Orlando Vacation

We had an absolutely fabulous family vacation to Orlando where we were fortunate enough to not only go to the theme parks but also spend a lot of time with family and friends. Of course my brother, Scott, lives there with his fiance, Melonna and one of my best friends, Melissa, lives there with her husband, Colin, and their 6-month old son, Jack. Of course there were TONS of pictures from each and every day but I promise I really did try to narrow it down to the best ones. Please don't get annoyed. You may want to wait until you have some time before you finish looking at this post. Enjoy!

Magic Kingdom

Kaelan and Mommy waiting for an afternoon parade. Check out the video.

Watching and dancing in the afternoon parade. Watch Goofy!

Kaelan and Daddy strike a pose.

Posing in front of the Toy Story bad-guy after riding Buzz Lightyear.

K and Daddy's turn.

Checking out a Tomorrowland robot.

On the way out of the boarding dock and into the wonderful "Fantasyland" of It's a Small World. He is so excited because this is his favorite ride (at least that's the best the Mike and I can figure; he doesn't know the meaning of favorite yet unfortunately).

SeaWorld

Posing as an explorer before checking out the sharks.

Walking through the shark tunnel. K loved watching them swim right over his head. He was really excited to see the sharks.

The kid just can't stop working. :) He saw this broom and dustpan and just had to do some cleaning up. You'd think he'd be more interested in the MANY exhibits, rides, and shows that SeaWorld has to offer.

We had a little friend that followed us around for a bit. He was so friendly we gave him some snacks. He preferred goldfish to cheerios (useful information, I know). K tried to go in for a pet but our squirrel friend was a little timid around his energy. Mike and I, however, were able to feed him straight from our hands.

Riding a dolphin on the carousel.

K showing his musical skills on the drums. He's such a show-off!

Apprehensively giving a high-five. The kid who has no fear finally found his match. Who'd a thunk it would be a friendly dolphin.

Riding the mini-version of a lift/drop ride. Hard to explain but there's video below. Be sure to have your volume up for this one!

Another thrilling ride that Kaelan loved!!!

Playing in the splashpark and loving every second of it.

After climbing up the net, K's showing his determination while trying to pull himself up the rest of the way using the rope. I was surprised he figured out how to use it. We never showed him.

He made it! I know it's not the best picture (you can't see his face) but I was proud that he was smart and strong enough to do it all by himself. WTG Kaelan!

Captain Jack Sparrow - "AARRR me matees!" Thanks to Uncle Scott for his new favorite hat! He is VERY into pirates right now.

Playing in the huge sandbox. Once he saw the trucks, he was there for an hour. He would have never left. Mike had to pick him up and carry him out which K was clearly not happy about.

More fun in the water. I know, I know...he doesn't have pants on but you try holding the kid back when he REALLY wants to do something. We had been waiting all day for the water to be turned on from the threat of bad weather earlier. We were lucky to get ahold of him long enough to switch over to a swim diaper. Oh well, it'll be good for embarassing him later. :)

Taking a break in the action to just sit and watch the other kids.

Universal Studios

A hug from his favorite character, Curious George. I know I said he didn't understand the concept of "favorite" but anytime you ask him what he wants to watch he says, "Watch George!" I think he's even surpassed Dora in Kaelan's mind. WOW! However, he was a little overwhelmed with the experience and it may have had something to do with his anxiety of the dolphin at SeaWorld.

Riding Horton on the carousel at Seuss Landing. This was the coolest place and aesthetically almost as fantastic as the Magic Kingdom.

Strapped in and ready to ride!

Posing on a Seuss-inspired police motorcycle.

Playing in yet another splashpark. This time it was in a playground called Curious George Goes to Town. He could have stayed there all day!

Doing a sort of science experiment. This whole room (which was a part of the Curious George playarea) was dedicated to showing the effects of air on those foam balls you see.

The Pool

Posing with Grandpa's new hat before heading to the pool. Is it bad that it actually fit his 2-year old head? :) Great hat, Dad!

Playing in the pool with Daddy. He's the best swimming buddy!

Kaelan LOVED the zero-entry pool and took full advantage of the easy access and exit.

Melissa's family was down for a visit at the same time. They came over for a swim-date and we all had a blast (especially the kids). This was Jack's first time in the pool and he LOVED it!

Swimming with his buddy Jack! That's Jack's grandpa who may have had more fun swimming with Jack than anyone else there. He is one spoiled/loved little guy! (I know, look who's talking)