Thursday 28th

Up around 8, the plan was to go to Universal. We all got dressed and ready. We hit Golden Corral for a big breakfast and then went to Universal Studios. It turns out they have 2 parks but we wanted the Islands of Adventure so Kellie and Tanis could go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Of course Harry Potter was all the way in the back. We started walking back towards it but did some looking around a Seuss world. But our destination was set, and eventually we saw the Hogsmeade sign and the train. A lot of shopping and looking ensued. The first ride Tanis was not tall enough for, that was the Dragon Challenge. We then went to Ollivanders and waited for the wand experience, this was really lame. 36 people get to go in, one person gets to interact and it is basically the scene from the movie. We did buy wands and what not. We had those sent to the front of the park so we didn't have to carry them all day. We then went to the Forbidden Journey which takes you through Hogwarts. I was too big to ride but toured Hogwarts with them. Once they got off that they rode the flight of the hippogriff. We then had lunch at the three broomsticks. It was good, they both had a frozen butter beer that was pretty tasty. I had purchased Pumpkin juice that was OK but not for the price. We ended up in Jurassic park next. Tanis got to see a Raptor hatch, he did think it was real and may still think that. They rode a smaller kid ride that was a Pteradon hanging roller coaster. We then went to toon town and they road a log flume and we went back to Jurassic Park and they rode the water ride there. Our next stop was hero world where they rode the spiderman ride, and the Tanis and I rode Professor X's storm machine (we defeated Magneto) They rode two more things in Seuss land and we toured the Hogwarts castle again. A few more souvenirs, and then we picked up our purchases and headed out of the park. The best money spent that day was the extra $5 for preferred parking. We went back to the hotel and Tanis opened his chocolate frog took a couple bites and then fell asleep before our pizza was delivered. To bed. Love ya guy.

Wednesday 27th

DRIVING DAY! I got up at 4:15, Kellie and Tanis got up a bit later. Our goal was to leave by 5, but it was more 5:15. We made our first stop in Byesville Ohio. We had breakfast at McDonalds, by that we got out used the bathroom ordered and got back in the car to drive and eat. Our next stop was for gas in Mossy West Virginia. Bathroom and gas, I bought Kellie a little bottle of Coke for her and Tanis. Next stop was in Virginia or North Carolina I am not sure which. It was a fast food joint that had a very interesting menu, a corn dog was considered a side dish. We got food, shakes, and a toilet break. Next stop was for Gas in South Carolina. Bathroom and gas. We were making pretty good time, we made it to Florida by around 7 p.m. We had decided we would stop and eat at a sit down restaurant. We ate a place called Boston's it was good but took longer than we wanted it to. This was in Jacksonville. We ended up stopping for gas one more time. By this point Tanis had fallen asleep. We got to Orlando and our hotel around midnight. Carried in a minimum of clothes took a shower and went to bed. 18 hours in a car is a long time. Love ya guy.

Tuesday April 26th

Everyone dreads that day before their vacation. Tanis was squirmy at school, Kellie was too. Tanis had Scouts and play practice afterward. He was promoted from Tiger Scouts to Cub Scouts that night. Me I took a few ups and prayed not to get a late customer. On my way home I called mom to talk about the trip and pass the time. My car had been making funny noises when it decelerates, but I thought it was the tires as I had missed a rotation and they couldn't be rotated because they had been driven too far, so during the conversation it made a more horrible noise and I thought something was wrong. I'll have it looked at after the trip I thought since we were driving Kellie's Jeep anyway. Well about a mile from home it made an even worse noise and then didn't continue forward I had busted a universal joint and had half my drive train hanging down. Bad omen or whatever I called Kellie and she called a tow truck. We got behind in packing and got to bed late, but it didn't change the plans to leave at 5 a.m. Wednesday....Love ya guy.

Houston Let's Talk About Last Week

Well, on April 5th my coworker Ray told me the shuttle launch had been postponed and would not be going up on 19th like scheduled. Instead it would launch on the 29th, the week after his spring break. At first I was really bummed. Mom said it was a once in a lifetime opportunity and I should take Tanis out of school to see it. Kellie agreed, so during his spring break he and I played video games for four days. The postponement meant Kellie could go with us. But because Kellie and Tanis were going we had to plan a day to go to Harry Potter at the Universal theme park. So the new plan was to drive all day Wednesday 27th, do Universal on Thursday, and see the shuttle on Friday. I am going to do a few posts detailing each day as I remember them. Before we went we had to book a hotel, we found a time share called Westgate Lakes Spa and Resort on hotel.com. It looked nice and wasn't too expensive so we booked it. Finding a hotel was causing a lot of anxiety for Kellie and me. So it was all booked, hotel, launch tickets, and what to do each day. Now we had to wait. Tuesday the 26th showed up.....Love ya guy.

Houston We Have A Plan

Friday night we ordered tickets to view the Space Shuttle launch. Tanis and I will head out Sunday before and be ready to see it. I haven't booked our hotel yet. We are excited about making the trip. You will be going with us, but I don't know if I will be able to take you inside, but I will have you in the car. I plan on turning a wheat penny into a squished penny souvenir. We will have one full day and two half days to find other things to do I hope to show him a tidal pool like you did for me. Love ya guy.

Your Dream My Possible Reality

Tanis and I are considering going to Florida to see a shuttle launch. There are only 2 more planned and this one is during his spring break. Everyday I get a little closer to saying okay. There is a lot of planning to it, but sometimes you have to say "screw it" and go after what you want. I have heard from several people that it is unforgettable. We will have to stay in Orlando, and I am trying to figure out tickets to the launch. I will take you if we go. Love ya guy.

It is not that....

I don't have anything to say. I just can't always find time and I don't like to do it during work hours, but I work a lot of hours. I will try to do better with posts. What hasn't happened since my last post? Well here in a nutshell is the order of events:

1. We had the summer party, it was a lot of fun as usual. Beautiful weather and great food.

2. Vacationed in Michigan. Stayed up at Aunt Janis's cabin. Took mom to Duck lake on her birthday, thought it was cool to see where you took the picture. Kellie and Tanis went on their first dune ride and had a lot of fun.

3. Spartan football started the season 8 and 0 and are tied for first place in the Big Ten.

4. Halloween came and went. We carved pumpkins.

5. Tanis Celebrated his 7th birthday at Kalahari. We had a lot of fun. Mom and Alex came down for it. My family all rode several water slides and had a lot of fun. Tanis had his first piano recital.

6. Your 3 year anniversary came and went and I feel some of the pain has lessened. I am ready to let some of the things I was holding on to go.

I want to talk more. I need guidance and a friendly ear. I will miss you next week every time I go out to the grill. Love ya guy.