Never say never

One of the rules of test construction is to never use the words "always" or "never" in a true/ false question, and in life I've heard people say "never say you'll never do" xyz because you might at some point or another. In May 2013 as we were standing along the curb waiting for the afternoon parade to pass by us at Magic Kingdom, I distinctly remember (foolishly) saying to Paul, "we'll never come to Disney in the summer." I was sweating like crazy in May and couldn't imagine how standing there in July or August. Guess what I did today? I paid $164 for us to stay for 7 nights in early July at the same Marriott resort in Orlando that we stayed at in May 2013. If anyone wasn't sure that I really loved my kids, this should prove it. Before we had kids, our two favorite types of vacations were either sightseeing in Europe or relaxing in the Caribbean. We went on many vacations during the first almost 7 years of marriage before Nadia was born, and we never went to Florida. Our last trip to the Caribbean was in May 2012, but that trip was a bit of a bust because the weather was awful for almost the whole time.

The last really nice Caribbean vacation we had was to Antigua in 2009. If we were picking the vacation based on what I would most enjoy, we'd be heading to an island in the Caribbean. We actually have no intention of starting a tradition of going to Florida or Disney World every year. We had planned to take the kids back some day, but neither Paul or I were in favor of returning again this year. Then we started discussing where to go. We have a long list of places we want to take the kids when they're a bit older ex. Niagra Falls, Grand Canyon, Boston, etc., but at ages 1, 4, and 5, they're really not ready for much sight seeing yet aside from places like the zoo or an Aquarium. I am planning on taking them (plus 2 cousins) for a couple of such outings in DC and Baltimore in June. Meanwhile Nadia and Ian have been asking for many weeks on an almost daily basis if we could return to Florida, and they mentioned the pirate ship resort we stayed at even more often than Disney World.

So we finally decided to go there, but this decision was made much later than usual. Typically we make our summer vacation reservations in December or January. The resort has efficiencies, 1 bedroom, and 2 bedroom units. We wanted a 2 bedroom unit, and they are the hardest to get. I have been checking every morning for quite a few weeks, and the only weeks I could find one were in late May or early June, when Paul will be teaching a lab. His lab doesn't finish until June 26. I also was hoping to go on vacation before Oliver turned two so that he could fly free. This morning at 6:30am I discovered a 2 bedroom unit available for July 3-10 for $164, and I snatched it up even though I know it's going to be hot in Florida in July AND the crowds are much worse in Disney World in July (frankly you'd think the crowds would be smaller in light of the heat, but that's not the case). The days we are at the resort, I won't mind the heat because I will be in the swimming pool. Last year we did one day at Sea World and one day at Magic Kingdom. Although we thoroughly loved Sea World, we've decided this year to do one day at Hollywood Studios (which was called MGM when I was a child) and Magic Kingdom. Paul has only been to Magic Kingdom so that will be a treat for him to explore a new park. We are arriving on a Thursday and plan to go to Hollywood Studios on Sunday and Magic Kingdom on Wednesday and then leave on Thursday. Last year we did the two park days back to back, and I thought it was a bit much. Hopefully this schedule will work out better. When the kids are older (and we go during a cooler time of year), I am sure we'll spend more than two days at Disney World, but with a one-year-old in tow, two days will be more than enough.

The other downside of going in July is that my parents can't join us, and we had planned to vacation with them this year, as we haven't gone with them since 2011. My brother is spending less than a month in the US this summer, and obviously they don't want to go with us to Florida while he's in Maryland. So we told Paul's parents that we are headed back to the same resort in July, and I think they're going to join us. They love their grandkids to be certain! We are planning to fly from Baltimore, but I think they're going to drive down. The only thing I had on the calendar for those dates were one week of Nadia and Ian's two week swimming class. I called the organization today and was told that one week of private lessons costs $10 more than two weeks of group lessons. I am going to sign Nadia up for one week of private lessons, and if I find out we're moving this summer, I will also sign Ian up for private lessons. If we aren't moving, I'll use the account credit from Ian's swim lessons (they don't give refunds) towards Nadia's next gymnastics class in the fall. For now I am having fun planning out our vacation. There isn't any sweating involved in the planning of the trip, ha ha! :)