planetpayne

We’re staying close to Fort Lauderdale for a week or so, because Andrew needs to go in to the local Sun office for work. We’re somewhere between Everglades and the coast, about 30 minutes from each. There are fun things to do in the area, but it’s only day two and we’re still in shock from how wonderful the weather is, so the only thing on the agenda today is being outside and relaxing.

This morning I finally got my butt in gear and went for a jog. They have a paved path around this RV park which is about a mile long. The dogs and I jogged only two and a half miles, but it was very pleasant. There are tropical trees and lizards and song birds and everyone here is in a fabulous mood. True, they are all quite a bit older than us, but it’s clear to me that they are having the time of their lives; most are reading books outside or walking or bicycling. The happy people and the perfect weather have lulled us into a lazy, euphoric state. Even the dogs looked happy during our jog and they sat outside and actually relaxed for a change, instead of whining incessantly.

Yesterday Ingrid and I worked on building a butterfly kite from a kit that Amanda gave her for her birthday. It looks good but I don’t know how well it will actually fly. We’re going to need some help from Andrew to get the engineering part done. Ingrid has been asking to build a kite for a year now, and I’m very happy to finally get to it.

The last place we stayed, near Tampa, was Alafia River State Park. I thought our lack of planning would really do us in this time, but so far we’ve had excellent luck in finding places to stay in Florida. I called Alafia the day before, and someone had just cancelled. We got to stay two nights at a campground that has been booked for eight months. I can see why, the park was beautiful and had some surprisingly wicked mountain bike trails, plus it’s only $20 a night and that includes water and electric! There were alligators in the river so we couldn’t go in but Ingrid and I enjoyed bike riding and just walking around and seeing the different trees and birds. I made a mental note to come back some day.

I wish I’d used a more colorful yarn, but this was what I had on hand, leftover from a failed daddy-hat. This was my first time doing yarn-overs and slip-slip-knits. Never mind that Ingrid complained about being too hot and took it off 1 minute after the photo. Knitting is fun!!!

We’ve just arrived to our campground near Tampa, where we’re staying just a couple of days for some errands. It’s pouring rain and thunderstorming, but we’re happy happy happy, to finally be wearing shorts and flipflops in Florida! It feels like the Enchanted Tiki room in here tonight!

Leaving Disney went better than I thought it would. It was still sad, but I felt like we made good use of our time there and I feel fulfilled, at least for now. I have to admit I’m ready for some quiet home time. I do hope (we all do) that we’ll return to this magical place soon.

This week we went to the three other major parks, Hollywood Studios, Epcot and Animal Kingdom. We spent just one whirlwind day at each. In Animal Kingdom, one of the highlights was the live bird show, where I was picked to be a participant! Unfortunately Andrew had gone back to the RV to work, so there are no photos. But basically they asked for a volunteer with a camera and even though I am super shy in front of a crowd, my desire to be close to a bird overcame my hesitation. They had me sit down and poise my camera ready, then a huge tropical bird flew directly at me and landed on a perch just above my head. The bird had a huge wingspan and its flapping made my hair stand up like I was in a tornado, which is exactly how I felt. There was also petting the sheep and goats, seeing the live animals in the safari, the vanilla Mickey shaped chocolate dipped ice cream bar (Ingrid told me write that down), the Triceratops spin ride (exactly like Dumbo ride), and just having a “girl” day with my Ingrid.

In Epcot there was a cool Japanese store where we bought Ingrid a My Neighbor Totoro jigsaw puzzle; dancing with Donald Duck to the mariachi band; the Canada film; the Chinese children acrobats, and just “seeing” the different countries.

At Hollywood Studios, we rode on Toy Story more than any other ride. The first time, the line was very very long- reportedly 40 minutes but actually more like an hour and a half. When we got to the last part, they had us stop and let a huge group of fast-passers in, that’s apparently what had been holding everything up. After them, there was a big gap and I saw another huge group of fast-passers coming. I didn’t want to be behind them so we inched up. The Disney lady saw us and was confused who we were, just then her phone rang and she was told to let some people in to the handicap area. Since she didn’t know what else to do with us, she picked us. We got to get on the ride right away instead of waiting another 20 minutes! I felt kind of bad but she was going to pick someone, so it might as well be us. The next day we came first thing in the morning and went straight to Toy Story. Andrew stopped to get us some fast passes for later. We got on quickly and at the end of the ride just as we were about to disembark, the ride broke down! We were stuck for ten minutes, and for our trouble they gave us passes to come to the front of the line. Sweet! Hollywood Studios was also fun for the Great Movie Ride, where we got to be in the Munchkinland scene from Wizard of Oz; Ingrid wasn’t afraid of the witch this time. Andrew loved the Tower of Terror and tried all week (unsuccessfully) to try to talk me into going. He did something nice for someone and they gave him their Rock ‘n Roll rollercoaster passes. Ingrid really enjoyed the Nemo ride, Little Mermaid Musical, Beauty and the Beast Musical, and the Mickey Mouse Live Clubhouse.

From the Magical Kingdom, we want to remember the wonderful fireworks show over Cinderella’s castle (we saw it three times). Ingrid loved the Dreams Come True stage show with Peter Pan and the gang. The second time we saw it, it was our last day in Disney and she was dressed like Cinderella. She decided she was going to dance like the princesses on the stage. It was great to see Ingrid overcome her own shyness, for the desire to dance like a princess. We rode the same Fantasyland rides over and over and over… Dumbo, Peter Pan, Small World, and Pooh. I got to the point where I just -knew- that I could not ride Small World even one time more, even for my Ingrid (and I love that ride!). We were sorely disappointed by the Tiki Room, but at least we got to see the original one at Disneyland. Funnel cakes, cream cheese danishes, churros, smores- we ate so much delicious junk. I knew it was a one-time deal so we went for it.  The campfires with Chip ‘n Dale, and meeting the characters was exciting and magical for Ingrid.

On our way out today we stopped at Downtown Disney and did a little shopping. It’s so hard not to go crazy there. Ingrid got her very own Chip ‘n Dale, breaking our often-broken rule about no more stuffed animals. I know it sounds cruel, but we have three overhead cabinets out of only ten total, filled to overstuffed with her kids. She also got a cute turquoise Tinkerbell hoodie. For me, I chose some Mickey cups, and a Mickey + Minnie blanket. Andrew bought a Lego VW Beetle project which he’s pretty stoked about. We don’t know where we’ll keep it, we just know that he had to have it.