Universal Studios

The last day of our Disney trip Jason and I took our niece to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. 

We rode almost every roller coaster. If they hadn't closed down the Hulk just as we were about to get in line, Jason would have ridden all of them! Kimmie and I skipped out on the Rip Ride Rockit. Jason and Kimmie both liked the Harry Potter ride and had a butter beer in that section of the park. My favorite ride was Transformer's 3D. 

Transformers Ride

We finished up our day with a delicious dinner at Bonefish Grill.

Our trip was packed full of things to do, and we had a great time!

Pharmacy at Universal

Disney: Epcot

Our last Disney park of the trip was Epcot. It was a lot to do in one day. 

Entrance

We started with the rides at the front of the park and then made our way through the countries. To get through all of them we didn't have time to really explore them. We did get to have dinner in Mexico though!

I think Jason's favorite ride was Mission to Mars, which I really didn't like. We both really liked Soarin' and Test Track.

The big ball

The Eiffel Tower

Disney: Animal Kingdom

After our rest day we were ready for the Animal Kingdom. We got there about the time the park opened and headed straight to the Safari.

Entrance

Th Safari was awesome. We got to see all kinds of animals: giraffes, elephants, lions, flamingos, hippos, and rhinos just to name a few! There were even a couple of animals that are extinct in the wild and can only be found on reserves like the one at Animal Kingdom.

Giraffes

Elephants

Lion sleeping on top of the rock.

While we were there we also had to ride the Expedition Everest roller coaster. We ended up riding it a bunch of times! We also saw the Bug's Life show and the Lion King show. They were both great. 

Tree of Life

Jason's favorite ride at Animal Kingdom was Expedition Everest. I liked the Safari the best! Animal Kingdom was definitely my favorite of all the parks.

Disney: Downtown Disney

Tuesday we decided to take a much needed rest day.

Jason and I went to Downtown Disney to do some shopping. We had to get some good souvenirs!

Buzz and Woody at the LEGO store

We had lunch at the T-Rex Restaurant. Every few minutes the dinosaurs inside would start moving and roaring. It was really cool to watch!

Our favorite dino

Later in the evening we came back with the whole family for dinner at the Rainforest Cafe. 

At dinner

Sunset from the boat at Downtown Disney

Disney: Hollywood Studios

Our next Disney park was Hollywood Studios.

My favorite ride was the Rock n' Roller Coaster. Jason's favorite was Tower of Terror. 

We also liked the Star Tours ride a lot! 

We took the Studio Back Lot tour and got to learn a lot about special effects and what happens behind the scenes of movies. At the end of the day we watched a stunt car show. It was really interesting to see how they do some of the car chase scenes. We even got to see Lightening McQueen as part of the show.

Disney: Magic Kingdom

I'm finally getting around to posting about our trip to Disney World in September. Jason and I took this trip with his family. Neither of us had been to Disney since we were kids, and we had never been to a couple of the parks.

Our first day was spent at the Magic Kingdom. 

We spent the day going through the entire park. We rode all the roller coasters and saw two parades! My favorite ride was the Big Thunder Mountain Coaster, and Jason liked Splash Mountain the best. We really enjoyed seeing Cinderella's castle and the electrical parade.

Cinderella's Castle

Mickey and Minnie

Princess float in the character parade

Electrical Parade

By the time the electrical parade finished up we were exhausted. It was a long day, but we had a lot of fun!

Blogtember: Life Lately

Monday, September 23: A "life lately" post. What you're up to, how you're feeling, how you're doing on your goals, etc.
Life lately has been very busy. Last week we were out of town- at Disney World! It was a great family vacation. We had a wonderful and exhausting time! I'm going to share the photo collages I made for each day, then next week I plan to share more pictures and more details.

Magic Kingdom: Cinderella's castle, afternoon parade, Electrical Parade

Hollywood Studios: Lightening McQueen and Tow-mater, main drag, Tower of Terror, main entrance

Downtown Disney: us at Rainforest Cafe, dragon made of Legos, sunset over the water, TRex Restaurant

Animal Kingdom: main entrance, giraffes, Tree of Life, elephant

Epcot: us at a show, France, the giant ball, main entrance

Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure: Transformers ride, pharmacy, main entrance

Tonight begins small group at our house. We decided to be a host home this time around, so Sunday we spent most of the day getting the house cleaned up and ready.

As far as goals go, in the spring I decided to start working out again. I have stuck with it, except for our vacations. Last week we walked a lot, but we didn't eat very well. This week I am looking forward to getting back on track with my workouts and eating better. Jason and I went grocery shopping and tried to stock up on lots of healthy items!

This week it's back to work. Hope everyone has a great week!

Blogtember: Only Photos

Wednesday, September 18: Only photos

Destin 2013

We took our first trip of the summer to Destin, Florida. 

We went with my parents, and we did all of our usual vacation things plus a few new things!

After dinner at The Crab Trap our first night.

The weather was pretty fabulous all week. The only cloudy day was the first day. Since it was cloudy, we drove down 30A and checked out Seaside. We had lunch and walked around all the cool shops.

The beach at Seaside.

Dinner view from The Backporch.

We have to go to our favorite restaurants in Destin including The Crab Trap and The Donut Hole.

While waiting for our table.

Dad and I love TCBY's white chocolate mousse yogurt. We don't have a TCBY close to us, so we always go several times while at the beach!

Yummy!

Dad, Jason, and I played golf one day. Jason could only play a little bit because the wrap he's wearing to protect his arm made it hard. Dad obviously did the best, but we all had a good time!

At the last hole.

We all played putt putt a couple of times and also saw Iron Man 3 and the new Star Trek movie- both were great!

Beautiful flower

Feeding the fish at the putt putt course.

We also walked on the beach a few of the nights, and got to see some beautiful skies.

Walking on the beach our last night.

Jason and I also celebrated two years of marriage while in Destin, which I posted about here.

It was a much needed, relaxing vacation!

Two Years

On Tuesday Jason and I celebrated two years of marriage. I can hardly believe its already been that long since we said "I do"! 

Last year, we celebrated our anniversary with a trip to Jamaica. This year we were in Destin on vacation with my parents. 

After a day at the beach, Jason and I went out for a nice dinner. We went to Fleming's Steakhouse which was amazing. The food was delicious, and everyone was so nice!

They had rose petals scattered on our table and even gave us a card signed by the wait staff wishing us a happy anniversary.

After dinner we headed to the Harborwalk. It was a gorgeous night to walk by the water. We even got to watch the sunset!

It was a wonderful day. So much has happened in our lives over the last two years. I am thankful that Jason has been by my side to face each challenge and celebrate each blessing. I look forward to celebrating many more anniversaries together!

Destin 2012

Jason and I spent the last week in Destin, Florida with my parents. 

It was an absolutely fabulous vacation.

I love the beach.

I love seafood.

And the weather last week was perfect. 

Sunny, mid-80's, and a nice breeze.

As soon as we arrived in Destin and got checked in to our condo, we went to eat at our favorite restaurant- The Crab Trap. We fit it in for dinner a few more times during the week. We made sure to have seafood for dinner each night and even had breakfast out a few mornings. Let's just say we ate a lot during our vacation!

The Back Porch, The Crab Trap, and The Donut Hole

Our first day in Destin was spent shopping, but each day after was spent at the beach and pool. The water was gorgeous. It was the most clear I have ever seen it and had that beautiful blue/green caribbean color. It was the perfect temperature too. Whenever Jason and I got hot from the sun, we headed into the water to cool off. Even at waist deep we could see our feet at the bottom and were able to see some fish swimming around us. We saw several different types, but I'm not sure what their formal names are. By the middle of the week, Jason bought a snorkel mask from Wal-Mart in order to get a closer look at things. With the snorkel, we were able to find a big crab, a baby nurse shark, and a flounder! 

A Beach Photo Collage

A few more animals from our trip- birds at the beach, alligators at Fudpucker's, and fish in the pond where we played putt-putt.

In the evenings after dinner we watched movies, played putt-putt, stopped for yogurt, walked on the beach, and watched the sunset. The first day of vacation I read Psalm 19:1 in my quiet time.

"The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship."

Psalm 19:1 (NLT)

The sunsets last week were definitely an amazing display of the Lord's craftsmanship.

my favorite sunset photos from the week.

We had to take a couple of pictures in front of the water.

Mom and Dad

Jason and I

Here are a couple of more pictures from our trip.

Views from our condo.

The Harbor

I am so thankful that we were able to take this vacation. Time away and with family is priceless.