Roll Out Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer: an August Trip Report (Complete!)

[Lynne G]

HA! I have never seen so many mini golf courses in my life!

If it wasn't for Groupon and Living Social, our limit may have been 1. However, our last not Disney vacation, we visited more than a few. We now have ones we like and ones that one time was enough.

TGIF's is fun. We like Tony Roma's too. However, the stretch cheese may be the deal breaker for my DS.

Enjoying this TR!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

HA! I have never seen so many mini golf courses in my life!

If it wasn't for Groupon and Living Social, our limit may have been 1. However, our last not Disney vacation, we visited more than a few. We now have ones we like and ones that one time was enough.

TGIF's is fun. We like Tony Roma's too. However, the stretch cheese may be the deal breaker for my DS.

Enjoying this TR!

I absolutely adore Groupon and Livingsocial!!! I get so many fabulous bargains via those sites. I kind of miss stalking their offers between trips (until we have the next one officially planned and I know dates). Its like something is missing from my life, LOL!

Tony Roma's, huh? My "next trip" list is really getting substantial.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Over the course of our trips to Orlando (in particular, the four latter in which we have stayed offsite), we have sampled many of the local mini golf courses that the city has to offer. Thus far, we had enjoyed a round at Pirates Cove, Hawaiian Rumble, Gator Golf, and Volcano Island (all four of which are located on International Drive), Congo River in Kissimmee, and the onsite pirate-themed course at Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa. It’s a favourite family past-time, and one we try to enjoy on each and every vacation (regardless of the specific destination).

My personal preference of the above list is Congo River: for the immersive theming, the music throughout the course that makes you want to dance as you move from hole to hole, the extra “treasure hunt” on each course (which earns you a bonus scratch-off card following the completion of your 18th hole), and the gators. Yes, I’m a gator girl. Nothing says “Florida” to me more than palm trees and alligators. So deciding on Congo River as our course of choice for this evening was easy, considering the guys like golfing there as much as I do. Their competitive personalities were alive and well. They were ready to hit the green.



Since we golfed this particular location on our Christmas vacation, we opted to complete the opposite course from our last visit. Either side is a good choice (I believe they are coined the “Stanley” and “Livingston” courses) with interesting holes that pose a challenge without exceeding my frustration levels. I am happy to report that I think I only earned myself one six-stroke embarrassment this evening….which is pretty darn good for me !!





Throughout the course, the lead switched regularly from Steve to Jake and back again. The competition was intense. I was caught dancing to the music on more than one occasion. Or enjoying those every-prevalent photo ops. What can I say? It’s a sickness.



At the end of the course, the winner was declared……and it was Steve, again . Poor Jake. He was soooo close.



I don’t want to talk about my score . Where’s the gators??



Ah yes, the alligators. We got our bag of “gator food” (one wiener, chopped into pieces) and a pole and headed to the gator pen. They saw us coming and got a little excited, climbing out of the cool water and onto the sand to get ready for their snack.



Each of us took a turn or two with the pole, trying desperately to reward the little patient ones over the grabby and aggressive fellows. Steve, my farm-boy-turned-city-slicker, did the pole baiting honours because Jake and I were a little grossed out by gator slobber.



One the gator food had been gobbled up (and Steve vowed that next time, we would bring our own wieners and stretch the experience out a little longer) Jake spied this sign:



“Mom, you want to feed the koi?”.

To which I answered…..I am not sure I have any quarters. Let me go get some change.

He starts digging in his pockets. “No, don’t…..I have a million of them!”.



So he and Steve start feeding quarter after quarter into the little dispenser until we have fistfuls of fish food forced into every nook and cranny of our hands . The fish knew exactly what was coming and they were immediate up to the surface, slurping and sloshing about just waiting for the first morsel s to hit the water. Jake tosses a wad into the centre of the colour mass of fish bodies and a feeding frenzy ensued:



Turns out the boy DID have a ton of quarters, so we enjoyed this little activity for quite a while. I bet we spent between $4 and $5 on fish food, but it was fun to watch and stretched out a fun family evening a little longer……which was A-OK with me.



Eventually darkness set in and we made the pilgrimage back to the Vistana. Another blissful summer night in the Super Pool, and we headed to bed at a reasonable hour. For our final full day in Orlando, we had reservations for breakfast with four “old friends” … Lilo, Stitch, Pluto, and the Main Mouse himself!

 

[Mrs Doubtfire]

Ugh, the hair thing drives me bonkers!!! I had some pretty frizzy moments, that's for sure (you just don't get to see any of them ) but I did manage better this year than in past visits.

I used John Frieda's frizz-ease shampoo and conditioner every morning:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/John-Frieda-Frizz-Ease-Smooth-Start-Shampoo-10-oz/15611065

After I towel dried my hair, I worked in some Dove anti-frizz serum:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Dove-Style-Care-Frizz-Free-Shine-Hair-Cream-Serum-3.3-oz/20638711

Then I blow dried it and straightened it using my ceramic hair straightener.

I finished it off with Tresemme anti-humidity hairspray:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/TRESemme-Tres-Two-Extra-Hold-Hair-Spray-4.2-fl-oz/10319230

and overall, I didn't fare to badly

Steve and his balding head have it soooooo easy!

My Dh is balding so I know the feeling ! Your commitment to beautiful hair is impressive Thanks for the links to the products, can probably get most of those in the UK.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Your commitment to beautiful hair is impressive

LOL, some would say its a sign of madness . Talk about an effort in futility at times!!!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Friday, August 30th - Day 7.

Amazingly, more than a week had gone by since we originally left home en route to Syracuse, NY. It was hard to believe. Time had passed so shockingly fast!

Poor Jaker was feelin’ the effects of a week of “relaxing”. When I roused the troops in sufficient time for our breakfast date with Mickey, he made it as far as the living room. Then he collapsed.



It was solely the promise of POG juice and the best home fries in the world that got him back on his feet. That child was pooped.

Finally dressed and ready to roll, we hopped in the Jeep and headed toward here:



It was a *very* easy drive that took far less long than we anticipated. What a nice surprise, after our traffic-congested pilgrimage to the same location over Christmas where we very nearly missed our reservation time.

The monorail was just pulling into the Polynesian as we made our trek to the entrance of the resort. Nothing says “Disney” like the hum of the approaching monorail. We all resisted the urge to break out singing the song from the Simpsons.



We checked in for our 8:55 am reservation, received our leis, had the requisite photo taken, then settled in to wait for our pager to go off.



While we waited, we soaked up the wonderful atmosphere of the Poly (its my favourite deluxe resort) and took some pictures of the atrium:



A surprisingly short time later, our pager was flashing and we were escorted to our table.

From where we sat, we had an impressive view of the Grand Floridian.



Jake was thrilled when the POG juice arrived. Our fabulous server noticed Jake’s delight over the juice (one of his favourite parts of the meal), and after filling our glasses to the brim with the first carafe, promptly arrived back at the table with a second full carafe to ensure we never ran low.



Steve sampled the pineapple and raisin (?) breads, but Jake and I took a pass as we’re not fans. Steve and I shared the fruit tray, which is one of MY favourite parts of the meal. I love the fresh fruits of Florida, especially their fresh pineapple.....it just tastes so much better than what we buy in our local grocery stores back home .

Shortly thereafter, the main skillet arrived. Jake nearly did a little dance. He’d been looking forward to the home fries and the breakfast meats since we touched down in Orlando. I swear he would do this character breakfast every morning if we offered.



Mickey was the first character to pass by our table. This would have been a great kick-off to the meal, but unfortunately.....he literally passed by our table. Missed us completely. Visited the folks on either side and behind us, but whoops! Walked right on by our little group of 3. So we mentioned it to our server (no biggie, just wanted to make sure that he dropped by for some photos on his next round) and the server told us he couldn’t speak to Mickey himself “since Mickey is looked after by a different union”. He said he’d “go tell someone who could give Mickey orders”. LOL, really?!? (we honestly didn't know...was he kidding? Or was he serious?). A few minutes later, a really angry looking handler came out, pulled Mickey aside, spoke something to him that we couldn’t hear, and he came trotting over to visit us. We felt horrible for Mickey .....judging from the body language and facial expressions of that handler, we are guessing that poor person in the suit got a rather terse reprimand. Totally unnecessary too....I mean, its easy to miss a table in the midst of all the people and confusion .... so we were in no way upset or unhappy. At any rate, that woman was never more than 5 feet from Mickey Mouse for the rest of the time we were in the restaurant, and let’s just say she wasn’t brimming with the trademark Disney magic .

Continued in part 2......

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Mickey came over and acted all apologetic and sorry. We assured him it was totally okay. I hope he felt better afterward.





Pluto was next. We love that dog!





Third to visit was little Lilo. We teased her about being so short next to my guys. I can totally relate!





And last to visit was our beloved, rascally Stitch. So much fun, and such a tease, as always.





After the meal, we took our time meandering around the Polynesian, and admiring the lush gardens and waterfalls. A CM stopped and offered to take our picture, which we gladly agreed to!





It was only about 10:30 am, so with our awesome breakfast behind us, we had lots of the day left to enjoy. With our vacation time quickly running out, we didn’t want to waste a moment of it. I knew what the guys would want to do next. Bet you can guess!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

The forecast was calling for hot, hot, hot temperatures and nothing but sunshine for the entire day, so we knew that if we wanted to do something outdoorsy (that didn’t involve water) then our time was now. Mid-afternoon in August is not our favourite time to be frolicking on dry land!!

So after breakfast, we opted to head straight to the north end of I-Drive to complete the remaining item on the boys’ morning wish-list: another round of mini golf. Again today we chose Congo River, but opted for the I-Drive location rather than the Kissimmee location (just to be different ).





As was our experience in Kissimmee, the International Drive courses were spectacularly themed, had some catchy tunes playing, and offered a range of fun and interesting holes. The staff were super friendly and welcomed us warmly on arrival.



By about hole #3, we honestly thought we would melt into three sweaty puddles on the green outdoor carpeting . That sun was so strong that the staff members were actually warning golfers to use the hydration stations throughout the course for their own safety......it was THAT hot !

One of the early holes was inside a little cave behind the trademark Congo River waterfall. It was five minutes of paradise and was my favourite part of the whole golfing experience .



Competition was tight that morning. Shockingly enough, I actually didn’t golf that badly (not that well, either , but definitely not “badly”!) and the guys were neck-and-neck the entire game. It would come down to the final hole in order to crown the winner.





In the end, Steve nudged Jake out of the top spot by a single stroke. That officially crowned Steve the ultimate golfing champion of our vacation . And me?? Well, I lost every game ......but that wasn’t at all surprising!!



After golfing, we visited the gators......they were definitely the luckiest creatures at the golf course, being able to beat the summer heat in their private gator pool!





One interesting thing to note about this particularly Congo River location was that they offered the super-unique “Ubanki Hoops”, which was a twist on traditional basketball with angled backboards and multi-basket hoops. My two hoopsters would have loved to give it a whirl on a cooler day, but as the morning was giving way to high noon and the sun was growing stronger by the minute, they opted to give it pass this time. Definitely something to look forward to on the next visit!



En route back to the Vistana, we stopped for a light lunch at Chick-Fil-A .....we were still pretty darn full from our big breakfast, so we took it rather easy for our mid-day meal. Following lunch, by unanimous vote, we all decided that our final afternoon in Orlando would be spent enjoying the recreational activities at the resort. After a busy morning out and about, we couldn't think of place we’d rather be than splashing the rest of Friday away under the waterfall of the Cascades pool!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Back at the Vistana, we wasted no time in hopping into our swimsuits. With sunscreen applied, we made the short dash to the Cascades pool.....’cause last one in is a rotten egg .





We chose to spend our swim time that afternoon at the Cascades pool over the Super pool for two reasons.....one, the Cascades pool temperature was lower than the Super pool (making it more refreshing in that scorching heat) and two, the waterfall! Yep, we really are big kids at heart.



The hours we spent here really were a simply wonderful family time for our trio. While we splashed and swam and floated in the water, we simply enjoyed each other’s company and savoured those last precious moments of our vacation . It embodied the whole spirit of what we wanted the overall theme of this family getaway to be.....relaxing.





I think somewhere along the way, Steve-o started to get a little too much sun. He was spotted acting a little nutty.....



What a goof!!!!

Eventually, waterlogged and refreshed, we headed back to the villa. We dried off and spruced up, and spent a little time doing some pre-packing to help alleviate the panic of the following morning, when we would be checking out and heading morosely toward the airport. We checked in with Jetblue online from the villa via our laptop, upgraded our seats again to Even More Space, then headed to the Welcome Center to have our boarding passes printed before leaving the resort in search of dinner (for some reason, the computers at the Marketplace were unable to print only Jetblue boarding passes.....otherwise, we could have done it there).

This would be our final dinner in Orlando......we’d better make it special.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Okay, so maybe our dinner destination wasn’t unique or extravagant, but it was “special” in the fact that it’s a relaxing family favourite, and one that we missed visiting on our last vacation. We had tossed around giving Bubbalou’s Bodacious Barbecue a whirl on this final evening, but in the end, familiarity (and proximity to the Vistana) ruled out. The boys decided on Chili’s.



After several hours in the pool, the guys had worked up a reasonable appetite, so we started off with some appetizers to share. Jake went for (surprise, surprise!) the fried cheese, of which he promptly tested the stretchability:



While it didn’t have the stretchiness of those at TGI Fridays the day prior, it was still very good....and quickly disappeared . The fellows also shared an order of Texas cheese fries, a Chili’s tradition:



For entrees, Jake selected the chicken tenders (how many times did he eat these during the course of the week, anyway?!? Holy moly!) with a side of spicy macaroni and cheese:



Steve opted for the steak, medium rare:



I had the Cajun chicken pasta....so yummy! :



No room left for dessert, we opted to squeeze in one final round of 18 holes .... but Mother Nature would have other plans!

 

[naomiatx86]

Gina!

I love the trip report. Next year can I just come along? hahaha

 

[Mrs Doubtfire]

Can't believe your at the end of your trip, your last day sounds great so far

 

[papertraveller]

Hi Gina,
I can't believe you're on page 11 of your trip report already -- and I haven't even managed to download our own trip photos yet! Looks like you guys had a marvellous time. I can't believe that our paths didn't cross.

I got a kick out of your preference of water parks. We visited both this trip, and hands down, our favourite is Blizzard Beach. We find the waves at Typhoon Lagoon just too rough. We couldn't count the number of people we saw badly scraped and bloody -- one man was hit by the waves and went face down. Not a magical vacation for him. I love the bobbing waves at Blizzard Beach, and really enjoy Teamboat Springs and the slides at the back of the park.

The Sheraton Vistana units look really lovely, quite similar it appears to the units we have had at the Marriott Grande Vista on I-Drive and Imperial Palm, which is just south of Vistana. You sure got a great deal!

We sat in precisely the same section as you at Golden Corral! We stayed at the Fairfield Inn at Marriott Village at the beginning of our vacation, so walked over one night. We'd never been to Golden Corral before, and were quite impressed at the selection. Next trip we'll follow another PP's recommendation and try the Wood Buffet. We wanted to do that last Christmas, but our daughter fell ill so it was chicken soup in the villa instead!

Here's another recommendation for your next strip: Earl of Sandwich at Downtown Disney. We tried it for the very first time this trip, and went back a few nights later. Quick service, great food.

Thanks again for the information you shared with me about Discovery Cove. In the end, it was just a bit too expensive for this vacation but it's on the list for the future!

Thanks also for all your scouting and posting on the Transportation board. I ended up with a good deal at Alamo for an SUV -- was supposed to get a Jeep, but ended up with an Equinox. For the first time ever my husband and I shared the driving, and it worked out really well. We loved the Equinox a lot, and when we face replacing our aging wheels in the next year or two, that vehicle will be a contender!

Best wishes!

 

[Girldreamer02]

Love the outlets! On vacation to disney though we never leave property since we are dvc members and because we haven't become relaxed enough to have a relaxing non disney day. However, we are working on it and spent a lot more time relaxing and "going with the flow" as you say the last few trips we have gone on.

The gators are cute and glad they are well caged. When you said gators at first before I saw pictures...i pictured in my mind gator sitings at the putt putt course. Perhaps by a small pond or something to that effect, which then lead to the thought that ppl may get hurt. Silly me. No worries about losing. I never win anything, but I always have fun doing what I am doing. It sounds like you did as well!

You guys could have gotten season passes to the disney parks since you went twice in a year. We did that one year because it was so much cheaper. We love the parks though and do a lot of pin trading. It sounds like you guys like many other attractions in the orlando area as well!

I have to say when I thought about all the possible places you could eat my guess would of been that cheesecake factory would of made it into one of those selections until I read about you not liking cheesecake. Makes me shutter at the thought...as I love it dearly!

Love your trip report and all your pictures! I am a picture girl myself!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Gina!

I love the trip report. Next year can I just come along? hahaha

lol, we'd probably drive you crazy .

Can't believe your at the end of your trip, your last day sounds great so far

I hope to have the final installments up today or tomorrow. I kind of got sidetracked over the weekend......I spent quite a bit of time uploading my pics to Picaboo and began the entertaining but labourious task of putting my photobook together. Hopefully I will get back to the business of trip reporting on my lunch hour . It drives me batty when people get part way through and don't finish them off, so I promise not to do it to my loyal readers!

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Hi Gina,
I can't believe you're on page 11 of your trip report already -- and I haven't even managed to download our own trip photos yet! Looks like you guys had a marvellous time. I can't believe that our paths didn't cross.

I got a kick out of your preference of water parks. We visited both this trip, and hands down, our favourite is Blizzard Beach. We find the waves at Typhoon Lagoon just too rough. We couldn't count the number of people we saw badly scraped and bloody -- one man was hit by the waves and went face down. Not a magical vacation for him. I love the bobbing waves at Blizzard Beach, and really enjoy Teamboat Springs and the slides at the back of the park.

The Sheraton Vistana units look really lovely, quite similar it appears to the units we have had at the Marriott Grande Vista on I-Drive and Imperial Palm, which is just south of Vistana. You sure got a great deal!

We sat in precisely the same section as you at Golden Corral! We stayed at the Fairfield Inn at Marriott Village at the beginning of our vacation, so walked over one night. We'd never been to Golden Corral before, and were quite impressed at the selection. Next trip we'll follow another PP's recommendation and try the Wood Buffet. We wanted to do that last Christmas, but our daughter fell ill so it was chicken soup in the villa instead!

Here's another recommendation for your next strip: Earl of Sandwich at Downtown Disney. We tried it for the very first time this trip, and went back a few nights later. Quick service, great food.

Thanks again for the information you shared with me about Discovery Cove. In the end, it was just a bit too expensive for this vacation but it's on the list for the future!

Thanks also for all your scouting and posting on the Transportation board. I ended up with a good deal at Alamo for an SUV -- was supposed to get a Jeep, but ended up with an Equinox. For the first time ever my husband and I shared the driving, and it worked out really well. We loved the Equinox a lot, and when we face replacing our aging wheels in the next year or two, that vehicle will be a contender!

Best wishes!

Hey there papertraveller,

Glad to hear you had a great time as well! Next time, if our schedules happen to jive and we're there during the same week, we'll have to set up a Dismeet at DTD .

That's too funny that you sat in the same section of Golden Corral as we did. I think we may try the Wood Grill Buffet on our next trip as well, just to shake things up a little. I hear being spontaneous keeps you young. I need all the help I can get these days .

We didn't see anyone hurt by the wave pool at TL, but we spent most of our time WAY out in the deep end. Jake, in particular, liked to be just to the shore side of the rope, and body surf the big ol' wave in as far as it would take him. I betcha he never even touched bottom . I couldn't imagine taking little ones in there, though .

Glad to hear you enjoyed Blizzard Beach so much! I did like the fact that the two waterparks had such a totally different "feel". Variety, as they say, is the spice of life!!

Thanks for the Earl of Sandwich recommend.....I believe we may have to add that to our "next trip" list as well .

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Love the outlets! On vacation to disney though we never leave property since we are dvc members and because we haven't become relaxed enough to have a relaxing non disney day. However, we are working on it and spent a lot more time relaxing and "going with the flow" as you say the last few trips we have gone on.

The gators are cute and glad they are well caged. When you said gators at first before I saw pictures...i pictured in my mind gator sitings at the putt putt course. Perhaps by a small pond or something to that effect, which then lead to the thought that ppl may get hurt. Silly me. No worries about losing. I never win anything, but I always have fun doing what I am doing. It sounds like you did as well!

You guys could have gotten season passes to the disney parks since you went twice in a year. We did that one year because it was so much cheaper. We love the parks though and do a lot of pin trading. It sounds like you guys like many other attractions in the orlando area as well!

I have to say when I thought about all the possible places you could eat my guess would of been that cheesecake factory would of made it into one of those selections until I read about you not liking cheesecake. Makes me shutter at the thought...as I love it dearly!

Love your trip report and all your pictures! I am a picture girl myself!

Hi Girldreamer,

We couldn't do the theme parks in August if we tried......wayyyyy too hot for us northerners . Waterparks, yes.....theme parks? We don't know how other folks handle being in the parks all day during that kind of heat and humidity. They are more resilient than we are!

Now, that said....if we return in August 2014 (as we are hoping to do), we might purchase the DC tickets that would give us free admission to SeaWorld and Aquatica. If that's the case, we'd try to squeeze in a few hours here or there at SW, but most likely only early morning or the last couple of hours in the day. Definitely not from 11-5 or we'd melt. I know the boys would love a ride or two on their beloved Manta.

Glad to hear you are enjoying the photos. Stay tuned for the rest of the report and the last of my pics to share .

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Friday, August 30th…..continued!

After dinner at Chili’s, we figured we should use up one of the Groupons we had pre-purchased and not yet used (thank goodness the price paid for those suckers never expire, and we can use ‘em on our next trip). It was a wonderful evening (or it had been so far!) so we made the short drive to Kissimmee and pulled into the parking area for Mighty Jungle Mini Golf.



As we hopped out of the Jeep, we noted some pretty dark clouds off in the distance. Our skies were clear, though, so we figured we’d have plenty of time to complete one of the 18-hole courses. The fellow who greeted us commented that we arrived “just in time” because a thunderstorm was predicted to hit and as a result he’d be closing in one hour (earlier than their normal closing time). We wasted no time in grabbing our clubs and balls and getting our game underway.



By the end of the first hole, I saw the first fork of lightning flash across the sky. Oh, oh.



By the end of hole two, the sky to the east was black, black, black…..and the lightning continued.

By hole three, the thunder was cracking and rolling and I was starting to get kind of nervous (after all, I was holding a metal club!! ). Then the course attendant came out, apologetically, and said the storm was moving very quickly and the lightening was going to force him to close NOW. The boys were bummed. But he asked us to follow him back to the store and he would “make it right with us”.

After handing in our clubs, the attendant apologized again (and profusely) and gave us each free ice cream for our troubles, which I thought was a kind gesture. He gave us back the Groupon, and encouraged us to visit tomorrow when the skies had cleared. He felt even worse when we told him we’d be on a plane en route home by then, and that we’d have to hold the Groupon over until our next visit. We assured him it was fine, that we would be sure to come again on our next vacation…..we very much liked the course (jungle themed, and designed around a small lake) and getting to and from Kissimmee is pretty convenient. I think he was utterly relieved that we weren’t upset or mad.

Since we were already in Kissimmee anyway, Jake asked for one last trip to his beloved Nike Clearance Store, so we indulged him. Why not? The night was still young. And nothing beats the going-home blues like a little retail therapy. Hopefully we will have space enough in the luggage to accommodate the last minute purchases!

By the time we headed back to the Vistana after our little shopping break, the skies had cleared and left a gorgeous summer night in its wake. We hopped into our swimsuits and headed straight for the Super pool…..there was no coaxing necessary for any of us! We had spent at least some time there on every single since our arrival, and we didn’t want to break from a tradition we had grown to love.

One final post to go…..we would be off to the airport in the morning. Please pass the Kleenexes.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Saturday, August 31st. Homeward bound.

Check-out time for the Vistana is 10 am, so we were up and at ‘em early. One final breakfast from the Marketplace for Steve and I. Jake had the final slice of Giordano’s pizza. One final pot of Tim Hortons coffee. Tomorrow, we would be sipping from our beloved brown cups once again (actually, we didn’t even wait until the following morning, and grabbed one to enjoy as we unloaded the luggage at home….but I digress!...).

Our flight was 12:15 pm, so an early check-out time was really not an issue. We had to get our fannies in gear regardless.

We stopped and refuelled the Jeep, and dropped it off at MCO. We hopped the tram to terminal and caught one last glance of that Florida landscape we love so much.



Why is the airport shuttle ride so much more fun on the day of arrival than the day of departure????

Then it was up to baggage drop-off at the Jetblue counters.

Oh. My. Lord. I have never seen a line so long in my life. I honestly thought we might not have enough time to check our bags and get through security in time to board…..and neither did most of the others in line just in front and behind us. It was so congested.

At long last, we checked the bags (and none were over weight limits…woo hoo!) and moved our buns swiftly over to security. No time for our traditional Nathan’s hot dog on this tour through MCO, which was a bit of a disappointment but what do you do? Security looked busy upon first glance, but turned out to be MUCH faster than the baggage check (thank heavens). We went through with no issues, and made a quick dash to the food court to grab some vittles before boarding. The options were few….so it was burgers and fries from BK, ate hastily at the gate with mere minutes to spare before the call for passengers with the Even More Space Upgrade was announced.



I asked the guys to smile for an airport picture. Jake did OK, but Steve just wasn’t feelin’ it. He wasn’t anxious to go home at all. In fact, he’d been chatting a lot (even more than usual!) of eventually moving to Florida. This could get interesting.



The flight home was blissfully uneventful.





Before we knew it, we were back on the ground in Syracuse and waiting for our baggage.



With luggage in hand, we beckoned the shuttle and were soon back at the Candlewood Suites. We loaded the Journey, and began the final leg of our travel day.

It was nearing dinner when we passed through Watertown, so we decided to dine there rather than risk sitting for heaven knows how long in a line at the border. To cheer the fellows, Jake decided on Friendly’s. Because every good vacation should start and end with ice cream .

Turns out Steve and I still couldn’t muster enough stomach space after a fried chicken dinner for ice cream:



….but Jake managed to find some room. One Friend-Z, please and thanks .



Pulling up to the border crossing a short time later, there was absolutely zero wait. Now THAT’S the way to end a vacation.

We rolled into the driveway about 8 pm, tired and admittedly little blue . They didn’t last long, though, when this little face appeared at the French door at the top of our entrance way stairs:



We were home.

"Don't cry because its over. Smile because it happened".

Now…..when’s the next trip???

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

Awesome trip report for an awesome vacation! Thank you so much for sharing your memories and for posting so many great photos!