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Drove down in our van
Quality Inn Lake Cecile (1 night) & Holiday Inn Family Suites - Lake Buena Vista (8 nights)
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| Day One - May 26, 2000 Kerry and I went off to work as usual, and the kids to school. I left work at 11 am and Kerry left his work at 11:30 am and we met at home around 11:35 am. After we packed the van, we drove to the kids' school to check them out early (it was their last day of school). I read their report cards while Kerry stopped at Wendy's for lunch. After another stop to fill up the gas tank, we were on the road by 1:00 pm. The drive down was good. The kids entertained themselves with playing cards, gameboys, drawing tablets, and a little napping. We did stop in Valdosta to re-fill the tank before hitting the Florida gas prices, but that was our only stop, and we arrived at our hotel around 8:00 pm. The hotel was okay, although I wouldn't want to stay for long, but it was clean and cheap and was just fine for one night. The employees were lacking in customer service skills, though. When it was our turn to check in and we walked up to the desk, the lady said "Sorry, but I really gotta go!" and ran off to the bathroom! After getting our luggage in the room, we headed down the road to Uno's for dinner, which was good. Then we headed back to the hotel and straight to sleep. |
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Day Two - Saturday, May 27 Woke up around 8:00 am and checked out soon after. We headed over to the Holiday Inn which was only about 5 miles away, but what a difference! We were impressed upon first sight and our impressions just kept getting better. Mostly we were happy to get away from the congested Irlo Bronson highway with all its construction. This hotel is very new, and practically by itself (there is a Marriott across the street). It's also only about a mile to the Walt Disney World gates, so we never had to deal with traffic! We parked at the lobby and Kerry went in to see if there was any chance our room would be ready this early. It wasn't, but the clerk told us to park and come in for breakfast. I was prepared for some danishes and coffee, but was I surprised! They had bacon, eggs, grits, oatmeal, biscuits, toast, cereal, muffins, and more. This breakfast buffet is free for guests, but I thought it was nice of them to invite us to eat this first day as well. The food was great, and we loved looking around. It's themed as trains and there was a miniature train set in the lobby as well as a train outside that little kids can ride around the hotel in. After breakfast, we drove to Epcot and arrived about 10:30 am. We watched the Kristos perform first. I wish I had a picture of our faces when they took off their masks after their performance and we saw the woman's hair was all the way down her back! Where did she put all of that? We then walked through Ice Station Cool. Of course, we had to try the Beverly again, and of course, Kerry had to trick a woman into trying it by telling her how good it was. After she decked him, we ran out of there. We headed over to the Living Seas and spent some time in there. Then we went to the Land and while Kerry made PS for the Ice Cream Social on Monday, the kids went downstairs to a station where they made things out of "puffed corn starch?" I can't remember what the CM said it was, but the kids had fun. Next we rode Living with the Land which we absolutely loved! We saw Food Rocks and the Circle of Life, then went next door to see HISTA. We walked over to Canada to make Le Cellier PS for later in the day, but the CM said there was only a 10-minute wait, so we decided to go ahead and eat then. We ordered the cheese soup for an appetizer, and Kerry got a burger and I got a steak which we planned to share between us. They forgot to bring out our soup and we had to ask for it after our food arrived, so they took it off the bill. We were glad, too, because neither one of us liked it very much. I know, WHAT A SHOCK to all you cheese soup fans out there. I'm surprised as well, because give me bacon and cheese and I am normally very happy. Oh well, the atmosphere, service, and pretzel bread were great, even if the food was not much to our liking. After lunch, we went to see O Canada, then watched British Invasion who were at the American Garden Theater that week. I love these guys! We got a funnel cake after the show, then shoved it in Kerry's arms while we ran over to have the kids pictures made with Aladdin and Jasmine. We shared the funnel cake while waiting for the Friendship boat. We left Epcot and went back to the hotel to swim for a while. Around 8:30 pm, we had the dinner buffet at the hotel (kids ate free), then went across the lobby for Karaoke. Each of us but Kerry took turns singing, and we had to be pushed out of there at 11:30 pm. |
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Day Three - Sunday, May 28 Once again, we had the breakfast buffet in the lobby. Then we headed out to Typhoon Lagoon. We were so lucky because we were going to do a water park for the first time during this trip anyway, and we weren't sure which one we wanted to try. Well, a few weeks before our trip, they came out with an annual passholder perk that if you bought a one-day ticket to any water park, they would give you an unlimited water park pass good for as many visits as you wanted within a certain amount of time (3 weeks?). What perfect timing! We arrived at the park before it opened, so we had quite a wait to get in. Once we were let in the park, we went immediately to grab a couple of lounge chairs in front of the wave pool. Then Kerry went off to get towels and a locker while the kids and I tested the water. When Kerry returned, he took the kids off to the slides while I toasted in the sun. Later on, we floated together in Castaway Creek, then snorkled in the shark's reef several times. We had lunch at Leaning Palms. Then I went with the family to try out some of the slides. We ended up leaving around 5 pm to rest up for the MSEP later that evening. When we returned to the hotel, the boys played a Nintendo 64 game we had rented them the night before, and Brittani watched TV. Kerry and I napped. We left for the Magic Kingdom around 8 pm and immediately went to the Plaza Restaurant for dinner. After dinner, we snagged curbside seats in front of the castle for MSEP. Here's where one of our big strategical parental mistakes comes in-wake up early, go to a water park most of the day, allow the boys to play nintendo instead of nap, then drag them out to an 11 pm parade! :( The boys were bushed! I had Justin asleep with his head on my right leg, and Matt asleep with his head on my left leg. We woke them up when the parade started, but Matt watched it through a haze and probably doesn't even remember seeing it! HA! The only reason we did this was this was supposed to be the last night for the parade until the next weekend, and we had originally planned to spend our last few days of vacation at the beach, so we thought this would be our only time to see it. As it so happened, they ended up running the parade during the week anyway. Anyway, we got back to the hotel around 1 am. |
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| Day Four - Monday, May 29 Kerry got up a bit earlier than the rest of us and did some laundry. When we all finally woke up and got ready, we ate at the breakfast buffet, then went to the pool. Brittani got her hair wrapped at the pool (at 1/3 the price they quoted her at Coronado Springs last November!). We went back to the room at around 1 pm to get ready to go to Epcot. As soon as we got there, we went on JIYI. Then we went over to the Garden Grill for the Ice Cream Social. We only got to see two characters, Mickey & Pluto. When Pluto came to our table, Justin whispered to him, "You're my favorite." Pluto acted very excited and grabbed Justin in a big hug. It was a sweet moment and reminded us that he is still a little boy in many ways. After an ice cream lunch, we went to Innoventions East. I loved the Smart House tour, Justin loved the "tag" game, and Matt loved registering for things on the internet. Goodness knows what he signed us up for! Then we did Spaceship Earth & Ellen's Energy Adventure (love it!). Kerry and the boys went on Test Track (singles line) while Brittani and I shopped in Mouse Gear. We then walked through the World Showcase, stopping for the last few minutes of a Living Statue. We watched the last bit of the Voices of Liberty while standing in line for the American Adventure. This is the first time Kerry's seen this show since he fell asleep during it last November! I love this show so much. In my opinion, the animatronics in this show are the most realistic of any on Disney property. I love the way the horse's tail looks like it's blowing in the wind, and the way the raft bobs up and down, and the way Ben Franklin "walks" up the stairs. I also like the film at the end although I want to cry when they show Walt. Walt Disney is my mom's all-time favorite idol, so I grew up with her talking about him and his ideals. She always said she wanted to be a character in the parks! We grabbed dinner at the Liberty Inn and sat at the outside tables and ate while watching the late Tapestry of Nations parade. After dinner, we got a bench between Italy and Germany to watch Illuminations. While Kerry and Brittani saved the bench, the boys and I went and got 2 funnel cakes and roasted pecans for a snack. We watched Illuminations (which seemed a lot shorter than last November's show) then headed back to the hotel. |
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| Day Five - Tuesday, May 30 We got up around 9 am and went to breakfast at where else? Duh! The hotel lobby! Then we headed to the Magic Kingdom. We could tell that today was going to be crowded right away, so we went over to the barn and groomed Jake the horse. While we were grooming Jake, Kerry went over to Tony's to make PS for lunch. Then the kids and I got in line for the Haunted Mansion while Kerry went to get Fast Passes for Splash Mountain. After the Haunted Mansion, we shopped in the Briar Patch while waiting for our fast pass time. Brittani got a "I survived" Splash Mountain T-shirt, I got a Splash Mountain tank top, and Justin got a Briar Fox beanie. We had the package sent to the front, then hopped in line for Splash Mountain. Next, we saw the Tiki bird show, then rode Pirates of the Caribbean. Then it was time for our 3 pm PS at Tony's. Kerry got Tony's pizza and I got calzone and they were both great. They also gave us some sort of strange tasting sauce with the bread and my pickiest eater, Matt, went crazy over it! Kerry loved it too. The parade was starting just as we were finishing lunch, so the kids and I stood in the doorway and watched part of it. After lunch, we caught the riverboat to TTC, then got a bus to Animal Kingdom (we had decided Magic Kingdom was just too crowded for our spoiled family!). We went straight to the safari ride and had a 5 minute wait with no fast pass (gotta love those Animal Kingdom afternoons when most people have already left!). We had a great ride and the giraffes were right next to our jeep. I kept hoping one of them would stick their head inside the jeep because I know Brittani would have gone crazy, but no such luck. She really doesn't like this ride because of the part where the bridge feels like it's about to break. Funny note: earlier this week during our ride on Spaceship Earth, Justin pointed to the Animatronics performing the play during the Rome period and he said "Those are real people. Not all of the ones in this ride are real, but those are." Then during the safari ride where the real guy (poacher catcher) is standing by Little Red, I said to him "That guy looks real, doesn't he?" I was just kidding with him, but he said "Kind of." I think Disney would be proud that their Animatronics can look that real! After the safari, we went to Asia to try out Kali River for our first time. We made a quick stop at a stand to buy a poncho for me because I am funny about my hair :). We were only in line about 5 minutes before boarding and making the mad dash to get socks and tennis shoes into the bin. The people who were were riding with said I was cheating to wear a poncho! When the ride was over, there was virtually no line, so we got right back on and rode again. After this ride, the kids were ready for more, but I was ready to shop! So I told Kerry to meet me at the front gate and I took off for the shops while Kerry and the kids rode Kali 2 more times. I got an Animal Kingdom shirt for Justin sale priced at $6.99 and I bought a tank top for me. After we met up, we took a bus back to TTC, then rode the monorail back to the Magic Kingdom. We rode the teacups, Snow White, and the carousel. Then we had dinner at Cosmic Ray's. After dinner, we rode Space Mountain, TTA, and then Space Mountain again. In the gift shop, we bought Matt a Space Mountain T-shirt. We caught the end of the fireworks, then headed to the Main Street bakery. We ate our treats in the bake shop and watched the crowd file out of the park. We took the riverboat across to TTC and still had to stand in a long line waiting for the trams to the parking lot. We got back to the hotel around midnight. |
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| Day Six - Wednesday, May 31 We got up around 9 am, had breakfast in the lobby, then headed to the Epcot parking lot (we vowed to avoid TTC as much as possible from now on!). We got on the monorail and headed to the Magic Kingdom. We got a fast pass for Space Mountain, then saw Carousel of Progress, let the boys ride the Barnstormer, then waited in line for pictures with Gideon, Gepetto, and Pinnochio. Next we headed over to Ariel's Grotto for pictures with the mermaid. I forced Kerry to get a picture made with Ariel. He was very reluctant, but finally succumbed. HA! Afterwards, we used our fast passes to ride Space Mountain. We walked back through the castle gardens and took a bunch of pictures. We took the monorail to TTC (uh oh!) then on to Epcot. On the trip to Epcot, Kerry and the kids rode in front. Once in Epcot, I cornered one of the photographers to take some pictures of us. I love the way they don't come up to you and pester you, by the way. Afterwards, we did a little shopping (mostly looking for Donald Duck stuff for his biggest fan, Matt). We got Kerry a nice T-shirt on sale for $9.99 and the Brittani and Justin used some of their spending money to get me a bookmark and Kerry a notepad. We went in Character Connection and got our pictures made with Goofy. We had lunch at Cantina de San Angel which we all loved! The food was great, the margarita was better, and I loved sitting by the water and watching the birds and ducks with big chips. We didn't feed them any, but they had some chips, and would dunk them in the water to make them soft enough to eat. After lunch, we watched the Chinese Acrobats (why did their name change from Pu Young?). The first group were boys, then we stayed and watched the next show which were girls. They are so unbelievably talented and a joy to watch! We then headed over to Japan to see Miyuki for the first time. She is so talented also. The only thing I could understand her saying was "Flamingo my favorite." So naturally, when Justin was called on to pick an animal, he picked a flamingo. I guess that's the only thing he understood too! Brittani also got picked, and she chose a horse. Matt never got picked and was almost near tears, so we talked to him about how much every kid over there wanted to be picked. Since both his siblings had gotten one though, we decided to let him attend the next show and get another chance. Also, it was raining for the first and only time of our vacation, so Kerry rested outside while the kids and I shopped in Mitsukoshi. I bought some rice crackers and candy cheeseburgers for all of us, a frog notepad for Brittani, Digimon cards for Matt, and Pokemon movie cards for Justin. After shopping, Brittani, Justin, and I made arrangements to meet Kerry and Matt and we took off to see the American characters while they stayed for the next Miyuki show. I got pictures of Brittani and Justin with Chip, Dale, Goofy, and Mickey. We then picked up a Granita and met Kerry and Matt at the Friendship dock. Matt had gotten picked during the second show and was proudly showing us the monkey she made! We stopped by the Camera Center and purchased our pictures they made at the front gate and one with all of us with Goofy. We went back to the hotel and Kerry took the kids swimming while I took off for Character Premiere at Belz. I didn't take a map and I forgot the brochure telling me what building it was in and I got to Belz 45 minutes before closing, but I finally got where I was supposed to and had a fun time with the good deals in there anyway! I bought 2 pair of Mickey boxer shorts for Kerry ($5 each); a Donald Duck hat ($4) and Frontierland Louie beanie ($5) and Donald glass ($2) for Matt; a Dopey T-shirt ($7) and Mickey tank top ($7) and classic Tigger ($3) for Brittani; a mousepad with a place for a photo for work ($5); and a Goofy T-shirt for Justin ($9). When I got back to the hotel, Kerry and the boys were still down at the lobby picking up pizza from Pizza Hut. We had dinner while watching the news about the Florida fires because we could even smell the smoke inside our room and it was extremely strong outside! |
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| Day Seven - Thursday, June 1 Kerry got up before the rest of us again to do laundry. We had our normal breakfast buffet (we were gaining 2 pounds a day, I bet) and arrived at MGM around 11 am. We went right into Guest Services and made PS for Mama Melrose's with the Fantasmic dinner package. Then we got fast passes for RRC, then go right on Tower of Terror (10 minute wait, no fast pass). The CM gave me the seatbelt seat - yee haw! I love this ride...drop me about 10 more times, okay? After ToT, we watched Beauty and the Beast. We then rode RRC with our fast passes, then got in line again for ToT. This time Brittani asked for the seatbelt seat (the little bugger). Upon leaving the ride, we shopped in the gift shop where Justin got a "I survived" Tower of Terror shirt, and I got a magnet and sticker. We then got another set of fast passes for RRC, then went to ride the Great Movie Ride. We then went to Sounds Dangerous for the first time. We all liked it, but Brittani took her headphones off when you could hear the bees, and Justin was a bit scared during one part. It didn't stop us from enjoying it though, and I thought the blow dryer part was really neat. We then saw Hunchback (greatest show in Disney, yup!). Next we went to use our fast passes to ride RRC and Kerry bought a T-shirt in the gift shop. We had a snack at the ABC Commissary then went to see Doug Live. When we went to this show last November, I fell asleep, so I was really seeing this show for the first time and I really enjoyed it. Then we saw Muppets 3-D (sometimes I think this pre-show is funnier than the actual show) which was great as always. After Muppets, we let the kids play in the HISTK playground, then I bought Brittani a "peace, love, mickey mouse" hat at the stand outside of the playground, and then it was time for our PS for Mama Melrose's. I ordered the salmon and Kerry got some sort of chicken pizza. I think the waiter got a kick out of me when I asked what the brown thing was under the salmon (it was a portabella mushroom). I thought it was liver! I did try it and it might as well have been liver to me. I'm just not a fan of mushrooms. The food was good though, and we liked our server a lot. The kids had wanted some sort of drink that they didn't have, so he had asked the kids if they'd like a kiddie cocktail. They of course said yes, and the drink he brought them tasted like cherry sprite. It did taste good and the kids just barely got tipsy. Ha! After dinner, we shopped where I bought a Rizzo face magnet and a "peace, love, mickey mouse" hat for me in a different color than Brittani's so we could swap. Justin used part of his money to buy Matt a plastic Donald figurine and Brittani a pooh bracelet. We then went up front to get in line for our "special" entrance to Fantasmic. The seats were great, but I was disappointed that there was no pre-show as I have heard a lot about the ones before Fantasmic, but have not seen one yet. The show was absolutely wonderful once again, and there was another cute moment when the boat came out at the end with all the characters and Matt, who normally tries to act tough, saw his favorite character Donald Duck, and was saying "Hey Donald!" and waving at him. I love moments like this! |
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| Day Eight - Friday, June 2 We got up around 8 am, had breakfast, and got to Blizzard Beach around 9:30 am. We got our family-allotted 2 lounge chairs (ha!) and Kerry went to get towels and a locker. When Kerry returned, he and the kids took off for the slides while I toasted in the sun again. When they came back, I ran off with them for a while to float on the lazy river, and ride Teamboat Springs (awesome) and a few more slides. We then took a break for lunch (very good food). After lunch, we went back to the slides. Brittani and I rode double then we got in line for singles tubes because we wanted to do the enclosed slide. We got our tubes and started up the stairs when Brittani tripped and knocked her head on the step leading up to the slides. I was behind her and I knew immediately that it was a bad fall, so I threw my tube down and went over to her. She was really bleeding already, so I told Kerry to go get somebody and I held her. Meanwhile, she has got blood going everywhere and I mean there is tons of the stuff!! Some nice person guided us over to the bench next to the lifeguard and another nice lady who was an EMT took off her shorts she had on over her bathing suit and gave them to us to put on Brittani's head. In the meantime, the lifeguard had called First Aid who came very quickly. Soon after he came, the EMT's from the fire department were there with a stretcher. They were asking us all kinds of questions and making sure she knew what was going on, then he took a look at her head and told her there was no doubt she'd have to have stitches. They asked her if she wanted to get on the stretcher or walk to the ambulance and she said "walk." So they told me they would let Kerry know where they were taking Brittani and he left with the boys to get our stuff and Brittani and I walked out to the ambulance. She was very calm the whole time. I don't think the actual cut hurt her that much, she was only crying because she was scared of getting stitches and she thought she was losing too much blood. (I thought the same thing - it looked like someone had been murdered). They took her to Celebration's hospital where I had to walk in in a bikini (oh the horrors!). The nice EMT gave us both a robe and told Brittani she was the best patient he'd had all day. He said they get between 60 - 100 calls a day. Wow! Right before the doctor came in, Kerry and the boys arrived. The boys had been SO scared. Matt was trying to keep from crying when he came in and saw Brittani in the bed, and he said "I'm so glad Brittani didn't die, because we would have less people in our family." Isn't it funny the way kids say things?! The doctor came in and stitched her up (17 stitches), a nurse came in and bandaged her head, we answered some questions for the discharge nurse, and we left. When we got back to the hotel room Kerry had to get Brittani's insurance card from the room and go fax a copy of it to the hospital. While he was down there, he picked up hamburgers for us from A&W's and we had dinner in the room. Wow what a day. By the way, Disney handled it so well. They took fast action and were so polite and very concerned. They really took good care of my little girl! |
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| Day Nine - Saturday, June 3 We slept in until 9:15 am (I wonder why?) We ate breakfast and got to Ft. Wilderness by noon. Brittani and I had planned to ride horses but they were already booked for the day. We went ahead and made arrangements for 11:30 am for the next day. Kerry and the boys were going to River Country and since Brittani could swim, but wasn't allowed to get her head in water, we knew it wouldn't be any fun for her at River Country. So with our horseback riding plans nixed for the day, we decided to (what else?) go shopping! We made arrangements to meet up with Kerry later at River Country and she and I headed out to Belz. This time we went to the other Disney merchandise store. I got Mickey sandals ($6) and Minnie/Daisy pajamas ($13) for me; a Pooh jacket ($34) and Minnie organizer ($4) for Brittani; Donald/Mickey boxers for the boys ($8 each); a book "Since the World Began" ($5) for Kerry; and a Donald Duck button (.29 cents) for Matt. We then headed back to Ft. Wilderness and met up with the boys. It looked like a fun place, and Kerry said they had even played water volleyball. They were having a cannonball contest when we got there that looked like fun. We let Kerry and the boys do a few more things while we went to a stand and bought us a magazine each. When the guys had changed, we left River Country and went over to the dock to rent a water mouse. Brittani doesn't like boats much, so she was content to sit at a shady table with her magazine and wait for us. I bought her a Cherry Coke to keep her cool, and we took off on our boats. They didn't seem to go as fast as I thought, so we contented ourselves by bouncing on the waves of other boats. Kerry had fun spinning circles! After our boat rides, we shopped at the Settlement Trading Post where I had to buy new sunglasses to replace the ones I lost on the waterslide at Blizzard Beach. While the kids and I were looking around, Kerry went over to Trail's End to see if we could get in. He came back and told us if we hurried, they could seat us then. So we had a good dinner there. When Brittani asked the server if they had strawberries or pineapples, the server said not on the buffet, but she would get the chef to fix some for her. Needless to say, Brittani felt like a queen, and I had to tell her not to get spoiled! I liked the food here. After eating, we walked through the petting zoo and fed the goats. Then Minnie Moo got jealous and came over and starting pigging out. Her whiskers felt so funny! While walking around in there, this man came up to Kerry and knocked him a bit with his shoulder. I was thinking what a rude thing to do, when Kerry said "hey, Richard!" It was a man Kerry works with. What a small world. We washed up and caught the bus back to the parking lot then headed back to the hotel for our last night. |
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| Day Ten - Sunday, June 4 After packing up the van, checking out, and having our last big breakfast buffet, we headed over to Ft. Wilderness again. Kerry dropped Brittani and I off to check in for our trail ride, then they headed to the Magic Kingdom to ride Buzz Lightyear (it was down earlier in the week). We enjoyed our ride, even though my horse was a bit stubborn and kept eating from the trail even though he wasn't supposed to! I kept pulling his reins like they showed me, but he wanted some grub, and he got it! After the horse ride, we caught a bus to the marina, then rode a boat to the Magic Kingdom. When we got to the park, we were about 30 minutes early for our meeting time with the guys, so we hopped on the train just in time. After the train, we ran back up on the platform to watch for Kerry (we had agreed to meet at the flag pole). We saw he was already there and kept trying to get his attention, but another man thought we were waving at him and was waving back frantically! When we met up, we decided to ride Big Thunder. It was about a 20-minute wait, but it was worth it! Kerry had used our water park passes to get us fast passes for the Jungle Cruise, so we went to ride that. After the ride, we walked over to the Sunshine Terrace to get my favorite dessert, the Citrus Swirl. Matt and I got that, and Brittani and Justin got a coke float each. We went from there to the Plaza Ice Cream Shop and Kerry got ice cream there. We sat out at the tables and listened to a high school marching band they had performing before the afternoon parade. After our snacks, we stopped in the Confectionery shop and bought some edible souvenirs, then reluctantly headed out of the park. We took the resort monorail to the Polynesian where Kerry had parked the van. I looked through the gift shop because I had wanted to get a T-shirt with the hotel logo on it, but I couldn't find any. Finally, Kerry had to drag us out of there in order to get home at a decent time. We stopped at Burger King for lunch, then had an uneventful trip home, arriving at our house at around 11 pm. |
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Final Thoughts:
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