Florida Vacation

The anticipation started Christmas morning with our Minnie Mouse hoddies and vouchers Disney World or Universal Studios all wrapped up. Romero Vacation here we come!! 

After getting asked everyday if we were going to Florida tomorrow we made a count down chain. 

and decorated it with Disney stickers

Bought the flights, suitcases, new clothes and got our nails done! 

Then like lunatics thinking if we left on a red eye our kids would sleep the four hour flight we got on our planes at midnight. I never again want to fly red eye unless it is a free gift haha. Juliette and Matt flew JetBlue becuase it was the least expensive and Lincoln and I flew Delta becuase I used my American Express flyer mile points and love Delta. 

This was the most adorable thing ever though- Lincoln wanted to pull his own suitcase all through the airport. 

His favorite part about the airplane ride was undoing and doing the seatbelt about 5,000 times. He also loved looking out the window when we were about land in Orlando. I have never seen such a little kid be so amazed and into looking out that window! Lincoln loves buttons, steering wheels and lights...I think we might have a future pilot in training. He loves to fly...but not to sleep on the plane. 

He's using this old fashion device I think to place a phone call!?!

Juliette and Matt were about the same and only got about 1 hour of sleep on the flight. Needless to say we were tired and ready to relax as soon as we got there! 

We stayed at the Wyndham Reunion resort that was amazing! Thank you for my in-laws time share points the family group of 15 split between the two 3 bedroom suites and had a blast! 

The resort had a waterpark and the kids LOVED it! 

Juliette

Lincoln 

I loved the lazy river and getting some sun. 

The Adventure Begins....the sign at Universal Orlando- Island of Adventure says it all! 

Lincoln's favorite part was the bubble gun!

My favorite part was Harry Potter world!!!

Butterbeer- It is like butterscotch rootbeer. Matt liked it. It was too foamy and sweet for me. 

Lauren, Laura and Sharlene

Sorting Hat!! 

Karine took Juliette and Lincoln to play in the splash pad area- Dr. Suess world. 

You're a STAR face paint for Jules 

So if I did it again I would take the kids to  the Universal Studios side over the Islands of Adventures side and make sure you bring their swimming suits and water shoes! Universal Studios has Fievel's Playland and Curious George Goes to Town splash pad areas for the kids. There is also this ball blast zone. Actually if I go again I wouldnt take the kids haha. Matt and I had a blast when it was just us going on big kid rides. 

I would not get a fast pass on one day and spend it in Harry Potter World, riding the 3 rides that are excluded from the fast passes (included Hogwarts Express, Harry Potter and the Escape from Gingotts and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey), drinking butter beer, getting a wand (doing the interactive spells) and looking/shopping at all the shops- Honeydukes, Filch's Emporium of Confiscated Goods, Dervish and Banges, Quality Quidditch Supplies (tons of Fred and Georges stuff, every flavored beans, chocolate frogs, etc), Wiseacre's Wizard Equipment and more! It is so amazing! There are also really cool animal shows- famous dogs, birds, cats and pigs doing tricks and a cute routine.

I'll tell you about Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is awesome. It is a roller coaster with 3D action in between. You enter the Hogwarts Castle see the sorting hat and the grand ball room ceiling. There are moving pictures and the daily prophet on the walls. Then you get on and it is like you are following Harry riding on his broomstick all over Hogwarts. It is legit. We met a lot of cool people from Brazil there too, so it was fun having Matt talk to them in Portuguese. 

We met Barney and it was very nostalgic singing along with them! 

Another day I would get a fast pass and go on all of the awesome rides! The BEST ride EVER is at Universal Studios- the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit. Matt and I went on this literally 4 times in a row and it is AMAZING. It scares the crap out of you. And you can watch a video of it! You get to choose your own song out of like 30 choices and then you go straight up and straight down! It was the most fun roller coaster I have ever been on! 

The other great rides at Universal Studios are the 4D rides- Shrek, Despicable Me and Transformers.  The Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster was too scary for a 3 year and old and not exciting enough for an adult. We didnt get a chance to go on Disaster!, ET Adventure, Escape from Gringotts, Men in Black, The Mummy, Simpsons Ride or Twister. 

The best rides at Island of Adventure are the Dragon Challenge roller coasters- The blue dragon is a Hungarian Horntail and the red one is the Chinese Fireball. I liked the blue Hungarian Horntail the best. We went on each of them 2-3 times. They are inverted seats, meaning your feet are dangling as you whip around the drops and turns of the coaster. 

Spider-Man 4D is awesome and there is a part where you feel like you are falling and going to hit the ground. The Hulk was good! It actually looked scarier than it really was. 

Flight of the Hippogriff was a slower moving line and a roller coaster geared more toward kids. 

We didnt get a chance to go on the Jurassic park rides or  Pteranodon flyers. 

DISNEYWORLD

We spent one day at Disney and went to the Magic Kingdom. We met the family there but we all had different fast pass times so we kinda split up. 

Minnie x3

The first ride we went on was Monsters Inc Laugh Floor. Mike Wakoski with one eye told jokes and chose people out of the real audience to joke about, Matt and Juliette were up on the big screen and he said they'd buy everyone churros afterwards. 

Lincoln sure was laughing!

We had a fast pass to the Barnstormer Goofy roller coaster ride. We did the child swap cuz Lincoln was too small and asleep so I went with Juliette and then Matt went with her. "It was a little scary and I said Ahhh!" haha

One of Juliettes favorite rides is going up and down on Dumbo. It was really neat- while waiting in line there is an "experience" where you get a buzzer like at a restaurant and you get to play at the play place for 10 minutes instead of just standing in line. It was such a good idea and so much fun! 

We watched the parade and saw Minnie, Mickey, Tinkerbell, all the Princess and Lincoln's favorite- the dragon from Sleeping Beauty. 

We met up with the whole gang and went on "it's a small world" and Under the Seas Journey of Little Mermaid. They were so awesome! I love how much detail and talent goes into the rides and I love the music and seeing the kids point and smile at everything. 

Juliette and Lincoln love their cousin Ava!

And all of their aunts, uncles and grandparents 

By this point the kids were super tired so everyone went home but Lauren, Laura and I stayed. 

The longest line was for the new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. We entertained ourselves by playing heads up on our phone with the people in line behind us. 

Splash Mountain was awesome!! The line was super long all day so we sacraficed watching the fireworks and got through in 20 minutes. It my first time on that ride and amazing! 

I love Dole Whip!

Space Mountain

Buzz Lightyear's Spin

Goodnight Disney- I love you!