I’ve mentioned it a couple times on here already, so I figured it’d be good to do a blog about our recent family vacation to Orlando.
We were there June 10-17, and it was a much-welcome getaway. Especially after we got such bad news from our most recent egg-retrieval procedure.
We shared a house with Em, Drea, the boys, and my parents, and it was a pretty nice week with lots of family time (with maybe a couple of hiccups!). We’d originally planned to do this vacation in May 2020, but, as you can imagine, the pandemic had other plans.
Even though we were able to reschedule the trip, it was a little bittersweet. In 2020, my grandmother, uncle, and uncle’s fiance would’ve joined us. In the years since, both my grandma and uncle passed away.
We started out the vacation by having dinner with our cousin Bill who lives in the area. (It was great to see you, Bill!) The following day, Mom, Dad, Nick, Emilee, and I took Duncan to Disneyworld’s Magic Kingdom.
While it was a long and busy day, we had so much fun watching Duncan’s first experience with an amusement park. He was such a trouper throughout the day, and he LOVED his first-ever rollercoaster ride.
While we were there, Nick and I decided we would purchase tickets to visit the Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure theme parks the next day. While Magic Kingdom was certainly fun, Nick and I love rollercoasters. The faster and more upside down, the better!
So we had back-to-back days of amusement parks, but it was a really good time. We didn’t get many photos from Universal Studios, as you had to stow all items (including phones) in lockers just outside the rides. Some of the coasters even had metal detectors you had to go through before getting in line.
I haven’t been to Universal in a long time, and it was definitely different than what I remember. I don’t remember there being separate parks; I thought it was all one thing.
We spent most of the day in Islands of Adventure, and they’ve got a few rides I remember from the last trip (sometime between 2005 and 2010), as well as a lot of new ones. Nick and I loved the Velocicoaster and Hagrid’s Magical Creatures coaster.
Both were super fun and had some unexpected twists. The best part was the park wasn’t overly packed. We had two rides where the wait was 45 minutes to an hour. Everything else went by quickly.
At the end of the day, we headed over to Universal Studios, and, honestly, it was a bit disappointing. They had one really good rollercoaster, but that was about it. Probably didn’t help, though, that we were both tired, and one of the Harry Potter 3-D rides made us both nauseous (could’ve also been the really sweet Butterbeer we drank in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter…).
We did a couple rides at Universal to get our money’s worth and then headed home.
The next day was a free day, and we mostly relaxed. Drea and I took Duncan to our resort area’s water park all morning, and he had a blast. There was a slide that was especially fun for him.
The next day, the whole family went to the NASA Kennedy Space Center. It was really amazing to see the Space Shuttle Atlantis. It is so much bigger in person than it appears on TV and in photos. I also had no idea the crew quarters were all up front, and, when in space, the shuttle’s cargo bay is always open (as shown in the photo below).
There was a lot to see, and we definitely needed more time to see it all. A couple of us weren’t feeling great (more on that in a sec…), so we headed back to the house.
That evening, we all went to Medieval Times. This was a request from Nick, who had really enjoyed the experience when he went as a kid.
Funny side story: Nick used to tell me that the jousting at Medieval Times was real. I assured him it was theatrical jousting and not an actual joust. This became a point of contention so he said he’d prove me wrong and take me to Medieval Times.
I pointed out that to younger Nick, those jousts probably did look real, but, as an adult, you can see that they’re fully staged and acted. I’m fairly confident he now agrees. 🙂
Overall, the experience was fun, but it was a bit of a mixed bag for Duncan.
The emcee’s microphone was particularly loud, and his booming voice was unsettling to Duncan at first. When we took our seats and the show started, he did a little better.
Our waiter came by, and when it was time to serve the main course, he told Dunc it was a baby dragon (it was a quarter of a roasted chicken). This elicited some tears and a strong, “But I don’t want to eat a baby dragon!”
He enjoyed seeing the horses and watching the competitions, fights, and jousts, but the emcee’s mic was still really loud. I’m not sure he’d recommend it to other 4-year-olds.
On our last full day, we had a family photo shoot in the morning. This is something we started doing during our last family vacation to Hawaii. (That’s where my larger About Me photo is from.)
This is really a great idea. You’re whole family is in one spot, and it’s a relatively cool place, so why not get some photos?
Here are a few of the winners, taken by Gil the Photographer:
The photo shoot was somewhat complicated by the hiccups I mentioned earlier. On Tuesday, Em started feeling really crummy and had a fever.
By Wednesday, Nick mentioned to me he’d had a sore throat for a couple of days, and, later that day, he was full-blown sick. Em managed to recover pretty quickly, but Nick didn’t.
On Friday, Duncan woke up with a fever. We all put on our brave faces for the shoot, though!
When we got home, we found out Nick had covid. He spent the rest of the week recouping at home, and I worked from home to avoid potentially passing the plague on to my coworkers.
I swear, I’m not taking Nick on vacation ever again. He either comes back sick or ends up in the hospital! He doesn’t get sick all that often, but, when he does, he goes ALL in.
All told, Em, Drea, Duncan, and Nick managed to get covid in Florida. Me, Connor, Mom, and Dad remained unscathed. And despite the majority of us being sick, it was still a good time.
And just for fun… we rented a convertible for the first time ever. We ended up with a Ford Mustang. Definitely a fun car, but it would’ve been even better if it was a stick shift!
I’ll get back to our IVF journey next week. Until then!
IVF That 