Running (walking) with Disney - Day 5

Busch gardens

Up early today. I slept much better last night, thank you very much. Kids and hubby all woke up before they were woken up, so they must be excited or something.

We were up, fed and out the door at 7. With an almost 2.5 hour drive to get across the state to Busch gardens, we were ready.

The kids were prepared and had iPads and headphones in the car, so overall it was a quiet drive. I almost napped a bit, but hubby and I listened to a podcast to pass the time.

We arrived about when they opened, which seemed wise, but we had front of the line passes, that didn't start until a hour later. So we chose to wander through some of the animal exhibits and have a snack until we could bypass the lines with our fancy wrist bands.

It's still Christmas at Busch Gardens

Cheetah Hunt--the ride planned to ride first--was closed all morning. So plan B - Sand Serpant and Scorpion came first. Scorpion being our youngest's first upside down coaster... A very big deal and not a small amount of stress she had about it. In the end it was good. Not quite ready to go again, but openly saying it was nothing to worry about.

The train and lunch were next. Then back to check on Cheetah Hunt.... Not open yet. So we went to Montu, the inverted coaster. Dad rode it alone, while I gently encouraged brother to consider giving it a try. He was upset Cheetah Hunt was down and had expressed interest in inverted coasters. When dad got back they went to check it out... And it got a thumbs up. He enjoyed it...  Also not enough to go again, but will ride an inverted coaster with me this summer - can't wait!

Gotta ride the carasoul 

rockin Dad's hat while he rides a big coaster

previously mentioned BIG coaster

Big coaster in action! 

Everyone gets a turn in Dads hat.... it's a good hat! 

Well we eventually got to Cheetah Hunt when they were open and everyone who was ready got a ride.... Whew! What a ride. Its been years (like 12 years) since I last really rode and enjoyed roller coasters. And this one was nice. Really smooth. Lots of air time (which I have mixed feelings about - I am comfy on the ground) and a good length. I'd go again next time.

The little lady and dad rode the rapids. We hit a few other things and it was 4 o'clock. Which was our go time. We had an hour drive to our timeshare and we were all wearing out.

I will hit the highlights from this point on, and share some random thoughts at the end.

It's always nice come to our timeshare, it feels new and familiar at the same time. And it's Disney, which I love.

They have streamlined check in at our home resort and it was quick. We also saw our new owners locker had been delivered (more on this later) so we grabbed it on the way to our room.

Our home away from home

this is what the villa looks like before we descend on it and live in it for a week 

Dinner was from the resort's quick service and we ate in the room.... Bed was calling but we had to catch the end of the Cowboys game and do a bit of unpacking. I like being able to unpack on vacation.  

Random stuff....

Busch gardens employees don't seem happy... Except for the one working on the train. All the stores and restaurant workers barely smiled. And the ride workers were almost abrupt. A far cry from what I usually encounter at Disney.

Note to self: Don't expect the same experience at Starbucks locations outside the Seattle area.

Whoa... This keeps happening to me. I just need to remember. In Seattle there is a lot more competition... So if your local Starbucks is sub par, you can walk a block and go to the next one.

In Florida, cranes hang out at the rest stops... at home we have squirrels and crows.

Lastly, what is the protocol for when you request something from housekeeping??! I called back after over 30 mins. I felt bad hounding them only to find the person I talked to never requested what I needed. No one was coming!

Not sure what to take away from that????

I am all unpacked and settled in and it feels so nice.

Tomorrow Epcot!

Running (walking) with Disney - Day 4

Vero beach

Breakfast today was at Cracker Barrel. Something new to us. It was a fun meal and fit the bill. Back at the resort we played some mini golf and lazied about a bit. Hubby and the kids hit the pool and slide. And we had an early dinner in the room.

After dinner the resort was doing a scavenger hunt. We had fun wandering around the grounds looking for answers. When we turned in our form we were told we were the only group to get all the answers right....that's right!

We leave early tomorrow, so we hit the hay early.

I think one more day here might have been nice. The resort offers so many activities that we didn't have time to enjoy. Sooo, next time.

lovely in the early morning rain

turned into a beautiful day at Vero Beach

I can see the mini golf course from our balcony... so I got to watch hubby and the little lady play a round.  

evening at the shore

Sunset - amazing 

During the scavenger hunt we enjoyed the art work on the tunnel walls

the tunnel under the main road.... great Peter Pan themed art in the the tunnel 

Running (walking) with Disney - Day 3

Day 3 - Regroup

Oh wow am I tried.

We decided to get up at a decent hour so we set an alarm for 8:15, with the plan of being up and moving by 9. My whole body just wanted to stay in bed, when I pulled myself up at 8:50. We all woke up thirsty and needing a slower paced day.

Breakfast today was from the coffee bar place in the hotel, the Cocoa Bean. It was quick and held us til lunch. Then we decided to check out of our room. Gaylord palms is huge and we knew we would have more time to explore if we weren't racing the clock.

This is inside the hotel....

and so is this.....

and this. Its a huge resort! 

Entering ICE! 

The main thing we wanted to see was ICE. It's an assortment of amazing ice carvings on display. Very Christmas-y. This was my third time to see it since we knew it existed. And it was great. They have a different theme each year. And this year added a number of add-on options. We didn't add anything to it. And I felt like there were fewer carvings than in years past. But we enjoyed it very much.

Before hitting the road we thought we'd lunch and go to the drug store. Lunch at Noodles and Co. And a long trip to Walgreens. And the road was calling.

To the coast for two nights, to relax and recharge in a quieter environment.

Driving out to the coast was quiet and uneventful. We arrived at Disney's Vero Beach resort and checked in. Our one bedroom villa was ready and waiting. So we got right to settling in. We are only here for two nights, so unpacking doesn't seem worth it. But we do have a washer and dryer now so laundry will be done. Yay!

We stopped on the way in and picked up some groceries... We also have a kitchen now :) so dinner will be in the room.

Thumbs up, things are good on the drive to the coast. 

Welcome to Vero Beach

It's still Christmas here :) 

Hidden Mickey on the linens!  Do you see it?

Our evening was nice. With a short stroll over to the main building to pick up dessert, we got comfy for the night.

Now the vacation is in full swing :) 

Running (walking) with Disney - Day 2

Travel day, take 2

We are up early again today.... With a strong resolve to get to Orlando.

Kids woke up much slower this morning. Still struggling to find a smile. With bad coffee at the hotel and some general confusion with the airport shuttle we headed to the airport In search of good coffee, food and clear skies to Florida.

The airlines did a nice thing and gave us premier status to get through security in a short line. And quickly found us seats together instead of the four of us all in middle seats behind each other.

And once we spent our food vouchers, it was about time to board.

For some unknown reason our flight was running 30 mins late. Since this flight had been created for us and the plane had been waiting at the gate since the night before, the delay didn't make much sense, but we've learned not to question. Our seats were way in the back 40 of the plane, but we boarded before most and the attitude of those around us was very much - acceptance and trying to laugh about it. Stories were swapped about hotel experiences and what had brought us to Houston. But soon we were backing up and the flight attendants began the safety presentation. Here we go....

Nope!

Someone in the middle of the plane passed out during the safety talk, right before they showed us how to put on our inflatable vest, this poor guy slumped over.

His wife was sitting behind him with an infant on her lap. They stopped the plane mid taxi, and over the intercom called for any medical professionals to ring their call buttons.

It wasn't 30 seconds before someone had joined the flight attendants in helping. It took about 10 mins to declare this guy couldn't fly. He was awake by this point, bit we were all going back to the gate.... Again.

I asked our flight attendant if he had ever had a flight like ours (we had the same crew on all attempts to leave Houston)... He said yeah, everyday. Oh man.

So long story short.... Too late, we dropped this frightened family back off at the gate, with their bags and the airport medics and..... Wait for it..... We took off!!!!

I know it's hard to believe. You all thought we'd just taken up residence in Houston.

The plane erupted in applause when the plane took off.

When the family was unloaded the pilot came on the intercom to tell us what the plan was. He then said they would get is to New Orleans as quickly as possible.... Hubby and I looked at each other... Hmm? Then he came back and said, just kidding... We are going to Orlando... Don't quit your day job, fella. The flight went well.. It felt short even.

We talked with a very nice family visiting the US from Australia, who were riding out all the bumps of the last 24 hours with a great sense of humor.

And then we landed. Orlando, we've arrived!

Getting luggage, the rental car and getting checked in all went well. Note: it was worth calling the hotel to tell them we were coming, even with a prepaid room, they would have given it away.

Approaching Gaylord Palms resort, our hotel for the next day

Then it was time to try and make up for some of the time we lost on our Texan adventure. SeaWorld.

Let me say arriving at an amusement park mid-dayon New Year's Day.... Crazy!!!

People everywhere.

But I was hungry and we were hours behind on having fun... So lunch, then rides (we had already decided today wasn't a day to sit and watch shows... So we ride).

Well it seems luck follows us. Our first attempt to ride the penguin ride was halted before it started by the ride being down for an unknown amount of time.

Hmm. On to Wild Arctic, with a Polar Express overlay for the holidays.....

The ride starts, then goes black.... Another ride down. Hmmmmm

We tried Penguins again still not up...

Luckily after a bathroom break and walk through the gift shop, it was running. And three hours after we entered the park, we got on our first ride. Whew!

Later we went back to Wild Arctic and this time got halfway through the ride before it died.

Oh, I hope we can shake this pattern. "Back to the Gate" has become the family's joke for the trip.

Entering the new Penguin attraction... cool! 

Leaving the Polar Express area

Kraken - Hubby is in the second row, with hand in the air.

Well we managed to enjoy SeaWorld until our bodies reminded us how little sleep we have had the last two days. So it felt like a good night to get into PJs and have dinner in the room.

Tomorrow we hope to relax and regroup.

Zzzzzzzz

Running (walking) with Disney - Day 1

Travel day - fail

It all started out well, and oh so very early.

The kids actually woke up before my 2:45 alarm went off.... I said EARLY.

We got dressed, ate a bit and were off.... Like cold, sleepy turtles in the dark.

With no traffic, it was a fast drive to the airport. We had time to get some breakfasty food and the mandatory Starbucks.

Side note: the holiday season is over... Note that my cup is not red :(

And my name has been reduced to one syllable.... Cute.

Back to our story :)

The flight plan today is to hop through Houston, spend four hours enjoying all the airport has to offer then fly into Orlando. Landing around 7 in the evening. Grab some dinner, check into the hotel and sleep til it's 2015.

All went as planned....

First flight went well.

Well-mostly,  shortly after takeoff, I noticed something going on in the aisle, a man was lying in it. Flight attendants were hustling about and a passenger a few rows back had offered his help. The man lying down was eventually ok, after some oxygen and help walking. Hubby told me later he  thought we might land early to get the guy medical help, but we didn't. (We should have seen this as a sign of things to come)

Houston airport had many treasures to be found..

Ruby's Diner for lunch

Amazing vending machines - nail polish vending machine!!!

And a train to take us around the terminal.

Enjoying the train around Houston Airport

Then somewhere about 3:45 into our wait... Things started to seem off...

The flight crew arrived but not the plane.... Even though it was on the ground in Houston since the night before.

Well, we had some delays....

And then we boarded.

But before we could get to the runway the pilot ran into an issue. So after hanging out on the tarmac for a spell (we're in Texas y'all) we parked in a different gate and maintenance came out.

They tinkered for a while, said "all fixed" and left. But our pilot said Nope, it's not working well enough. So they came back..... And once again said "all fixed". This time we were ready.

There was drama along the way. People really upset and wanting to get off the plane...some even did, but then came back.

But now we are once again trying to taxi to the runway, and our safety first pilot come over the intercom once more to apologize and say the plane is still not fixed.

So after getting back to yet another gate, we unloaded, still in Houston.

Note: we were on board that plane for about three hours. Just wandering around the airport, trying to take off. Flight time from Houston to Orlando: 1:45.

Stood in line to get new boarding passes for a flight at o'dark thirty tomorrow and vouchers for hotels and food.

What an adventure! 200+ people trying to keep a good attitude. Many having lost New Year's Eve plans and reservations. And now spending it in assorted hotels around Houston.

The cab to the hotel was fun. A sweet Jamaican man singing along to country music on his radio. Welcome to Texas!

And happy new year!!!

Almost, anyway. I am determined to be asleep before 2015, so good night.

A weekend in the sun... just for mom

I spent this last weekend in Arizona.
A friend and I met in Phoenix and enjoyed a girls' weekend in the sun.

I so rarely travel on my own.. it's kind of odd when it happens.
I am not going to do a really detailed post on what we did when... but I have some pictures :)

Cool plane, right. 

A really long escalator in the Phoenix airport

The Phoenix Zoo

Broccoli Pizza... and the kids said it couldn't be done! 

Dessert from the Cheesecake Factory... sorry, no cheesecake

A life changing English Muffin from La Grande Orange...Hey, that's what they told me. 

Really really yummy iced latte.... something with honey - who knew? 

Our view from our Tea at the Biltmore.

Our best tea yet, I think. 

Old town charm

The Grand Canyon  - a great way to end the trip!