June - FLORIDA


What an exciting time we had in Florida! Our weather was wonderful 35+ all week with only 10 minutes of rain the whole week. I was thrilled after all the rain we've had in Calgary.



Our first stop was Sea World on Sunday. What a great place, the girls enjoyed seeing all the sea life up close. For Kayla this was her first time seeing whales and dolphins and sharks and everything else. Robyn had been to the Vancouver aquarium years ago but Sea World was so much more enjoyable. Aside from seeing Shamu the biggest highlight was touching and feeding the sting rays. They felt like 'mushrooms, very soft' Kayla said. She was very hesitant at first but when she realized Robyn and I were safe touching them she got right in too. The dolphin nursery was also neat, they were incredibly playful and fun to watch.





Monday we went to Disney World. This is where we got our 10 minutes of rain and it happened to come down in a down pour while on the ferry crossing to Disney. It was a first ferry ride for both girls which added to the adventure. Disneyworld wasn't their favorite park, it was busy and we only managed to get on a few of the rides. Of those we did get on they were Space Mountain, It's a Small World, Mad Hatters Tea Cups, Snow White's Scary Adventures, the Safari Cruise, The Haunted Mansion, Tom Sawyer's Tree House, the Tiki Hut & Pirates of the Carribean. We did enjoy each of the rides we were able to take in, of the rides we went on the girls loved Space Mountain and the Haunted Mansion most. Kayla freaked right out when a ghost got into the ride with us.




Tuesday we went to Animal Kingdom. This was probably my favorite park. I really liked how they made the park into different continents. We spent the majority of our day in Asia where we went on Expedition Everest (the neatest & favorite ride of the trip), as well as the river raft where we got soaked! I highly recommend going on the river rafts early as being wet keeps you cool during the day in the heat. Thankfully this park had so much tree cover that it really kept the heat from getting to us. After Asia we headed to Africa. In each of the continents they have little kiosks where you can buy souvineers local to those countries. Robyn purchased a very neat instrument in Africa. We did the Animal Safari there which allowed us to get very close to animals such as the elephants, rinos, giraffes and many more. Between the rides we did jungle walks to see more animals and learn about the different animals and their habitats. All the parks had 3-D movies which were a highlight. The seats would move and we'd get sprayed. A Bugs Life which was located in the center of the huge tree at Animal Kingdom was great, not to be missed as was the Lion King show!!







Wednesday we decided to take it easy and stayed back at our resort for the day getting in lots of swimming and slept in. We went to Epcot that evening and got in a few rides. I wish we were able to get in more as Epcot was really amazing with all of their simulation rides. Soarin was excellent. I wasn't a fan of Mission to Mars but the girls were thrilled with that one. After that we headed into the world exhibits showcasing different countries. We only made it to Japan. Our first stop was Mexico, then Norway and finally Japan. Each country again sold things from their countries, neat ornaments, purfumes, foods, clothing.... we didn't purchase anything but rather turned back from Japan and headed back to Norway where we had dinner with the Princess's. Kayla was so excited about this she could hardly eat let alone speak to the princess's. It was good that we did go there as we hadn't seen any of the princess's at the parks for their autographs. Dinner was fantastic, much like the Keg (both price and food) but better! The buffet was good, dinner was exceptional and dessert was heavenly! Ariel even found Robyn a prince at dinner. After our amazing meal we took in the fireworks. Incredible show that's for sure.








Thursday it was off to Universal Studios. We all loved this park and managed to get on every ride and take in everything we wanted to. We went on the Mummy ride, Men in Black, Simpsons, Jaws, Disaster, Twister, ET, Shrek 4-D & the Terminator. Robyn got her picture with Jaws but Kayla wasn't convinced and decided against getting that close and personal with Jaws. The only ride we did not take in was Rip Ride Rocket a crazy rollercoaster that goes straight up and then straight down and all over the park. Kayla was too small but that just gives us more reason to return when the girls are a little older. :) The shopping here was excellent too outside the parks. I stopped in at Hart & Huntington but didn't get anything however Jason had a field day in Billabong!





Friday was my day! We went Outlet shopping!! What excellent outlet shopping they have there and so close to our resort. In fact everything, all the parks, ticket outlet, walmart, and outlets were all within 10 minutes if not closer to where we stayed which was a plus for sure. The outlets had great prices, we hit Nike where I got myself some new shoes and Robyn got hightops (oh how that brought back memories) and Jason got himself golf shoes, and Guess where Robyn got herself a purse, I bought myself a couple purses at Coach (for incredible prices), Kayla loved Sketcher's. I wish I had won the lottery, I could have purchased so much more! After shopping for a couple hours we returned to swim and take in the Tiki bar & the DJ. Though there was mini-golf at the resort and poolside movie we never got to either.



Our last day in Florida we went to Gatorland. We all have to say this is a must to stop at and take in if visiting Florida. It's incredible to get a foot from such massive gators with only the dock and mesh between you and these amazing creatures. We watched Gator wrestling where Kayla sat on a live gator and took in the Jumparoo where gators jump right straight up out of the water to snatch food, we fed the gators. There was so much to see and do. Huge highlight for all of us. Following that park it was off to return our car (2009 Camry) and head to the Airport. It was sad that our adventure was at an end but we said it just allows us to look forward to many more future family trips to come...starting with Vancouver Island in July!