So, we went to Orlando last week. We pooled all of our Christmas money from family into this trip. It was one of the best vacations I've been on. My favorite vacation with my little family for sure. We took a few (hundred) pictures. Here are some of my favorites...
These two boys holding hands in the parking lot. They are inseparable. Which sort of drives me crazy sometimes...
On the first day there, we went to Sea World for a few hours. It was a bit rainy so there weren't a lot of people there. We got on each ride without any waiting. It was pretty awesome and there were lots of cool animals to see!
First we headed to the Arctic...
We waited for a long time to be able to touch the dolphins. Zach swore he hated dolphins because he never got to touch one. You can see that he almost touched one, but his arms weren't long enough. Oh Zach...
He did get a chance to touch a sting ray at Sea World though. They were not shy at all!
Lots of aquariums to go see.
Two of our favorite rides were, The Manta (Whit's favorite. I had a panic attack on it. You ride on your belly the whole time and I kept imagining the harness unlocking and me plummeting to my death. Not a pleasant ride.)
That's us on the front row.
I did love the Kraken though. We rode this several times. By the end of the trip, Whit was a fan. It was a little scary for her at first.
There was a really cool 3D show that we went to. The kids had never been to one before, so this was a real highlight. Whitney is all biz in her 3D's.
There were lots of stadiums in Sea World, with different shows in each. This was the pet show, it was a cute little show with smart little pets in it.
Of course there was the Shamu show.
The kids got a tad wet...
And then there was the dolphin show... It was pretty spectacular.
Like I said, there were not many people in the park that first day. The kids were the only ones on some of the rides. It was so funny to me!
And then there was the sea lion show... Notice how my family is on the front row without me. They aren't kiddin when they call those rows the "Soak Zone". I enjoyed watching them get drenched:)
More beautiful Aquariums...
Late night run to Micky d's for desserts... I really loved all the eating out we did. Yay for no cooking!
On Friday, we went to Aquatica, Sea Worlds' water park. It was super fun and unlike any water park the kids had been to. We all had a blast despite it being a little cooler than normal. We got right on to every slide without having to wait at all! The water was heated as well, so that was nice:) It was such a beautiful place to play.
Whitney and Josh getting off of "Breakaway Falls". This one was so scary, you stand in a tube and the bottom drops out and you go down a super fun slide. Tyler even did it! I was so proud of him.
They boys got this whole play structure to themselves...
The kids and Josh racing... Zach was so in to this ride. I was surprised at the rides my kids would go on.
Shadow shot...I took it because it looked weird. Big fan of all things weird.
Josh loves pictures with me...
On Saturday, we went to Discovery Cove, also owned by Sea World. This was the highlight of the trip for me. It was one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. There was a beautiful man made river that pushed you along to the most beautiful places. It was dreamy.
Mid way through the river there was an aviary with beautiful birds. They were oh so friendly and sometimes a little too friendly.
And then there was a beautiful lagoon with sting rays and dozens of other kinds of fish. There were sharks and eels behind glass too. We loved swimming with the HUGE sting rays and exploring this beautiful lagoon.
Stingray hiding...Whtiney stepped on one and was SO freaked out. It was hilarious to hear her scream through her snorkle. Sounded like an elk. HA!
There was a beautiful sandy beach too. I'm tellin' ya. All we need is a sandy beach and we are a happy family.
Tyler getting as close to the dolphins as they'd let him get...
Sea otter section...
Josh's response to "Let me take a picture of you".
More shots from around the lazy river...
The Marmosets
"Daddy", "Bebe" and "Baby nuffles". No idea what this is...They just call themselves this when they look like this.
While he was sitting here, a big stingray swam right next to his feet in that shallow water and "waved" to him. He thought it was so cool. When they move their fins it can really look like waving.
Whitney and I participated in the "dolphin encounter". I've wanted to swim with a dolphin since I knew it was a possibility! It was so fun to be so close to this cute little dolphin. Her name was Morrea. I even got to feel her heartbeat! That sounds so lame, but it was super cool to me.
And then we had to leave this little paradise...
We crammed quite a few thing in to our last day in Florida. The kids played at the hotel pool for a bit. They love any body of water and were so happy to finally be able to play in it. We had been too busy during the rest of the week.
After the morning swim, we headed back to Seaworld. One of the rides that
had been closed (Journey to Atlantis) was now open so we tried it out.
It was such a big ride for my boys! Sort of weird and freaky to me.
This is a shot of Whitney and Zach going down Atlantis...
After hitting Sea World, we had some time to kill so we went mini golfing. This was the coolest mini golf course I've been to. Florida is just so pretty...We all did pretty well. I think I may have a few future golfers on my hand!
Hangin' out at the souvenir shop.
I know this is out of order, but on Sunday, we drove out to the beach. The kids loved playing in the sand and chasing those pesky seagulls.
Then there were the pelicans. I liked these birds. So freakishly large. I call them dinosaur birds.
Josh and Zach went up and down the beach searching for cool seashells. The brought back quite a few.
Oh how I loved Orlando. We could have stayed a whole other week and still not done everything Orlando has to offer. Maybe next year!
