Disney Die Hards

I have always wondered, "Who actually buys the five day Disney pass?" I now know the answer. We do. This past summer we had a Spendlove family reunion in Orlando, so after doing the math, and figuring that the five day pass was actually less expensive than the two day hopper pass, we headed south for a solid week of Disney. Our week began in 101 degree temperatures at Animal Kingdom. Even with the heat and the crowds, we managed to enjoy our day of 4-D bug shows, backward roller coasters and safari rides. We did have to find ways to keep cool, though. 

Our next day was spent at Disney Studios. The little kids were entertained at the Little Mermaid show and Beauty and the Beast production and the big kids headed straight to the Rockin' Rollercoaster and Tower of Terror, with their mother, the brave one, in tow! 

We spent a day at Magic Kingdom, which we know inside and out but still love, as was evidenced with our late night at the fireworks show and then six kids asleep on the monorail back to the parking lot at 1:00 am. 

The next day Steve returned to Magic Kingdom with Sophia and Ezra, who we felt had not enjoyed enough Disney magic. Steve spent an entire day focusing on princesses, character parades and Dumbo rides, while I took Emilie, Jonathan, Annelise and Mia to Epcot with our Moreland cousins for educational rides and a trip around the world, with stops at destinations including France, China and Morocco. 

We ended the week at Disney Quest, a seven story building full of simulated rides and games. 

During the week the kids collected and traded Disney pins, a hobby that Charlotte, Josh, Ben and Daniel Moreland introduced to our children. We just happened to be at Epcot when a trading convention was held. We didn't attend, thankfully, but heard that one pin sold for seventy-five thousand dollars! (I guess our definition of Disney diehard is relative!) 

Fortunately we were able to fit in a few other memories to counter balance all of our Disney fun. We took the kids North for a day at Cocoa Beach where they collected shells, watched the surfers and swam in the warm Atlantic. 

We spent a day at St. Augustine, which was discovered by Ponce de Leon. Emilie had researched and reported on this famous Spaniard explorer and treasure hunter earlier in the year, so we felt lucky to be able to have an expert with us to fill us full of Floridian history. 

Another day we followed my parents to Kennedy Space Center. We took a tour out to the launch pad and different viewing sites, climbed inside a space shuttle and took a ride in a simulated lift off, created by authentic astronauts. We learned that there would be a rocket launch later in the evening, so we pulled off to the side of the road to see all of the knowledge that we had just absorbed about the space program come to life. Each trip has a regret and this was the moment for our Florida trip. After sitting for thirty minutes, it was reported that the launch would be delayed, so with tired and hungry children, we decided to wait for our next opportunity to see a real live rocket lift off into space, I guess. About ten minutes later, we looked to the sky to see the remains of the rocket launch that we had just passed up. Immediately we were disappointed with our impatience. 

The purpose of our vacation to Florida was to spend time with our Spendlove extended family. Several activities were planned throughout the week. Our children looked forward to the traditional get togethers as much as they did to the Disney parks. We spent an evening at the Newly Wed Game, in which Steve and I came dead last. (Everyone agreed that the longer the couple was married the less chance they had of getting the answers correct, which proved to be true!) We attended the family auction, with Grandpa David as the auctioneer in his traditional garb. How and where the tradition began, no one remembers! This is always the highlight of the week for the children. They spend Monopoly money buying all sorts of items that have been filling other family members' closets. Of course the odder the item brought, the more appeal it has. Fortunately Jonathan was outbid on the dress shirt with a huge Texas flag that he desperately wanted to buy for Steve as a late Father's Day gift! However, we did drag home a XXXL golf shirt that fit Jonathan like a dress. We met for an adult dinner out and a pot luck dinner in, followed by a night to reminisce about Grandpa Cliff who wanted so badly to make it to the reunion. Despite the destination of the different reunions, the family time is what brings each aunt, cousin or grandparent hundreds of miles to spend a week together. 

When I began planning this trip, I was reminded that I am truly my mother's daughter. Each trip that my family went on growing up, consisted of excursions extremely far away from our destination to fit in some random cultural experience, which I am sure we are all better for. In the early stages of the planning process, I did some map questing and realized that we could really fit in a bit of Southern charm if we were willing to do some driving. With a little more research, I found that flights were cheaper into Charleston, South Carolina than Orlando. So, unlike any other family would do, we flew into Charleston and then drove down to Savannah, Georgia where we walked under Spanish Moss and ate Jambalaya and barbecued pork, drove through the bayous and stopped at a roadside stand for peach cider and pecan pie (which I told Steve was in and of itself worth the additional six hour drive).

On our way back home we spent a day in Charleston where we walked along the historic waterfront, shopped at the Slave Market where trusted slaves were allowed to purchase items for their masters, and watched weavers create sweet grass baskets, a craft brought from Africa. We ended the day with a horse drawn carriage ride through cobblestone streets lined with the iconic pastel buildings, palmetto trees, and gas lanterns of this old city, as we listened to the history of Charleston. 

The next morning we headed to the airport, leaving Little Mermaid and Alice and Wonderland, the rockets blasting to space, the Spaniards and surfers, our beloved family members and the charm of the low country behind.