Florida: Epcot

  
Relaxation is not for the faint of heart, especially considering that the Hockey Game was on bright and early this morning. What hockey game? Yeah...you might not be Canadian. With the Olympics, being Canadian means that you rise with the sun and watch the game. Fortunately, this game was not against the USA and we won 3:0 so everyone at the park was happy. I dread to think about how awful the sulks would have been otherwise. After all, it feels like half the population in Florida right now are Canadian.

Once hockey was put to bed, the car load piled into Epcot for the day. Fast Passes were working so we hooked up with Test Drive, Nemo and Spaceship Earth. Now, Epcot is lovely. But there is so much to do that for the second visit in a row, we only managed to see half the park. It is really frustrating to go early and still not see everything. The positive part of Epcot is that they have lockers and have a very logical map. We started with Soarin which is amazing and then did the boat tour through the research lab. From there, we hit up Canada and worked our way around the pavillions to Germany and then our fast passes kicked in. We caught the boat back to Mexico and Tomorrowland to begin the Fast Pass hop. We rode Nemo and visited the aquariums. We met a few characters and wandered through Spaceship Earth and Mission Space. That ride is not for the faint of heart, it felt very realistic. And of course, my kids were all set to go again immediately. However, test drive called and that was fabulous. You could design your own car and then see how well your simulation would do. I loved it and would have gone again but once again, the line was 60 minutes long.

The cool part about Epcot is that they have great rides. There are the detective opportunities with mission control around the park that take place in different countries. We solved France's mystery today. At each country, you can have your bear stamped and signed off. And there are the character locations everywhere. The food at this park is incredible and the boutiques encourage you to spend money. I really loved how the staff were from each nation, which added to the geographical feel of the place. I just wish the park was open longer to accommodate it.

The negative side of Epcot is that you need way more time than is possible to accomplish enough of it to feel that you had a satisfying day. My feet hurt and I really can't persuade myself to go back for the second day. I would rather do NASA again or Magic Kingdom. There was also a two hour line to meet the characters from Frozen in Norway. We went with friends to the park, but we never even saw them so that was a washout. For the main attractions, you can only get a Fast Pass for one of them, so choose wisely and leg it to the ones that you couldn't get. Disney is a challenge. It is a lot of fun scattered with a lot of lines.

Epcot - you are my favorite park but I can only come once as you wear me out.

So, we finished the evening with feet and bodies in the pool to relax tired muscles and feet. The music was great and the pool was awesone at the resort.

Grateful for the Little Things

Having just spent the past ten days travelling in the proverbial planes, trains and automobiles, I have decided to take a moment to step back and reflect on the small things. People are asking how the trip to Disney World was. What was the best part? Did I have fun? Did I relax?

As you know, no trip is ever perfect and there are those stories that will make me wonder and reflect on the wisdom shown  by those in the tourism and travel industry. Those are the details like the hotel losing the reservation, no seats on an aircraft due to overbooking even though those seats were purchased last June, the blustering winds that chilled the bone in Florida, and the endless lines of Disney. I remember thinking that I was so tired of people complaining. Doesn't it sound like that is what I am about to do? I think not.

The above is just background information to say that I am grateful to those that understand their jobs and know how to make people happier by going the extra mile. We had the hotel clerk that allowed the girls to bounce off furniture while he checked us into a deluxe room for half the price. There was the delightful lady at Epcot who noticed that I was distressed as I was not to be permitted my rolling wheeled bag and so gave me a voucher to take to get a backpack from the gift shop. That moment alone made the day special and much less stressful. The airline clerk that went the extra mile to ensure that we did get on the aircraft, even though it was not her station or her responsibility. The people that we met in the lines were funny, caring and from all over. We now share memories.

There are more moments and memories to be had. The cold breeze chilled everyone at NASA so we did not have to contend with long lines. The dinner at Port St. John was downhome delicious and the best chocolate cake ever! People are more friendly when they are sharing your warm patch. Meeting all the Disney characters and seeing the children's faces light up when they got to meet their favorites. The thrill of thunder mountain, soarin' at Epcot and safari at Animal Kingdom. We dined well and watched amazing fireworks and parades. I think that we had a great trip.

The best part? The girls wishes and dreams were not disappointed. They saw Daisy and Cinderella. They left out the magic key for Santa Claus and he found them. The wonder in their eyes was phenomenal. Most of all, they were treated like princesses and that made them shine brighter.

The most satisfying thing for me was that after two days of travelling, we arrived in Seattle. I had been seated next to a Dr. of Pychology who said I had the most wonderful children she had ever had the pleasure of flying with. (I couldn't make that up if I tried!). They might irk each other, but they play hard and love harder. They are special and unique. It was quite a compliment. And the hotel clerk offered them warm cookies from the kitchen on arrival. What could be better? Little things. Smiles and thank yous. Cookies. Going the extra mile. Yes, I am grateful.

The Full Monty

The first thing that comes to mind is? . . .Ok not that but yes, that movie is up for debate. You see, today I had one of those days that puzzles me. The time warp continuem crossed with my insane desire to do all things and be all things to everyone has jumped up and bitten me, and so I found myself almost thinking. I would suggest that I might have been thinking if I had time to think about anything at all. Are you confused yet? Good. Welcome to my world.

The door of my world opened up today to getting children up and dressed, ready in time to school when they are too tired and cranky to function thanks to Christmas Concert hooliganting last night. The snow was thick on the drive and the roads had sheens of ice as the van rock and rolled its way to school. Thanks to a heads up on bussing delays, I drove home to shovel the drive before rocking and rolling to the other school to drop off child two. Then my morning hit a lull as I scrapped with two friends. Cutting and pasting and recrafting images, and then ranting over the to do lists. By the way...this was not on my list.

So then it was time to get things moving again. I collected the first child and brought her home for lunch. I addressed cards and processed the list of who had moved and who needed cards and still working on who I have missed. If that is you, you need to tell me so I can fix it. Then, I had a couple of project related things to do. So I started by going to the grocery store to stand in line for an hour to get what I needed. One hour in, I had to leave to get the Grade 2 kids from school. The shopping was left in the store as the line was too long.

So, I have my children, but there is still much to do. I drop off one to the childcare as I have to go downtown. I line up at Tim Hortons for the coffee that needs delivery, and then drive to deliver it. The long line of traffic is the next line to navigate and finally the dance studio is in sight. That child goes to dance lessons while I park and go into the post office. You guessed it, I had to line up for another hour just to buy stamps and stop my post from coming during the holidays. I am not the best at getting to the mail box so it is simpler to not have delivery. This is still not my last line . .

I gathered Ailish up and hustled her to the gymnastics line, where we joined other long suffering parents who also line up every 3 months so that their children have the chance to be the next Nadia. Thankfully, Ailish was rescued and I continued to wait. I finished my evening with lining up at Extra Foods (to get stuff) and Walmart (to get stuff) and now the children are in bed and I am still sympathizing with those characters in the Full Monty's EI line.

At Walmart tonight, I finally got the stuff and I think I might nearly be done Christmas shopping. I could answer that in the definitive if I decided to think about it but it is definately too late to think about it. While in line, I caught myself shuffling my feet and tap dancing. People were swaying in the lines. Slipping their feet back and forth in time to Christmas music, people were trying to be patient as they waited for those cashiers to meet their needs. I couldn't help it. By this time, I was so tired and groggy, forgetful and really not with it, so the best thing my tired self could do was dance. What does that say about me? Do I even need an answer. So instead of resting, I am blogging.

At this moment, I am going to sleep. Good night and sweet dreams. Might I refer you to the Full Monty?