Baby-moon without "The Mouse."

Hello and welcome.  Thanks again for taking the time to check in with us via the blog.  We appreciate all the warm comments and encouragement to keep up the blog.  With all the stuff going on getting ready for our +1 it's good to get that feedback.

Balcony at our condo.

At the end of March, Laura and my mother surprised me by booking a condo in Orlando.  Some place I probably would have not picked myself but for no particular reason to be honest.  Everything turned out great and we had an amazing time relaxing and enjoying all that the Orlando area has to offer. 

I won't chronicle the entire vacation but just point out some fun highlights.  

Eating Soup with your Hands

Before the trip we did have a little bit of time to research different attractions in the Orlando area.  As we lean to the counter-culture side at times and Laura being pregnant, visiting Mickey or any of the other theme parks wasn't really of interest to us (at all).  So our search had to go past the mouse into the plethora of other activities around the area that have grown because of all the tourism.  If you are not familiar with Orlando, it's sort of like the Wisconsin Dells in places.  Lots and lots (and lots) of tourist stuff. Some of it intriguing and some of it just stuff. But with the advent of this new invention called  the "interwebs," it's fairly easy to sort the worthwhile for the wastes of time (and money).

Medieval Times,
Complete with Drawbridge

One of the items that kept popping up on top entertainment lists was a dinner theatre called "Medieval Times."  I had heard of them before but never really understood all that went into the show.  It ended up being (rightfully) a little whimsical at times.  Since all lives could use a little whimsy, we ended up enjoying ourselves a lot. They start by assigning you to a specific knight to cheer for during the show.  So you get a crown that you need to wear to enter the arena with your knights color on it.  Instead of the crown you may be thinking of, think rather Burger King circa 1991.  Once you are inside you sit in that knight's cheering section.  No worries on some of the period accuracy, they surely didn't forget the caste system.  All the "Royalty" (people who paid $20 more per ticket) got to enter first and sit to make sure all the commoners did bother them.  Fair enough, we all need to make a buck.  The show was great.  There were heralds, horses, knights, royalty, and a plot line worthy of a mediocre Lifetime Original Movie.

Laura said take a nice picture,
So I didn't.

During the jousting and horse-dancing (yes, horse-dancing) they actually fed you a four-course meal.  Keeping with the medieval tradition, there were no utensils provided.  So you had to drink your soup, tear your half-chicken, and eat a baked potato.  It was messy, uncivilized, downright primitive and we enjoyed it immensely.  The dinner and show lasted about two hours and a strongly recommend it, especially if you have little ones.

Yarrrr, Mini Golf!

As I firmly believe that you are never to old to be immature, one of the first thoughts that came to me when I heard Orlando was admittedly one of my first loves: miniature golf.  I don't care who you are, mini golf is terrific. If your ever on the fence about going just take a breath, channel your inner child, get over yourself and have an amazing time. It just so happens that Orlando is home to Pirate's Cove, which we found out is one of the best mini golf courses in the world.  There are actually two locations about five miles apart that each have 36 holes.  Since these are heavily travelled, we decided to try and beat the crowds by going right when they opened in the morning.  That was a wise decision.  When we arrived there were only about 10 other people there total.  We decided to take on both the Captain's and Blackbeard's challenges and complete the 36 holes.  As if only 18 holes was even a option.

The golf course is on about an acre of property with a concrete mountain in the middle.  You play in, on, around and through the mountain and surrounding waterfalls and streams.  It is by far the prettiest and most elaborate mini golf course I have ever been to.
The course was challenging at times.  I had a blast.  Laura got a slow start and we won't mention her score on the first 18.  We'll just say we enacted the rule of "max 6" no matter what you shoot one a hole.  But on the second 18 she ended up with a ridiculous 3 under par with 5 hole-in-ones.  She has a knack for getting those in the oddest ways on the craziest holes.  Overall it was very fun and well worth the money for this unique course.

Celebration, FL

Bench near the dancing
waters fountain

On Monday we decided to go across the street from the condo to the self-sufficient, Disney-created town of Celebration, FL.  I had heard the stories from other folks in florida that people walk dogs in three-piece suits, all the houses have white picket fences, and the general 1950s-ness of the place.  So I guess I had a picture already in my head of the city.


Although I didn't see anyone wearing Armani walking a poodle, and only most (not all) of the houses had picket fences, we couldn't get over the general wholesome feel to the town.  Once you enter the city everything is perfectly maintained.  The streets are spotless, all the lawns and hedges are cut the same, and it was bustling with activity everywhere.  The folks just seemed to be out and active more.  For instance, there is a man-made lake in the middle of town (which is shaped like Mickey Mouse's head, of course) where there are rocking chairs to sit on and enjoy the view of town and the lake, and a little concrete area to fish from. And even though it was 90 degrees out, people were rocking and fishing.  We ended up walking around the downtown area for a bit and stopped into a Thai restaurant for dinner, which was amazing (Thai Thani).  The town which I had originally been very skeptical of won me over pretty quickly.  Although it does seem like the people live in a well manicured bubble, I can definitely see the attraction.  It was fun to visit, but we had to go back to reality.

Great vacation.  Disney made the town, but there is plenty to do there without the mouse.

Sunrise from the balcony.