Whidbey Island, WA (USA)

[left Great Falls just after midnight - arrived in Whidbey Island around 0200L - stayed near the airplane (CBQ) - went to sleep and woke up just before noon - checked out of my room at 1140L - flew home to arrive in Atlanta just before 2300L]

Great Falls, MT (USA)

[route check with Ray - flew to Norfolk - had to stop twice - Madison (?), Wisconsin and Great Falls, Montana at midnight]

Disney Halloween Trip - Day 7

Checked out of our rental home again and left for Atlanta (0900). A good drive all the way - good way to finish the vacation. And I didn't forget my laptop again, either...

Disney Halloween Trip - Day 6

We went over to Disney World one more time today - we had one day left on our pass. On the way out of the park, I told everyone to get their hands stamped (not for any particular reason, but it worked out later). Got gas in Kissimmee before leaving the Orlando area. Got on the highway, headed back towards Atlanta around 1400L. Suddenly (around 100 miles later), I had one of those "Oh No!" moments - I realized that I had left my laptop in the rental house! The panic wore off quickly, though, when I realized I could probably extend my leave. After calling work - and getting an extra day off - we turned the car around to retrieve the computer. Fortunately, the rental place hadn't been cleaned yet (since we actually had one more night in the place that we hadn't planned to use) and the key worked to back in... After putting my hands on the laptop (whew!), we headed back to the Disney Resort. We spent a few more hours over at the Magic Kingdom. Everyone was very happy to have the chance - an unexpected bonus!

Disney Halloween Trip - Day 5

Spent a few hours with Dad and Beth before they had to leave to catch their flight. Afterwards, we headed over for another day at Disney World! We bought some princess gear for the kids at "Sir Mickey's" (1340), "Tinker Bell's Treasures" (1350) and "The King's Gallery" (1400). Ended up at Epcot, much later, where I enjoyed HUGE beers at the Germany Biergarten. We also got some food at the Electric Umbrella (1905).  The kids had fun doing the Chicken Dance and we stayed a long time (left at 2130).  [Did we stay to watch the light show?]

Disney Halloween Trip - Day 4

Enjoyed another day at Disney - this time at the kids' favorite part of the Resort: Animal Kingdom! Dad and Beth seemed to be enjoying themselves. Ate lunch at Restaurantosaurus. After getting our fill of the rides and seeing lots of animals, we went back to the Magic Kingdom for one more evening of fun with the Grandparents...

Disney Halloween Trip - Day 3

Woke up as early as we could and then headed over for another day at Disney World. Dad and Beth wanted to check out Epcot again. Ate a late breakfast at Norway Akershus (finished at 1100). We had a good day walking around the International Showcase. Got a snack at Margarita Kiosk (1430). The kids enjoyed visiting the many countries. I was kind of surprised when Dad said they would be leaving on Sunday (I guess the dates got mixed up somehow?)... Oh well. After a full day of fun, we drove over to Winter Haven to spent Halloween night with Nicky's relatives. The kids had a great time trick-or-treating with their little cousins and lots of other kids their age. It was a good night...

Disney Halloween Trip - Day 2

We woke up in our rental with Dad and Beth. The girls had fun with them as we got ready to head over to Disney World. We got there around 0900 and managed to het our Military Appreciation "Park-Hopper" tickets before 0930. Our first stop inside the Park was Mickey's Star Traders (0935), for autograph books and pens. The kids had a great time with their grandparents - riding on rides and walking around holding hands. Got some lunch at Pecos Bills (1205).  We spent all day at the Magic Kingdom and Epcot. There were not a lot of people in the parks today - it was great to have the rides to ourselves! Around 1700, Nicky's Aunt Barbara met up with us at the Polynesian. We got an unexpected treat - they had a Luau going on and we got to watch a Fire Dance. Later, we went in to "Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween" party. There were tons of people there! We were glad we had already been on the rides, since we could barely get on ANY. We got good seats for the parade, though - it was great! The Headless Horseman rode around on the streets and then all the characters came by - dressed in Halloween costumes. We left very late.

Disney Halloween Trip - Day 1

I had some work to do at the office, but I managed to escape a little early today. Despite the "head start" we immediately found a huge traffic jam as we started south on I-75. We made slow, but steady, progress but (in frustration) we eventually stopped to eat a meal at Cracker Barrel in Macon, Georgia (finished 1450L). We got back on the road and struggled on through a construction zone until the traffic mess cleared up. With some minor exceptions, the rest of the trip was nearly traffic-free. Unfortunately, the delay made us extremely late to meet Dad and Beth (they were already in Orlando by the time we passed I-10...). When they called us from the airport, we told them we would be late and gave them the combination for the rental home. Made it to Orlando at 2200L and found our rental pretty easily (at Indian Creek - near Formosa Garden). The place is great: we got it through American Vacation Homes and we get five nights (sixth free). It has three bedrooms and a pool. Dad and Beth had figured everything out, so we just had to put the kids to bed...

Key West, FL (USA)

[flight from Atlanta to Cherry Point to Mayport to Virginia Beach to Key West - then home]