Utopia Land Delivers With Side Effects-Day Three

February 29, 2012- Leap Day

On the third day we piled in the two rental vans and headed to Disney Hollywood Studios. We anticipated a day full of action. The rounded metal vintage style entrance reminded us of the movie, Robots.  Upon entering the park you felt transported to a movie set with a street scene.

Mary was our expert navigator and pinpointed on the map the way to the Star Wars virtual ride. We strapped ourselves in the seats and encountered Darth Vader who used the powers of the dark force to fling us into space. C3P0 flew our spaceship through galactic space meteor showers and we crash landed but all in one piece. We were all smiles and giggles getting off that ride.

The Force is strong with this bunch

We ran over to the Indiana Jones set just in time to get front row seats. Alex's expressions were priceless to watch as the rolling boulder scene was played out before her eyes and the stunts and explosions were re-enacted showing how a movie set works.

Alex was gasping and getting ready to cover her mouth at the intense action and explosions.

The scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark when Indiana has to fight the Nazi twice his size and the propeller finishes the job.

We finished off this park with Aerosmith's roller coaster a couple of times and the Tower of Terror. The Tower of Terror was like an elevator dropping you and rendered the theme of the Twilight Zone, one of our favorite old television shows.

We arrived at Epcot and the girls were wondering if that globe was a big golf ball. This park definitely had a more futuristic atmosphere.

We all enjoyed the first ride we went on called Soarin'. We got to be hang gliders over different scenery. It was nice to land and go have a beer and some sushi while we decided on what part of the park to go to next.

We toured the Land and Nemo exhibits, gentle rides compared to the one we decided to go on next; The Mission to Mars. Of course we chose the Intense Program Module. As we waited for our mission detail from Gary Sinise the apprehension built as we wondered if we should have picked the fiercest level. One traveler backed out and was escorted to the mild program. My Dad, Husband and I looked at each other in a 'what did we get ourselves into but I'm not going to chicken out' look. My dad was the Pilot, Nathan was the Navigator and I was the Commander. We pressed our buttons on time and made the orbit in order to land with the gusto of the Astronauts from the movie The Right Stuff. My dad still wonders how Gary Sinise our base mission controller made it to Mars before we did to congratulate us on our successful mission. Ha, the details he doesn't let get past him cracks me up.



 We got to be crash test dummies and go through a test course cars go through to determine safety and performance.

The best parts were the near collision with a MAC truck, the fake cement wall separating just before you thought you were going to slam into it and the 60 mile per hour speed test at the end of the ride.
Nathan would have liked his car to have been a Porshe or a Lamborghini.

We really enjoyed the countries of the world walk path along the lake, we would love to go back to see it during the day. We sampled some delicious Japanese green tea, ginger ice cream. We watched another out of this world fireworks show over the lake.

But the fun didn't end there, at least not for the die hard crew. Brantley, Dom, J'Den, Brooke and Alex all headed over to the Magic Kingdom for an all night ride fest. Since it was Leap Day the Magic Kingdom stays open all night. This mom and dad were already to pooped to try to prove our fun factor so we waited to hear about it at four in the morning when they all came home. It was an absolute zoo, with people trampling the grass in order to get to the rides that had more than an hour wait, so the codger crew who just couldn't muster the strength were happy they stayed home. The die hards now hold the title of holding a once every four year occurrence of an all nighter at Disney. Both parties happy!

Leap Day All Nighter at the Magic Kingdom With Mickey and Minnie

Utopia Land Delivers With Side Effects -Day One and Two

Where does one begin to describe a whirlwind week in Disney World that spans seven parks in five days? Conjure up the the scene from Pinocchio's Pleasure Island and that about fits the bill for our trip. OK, I exaggerate a little but we sure did gorge ourselves on all the fun we could muster with some consequences on the side.

Our first day was pleasantly spent strolling the grounds at Sea World. The oceanic wonders amazed us in different ways. The Dolphin Show included parrots in their theme, the Sea Lion and Otter Pirate Show was hilarious and the Killer Orca Whales promised splashes that soaked to the bone. The Wild Arctic virtual helicopter ride brought out the sarcasm in John and Chandra as they threatened to turn the pilot into the FAA for grievous infractions, and the Manta roller coaster really did make you feel like a Manta Ray swimming through the water. Alex went on that one a couple of times.

They used 6 different Sea Lions for the show

               SEA WORLD              

Susie treated Brooke and Alex to their own genuine pearl. A diver harvested the oyster from the sea bed and the girls got to see the oyster opened to reveal the pearl. They measured them, you could see the variation in color. Alex got a peach pearl and Brooke got a golden pearl. Susie remembers the family trip to Disney Land where she received a pearl the same way and wanted to pass on the nostalgia to her girls who are as precious as pearls.  

Day two we ventured to the heart of it all, The Magic Kingdom. We encountered a parade the first minute we stepped into the park. All the kids eyes were as big as Quarters as they saw the characters from their favorite movies walking down the street towards the infamous castle. Aunt Johnna made sure the girls were set for the day with their Mickey ears and we were all on our way to the rides.

We were lucky Dom had a phone App for all the rides because we timed each one perfectly and didn't have to wait long for any of them. We saw The Swiss Family Robinson Tree house, Pirates of the Caribbean, Splash Mountain, Small World, The Haunted Mansion, drove a race car and did our favorite ride; Space Mountain a few times. Nathan, even conquered his childhood fears and rode Space Mountain with us. He remembers his mom taking him on the ride as a child and how scared he was. I have to admit it was a little scary being on a fast roller coaster in the dark.

We were all proud of J'Den for facing his fears too, he rode Space Mountain a few times even though he doesn't really care for fast, dark roller coasters.

Tatum, was quite a trooper. Her first ride was the Aladdin Carpet ride. She sat next to Auntie and Nana. She was an amazingly good baby the entire trip. She loves hanging with the big kids.

It was a packed day with lots of walking and rushing to the next attraction. We were lucky to spend the day with Anastasia; Denny's oldest girl. She's beautiful,all grown up and going to college in Saint Petersburg, Florida. I remember the day she was born like it was yesterday.

Nathan being brave, handing over the wheel to Alex.                

Mary and Brantley, Dom and Johnna's in-laws were sweet enough to plan dinner with Winnie the Pooh character's. Gavin really enjoyed Eeyore and he beamed every time Piglet, Tiger or Pooh came by to give him a hug.

After feasting on multiple plates of food, we were awed by a fireworks show. It started with Tinkerbell, flying down from the castle with her wings lit up. A perfect end to a Magical Day.

"Seven Days Without Wine, Makes One Weak"

Have you had your glass of wine today? If not, go open that bottle and get pouring, I'll wait............

Good, now that you have glass in hand let's talk about your need to go to the wine country. The great thing about 'wine country' is it can be found in places you wouldn't think possible. Wines from Oregon recently have been winning national awards and becoming well known, who knew! And can you believe it I have a winery in my own backyard. OK, not literally in my backyard, but I live in Texas and as big as Texas is it feels it's right there. I only have to drive 15 minutes to transport myself to wine heaven. Colorado, my home state has vineyards and wineries dotting the Western Slope. One of the best wineries in Colorado is located in the city of all places. If you ever get a chance while in Denver, visit Balistreri Vineyards, it's small, off the beaten path, you can almost miss it but what a fun find.

For those who don't see the "need" to tour the wine country in their state I implore you to step out and try it sometime. Not only do you see natures beauty in the growing vines that supply the basis for a vintner's art, you'll get to taste it too. You'll be tasting the unique flavors only your states soil and weather conditions can provide. It puts you in touch with the roots where you decided to make a life. I am no sommelier, but there are subtle difference in taste, aroma, color that let's you know where you are.

I have to thank my husband for infuencing me to drink wine. Before I met him I had the occassional drink around holidays. The people that know me today know me as the person who makes excuses to pop a bottle and enjoy among friends. One my first and most memorable experiences in the wine country are depicted in the pictures above. They are taken in Napa and Sonoma Valley (Sterling-Napa/La Viansa/Sonoma) We drove there with my parents in a rented Buick That had the most uncomfortable seats not to mention was in the category of Old man car. My husband got a speeding ticket and I blame that on 1) the seats being uncomfortable and needing to inflate our flattened butts back to normal 2) We were on that long, straight boring stretch of road in Nevada that begged for some speed 3)Since we had Nevada's racetrack road we wanted to see how fast the 'Old Man' car would go, it was surprisingly speedy as we found out with the cops lights in the rear view mirror. We laughed the whole way to California, joking that the Buick would get us there, not in style... but it would get us there. We strolled San Franscico, ate their delicious cuisine, pigged out on Ghiradelli Chocolate, Saw Golden Gate and Presidio. Drove the Muir highway by the sea on our way to wine country. When we got there we visited so many tasting rooms we were light hearted to say the least. We ate cheese, bread, proscuitto to sop up the wine in our stomach and went out for more the next day. It was the perfect trip. One that got us started visiting other wineries in other states.

Check the state you live in and I bet you will find someone living the wine making dream. If you've been able to tour your state's wine country let me know your experience and where the unique places are. There is something about getting out there tasting what man does with nature that binds folks together.