Orlando Fall Break!

Wow...lots to catch up on!  This is why this blog has been difficult for me to keep up with.  I neglect it for a few weeks and it overwhelms me to think about bringing things up to speed...BUT in the long run when the girls have their memory book it will all be worth it!  (I keep telling myself)

We had a great surprise for the girls this year for our county's fall break.  It is getting harder and harder to come up with ways to surprise Alex as she is getting way too smart!  We have had a trip to Orlando planned for about 6 months that they had no idea about.  Since I encouraged the girls to save their allowance for this week, Alex got very suspicious.  Of course it was a hundred questions a day and it is very difficult for me to be misleading.  So, they both knew they were going SOMEwhere but not WHERE.  A week before we were to leave, I convinced Tommy to tell them where we were going so that they were able to get excited and not ask a bazillion more questions on the drive down there.  They were pumped!!

We planned to leave bright and early the first Saturday of the break.  I got a call from Faith's school at about 11am saying she was sick in the nurse's office.  I honestly thought it was the excitement of the trip and she just wanted to get it started a bit sooner.  I picked her up and knew right away that she was not faking.  She was a very sick little girl!  I had to pick Alex up from school early so that I could get Faith to the Doctor quickly and she was greatly disappointed knowing that there was a setback in the original plan.  We talked about how it is not truly our plan, but God's and He knew what He was doing.  The Doctor did not give me the diagnosis I wanted,  :)  (I was really hoping for strep since it is such a quick turn around with the antibiotics) but said the dreaded work....VIRUS.  Ugh!  I hate that word!!  Virus means...no meds...long illness time and this one was really really yucky!  She was pitiful.  So, we decided to postpone our 6am alarm clock setting and wait to see what Saturday held for little Faith. 

Saturday came and she seemed to be better.  She said she was ready to leave versus her losing all the desire to even go the day before.  So, we packed up and headed south.  We arrived at our hotel room late Saturday night and stayed right across from Universal Studios.  It was a really nice hotel.  Poor Faith...this is what day one's excitement was for her...

On Sunday, the girls would receive their second surprise at the Orlando airport.  We were picking up my Dad and his wife and they were coming out to spend the week with us!  The girls had NO idea that was coming!  They were very surprised and very excited!

We then arrived at our condo that we were all 6 staying in for the week.  My Dad and Cathi were very generous in blessing our family with this trip for our Christmas present.  On day 1, we drove to Clearwater Beach and drove down the gulf coast.  It was beautiful!  We love the white sand.  We ate lunch at a great seafood restaurant called Crabby Bill's.  This was Alex's sandwich...can't believe she ate it!!

Clearwater Beach was very nice.  They had a huge public access area and it was not crowded at all.  It was a great time of year to be there since most families were back in school. 

On Tuesday, we went to Universal Studios.  We loved it!!  It was pretty low key and a lot to look at and learn about.  We did not wait in line for anything which was a HUGE bonus.  I have not been to an amusement park other than Six Flags since I was very young.  They have come a long way!  Very nice park and we had a really good time.


On Wednesday, we drove east and went to Cocoa Beach.  We love Cocoa Beach since it is right next to Cape Caneveral.  We ate at a beachside restaurant and then spent the day on the beach.  My Dad, Tommy and the girls all went boogie boarding while Cathi and I enjoyed relaxing and people watching.  ;)  You can definitely see a lot of interesting folks at the beach! 

Thursday was quite an interesting day....I was hoping that Faith had kept her virus to herself, but it reared its ugly head with Alex this time.  We had tickets to go to Islands Of Adventure and we were all very excited.  We had told the girls that they had to ride all of the rides in the park.  (this demand was courtesy of my Mom who did the same to me when I was in the 1st grade...cured me of my fear of rides!)  The girls had been online researching the rides and asking friends at school about all of them.  They were both so excited.  The first ride when you walk into the park is the Hulk.....awesome ride!!!  Alex's face was priceless when she was first strapped into the ride.  She then tried to say she didn't really want to ride when we SHOT out of the loading area which was very unexpected.  I was crying from laughing so hard at her face during that ride.  It was a really great ride and very smooth too.  We decided since there was no wait to ride it a second time.  After that, we rode the log ride (great ride too) and then it hit Alex.  Her stomach hurt so bad she could not stand or sit up.  She tried to convince me to let her stay.  We tried to let her eat some soup and she couldn't.  (for her to turn down any food, you know somethings wrong!)  When she couldn't take it anymore, we decided to take the long hike back to the car and I drove her back to the condo.  She kept apologizing to me for making me miss the park.  She was almost crying for her having to miss it as well.  When we got to the van, she went to sleep and then slept for 4 hours at the condo.  I woke her up and we picked up the rest of the group.  She was so disappointed as her stomach was better by the end of the night.  Once again, we know it is all for a reason!  Here are some pics that were taken of Faith at the park.

Friday was Tommy's 35th birthday and what a way to celebrate than to be on vacation!!  I had arranged for the two of us to have a special dinner at Medieval Times and Dad and Cathi took the girls out on a date to a dinner theater called Capone's.  Tommy and I had a great time and we loved watching the horses.  The food was really good...only no utensils!  Kind of weird, but I was happy when they gave us wet wipes after we were finished. 

Saturday morning, very early, Dad and Cathi flew back to Okieville.  We checked out of the room and then headed to Downtown Disney.  We had a great time there too!  We had a little too long of a time there and we were way too tired to make the drive home once we were finished.  So, we got a cheap room and rested up for the drive home on Sunday.  Whew...what a week!!!

Highlights we will never forget...both Alex and Faith's hilarious faces when riding new rides and then saying how awesome it was when they got off...yucky viruses...late night gator hunts...finding NO mexican restaurants in Kissimmee (except for the lady who said a great mexican place is chili's) jumping in the pool with our clothes on...the alligator that lived in the pond next to the condo...hot tub and steam room...Walmart at 1am...my Dad kissing a bullfrog...2 Ron Jons...living by the GPS...enjoying God's beautiful oceans...the awesome Lego store...so many new and fun experiences...Thank you Dad and Cathi for your generosity and taking the time for us!  We Love You!!