moinab

Didn't you say you're from New Jersey?

More Legoland, CA! Retired Lego mold. What a great way to end our day at Legoland! A lot of people were telling me that Legoland is a 5 hour park, at most. We were there for 7 hours, and could have spent a lot more time there, if we had the opportunity! I just hope Legoland FL will be a little more toddler friendly, with their rides. (Of course, by the time it opens, Charlotte will probably be big enough to go on most of the rides!) Thanks for a great day, Legoland. Next up - CRUISE!!!!! This was so awesome! I was surprised by how long it took these things to cool down. Mmmmm....goo.... Legoland souvenir bricks, dipped in molten Lego goo! Specially made souvenirs! Ooooo! Another special surprise! Renate doesn't like having her picture taken, but here she is with Rhiannon. I can't emphasize enough how amazing she was with the kids! We spotted Robb's business card, on the wall! Renate told us the story of when she first met Robb and a TPR group, and when Robb suddenly disappeared, due to KT's surprise arrival! Awesome! Special, fresh Lego bricks, made just for us! Hmmm... what's going on, in here? At the end of the Lego Factory Tour, we met Renate. Elissa had mentioned that we should tell her we were with TPR, if we saw her. After chatting with her for a few minutes, she took us into the back for a special "VIP" tour! Here, the kids are playing with a bin full of the little plastic bits that Legos are made out of! Christian did great. Rhiannon, not so much. Good thing we have 10 years,or so, to work on it! Driving school was a big hit. So, Christian and Rhiannon get to go to Volvo driving school, and I get to climb on this car that doesn't move. This is going to cost you some more ice cream! Still blissfully empty! Happy girl. Hi Dad! Yay for mini-trains! Whee! Another great play area! Yay! Ummm, that's just confusing... Pig laundry! What's up ahead? Fairy Tale Brook. This was actually one of my favorite attractions, because we were all able to ride it together, and we were making up our own narration, as we went!

In my response to the TPR trip questionnaire, last May, I mentioned that we would be very interested in a TPR cruise. We were already planning on doing a 7-night, RCCL cruise in January. When Elissa responded back and told me about Robb's birthday cruise, it was a a done deal! We were going to try to do Legoland and Disneyland, before the cruise. After crunching the numbers, and soliciting opinions here, we decided to skip DL (in favor of 15-month FL resident passes to WDW,) and just do Legoland. (Special thanks to Eric, for sending us discount coupons!) I want to show that TPR trips really are for everybody! We're a family of 5, with a 9 year old, 7 year old, and a 2 year old. We didn't participate in much of the beloved TPR debauchery, but we had an amazing time, nonetheless! So, on to the trip! I worked 5 out of the 6 nights (12 hour shifts,) before we left. When I got home from work, Wednesday morning, I had a ton of packing and trip preparation to finish up. After a few hours of sleep, I got started. This was how the parked looked, all day. Mr. Bebe would approve, I believe! More Legoland and lots of cruise photos to come! After an ok pizza and salad lunch, Christian and Rhiannon gave the Bionicle a pity pose, since there was no one else around. I would have liked to try this, but it was a little chilly for me to brave a water ride. Todd, cursing the water jets that got him every time! Aquazone Wave Racers were a big hit! Christian and Rhiannon approved! The Technic Coaster was down, so we had to settle for Bionicle Blaster. Whee. Playing with Duplo blocks, while the big kids and dad enjoyed the Lost Kingdom Adventure. She was, perhaps, a little too into it! Rhiannon spent at least a half hour, manning this gun. All 3 kids loved this! We spent a lot of time in here! Legoland does have a good variety of play areas, which are great for younger kids to burn off some energy. Thankfully, this play area was nearby, and the frog hopper fiasco was quickly forgotten! The little boy on the left is the same height as Charlotte. I saw them side by side. Oh well, Christian and Rhiannon had a blast! This was the one that really chafed me, though. 36" height requirement. Ok, we're getting used to it. Christian and Rhiannon loved it, and went on 3 times in a row. During that time, I saw 3 children the same size as Charlotte go on the ride, without ever being measured. So, we decide to give it a try. We walk up, and the ride op lets us get on. After we're sitting, he changes his mind and decides to measure her and kick her off. Ugh. That was not pretty. If you're going to have draconian regulations, at least be consistent with them! She loved it! Yay!!!! A ride Charlotte could go on! It's not even that big! 36" requirement. I mean, really, what's the problem with a younger child going with an adult? Grrr. Christian was a bit bored. Charlotte had to be calmed down with ice cream. She really wanted to ride the horsies. Whee. Rhiannon liked it. We really loved Legoland, but my one gripe with the park is the surprising lack of rides accessible to toddlers. Cute little pony ride - you would think a toddler could go on this, right? Nope, children have to ride alone, and thus must be at least 36" tall and 4 years old. Lego drag racing Lego Daytona Charlotte's turn boats boat race Lego New Orleans Lego NYC, with Lego Freedom Tower, in progress. The kids loved Miniland. I think they could have spent most of the day, here! Lego Rushmore! I loved the little workers with the giant q-tip. Didn't get a picture of them, though. Lego turtles! And, just like that, we're at Legoland! (After 3 hours at the airport, a 5.5 hour flight to Vegas, then another short flight to LAX, shuttle to the rental car, drive to Carlsbad, and a night at the wonderful Courtyard Suites by Marriot, Carlsbad! Really, it was a great hotel with a great staff - we were very pleased!) We had to wait almost an hour for the Southwest counter to open. Oh well, better to have extra time, than not enough! Are we there, yet? 5AM at JAX. Finished packing and trip preparations at 1:45AM, Thursday morning. Leaving for the airport at 4AM. Time for breakfast/lunch/dinner - I've been up so long, I don't know what's what! Eleven days, five people, three different climates. (Christmas decorations had to wait until after the trip, to come down!)

Yay for Divv's Brit Crew updates!

Loving your report! I need to get started on mine. Congratulations!

Hi from Jacksonville, and welcome to FL!

We had a surprisingly fun trip to Stone Mountain, a couple of years ago. The kids still talk about it! Thanks for sharing the snow pictures. Your daughter is adorable!

I was hoping to get my trip report done before I have to go back to work, tomorrow night, but I'm not going to have enough time. I'll try to get it done, next week!

^Exactly! We go to WDW almost every month, and the one place my son prefers to go to, in all of WDW, is the Lego store in DD.

Families with young boys. Trust me on this. My son's classmates were DYING of envy that he went to Legoland.

It's still there. It's just a big Lego store, though. Not sure it would be affected, unless there's a competition issue, on Disney's part?

That figure seemed low to me, too, but I just figured I don't know much about theme park economics. If they want to compete in this market, they can't make it substandard. Having just visited Legoland, CA, after wishing for one in FL for years, I have great hopes for this project. I just wish they had done it sooner, as my Lego-fanatic son will be 10, this summer, and will be starting to outgrow the park, by the time it's up and running. Legoland has HUGE appeal for most families with boys aged 4-10. I would think it would be very popular with locals. I also hope they make it more toddler-friendly!

I love the look on Russell's face, in the first picture on the stairs (which came out great!) He looks like he's thinking, "Just take the damn picture before I have to come up there and disembowel you!"

Awesome update, Erik!

They most definitely still make Hot Wheels. We have a large bin full of them.

We prefer to stay offsite when we go to WDW, because we never make use of the Extra Magic Hours, and we get free parking with annual passes. Keep in mind, parking adds $14-$15 per day for all these parks, if you don't have annual passes that include parking and you're not staying onsite. Having said that, though, we always priceline our hotels. We're not too particular about where we stay, and usually have good luck with priceline. Our favorite place to stay (that we've nabbed repeatedly, through priceline,) is the Country Inn and Suites Calypso Cay.

Oooo! Good to know! I haven't actually been following the prices, since I first looked at that August cruise, which was outrageous! It would have cost us more than double what we're paying for IntimidaTOUR, which we readily chose to do, instead. (The trip our friends are going on overlaps with IntimidaTOUR.) I don't think we'd have a problem pulling the kids out of school for a week, in winter 2011.

I have a group of friends who will be cruising on the Oasis in August, so I'll be eager to hear their impressions. I'll be waiting for the prices to come down a bit.

Holy crap! I totally remember that game! That's digging WAY down deep, into the memory vaults!

I just picked up an Etch-a-Sketch, today!

Love this idea!!!!! I'm ready to send my money now! I belong to 2 private boards, and it definitely increases the quality of the posts. I think the price is extremely fair - c'mon people, it's only $3.33/month! I actually don't like the idea of a printed newsletter. I don't really see the point of printing and mailing information that can be more quickly and cheaply obtained on the site.

Merry Christmas, Bebes! Thank you for all the triptacular entertainment, this past year. Looking forward to more in the new year!

^too bad for you, I'm old enough to be your mom, and already married!

I had a VERY disturbing dream, last night, with Robb in it. It involved "bag tag" with a toaster. Perhaps I've been spending too much late night time on TPR.

Ahh, looks like you're right, Elissa.