We decided to do a family trip to Universal Studios in between Christmas and New Years. It turned out to be a great trip with many funny moments and lots quality family time - just the way I like it.
First of all, now that Aly has gotten her permit, she has become an excellent backseat driver, quoting back to Chris and I all the driving tips we give to her. So, as we are driving down to Orlando, Aly says to Chris, "Hey Dad, it's supposed to be a smooth ride, remember?" Hahaha. Nevermind the fact that we are on the freeway in stop and go traffic, whilst there wasn't any traffic on the road when Chris said it to her. Teenagers. They know everything, ya know. ;)
When we arrived at the hotel, Chris' first rule was 'NO BAG EXPLOSIONS IN THE HOTEL ROOM.' To which Lise replied, "It's too late for me guys, save yourselves." (She wasn't joking. Her suitcase stuff was literally overflowing all over the floor. We had been in the room less than ten minutes.)
The other funny thing on the way down was that the only thing the kids kept talking about on the way down was swimming in the hotel pool. (Maybe because they'd never been to Universal and so they didn't know what to expect?) Anyway, we pretty much had to talk them into going to the park first - with a promise to hit the pool later on that evening.
Of course the first thing on our list when we got in the park was to hit Harry Potter world. We had a great time visiting this land full of magic. We had to do a bit of divide and conquering when a couple little someone's weren't tall enough to ride certain rides. At the Hogwart's castle, if you aren't tall enough to ride the ride they give you a certificate which allows you to go through and tour the castle and then come back and be at the front of the line once you are tall enough. Well, Kylie wasn't tall enough, so I did the tour with her, but when they asked for the name I thought they meant mine so they wrote "Stacy". The next day when we came back to use the certificate so I could go on the ride. I took Aly, Lise, and Kate with me. Well, they thought the certificate was for Kate being tall enough and they made a huge announcement and asked everybody to give a round of applause for "Stacy" (aka Kate, aka Kylie) being tall enough to ride the ride. Kate handled it like a pro and just stood there smiling and waving. Love it.
A couple of new additions were Diagon Alley and the Hogwarts Express Ride, that takes you between the two lands. They really did an awesome job recreating the Harry Potter feel. Of course we got some frozen Butterbeer and a few souvenirs.
One place that we could all enjoy (and take the most pictures at) was Dr. Seuss land. Lots of Thingamajigs and Whatsits at every turn. And hooray for the classic "Merry Go Round." You can't go wrong there!
Um, water rides, in December? You betcha! It was in the 80's when during our trip - so weird that it was December, 'cause felt more like June. We took full advantage of it though. Jurassic Park and the One Fish, Two Fish rides were just a little splash, no big deal. But then we went on Bluto's Bilge Rat Barges and. got. soaked. We ended up paying to stand in the human dryers afterwards. I'm sure we looked hilarious trying to dry our socks and booties. Before the ride started it was so funny because Kylie was so worried about Chris losing his glasses that she grabbed them off of his face in a tight fist and said, "I'll hold onto them just like this, so you won't lose them." So cute that she's looking out for her dad.
Aly, Lise, and Kate really got into the roller coasters this time. They loved riding the Hulk, Dr. Doom, and the Hollywood Rip Ride Rock It Roller Coaster - Multiple times. Kate was just barely tall enough for some of these coasters - which made me a bit nervous since she's a feather weight little twig. After coming off the Dr. Doom Fear Fall she said, "I nearly fell out of my seat on that ride". Great. The Rock It Roller coaster takes you straight up before the drop off and I felt like
I was going to fall out of
my seat! On that ride you get to pick a rock and roll song to listen to while holding on for your life. Lise chose "I Will Survive" for her song. How appropriate. I have to say that I have always liked roller coasters, but this time around was the first time I started to feel old. After going on a few rides I would feel dizzy or have a headache from my head thrashing around. Needless to say I wasn't too upset to stay out with Kylie a few times while the other girls went on yet another roller coaster.
We were able to go on quite a few rides altogether as well, which was good. The new, trendy ride this time around was the King Kong ride. The line was always super long so one time we just decided to get in it, even though it was a 2 hour wait. (Plus my head was spinning from roller coaster madness, so I was glad for a break.) Thank goodness for Aly bringing a "Glowstick Ball" for the girls to play with in line. It kept everybody entertained and made the wait much more fun. The other funny thing about this line was that Kate kept hiding in dark corners. And then, Lise was looking in a dark corner and got totally spooked by a guy dressed up as a tribal warrior. It was hilarious.
There were a lot of great photo ops that we took advantage of as well. Lots of different modes of transportation, apparently. Oh, and I have to mention what accidentally turned out to be one of our family favorites - The Jurassic Park ride. First of all it was the only ride with a big drop that Kylie was tall enough to ride. Second of all, the wait was always 15 minutes or less. So we ended up riding that thing like 5 times. It was hilarious. The first time Chris and I had to basically talk the kids into riding it because we had already had the Bluto's Bilge Rat Barges experience and the kids didn't want to get wet again. After convincing them that it was just a little splash, they agreed to go. Kate was taking the story line of the ride hook, line and sinker and asked me "Did we really get knocked off course? Was that supposed to happen?" Kylie was also afraid of the dinosaurs and whimpering a little bit. But then we had the huge plummet, some screams, and a big splash and everyone was laughing and said, "Let's go on that again!" After that, Kylie was deliciously scared every time we came to the big fall and would give herself a pep talk saying, "Be brave Kylie, be brave!" Meanwhile Aly and Lise were trying to plan their poses for the picture that gets taken, but would end up screaming everytime and looking hilarious. I loved it. Oh, and then, we decided to ride it one last time. Unfortunately, this time all of the weight was on one side of the boat and so when we came careening down the slope we got soaked!! Oh man. Totally worth it though.
After 3 fun days at the park we were exhausted but happy. We stopped in a little sandwich shop to get dinner and Aly fell asleep on a bench. She had put on a seasick patch so she could ride limitless roller coasters, but it giving her a headache and making it so her eyes couldn't focus. I woke her up and she asked, "Can we go on the Hulk again?"
Me - You are so tired and can barely even see, and you want to ride another roller coaster?!?
Aly - Oh yeah I do. I could stay up all night.
(Which is probably true. Aly is not one to let a silly thing like exhaustion keep her from missing a party.)
We had tons of fun and I loved seeing everybody being goofy and laughing together. Lots and lots of great memories. And on a final note, Kylie accidentally had the conversation bubble coming out of her behind - How appropos! Thanks Universal Studios. We had a great time.
After spending the week in Orlando, our New Year's Eve was a little on the down low. We had dinner with some friends and lit up some sparklers. Then we headed home to watch a movie. Nice and chill. Perfect.
Thanks 2016. Lots of adventures. Lots of growing pains and challenges. But overall you were good to us. Here's to another great year in 2017. HAPPY NEW YEAR!
