A Universal Vacation

Breakfast at the Leaky Cauldron

In August, I took KC, Allie, and Riley to Universal Studios for a week of fun and sun. This was the first time Allie and Riley had ever been on an airplane. She was really nervous but they both did great! Riley watched cartoons on his Amazon Kids tablet or slept. 

I should say everything went well with the planes on the way down to Florida. The return trip was its own special little adventure. We missed our connecting flight and ended up having to be rescheduled onto later flights that flew into a different city than the one we needed. Our luggage made the flight, though, and was delivered to the same airport where my car sat in Long Term Parking. KC, Allie, and Riley flew in several hours before I did and got picked up first. My ride had to pick me up and drive me from one airport to another in order for me to retrieve suitcases and reclaim my Traverse. Like I said, it was an adventure. 

Other than that little fiasco and one shattered phone, the trip was wonderful and I loved it so much. It wasn't the sunshine or even the parks, even though both of those things were great. For me, it was spending so much time with the three of them. It doesn't get better than spending time with my boy, his girl, and the world's cutest grandbaby. 

We spent most of our days hopping between Universal Studios and Universal's Islands of Adventure. Our favorite means of getting from Studios to the Islands was the Hogwart's Express train. It was very, very cool. 

The window was a movie screen that made it appear as if you were traveling through the Wizarding World. This picture does not do it justice. Not even a little bit.

Of course, while we were visiting the Wizarding World, we bought wands in Diagon Alley; I selected Hermoine's, Allie picked up Luna's, and KC bought Dumbledor's. We drank frozen Butterbeer while wandering through Hogsmeade. I may have also purchased some House shirts for us as souvenirs - all three of us are Ravenclaws. Riley is too young to quiz just yet but I think he will end up in either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor.

We ate a lot of yummy food and rode some rides. I must say the rides were somewhat iffy for me. I got motion sick after one too many virtual reality scenarios. I'd have to take a break in order to keep my stomach from fully revolting. I much preferred the traditional rollercoasters but they were few and far between.

The Dr. Suess kid's ride was a little bit freaky and Riley ended up having a nightmare that night.

Lunch inside the park. We liked the Cowfish in Universal CityWalk the most.

Me eating some street tacos that burned my mouth. I am such a whimp.

The kids and grandbaby enjoying some dinner outside the parks.

During the middle of the week we took a break from walking through the parks and hit up Volcano Bay. I splurged and got us a private cabana. It was so nice. It not only gave us room to relax, it also provided us with a refrigerator full of water and a platter of fruit and pastries. The safe allowed us to leave our personal belongings without worrying about anything disappearing on us. We had two issues, though. One, it was still almost impossible to keep the two-year-old from running out of the cabana and down the busy walkways.  Two, I managed to completely destroy KC's cell phone by accidentally knocking it out of the safe and onto the unforgiving floor. That, my friends, was a costly mistake! 

Yes, KC got a new phone out of the deal. I broke it, not him, so it was my mistake to fix. That added a bit to the vacation bill!

Also, I was brave and did the Ko'okiri Body Plunge ride with KC. It's a body slide that is angled at 70 degrees and drops for 125 feet before pushing you into the pool at the bottom of the volcano. It was intense but I honestly thought climbing up the volcano to go on it was going to be what killed me. I was so out of breath by the time we reached the top that I needed a moment to recuperate.  

It was definitely a vacation to remember. I just hope the kids enjoyed it as much as I did.