Fish

These boys are fish. Since it was only about 70 degrees outside for most of the week, we were all thankful for a huge heated pool!

TRex!

Headed to Downtown Disney the day before Thanksgiving and had a fun and yummy lunch at this massive dinosaur themed restaurant. Palmer was totally into it! And Connor acted like his guide. They both got to "dig" for Dino bones in the sand pit and Connor got to break open his own geode. 

Oh My, Orlando-Day 3

Luckily, the weather broke in time for our advance tickets to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. This year, we went in t-shirts with our favorite Disney character's in Halloween style instead of full costume. We needed a little break! And it was a good thing because it was kind of muggy. The most exciting point of the night was when the Haunted Mansion broke down just before we entered. After waiting 15 minutes at the door with no communication whatsoever from any Cast Member, we bailed and went through a gate marked "Emergency Exit". Another family went as well. After following a winding path that continually was marked EXIT, we ended up....in an employee parking lot. We think it was somewhere behind "Its A Small World". We had to turn back and return to the Haunted Mansion and by then it was operating again anyway. But we got a glimpse behind the veil!

I look dorky and Connor looks like he smells something bad.  And notice that Palmer has a death grip on his balloon weights!

Now that's a jaunty style!

Skeleton Band in the Boo To You Halloween Parade

Red Velvet Cake Pop Stupor!

Oh My, Orlando-Day 2

Due to the torrential rain, Day 2 was a bit of , well, nothing too special.  We wandered around a mall with a giant Bass Pro Shop and a Sheplers Western Wear anchoring it.  Due to the recession, I'd say about 70% of the mall's stores are empty.  It was somewhat disheartening.  The big boys played glow in the dark putt putt while Palmer and I roamed.  Then I got a a green pedicure for Halloween.  Basically, a whole lot of not too much but no one complained.

Just the thought of this frightens me.

Bob never lets us down, does he?

This little car was stuck in ON mode and Palmer rode it for 15 minutes.  In and out, up and over.  He even laid down on the floor and checked the undercarriage in true Pop Pop style.

Later that night we found a great, non-chain Mexican restaurant using Yelp (I love Yelp when I travel) and it was awesome.  We agreed that Agave Azul will not be missed EVER on any trip to O-Town.  Definitely up there with the best Mexican ever.   GIANT bowl of ice cold (really, the coldest and most refreshing) cilantro laden guacamole and they had a very unique item called Salsa Crema which was served with the regular tomato salsa and chips.   It was white and cold and somewhat spicy.  I have no idea how to make it but I plan to find out because this is how my baby felt about it:

Oh My, Orlando-Day 1

You know we Taters love us some central Florida. The theme parks, the pools, the weather. Well, the weather MOST of the time, anyway. We took a quick Columbus Day weekend trip down there and were met with the vacation weather of most people's nightmares. This is what it looked like as we drove to the Kennedy Space Center on Saturday morning. Nice, huh?

No matter. We made the most of it and enjoyed the Space Center and then headed to Cocoa Beach (where we never actually saw the beach) and went to the famous Ron Jon's surf shop.  Here's just a touch of the magic...

Connor has become quite the intrepid traveler.  Here is is hauling bags just like his parents through National Airport.

Day 1--Our visit to the Kennedy Space Center.  One of the Space Shuttles is in there right now being decommissioned.  And, that's the largest painted US flag in the world.  I know because the bus driver said it, I don't know, four or five times. 

Here's Connor touching an actual rock from the Moon!

They have an awesome Star Trek exhibit and here's Connor looking terribly comfortable in a Klingon commander's chair. 

And here's a great shot of the Apollo 11 moon rocket.  The whole thing was very cool and very interesting.  The Tater's were not bored...and that's quite an acheivement. 

And I just wanted to point out that the fine scientists at NASA are to be commended for this little invention...an automatic step stool for the public restroom sinks.  BRILLIANT.  If they got that idea from something they worked on during a space program, I'll fully support them going forward!

Morning Glory

These pics were taken in our condo in Florida on the second morning of our whirlwind weekend. The boys were waking up quietly. I had plopped down Palmer next to his sleeping brother and the were snuggling and cooing at each other quietly. Quietly hardly ever happens. I'm glad I got it on film.

BOO To You!

Palmer made his first plane ride to Florida over Halloween weekend. He was a trooper on the plane. Our plans were for a quick 3 full days of fun and we made it happen.

We'd planned to go to Universal but decided at the last minute to enjoy a more low-key day at Typhoon Lagoon instead. Good choice. The weather was SPECTACULAR, the water temperatures were PERFECT, and there NO LINES. Really, it couldn't have been better.

The boys enjoyed a rapid snorkel across the shark tank since Connor doesn't quite get the concept of enjoying the scenery as you snorkel. Its more of a race with breathing gear. The next day we went to EPCOT. We hadn't been there in a few years and it was during the Food and Wine Festival so we figured it would be fun--and it was.

Connor's favorite experience of the whole weekend (according to him) was Spaceship Earth. He loves the ride and the history. He was particularly enthralled with the Phonecians and their invention of the alphabet AND with the girl in the computer lab's rockin' afro.

Here I am enjoying a dessert trio from France and a glass of Moet & Chandon rose champagne.

Here's Connor enjoying several international Coke products. For quite awhile. It was a great day. We had lunch in Mexico and ate our way around the International side. We had crepes, beef short ribs, sushi, pierogies, kielbasa, TONS of caramel from the new caramel store at Germany, and a delicious strawberry balsamic champagne slurpee. And again, the weather was just great.

On Halloween itself we went to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party at the Magic Kingdom. As a family of vampires with an infant baby bat--we totally rocked Main Street USA.

And we may have scared a few folks, too! Overall, it was frighteningly close to the best Disney trip we've ever had.

We Get On Swimmingly

Our trip to Florida was an adventure for a 9-10 week old that involved his first forays into the whole pool and swimming experience. Okay, dipping experience. Thankfully, if the water isn't chilly, he likes it!



This is his first dip, all decked out in sun protection with an awning.



This is at Discovery Cove where we found a grotto and water that was as warm as a pot of soup. Gross for me, but he loved it and took an entire nap floating in my hands.



And this is by the end of the week when the sun protection fell by the wayside because we found shade or swam late in the day. My baby can rock the Man-kini!

LaLa

Sure, Orlando is fun. There are the pools. There are the theme parks. There are all those fun characters. But there's nothing better than a little time with LaLa which we get to enjoy every time we visit. And this time was even more special because she got to meet Palmer. We love you, LaLa!!

A Little Magic

On Wednesday of our second week on vacation in Orlando, we went to Universal Islands of Adventure theme park. We've been there before and we really like it. There are alot of rides and its a bit less saccharine than Disney can be. Our main reason for visiting was to finally get to see the new section of the park-The Wizarding World of Harry Potter-something we've been observing be constructed over our visits the past few years.

Bob and I are both Harry Potter fans. I still remember when we read the first book. We were on vacation in the Virgin Islands and were hit by a category 4 hurricane. That kept us in our hotel room for three days straight. I had the book with me and we both read it over those three days. Over the years we've read most of the others and we just watched "The Half-Blood Prince" the other day. So, we're familiar with all things Potter.

Wizarding World is truly impressive. Hogwarts Castle looms over the area with an air of authenticity. Hogsmeade is lovely and full of the shops mentioned in the book. The pub, The Three Broomsticks, is the dining center of the town and we heard from folks leaving it that the food is very good (Universal consistently wins awards for the best theme park dining in Orlando--not hard since most Disney theme park food is horrid.)

First on our agenda was a delectable glass of butterbeer for everyone. I can't really describe it--kind of like a cream soda with butterscotch flavor and whipped cream. And funny enough--I just looked up this recipe--and that's pretty much what it is. De-lish! Even Palmer got a taste.



After that, we headed straight for Ollivander's wand shop where I'd heard there had recently been waits of over 2 hours. You see, its not just a shop. Its a show. Only about 25 people are allowed in at a time. The space looks just like in the movie--counter, tall walls with boxes and boxes of wands, and the wand master. In each group, the wand master chooses a child who becomes part of the show. I knew this going in but with the confusion of getting in the front door (we had to unpack the stroller because we couldn't bring it in), I forgot about it and was in no position to try to get Connor in a spot to be chosen. And he didn't know anything about it.

But, as luck would have it (or, blame it on the fact that my first-born MUST be at the front of every line or group), he was in just the right spot at the right time. I had to scramble to get the camera out and in video mode, but we got most of it here. Its dark, but you can still see the magic in Connor's eyes as the wand master searches for the right wand for him--and finds it.

We did a few other things in the Wizarding World. But none of them came close to this. When you are 7 years old, you start to see things in theme parks for what they are, and the magic starts to disappear. But thanks to Ollivanders and a great wand master, Bob and I got to see that magic in our big boy one more time.