What an amazing vacation!
A few weeks ago, we decided we’d had enough of this long winter and
headed for the sunshine state, Florida!
While originally we didn't really have any other plan than to catch a
spring training game, it ended up being so much more.
We flew down on Wednesday morning, early (and I mean EARLY)
and as soon as we landed we headed to Sea World. Eli had been asking to go to an aquarium, so
this was right in his wheel house. I
think we went through the shark tunnel at least three times and each time, Eli would
say the same thing, “Those sharks are silly.”
If he only knew a little about how sharks are not silly! We walked all over the park and once we got
to the sea lions, this kid was fast asleep.
This worked out OK for us because the sun was shining; there was an
umbrella for Eli’s stroller to be under and more than enough entertainment in
front of us with those silly sea lions.
Once Eli woke up, we caught the sea lion and otter show with
Clyde and Seamore. While it was hard to
know if Eli was enjoying it, I know that looking back; he may have been a bit
overwhelmed since he’d just woken up.
The show was amazing and would recommend it to anyone headed to Sea World.
Lastly, we checked out the dolphin show. I have to digress for one minute to tell a
story that relates to the dolphins. We
were getting ready to go to bed the night before we left, and I pulled out a beanie
baby dolphin that was given to Ben and I as a wedding gift (we were lucky to be
gifted the opportunity to swim with the dolphins on our honeymoon in
Mexico). The minute Eli saw it, he clung
to it. He slept with it and carried it
all through the park with us. This was
awesome because it meant we didn't have to spend a million dollars on one of
them at the park, but was also awesome to see how geeked he was to see
dolphins. Back on track, we were at the
dolphin show and again, I wasn't sure if he liked it until the very end when the
dolphins were all doing amazing tricks and when I looked over, E was grinning
ear to ear and had it arm up in the arm as if he were saying “YES, that was
awesome!” Again, highly recommend this
show!
It was at dinner that night where Eli had said to us that we
were going to see Mickey Mouse while we were on vacation. This was certainly not in our plan, which was
to sit around the pool all day, but after seeing the excitement of asking him
if he wanted to go to Magic Kingdom, we couldn't refuse. And boy am I glad we did it. What a magical day. Although we did this park last year, this
year was that much better and Eli was so excited to be there. We of course started with “It’s a small world”
which was Eli’s favorite ride the previous visit and once again, it didn't
disappoint. We also hopped on the Mad
Hatter Party tea cups and Dumbo. What didn't
agree with Eli was the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Although it was similar to the Small World
ride, it was quite scary in the dark cave with water shooting at us. Eli will tell you he will never go on the
Small World ride, but what he really means is the Pirates ride.
Beyond the rides, Eli had some very special encounters with the
characters. I have to digress again on a
story that is relevant. Most recently,
Eli discovered old (I mean OLD, 1950’s) Donald Duck and the Chip and Dale
episodes. He has spent the last week
asking to watch them and who are we to deny the classics. Well, when we got to the Magic Kingdom, it
was a mission to meet Donald, but first, we needed to meet the big man himself,
Mickey! When we met Mickey, he immediately
pretended to be trains with Eli by walking around in circles and saying chugga
chugga choo choo. I’m positive this time
that Eli loved it. After a few snaps of
some photos with Eli, we were on our way to ride a train and meet Donald.
Remember that dolphin I mentioned…..well it was at this
point we realized Dolphie was missing. I
mean simply gone. Did he lose it while
he was napping, did we drop it out of the stroller somewhere? It was nowhere to be found. When I say this day was a magical day, this
is the point in time I cried. I went to
City Hall and explained to the nice woman behind the counter that we had lost
the beloved Dolphie. It was a minute
later when she came back from the back room that Dolphie appeared before my
very eyes. I couldn't believe it. With a park that has thousands of people visiting/working;
someone found Dolphie and turned it in.
I literally cried. Thankfully Eli
had been distracted by the purchase of Donald Duck just after we met Mickey, so
he has no idea this dolphin was ever lost.
Again, it was a MAGICAL day.
Next, we hopped on the train to Fantasy Land on a mission to
meet Donald. While waiting under the big
tent, I could see the utter joy on Eli’s face when he looked at Donald. But first, we had to meet Goofy! While that didn't seem as exciting, he took a
great photo with him. Then….the time had
come, DONALD! Eli walked right up to him
and said, “Donald, why do you chase those Chippy’s around in circles? That’s
silly!” He was referring to Chip and
Dale in the classics he watches. If
Donald were allowed to talk, I think he would have laughed hysterically. In the end, this was my most favorite day and seeing the joy
and excited on my little boy’s face is a memory I will never forget.
Friday, we had tickets to the Tigers vs. Braves at the Wide
World of Sports on Disney property. What
a great ball park! We had lawn seats and
even though there was no shade and the sun was blasting us, we had an awesome
time! With a week to go for Opening Day,
it was a great kick start to a fun season.
Eli was such a trooper, we got him some ice cream in a Braves plastic
helmet bowl with Mickey Mouse sprinkles on it. Ben and I died laughing when Ben
took a bite of that ice cream and said, “Dada, don’t eat too much of that, I
want to eat it all”. I guess we each
should have had our own! Although we
didn't stay for the whole game, it was totally worth it!
That night, we relaxed at the pool, grabbed some dinner and
prepared for a VERY early flight home. We
had so much fun packed into two and a half days and I wouldn't change a minute
of it. I can’t wait until our next visit
to the Magic Kingdom!
