OUR 2020 DISNEY’S VERO BEACH TRIP: DAY 4 (DOLPHINS!! WATER SLIDES!! MISTAKEN IDENTITY!!)

Welcome to another installment of the post-trip report series on our recent vacation to Disney’s Vero Beach Resort. This post will cover Day 4, which had a good mix of activities and just sort of you know…hanging out. And all of it was pretty awesome.

So let’s get into it, eh?

I started off Day 4 with, surprise surprise, a visit to the fitness center to get a few miles on the treadmill. I woke up at around 6:30, got my running clothes on and headed over.

When I got back from my run, Nickie was up and ready for a walk on the beach. So who was I to argue. Off we went. We grabbed some coffee in the lobby and headed to the beach. It was a beautiful morning.

And I was with a beautiful girl. So win-win.

For me.

I won twice.

After our walk, we went back to the room, woke the boys up, and got ready for the day. The night before, we had all agreed today would be a good day to venture off property for breakfast. However, when we sent out our morning text, Sheila informed us Jeff was not feeling, like, the best he’s ever felt.

Which was understandable. I mean, if you recall from Day 3, Fireball happened.

Those are mistakes. Waiting to be made.

Long story short, Jeff and Sheila would not be joining us for breakfast. The Chicago Goodys, however, were ready to go and we decided to have breakfast at a place we had heard great things about  – The Lemon Tree. And being that it was called “The Lemon Tree,” I couldn’t help thinking about that episode of Seinfeld where they are trying to swap the answering machine tape and I kept muttering under my breath, “lemon tree very pretty and the lemon flower is sweet.”

Eh, at least the restaurant wasn’t called “Tippy Toe.”

Annnnyways.

The restaurant was about a 15 minute drive away from the resort.

And it was in a really cool little part of town. Lots of cafes and shops and what not. When we arrived, we put our names in, and were told it would be about a 15-to-20 minute wait. Which was fine. Like I said, it was a really nice day and there were lots of shops to poke in and out of while we waited.

There was also a guy playing live music at the restaurant next door so I saw down with Myles to listen for a bit.

Myles also did request “Hey There, Delilah” but he didn’t know how to play it. He did promise to learn it for the next time we were down though. So I mean. Something to look forward to.

I also took Owen into the shop next door to buy a football since we forgot to bring one. Oh, don’t believe me? Look. Here he is holding it.

Doubt me, will you?

We were seated within 20 minutes or so. And of course, I started with some coffee. You know. As one does.

And for my meal, I got the homemade corned beef hash (served with poached eggs on top) and a side of grits.

You guys, this was SO good. The hash was delicious and these were seriously some of the best grits I have ever had. And while I didn’t get pictures of everyone’s meals here, it did seem like we all enjoyed what we ordered. And our waitress was great. Highly. HIGHLY recommend this place for breakfast if you are in Vero.

Also, at the end of the meal, the waitress brought out a basket of mini blueberry muffins for the table. Which was a nice touch.

OK so. Remember in my Day 3 post when I said everyone that wasn’t golfing was going to be going on a dolphin cruise but it was postponed because of the high winds?

Well, it was postponed to today. And since Jeff wasn’t feeling great, him and Sheila were not gonna be going, which meant that there was enough space for the rest of us to go. And with this development, I knew not what to feel. But I guess I can just rely on that old saying to express my feelings

One man’s hangover is another man’s dolphin cruise. – Confucius

Wise words.

The Dolphin Cruise we booked was with Captain Kirby of Treasure Coast Cruises on the Indian River, which was only like 5 minutes away from The Lemon Tree.

We pulled up to the dock and spotted a boat and captain so we walked over to begin our adventure. And I think in order to best lay out the next series of events, I should break format and move from blog to play. So put your hands together for the weheartdisney players…

(Setting – a wooden dock jutting out into the Indian River on a sunny, warm day. A freshly cleaned pontoon boat is docked. The captain, hose in hand, has just finished cleaning the boat as he spots a group of 8 tourists approaching.)

Nickie (approaching the boat, to the captain): Hi, you must be Captain Kirby.

Captain: Yeah, hi I’m Andrew.

The group introduces themselves to the captain, handshakes are exchanged.

Captain (to Scott): You must be Michael.

Scott: Scott.

Captain: OK, well come aboard and make yourself comfortable.

(The boat pulls away from the dock slowly. A seagull mews in the distance)

Captain: So I’ll need you to drop me off at that boat over there before you take off.

The crowd (collectively): laughs

Captain: So to steer the boat, you use this here. If you hit a wave, lean into it….

(my mind struggles to process the information)

The crowd (less collectively): laughs

Scott: Hm, ok. I think we can handle this.

The crowd (collectively): quizzical look

Nickie: Wait, you don’t expect us to drive the boat, right? We rented a boat with a captain to take us around the river.

Captain: Ah. Well. I think you’re on the wrong boat (he turns the boat around and heads towards the dock)

And. Scene.

Yup. We were on the wrong boat. And this guy was just gonna give us his boat. Like, no paperwork exchanged. No checking our licenses. Nothing. Seemed total above board.

Anyways though. He brought us back to the dock and we met up with our actual captain, Captain Kirby. We were happy to be on the right boat and on our way. Look. Look at us being happy. LOOK!

Have I mentioned how beautiful it was? Because it really was. Beautiful.

Captain Kirby took us out into the Indian River in search of dolphins and as we were out on the water, Captain Kirby was a great tour guide – telling us all about the houses on the river, best restaurants in town, that sort of thing.

And soon enough? DOLPHINS!!!!!

After we hung out with the dolphins for a bit, Captain Kirby took us down this little tributary thing in search of manatees.

While we didn’t see any manatees, we did make some memories. Which felt like more of a rhyme in my head.

So yeah, no manatees. But look what we DID see.

These iguanas were straight up chillin.

Captain Kirby took us in for a closer look and I mean, they 100% could have jumped into our boat if they were so inclined.

After visiting with our little green friends, we went back out into the open river and started to head back.

Gwen and Matilda handled heading back completely differently.

And on our way back? MOAR DOLFINZ!!

The full cruise was about 90 minutes or so and we LOVED it. We got to see the expected dolphins but the iguanas were a surprise for sure. Plus, I mean we got to hang out with people we love. So that’s always good. Captain Kirby was great as well. Which was good since we also had a sunset cruise scheduled with Captain Kirby in a couple days for Myles’s actual birthday.

The boat docked and we drove back to the resort to meet back up with Jeff and Sheila for lunch and some pool time.

We got to the resort, got our bathing suits on, and headed down to the pool. Well, on the way, I stopped off to get my puzzle on in the lobby.

I love that they have a puzzle set up to just jump into whenever you want. There is something about a puzzle that equals “vacation” to me. And I mean, that doesn’t make all that much sense seeing as puzzles also equal so much frustration. And frustration on vacation?

I prefer relaxation.

And relaxation was definitely on the menu. Also on the menu? This Italian panini from Wind & Waves Market.

What I am saying to you now is it was lunchtime. And we all met back up with Jeff and Sheila. And we ordered lunch from Wind & Waves Market. And I ordered an Italian panini with barbecue potato chips and a Bud Light.

And I enjoyed it. Thoroughly.

I hope you got all that from my otherwise less-than-clever segue.

Myles followed up his lunch with a Dole Whip. And look how happy he was about it.

Owen, meanwhile, got a Vanilla Mickey Whoopie Pie. Of which I helped him finish. Because I’m a good dad.

And after lunch, it came time for the event to end all events. The moment for which we have all been living up until that point. Our pinnacle of existence.

WATER SLIDE RACES!!!!!!

They basically structure these things like time trials. Each person participating in the races meets at the top of the slide and goes down individually, timed by a cast member. And the fastest slider in each group (Kids, Adult Males, Adult Females) wins. Basically. Well, technically…the top 3 are announced as winners but only the top slider in each group actually wins anything. The other two are simply the best losers.

Of our group, Jeff, Scott, Myles, Owen, Gwen, Matilda, and I participated. This is Jeff. Intimidating his competitors.

We were also asked to come up with racing names. I believe I was Ron Burgundy on this racing day.

It was a thrilling race. Just take a look at these action shots.

BOOM!

POW!

KA-WHAT?

And despite both Jeff and Scott putting up some impressive numbers, no winners emerged from our group. They had some ringers. Dad Bod was like a water slide race professional. We lived to race another day though.

And eh, we still had fun. Right, you guys?

Our competitive spirit remained unbridled. So Jeff and I took on Myles and Owen in a quick game of football.

While the Super Bowl it wasn’t, I will say we were all pretty sweaty. So the big winner today? Humidity.

So we went back over to the pool to cool off for a bit. After a quick swim, though, we did have to unfortunately say goodbye to Jeff and Sheila. Womp. It was sooooo fun spending time with them and at least we know there is a good chance we will see them again this summer when we are down in Walt Disney World. Right guys? A good chance?

We then walked over to Eb and Flo’s Rentals to ask about the miniature golf tournament that night and the girl behind the counter noticed me looking at the posted trivia question.

And asked me if I knew the answer. And I mean. I did. But I don’t wanna brag or anything. I’ll reveal the answer at the end of the post so as not to spoil it for any of my fellow Disney Princess trivia nerds.

And look what I won!

Yup. A sparkly unicorn slap bracelet. I am glad I live in a time where it’s not weird for a 43-year old heterosexual man to wear a sparkly unicorn slap bracelet.

Right? We do live in that time, right?

We all went back to our respective rooms to get a bit of a rest and get ready for the night.

And our night tonight? It was super relax time. The plan was to just order dinner at the Chicago Goodys’ room and then participate in the miniature golf tournament.

That’s a solid plan right there.

After we got ready, we grabbed some beers, wine, and whiskey from our room and walked over to their room.

We ordered pizza delivery from Orchid Island. And how it works is that once the delivery person arrives, they give you a call, and you meet them in the lobby.

And tonight must have been a popular night for pizza because when I walked over to get the pizzas with Scott, there were like 5 other guys picking up pizza in the lobby. But yeah, pizza. We got a cheese, meatball, and buffalo chicken.

The pizza was pretty good, actually. Actually, it was really good. Actually.

Also, Scott and I being Scott and I….we were also compelled to order a cheesesteak to split. I mean, look at ALL THOSE CHEESESTEAKS!!

We ended up going with the Jersey Cheese Steak (French Fries, American, and Mayo…and they put onions in there for some reason or another.

Thing was definitely good, if a little unnecessary with the giganto pizzas we ordered.

The kids enjoyed their meals on the balcony.

After we ate, the girls had some wine and Scott and I had a little whiskey tasting. We also played a game of That’s It with the kids. Well, the kids minus Matilda who decided to watch some Bunk’D in her room. Which was a solid call.

Though That’s It was a really fun game. It’s like Outburst but with a little more luck involved.

Soon enough though, we had to head out to join in the mini-golf tournament. Well, five of us did. Myles, Owen, Scott, Gwen, and I made up quite a fivesome.

It was a scramble format with every team taking empty holes until you completed all nine. I thought we all played pretty well but looking at the scorecards the next day, we ended up coming in close to last. But between you and me, I heard a lot of erm….questionable play…from the other teams. There is NO WAY there were that many holes-in-one. NO. WAY.

Win or lose though, we all definitely deserved ice cream.

Owen is legit fascinated.

And Scott had his very first-ever Dole Whip!

I scream. You scream. We all scream for this post to end. So, I hear you. And this is the end. But stay tuned for Day 5, my friends. Because on Day 5….

On Day 5…

We get crabs.

Natch.

Oh right, the answer to the trivia question above? Sleeping Beauty. Thanks for playing along.