When our girls were small they delighted in their visits to Orlando and Magic Kingdom in particular. As they have got older they have come to appreciate how very much more there is to their Florida holiday.
As we seem to go at different times of the year we encourage them to check the weather forecast for a couple of weeks before their holidays and unlike those who think the weather is always good in Florida they are now well aware of the seasonal changes.
Also before we leave the UK they go on line and check out the films going to be shown in Orlando during our holiday. These are usually shown a month or so before the UK so they manage to persuade us to fit at least one visit to the cinema in our schedule.
We used to give them disposable cameras but during the last couple of years they have both had presents of relatively inexpensive digital cameras so they can now snap away to their hearts content. I must admit it has greatly improved their photographic skills.
They keep an album of their own as a trip report and photo journal for each holiday. In previous years the girls have just done general trip reports but for their next visit just before Christmas the younger one wants to base hers on Christmas the older girl on the differences the cooler winter months bring.
They start their trip report off scribbling in a notebook whilst they are on holiday transferring it onto computer when they get home. They then decide on the photos they want to use and generally they tend to print from the computer although they do have a few developed.
While on the trip, we look for inexpensive things that could be pasted easily into the album as lasting mementos of the trip. (World hopper pass, Mickey napkin, clippings from the park guide map, sticker from Remember the Magic parade, etc.
Each girl has an autograph book and they try to get autographs one to a page and on the facing page they can put the date and a few words about the character and where they met then. They usually attach this book to a sleeve inside their album.
When they were younger the girls thought Epcot boring but now have much more interest in it. This time I have bought a map that they are going to put on their bedroom wall at their Grandparents when they come home. When they go to World Showcase they are going to try to collect as much information as they can about each country. I have been told that if they go to Discovery Centre they can get sheets of pictures of flags, phrases in the native language of the countries as well as assorted trivia for each country. Somehow I think there will be a competition to see who can collect the most!
As we seem to go at different times of the year we encourage them to check the weather forecast for a couple of weeks before their holidays and unlike those who think the weather is always good in Florida they are now well aware of the seasonal changes.
Also before we leave the UK they go on line and check out the films going to be shown in Orlando during our holiday. These are usually shown a month or so before the UK so they manage to persuade us to fit at least one visit to the cinema in our schedule.
We used to give them disposable cameras but during the last couple of years they have both had presents of relatively inexpensive digital cameras so they can now snap away to their hearts content. I must admit it has greatly improved their photographic skills.
They keep an album of their own as a trip report and photo journal for each holiday. In previous years the girls have just done general trip reports but for their next visit just before Christmas the younger one wants to base hers on Christmas the older girl on the differences the cooler winter months bring.
They start their trip report off scribbling in a notebook whilst they are on holiday transferring it onto computer when they get home. They then decide on the photos they want to use and generally they tend to print from the computer although they do have a few developed.
While on the trip, we look for inexpensive things that could be pasted easily into the album as lasting mementos of the trip. (World hopper pass, Mickey napkin, clippings from the park guide map, sticker from Remember the Magic parade, etc.
Each girl has an autograph book and they try to get autographs one to a page and on the facing page they can put the date and a few words about the character and where they met then. They usually attach this book to a sleeve inside their album.
When they were younger the girls thought Epcot boring but now have much more interest in it. This time I have bought a map that they are going to put on their bedroom wall at their Grandparents when they come home. When they go to World Showcase they are going to try to collect as much information as they can about each country. I have been told that if they go to Discovery Centre they can get sheets of pictures of flags, phrases in the native language of the countries as well as assorted trivia for each country. Somehow I think there will be a competition to see who can collect the most!