Airfare Home, Disney Dining and Package Discounts

Southwest Airlines was running another great special that we took advantage of to get us back home.  Tony had SW points to use and was able to secure 2 flights while I booked the remaining 4 flights home for about $160/person.  Again, nonstop flights in and out of Phoenix to Orlando.  No flying into Tampa, Fl. and having to drive into Orlando.  So our transportation is finished!

At the end of November when our 180 day booking window opened up for dining reservations, I would wake up early every day and go online to make our dining reservations for each day of our stay.  We were able to get all of the table service meals we wanted starting on May 28 plus our Quick Service reservation at Be Our Guest.  We are now in the 145 day booking window of dining reservations based upon when we will be staying on property.  I can't even begin to think of additional dining I would like to add to our reservations.  We currently have a table service meal set for each day of our time in WDW.

This morning when I woke up to log into work, I checked my email from disneylist.com and saw that Disney is offering 3 new summer specials.  One of the specials available gives a free Quick Service meal to every party for the length of stay.  So I called to see if I could take advantage of the offer for our length of stay.  Thanks to the wonderful Disney Travel Agent (Joetta Page) I spoke too this morning we got put into an amazing pool of offers that reduced our rate for staying on property significantly.  Initially our package total for our on property stay at Disney's Art of Animation Cars Suite, 8 day base ticket, Disney Dining Plan (2 snacks, 1 quick service, 1 table service), and Memory Maker was going to be about $6500 for a 5 day/4 night stay.  After waiting on the phone for about 40 minutes the great cast member got our total package reduced to about $4700.  Same exact details and hotel.  THANK YOU JOETTA!!!  I couldn't even find that package total that low trying to do the same deal online directly from the Disney Website.  It definitely was to our advantage to call and wait for the Disney Cast Member Travel Agent!  Periodically though, I keep logging in and out of the WDW Website checking my account to ensure this is real.

*****
Edited to add: Make sure you check on your reservations periodically during the day.  Apparently when Joetta changed over our reservation she didn't change over the Disney Dining Plan and that's how our rate appeared to be so low.  I ended up calling Disney again this time speaking with Jennings and he got our reservation fixed up.  I had a funny feeling that initial price was too low and now I know why!  We still save about 10% off our room even with adding in the Disney Dining Plan which pretty much equates to 1 night free off our package.

Time For Another Orlando, Florida Trip...2018!!!

It's that time of year again, the money is in place, mom and dad have worked and saved and the family hasn't had a HUGE family vacation in a while.  I think the last time we were in Orlando was back in 2014.  So of course, it's time to plan our next Orlando adventure!  We have our budget in place and we are ready to put our plan into motion.

Over the past week Tony and I have been pouring over the websites looking at theme park tickets to Sea World, Disneyland, Universal Studios, and Walt Disney World.  Sorry, Legoland...there is not enough excitement for us to visit you.  Southwest Airlines had a major sale on one-way airfare going on and we took a look and found some inexpensive tickets for us to fly from Phoenix, Arizona to Tampa, Florida.  6 people to fly one way, nonstop for less than $1100....Yes, please!  We will gladly rent a car and drive between Tampa, Florida and Orlando, Florida.  Now, we just have to monitor the Southwest Airline sales to get a flight back to Phoenix, Arizona after our fun has ended.  Fortunately, we have the flexibility of leaving out of Orlando or Tampa.  The flights on Southwest were only open as far as June 05, 2018 and we plan on staying a few days longer than that.

As I was on my computer looking at airfare options, Tony was on his looking at timeshare options and we found one for the first week in Orlando, Florida that is large enough for our whole family.  We have 2 weeks that we have to use so why not use them in Orlando?  Next was booking the rental car and hotel for the evening we arrive in Tampa since we can't check into our timeshare until the next day.  After that is deciding how many days we wanted for tickets to Universal Studios as well as WDW, and is Sea World even an option for us at this time?  We'll see, the budget will let us know.

It's already the middle of February 2016?!?!?!?!?

We got through the remainder of the year fairly unscathed.  The kids had a great and busy first semester at school.  Thing 1 successfully ended his first semester of high school.  He did encounter a reaction to Strep Throat and missed 5 days of school battling a case of Steven Johnson's Syndrome.  It wasn't due to a prescription drug interaction but rather a case of OTC drug interaction with strep throat.  Poor kid was rashy, splotchy and his skin was peeling.  Nothing that we would wish on anyone!

Thing 2, Thing 3, and Thing 4 had a great year at their Charter school.  The middles participated in their school's performance of "The Jungle Book".  Thing 2 was Mowgli and Thing 3 was Ka the Snake.  They also kept up high marks in school while Thing 2 played golf and Thing 3 took ballet classes.  Thing 4 had a great first semester in Kindergarten.  She learned how to tie her shoes thanks to Thing's 1 teaching her.  She learned how to read basic words and is doing so well in Math.  Things 2 and 3 have continued to pursue their acting roles and auditioned for "Shrek" with Arts Express and "Snow Queen" and "Wizard of Oz" at their school.  Our lives are busy schleping them back and forth to rehearsals and maintaining a strict family calendar.

Entering the New Year 2016, we continue to get busy and more crazed in our schedules.  "Shrek" rehearsals is in full effect and the shows will be in April.  Thing 2 has completed his role as The Raven in "Snow Queen" and Thing 3 will perform as a dancing Munchkin in "Wizard of Oz".  Thing 4 is still taking swimming lessons and ballet.  Thing 1 has begun his high school tennis season.  We anticipate that he will make Varsity as a Freshman and play in the top 5 at his school.  He is hitting so well and meeting more friends at school.

Some of our kid's "Award Winning Performances" - the Parental Awards...
Trust In Me

Bear Necessities

Shut Your Beak

Not perfect but STILL amazing!

A few weeks ago Thing 3 did a week long musical theater summer camp.  At the end of the week, the kids put on a "Showcase" for parents, friends and family so they can highlight everything they worked on at camp.  Thing 3 was chosen to sing a song and had a solo, duet and ensemble parts in the piece.  Usually she does really well but this time around she was either too excited or too nervous and missed her cue on the solo and duet portions at the beginning of the song.  Sitting in the 2nd row seeing her face and knowing what she had done, I got a bit embarrassed and upset for her.  But as she stood there fairly composed with a smile on her face and pushed through and relaxed, she came back at the end of the song and finished it beautifully.  After watching and re-watching the video taken of her, I was impressed and amazed at the maturity in the stage presence she had and how she handled herself knowing what happened.  My kid pushed through and didn't allow her missed cue ruin the remainder of her song experience.

Who knew my kids have "Acting Chops!"

I can't believe this whole school year has flown by and we are now into Summer 2015.  Many changes have occurred and many opportunities for my kid to expand their horizons have happened.

Thing 1 promoted out of 8th Grade in May and will go on to be a budding new Freshman at Mountain View High School.  He had an amazing year and finished his Jr. High Career on a very high note.  He managed to maintain a 3.75 GPA while playing tennis, video games, and Legos.  He even picked up Swim Team and plans to try out for the swim team at MVHS in the Fall.

Thing 2 had a great 5th Grade year, he managed to achieve all A's every single grading period except for 1 in which he received a B and he missed that A by a few points.  We found out his nickname at school is "Squishy" and just about everyone knows of him.  I became known as "Squishy's Mom" when I would volunteer in his class.  His whole 5th Grade class ended their school year by participating in the school's talent show dancing and singing to "Counting Stars" by OneRepublic.  We can't wait to see what 6th Grade brings for him.

Thing 3 had a great 3rd Grade year.  She excelled in school and managed to juggle Musical Theatre with CYT as well as performances at school.  She and her good friend choreographed a dance for the talent show to "Dynomite" by Taio Cruz.  This school year she was in 2 CYT performances "High School Musical Jr." and "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang".  She also was in her school's production of "Cinderella Kids".  4th Grade will be even more magical for her as she picked up Ballet again as well as Swim Team.  I'm sure somewhere in there we will see her performing in another musical at school and quite possibly with CYT.

Thing 4 was a big Pre-Kindergartner this year.  She learned how to write her first and last name (correctly as well as backwards and mirroring her letters).  She learned to recognize all of her ABC's and Numbers and she even learned basic addition.  We all love the Saxon Math program!  She grew up so much and isn't a baby anymore!  Next year she will start Kindergarten and be with the "Middles" at Legacy.

This summer the kid's kicked off their days by playing tennis, swimming and the old 3 participated in Musical Theatre Camp at Legacy.  Each kid played a major role in the production of "The Lion King Jr."  Thing 3 auditioned and was cast in the role of "Young Nala".  Thing 2 decided at the last minute to audition and was cast in the rold of "Young Simba".  He was originally content in being in the cast but on the day of auditions decided to take a chance.  Thing 3 worked backstage crew with a few of his other Jr. High friends and during the production ran the spotlight.  Every night, the kids would come home full of stories and excited to run lines and go back to camp the next day.  Their performance was 30 minutes long and so great for having only 9 full days to work on the material.  I think we have a few performers in our family because the middles lit up the stage!  But of course I'm mommy biased!

The rest of this summer includes more Musical Theatre and Dance Camps for Things 3 and 4, golf for Thing 2, and tennis camp and swim team for Thing 1 and Thing 3.  The kids start back to school very early this year right at the end of July for the younger 3 and at the beginning of August for Thing 1.  As of today we have exactly 6 more Friday left of summer before the kids are back in school.

It's already February?

So just to recap on what happened the past 8 months...
Nothing good!  We had just started to get over the death of Tony's grandmother in April after Easter, we were thinking that the Disneyland trip in June was the positive turning point to recovering from her death and in July we lost his father.  It was very quick and very sudden.  No one could have predicted 2 deaths in one year.  As we were starting to get our bearings again in August, my grandmother took a turn for the worse and ended up in the hospital and we lost her at the end of that month.  3 deaths in 6 months?!?!  And then in October, we lost Tony's uncle bringing our family funeral total to 4.  Are we cursed?  Needless to say we were sitting on the edge of our seats and we couldn't wait for November and December to pass without another death.  Fortunately, it did and we got out of 2013 incident free!

2014, It's already February!  It seems like the kids just started school yesterday.  I haven't had time to post anything new since our lives have been so crazy.  I think given the previous year we've had, this year is going to be a great year!  However, our sports teams aren't doing so well.  UofA lost this past weekend and lost their #1 ranking.  Did we get onto the cover of ESPN and get cursed?  Then in the Superbowl, the Denver Broncos got ORANGE CRUSHED!  Pitiful and Painful to watch!  Well, time to move forward right?  Let's hope so!

Dancing in Disney, Day 1

The first 2 weeks of June are consumed with dance for Taylor.  She started out with a dance camp intensive for STARS so they can refine and prepare for their time in Disneyland.  4 days, 3 hours a day of dancing.  They worked on and perfected and added their dances.  They did 2 dress rehearsals including the hair and make-up to be used.  They ended their hardwork with a pizza/pool party at one of the Assistant teacher's homes and finalized the touches for one of the T-Shirts we are supposed to wear during the week in Disneyland.

During this time, Tony and I got a jump start on our packing.  We made our list, checked it twice and he packed the boys and I packed the girls.  As much as color coordinating shirts are fun and helpful, it also poses a challenge for us girls...what shorts will we wear with these shirts?  In the end, we arrived safely with everything needed brought with us.  There was a snafu with one of the t-shirts because I did not pay close enough attention to detail and what I was doing and added rhinestones to the wrong shirt.  Needless to say, I was walking through Wal-Mart at 10:30pm last night to purchase another t-shirt and more jewels.  But in the end, after staying up until about 1:30am Saturday, all of the girl's shirts for the specific day we are to wear them are complete!

We woke up and boarded our plane.  It was very uneventful and given the previous night I had, was a VERY good thing.  Then we flew into LAX, got our rental car and headed to Randy's Donuts to get breakfast.  Randy's Donuts is the place with the huge Donut on the top of the building.  This place was BUSY!  5 deep in the walk up line and a continuous line of cars in both drive-thru windows.  The donuts are cheap and VERY delicious!  I can see why people frequent them and wait for that "yummy goodness"!  Then we drove up to Anaheim, Ca.  We were so early that we couldn't check into our hotel yet so we parked the car and walked into Downtown Disney.  Tony and I did make a stop at the Disney ticket booth so we could upgrade our passes to Premier passes which allows us entrance into both California and Florida Disney Theme Parks.  Now we have our passes to park hop and visit both Anaheim and Orlando until the beginning of June 2014.  After all of that was taken care of, we walked into Downtown Disney and browsed from end to end.  By that time we were able to check into our hotel and catch about a 40 minute nap.  For dinner we went to Lisa's family's house where the kids got to run around and play at the park with their cousin.  Then it was to Sprouts to purchase food/snack items for part of the week and back for showers and bed.

Summer 2013

Happy Summer Everyone!

We are currently 1 week into the kid's Summer Break from School.  Thus far, Thing 1 has had tennis camp.  Thing 2 has had a 2 day golf tournament and the girls have done nothing but veg out.  Next week will be a very busy week for Thing 3.  She'll be doing an Art Camp, Dance Camp and then we are off to Disneyland for a week!!!!

After we come back, we will be gearing up for back to school/uniform and school supply shopping.  The kids will be at the same school again.  Yay!  One dropoff and one pickup for us.  School starts on August 1.  I think the remainder of summer will fly by!  We may even have Thing 4 starting school in July.  She turns 3 in August and I want her potty trained.  The older kids got potty trained at school but she is my most stubborn one so she'll either figure it out in a short period of time or she'll prolong the event and take the most amount of time.

This post contains a lot of updates and pictures from the recent year.  I think last year, I was posting about our trip to Walt Disney World and soon I'll be posting about our trip to Disneyland.  I definitely have to stay better on this blog posting thing again!  Hahahah, maybe I should set a calendar event with reminders so I know to make an update.  I do that for the rest of our schedules, I may have to do this for the blog.  But as always you can always follow us at Lisa's Facebook Page.

AUGUST

First Day of school for the older kids and Emelia turns 2 years old.  It's crazy to believe how quickly time has passed for us.  I guess that's what you get when you have a very active family life.

 Anthony 11 Years Old, 6th Grade, Basis Oro Valley

 Jackson, 8 Years Old, 3rd Grade, Legacy Traditional School

 Taylor, 6 Years Old, 1st Grade, Legacy Traditional School

Emelia, 2 Years Old

OCTOBER

Halloween!  Aunt Rosie and Nana worked on costumes for the kids.  Initially we were all going to dress up as a character from Star Wars.  But Tony and I didn't prepare far enough in advance.  So we ended up with a lady bug, Princess Lea, Darth Vader and the Grim Reaper.  2 out of 6 is pretty good in my book.  :)

NOVEMBER

Lisa's Grandmother turned 90.  Lisa got another year older and our kids enjoyed a nice Thanksgiving with Nana and Papa and Papa's side of the family.  We definitely had a lot to be Thankful for this year!

DECEMBER

Due to Winter Break, we always have a shortened December.  At least it seems to be the case.  We definitely had beautiful weather.  Many sunny days where we could still wear short sleeves and shorts. You can't beat that at all.  We took off on vacation and spent Christmas at the beach in Oxnard, California.  We played in the sand and surf and we even road the North Pole Express in Filmore, California.  Everyone had a great time!  Lisa was in the midst of trying to train for her Disney Tinkerbell Half Marathon in Disneyland while injured.  Yes, she is CRAZY!!!!

JANUARY

Disney Tinkerbell Half Marathon Weekend!  Despite tendonitis in her left ankle and a tear to her FHL, Lisa completed her 2nd Half Marathon.  She runs for the "bling."  We took the kids to Disneyland and they had a blast!  Tony ran the Family 5K portion and the race route took him through both California Adventure and Disneyland.  It's okay that both of the crazy adults in the family woke up at 4am to run...They had a blast and came back with some great memories and BLING!

Hanging out and before the park opened.  In the future we have to find out the fine print on E-Tickets.  The tickets were printed with the option for an Extra Early Magic Hour to either park.  What the ticket didn't state was that you had to be a resort guest in order to take advantage of the offer.  This made several families very upset.  Oh well, we decided that it was a good opportunity to sit, relax and have a cup of of hot cocoa.

Juice Anyone?

My Handsome Boys!

My Tinkerbell Medal.  This girl received her wings!

FEBRUARY

Tucson Got SNOW!  The second time since we moved back to Tucson from Colorado Springs, CO., Tucson got hit with snow.  The kids had fun playing in the snow after they got out of school.  It didn't last very long but it was fun while it lasted!

MARCH

We had some amazing events occur in March.  Anthony switched schools to finish out 6th Grade, Jackson earned his Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do and Taylor Turned 7 years old.  This month, it's all about bragging on the "Middles."  Being middle children they sometimes get lost in the shuffle and have to quietly adapt to the needs of the first born and the youngest.  They never cease to amaze me.  They have beautiful spirits and are a joy to have around.  They have their ups and downs but they play really well together and they take care of the needs of others very well!

APRIL

April was an emotionally tough month for Tony's family.  Heaven gained an angel with the passing of his Grandmother.  She made it through Easter and a few days later was called to another place.  She will be missed.  I'm very glad that the kids got to have many years with her and each one have a great memory of their "Granny."  It was great to reconnect/connect with extended family despite the circumstances of our gathering.

MAY

May marked the end of the school year, Anthony turned 12, Tony got another year older, Jackson participated in his school's talent show Taylor's dance recitals.  (More bragging on the Middles) Taylor performed in 2 recitals this month.  She was a bunny leader in the dance school's version of Cinderella.  The following night she danced her heart out in 6 dances..."What A Feeling", "Girls Just Want To Have Fun", "I'm So Excited", "The Lazy Song", "Disturbia", "Good Feeling."  Now we prep for another Disneyland trip in June where she will dance some of those dances again with her STARS group.  Taylor is not the best dancer and she definitely doesn't have the best technique but she is the shortest and youngest one in her dance group.  She tries really hard to keep up with the older girls and has a blast dancing and hanging out with them in class, that's all I can ask from her right now.

Ballet Costume for the Bunny Leader

What A Feeling - Jazz Dance

Single Ladies - Jazz Dance

The Lazy Song - Jazz Dance.
Click on the link to see the video.  For some reason it didn't load like the others did.

I'm So Excited - Acro Dance

Girls Just Want To Have Fun - Jazz Dance

Disturbia - Tap Dance

Good Feeling - Jazz dance

Jackson dazzles the school crowd once again with double nunchucks and a performance set to music.

Day 16, Bye Bye Orlando, Hello Las Vegas!

June 15, 2012
We checked out of the timeshare by 9am, shipped off our boxes, ate breakfast and went to the Premium Outlet Mall.  Apparently, Tony and I were not finished shopping.  We purchased some more souvenirs and an additional wheeled suitcase to carry-on the airplane.

We had a long flight from Orlando into Las Vegas.  It was a 4 hour and 40 minute flight.  Fortunately it was non-stop and we got to ride in one of the newer 737-800 series planes Southwest had.  It was only 3 weeks old.  We had more head and leg room.  The seats were more comfortable.  And the ambient lighting kept changing to match that of the outside timezone so the passengers didn't have as much jetlag coming off the plane and crossing 4 timezones.  But like all airplanes and long plane rides we've taken with a baby...there has to be a time that calls for a diaper change.  Blech!  And yes, Emelia had hers.  And yes, the airplane bathroom is SMALL and NO there was no diaper changing table.  I had to lower the lid to the toilet and change her on that.  Good thing we are little people.

We arrived safely in Las Vegas, NV.  We were all very hungry so after dropping off our things at Nana & Papa's vacation house, we went to Green Valley Ranch to eat.  The buffet closes at 9pm so we ate in the 24 hour Cafe.  The food was good however, Taylor said the scrambled egg made her throat itchy and Emelia was too tired and pitched a huge fit.  I think she was ready to come home.  We went back to the house and got a good night's rest.

Day 17, We come home!

June 16, 2012
We got a lazy start because we knew we had until 9:30pm until we left Las Vegas and got back into Tucson.  We ate lunch at The Buffet at The Bellagio.  Boy is that a good buffet.  They had a champagne brunch in honor of Father's Day weekend.  Fortunately, the lady who was running the lines only charged us for 4 buffets knowing that the girls didn't eat much.  Anthony out ate everyone!  I think he had 6 plates of food.  Whatever it was, I know he went up a lot of times to get food and dessert.  I must say though that they serve some REALLY GOOD coffee!

After lunch we walked around the Miracle Mile Shops.  The one thing that Tony and I did purchase were new wedding bands.  His became too big because he lost weight and mine, um...let's just say baby weight from 4 babies doesn't help your fingers too much.  So we ended up purchasing Titanium bands this time around.  Since we are so active, those bands can withstand a good beating and we can look married again.  :)

When we got to the airport we ate a quick snack and then went to sit at our gate.  The 3 little ones were so exhausted and our plane was delayed waiting for crew to arrive that they fell asleep in their chairs.  Fortunately, they woke up long enough to board the plane and then went back to sleep.

We had a wonderful trip.  We would do it again.  It was hard to return to work and get back into the groove but we made some great memories and bonded with our kids.  I think our kids bonded more with each other as well.

Day 15, Souvenir Day!

June 14, 2012
We always set aside 1 day for major souvenir shopping.  Today was that day.  The kids are allowed to pick out anything they wanted that they can afford to buy.  We woke up a little later in the morning, did laundry and packed up most of our clothes so we weren't trying to do it so late at night and then went to Downtown Disney.  We ate lunch at Earl of Sandwich and the kids purchased the rest of their souvenirs.  Of course no vacation day is complete without a torrential.  We took shelter inside the Lego Store for about 30 minutes while it rained.

We got back to the timeshare at a reasonable hour and watched the new DVD Tony purchased on the Making of Walt Disney World and finished packing.  We learned from previous trips to Orlando, Fl. that we should pack a box and ship some items home so we aren't fumbling with a ton of luggage and boxes at the airport.  We ended up shipping back 2 big boxes of clothes and some souvenirs.

Day 14, Hollywood Studios

June 13, 2012
We woke up early to try and make the opening of Hollywood Studios so we could ride Toy Story Mania again without too long of a wait.  We were in the park at 9:30am, the park opened at 9:00am and there was already a 60 minute wait time.  We ended getting Fast Pass which allowed us to ride the ride anytime between 11:30-12:30pm.  So we took the kids to stand in line and meet Woody and Buzz Lightyear.

We still had time to burn before our FastPass time so we went onto the Backlot Tour.  Tony ended up
volunteering to be one of the tour extras.  He's always wanted to do this and this was his opportunity.  He had a blast.

We stayed at Hollywood Studios all day long.  I even went with the older 3 onto Rockin' Roller Coaster.  That was a fun ride!  We left Hollywood Studios and went back to Downtown Disney for a bit of shopping. This concluded our Theme Park adventures.

Day 13, Happy Anniversay!

June 12, 2012
13 years ago today I was a Princess for a day and married a handsome Prince.  We've known each other for 18 years and everyday has been wonderful.  Tony, Thank You for being an awesome friend, confidante, husband and father!  You have made all my dreams come true and our life together is better than a fairytale with a Happily Ever After!

Day 12, More Aquatica and more Magic Kingdom!

June 11, 2012
We had so much fun at Aquatica that we decided to take a chance and try it again.  Afterall, we did have length of stay entrance passes for the Sea World Parks while we were there.  The rain cleared up and the sun was out and it was another beautiful day.  Yes, it was humid but we were at a water park so we didn't feel it as much.  We arrived early right at opening hoping that we could rent another cabana without making an advance reservation.  We told the kids that we would only stay for 4 hours if we couldn't get a cabana otherwise we'd stay all day long if we were able to get a cabana.  We stayed all day long!

This time the cabana was near the smaller kids splash area.  We were also there so early we had at least an hour and half in that area with very few kids.  All 4 kid sized slides were open and Taylor and Emelia were able to ride them.  Being that I was on that side alone with the girls while the boys went "big slide" riding, I was nervous that Emelia wouldn't understand or be able to navigate up and down the stairs without me.  Fortunately, Taylor helped her out somewhat and the lifeguard helped to get her on the slide and push her down where I could catch her in the pool at the bottom.  Emelia was also wearing a life preserver that would send her floating face up if she had lost her footing at anytime.

As I was waiting for the girls to come down the slide, I noticed that the other 2 slides were ones where you had to ride down in a 2 person raft.  The front of the raft didn't have a hole in the bottom so Emelia could sit in it without falling under the raft and the back of the raft was the traditional inner tube style.  Taylor carried her raft up the stairs and came zipping down.  After seeing a few other people send their little ones down that 2-3 slide, I mustered up the courage to do the same with my two girls.  Sure enough, they both LOVED it!  At that time, I wasn't able to get them up the stairs, into the raft and down into the bottom of the pool to catch them before they came down the slide so I really took a chance and hoped that Emelia stayed seated and the girls didn't capsize.  They were just fine and took 2-3 more rides down before Tony and the boys came back to check on us.

I made them all stay in that area so the older ones could take Emelia down the slide while Tony and I watched and caught them at the bottom of the pool.  Then Tony and I took turns getting Emelia down the traditional water slide while the other one caught her at the bottom of the pool.  Eventually she got so used to coming down by herself, that she started to navigate her way up the stairs and to the top of the slide to come down.  The lifeguard on duty really helped her out getting seated onto the slide which was awesome.  Then it was time for lunch and Emelia pitched a small fit but eventually her hunger won out and we ate lunch.

Afterward we rested in the cabana for 45 minutes and then went out to the kid's pool.  By this time the rafts were all being used and the place was crowded.  So we went into the wave pool and the kids rode some waves.  Emelia really didn't like when the waves were going so every 12 minutes she'd get out of the pool and go walking in the sand.  I knew she was extremely tired by that time so I carried her back to the cabana and she slept while I read and the older kids and Tony went back onto the big slides.  When they got back, it was time for us to eat an early dinner and leave.  I had packed extra clothes so we all changed before we went to eat and left from the restaurant.

Of course, we were already changed and it was only 6pm when we left Aquatica, and being the crazy folks we are, we went to Epcot Center since it was open until 9pm.  We figured we would take in Epcot and then head into the Magic Kingdom afterward since it stayed open until 1am on Tuesday morning.  So rode the monorail into Epcot Center, rode a few rides and as we were boarding the monorail to head back over to the Ticket and Transportation Center to go to The Magic Kingdom, we saw lightening in the sky.  Not wanting to take the chance with a bunch of rain and the rides being closed we opted to head back to the timeshare and relax and start again bright and early.

Day 11, Soak Zone and Working Day

June 10, 2012
Since Taylor was so upset about not being able to get wet during the Shamu show and we didn't get a chance to see the Sealion and Otter Show we went back to Sea World before I started working.  First, Tony and I had to go to the timeshare presentation.  The kids went with us and hung out in the recreation center and Emelia stayed with us during the presentation.

Then we headed over to Sea World.  It was a sunny and humid day.  It started out cloudy and like a dope I didn't put on any sunscreen...I got some color on my shoulders and face.  Not quite a full sunburn but I'm almost there.  Taylor and I ran ahead from the parking lot into the park so we could get to the backside of the park and get into the soak zone of Shamu Stadium.  We sat in about the 5th row from the front and didn't get as wet as I anticipated.  Which was just fine for me despite Taylor complaining that she wanted more water on her.  We then went back to the play area for the little ones and the older kids and I rode on the Flying Fiddler which is a very mild version of Tower of Terror and a Shamu Express roller coaster which is a smaller version of The Barnstormer.  Tony took Emelia onto the Swishy Fishies which is a tame version of The Tea Cups.  After playing for a bit we went into the Sealion and Otter Show.  It was very cute and the kids had a great time and laughed a lot.

Afterwards, it was time to head back to the Vistana and relax and log into work.  The kids and Tony took a good long nap and played and watched T.V. with each other while I worked and updated the blog posts with our vacation adventures.

Day 10, Sea World

June 9, 2012
We made it over to Sea World as a change of pace from Disney.  We got there at opening and stayed until close.  Tony started off his day by riding the Manta.  It's a huge roller coaster and at one point during the ride you are actually riding face down looking at the ground.  Jackson and Taylor were too short to ride and Anthony wasn't quite ready to conquer that ride.  He said he would ride it when he is "16 years old and much thicker."  So me and the kids stayed on the ground and I allowed the boys to take Taylor to view the small aquarium exhibit.  Then we went to Journey of Atlantis and Tony and the older kids rode that ride.  According to the boys it's a cheesy version of Splash Mountain with a huge drop at the end.  Emelia was happily eating snacks confined to the stroller.  After Atlantis, Tony rode the other big coaster called the Kraken.  Then we saw the Whale and Dolphin Show called Blue Horizons.  It was the first show of the morning so the animals and the trainers were just starting their day.  It was a decent show although both Taylor and I didn't understand the storyline behind it.

Then it was time for us to each lunch and then see more exhibits and shows. Sea World has an All Day Lunch Pass and at certain restaurants you can get all you can eat food.  Being that our family is so large and we were staying in the park all day, we had to take advantage of this meal option so we could eat both lunch and dinner in the park.  We brought our own snacks with us and having an unlimited supply of bottled water from the park restaurants really helped.

After lunch we went over to Dolphin Cove and fed the dolphins.  While we were waiting in line to feed the dolphins, the kids went to feed the stingrays at Stingray Lagoon.  The kids then went to ride on Wild Arctic (3D ride) while Emelia slept in the stroller and I had a small snack.  Then it was time for us to see the Shamu show called One Ocean.  This was an amazing show and there were 5 Killer whales (Orcas) in the pool at one time.  One thing that Tony and I noticed is that none of the trainers got into the pool with the Orcas.  I think with the recent trainer/whale mishaps of the last few years, they are really trying to discourage this.  I kind of missed seeing that but I also wouldn't want to see a trainer injured by a whale either during a show.  We then needed to allow Emelia time to play and near the Shamu Stadium there is a small kid's play area with rides and play structures and a water splash pad for the little ones under 54" could play and ride.  Unfortunately, the weather was starting to turn bad and right after Emelia and I got off the carousel they closed the play area.  So we headed over to the Sealion and Otter Stadium so we could see Clyde and Seamore Take Pirate Island show.  Due to the storm being right on top of the park, they delayed the show and eventually had to cancel it.  Fortunately the stadium is covered and we were in an area that was cooled by high powered fans so we were very comfortable.  The rain was horrible, the lightening was all around us and the thunder was loud.  The aftermath of that storm though left ankle deep water in the Stadium and some people's strollers wheels were under water.  We parked ours up on higher ground on an incline and with the new stroller rain cover and an additional poncho, the seat stayed nice and dry.

We still had some time in the park so we ate a leisurely dinner.  On our way towards the exit we stopped and saw the street comedians.  The show really left a big impression on the kids because every chance they get they try and reenact scenes and lines from it.  We left the park about 30 minutes before closing.  One thing that Tony and I noticed is that with all the little "extras" that Sea World has you pay for such as the food for feeding the animals, playing the midway games and souvenier photos, you can actually spend more in Sea World than you can at the Disney Parks.  And that is with the all day food pass too and we even brought our own snacks with us into the park.  So you definitely have to be careful and budget more per day for Sea World than you do at a Disney Park.  I think you spend more on the extras at Sea World because there are less rides to ride on and more shows so you end up consuming more food and drink at each show than you would if you were to stand in line to ride a ride.

The rain had passed and we weren't completely exhausted so you know what that meant for our family...Another late night at The Magic Kingdom!  This time we had the goal to get Taylor onto Space Mountain.  We had about 4 hours left in the day so we drove over to the M.K., picked up more Sorcerer Cards and headed straight into tomorrowland to get Fast Passes for Space Mountain.  We then rode on the Tomorrowland Speedway.  Anthony is finally tall enough at 54" (maybe he's a little taller) to drive by himself so that's what he wanted to do.  Jackson, Emelia and I rode together.  He's not tall enough to reach the pedal but he can drive.  And Tony braved a car with Taylor behind the wheel.  Then we rode on Carousel of Progress which Emelia LOVED.  She kept dancing to the song and kept waving to the animatronic dog on stage.  Then it was time for Space Mountain.  Emelia and I stayed in Tomorrowland to wait for the others and went over to the outdoor dance club 626 so she could dance to the music with Stitch and Chip and Dale.  Once we were finished dancing, I took Emelia onto Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin.  The wait time was only 5 minutes and the rest of the family was not finished at Space Mountain.  She had a blast trying to fire the gun and spinning us around in the cart.  By the time we were finished, the others were finished and we all rode on The People Movers.

While we were in The Magic Kingdom, it didn't rain at all.  The weather had already passed while we were at Sea World and the evening was absolutely beautiful.  We then loaded Emelia back into the stroller and headed through the back way to the outskirts of Fantasyland and me and the older 3 rode on The Barnstormer.  Emelia is too short for that ride and she was so tired she actually fell asleep on the walk over.  Since most people were in Main Street watching the fireworks and parade, The Barnstormer and the Dumbo ride only had at most a 10 minute wait time.  Taylor and I rode on Dumbo while the boys went onto The Barnstormer 2 more times in a row.  I think they felt empowered and a little independent because they were able to ride all by themselves without an adult present.  Then it was time to head towards the front of the park.  However, we did stop and ride on Winnie The Pooh and got soft serve ice cream treats for our walk out of the park.  By this time it was 10:50 p.m. and most people had either gone home for the evening or were waiting on Main Street for the 11:00 p.m. Electrical Light Parade.  The only real long wait we had was to get onto the Ferry Boat and head back to the Ticket and Transportation Center.  By this time though, the exhaustion had set in and all 3 older ones started dragging.  It's a good thing we parked up close at the TCC and had a short walk back to the car instead of having to ride the tram.

Day 9, Star Wars Weekend

June 8, 2012
We woke up a little later than we anticipated but we packed up the car and checked out of The Westgate Towers and headed over to Hollywood Studios.  We started the morning with Toy Story Mania.  It was so crazy and so packed!  We ended up waiting in the stand-by line for about 2 hours to ride the ride.  Fortunately, the wait was completely indoors and Emelia was able to run around for a little bit and eat snacks.  The Fast Passes were gone until 7:00pm and there was no way we were going to stay that long and we didn't want to tie up our tickets with the fast passes until that time either.  While we were in line Tony went over to Rockin' Roller Coaster and got fast passes for him and the kids.  After Toy Story Mania, we met up with a co-worker of mine and his family and rode The Great Movie Ride together.  Then we split up and it was time for Rockin' Roller Coaster.  It was their first time and they thoroughly enjoyed the ride.  Since Tower of Terror is also on that side, Tony took the kids onto it as well.  Taylor liked it but was not overjoyed by it.

Meanwhile, Emelia and I had a light snack of fresh fruit at a picnic table waiting for those guys to come back.  After the others got back, Tony got us all food for lunch.  Apparently Emelia REALLY wanted french fries because while she was sitting on Tony's lap eating her lunch a lady walked near us to her table and Emelia eyed her french fries and held out her hand pointing following the lady with her head as if to draw the fries closer to her.  All of a sudden the lady came by with her tray and tried to give Emelia a bunch.  We kept telling her "no thank you" but Emelia's face lit up and the lady kept insisting.  Finally we settled for her giving Emelia one french fry for each hand.  Remember, it was Star Wars weekend at Hollywood Studios..."The Force Is Strong With Her."

We had a partially sunny day in the morning and then the rain set in later in the afternoon. Since it was still raining, we figured it was time for us to leave and check into the new timeshare The Sheraton Vistana Resort.  Even though the Westgate provided us with elevators to our room and we had a 3 bedroom lock off timeshare where the kids could run around a lot between the 2 apartments, the Vistana is a larger version of a nice hotel suite.  It feels a little more like home to us despite having to walk our luggage up 3 flights of stairs and the suite only having 2 bedrooms so someone has to sleep on the couch.

We did venture out again and went to Dick's Sporting Goods and Babies 'R' Us.  Tony wanted a rain jacket so he didn't have to deal with ponchos anymore during our trip and we purchased a stroller cover for the stroller since our ponchos weren't keeping the rain out of the seat portion.  The nice thing about those stores is that they were in the same strip mall right next to each other.