It's their world, and I love living in it.: September 2010

It's the first place that comes to our minds when it's time to go on a trip. It's what we talk about all year, until the time comes where we can go again. And, although I love my house, my town and my neighborhood...Florida, feels like home. Florida is where there is no stress and no routine. Florida is a commonality my husband, daughters and myself share between each other. Florida is where we have created some memories that will far outlast some of the everyday stuff we do in our "real" home.

And then of course there is the whole Disney thing. I remember before we had our first child, we didn't know what we were having, so we had to make the room great for either a boy or a girl. We thought, "primary colors" and hence the love for "all things Disney" was born. We went crazy with Disney curtains, bookends, comforters and pillowcases. It was the best nursery EVER. Then it just escalated from there. We knew someday we'd take our kids to Disney, and Chris had dreams of putting his daughter on his shoulders while watching the daytime parade through Main Street.

And we've done it. We've done all of that and more and it's been some of the best family moments of our lives.

This was a "bonus" trip. Thanks to Disney Visa and the fact that my husband travels for a living, we stayed at our beautiful hotel and attended two parks for FREE.

The coolest thing this time? Since the trip was basically free we thought now would be the time to FLY. We surprised the girls with tickets. It was awesome.

Every year we stay in Kissimmee. It's just minutes away from all things Disney and has lots to do. We usually take a walk through this place:

Old Town. The best way to describe it? Enter Exhibit A:

And when you have an Exhibit A, you have to have an Exhibit B:

I don't know, cigarette in one hand, Bud in the sippy cup spot and roots screaming "dye me" at you....something about that whole thing wasn't right.

It's basically a run-down, all year around carnival, mixed in with shops and stores..and most years, we will spend some time there watching. Only watching. The girls look wide-eyed at all the rides and some may quietly say, "can we ride?" while right away Chris and I poo-poo the idea. We say, "now girls, to some people, this is their Disney...isn't that sad?" or we'll say, "there is NO way your getting on those rides...those things will fall a part at any second and you could be killed."

But, this year was different. We actually bought a day pass and rode those death machines for close to 9 hours. The girls had the time of their lives. We all did.

It's okay, I don't mind being a hypocrite.

Then of course there is our beloved Downtown Disney area where we made a beeline there most nights to watch our friend Dominic Gaudious play his guitars. Look him up sometime and take a listen. Love him. He is awesome. We see him every year. (he's not really our friend, but we like to pretend he is)

We love the little town of Celebration, there, is a hidden gem of a fountain, where you can sip a Starbucks and watch your kids get soaked;

Disney's Typhoon Lagoon, where we slipped and slid like there was no tomorrow, played in the coolest, most unique wave pool known to man and swam with sharks.