Disney {2014}

Our Walt Disney World last minute vacation did not disappoint ... beautiful weather, amazing hotel room with a spectacular view of Epcot and firework. We could not have asked for a more wonderful, last minute, time away. It was a great time in warm weather after a crazy winter!

{View from hotel room}

{My husband and son were able to take in a Braves Spring Training game}

{Fish n Chips in Great Britain in Epcot}

Beach Vacation {2012}

As August draws to a close, for the last few years, we have enjoyed an escape to the beach. It is a way for us to say good-bye to summer and kick-off our school year. This year was no different, except that we were able to spend ten days and had some of our best friends along for the fun.

Ava Mae our mermaid. She really wants to live at the beach.

Ava Mae was blessed to have her best friend on vacation with her. These two are just so cute together.

We all found gorgeous shells - I actually made our kids put some back. I mean seriously, how many shells does one child really need to keep.

Ava Mae burying Devin in the sand.

Devin taking an opportunity to fish with his friend, Wesley.

Just one of the six hermit crabs we caught.

Lexi and her friend, Muriel.

Our trip on the Sea Screamer did not disappoint. Once again, we saw tons of dolphins. Loved the show they put on for us. They truly are the golden retrievers of the sea.

Having fun with the crabs they brought on board the Sea Screamer from a crab trap.

Beautiful sunset!

Rainbow on our trip out to the Gulf.

On our one day where it was a complete wash out we enjoyed a field trip to Wonder Works. Kids loved all the exhibits - we spent hours there. Wasn't quite sure what to expect but, it really had some great interactive exhibits - covering everything from science to history.

As always it seemed our vacation was coming to an end too soon. On the last day, my friend Tammy and I just sat on the beach for hours and hours. It was so beautiful! I think the calm before the storm - so lucky we headed out before Tropical Storm/Hurricane Issac made it's way up into the Gulf of Mexico.

Disney 2012 : Character Dining

Character Dining is one of our fun activities while at Walt Disney World. I love it because, it means no standing in lines for a meet and greet with a character. My kids love it because, most of the time it means several different interactions with each character during our meal. The only drawback, if you have kids that are really into this type of dining experience - there may not be very much "dining" going on. Ava Mae absolutely loved being around all these different characters, so much so, she hardly ever touched her food. Now that you have been warned about the one drawback here are a few of our favorites that we did on this last trip.

Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom has Winnie the Pooh characters. While I thought our kids had outgrown wanting this type of meet and greet - I was wrong. They even chose this over doing 1900 Park Fare at Grand Floridian which has Cinderella and Prince Charming. {We had done that on our last visit.}

Winnie the Pooh was fascinated with Lexi's "crazy" Bippity Boppity Boutique hair. Below, Winnie the Pooh being shy for the camera. We were one of the first tables seated for the evening dinner service at Crystal Palace so we saw alot of Winnie the Pooh while we dined. The dinner buffet at Crystal Palace is good - carving station and lots of fresh veggies are always on the menu.

Next up, Chip n' Dale's Harvest Feast at the Garden Grille restaurant in Epcot's Future World. This rotating restaurant features views of the Living with the Land ride and the main characters are Chip n' Dale but, you also get visits from Mickey and Pluto.

The food here was really delicious! Many of the vegetables we ate were grown in Epcot's The Land Pavilion.  The steak, chicken, and fish were out of this world! Everything was served family style so when we ran out of anything a new plate or bowl was brought out with more. Also, really liked the fact that there were kid friendly items including - grilled chicken drumsticks, mac n' cheese, and sweet potato fries. {And, doesn't Mickey Mouse look adorable in his farmer overalls.}

Our final character dining experience was the one place we visit each time we are at Walt Disney World - Chef Mickey's located in the Contemporary Hotel. We always get one of the last seatings of the morning for "brunch". Plenty of great selections on this amazing breakfast buffet - we always leave filled up!

If your kids love posing with Disney characters and getting autographs this is the way to do it!