Just who is this "whirling dervish," Ashley? Grand daughter of Bill and Angela and Pat and yours truly's great niece. Our "Little Peanut" can stretch time as if you were in a "time warp." It felt like we crammed two weeks into one. In some ways we may have overdone it. Bill and Ashley came down with a "bug" the day she left and are still fighting to get over it.
Here's a recap.
In the cool weather we headed out to Disney's Art of Animation.
The movie themed compilation of resorts put us all in a "child's frame of mind."
Ashley got to spend a few minutes with many of her childhood favorite "characters."
She just had to send a few photos of herself and a couple of very special movie stars to her beau.
We walked the four resorts marveling over the many "larger than life" Disney friends.
From there we headed to Downtown Disney.
While there, Ashley sought out a few more of her "friends!"
We all needed to stretch our legs so our Monday bike ride filled the bill.
Celebration was the venue and our guest donned her "colors" and we hit the saddles.
Our bike group gathered in down town Celebration.
Along our route, Ray sacrificed the lead to put his foot down on something...
The errant sprinkler had a few "victims" but Ray kept us dry. Although, none of us found out how Ray got away without getting wet.
Thanks to a passer-by we all managed to get into the picture.
Our (normally) ten mile ride ended up being just over eleven miles. Along our trek through the residential area of Celebration our leader, Pete, seemed a tad (shall I say) lost! Just returning from a cruise, Pete and Joan just weren't up to par for their positions. (Pete in the lead and Joan the "tail-ender.) We tried to make lite of our predicament but Pete, ever the optimist, had little to come back with...
We ultimately made it back to the Celebration Town Tavern for lunch.
On with Ashley's visit.
Ashley confronted "Wreck it Ralph" as DisneyQuest.
She challenged the Jungle rapids. Fought off hoards of pirates and shot at Astroblasters.
She couldn't resist Dance Revolution.
This kid was just getting started! EPCOT here we come!
Fast Track!
Mission Space.
"Off Kilter."
A moment in Paris.
Time out for a treat!
We check out a new wrap...
We sat by the "fire!"
And we ended the day with a bang!
But Ashley wanted to see EPCOT by day.
Back we went to meet the people and experience the customs of all the countries.
We dined in China.
Had some fun in Norway.
...and got into trouble in Italy!
Above, the "Ziti Sisters" were up to mischief!
Yours truly and Ashley were dragged into the show.
Pat and I even got married.... again!
It was a fun fest... at our expense!
All the while Ashley "hid" in the background!
At least we didn't get snagged for this "photo op!"
Leaving Italy, we'll never be the same.
It's off to France!
The Chef and Waiter went to "new heights" for the crowd.
England was a short hop away and we sat in the sun while the "British Revolution" entertained us.
(Ashley has the sunburn to prove it!)
But the Canadian Rockies beckoned!
We came full circle as we ended our "world" tour in China.
We caught up on the history of Norway.
Leaving EPCOT we had to pass by the Boardwalk and check out the ESPN Bar.
Ashley's beau, Nick is a huge sports fan so we thought a few sports photos were in order.
On the Atlanta Braves Spring Training field.
We toured the sports complex and were humbled by the story of a young boy named Scott Carter.
The HP Field House is the home for an extraordinary collection of sports memorabilia this young boy
amassed during his short life. It is a must see if you plan a visit to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.
Darlene and Buzz introduced us to Nitrogen chilled ice cream. Yep, that's super chilled air flowing out and over the bowl as the worker mixed up our ice cream... and it was rich!
During her stay, Ashley tried in vain to "hit the pool." She did manage to get in the water but her visit to the pool was brief. It just wasn't warm enough to stay very long.
And, we're not done yet!
Ashley saved the last day to spend the day in Disney's Animal Kingdom.
Seven of us scurried around the park from morning to closing.
We certainly managed to see many of the "locals!"
Ashley and Bill got up close and personal with the "Yeti."
We took a ride on the train Bill was the "Engineer" of last year.
Ashley got to meet an "old friend"....
"Rafiki"
Whew, it's been a busy week!
But what a grand time.... for all of us.
Ashley's early flight was bitter sweet. She was heading back to the cold and we will surly miss Ashley.
Perhaps Ashley's visit was graced by the "Fingers of God" as we began our week long adventure.
This is the sky that greeted us one morning and guided us through this awesome week....
Thin remnants of early morning clouds in an open hand gesture.
(The dark spot is a dirty lens!)
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