Legoland!

I need to start with this disclaimer: Lots of my friends LOVE this park and it came highly recommended. It was not my favorite. I had several complaints - it seemed unorganized {starting with getting through the gates!}, the map was terrible {we couldn't tell where things were and the print was small}, the height restrictions varied {one ride you'd have to be 34 inches, then 38 inches, then 40 inches, then 48 inches...it just seemed VERY sporadic...and one time the map said 40 inches and we got there and James was too short at 41 inches}. That said, James LOVED Legoland...probably even more than SeaWorld. It was definitely all the rides. That boy is a roller coaster fanatic! {Note: Legoland is NOT in Orlando. It was a 45-60 minute drive. And it is especially geared toward kids 4-8. James was almost too little and Will DEFINITELY was.}

When we arrived - and after we made it through the chaos at the gates - we headed toward the back of the park. We made it about halfway back and stopped for the bathroom and sunscreen {it was HOT!} and rode the jungle cruise/safari ride. It had animals built out of Legos and the boys liked it because they could "drive."

Next we went to boat school and REALLY drove boats around a water track. It was hard. I thought we'd never get back!

James did Driving School next which he LOVED. He still talks about the driver's license he earned at the end. Will was too short for that one - and it was a good thing because he could NOT have handled it.

{We appeased Will by letting him sit in this race car instead.}

Next, Papa and James rode this airplane ride. Will wasn't tall enough but a little boy was in line behind James who was the same height as Will and they didn't even check him. That's what was driving me nuts. We never knew who would check and who wouldn't and every time we went to get in line we had to check requirements, etc. Ugh.

Papa and James also rode this "ride." You had to manually pull yourself up and then let go.

While Will napped we did a few more rides. This one lifted you up and dropped you straight down. Sort of like an elevator dropping. James LOVED it but he made the craziest face every time he rode. I had to crop these crazy because I wanted to get the other kids out.

On our way to lunch we took a tour through MiniLand.

{St. Augustine!}

After lunch we hopped on the two-story carousel. James wanted to ride downstairs but Will and YaYa went upstairs.

We spotted the Lego guys as we were riding the carousel. They obviously can't sign books with their "C" shaped hands, but James did want a picture with them!

Papa made a friend.

Back to MiniLand for a real tour! The boys LOVED the buttons that shot water. Most of them made water come out in the Lego buildings but this one shot water AT them. They thought it was awesome. Thankfully it was HOT so they dried quickly.

Papa and James rode the drop ride again.

We rode a ride after this that Will could actually ride. It was sort of like the Buzz Lightyear ride at Magic Kingdom. You got in a car and shot things with a laser. It had a long line!

We stopped for a snack after that ride. The boys both had their own snacks but YaYa's ice cream sandwich got hijacked.

James did the jousting ride next. It was pretty slow but Will wasn't old enough. I think it was just because I couldn't ride or walk along with him.

After this we rode the Dragon roller coaster about FIVE times in a row. There was NO line when earlier in the day {at lunch...there was a lunch place right next to it} the line had been 45 minutes long. James LOVED this ride. It was really fun! Will was too little so we did ride swap with him where one of us held him while the others rode.

After the Dragon we went to the back of the park for Legend of Chima. We know NOTHING about Legos, but this was a water gun ride so James was THRILLED. We got SOAKED and it was COLD. James might have liked this the most of the whole day. You could never do this on a cold day. It was FREEZING.

James was EXHAUSTED after the day was over. He slept from the minute we got in the car until we arrived at Downtown Disney and then proceeded to pitch an epic fit that even YaYa couldn't bring him out of. You KNOW he's exhausted when he'd rather have me hold him than YaYa. Ha! We had a FUN, busy day!

SeaWorld!

After Will's birthday party, Dad, Laura, James, Will, and I all loaded up and drove down to Orlando, Florida. Dad had a conference that week so we tagged along  to spend a day at SeaWorld and a day at Legoland.

SeaWorld was just two miles from our hotel. I convinced Dad and Laura that we needed to drive {since the shuttle only ran at 9, 10, and 11 and 4, 5, and 6} and we arrived right as the gates opened.

First stop? To meet Shamu! James was thrilled about this. We brought his Disney autograph book {yes, I need to get Will one, too...} but I told him I wasn't sure Shamu would sign. He was so excited that she did. Those characters are his favorite things! Look how proud he is in these pictures!

We went to the dolphin nursery next. There were three mamas and three babies swimming in this pool. The boys were mesmerized by how close we could get. We could have watched all day long!

Our plan was to go to the kiddie rides area first thing when we got there. James was SO excited about the rides and we figured we'd wear him out and then watch some shows. Unfortunately, the rides weren't open until 10AM so we had to change our plans. We headed to Antarctica instead to see the penguins. We waited a few minutes on this ride. We had to choose the "mild" version of the ride because James and Will weren't tall enough {but even the "wild" version wasn't rough...just lots of bumping and spinning}. The ride followed a baby penguin throughout his life and then we were taken into the penguin exhibit to see the REAL penguins. It was fun but it was CROWDED already {they dumped you out into a small room to look} and COLD.

Next stop? Shamu! The Shamu show was closed {I was SO disappointed} but we were able to see the Killer Whales interacting with their trainers in one of the pools off to the side of Shamu Stadium. I assume this is always open, but it may only be open because the show itself wasn't running. Seeing the trainers working with a mama and baby was so interesting. The baby was being trained for shows. They'd let mama do the trick and then baby would do it. They're such smart animals!

Finally the rides were open so we headed over there.

Not pictured is the Playground of Doom. James decided he wanted to go on this three-story playground. I thought it was a bad idea, but we went anyway. There's a story from my childhood about my dad being trapped in a house of mirrors with us. We were screaming and crying and Laura could see in and watch us, but we couldn't figure out how to get out. This was exactly the same. We could see where we wanted to go out but couldn't figure out how to get there and James was terrified. Add in his fear of heights and this was just bad all around.

More rides!

After lunch we did what was my second favorite thing of the day - after watching the killer whales - the Arctic building. We saw Beluga Whales, a walrus, and a polar bear here and they were all AMAZING. 

{This picture doesn't accurately portray how BIG this walrus was. We were amazed.}

{Funny story about Mr. Will here. He picked this seal stuffed animal up on his way out of the Arctic building. It was HUGE - like 3 feet. We took it away and put it back and because he was PITCHING A FIT, YaYa picked him up and carried him. I wished I'd taken a picture because unbeknownst to her, he'd grabbed it again and she had him over her shoulder and he had the seal by the tail carrying it out. Hysterical! He didn't think it was when we took it away again, though. He took a nap about five minutes after this. :)}

While Dad and Will had naptime {well, Dad just watched nap time!}, James, Laura, and I went to the sea lion show! It was funny!

{Another huge - and not very pretty! - walrus!}

Next up was the dolphin pool where we could pet the dolphins. They came right up to the side as they swam by. It was fun to watch! James has terribly dry skin on his hands right now and the salt water irritated them badly enough that it made him cry. It was pretty pitiful. We didn't stay here too long after that.

Last on our list was the dolphin show. This was entertaining but VERY artsy. I wanted more dolphins! They had ladies swinging from cables and men flipping, etc., etc. It was just okay to me. I just love the old-school dolphin shows where they talk about their animals. 

James wanted a picture with the performers as we left so he hopped up there and I snapped a picture. We walked off and Will started yelling, "ME!" so we had to go back for him to get a picture, too. Funny boy!

We LOVED SeaWorld! {I'd been in 7th grade but it was a lot different then!} The weather was perfect, the crowds weren't bad, and it was SUCH a fun park. We'd definitely go back again!