We spent Day 1 of the trip traveling to Florida and then spent the evening wandering around Disney Springs. Although this wouldn't be a Disney trip I love the Disney Springs area. We watched musicians, dancers, jugglers, and checked out the cool lego creations.
Nathan loves any of these photo spots. He stuck his head in every shirt for a picture!
Day 2- We checked out of the hotel off site and moved to our accommodations at Universal. This is the first time we have splurged in this way but it was incredibly nice to travel back and forth this way. We went to Disney two years ago and stayed off site. It is definitely a different experience. Before we left the hotel, Nani and PopPop gave them their presents. We had talked about cameras for the boys but I really thought they would rather have phones and would know how to work them. Nani and PopPop had some old phones that would be perfect. The boys were thrilled! Joshua actually squealed out loud which is huge for this kid. Nathan was shaking he was so excited. He couldn't take a picture at first because he couldn't calm down! They enjoyed taking pictures all week on the trip and Joshua feels especially cool now with his own phone even if it can't call anyone. I caught him pretending to use it as a cell phone. :-)
We had early admission to the park so we changed hotels and were ready for the 8am start at Harry Potter World. The boys were still unsure of what exactly we were doing. They are seeing rides as we hiked so we told them that we had tickets to be able to do all of the fun stuff they were seeing.
However, they still didn't know a place like Harry Potter World even existed. We walked into Diagon Alley and both boys froze and looked shocked. This was immediately followed by smiles and even a little gasp. I think this would be the equivalent for the princess enamored daughter seeing Cinderella at the castle. It was everything I had hoped it would be.
We had secretly packed their Harry Potter robes so I offered those to the boys and it was time to explore.
We got in line at Ollivander's Wand shop. The plan was already in place to purchase a wand as they are interactive in the park but I figured the boys would just have to pick one out. They only choose one kid per group to do a special experience where the child is chosen and Ollivander helps the wand choose the wizard. I was thrilled when both of the boys were chosen to go up. The awe and magic of the experience was tangible. My momma heart living vicariously through the boys could have ended the trip right then and been happy.
We left Diagon Alley and it was time to take the Hogwarts Express to Hogwarts. The magic simply continued the boys were so captivated by this experience. It was too real for Nathan and he didn't want to ride it the rest of the week. We rode the train back later to go back to the park and it is a different experience since you are now leaving Hogwarts. When the worker came to tell us to remain seated on our journey back, Nathan actually raised his hand and asked if there would be any dementors on the trip back?
We made it to Hogwarts.
Nani is a pro with the selfie stick.
Chocolate frogs please. (Note the shirt on Nani- never a truer statement for my kids)
Nathan loves birds and ducks.
We ate at the Three Broomsticks.
We left the "real" land of Hogwarts and went to explore the pretend park. We all went to do Poseidon's Fury but Nathan decided "no way" the longer we waited in the tunnels in the dark. The two of us left and had a very special time together. He can be the sweetest kid in the world. He held my hand and chose the pink ride in Dr. Seuss land since that's my favorite color. Everyone confirmed that Nathan made a good choice and that it would have been too scary for him.
Everyone joined us in Dr. Seuss land for more fun.
Waiting for Lizzie to get off of The Hulk. Matt said he is too old now lol.
We left Dr. Seuss land and went to explore Marvel. Nathan met Spiderman! For those keeping track, Nathan has been Spider man for Halloween two years in a row and plans to do the same this year.
Jurassic World
Our luck at being chosen continued when we attended the Sinbad stunt show. Lizzy was volunteered by Joshua and I. :-) She was thrilled to be the princess! She did a great job even though I thought she may want to kill me first.
Parade
We got back much later than we originally thought but that's ok. Matt and I left to go squeeze in a little date to celebrate our anniversary early while we had sitters around. Lizzy did her own thing. Nani and PopPop took the boys to the hotel pool. It was truly the perfect day!
Day 3- Back to the parks to do a mix of everything and rides we hadn't gotten to do yet. Photo before we left outside our 50s themed hotel.
Met Shaggy and Scooby.
Changed out some money and interacting with the goblin was worth it. I was so glad that we read up on the tips and tricks so we were able to do those types of things.
Our luck continued for a third time and PopPop was chosen to come up on stage and perform too. He was such a good sport! It made a great performance even better.
Nathan wasn't interested in riding anything and not only wasn't interested he was crying and not really amenable to other options. We have determined that he loves outdoor rides but doesn't like the 4D rides or anything that takes you inside a building. That's what a lot of what we had left involved. We spent most of the first part of that day shopping and waiting as our group split up to do everything. We all decided to leave early and go back to the hotel for a break. These boys could happily live in a pool. The weather was nice all week that none of us minded being outside and indulging in pool time while doing our share of people watching and speculating.
After a break we returned to the parks to eat and watch the Hogwarts Castle light show. We ate at a neat restaurant called Mythos.
Shirt change- Nathan was in need of a Harry Potter shirt too so he could be dressed for the show.
I took the boys to burn a little more energy off in the playground area at Jurassic World. It was a parent nightmare with many entrances and exits. I lost the boys and they couldn't figure their way out which was when Nathan peed in his pants! I should have known I was in trouble as I was passing all of the dads climbing through the maze with their kids. Anyways, we survived and met back up with Nani who was trying to hold our spot on the bridge to view the evening light show which was wonderful!
Day 4- Volcano Bay Water Park This was a day of slides, water, sand, and sun. This little pale guy is such a sun and sand junky. I lathered him up dutifully but he still got a little pink. Both boys loved going down the slides and really wanted to hear me scream. Everyone rode and indulged them in riding and I might have indulged them in screaming.
After showers we went over to Universal CityWalk to eat at the Chocolate Emporium.
These two cuties shared a milkshake.
We celebrated Joshua's birthday early since we had some family around.
We returned to the hotel after a long day and Nathan tripped, fell, and cut his hand open on GLASS in the hallway outside our room. Needless to say we were not happy with our hotel nor with the way they handled it that night. We got Nathan all taken care of and everyone asleep. I am just grateful this happened after our waterpark day. The way his hand is cut the bandage kept coming off and the bleeding resumed multiple times the next day.
Day 5- Was supposed to be just a travel day home BUT we decided to be fun and play just a little more before heading home. The boys said if they could only do one thing they wanted to Dr. Seuss land again and Nathan wanted to say goodbye to SpiderMan. We walked through Marvel and said bye and then giggled our way through Dr. Seuss land. (Yay, my babies are still little.)
This trip was incredible. I had good conversations with all of the grown-ups. It was nice to vacation with other adults. I got one on one moments with each of my boys. I absolutely loved seeing their excitement and wonder. I hated seeing Nathan scared at the 4D rides and hurt in the hallway but I loved being able to take care of him. I adored all of the moments where I saw a loving aunt or grandparent engaged with a different boy. I don't think Joshua stopped talking from morning until bed each day. He discussed Harry Potter details until his heart was content. As we traveled through the park Nani was usually leading the way with Joshua and Lizzy chatting at the back. He slept in Nani and PopPop's room all week and cuddled with Nani every morning. Out of all my vacations this one had the least of anything that was geared towards Matt or myself but it was worth every penny.
Traveling home was an adventure for us. We left much later than planned and unfortunately Nathan puked within the first half hour of the trip. Carsickness is so bad for this little guy. We had some traffic and grumpy moments but mostly it was filled with Percy Jackson audiobook, music, movies, and sharing highlights of the trip together.
Now, it is the day after. The bags are unpacked, mail sorted, laundry done, Matt's at work, and we are just enjoying the day at home after a wonderful night of sleep in our own beds.
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