A couple weeks ago Brinley and I went to Orlando, Florida with my parents and little sister McKenzie. It was sooooo much fun! Fun to be with family, fun to see the excitement in Brinley's eyes, and fun to not cook or clean for a whole week! We were doing something every minute and the time just flew by. Brinley had a blast and still talks about it everyday. She was such a good girl and I was so thankful I was not one of those parents whose child was flipping out because they didn't get what they wanted. :)
Getting there was probably the hardest part. We got up early and took the bus in an attempt to be green (even though gas prices are less that $2). I talked to my Mom who was stuck in a snow storm in Utah and jokingly warned her not to miss her plane. We made it to the airport with 45 minutes to spare and went to check our bags (I already had our boarding passes) and to my surprise we couldn't check our bags because we were two minutes past the 45 minute baggage check deadline that I didn't know about and we had to be "rerouted."
I felt like I was in a dream and that they were joking and anytime they were going to tell me just kidding..let me take your bags. So ironically Brinley and I missed our flight, even though I would have made it to the plane if they would have just checked my stupid luggage! I thought about breaking down my luggage and just running for the gate but I was pretty hysterical by this point because I found out I wouldn't get to Orlando until midnight (was supposed to be there at 5:00pm), we had a 4 hour lay over in JFK airport and they were going to charge me $100! I was pretty upset especially when the Delta manager told me that I should be able to afford it because I was going to Disneyworld (wrong- my husband is a student and my parents used their sky miles) and that I needed to stop making a scene because I was scaring the children!
I pretty much cried until we got on the plane and people gave me weird looks all through security and into the terminal. Poor Brinley had no idea what was going on with her Mother. She didn't make a peep and stayed right by my side until we got on the airplane. Then she kept asking me, "Are you still sad Mommy? You happy Mom?" It was pretty much one of the worst days on my life. During my spare time (which I had plenty of) I read the conference talk titled, "Come what may, and love it." That helped to slow the tears.
Brinley awkwardly asleep in the plane after a VERY long day!
Once we got to New York I wondered if maybe we could make good use of our 4 hour lay over there but everyone told me it was not a good idea to go out because it was the ghetto and rush hour. So me and Brin tried out the Air Train. Pretty boring but it killed time for awhile.
Brinley LOVED all the yellow taxi's. When we left the terminal there was about 10 lined up in a row. She kept asking, "what you call those things?"
We finally made it to Orlando and took this picture for our little buddy who loves Spiderman.
The first park we went to was Animal Kingdom.McKenzie and me.
Crocodiles.On the animal safari we saw lots of cool animals.
Elephants.
Gorillas.
Here is my little trooper eating chicken nuggets in her stroller. The stroller was a life saver!
We went to a production of Finding Nemo. It was AMAZING!
Brinley was able to pet a snake and brush the fur on lots of goats.
McKenzie and Brinley had a blast getting soaked by these fountains.
Brinley waiting to get sprayed.
Brinley, me and Kenzie with a big tree in the backgroud. Interestingly, it was calledThe Tree of Life.
The next day we went to Magic Kingdom.My Mom, Brinley and Kenzie in front of Cinderella's castle. A classic!
One of Brinley's favorite rides was Small World. She waved to all the dolls the entire time. It was so cute and she was so excited. This was the best picture I could get.
Brinley LOVED the princesses. There was a big parade with all the princesses and Brinley was in heaven waving to them.
Brinley and Papa
My Mom, Kenzie and Brinley on the magic carpet ride. I can't do the dizzy rides or the roller coaster rides anymore because they make me soooo sick!
Kenzie, Brinley and me in front of the magic castle.
At the front gated of Magic Kingdom....where all your dreams come true....
We went to Blizzard Beach which was a lot of fun, especially because there were hardly any lines. There was also a ski lift that took you to the top of the "mountain."
The Orlando Temple.
My Dad served his mission in Florida and this was his first house he lived in on his mission.
It was on Murray St.
BFF's...The two turquoise twins.
Me and Brin at Daytona Beach. The sand was amazing. It was a little chilly for being at the beach in Florida..I guess it was November.
Mom, Brinley, Dad, Me and Kenzie
Brinley and Dora
Kenzie and Me at Universal Studios.Universal Studios was amazing. The National Association of Realtors rented it out after hours so the lines were 10 minutes instead of 2 hours! We also got 10 Universal Dollars to spend which was an added bonus.
Most of the time Brinley and Kenzie slept together. Brinley would snuggle up to her all night until Kenzie was almost off the bed.
Hollywood StudiosThis is what Brinley would do for the scary or loud rides....along with screaming, "Get me outta here!" This was at the Indiana Jones Stunt Show. She ended up liking it a lot especially the part where a truck caught on fire.
Brinley and Mary Poppins horse.
Me and Brinley.
Kenzie came head on with a giant dog nose! They had so much fun in the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Playground
Brinley in the "spider web."Thanks Mom and Dad for a GREAT time and a dream come true!
*In case anyone wonders..my Mom rocks. I sent in a formal complaint to Delta and received a big fat NO but my Mom went ahead and called the Delta Headquarters and told them what happened. The lady apologized profusely for the way we were treated and refunded my $100.*
