Wilson Staycation, Spelling Bee and Braces

We had a super fun 3-day (4 if you count Friday) weekend during the MLK Jr break. We started right after school on Friday with a trip to Hollywood Studios. They closed at 8, so we didn't have a lot of time, but we still managed to ride the Millenium Falcon and Slinky Dog--two of our favorites.

On Saturday, we went to Aquatica. It was pretty awesome. Where else can you go to a waterpark in January?!?!? The average high this time of year is 71, but it was around 78. The water was heated and the air felt nice. We did all our favorites and the crowds were fairly light. Marta met us after lunch and we did the Roa Rapids together and walked around. She hadn't been in at least 10 years and wanted to see how it had changed. She said there were lots of new attractions and the landscaping was much more advanced and beautiful. From there, Marta came to our house, we played some games and then went out to dinner at Cracker Barrel.

Day 3 we went to Kennedy Space Center. We had been planning on going for a while, but had been waiting for nice weather. The high was in the mid-60s and it was a beautiful day. They were having a rocket launch, which we did not realize. It was scheduled for Saturday, but was postponed (unbeknownst to us). It was incredibly crowded. We bought annual passes after realizing that we were going to need a few days to see everything. The annual pass was cheaper than 2 day passes so it made sense. After sorting out the passes, we went straight to the bus tours, where we were quickly put on a bus. But, there was no tour, we just drove in silence. We didn't realize it, but they were busing everyone to a viewing spot for the rocket launch. It was at the Atlantis area. We watched a couple of short films and then went outside for the launch. The rocket itself actually didn't seem that impressive to me, but the trail of fire and the vibrations and sounds were amazing. It was a very cool experience and it was so funny that we just kind of stumbled into the day.  We were definitely the epitome of "sheep" just kind of following the crowds and going with the flow (totally not like us!). After the launch, we took a bus back to the main visitor's center, we were going to go into some of the other buildings, but the lines were insane. Plus, now that we had annual passes, we knew we would be back soon (it is only 45 minutes from our house). So, we headed out and stopped for a late lunch at Wendy's. We were so inspired by the visit that we went home and watched Apollo 13. It was another fun day!

Day 4, we went to Moss Park and finally did our hike. It was another slightly cooler day. We enjoyed being outside and doing something new. It made us anxious to explore some of the other outdoor sites in the area. We found a pretty pier and tested out my new camera.

It was a great weekend and I definitely love "winter" in Florida!

In spelling bee news, Kara finished 4th in the 5th grade spelling bee. She was frustrated because she had worked so hard and the top three moved on to the county. They gave her a word she had practiced, but she got confused and missed it. We were really proud of how hard she worked and thought she did amazing, especially for her first time. They didn't do spelling bees in Maryland, but they start them here in 3rd grade.

In a strange twist, Jack participated in his school spelling bee. His teacher was allowed to pick a few students and asked if anyone wanted to do it and Jack volunteered. For some reason, Anna did not get to participate. She has a different teacher and as I previously blogged, she won for her class, and was told she would be in the school one, but then she wasn't invited to participate. She didn't want to ask her teacher about it, and didn't want me to inquire, so we just let it go.

Thomas went and watched. I was working, but he texted me the play-by-play. Jack made it to the 6th round (there were 12 kids left). At that point, they had exhausted the words on the study sheet and got all new words. He knew a lot of them, but unfortunately, not the one he was asked--dervishes. He spelled it as he thought he heard it--derbishes. Six other kids got out in the round, so we were pretty impressed with his finish. He correctly spelled: hazmat, differed, commodore, brayed, and proportionate.

Waiting patiently for his turn. I have no idea what he was laughing about.

And, finally--the second Wilson kid is in braces! Kara got them on Wednesday. She is not a fan, but I am sure she will be happy when she has beautiful teeth in 18-24 months.

Before

After