Family Trip to Orlando

As the summer quickly passed by, we had an opportunity to vacation in Orlando, FL with my dad. We planned the trip for November to give Dan that 'extra' vacation day with the built-in holiday of Veteran's Day.

So with nervousness, Dan and I left for Orlando with a toddler and a baby on Nov. 8. Our early flight on Southwest Airlines, went smoother than I had expected. In fact, Evan was SO excited as the plane took off that sheer joy was on his face and happiness exuded in every word he uttered. Haley's first plane ride went as smooth as we could hope... the smooth flight landed us in Orlando around 10:30am. And by the time we loaded all our stuff, changed diapers and clothes AND waited in line for the rental car, it was after noon when we left the airport.

On our way to our 'temporary home', we stopped for lunch. Not wanting the regular fast food fanfare, we opted for the buffet at Shoney's. Have you ever been? It's only ok... but it was an experience. Why, because I was actually able to win a mini-basketball from a crane machine for Evan.. on the first try... and I think Evan realized it was going to be a GREAT vacation!!

My dad's timeshare allowed us to stay at OrangeLake Resort located only a couple miles for Disney. In fact, it even borders Disney's Animal Kingdom.

I certainly give you details on the trip but my fingers would get tired too fast... so here's the short version :) We arrived on a Sunday afternoon. And as expected, Evan didn't and couldn't nap. But to acquaint ourselves with the resort, we attended the Sunset Celebration. It was a daily celebration for young families and fun. Evan enjoyed activities and the atmosphere!!


Through out the week, we all enjoyed the amenities of the resort: pools, splash pads, water slides, lazy rivers, mini-golf, shuffleboard, palm trees and many many more...

The weather held out for us on the most part. If it rained, it was only at night. The days were chilly at 65-70 but that was better than in CT :) And Evan never cared what the temp was as long as he got to play mini-golf and go swimming. We tried to stay away from Disney; after all, Evan was only 2 and would he even know the difference if we didn't go see to WDW? Well, by the end of the trip... YES, he cared.

We spent some time at Downtown Disney... a shopping area owned by Disney. Evan spent all our time there looking for Mickey Mouse. Then after our lunch at Rainforest Cafe, the joy of the trip glistened in Evan's eyes, as he spotted Mickey and Minnie Mouse:
But Evan's happiness was squelched by the realization that it wasn't a "moving Mickey". But the day was still fun with the Lego store.

So with much guilt (applied by my dad and Dan), we made a day trip next door to Animal Kingdom. The day was supposed to be sunny but it ended up being cloudy and cold most of the day. The day included the safari ride seeing rhinos, elephants, hippos, lions and giraffes; the musical Nemo; the park rides with a flying Dino; a play area called 'The BoneYard" including looking for bones; and the most important thing was meeting Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy.... and from the opening to the closing, we had perfect kids and well behaved kids who made us realize that we made the right choice in going... going broke too :) Click Here to see the photos.

So was the highlight of the trip Disney or Evan going down the water slide by himself?