Disney World and Sea World November 2007
Alan 38
Lisa 37
Olivia 17
Owen 8
Well last year when we went and took mom, dad and Blake with us and we had been planning on going to Sea World before they all joined in the trip but since I didn’t want to have to make them all buy extra tickets to another park and also because of transportation issues with rental cars we decided to just not do Sea World on that trip after all. It would have required a lot more planning for me!
So this year Owen still wants to go to Sea World and even though he has been before he only remembers bits and pieces of it because he was 3! So the plan for this trip is to spend the 1st 3 nights at a hotel over by Sea World and go to that park for 2 days since when you buy a one day pass you get a second day free.
We are traveling at the same time as we have several other years. We are flying out this year on the day before Thanksgiving. Last year we flew on this day also but it was a late night flight! This on is crack of dawn! We will stay for 3 nights at the Springhill Suites for free with our Marriott points. It is over by the Orlando Convention Center and we have never stayed in this area at all so that gave me something new to research and plan. Then on Saturday we will move to Disney and stay at Pop Century again. We will also turn in our rental car on this day.
As I was planning this trip in the months leading up to it I was busy learning everything there was to know about Sea World because we would be doing that park on Thanksgiving day and the day after. We usually avoid parks on holidays! However since Sea World is mostly shows with only a few rides I figured long lines wouldn’t be too much of a problem and we have two whole days to see everything. While online I read about a backstage tour that you can pay extra for and take but at the end of the tour you get to pet a live penguin! Owen LOVES penguins! He has several books about them and his head is full of useless penguin knowledge and I knew he would be all over this so I called him in and showed him some other people’s pictures of them petting the penguin and he said BOOK IT!! So I did. During the summer it’s $20 a person but in the off season it’s only $10 a person. I knew that Alan and Olivia would be bored during the tour and they want to ride the roller coaster a lot while we are there so I thought this would be something just for me and Owen. Then while I was booking it I saw they also have a behind the scenes predators tour of the killer whales and sharks!! I thought wow he will love this too because he also has tons of whale and shark books and plenty of knowledge on those too plus you get to pet a baby shark! Ok so I booked that one for our second day! We are both looking forward to these behind the scenes tours!
Other then planning our dining reservations for our week at Disney there wasn’t a lot of Disney stuff to plan so I over compensated with the Sea World stuff!!
We are leaving to drive down to the airport and spend the night tonight for our early morning flight. When we booked the early flight it was for 6:45 am! Which is bad enough but then they changed it and made it even earlier so we are know leaving it 6:25am so we will be boarding at 5:55am and I don’t know how that is going to be going over with everyone! YIKES! I don’t know why I book those early morning flights. Well actually the reason is because out of St. Louis it’s either early morning or late evening there is not middle flight time to choose.
So today Alan went to work and the kids went to school and I am SICK! Owens 2nd grade class is having a Thanksgiving Feast today and I have volunteered to bring a dessert, which turned out to be mom’s pecanettes. The good news is I didn’t have to make something while I was sick and feeling awful but I am supposed to go to the class and help serve food during the feast! I called the Dr’s office and the only time they could see me was at the same time as the school feast so I ended up going to the school early, dropping the food off and saying sorry I can’t help but I’m sick and leaving for a Doctor appt. before he fly to Florida! I felt a little bad about this because Owen wanted me there and because any other time I a available to go and help.
So off to see the Dr. and he gave me a prescription and an extra one for Alan or Olivia in case they got it too. I also called Owen asthma dr. and told him we are all sick and worried he will catch it so he called me in an emergency prescription for him for just in case we need it. So I went and filled everything and an still running these errands an hour before we are supposed to leave. It’s a good thing that I was packed on time this year and didn’t save much for the last day as I usually do or I would have been in big trouble!
Olivia,
Yes, it’s true I didn’t get you a birthday gift until just 2 days ago! Does that make me a bad mom? NO! its just called denial! I thought that if I just pretended that it wasn’t happening it wouldn’t happen. I don’t want you to be 18 years old. It’s just too darn old and I can’t believe my baby is 18.
I know lately we haven’t been getting along too well but if you just don’t even think of the last few weeks or months or ever the last year! It’s just all those other memories of the past years that I have to push aside to get through this. It’s always been me and you kid. When you were born it was just us when your dad was in the Navy. Then when he worked and went to college and couldn’t’ be around as much it was us for so long. It’s still us we just have to roll our eyes at owen in between our moments now!! Haha!!
I am so glad that I have you. I wouldn’t want to think of how dull my life would be without you in it. You have brought me more happiness over the years then you can even imagine and I hope you know that know matter how old you get I will still consider you my baby girl and I will still try and I will always want the best for you.
Happy 18th birthday and it doesn’t matter that homecoming is on your birthday because it doesn’t make the day any less about YOU. If there’s one thing that your family knows ……..it is that EVERYDAY is about YOU.
I love you,
Mom.