Orlando Highlights Pt. 2

As the school year begins to wind down, I'm finding it's becoming increasingly more difficult to find the time to sit down and compose a post. Today, I have to pick up Brittany's graduation announcements, get some pictures developed for a scrapbook she has to make for school, write several Senior Letters to some of her classmates, and attend her track meet at 5 PM. Oh, and I'm still in the midst of attempting to write Brittany a Senior Letter...talk about hard! There's so much I want to say to her. I'm already up to page 6! So, that's why I've not been very consistent about blogging lately. I suppose you might say there's bigger fish to fry. :) Thank you for your continued support and understanding!

Now, let's see...I can hardly remember where I left off! I know I mentioned how on Monday of our trip, we decided to sleep in and enjoy a little pool time. Well, that afternoon, we went back to the parks and rode nearly every ride there, time and time, again. Here's some more pictures for you to enjoy.

Here's a shot of Brittany and Chris I took when they were riding the Incredible Hulk Coaster. They're on the front row...AGAIN!

Here's a picture of Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls. I tell you, when you come out of that hole at the very top...it's straight DOWN! It really takes your breath away, but it was a BLAST!!!

The three of us girls wandering through the streets of Universal Studios trying to figure out what kind of trouble we're going to get into next! :)

Brittany and Abby decided to try on various hats/headgear in one store we went in. Pretty snazzy, wouldn't you say?


Here's the first glimpse of Hogwart's Castle at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter which is due to open in June. We will definitely have to go back next year to see it!

This is one of our favorite shows to see...Beetlejuice's Graveyard Revue! Those folks can SING!!!
Here's Chris and the girls after another long day of fun in the sun! When we came back to the parks later in the evening, we were greeted by a teenage boy who gave us 4 "Fast Pass" tickets. They allow you to go to the front of the lines without having to wait for 30 mins. to an hour to get on a ride. We had the best time running around and hopping on every ride we could in 2 hours! That kid made our day!
Well, I really thought I was going to be able to wrap everything up today, but I still have some things I'd like to share. So, stayed tuned for the final chapter! :)

Orlando Highlights Pt. 1

It's been awhile, hasn't it? I've missed you all! I really needed to take some time and just enjoy my family without any looming responsibilities hanging over my head. Needless to say, we had a fun Spring Break in Orlando for 5 glorious days!

We got there on Good Friday, which was also Chris' birthday. We went out for a nice dinner at Macaroni Grill. It was so crowded when we walked in and we were told we would have about a 30 min. wait. Well, Chris looked over by the bar area and there was an empty table, so he motioned for me and the girls to grab a seat. We plopped down like we owned the place! We did get a few ill looks from some of the patrons who were waiting on tables, but no one ever said a word to us. That's what I get for being married to such a bold husband! :)

The next day, we got up bright and early so we could be at the parks by the time they opened at 9 AM. We were one of the first visitors to walk through the gates. Brittany, immediately, found the ride she wanted to go on...Rip Ride Rockit. It's a new roller coaster that goes straight up...and almost straight down! No, thank you...momma's a big ol' chicken when it comes to rides like that! The wait was pretty long, so she and Chris rode it later in the day...and they loved it! To use Brittany's exact words...it was "AWESOME!"

There they are on the front row! Yes, Chris recorded the entire ride! You couldn't pay me enough money to get on that thing!

Chris and Brittany talked Abby and me into riding Jurassic Park's River Adventure. My poor heart was going thumpa-thumpa-thumpa the entire time because I knew what was coming...an 80 ft. vertical drop in total darkness! Yikes!!! Here's what you face after the plunge...lots and lots of water!!!

On Easter Sunday, we went back to the parks and stayed until 10 PM. We did meet up with some close friends of ours for dinner. Their daughter runs cross country and track with Brittany and they went to Disney for Spring Break. We had such a nice time!

On Monday, we all decided to sleep in, then sit by the pool until around noon. Abby and I splashed around in the water and Chris and Brittany sat out and sunned themselves. It was nice to have a break from rushing off to the parks the first thing.

Here's Abby just chillin' out!

Brittany, actually, decided to get in the water and risk getting her hair wet! Miracle of miracles!

That's about all I have time for today...I'm still trying to catch up on so many things! I'll finish up about our trip in the next day or two. All I know is that I'm so happy we went and shared that time together. All too soon, those kinds of opportunities will be a thing of the past. Have a great Monday!


P.S. Brittany set a new school record on Saturday in the Sprint Medley! She now has 5 school records to her name! :)

Does The Cowardly Lion Ring A Bell?

Do you remember awhile back when I made mention that I own a box of thought-provoking questions and how I planned to use some of them for my blog posts? Well, I did it one time...then, I forgot all about them! I am completely losin' it! Anyhow, I'm going to use another one of the questions for today's post, so here goes..."What is one of your greatest acts of courage?"

Alright, let me set the stage here by saying that I love it when my daughters tell me that I am one cool mom. I get all mushy when I hear them bragging to their friends about me...wouldn't any mom? Now, this often causes me to do things that go against my better judgement. Here's a case in point...

We took a family vacation to a favorite place of ours, Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. Well, Chris had mentioned to me before we left that he wanted us to have lots of fun together as a family by riding all sorts of rides. Don't get me wrong...I LOVE rides, I really do! I love water rides, carousels, motion simulators....you get the picture! What I DO NOT like are roller coasters or anything that involves a lot of height! What's really strange is that it doesn't bother me to fly, and I'm not scared to climb mountains or ride ski lifts or gondolas. I just don't like that helpless feeling of falling...way down!

Well, Chris has this way of talking me into "broadening my horizons", so to speak. So, when we were at Universal Studios, he managed to convince me into getting on the Dueling Dragons roller coaster...ALONE!!! Abby wasn't tall enough to ride it and Brittany wasn't quite old enough yet to watch Abby for the time it would take Chris to ride it with me. Now, I had been on Space Mountain at Disney several times and I loved it...wanna know why? It's in the dark, people, and I couldn't see where I was going! It was SO much fun...not scary, in the slightest!

After much hem-hawing around, I made the executive decision to hop on Dueling Dragons because I wanted to impress my family by staring fear dead in the face!!! I am woman, hear me roar!!! I sat down and harnessed myself in nice and tight...my heart was pounding! For a moment, I thought about jumping off and proclaiming, "I'm a chicken and proud of it!" A young couple sat right next to me. Then, the moment came all too soon when the ride began to move and we started chug-a-chugging almost straight up. I knew I was in trouble, but, I plastered a big, happy grin on my face as I waved goodbye! We got to the very top...and that's all I remember! I clamped my eyes shut as tightly as I could and screamed my ever-loving head off! I didn't take a peek one single time, and I think that made the ride even more terrifying. The poor kids sitting next to me were probably deaf by the time all was said and done! I'm pretty sure I even threw in a "Help me, Jesus!" here and there...I was scared out of my mind! When my feet finally touched land, again, I didn't utter a word to Chris for a good while...it was all HIS fault, you know! Of course, he and the girls thought it was hilarious!!! Here's a video I found on You Tube that gives you a small glimpse of what I went through...

Oh, and it didn't end there! Chris talked me into going on Dr. Doom's Fearfall. It's no walk in the park, either! It catapults you up 10 stories in the air. I, literally, thought I was going to fly right out of my seat! I was shaking like a leaf when I got off that thing! I told Chris, "Never, again!"...but, all he did was laugh! Shameful, isn't it??? :)

So, I guess I conquered my fear of roller coasters and heights...at least, temporarily! Without a doubt, those experiences took more courage than I ever thought I could muster. Cool mom or not...I'm just glad I lived to tell about it!

"If God wanted us to be brave, why did He give us legs?"~Marvin Kitman