Photo courtesy of gify.com
Everyone always talks about how fast your kids grow up. Take it from an expert. (Mother of 4 girls) Blink and they’re gone.
This past Oct, I realized my girls would soon be heading to all corners of the world…well Ontario anyway. My oldest was in her third year university at Queen’s. (Bragging rights) and the next was ready to head off to University of Ottawa. (Make way for the proud mom). My younger two were in grades 10/7 respectively and seriously, I blinked and couldn’t figure out where the time went. So, in my infinite wisdom, I planned one last family trip before my babies scattered to the wind.
Years ago, my husband and I would take the kids every year to Disney. My older two have fond memories of this time, but the younger two, not so much. So…. Road trip! Seriously,…we drove to Florida. (24 hrs in a van!) But the ride was part of the fun and makes the trip much more affordable. We also picked up a kid. My oldest’s BF had never been to Disney and when we told him we were going…well the look on his face made me invite him along. This was actually a good idea since he has a driver’s licence! Ulterior motive? Maybe. But he’s actually a good kid and we all like him a lot. He fits in well with the group. The son I never had, the big brother they never had. It all worked out.
First up….Hollywood Studios
The thing I learned. Take lots of snacks. Disney is expensive! I thought I packed enough food for the day and only planned to buy dinner. We were staying from open to close to maximize the park and the limited time we were staying in Florida. I ran out of food about noon! Luckily, Disney has lots of water fountains and we didn’t need to buy $5 water. Food total for the day was about $200 American. Yikes! Oh and make sure you do the Tower of Terror! Amazing thrill ride.
Next up…Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom has a new area dedicated to the Movie Avatar. Hint: use your Disney fast past for this and book early…I mean like 6 months early not 2 weeks early. The wait time without it was 2 hrs! Luckily, I brought lots of snacks. Oh, make sure you do the Dinosaur ride! It is probably the best ride in the whole Disney Park…I kid you not!
What I learned from this trip
Memories are precious. I wish I had of thought of this before now. However, live and learn. I am already planning my next family vacation with just the two younger ones. The other two can come of course. (And any add ons J) But just because they may not be able to come, doesn’t mean I am going to forget making memories for the other two. One more blink and they will be gone as well.
Here are a couple of links to help you plan your trip to Disney. click here, and here. Oh and don’t forget, Disney often offers discounts to Canadian residents at different times of the year. Make sure you check out their website for dates and offers. I also found this wonderful in depth blog post for the economical Canadian traveller.
So what about you? What is your favorite vacation spot? Any hints for making each trip memorable?
Algonquin College Social Media Certificate Program 
Hi,
I really enjoyed how you broke up your blog post! The bolded headers and short paragraphs allowed for a more easy read and interest to continue scrolling throughout the site. The photos of your family are great, but I would’ve loved for them to be a bit bigger/ proportionate to the text size!
Overall a great first post!
Hey,
I loved hearing about your vacation in Florida! I have been many times and it is a big part of my childhood as my parents did the same as you have just done! I also liked seeing your photos as it gave a visual (I’m all about visuals, makes it more interesting)! I would say though be a bit more descriptive I knew what you were saying because I have been, but for someone who doesn’t know would not know much from your post but other than that it was amazing!