A Walk in the Park

Before her Christmas break ended, Kelly asked if she and Paul could have a day at Epcot. Not one to waste a ticket, I decided that Glenna and I would also go to the park, but not hang out with Paul and Kelly. I'm so glad we went!

Aside from a couple of rides at the beginning and dinner that evening, we didn't see them at all.

Not many people know that the famous, silver ball that marks the beginning of Epcot actually has a ride in it. The first time I went on it, it tells you to look at a video monitor and smile. I did the biggest, cheesiest smile I possibly could. What I didn't know was, they use that photo to make a mini-movie about life in the future. They put your face on a cartoon figure that's featured throughout the movie.

We went on this with Paul and Kelly. I told them to make the biggest smiles they could and trust me. I could hear them laughing at the end of the ride as their movie was playing!

Glenna and I decided to go a different route.

You may have to click on this to get a better look at it:
It was hilarious! I had this worried expression and Glenna looked like an angry teen throughout the little movie.

We decided to take our time and wander to places that we don't usually visit (or run out of time to visit). We had such an incredible day together! Between her school, outside activities, and my work schedule, I was feeling a little disconnected from her. We needed this so much.

O Canada!

Glenna had always zoomed past the Canadian section, so we wandered over there for a while.
I had no idea it was so pretty! They really went all out on this one.



I took this photo to try and get some perspective on scale.




I love being with my daughter so much.
She reminds me that it's ok to just stop and be still. Here, we found a quiet spot to sit and watch ducks and chat. It was so lovely.


I made Glenna pose in the picture spots.

In Morocco, we took pictures of some henna tattoos.

Not that we want to have one permanently, but so the girls could draw pictures of them later. (This is foreshadowing of something I'm going to do in my house.)



I laughed so hard when I saw this. To Glenna's horror, I chased the guy down to take this photo:
Way to go, Dad! Necessity is the mother of invention, right? He was in a hurry and there's no way her little legs would have kept up with him.



Here's something we've never done. I had heard of this, but didn't even know where it was.
They have Coca-Cola from all over the world! So many different and interesting flavors.



The one from Italy is purposely bitter and meant to cleanse the palette. It was so disgusting! We sipped our favorites again to try to get the taste out of our mouths. Glenna and I love Israel the most!



Playing video games at Innovations is something we normally don't do. Frankly, I could only tolerate a few minutes of this. Video games? Not my favorite.

Glenna's not-so-secret crush . . .

. . . Buzz Lightyear. I mean, think about it. He saves the galaxy from the Evil Emperor Zurg!

The lady in red . . .

. . . Camaro!

We started heading toward the World Showcase in order to make it to our meeting point with Kelly and Paul. Glenna and I heard music and ran over to enjoy this:

Two step forward to sing a duet.

Mariachis are so flirty. It cracks me up!

When Himself and I went last year for our anniversary, they saw our anniversary buttons and pulled us into their group to sing to us. I loved it! Another time, I watched this little Hispanic woman get up from her wheelchair to dance with her daughter. The Mariachis loved it and hollered and played their hearts out for her.

I had a great holiday discount, so we made reservations for dinner.

We had dinner at the Bier Garten! I wish I could take my Mom there - it's so delicious. Hmmmm. . . . maybe I WILL take my Mom there!

The first time I went there, I was stunned at how familiar the food was. I sometimes forget that my mother has German heritage - probably because I don't know much about it. The food, however, had all the dishes my mother used to make and then some. We ate and ate and didn't need to eat again for a few days! There was also the German Polka Band that was amazing!

This is our girl . . .

. . . finding out . . .

. . . that she made the Dean's List at school!

I had a well-meaning friend tell me, about 14 years ago, that I shouldn't home school. She said I would never have any time to myself and that would be "very, very bad." Well, she was right about not having much time to myself, but she was wrong about it being very, very bad.

Very, very wrong.

Glenna and I had such a beautiful day together! We stayed longer, but we opted out of the fireworks and headed home. Kelly and Paul stayed and loved the show (it's pretty spectacular). I'm so thankful that I'm able to do this on occasion! I hope I'm able to keep my seasonal status at the Park for a long time. =)