Posts Tagged ‘Family’

Nothing like waiting until vacation (round 2) before writing about vacation (round 1).

The Bailey family spent a long Thanksgiving break traveling up the west coast.  Our journey from Tampa began with both sides of the family meeting at the in-laws’ in Jacksonville, FL for Thanksgiving day and continuing to Berkeley Springs, WV to visit my brother-in-law, sister-in-law and brand new baby Nephew, Malachite!  During our time up in WV, we stayed at our aunt-in-law’s (?) lovely vacation cottage  (see Judy’s Cottage).  Click through any of the photos below for the full album.

I hate to admit it- in fact, I am sure I will regret putting it down in writing: I am a USF Bulls fan. Don’t get me wrong, much love for my Alma Mater FSU.  I have the heart of a Seminole.  I appreciate the community I was and am privileged to be a part of (I did find my wife there after all), I appreciate the quality education FSU offered me,  and I appreciate where my degree has gotten me to today.  But (the USF football program aside- last weekend is a blur), the more time I spend with the students and faculty at USF the more I recognize what this educational institution has to offer: especially to accounting students with the same aspirations to join and excel in a career with a Big 4 accounting firm.

Among the highlights, students graduating USF’s accounting program boast one of the highest CPA exam passing rates in the country (currently around 15% nationally for first time test takers passing all four parts [caveat: me being one of them from FSU]).  USF also houses an internationally acclaimed Beta Alpha Psi accounting honors society program that my company (Ernst & Young) networks with on a regular basis as a key resource in identifying quality recruiting candidates.

I don’t see myself giving up the Garnet and Gold any time soon.  But don’t be surprised when you see me around with a bit of Green to show my support for the USF Bulls.

On a related note: The USF Career Fair kicks off tomorrow, October 1st at the Sun Dome from 10am – 3pm.  If you are an accounting student of any year at USF and would like more information on where a career in accounting can take you…and what opportunities beyond financial auditing and tax are available, chat me up at the Ernst & Young booth!

Less than an hour from our home in Tampa, my family enjoys the occasional day trip to  Tarpon Springs.  A great spot to soak in the Greek culture, delicious food and to pick up a natural sponge or two.

This is my obligatory “it’s been a while” post. Expectedly, life continued in the Bailey household. And just as unsurprising, I caught a good number of the precious moments on film.

On to pimping my flickr page…

Our visit to the Tampa Museum of Science and Industry:

Tampa’s very own Lowry Park Zoo:

One of Sarasota’s hidden education gems- G-wiz science museum:

And last, but not least. The Bailey family Summer vacation extravaganza! Wendy and I packed hotel hoping through Orlando, St. Augustine, Palm Coast and a trip to the in-laws in Ponte Vedra, Florida into two fun filled weeks. Our little one enjoyed, but tired out quick from all the run around.

I know, the narrative was lazy. But I guess that’s why I “photoblog” in the first place  Thanks for reading!

I’d like to throw out a heartfelt congratulations to my cousin Wendy and her husband Peter on their marriage.  My prayers are with the both of you as you continue your lives now as husband and wife.  It was an honor to officate the wedding ceremony and the hospitality (and the Filipino food) from all the family was unbelievable.  Thanks again and God bless.

(clickthrough photo for album)

Spent a fun (and tiring) weekend in Orlando to attend the Disney Danskin Triathalon (note I said “attend” and not participate).  My mother-in-law participated in the women-only event for the 4th consecutive year.  The event is an exhausting .8K swim, 19K bike and 5K run through Disney’s Fort Wilderness.

Click-through for photos

Another fun-filled family weekend for the Bailey clan! Some good friends of ours from the FSU days were back in-State for a wedding and were gracious enough to invite us to spend the weekend at their timeshare in Orlando. It was a perfect opportunity for an impromptu vacation. We’ve often discussed whether it was worth taking Rosemary to a themepark at this age (15 months), given that she probably wouldn’t remember most of the experience. So we’ve decided to wait a little longer before dropping $$$. However, being in Orlando – we didn’t want to deprive our little one of some Mickey time.  It’s amazing how much mileage you can get in entertaining a young’n given some creativity. One highlight of the trip was a lunch at the Rainforest cafe in Downtown Disney.  Every few minutes, the restaurant comes to life with wildlife, jungle noises and thunderstorms.  More than enough to entertain little Rosemary while we dined.

Anyway, clickthrough for photos:

Today, the family spent the afternoon at the annual Plant City Strawberry Festival.  If you’ve never been, the festival is ranked among the Top 50 fairs in North America, and has been held (almost) each year since its inception in 1939.  The festival celebrates Plant City’s strawberry harvest and brings together a number of exhibits showcasing Plant City’s agriculture, livestock, horticulture, arts and crafts.

The festival runs from February 26 – March 8.  Tickets are $10 for Adults and $5 for Children.  Also, be sure to check out the nightly concerts.  The fair tends to attract a few big country names each year (sorry kids, if you didn’t catch Taylor Swift today, you’re out of luck).  For more information, please check out www.flstrawberryfestival.com.  You can also find the fair on Facebook and Twitter (@flstrawberryfst).

My “Make Your Own Strawberry Shortcake” courtesy of the volunteers at St. Clement Catholic Church, Plant City:

Deep Fried Pepsi (Yes, deep fried pepsi):

Cow:

Feel free to check out the rest of the family fun photos:

The family had a pleasant (and exhausting) day at Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park!  Just 1.5ish hours north of Tampa, the State park serves as a refuge for injured and/or endangered native Florida wildlife.  It was nice to get away from the city/suburb life for a day and back into “The Real Florida”.

Added bonus – admission is free if you’re a member of the Tampa Aquarium.  Otherwise, Adults (age 13 and over) $9.00 per person.  Children (ages 3 through 12) $5.00 per person.  There is no charge for children ages 2 years and under.

Feel free to check out some of the sights we saw from our tour:

We had a wonderful holiday, and I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with the family over the past two weeks! The following are some highlights of my time off (clickthrough for portfolio)

Fingerpainting

Florida Aquarium

Christmas 2008