Disney Day 6: a bit of this, a bit of that

Our penultimate day at Disney was probably the day we traveled most. In all, we ended up at 3 different areas over the course of the day (and night). We started the day off with our last "new" park visit, and that was to one of Disney's water parks, Typhoon Lagoon. Obviously, we didn't get too many photos there since smartphones and water don't mix well, but we did get a few, which you can see below.

Before we even found a place to put our towels, Lucas located his favorite character, Switch, and got one more photo with him.

Right after we ate lunch, the heavens opened up and we had a good old fashioned Florida downpour. I found it incredibly funny since people scattered for cover. People who were wearing swimsuits and had literally just come out of the water. It's not like there was thunder or lightning; I think their natural flight instincts kicked in and they ducked under anything they could just because that's what you're supposed to do, I guess.

On the other hand, Lucas and I went and claimed some prime real estate right near the wave pool and reclined on the chairs, reveling in the rain. Marilu stayed under cover, but that was because she had all of our clothes and electronic devices. Plus, she probably thought we were nuts.

Anyway, that's why there are so few people in these next 2 photos. 20 minutes before, it was a madhouse.

Everyone had to leave the wave pool not long after the rain started since there was a lightning watch. We never even so much as heard thunder so a little bit later, they opened the pool back up.

The crowds begin to return.

Posing with some alligator creature on our way out.

You may notice the lack of my dad in the photos above. Unfortunately, he had to leave that morning since he wanted to get back to Crestview well before my brother flew back, in case there were any issues at the airport. He was definitely missed though.

After Typhoon Lagoon, I think we headed back to the resort to relax for a bit. But soon after, we left for our second destination of the day, Disney's Contemporary Resort, since we had dinner reservations at Chef Mickey's.

Early on in the trip, I had said I would like it if Lucas got a caricature portrait done since I had one done myself when I was young while visiting a theme park (I think Knott's Berry Farm in California). We arrived early for our reservation, and as luck would have it, they was an artist just outside the restaurant so Lucas got his chance.

The finished copy is upstairs in our room, and Marilu is currently asleep so I'll get a picture of it tomorrow and upload it for the next post.

I think this might be a Lucas selfie. Either that or I'm holding the phone really close to his face.

Group photo at the entrance of Chef Mickey's.

Chef Mickey's was similar to the restaurant we visited for breakfast on Day 1 in that there were a lot of opportunities for character photos. As you'll see below, we didn't disappoint.

Kind of a bad one to start off with since Lucas's eyes are closed, but they get better. And the only other one he had with Minnie is blurred. I guess it wasn't meant to be.

Just some really good looking people.

I finally decided to join the posing party.

I'm not sure who Marilu enjoyed more: Pluto or Chewbacca (from our trip to Hollywood Studios). Either way, she gave them both huge hugs.

And since a picture only says a thousand words, lets watch a million words via a few videos from Chef Mickey's.

Finally, we ended the night--and the trip--with a return to Epcot Center. Lucas and I both wanted another shot at the Test Track ride, the one that broke down on us. While we did that, Marilu went on the Frozen ride, something neither of us cared about so it worked out for everyone. We also got to see the nighttime fireworks show at Epcot. While it wasn't as good as the one at the Magic Kingdom--I don't know if anything ever will be--it was still quite good.

Unfortunately, we weren't in a photo-taking mood so other than a couple from the Test Track ride, which thankfully worked this time!, that's it for Day 6.

While waiting in line at Test Track, you get to "create" your car. This is the monster Lucas designed himself.

On our way out, Lucas posed with a Corvette. He's already become a sports car lover, and he's still a good 6 years from even driving a car. I'm not sure what's scarier, that he will one day be driving or that it's only 6 years away!

So that's it for Day 6. Admittedly, the best stuff is in the past since we left on Day 7, but I took some photos of the resort and our room, and a couple of cute ones of Lucas so check it out soon.

I'll also be going through Marilu's phone once this series wraps up and include any pictures she took during the trip. So you've got that to look forward to as well.

Coconuts Game #4

The Coconuts are in the middle of a nice streak now as they won their game on Sunday 3-1. What was particularly nice was that this was the team that beat them 3-0 in their opener. Nothing wrong with a little revenge! So that puts their season record so far at 2-1-1. Lucas was on the ice for 2 of the 'Nuts goals, bringing his plus/minus for the season to +3.

Next week, they will play against a Kanata team one more time and then they start playing House A teams from Nepean, another part of town. This will be new to use since this is our first year not in House B. It'll mean a little more travel, but it ought to be interesting facing completely new opponents.

I was going to do Day 6 of Disney with this entry, but it's getting late and I need some sleep. I may not get the post up tomorrow since it's Marilu's 40th birthday, but I promise they'll be up by Wednesday.

Disney Day 5: Rest Day and Coconuts Game #3

After starting the season off with a loss and a tie, the Coconuts finally found their form this afternoon, easily dispatching their opponent 4-0. While the other team had some chances here and there, it was almost a complete domination from start to finish. One of Lucas's teammates from last year almost had a hat trick, ending up with 2 goals and an assist. As for Lucas, he was on ice for at least one of the goals, giving him a +1 in the game and a +1 overall for the season. He claimed he was skating off the ice for one of the goals, but I don't think he was so I'm going to stick with +1.

Whatever the case, it was a fantastic game and showed that when the boys are clicking, they are going to produce. It should be noted that the coach scheduled an extra practice a couple of hours before the game. We thought it might be a bad idea, that the kids may have been worn out by game time, but I guess the coach knew what he was doing!

As for Day 5 at Disney, here's a massive dump of all the pictures I took that day.

You finally done with that exhausting list?

Don't worry, you didn't miss anything. That was the only picture I took that Monday. After 4 straight days of parks, we decided we needed a break. Plus, we only had 5 days of passes (to be used over 6 days) so that day seemed as good as any to relax.

The picture above was taken on the back side of the main building at our resort, Port Orleans Riverside. Shortly afterwards, Marilu and I borrowed my dad's car and headed to a nearby outlet mall to do some shopping. Lucas and my dad spent several hours at the main pool. The weather wasn't perfect--there was some light rain--but it was still warm so lounging in the pool was still enjoyable. We met up with them after we got back from the mall and also made the most of the pool.

Although there are no pictures of it, we went for dinner at a great Mexican restaurant at Disney Springs, the area that used to be Downtown Disney (for those of you who haven't been there recently). Our resort was connected to it by river so we were able to take a boat to it instead of a bus. The only real low point of that trip was that there was a major downpour as we walked around the shops and we got pretty soaked, even with ponchos. However, it's Florida so it was warm and we eventually dried off.

Up next, our last full day in Florida!

Coconuts Game #2

Lucas's second game was this past Sunday. Although they didn't win, they did manage a 1-1 tie. Once again, both teams were fairly well matched so it was a good game. Lucas had another great game on defense, preventing any goals while on the ice so he's still a -1 (from his first game). Not bad after a loss and a tie.

Disney Day 4 Addendum: Videos

As promised, here are the videos from Day 4. About half are touristy "wow, look at that" stuff while the other half is devoted to Lucas's Jedi "training."

As you could probably tell from the original Day 4 post, there's a lot of Star Wars at Hollywood Studios. One of the highlights is the March of the First Order, where the bad guys from Star Wars 7 march up the main street and have a performance near the center of the park.

My apologies for starting the video just as they are in front of me. We had a great spot (if you look closely, you can see Lucas, Marilu, and my dad sitting on the curb on the opposite side of the street) about 5 minutes before it started and then Lucas asked if he go in a store across the street so we said okay. Then, the music started up sooner than we'd expected so I rushed in to get him. I looked all over and spent way too much time looking for him, only to find out he had come out a different door when he heard the music and crossed back over. So yeah, that's why the video started late.

The next four videos are the Jedi training. I recorded almost all of it so I'll warn you now, a couple of these videos are fairly long. If time is an issue, I would recommend watching the last one since that's the one where Lucas fights a Star Wars bad guy.

If you listen closely to the woman, Lucas was a tad bit aggressive. :)

The last 4 videos are from the Magic Kingdom fireworks show. Obviously, you'd have to see it live for the best experience, but I still think these came out pretty well, all things considered.

There were several different sequences that had different themes. My favorite was the one that focused on the Disney villains. The music and fireworks complemented each other nicely.

It's hard to notice with all the crazy fireworks going off, but I love the way the castle changes its color and design several times in a row.

Sigh...over halfway done with the trip. Still lots more to see though so be on the lookout!

Coconuts Game 1

As you may have noticed, I lost track of time this weekend and forgot to post the videos from Day 4. My plan is to have them up sometime tonight after work.

In the meantime, I just wanted to update that the Coconuts lost their first game 3-0. Despite the score, we don't really have any worries. The whole team played well and had at least as many scoring chances as the other team. It was just a case of the bounces going the other team's way. Lucas was on the ice for one of the goals (making him a -1), but to be honest, there was nothing he could do since he wasn't involved in the play.

Ok, gotta go to work. Be back soon!