Georgia on My Mind Day

All good things must come to an end, and this morning we needed to get going.  The big reason is that tomorrow is Nutcracker practice, and we can't miss that, can we?

After a quick breakfast, we said our goodbyes to Nana and Ba-Ba and were on our way up the road.  We were farther up in Florida, so theoretically, today's travels weren't quite as extensive.  In fact, we made it to Georgia in about two hours without any problem.

We stopped at the newly renovated Georgia Welcome Center, and coincidentally, it was "Georgia on My Mind Day."  That meant there were all sorts of tables, tents and representatives from all over the state to welcome us, some coming from as far as Gilmer County.  Of course, we were just in Gilmer County two weeks ago for apples.  Anyway, we went from table to table, canopy to canopy, and it was just like trick-or-treating.  There were candy and snacks at every table, and in some cases frisbees, hats and t-shirts.  Madison did some put-putting, spinning a wheel for a prize, and all kinds of snacking along the way.  She even posed for a picture in front of a green screen at one point, the end result showing her at some scenic place in Henry County.  Of course, it would be more fitting to have her image put in traffic stuck in Henry County... but I suppose this picture was nicer.

Speaking of Henry County, we avoided it completely again.  We left I-75 in Macon and went up through Gray, home of the world's longest red light.  Seriously, this light.  Continents move faster than the folks in line at this light.  Gray, Georgia, has no reason for anyone to stop there, so they made a tourist attraction that forces you to stop.  We'll figure this out next time, but behind us in the rear-view mirror, we could see dozens of cars veering off to take a back street in order to avoid the just-slightly-shorter-than-eternity red light.  Please don't think we're exaggerating.  Go there for yourself if you don't believe me.  Or maybe that's their plan?  This light is longer than drawbridge lights, or certain statistics classes in school.

Otherwise, the trip was incredibly smooth.  All the way, we were listening to the radio, and traffic sounded like a nightmare in Atlanta, Friday night rush hour.  Meanwhile, our trip was eventless, with slightly heavier traffic but no back-ups like we were hearing on the radio.

We got home in time to unpack and settle down.  There was even time to see a movie - we watched "Hocus Pocus" of course.

Amok!  Amok!  Amok!

Drawing Monsters

Daddy was writing today, but when you're doing work outside in Florida watching golfers and storms, it sort of doesn't count that much.  Madison was doing work too, and a lot of it.  She drew these 8X10 pictures, one after another, of each cast member from the Monster High movies.  She's been watching them again lately, one after the other.

The storm today was pretty much the biggest one that I've seen in a while.  But we're hearing about this hurricane named "Matthew" out at sea, and it's one that people are starting to get concerned about.

It's been a fun vacation anyway, although things are wet today.  We did do some swimming first thing. Daddy anticipated the storms, although I didn't anticipate them coming so soon today.  Regardless, we swam for a good long time this morning out at the pool here.  It was a nice swim, and there were a lot of nice people down there swimming as well.  The local residents were exercising in the pool, and some were quite happy to strike up a conversation with Madison and Daddy.  She was quite happy to talk back with them as well.

Again, it's a good thing that we swam then, because that was all the day would allow.  We thought about other plans:  a drive-in movie, or Silver Springs.  But the weather was just not cooperating.  It wasn't just rain, it was dramatic lightning strikes, the kind that shut everything down for a bit.  And then again.  And then again. All throughout the day.

It wasn't that big of a deal what we missed.  In fact, it just meant more time to spend with the grandparents in the house, which we did.  Madison sat and watched some television with Nana - Madison has become infatuated with a show called "American Ninja Warrior."  This show has an obstacle course in it that most of the contestants fail to get through without falling downward and splashing into the water.  There was a girl contestant today that made it, and Madison was quite pleased with that.  Girl Power!  It's just funny how much she wanted to watch this show though!

We played the usual games, from checkers to Old Maid to Go Fish!  We play them outside on the lanai.  And today was probably the last full day we'll spend at this place here in Summerfield.  The other place is almost done with renovations, so odds are that the next time we come to visit, it'll be in Daytona Shores.  It's pleasant here, but honestly, there's a lot more to do at Daytona Shores.  Still, this house has served them well, and we certainly haven't had any complaints while staying there.  I remember these houses first being built.  Wow, that's a memory.  We were staying at the other place, looking out over where all these houses were going to be built someday.  And now here we are on the other side of things, saying goodbye to these homes, possibly forever.

The great thing is that where they are moving to has so much to offer.  Of course, there's the beach.  But Madison really likes the new place a lot.  And we might be going there one more time before the end of the year.

Anyway, tonight we went to bed early.  Tomorrow, we have a long drive again, but we'll sleep in.  We'll want to get enough rest of course.  So from Summerfield, goodnight!

Getting a Hand

We had a rather quiet day today, certainly by comparison with other days this week.  We woke up late, all of us, and despite being here in Florida, there was work for Daddy to do - this "Trailblazers" series will be largely written here in Florida.  The golf course is there again for us to see one final time, as from this point on I believe we'll be meeting Nana and Ba-Ba over in Daytona Shores.  So this was a bit of a goodbye visit to the house we've been visiting for many years now.  Sadly, we couldn't make it to the pool today.  One reason for that was the tremendous storm that came rolling through.  We were outside in the lanai when the storm came thundering across, so loud and with so much rain.

Earlier, Madison and Mommy had gone out to do a bit of shopping in the Villages, picking up a pool noodle and some clothing items as well.  Meanwhile, Daddy was typing, typing and typing.

We had pasta and tomato sauce tonight for dinner, and American Ninja Warrior for dessert.  Seriously, Madison is really addicted to this television show.  It's one of the ones she sees when she comes here on vacation, and she can't get enough of it.  There was a girl who made it through the obstacle course tonight, and she was pretty thrilled about it.

After so many obstacle courses, it was time for some construction.  We decided to make a mechanical hand.  For this trip, we brought along with us a Tinker Crate kit that showcased the complexities of the human hand.  Madison learned about a hand having 27 bones in it, and then we proceeded to make something like a human hand.

It turned out rather well.  I have to hand it to her!

We read some more from the Nevergirls book tonight, about the rough relations between the pixies and the mermaids.  See?  Even in Neverland there is unrest!  I'm sure there's a bit of inspiration drawn from current events in this particular story, with a bit of "why can't we all get along" thrown in for good measure.

Anyway, it's been a quiet day, and a restful one.  For Daddy, a productive day as well.  And... A sleepy one.  I guess the weekend events sort of added up a bit, and we're all ready to head to sleep a little earlier tonight!

Summerland Golf

This morning it was time to say goodbye to the All-Star Music Resort.  Really, it was just time to say goodbye to the Calypso section - that's the only part we ever saw!  We were right next to the pool, and right next to the restaurant.  Each morning (including today), Daddy would tromp down to get some hot water for Mommy's tea, and we'd set ourselves up to face the day.  Today, that involved simply packing and hitting the road.

The All-Star Music Resort is just what it is advertised as:  a value resort.  But the fact that it is Disney adds a whole lot to the package.  Of course, Madison loved the pool and the oversized musical notes and objects.  The thing that stands out to Daddy is always the service for Mommy's allergy needs.  She never worries about her gluten intolerance while here, and feels great ordering a delicious pizza or a tasty cheeseburger.  It is just great to see her eat these things, because it is so rare.

We left the resort, but not Disney - not yet anyway.  Our next destination was the Summerland Mini-Golf Course, which is over by Blizzard Beach.  It's actually called the Winterland Summerland Golf Course, but we chose the Summerland route this time, as last time we were here we did the Winterland side of things.  Now, we've completed the trifecta, having done all three of Disney's mini-golf course, plus the mini-golf course on the cruise ship!

Anyway, this course is great.  It's pricey, but it's Disney.  We took plenty of pictures along the way through eighteen holes.  Hole 13 was a great moment for Madison, who legitimately got a hole in one.  She was so excited about this moment!  The course is largely under the cover of trees, so the heat of day wasn't bugging us too much yet - it helped when we got a large ice tea about halfway through the game.

We really had a good time.  It wasn't all that crowded either, which made for a nice, leisurely stroll through the giant sand castles and melted snowmen.

Finished with that, we made our way out of Disney, following route 429, which we'll probably take from now on to avoid the now always congested I-4.  Bonus is that you can see Disney from the backside.

We got to Nana and Ba-Ba's, and there was another warm welcome.  There were also root beer floats!    And dominoes!  We played a few rounds of dominoes, and had tacos prepared - it is Taco Tuesday of course.  Even in Florida, the rules of Taco Tuesday still apply.

It was a nice day for everyone, and now we enter the more relaxing part of the vacation.  We'll sleep well tonight...

Main Street Electrical Parade

We had a great night's rest.  Really, the resort here has been quiet and comfortable, which can't be said for all hotels of course.  Example, some have uncomfortable beds or noisy neighbors.  This trip, we've been blessed with neither of those, and in fact a pretty solid night's rest.  We slept in today, but there was still some excitement about the day to come.  After all, we were going to the Magic Kingdom again!

Our first stop was an reservation at Tony's Restaurant, and it was one that we didn't plan to go to yet - but they let us in pretty early, and we were thinking, "Why not?"

So we were let out to the atrium area, where the three of us had a tasty - and gluten-free - spaghetti meal.  It was perfect, actually.  Our waitress was not Italian, but she was from Beijing.  This obviously prompted a conversation with and about Madison.  And if you're complaining about a Chinese waitress at an Italian restaurant, please remember that it was the Chinese that came up with spaghetti to begin with.  

Although the Italians make it best…

Anyway, we hopped on the train next, mainly because it was right there, and it offered us a ride over to Frontierland.  We were going to ride further, but there was an approaching storm, and apparently it was going to be a doozy.  The reason for this thinking was that everything started closing:  Tom Sawyer Island, Splash Mountain, and the train itself.  We were sort of thrown off our schedule by that, but not really - because there was a better schedule planned.  

Our first evasive action got us into the Country Bear Jamboree, which was absolutely packed.  It is a much better show when it is packed like that - everyone was whoopin' and hollerin', and having a good time in there.  Jokes always work out better with a crowd like that.

Next, we went over to Mickey's Philharmagic, which is always a magical show.  Love it.  Madison loved it too.  The rain was starting to come down outside, but we were oblivious inside.  And that's the theme of the day, really - we found ourselves inside every time it rained.  Right there at the Philharmagic is a Fast Pass station, so we got ourselves situated for a fun time in Tomorrowland, mostly indoor stuff.  And it was there that we did just about everything, and had a wonderful time doing it.

We started out with Buzz Lightyear on the Fast Pass line, walking past a lot of people there.  One of us got a score of 350,000, a real Space Ace.  It was a lot of fun!  We walked out, and the rain was about to come back on us, so we did something great here:  we rode out the storm inside the Carousel of Progress!  We were wanting to ride this anyway, and it was just great riding a piece of history like that. Even better, Madison enjoyed it as well.  This is one of those timeless rides I'm glad they kept in the park.  

Next, we rode out the weather with a few more indoor rides that were perfectly timed:  Stitch's Escape and the Monster Laugh Floor.  Madison hasn't done either of these, and we enjoyed both of these quite a bit.  Stitch squirted Madison, which got her laughing a lot.  But the highlight of the day for her would have to be the Monster Laugh Floor.  The host there chose Madison as one of the helpers of the day, reading off jokes to her from screen, and of course asking her name and where she was from.  It was just a great moment for Madison to see herself up there on the big screen.  Mommy and Daddy loved it too!

Afterwards, we were able to head over to the raceway, because by this point the rain had stopped.  And it was just in time.  We used our Fast Pass, and got right into our car for another adventure around the track.

She's getting better, although there was quite a bit of overcompensating with the wheel:  bang!  bang!  bang!  bang!  That's the sound of her hitting the guide rail over and over again!  But she started to get the hang of it after the second turn, and the rest of the journey was pretty smooth.  She was really looking forward to the cars this time around, so we're glad the rain let up just in time.

After this, we were determined to do the one thing that we wanted to from the start:  get to Tom Sawyer Island.  Fortunately, it was open again, and so we hopped on a raft to go visit and explore.  Of course, we just read both of Mark Twain's books recently, so there was a little background here.  We explored at least one cave, went across the old rickety bridge, and explored Fort Langhorn.

Here's Mommy and Madison at Fort Langhorn, where Madison was shooting off her rifle left and right at various targets and passengers on the large paddleboat that went by.  Just like Daddy.  This is just a great big playground.  There's rocking chairs, caves, and a game of checkers here - Daddy and Madison had a full game of checkers here at the fort.

Waiting for the boat off the island, we met another family in one of those 'chance' meetings that was really nice.  It was another family that went through Great Wall Adoption, another family that sent out their paperwork just seven months after us - and yet had to wait six and a half years to meet their daughter.  I can't even begin to imagine what that was like.  And yet, here they were together as a family, and it was such a joy to see them together.  Madison and Nicole took a photo together at the Magic Kingdom.  Perhaps someday they will meet again.  

As it was, we spent a good half hour talking there - the parents.  Meanwhile, the girls were playing with the hoops and bubbles nearby, so there was at least something for them to do!

When we finished talking, we next boarded the large paddleboat for a leisurely ride around Tom Sawyer Island, and towards the back parts of the Magic Kingdom.  This was something Madison has never done before, and it was nice and pleasant - not crowded at all.  

It was getting closer to dark by this point, and the big thing we did not want to miss was the Main Street Electrical Parade.  We decided to watch it from Frontierland, which was a great spot to catch everything.  Right there next to us was something irresistible though:  the shooting gallery!

This was one of Daddy's favorite things to do when he was a kid, and I was so happy to see Madison get the hang of it quickly here.  She was rejoicing at getting targets here and there, and so were we, of course.  Look how she holds that gun after a while - the weight was a little more for her than she'd like. Still, she hit the target.  She's not the Annie Oakley that her mom is though!

Mommy was hitting just about everything she aimed at, and the two of us were cheering her on.  It was like our own little Wild West Show!

Anyway, we walked out of there - or moseyed out of there - and found a spot to enjoy the parade.  Mommy and Madison camped out where the rope was so they'd have a perfect view, and Daddy went down to this place way far away to get some food.  Pecos Bill doesn't have the normal fair for kids, nor anything Mommy can eat.  So Daddy had to march down to this place by the Haunted Mansion to get food.  And there was a huge line there that moved so slow, he would have literally missed the parade.  SO, he stopped at the outdoor market place by the hall of Presidents on the way back.  And lo!  There was gluten-free food, fruit, drinks, and basically exactly what we needed to eat.  So it all worked out just fine!

Daddy got back, and soon it was time for the parade!

So we were really going to the Magic Kingdom today (versus the other parks), so we could see the Main Street Electrical Parade.  It is due to retire within a few weeks, after quite a long run.  So we wanted to make sure we saw it in person.  Not that this entire trip was about the parade, but it was hard to resist a return trip to the Magic Kingdom today with this as a bonus at the end of the day.

Anyway, it was quite a long parade, and of course with plenty of lights.  It was like one of those Christmas nights of lights going by you, rather than you driving by it!  Tinkerbell here waved at Madison, and of course she was waving back.  Madison likes the parades as much as Mommy and Daddy.  Oh, here's a guy we loved seeing again:

Captain Hook!  We saw him and started making the hook sign with our fingers, chanting "Hook!  Hook!  Hook!"  This got his attention, and something happened that we didn't expect:  he opened fire on us!

The boat he was on hadn't done this yet, and yet all of the sudden these huge plumes of smoke shot out of the broadsides of the boat.  The Jolly Roger blew us all away at the side of the parade route.  Lots of fun!

There were plenty of floats along the route.  You can see the Wonderland theme here for this one.  We've seen this parade a few times before, of course.  But this one seemed a bit more special for a few reasons, one of them being that Madison was old enough to remember it.  And then of course the second reason is that it will probably be the last time we see it.

Aunt Shain let us borrow the soundtrack to the parade - it was on a record that we played before we left for vacation.  It is so dated the way it sounds, and yet that retro sound is what makes it so charming to us.  And it's catchy too!

Goofy is seen here driving the train to start the parade off.  We'd been seated about an hour before hand, ready to go, eating some snacks and talking with a few others.  When the parade started, the sidelines were crowded with folks wanting to see.  We had front row seats there in Frontierland.

Oh look - it's Pete's Dragon.  Elliot rode on top of the dragon as it came rumbling by.  It towered over the others, breathing smoke and those noises that Pete's Dragon makes.

Sorry for all the pictures, but it was a neat parade.  Mommy taught us to stop and watch the parades, instead of diving for the rides during these times, and it's something we've learned to really appreciate.  They do such a great job with the fireworks and the shows and the parades - we enjoyed it quite a bit.

There were so many dancers too.  This one here was winking and blowing a kiss at Madison, but all of them interacting with the kids of course.  We loved the Main Street Electrical Parade, all the way to the last patriotic float.

While we were in Frontierland, we also saw the fireworks show - it was called "Wishes."  We remember this one from before, and we usually watch it from the front of the castle along Main Street or somewhere like that.  This time around though, we had a pretty cool viewpoint, by the paddleboat.

We were along the river in the back, and the fireworks were all around us, by the castle and also over towards the Haunted Mansion.  The reflection in the water was really nice, as you can see, with the illuminated paddle boat in the foreground.

Madison watches fireworks this way, with fingers in her ears.  She loves the display across the night sky.  But it's a little loud!  But… it's also huge and beautiful!

We were slowing down a bit here as the day was drawing to a close.  We still had a Fast Pass for one very important ride:  Dumbo.  Yes, we had to get there.  But as we passed by the Haunted Mansion, we saw the line was just ten minutes long.  And Madison really wanted to go on that one again.  So that we did, and it was just awesome as always.

And finally after that, we got to go back to Dumbo!

Despite the line, we walked right on thanks to our Fast Pass.  And with that, we were pretty much done for the day.  The Main Street Electrical Light Parade was almost going to start again, and we used that time to sneak down Main Street and out the park for the day.  We rode the boat across the Seven Seas Lagoon in the dark, seeing all the lights and hotels around us, and a little tired.  And there was one final ride we hopped right on:

We were parked in Peter Pan today.  Yesterday we were parked in Hook.  We've been reading Peter Pan before bedtime too - so even where we parked seemed to have a little theme to it.  We got to the car, and to the hotel before long.  Tonight we got to bed quickly, tired and content at an absolutely wonderful day filled with God's favor.

Spelltacular

We got to sleep in this morning, and the beds were just right for doing that.  So was the room, in general.  There weren't too many people walking by outside, so the room was pretty ideal.  And the location was perfect too - we were very close to the pool and the main entrance, as well as our parking lot where the car is.  As the event doesn't start until 4:00 pm, we had quite a bit of time to relax today.  Daddy made his traditional trek down to get some tea and breakfast as well - we got some Mickey Waffles!  These were gluten-free so that Mommy could enjoy them as well.  Even at the All-Star Value Resort, there is a chef that takes good care of allergy needs.  We enjoyed breakfast, and then we enjoyed the pool too - Mommy spent time laying out, while Daddy and Madison explored the pool.  

We got ready to go at 2:30 or so, and as you can see here, Madison was dressed as Rey, and ready to go!

We were going to meet the rest of the family at the Magic Kingdom, but Mommy was having some tummy troubles.  It didn't look that good for us, to be honest.  But we asked our friends at home to pray, and within an hour, things seemed to right themselves a bit.  Mommy was well enough to go with us, and that's all we really wanted.  We'd catch up with the rest of the family soon enough though.

Here's Madison at the Transportation Center that's there at the Seven Seas Lagoon.  We were waiting for Mommy a little there, and you know something?  It was just fine that we were a little behind on the schedule.  Madison was fine, and it was going to be a great night.  It helped to know we'd be coming back the next day, so there was no stress - no worries!

We got on the monorail, and made our way over to the Magic Kingdom.  We went through the lines checking bags and getting our bracelets.  See Madison's pumpkin-shaped bag?  We got that at the Disney Store so she could collect candy in it.  She loved that thing tonight.

So we got there to the entrance inside the park at exactly 5:00.  And we had no idea they do this, but at that time, they lower the American flag at the front of the park.

Here's Madison and Mommy during the ceremony.  And yes, it was a ceremony.  You see, we all did the Pledge of Allegiance.  And then they played the National Anthem.  We took off our hats, and nobody kneeled as it played - because nobody there was ignorant.  As the Dapper Dans sang "God Bless America," the flag was treated with great care, folded, and handed to a veteran who was visiting the park.  It was amazing and reverent, and we're so glad we saw this.  Given the State of the Union currently, something like this was so refreshing.  It lifted our spirits to see people proud to live in this country, and proud of the flag.

We would have missed this if we weren't late.  So to that extent, we were pretty grateful.  We were marching up Main Street though, and we had a mission.  We entered Adventureland, and we were looking for the rest of the family.  We caught up with them at "Pirates of the Caribbean," and there was a happy reunion.  We rode that ride together, saw Davy Jones, and made our way around to the Haunted Mansion after this, skipping by Frontierland for the time being (Madison, Mommy and Daddy will be there a lot tomorrow).

You have to go to the Haunted Mansion on this night.  It was fun, and the line wasn't so bad either.  We had a great time going on this one together, continuing the tradition that will no doubt continue for a few more years.  One note though:  tonight's event was SOLD OUT.  It's not even October yet, and the Not-So-Scary Halloween Party was sold out.  This means it was crowded.  And in our opinion, a little too crowded.  There were lines for a couple pieces of candy, and these lines were really long.  One line stretched from the paddle boat, up the hill, turning the corner, following the river all the way back almost to the shooting gallery.  This was a long, long line.  For a tiny bit of candy.

Tonight is the night where stations are set up to get candy, and we did get to that.  But first, we rode on "It's a Small World" together, naming all the countries as we went along.  After that, Ye-Ye wanted to check out the new part of Fantasyland while it was still light outside.  So we made our way back towards the back part of the kingdom.

Here's Belle's Castle, up against a sunset that was gorgeous tonight.  We were able to jump right on the Little Mermaid ride here, which turned out to be fun.  It also was one of the last things we did together as a large group.  The other family members were hungry, and some wanted to go on the Snow White Roller Coaster.  So Madison, Mommy and Daddy went back towards Adventureland, doing a bit of trick-or-treating along the way.  That one line was shorter this time, and on top of that we discovered a few places that had more candy than others.  The Tiki Room had two candy stops inside.  As the birds looked down on us (and the flowers crooned), we got some candy... and then got back in line again to go get more!  By evening's end, our bags were full!

The primary reason for heading back there was the Magic Carpet ride, which we were again able to walk right on.  We did that, and for the first time got sprayed with water from the giant golden camel there.  I had NO idea that thing shot out water at the passing carpet riders!  Nevertheless, we got hit, and of course Madison loved that.

We still had a little time to go, so we did a few other things in Fantasyland.  Daddy wanted to do the Peter Pan ride (we all did), so we waited in line for that one.  It was a longer wait, but the new line is so creative and fun - and cooler.  The temperature was pretty humid outside.  Of course, the ride itself is simply magical.  So nice!

We were running out of time, but we did want to see a few more things in Fantasyland before we left.  One of those was the carousel.  Here's Madison astride one of the horses, next to Mommy and Daddy who were seated in one of those chairs that allows you to simply sit through the ride.  Mommy was weak from her earlier troubles, so this was a perfect thing to do as the evening was winding down.

And after this, we figured we'd best head to the front of the castle to see the show we were wanting to see.  Other rides could wait for tomorrow, but the line for the Teacups was too short to pass up.  Yes, Daddy braved the Disney Dizziness, and the two of us spun like mad.  I love this picture here:

Yeah, that was great.  For some reason, I didn't turn out as dizzy as I should have.  And believe me, I was grateful for that.  Anyway, we used the restroom that was right there, said hello to Alice, and found a place in front of the castle to enjoy a show we were anxious to see:

Yes, we finally saw the Sanderson Sisters.  They first showed up at the parks for this show last year, but Mommy's a big fan of the movie, and you know something?  Madison and Daddy like it too.  We found this perfect spot to see the show, a place where we didn't have to worry about crowding, or Madison not having a view.  There was a fence to lean on in front of us, and things were on the side - but at the same time no crowds, no taller people in front of us, and we were pretty close.  We got there early, so this spot worked out really well for us.  

Yeah, the whole cast of villains was there to help the Sisters celebrate.  We snapped a lot of great pictures, and really enjoyed the show.  When we get home, odds are we'll watch a recording of it someone posted on social media.  It's just fun, and gets you into the season.

The fireworks are at the end, and then there are even more after that.  We're talking about the Hallowishes fireworks show, which is just incredible.  For the third time, we saw that blaze across the night sky, all the way to the thrilling end.  But this time, by the show's end, we were at Sleepy Hollow, our traditional place to see the parade.  Because tonight was sold out, we thought it would be best to get in our spots to see the parade along the line, that way we wouldn't have to worry about crowds and so forth.  

It worked out really well.  Here comes the Headless Horseman again, probably looking for a place to see the parade himself - only there aren't any spots.  The crowd was immense again.

This year's parade was like the last one we saw, which is to say it's our favorite seasonal parade they have.  It's got this insanely catchy tune "Boo To You," one that gets stuck in your head for four weeks, that is, until Christmas season comes round again.  

The characters are great, the floats are great, and there's so much fun.  The gravediggers are easily the highlight for Mommy and Daddy, although all the costumed characters are lots of fun.  Anastasia, Cinderella's sister, came up to Madison to give her a high five... and then fooled Madison, quickly drawing her hand back and making fun of her.  Villains: what can you do?

As always, there were pirates, there were cowboys, and there was the big candy floats - although they don't throw out candy like they used to.  Also, the candy is no longer the end part of the parade.  The final part of the parade is now made up of all the villains, including one of Daddy's favorites:

It's the Bowler Hat Guy!  This is easily my favorite costume.  This character was fantastic, marching right alongside the other villains.  We cheered loudly for him, and for this one at the end of the parade:

The Evil Queen signified that the evening was drawing to an end, just as the parade was.  It was just great as it always is.  The crowds prevented us from doing a little more than we usually do, but on the whole the evening was great fun.  Madison loved it, and Daddy and Mommy had a great time too.

Though we never once made it to Tomorrowland (again, it was too crowded), we know we'll be there tomorrow.  I'm sure we missed something related to the Not-So-Scary Party, but you can't see it all, especially when there are so many other people there.  And we were content to see the Spelltacular show in front of the castle with the Sanderson Sisters.  Speaking of the castle, here's one parting shot Daddy took as we left the Sleepy Hollow side of things.

We made our way out the front gates, that song still stuck in our heads: "Boo to you..."  We rode the steamboat across the lake, and then the tram car to "Hook," where we got in our car, and drove back to the All Star Music Resort.  The signs directing you back there are non-existent (I guess because it's a Value Resort), so we had to do some backtracking.  But we got back nonetheless, and got there pretty late.  We were so tired, we didn't even pile up the candy to look at our loot this time.  We just dropped in our beds, and were asleep pretty quick.  It was a really packed day, full of fun and spooky adventure!