Random Round-Up (Florida Edition Vol. 1)

Feeling the warm sun on my face is like therapy.

It's been warmer here than it's supposed to be in February.  We've had temperatures from the mid 70's to the mid 80's.  The evenings and mornings are very cool.

We rented a time-share condo at a Mariott Resort through a connection our friend Kent has.  Best decision ever.  I'm so thankful we didn't decide to stay at Disney.  I need space!!  This condo has space in abundance!  It's also got great pools, kid's activities, and lots of other good stuff.  By the end of the day I am "Disney'd out".

We flew out of Grand Forks.  That decision saved us nearly $1500.00.

Judging from all of the Winnipeg Jets gear on our flight, over half of the passengers were from Winnipeg too.

The resort area of Orlando is kind of like Pleasantville.  It doesn't even look real.  It's too perfect.  Does that make sense?

The day after we arrived one of my oldest and dearest friends and her family joined us from Vineland Ontario.  That's been the best for many reasons.
      - Our kids are having a blast together
      -Shawn and Mike have always been great friends and they don't need me and Tan around
      -It's fun having boys around for a change
      -If one of your kids is driving you nuts in your car on your way home from Disney, you can swap      said kid out for one of their kids.
      -Our rooms are right beside each other,  and we just leave our doors open so the kids come and go as they please so it actually feels like our place is twice the size
      -I never get a chance to really know Tan's boys.  I finally feel like I'm able to.  I've always known I loved them, but now I know I like them.  I also know their teacher's names, their favorite games and what makes them laugh.
       -Dutch Blitz is way more fun with more people
       -I never get uninterupted time with Tan.
       -Even grocery shopping with Tan is a good time.

I'm not a big theme park kind of girl.  Never really have been.  But we wanted to do the Disney thing once with our girls and I'm glad we have.  We've broken up the days really well and go home when we feel "done".  You know what I mean.  "Done" is done.  It's always best to abandon ship at that point.

We have full kitchens in our condo's, so we eat breakfast here and then pack a cooler bag with lunch and snacks for the day.  This has worked out really well.    I can only stomach watching my kids eat fries so many times in a row before I can't take it anymore.

Do people actually aspire to grow up to be Disney characters?

I asked Tan's 5 year old son, Pierce, the other day if he knew I that I loved him.  He looked up with his eyelashes that likely weigh 1 pound per eye and said, "obviously".  That's been the best answer of this holiday.

Tan and Shawn treat my kids like they are important, worth their time, and valuable.  My kids love them.

If you really know me, you'll know that I love playing ping-pong.  Not only do I love playing it, but I'm damn good at it too.  For reals.  We've been playing some doubles matches this week and Mike and I are up on the Reimer's and I'm up on Tan in singles.  I'm that good.

Tan and I both agreed that we have more fun playing ping-pong with each other than being at Disney.  Simple pleasures.

The ride, "Soarin'" at Epcot is out of this world.

What would it feel like to live in Florida year round?

Living how you live when you're on holidays feels so good.

I dread returning to the cold.

I've been scouting out Winnipeg Jets shirts and hoodies at Disney.  So far I've spotted 5.

Our kids have just as much fun hanging out at the pool as they do at Disney.

How did people do Disney before the "Fast Pass" came in to play?

Did anyone else ever have the cereal "Cookie Crisp" when they were kids?  I remember my mom buying it for my brother and me in the States when we were kids.  It is essentially little chocolate chip cookies.  Worst health benefits ever.  I bought a box for my kids to try because we're on holidays and that's the time to eat sugary refined flour cereal with no nutritional value whatsoever.  They like it.

I'm going to P.F. Chang's for lettuce wraps tomorrow night.  They are my most favorite food in the world.

A large part of holiday happiness revolves around food.

I wish we were just starting instead of at the mid-way point.