Day 5: Shopping and finally Orlando!

May 6, 2009
Vero Beach to Orlando

We woke with Graydon and started to feed him and get ready. I packed the car and made our way to the check out area before heading out. Janice grabbed some coffee and we were on the road once again!

We made it to Orlando in about an hour and a half, just in tme for Graydon's bottle and our early lunch (we didn't eat breakfast). We ate in the food court of the Florida Mall, our first stop of three before getting to Disney.

We walked around the mall made a few purchases. I picked up my Oswald t-shirt and a matching onesie for Graydon. I also picked up the first issue of the D23 magazine at the Disney Store. I had bought the second issue from the store at Vero Beach.

Once done there, we fought our way through traffic to get to the Target for some groceries. By the time we were done, it was close to the time that Steve and Charlotte would be reaching the resort. Steve had sent me a text message telling us he was in the airport.

We made our last stop at the Albertson's for some adult beverages and got back on the highway to get to Disney. We arrived just shortly after Steve arrived and checked in to the Boardwalk Villas all at once.

The Boardwalk is a beautiful resort but big! It seemed like it took us forever to get to our room.

We had a one bedroom villa booked, which was just the right amount of space. Janice, Graydon and I took the bedroom, and Stever and Charlotte had the living room area with the pullout couch. The bathroom was a little odd as it was one bathrom but seperated by a door. One part had the shower, toilet and a vanity sink, while the other part had a larger counter and sink, and the whirlpool bathtub. There was a closet at the back of the bathroom with a small wall safe.

The room was at the end of a wing, so we overlooked the waterway and the quiet pool.

Once everyone was settled, I unpacked the car and parked. We rested for a bit before we made our way to dinner at Wolfgang Puck's at Downtown Disney. We left ourselves plenty of time, but a bus never showed. With 10 minutes before our reservation to go, and us still standing at the bus stop, we knew we weren't going to make it so decided to hit one of the restaurants on the Boardwalk. Spoodles was full so we decided on ESPN. We had a good meal and a good start to our week at Disney World.

We turned in fairly early as we had a full day ahead of us at the Magic Kingdom.

I did have make a few phone calls before I said goodnight: I had to make sure that Janice received her flowers for Mother's Day and her birthday. They eventuall showed up and Janice was very surprised. i was very happy with them as they were bigger than expected!

Day 4: A day at the Beach!

May 5, 2009
Disney's Vero Beach Resort

We finally had a day to sleep in a little bit. We woke up around 7ish, and I fed Graydon a little on the balcony while watching a beautiful sunrise. Having only really stayed on the Gulf Coast side and only seeing sunsets, it was special to see the sunrise with my own son!

Janice and Graydon rested a little longer while I went down to get Janice a coffee and both of us something to eat. The night before we purchased the refillable mugs that the resort offers for coffee and pop. We were surprised that they sold them as we thought they they only sold them in Orlando. We bought them with the idea we would use them in Orlando too.

We ate, showered and put our bathing suits on to spend some time at the pool and beach.

The pool area was very nice and not too busy. This was Graydon's first time in a pool, so it was lots of fun. He loved it!

We had lunch by the pool and went and dipped our feet in the ocean. The water wasn't a bad temperature. The sand was kinda course; not as nice as it is in Clearwater.

We headed back to the room for a bit, dressed and went for a walk around the resort, to try and get Graydon to nap. I want to mention again that the resort is wonderful. It reminded me of a small all-inclusive resort, that you would find in the Caribbean, but nicer.

We shopped in the resort gift shop (and so the Disney shopping began...) and relaxed in the rocking chairs on the front porch of the resort. What a way to spend an afternoon!

I took some pictures, walked back to the room, fed Graydon and went back to the main building for dinner at Shutters. We weren't in the mood to go out driving and we wanted to take advantage of the bounce back coupon.

Dinner was great again and we retired early, as we needed to start out early the next day for Orlando.

Day 3: Travel Day

May 4, 2009
Columbia, SC to Vero Beach, FL

We were up a little earlier today, as I calculated the drive to be about an hour longer (thank you Google Maps!).

Today's drives was pretty uneventful as South Carolina, Georgia and Florida are pretty boring along the interstate.

We made our usual mid-morning stops for bottle and diaper change.

We stopped for lunch in Savannah, GA at, of course, Cracker Barrel. I've always meant to go into the historic district of Savannah, as I hear it is very picturesque.

This day of the drive actually had the most construction, especially through Jacksonville. Of course, not as much highway construction as Toronto!!

Before we made it to Jacksonville, we made our ceremonial stop at the Florida state welcome centre for our free sample of orange juice.

Once through the mess of Jacksonville, we pushed forward to Vero Beach. The last hour and a half was little bit hairy: for the first two days, Graydon was a real trooper and didn't fuss much. The last hour and a half was not pretty! Graydon cried most of the time and couldn't be consoled. He would just not settle, no matter what we did. So, getting to the resort was our up most priority.

We made it to Vero Beach and the Disney resort and we couldn't be happier. We were beat! And what a sight for sore eyes the resort was. Absolutely beautiful! Everything I would expect from a Disney resort plus more.

We checked in and made our way to our building and room. Surprisingly, they had underground parking, considering the resort is right on the beach and you would think the parking would flood with high water.

We had a studio room booked and it was more than enough room. It was an odd shaped room with a kitchenette, a pull out couch and a balcony with a view of the ocean.

We unpacked a little, fed Graydon and leisurely walked down to the main building for dinner. We ate at Shutters where I had the pot roast and Janice had the half rotisserie chicken. The meal was great and the service was just as good. At the end of the meal our sever provided us with a "bounce back" coupon for the following night. Through most of dinner, Graydon flirted with the waitresses and other guests.

As with the other nights, we turned in early with Graydon. Our plan for the next day is to relax. We needed it after the long drive!

Day 2: Travel Day

May 3, 2009
Bridgeport, WV to Columbia, SC

Our second day of driving was a wet one. We had varying amounts of rain throughout the day (light to heavy downpour).

The second day was definitely the most scenic as most of the drive is through the mountains. The best part is Hwy 19 through West Virginia. The road winds through beautiful mountains and ends up going over the New River Gorge bridge. The bridge is apparently the largest single span bridge in North America (the world?). Our plan is stop at the lookout on our way home.

Once we made it back to the interstate, we stopped at the travel centre for a bottle and some Starbucks (mmmm..... Iced Green Tea Lemonade).

The drive down the mountains was equally eventful (coming in to North Carolina): we ran into heavy fog. Not as heavy as the fog we drove through on the same stretch of road going home, a year and a half ago.

We stopped at the Cracker Barrel in Jonesville, NC, which is pretty much half way. We stayed at the Hampton Inn (which is much nicer than the one the night before) at the same Interstate exit, so we were familiar with the restaurant.

Once done lunch, we finished the afternoon drive and stopped for the second night in Columbia, SC. We stayed in the Fairfield Inn, in the North East section of the city. This is a brand new hotel (opened in December) and it looked like a 5 star resort. Something I wouldn't expect from a roadside hotel.

We changed rooms twice as they booked us in a room with 2 queen beds instead of 1 king bed. We soon found out that all king bed rooms had no bathtubs (shower stalls only). Obviously we needed a bathtub to wash Graydon. So back to the front desk and off to our original room with 2 queen beds.

We went to dinner that night at the Olive Garden. Getting to the restaurant was interesting, as the girl at the hotel said it was about 5 to 10 minutes away but felt more like 10 to 15.

One interesting thing to note about dinner was the diversity of people. Living in Toronto all my life, I'm used to a big cross section of cultures and races. Not so in Columbia. Either Caucasian or African-American. That was a big culture shock!

As with the night before, we went to bed at the same time as Graydon. I needed to rest as my cold was still bothering me and I had a real hard time driving through the mountains with my ears. This next day should be better, as the drive is all flat.

Day 1: Travel Day

May 2, 2009
Home (Pickering, Ontario) to Bridgeport, WV

Our trip started out as planned: out of the house shortly after 8 am and to the US border (Buffalo) in about 2 hours.

We crossed the border with very little hassle. The usual questions: Where are you going? Flying or driving (a lot of folks from Toronto drive to Buffalo to catch flights because the cost to fly from Toronto is much more expensive)? What are you bringing with you?

Our first pit stop was at the travel centre south west of Buffalo for a diaper change and a bottle.

We ended up having to make another pit stop just across the PA state line for another dirty diaper.

Drove on to Meadville, PA for our first of many lunch stops at the Cracker Barrel. I've been waiting for Cracker Barrel to have their chicken fried chicken, but decided to have a soup and sandwich instead. As good as the chicken is, it is too much food for lunch.

We continued on our way with one more pit stop before we made it to Bridgeport, WV.

I had booked a Hampton Inn as we have stayed at the chain before. The rooms are usually a good size, but this one was a bit of a disappointment. Seems like the hotel needs to give the room a fresh coat of paint.

We tried to go to the Outback Steakhouse for dinner, but the wait was over an hour (there were a bunch of teenagers dressed up for prom outside the restaurant) and it was well past 6pm. We ended up at the "Eat 'n Park." Service was slow, the food was not so great but the waiter was friendly and the pies looked good (even though we didn't have any).

We all hit the sack at 8:30ish. Janice and I were still getting over colds and we really couldn't do much without waking Graydon.

Overall day 1 was a good day. Graydon did better than expected in the car and I was hoping it would be the trend for the car trip.

Trip reports to come....

Well, I've been back for over a month now, and still don't have my trip reports up yet. I haven't even finished my written journal book. But that should be completed soon! Which means my detailed (fair warning) blog reports will also be posted soon! Hopefully next week.

In the mean time, here are a couple of pictures for your enjoyment:

And the number 1 reason why I can't wait to go to Disney World...

Because I get to spend the time there with my wonderful wife and son!

Only 1 more sleep!!!!