stretch your legs and get a little sugary pick me up? 🙂 Hope you guys are having a good time!

  11. haha…we definitely shelled out some vacation savings for gas but we get a free place to stay and we are enjoying making meals in the kitchen here 🙂 Plus, we figured that I only have to do two extra photo shoots to cover the total expense – totally worth it to see Will at the beach 🙂 I guess you can promote us from ‘house-poor’ to ‘house-poorish’.
    xo – kb

  13. Whoa!! Of all the cities to pick… I lived in PSL most of my life 🙂

    Spend an evening in downtown Stuart on the water. Luna’s pizza is fabulous (get the garlic knots), then Kilwin’s for dessert (get a caramel apple), and a walk along the water! Great for pretty pictures!

    Lots of stuff in the Tradition area… and you can see where I got married at the town hall there! There are fun fountains for kids to play in and cute swan boats. http://www.traditionfl.com/home/

    The Fort Pierce Farmer’s Market is grrrreat, and a fabulous way to spend a gorgeous Saturday morning. The views from right by the water are AWESOME! http://www.ftpiercefarmersmarket.com/index.html
    Get a fresh limeade! There’s also the Tiki Bar right there, which has amazing grouper fingers and other very Florida fare. http://www.originaltikibar.com/

    Other great food in the area:
    Shindig’s Irish Pub
    P.A. Grill (there’s one in Stuart and another in St. Lucie West)
    Publix subs 🙁 (Ok that one is a guilty pleasure, we don’t have Publix on the west coast!)

    Enjoy the area, it can be super gorgeous this time of year and should be great for relaxing 🙂

    – Long time reader, rare commenter, had to pop in to give my home town some love!

  14. Sounds fun! And I totally loved the Veggie Tales reference btw, gotta love those bible lessons through talking vegetables 😉

  15. ohhh wow!!! i ws in wonderland tooo…abt why after the grass n shrubs…no posts wer comin!! hehe now the palm trees explain it sooo well;P

    enjoy kATie n come back with loads of pictures!!!;)

  16. Everyone needs to have a babymoon!!! I know you already have a baby, so it doesnt technically count – BUT once you have another addition holidays are even harder!
    Enjoy it!!! cant wait for the blog posts all about your little vay-cay!
    I have been checking in.. thinking.. Ummm Katie???? I need my daily fix LOL
    I was thinking morning sickness had finally struck! Glad to hear – it hasnt!
    Happy holidaying!! 🙂

  17. If you ever plan a trip to Maui you can be my houseguest. All you have to do is help me with decorating ideas. Or just meet me. I was so sad when Sherry & John were here & wouldn’t meet me. I totally suggested a public place.

    In Maui I feel like I’m isolated & no one visits. I awkwardly thought it would be neat to meet them.

    So if you ever get here look me up. Well if I haven’t convinced my husband to move to Fiji. Lol

  18. You are the first person to ever take a vacation. The first person to ever have a son. The first person to ever love bacon. The only person to ever do landscaping. The only person to ever photograph the.whole.thing. wow!!!!!! You are also the first person to ever take a coastal vacation and save money doing it. You are the only person to ever have an opinion about it. I am very impressed with your opinions.

    I’ll alert all my friends and let them know that Katie Bower is on vacation. It is sure to create shockwaves across my social community.

    Also, Veggie tales! Children! Landscaping! Getting dirty! The only child in the world to ruin.every.bit.of.his.clothing.

    Whew! I think I broke a sweat writing this (and watching my husband and son landscape the yard while I wore fashionable heels.) What a tough life! Enjoy your self indulgent vacation, and I can’t wait to see photographic evidence of every single thing you do! I’m sure you’ll chronicle your adventures without the slightest sense of self-indulgence or egotism.

    I’ve been living under a box my entire life. I can’t wait to see what it would be like to take a vacation with my family and brag to the entire (pathetic) BowerPower community about it.

  20. My grandparents live in Port St Lucie during the winter, maine in the summer. We used to love going to Conchy Joes… http://www.conchyjoes.com/ it is a fun restaurant really fun beach atmosphere. It is in Jensen Beach. We used to go there all the time as kids, have not been down to visit for a while now though.

    HAVE FUN!!!!

  21. My first ever comment on your blog, and it’s all to ask what font you used for “Florida” in the picture.

    Oh, and have fun on vacation!

  22. I read your posts every morning. Slightly religiously…maybe slightly obsessively. This is gonna sound super cheesy, but I want to be you! The crazy part is you are in GA too 🙂 Anywho, I was wondering where you went for 2 days. It is killing me not getting more updates and seeing that little munkin Will. Please tell us you will be posting cute pix of him at the beach!!!

  23. I grew up 45 minutes north in Vero Beach and one of my favorite beach spots is the Ft. Pierce Inlet – which is halfway between VB and PSL! Enjoy your vacation!

  24. I just got back from Florida! Although the trip from London was more than a drive . . .
    Have fun. It’s beautiful there, these days!

  27. Hey! You drove right past my house!! If you head up towards the Melbourne area, I’d love to meet up! I grew up south of PSL in northern Palm Beach County. I also recommend making the trip south to Jupiter/Juno Beach to visit the Loggerhead MarineLife Center (as suggested by Erica.) http://marinelife.org/ Guanabanas is also such a fun restaurant a few minutes drive from there. http://www.guanabanas.com/ I also literally grew up going to Dubois park to swim. So many great beaches in that area. Dubois is also right near the Jupiter Inlet. It is fun to go watch the boats pass through and see what the fisherman are catching. You could also check out the Juno Beach Pier. But if you can swing it, you must go watch a Spring Training baseball game. There is also a beautiful stadium in Jupiter (Roger Dean Stadium) where the Cardinals and Marlins play. The game tomorrow is the Red Sox vs the Marlins. http://www.rogerdeanstadium.com/# Hope you have an incredible weekend with your friends and family!

  28. Also wanted to mention, if you do decide to go down to Jupiter for the spring training game on Sat, you would have time to go down a little early and check out the turtle museum at Loggerhead MarineLife Center. It is a small place and doesn’t take too long to go through.

  30. Oh man I live so close! Wish I could spend the time to meet up with you, my virtual friend. You are an inspiration 🙂

  31. Have a fantastic time!!!!

    And thanks for solving the mystery… My GABFF and I were just saying last night that we hoped you were alright since you hadn’t posted in a few days 🙂

  32. I don’t think you understand how blogs work. Where shall I forward the manual?

    Also, I’m sorry your life is going so poorly that your only outlet is to angrily and sarcastically berate strangers on the internet. I’m being genuine about that- I really hope the dark clouds part for you. And soon.

  33. How exciting! I was just there visiting my grandparents. We stopped at the Manatee Observation and Education Center. It is incredibly budget-friendly – it cost $1! No lie. The inside-museum-y part is pretty small, but was so cool to see manatees swimming around. Have a great time on your vacation and enjoy the beach fun. Can’t wait to see the pictures!

  34. Wow. You should head over to Facebook and unleash some of that completely unnecessary anger there.

  35. This post got me so excited for you guys! I’m from New York, but we have vacationed down in Hutchinson Island, FL (one town south of Port St. Lucie) for as long as I can remember.

    Not sure if you guys are big baseball fans, but the New York Mets have their spring training facility down in Port St. Lucie at Tradition Field. The whole team is down there now, and if they have a “home” game it’s a great way to catch a MLB game for cheap!

    Have a great time!

  36. Head down to Jupiter for an afternoon- its about 45 mins- 1 hr from there. Great beaches, parks, and terrific local food. Guanabana’s is a personal fav, very tropical and its right by the lighthouse!

  39. I agree…we’ve got the number 1 beach in the US! (Siesta Key) Have a great trip and welcome to Florida!

  40. Have a great time! Beach pictures of my littel one are always my favorite. Hope you are making great memories!

  43. It’s a blog….about HER life. Other people take inspiration from it and she chooses to share her life with others because it makes her happy. And if it doesn’t make you happy, please dont ruin it for others by slinging insults behind a computer screen for your own personal satisfaction.

    Katie, i love your blog. Landscaping, dirty clothes, high heels, veggie tales and all. Keep up the awesome inspiration.

  44. You must have liked something because you keep coming back for more! Btw, those looked like fashionable flats, not heels.

  45. Ooo fun! I was hoping that everything was OK with you and your family. 🙂 Have fun vacationing and soak up some sun for me please!!!!!

    P.S. I can’t wait to see how the landscaping turns out.

  47. Wow! What’s with all the negative comments?? Geeze! Some people’s kids…Need some training in manners much? C

    Anyway, so happy for you and the getaway, you deserve the vacay. And I’m excited to see pictures. I actually just read about an all inclusive resort there in the latest parenting magazine and thought it looked fabulous. Have a wonderful time and safe travels back home.

  50. Katie!

    I didn’t realize you were the FIRST person to like bacon! I’m SO glad someone told me it was you! Also, awesome job on being the first person to take a vacation, ever. I was kind-of thinking it was Noah, maybe. Ya know… his cruise!

    I hope you have a great vacation, and I (like many other vicarious and voyeuristic readers) will LOVE looking at all of the photos and hearing about what you did. Enjoy your baby-moon!

    Oh, and… Have WE got a show for you! (bouncing cucumber with waggling eyebrows). 😀

  51. I was worried about you!

    I am glad you are having some sun shiny fun in the sand.!!!
    (I live in the Tampa area)

    Have a great time!

  53. Welcome to our neck of the woods! Technically, it isn’t my neck but we sure love spending a lot of time on the Gulf shores. Enjoy your time! Watch out for stingrays. 😉

  54. I just think it is hilarious that you are taking teh time to read this blog as much as you despise it.

  55. have a great time… rest up and come back to us with stories and photos… you are so much fun and so many of us look forward to you every day… miss you… Patty

  58. Samantha,

    Did that comment make you feel better? How does it help you if you are just out there spewing venom on others? Remember, everybody has their own share of problems. So , just because some blog is documenting their good/great times , doesn’t mean their life is a bed of roses. Everybody has their share of trouble in life. So , get out of that rock you have been living under and take walk to clear your head.

  59. I was just about to suggest this! I’m not even a big baseball fan, but the spring training games in Florida are so laid back and fun. We live in Orlando and want to go see the Braves/Astros play soon.

  60. OMG Some people are so rude.. I hope the nasty comments didn’t get to you. Look how many people love you and came to your defense. Glad you’re having a great time in Florida. I can’t wait to see beautiful beachy pictures of you and your gorgeous family.

    Also, this isn’t my first comment on your blog, but like Kristy, I’m curious what font you used to write FLORIDA on the picture. It’s almost exactly what I’ve been looking for. I kinda love it.

  61. AAAAAH! Cannot believe you are in my HOME TOWN!

    I affectionately call it Port St. Lousy. I usually tell people it’s just south of Fort Piss (Ft. Pierce) and north of Stufart (Stuart). It really isn’t lousy at all. I was just an obnoxious teenager 😉 My family still lives there and it is quite beautiful! I agree with Lauren K’s recommendations, especially downtown Stuart and the Tiki Bar in Ft. Pierce.

    I usually don’t comment, but I had to give a shout out to the place that shaped my first 18 years of life!! Have a great vacation and I can’t wait to read all about it (unlike Samantha – sheesh!).

  63. Haha! I was worried too, then had to say to myself “Ashley she is not really your best friend, she is fine, calm yourself”.

    Have fun girl! How are you feeling? How is Will on the beach? My little brother is a total daredevil and RUNS into the ocean if we take our eyes off him for a minute. Have a great time!

  64. Hey! I live down here and heard on the radio there is a wing fest this weekend in Port Saint Lucy. Festivals down here always have fun things for the kiddos to do and who doesn’t like wings!

  65. Being from Port St. Lucie, it’s weird to think of coming here for vacation!!! There isn’t THAT much to do to be honest, but here’s some things we do with my daughter:

    East Coast Railway Museum (Fort Pierce)
    http://slafec253.org/
    It’s pretty small, to be honest, but there’s 3 or 4 actual trains that you can go inside there. It’s free (donations accepted) and it will kill a few hours. My little one LOVES trains so it was a no-brainer!

    Crazy Frogs Indoor Bounce Houses (Vero Beach)
    http://www.mycrazyfrogs.com/
    Oh, this is a must! So much fun and it’s in the A/C! Can’t beat that!

    The Original Tiki Bar Restaurant
    http://originaltikibar.com/
    Oh, this is a must. You can feed fish just outside the restaurant with french fries! I’m sure Will would love that!

    Definitely the children’s museum in Jensen Beach. There’s really not much else! PSL is pretty void of family things to do. 🙁

    Have fun in the Pizzle!!!!!!!

  69. haha, I think it’s hilarious how this person took the time to write a ‘hate comment’…and a long one at that. Pathetic.

  70. For a blog that you find “pathetic” you sure must tune in alot. Commenting negatively on other peoples personal blogs, just for the sake of hearing yourself and getting reactions, is not only self indulgent but it’s also transparent. Unhappy with your life much?

  71. you. are. a. CRAZY. person.

    Katie- I LOVE reading about (ok stalking) your life!!! You and Sherry keep me so entertained, so keep up the good work 🙂

  72. Absolutely love the blog! just added you to my follow list, can’t wait to see more updates!

    Hope you find the time to check out mine!

    door251.com

  75. I second Conchy Joes in Jensen Beach! Fun atmosphere and good eats. Sit by the railing if you can, and little man can throw his dinner to the fishies (or you too, if that sort of thing makes you squeal with delight like it does me)!

    Also, Guanabana’s in Jupiter like previous people have mentioned, but if you can, get there for breakfast.
    Order the Guanabomb.
    Shovel it into your mouth.
    Enter food coma of happiness.
    Maybe they will even crumble bacon on it for you!

    You can also visit Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter. Loads of cool things to see, and I think around $3-4 a person-ish. (Although my friend was there yesterday and said that it was free for them to walk around, so that would be even better!) Or MacArthur State Park on Singer Island has a cool nature center that is free as well.

    Another recommendation, if the water isn’t too cold for you all, would be to rent paddle boards (you can do this at Guanabana’s but I’m sure at other places in the area too). Endorsed by my dog, http://living-this-dream.blogspot.com/2011/09/board-dog.html, so you know it has to be good. And I did it until I was 8 months pregnant, although if you’ve never done it before, I might recommend staying on your knees, or maybe just waiting until next time…a reason to take a mini-vaca to our area again.

    Hope you have fun while you are here! It is season (meaning all the snowbirds are flying around down here right now), so the wait times can be very long at restaurants (good to know so you can be prepared when going somewhere with a little one), but there are so many awesome places to go and things to do around here. Enjoy!

  76. Samantha, Samantha, Samantha!! Wow! Bitter much? Didn’t your mother ever teach you, “If you have nothing nice to say…”. Maybe you should look that up instead of bringing your bad attitiude here. Does Katie FORCE you to check out her blog and read her posts daily or however often you do?

    Let’s talk it out. Back of the cliff! What’s missing in your life? What does Katie have that you don’t? Is ths a terrible 2 TEMPER TANTRUM? Let’s fix it so we can turn that frown of yours 🙁 upside down 🙂 ! Sounds like someone needs a cocktail! Or a Rx! Maybe Samantha need a vacation of her own? You might not want to check out TripAdvisor for ideas because lots of people discuss their vacations on that website and that might put you over the edge.
    I hope something makes you happy today, Samatha! It’s Friday…is that reason enough?

    Katie, as always, entertaining post! Keep ’em coming! If not, what will Samantha have to do?!

  77. You are funny.
    Katie will laugh… and then go about her not-so-perfect life, and still have fun.. because she sees the humour in things, and you are obviosuly a very bitter person.
    I hope the easter bunny brings you lots of chocolate.

  78. My husband is from PSL…his parents live in St Lucie West. Enjoy your get-away!

    I am jealous…. we are trying to dig ourselves out of an upstairs bath reno and I am freaking out since I have alot more “honey do’s” to be completed after we wrap this up….in preparation for our little girls arrival mid-July! (this is our 1st and probably only…IVF was expensive and not as successful in the hope for frozen embryos dept).

  79. I’d love to know what you think about the children’s museum. I’ve done the spray park there as well as that little beach with the kids (my mom lives there), but we’ve never done the museum before. Have a great vacation!

  82. I was thinking “fun sponge” too! Then I kept reading and ended up on “kind of evil”. Wow, that was intense… so glad the “pathetic” BowerPower community is around to back our girl Katie up!

  83. Who knew taking a long-weekend vacation would bring out all kinds of nasty comments?!? Have a great time away and thank you for writing your blog – I love reading it!

  84. Enjoy your vacation Katie! We really need to get away to a hot and sunny beach town. We live in Vancouver which has beautiful summers, but the rest of the year is rain central. My husband’s from NY so we usually head east twice a year and that’s typically our vacation. I’m hoping we can score cheap tickets to Cali or even better Hawaii, or save up enough airmiles, wouldn’t that be amazing. My little one is getting fed up with the rain, plus she’s never been to the beach – have we deprived her? well, I guess she’s only 23 months 🙂 Bonne Voyage, have a wonderful long weekend with family & friends!!!

  86. You realize this is a free country and you aren’t forced to read this blog, right? What a bitter, awful person you are for picking on someone from behind a computer screen. Go lead your oh-so-interesting life that most likely involves 18 cats living with you in your mom’s basement.

  87. Ginny! You’re comment cracked me up! I’m glad you didn’t fight drama with drama, just some funny sarcasm to make our girl laugh {and the rest of us, too}!!

  88. Weird. I used to live where you live now and I just moved back from PSL about a year ago. So beautiful down there. Enjoy your weekend!

  89. Katie! Are you stalking us? 🙂 You are probably driving past our house this weekend. Conchy Joes in Jensen Beach is a neat restaurant on the water. Will can throw your extra bread out the window and feed the catfish. Downtown Stuart is nice to stroll and they are having the annual ArtFestival this weekend. If you get to Stuart, The Key Lime Cafe has my favorite, OrangeLimeade drink. Hope you get lots of R&R!

  90. Samantha,
    Thank you for your cry for help. I feel your pain and I, as well as our friend Katie, will say some prayers for your hurting heart.

    God Bless

  91. My husband and I just took the kids to the children’s museum this afternoon. It’s so much fun! Enjoy your weekend!

  92. I went to college in PSL and lived a hop, skip and jump away in Stuart, FL!!!!
    Are you guys visiting the Children’s museum in Jensen Beach?
    If ya’ll like Ice Cream you should check out Kilwins – there is one in Tradition and Downtown Stuart!

  94. Are you kidding? If you don’t appreciate what blogging is all about then don’t read HER blog about HER life! There is no need to be so PATHETIC and rude!

  95. So before I went to bed last night, I read this post about you being in Florida. Then I had this weird dream that I was in Florida too and I got to meet you and the Petersiks! I was so excited to meet you! But Jeremy and Will weren’t there, just you and Sherry and John and Clara. We were all there for my brother’s graduation from college. I remember asking you what church you went to because I’m about to move to the Atlanta area (true story) and don’t know of any good churches there and you said your church was kind of weird and I wouldn’t like it.

    It was all so random.

    Anyway, have fun!

    ~em at small girl, big world

  96. We live just south of port st. Lucie! I’m not sure if you have a bob Evans where your from, but if you don’t…. Go to Bob Evans. Orignally from Michigan, where bob Evans may be more popular then Starbucks, we miss a good Bob Evans breakfast. We occasionally will take a Sunday drive to port st. Lucie for a yummy breakfast… Today we decided to drive to Jupiter Island. Today we drove a1a from delray beach to Jupiter. Great drive btw…. Safe travels!

  97. I live in Stuart about 15 minutes from PSL. I would have loved to hit the flea market with you today!! I hope you guys have a blast. Try the Chef’s Table for lunch and Lola’s has amazing seafood!! You can google either, both in Stuart.

  99. haha! It’s such a small world because we just went to the Key Lime Cafe last night! The virgin daquiri was delish!
    xo – kb

  100. If you used to cut up caramel apples, I’ve probably met you. (True story, the first time I went there and someone asked if they could cut it up for me, my face just went blank as my mind registered that was possible, and I lit up and said “YES!” and I think I scared the girl working there with my enthusiasm.)

  102. While I don’t agree with the outburst that someone had a few days ago about you… I have to agree on one thing. Lately you only talk about how you are house poor, have no money, cannot afford anything. But yet you go on a trip, even if done economically, to Florida. I know I have a choice to read this blog or not and normally I really enjoy it. But lately you have complained a lot about no money and feeling somewhat down about it yet you have the funds to travel. I have not taken a vacation in over a year because I am working to live check to check. Just saying… that is where some of the resentment comes from.

  103. Completely understand…I think that I have told people in the past that we are on a tight budget because I need to remind folks that I can’t go out and buy a Crate & Barrel sectional because 1. it’s not a priority (Whereas spending down time with my family IS) and 2. they are in cost comparison to other brands/outlets/stores very expensive. It’s definitely a hard line to walk being on the internet where one person’s housepoor is another person’s rollin in wealth…forgive me?!
    xo – kb

  106. WOW!! Sounds like someone has a few issues. Its not like you have to read her blog, you could choose not to.

  107. It’s amazing the spiteful things that people say online that they would never even think to say to a person’s face. Wow. I guess people don’t realize that they can choose not to type in your URL and click enter.

    Katie – I hope you know how many people enjoy your blog and your photos. I love that you post on a consistent basis. I love that you have a humble confidence that makes itself evident in your posts. You are able to share the exciting aspects of your life, while still making it evident that you have struggles and constantly have to remind yourself of certain truths (like why you choose not to splurge on unneccessary purchases and that God is faithful even though you were struggling through trusting Him in His timing for a child). Your blog is uplifting, yet honest.

    And your graceful response to comments like these always amazes me.

    I’m thankful for your blog and look forward to hearing about your vaca!

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