Busy again!

Mr. Potato Head started our afternoon at Disney's Hollywood Studios!

While there we just had to take in another Art Academy class. This time Gnorm couldn't resist peering over Buzz' drawing.

Buzz was polite and willingly accepted Gnorm's critique of "Dopey!"

From there we took in another favorite show we like, the "Block Party Bash."

All of the characters in the "parade" are from the Disney/Pixar movies. You may recall the "toy" soldiers from "Toy Story."

Darlene and Bill took a ride on the "Tower of Terror" and then we ended our day at the extremely popular Toy Story attraction. You can tell by the startled look on Angela and Bills faces its not a good idea to take pictures of adults when they're acting like kids!!

Oops!

New Theme Park Opens in Orlando, FL

We stumbled upon a most unique theme park while driving along Route 27.
The Park is not for the faint of heart rather those still young at heart. It’s a mix of rough and tumble attractions and youthful dreams.

“Umpa and Ian’s Playground” is a fantasy of everything every child could only dream of. The Park is easily accessible from I-4 and Rt. 27. Entry fees vary depending on how big you can dream or which “monster” will fit into your lifestyle. The colorful attractions and magnificent boldness of each “ride” will touch the hearts of everyone who ever played in a “sandbox.”
Here children of all ages can press buttons, lift just about anything and thrill to the roar of these most spectacular behemoths.

Owned and operated by the incomparable Umpa and his able apprentice, Ian, the guest is assured of the most impressive display of “toys” imaginable.

The Park is open from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. or until you’ve seen enough!

(Disclaimer – Guests must be able to reach the pedals/controls with/or without help from Grandparents! The Park is not responsible for crying youngsters (or adults) who are unable to take any of the attractions home.)





Ladies and Gentlemen, “Umpa and Ian’s Playground”…

The Parks, a bike ride and a dinner show!

Temps are still cooler than normal but the sun is getting higher in the sky and that's a big plus. So, what do we do? We start out by taking in a couple of parks. EPCOT was a good place to start. Darlene wanted to see "Off Kilter"... (The band.)

From there we headed for the Magic Kingdom just in time to take in the evening retreat.

followed by a ride on the TomorrowLand Transit Authority, where Bill can let his "inner kid" loose. (Oh yeah, that's Angela trying to remain anonymous.)

Then, we hit the trail, the bike trail that is. This time we head out to the Van Fleet Trail. The long, flat, paved old RR bed is a trek into the Florida woods. Typically, during warmer weather this trail provides the bike rider with a grand variety of wildlife. Although, it's worthy to note that you might encounter a critter that just may get your heart racing. Take for example, a twelve foot gater in your path, sunning itself on the warm pavement, or the lazy snake taking in a few rays just of the edge of the pavement! At least this day was cool enough that we had to really struggle to find a local critter such as this unconcerned armadillo...

The tree lined bike path goes on for miles. Our eyes and ears scanned the quiet and the thick wet land  for any hint of wildlife. Except for the haunting hoot of an owl and our armoured friend above, the eleven mile ride was a peaceful stretch that provided each of us with solitude and a place to set our own pace.

A few days later twenty-two of us gathered for an evening of fine food and a show at "Capone's." Being a large group we were seated at one long table and enjoyed the privilege of digging into the buffet first.

Darlene let the evening and her first (and only) drink get the "better" of her...

The buffet was very good and the show... well, I'll let our photos tell the story. Before that, you need to know who the fellow on the right front of the table in the left photo above is. He's Mike, and guess who the cast of Capone's sought out. Yep, Mike!

Mike didn't seem to mind either!

Mike didn't even flinch! The rest of us had a lot of laughs - at Mike's expense! Actually, the night was outstanding. The food was great and the show was fast and funny. The "Speakeazy" theme included good singing and  typical Capone era "bad guy" comedy. The final song put it all together...

Trust us, it really was an outstanding evening full of good food, laughter and good friends!

Here's our "mug shot"...

Playing "catch-up!"

Rain, clouds and cooler than normal temps are becoming the norm down here! (By no means do we mean to lessen what all of you are doing and going through up North.) Our internet service has been out for the past three days, UGH! That means I've backed up posting a blog or two until now.
Where do I start? Oh, first we had a visit (in the rain) by Winston in his new "Rain Booties."

Then we spent a day at (our workplace) DisneyQuest. It was a first for Buzz and Darlene and Rose and Ray. Suffice it to say that for a couple members of our party, a few hours was all that was needed.

Taking their run around the track on the Daytona Race Track is Ray, Buzz and Bill.

Pat and Darlene took a "spin" on the "Typhoon" virtual speed ride. The seats bounce you about as the giant fans make you feel like you're moving.

Rose tried her skills on the "JamboSafari!"

We all tried our hand at Submarine warfare, but the girls got to sit down. The guys tried to stay alive in the SeaWolf Sub game. It's a good thing it was only a game! I'm sure we'd have been "discharged!"

We "retreated" to something more our speed - bowling!

Actually, this game was a surprise. We got to "beat" out our frustrations! Here, Angela and Darlene, Pat and Rose to the left get into it.

The quietest person in our group caught us off guard when he let his "inner self" out...

Ray never owned a motorcycle so we were all stunned when he had to "jump" on this "Chopper."

That only tweaked his ego even more, so...

Sorry Rose, you just never know!

We made our way through four of the five floors of DisneyQuest and needed some nourishment. We headed for the "Earl of Sandwhich" and dessert (a free sample of chocolate), some shopping for the girls and people watching for the guys as we sauntered around Downtown Disney.

A few days later we headed for Disney's Hollywood Studios (along with Gnorm).

While waiting for the "Block Party Bash," we enjoyed some fun with the Hollywood Blvd. Players. Dora, came over to Bill, Buzz and I and wondered where our wives were. She wanted to know their names and where they were. We told her they were shopping across the street and she bolted into the store, shouting their names. She found Darlene and Angela and we all had some great laughs.

Dora caught up to Angela and Darlene on the other side of the carriage.

After clearing the street, the high energy Block Party Bash made its way up the Blvd.

After burning up some energy, we headed for the Animation Academy where Bill couldn't resist a photo op with one of his favorite Disney Characters...

I should mention it was also Bill's Birthday! So, ya just can't let a good reason to eat cake go by...

Thanks to Darlen, our busy day at Disney's Hollywood Studios ended on a "sweet" note!

A Fish Story!

Our group headed to Sea World. We had to take a moment to admire Sea World's newest attraction, "The Manta Ray." I'll let you figure out how the guests ride this beast...

Then, at Darlene's request, we all needed to "play" with the Dolphins at the Dolphin Cove. The Dolphin Cove is one of the most amazing attractions to see and experience. These beautiful animals are playful, friendly and majestic. I'll let a few photos tell the story...

Their playful swimming antics belie their awesome strength and power. But, it sure is amazing to touch and feed them.

From the Dolphin Cove we were all eager to head over to Shamu's tank for "Believe." All of us have seen the show before yet each time we are all humbled by the beauty and power of the ocean's most incredible preditor.

The real "Star" of the show, "Shamu"...

These "wonders of the ocean" never let us down!

We took in a couple more shows at Sea World and headed out for the day.

We spent another evening listening to the warnings of the Weather Radio. However, we were inundated by another night/morning of heavy rains. There was talk of the park raising our rent because we were suddenly "water-front" property! The normally dry rain basin behind our site was, well look for yourselves...

The rain in the morning turned us off to our weekly bike ride but we couldn't resist trying to catch up with the "die-hard" riders at our lunch stop, The Wave. The wind of the morning prevented our fellow riders from meeting up with us and they ate at Fort Wilderness. We finished out the day at the Magic Kingdom.

That evening Angela won the "coverall" at our park's Bingo game. She was gracious to provide our morning Shuffleboard match playerrs with a yummy selection of Dunkin Donuts!

Congratulations and thank you Angela!!!

Today, Pat and I exchanged our costumes and she thought we all should take advantage of a healthy meal at "Sweet Tomatoes." As there were no dissenters we all took our place along the 55' salad bar!

Enjoy...

 

Fun at the Parks with a taste of shopping!

Our day started out at the Shuffleboard courts. All of us did pretty well but the competition is fierce; especially the older players! After freshening up, we headed out to Disney's Hollywood Studios to take in a few of our faorite attractions. Our big meal of the day was to be at Manny's Chop House later in the afternoon, so we had to plan our noon hours at Hollywood Studios carefully. We studied the attraction times and made our way down Hollywood Blvd. We needed some spirit rousing music so we headed for the "Streets of America" for the rock of "Mulch, Sweat  and Shears!"

As the "band" of landscapers made their way down the street, their upbeat base and drum beat made us ready for what was to come.

Within minutes, they were up and making music! Their Manager is the rebel rouser of the group... he works the crowd... as Darlene found out...

Darlene was abit caught off guard, but made the best of the moment! We all clapped along with the band's music. Moving along, we headed for Disney's Backlot tour. After a display of movie making water special effects we boarded the tram for a tour of the back lot. We came to a stop at the working stage set and got to expeience movie making magic up-close and personel...

OK, so we get to see flames and water... but, then we got to see how they can move over 70,000 gallons of water in a couple of minutes...

From there we headed to the really popular new "Toy Story Mania" ride. It was a real hoot and lots of fun.

Watching our time, the guys headed to see "Lights, Motors, Action" and the girls wanted to try their hand a the "Art Studio."

Every time you watch these superb drivers go through their paces you see something new. Even though you've seen it before you're still impressed with the show.

The girls created some fine artistic redintions of "Goofy."

From Disney's Hollywood Studios we drove to Manny's and enjoyed their Wednesday special, their two-for-one chicken or steak fajitas, yummy! (Sorry, didn't take any photos, too busy eating!)

The next day we just had to walk off the "guilt" so we headed for Downtown Disney... to have lunch at the "Earl of Sandwhich!" (What can I say!) After lunch, we just have to walk past (and into) Ghirardelli's for a chocolate sample! .... then we walked off the guilt!

Actually, we headed for the "World of Disney" store. There, Bill and Darlene thought it fitting to get a little playful at Angela's expense...

And so, with a touch of Disney clips in her hair, being a good sport, Angela posed for a photo...

Alright, so the adults are acting like kids! What do you expect when they don't have any kids around. We made our way back to our park so the guys could R & R while the girls took off to BINGO!

I know we "crashed" early and the girls were still going strong, 'night, 'night!

Nature at its best!

Our Monday morning bike ride took us to the town of Celebration. As you may know our bike rides tend to include a final destination at a local restaurant. Today, like all of our bike rides in Celebration, we ended up at the Celebration Town Tavern. The Town Tavern features fresh New England fish delivered daily. Ah, the taste of New England!

Our ride, normally ten miles, takes us past many of the exclusive homes that make up Celebration. Yep, there's a number of them for sale. They say, if you can afford the monthly maintenance fee, you can afford to own one of these homes!

Along our route, we paused a moment or two to enjoy a couple of the "local inhabitants." First, while peddling along the wooden bike path that traverses an untouched section of town, we encountered this fine feathered hunter... This statuesque hawk kept a weary eye on us as we made our way past him.

It's always exciting to catch glimpses of the local Florida wildlife. Our bike troupe of "snowbirds" are constantly on the lookout for wildlife that we just don't see in our home states. Of course another critter we're always on the lookout for is the alligator. Cooler temps keep these preditors out of site. But when the sun works its magic one can easily find one of these guys warming him/herself out in the open...

This fine looking four/five foot young 'gator hung around for all of us to observe and photograph. We were only about ten feet away from him/her. Our observing area just happened to be on a house lined street. This critter was visiting one of the many man-made ponds that are part of the charm of Celebration. Yes, in hot/warm weather, you really need to pay attention to your walk places, ponds, etc. There are a number of varieties of seriously dangerous critters here in the south.

We left our "friend" to his sunbathing and rode on our way! Oh, this guy/girl will eventually be moved from the area by the officials.