Born to Travel

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love to see and experience new places.  I have a list of places a mile long and as soon as these dang kids are self-sufficient, Matt and I will be off on our great adventure.  However, the question of the day is "what is my favorite childhood vacation?"

Although we traveled quite a bit when I was growing up, we were mostly creatures of habit; we went to the same places often.  My grandparents lived in Washington, so we visited them.  My other set of grandparents rented a summer home on the Oregon Coast, so we spent time there.  I can remember several trips to Yellowstone, Disneyland and Washington DC to walk many, MANY Civil War battlefields.  However, I think that my most memorable vacation as a child actually occurred when I was in high school.  Toward the end of my junior year, my parents took our family to Walt Disney World.  I have been dozens of times since then, but I picked this particular trip because it is honestly one of the last ones that we took as a party of five; just Mom, Dad, me and the boys!  It was also the gateway to what has become a major highlight of my family's life since 1992.

It has also changed a lot since that first trip.  We ate dinner at Chef Mickey's when it was still at Downtown Disney.... which doesn't exist anymore.  Now it's known as Disney Springs.  There was this really fun part that was called Pleasure Island.  It was a "night club themed" area and we spent one evening at a stand-up comedy show.  We shopped at a place called Jessica's which offered several pieces of clothing featuring Jessica Rabbit.  I got a really cool sweatshirt that I surrendered YEARS later.  I was so sad to have it fall apart.

Epcot Center was awesome.  It was the first trip of many where I shopped my way around the world.  Buying something from every country was something that I was bound and determined to do.  And Captain Buzzy and Cranium Command?  Best show ever!

We enjoyed a recently opened MGM Studios where Muppets 3D was our favorite attraction and I loved the backlot tour where I saw the front of the Golden Girls house.

The highlight of the trip for me was the fact that my dad bought me a princess crown!  Juvenile? Yes, probably.  But I still have it.  A close second to the large stuffed hippo from Fantasia.

We stayed at the now defunct Disney Inn and decided that this was not going to be a one-off.  We would go back.... although our next trip in 1994 included my new favorite; Matt!