Saturday, September 27, 2008

Wonderworks

I mentioned previously that some of our vacation stuff deserved a bit more attention than just one picture and a sentence. So I'm going to start with our afternoon at Wonderworks. We were taking advantage of a low-cost time share package in Orlando, and in an effort to keep it low-cost, we opted not to spend the day at any huge theme park.

Our first evening in Orlando we headed to Disney's Boardwalk. This is a free part of Disney that is supposed to be modeled after the boardwalks at the Jersey Shore. Having been to the boardwalks at the Jersey Shore I can laugh and say it's not quite the same. After just a few moments on the boardwalk we encountered a magician who was setting up a street show, so we stayed to watch. It was very entertaining. We were rather hungry by the time he was done, so we started looking for a particular restaurant that I had read about. We got directions and found out that it was all the way around the lake, so we set off. 45 minutes later we arrived to find that there were two parties of 12 before us and it would be another hour to hour and a half before we could get seated. Nope, not happening. One thing I do find extremely irritating is that all restaurants are set up for families of 4, so when we arrive with our family of 6 we are considered a large party and normally have to wait. We set off around the lake again to find another place to eat. We ate at the ESPN Club. Not my cup of tea. There were lots of televisions, all tuned to different sports channels. The DC reported that there were even TV's in the bathrooms - check out the handicapped stalls. It was nearing 11 by the time we finished eating, so any more street entertainment that we might have encountered was over and done with. If I try this one again, we'll eat first so we can just "walk the boards." (There's a true Jersey expression for ya).

DH's sister-in-law assured us that there was lots to do at Wonderworks, so we headed there the next day after the time-share spiel (groan). There was a booth with hurricane force winds, another booth that simulated an earthquake.
Oldest and youngest DD both tried the bed of nails. There were levers and pulleys and things to make stuff move.

Our favorite section was the bubble room. There's something magic about a bubble big enough to fit over your head. We hung out there for a long time.

The top floor was dedicated to Space. We got to poke our head into an astronaut suit. Around the perimeter of the room were several airplane and space shuttle flight simulators - this is where all the Dads parked themselves. DH managed to get a spot himself.

I liked the outside of the building. It's created to look like it's upside down. There's even a mailbox way at the top. Of course, this isn't the photo where you can see it. I guess you'll just have to go there yourself.

Monday, September 15, 2008

August Vacations - Part II

Later in August (after a week home to do laundry and pack again), we traveled to the beach. This time we vacationed with Grandma and Grandpop and my side of the family.
We did our standard beach things - sit in the sun, dig in the sand






ride the waves, jump the surf,






bike the boards, play family games...






We also tried new things. Like exploring the tidal pools.






And a day at the AC aquarium.
Most of these merit more explanation, I just wanted to get something new posted.

August - Vacations Part I

I'm truly behind in Bloggerland (is there such a thing?) All for good reason, of course. A lot of August was spent traveling, the rest of the time was spent getting ready for school.

Early in August we went to see Nana. We also got to stop by DH's sister's house.

So we got to visit with uncles, and aunts, and cousins.

The cousins entertained us. The youngest juggled. This is something he was taught in school. (My DC think a class on juggling would be pretty cool).

The older cousin regaled us with tunes on his sax.

A few days were spent touring other attractions.