All Star Music Resort

We started out pretty early today, driving down to Florida to get the All Star Music Resort.  We've been to the Coronado, the Polynesian, the Wilderness, the Animal Kingdom Lodge, Port Orleans, the Wilderness Cabins, the Caribbean, All Star Movies, All Star Sports, and the Art of Animation.  Now it was time to check out All Star Music, which we chose because Madison said she wanted to stay there at the one with the big musical instruments.  It also happened to be the cheapest one at the time, so yeah, there was that!

Anyway, we went down to Florida the Athens route, and were once again reminded about how it was probably a better choice - Nana and Ye-Ye and the others took I-75, and as usual Henry County was a mess.  They were diverted off their road, and so on.  We were texting back and forth throughout the day - they left earlier, and were just ahead of us until about this point here:

This is a great tradition of ours, the Florida Welcome Center.  If it is open, you have to stop and get free orange juice.  And Madison always wants to pose in these things where you stick your head through a hole and smile:

Anyway, we met the whole family here.  We were texting them where we were, and it turns out they were right behind us.  So, we met up at the welcome center, which is always kind of a surreal event.  Here you are, hours away from home, and you run into someone you know.  Of course, the difference here is that we sort of knew they were in the area at the time.  But it still was a pleasant surprise.

Here's Madison with a statue of Winter, who she hopes to see again some time soon.  It might not be this trip, but hopefully soon in the future.  One guy she always meets up with is Captain Citrus.

No longer a lame spokesperson for Florida Orange Juice, this is a hero that stands up for truth, justice, and fresh tasting wholesome orange juice!

We parted ways at the Welcome Center, and it was pretty much a straight shot after that.  I mean, we drove straight to our resorts.  The others went to the Art of Animation, while we went to the All Star Music Resort.

This is one thing that excites Madison:  the pool!  This one is guitar-shaped, and not terribly deep at its deepest.  We got to swim for an hour or so here, and although Mommy wasn't swimming, she did get to relax in one of the lounge chairs nearby.

It's a nice resort for what it is:  a value resort.  The decor is a lot of fun, and the pool is nice as are the other amenities there.  Madison and Mommy teamed up against Daddy in an intense game of foosball, and there were even a few rounds of ping pong played.  Madison still needs to work on that a little!

Best of all though is the food.  Yes, it's just a regular food court there at the All Star Music.  It is themed nicely, and check out this Hidden Mickey that Madison found nearby where you make your food selections.

These are all nice, but the best part is this:  Mommy can eat whatever she wants to.  She was craving a good pizza, and here it is:  a gluten-free pizza.

She really enjoyed this one.  Later on the next day, she even had a gluten-free cheeseburger.  Both were just right.  You just can't get this sort of thing at home for some reason.  But here in the vacation capital of the world, you can get the food you want, without the allergies you don't want.

We found our room, of course, and Madison placed decorations in the window right away.

Here is her crew:  the Vinylmations, Tsum Tsums and even H2-D2.  They were ready for a good time!

So was Madison.  She explored the playground a bit, but soon nightfall was upon us soon, and we were ready to settle down from a long day.  We went back to the pool, and there was a big screen up where they were playing "Enchanted," a musical of course.  We brought out some lounge chairs and sat, enjoying the movie in perfect weather.  No rain, no wind, no mosquitoes - and the temperature was just right.  Even better, they gave us all these big bags of popcorn to munch on while we watched the movie.  It was just perfect.

When we were done watching the movie, we were certainly tired.  We went back to the room, ready for an adventure, and ready to get a good night's rest.  Tomorrow, we sleep in.  But after that, we've got quite a day ahead of us!