So much to do, so little time

I've been sick for the last few days, and it's really been inconvenient timing. Not that there's ever a really good time to be sick, but this week I was supposed to be getting ready for our Orlando vacation. We had thought about going this summer, but decided on Spring Break instead because Space Mountain will be closed this summer and it's The Kidd's favorite ride. I haven't done much to prepare for the trip - I had intended to be finished with the packing by now, but I haven't really started. I'm hoping to have everything ready by tonight, though.

And speaking of inconvenient timing . . . why on earth does it always work out that Black Ship Sky and Blondie are performing when we're in Orlando on family trips but not when Caradorn and I are there without The Kidd?!? It's annoying! Blondie has a stand-up gig on Friday and Saturday, and we'll actually be in town on Saturday night, but of course we won't be going because The Kidd isn't old enough for that yet. And then at the end of the week Black Ship Sky is in concert,but The Kidd is really not old enough for that yet! I know in theory we could leave The Kidd with some of the excellent child care available, but I don't like to do that on our family trips. That's why Caradorn and I go so often without him. When we're all there, we focus on the things that all of us can do together, and when Caradorn and I go alone we do everything we can't do with The Kidd there . . . or the things that bore him to death, like meandering through World Showcase taking pictures of all the little details, or doing lots of shopping. Caradorn and I have already agreed that if Black Ship Sky or Blondie have any shows over the summer then we will leave The Kidd with my family and head down to see them. I would be really happy if we could also manage to see Snoopy and Blade perform while we're down there!

(Okay, BSS and Blondie? I promise - if you plan shows for late May, or June, or even early July, Caradorn and I will make every effort to be there! So please plan shows for then! Bonus points if we can see both of you on the same trip! And if Blade and Snoopy could be doing plays then also, that would be perfect. As long as all the times are different so we don't have to choose between you. Thanks!)

On this trip, I'll be keeping an eye out for any former Adventurers in the parks. I'm excited about the trip anyway, but I'll be even happier if we spot any familiar faces performing while we're there. I'm especially hoping to catch Lancelot or Sugar Snap at Idol and Blondie and Snoopy at Epcot. And of course I heard Chipmonk is a Citizen of Hollywood sometimes - I'd love to see him. And people have reported spotting Adventurers other places as well, so we'll be keeping our eyes peeled wherever we see entertainers just in case!

We're doing much less on Disney property this time than we've done before. We'll be going to the parks, of course, but spending much more time elsewhere as well. Instead of shopping at Downtown Disney we'll do any Disney shopping in the parks and we'll also visit the local malls. Instead of Goofy's Candy Kitchen we'll be raiding Dylan's Candy Bar, which we actually like more than Goofy's so that works out well! I'm still boycotting DTD - the one possible exception is DisneyQuest and I don't think we'll be going there this trip. We won't be going to the water parks, either - the time we would have spent there will be spent at Seaworld instead. The Kidd hasn't been to the one in Orlando so he's especially looking forward to that.

We're also planning to do more Geocaching around Orlando than we've done on previous trips. Now that we've finally gotten the hang of it and it's easier for us, it isn't such a huge investment in time to do a few park-and-grabs as we travel around town. Hopefully we'll have quite a few new "smilies" on our page when we get home.

I have so much to do today to be ready to leave tomorrow. In addition to the normal packing, I have to get the house ready for the housesitter and load the caches on the GPS. And see what we can delete from the DVR so we have room for our favorite shows to record while we're gone. And so many other things! I feel like I'll never finish it all, but I really want to be done with everything by tonight so I'll have tomorrow to deal with any last minute things that come up. Hopefully by this time tomorrow I'll be watching the clock, counting the minutes until we leave rather than running around trying to finish everything. Wish me luck . . . I'll need it.