Downtown Disney

We decided to spend our first day in Florida at Downtown Disney.  Because our train was not suppose to get into Sanford until 9:30 and unloading can take up to two hours (ours was the 11th last car on the train - at least it was not the last) we decided not to "waste" a park ticket but instead check out the Downtown area.

We met my husbands parents there and we first headed off to find some lunch.  We parked in the middle of Pleasure Island (Exit 3) where there is not much to see or do during the day, so we headed off towards the shops (Exit 1).  We had a great lunch at the Earl of Sandwich and it was worth waiting in the long line.  After lunch we had about an hour to kill before we could check into our hotel so we wondered through a few of the shops.

Having two boys it's a must to go into the Lego store even if they are only 3 and 4 months old.  The Lego store is under renovation right now so they have set up this temporary tent nearby.  I don't know who's idea it was to make the tent yellow but wow is it hard on the eyes.

 See.  Weird yellow light.  I'd go insane working there

Next Tavish rode the Train and Merry-Go-Round with his Nana.  He really enjoyed both of these ride and I don't think they cost much ($2 I think).  We then did a little shopping before heading to our hotel.

If you have the time Downtown Disney is worth going to but I would not cut a park day short to visit it.  The shops are neat but you can find most of the stuff in the parks themselves.

 Mr. Potato Head - outside the Toys shop

Callen was really focused on the the Potato Head inside the shop

Tavish enjoying a train ride with his Nana

Callen's Disney Decoration

Tavish loved the Lego Loch Ness (or Ogopogo as his Nana calls it)

Another ride with Nana

Callen chilling out in his Mickey Ears

Choo Choo Auto Train

Instead of flying or driving to Florida we decided to take the train.  There is one Auto Train that I know of and it just happens to be near where we live and it goes to where we were going.  I love traveling by train, I wish that I could do it more often.  The gentle rocking and the relaxing, old world atmosphere of trains makes train travel so pleasant.  There is no rush, rush, rush feeling of airports and you are not tied to your chair as you are in a car or airplane.  I like that you can move about from car to car, hang out in the lounge car, have dinner in the dinning car or just watch the scenery pass you by (you see some pretty interesting things) from the window of a train.

The trip from Lorton, VA to Sanford, FL is an 18hr ride and is suppose to leave at 4pm and arrive in Sanford (20 minutes from Orlando) at 9:30am.  Our train was delayed 4 hours getting into Lorton (near D.C.) because of a fire (not on the train but by the tracks in Georgia).  But they did manage to get us rolling by 5:15 and we arrived an hour early into Sanford (yeah Amtrak).  We did have to wait a bit to check in our car as they were still unloading cars from the previous trip but once our car was loaded the waiting was not too bad. The terminal is really nice and there is a small playground for the kids.  Our wait was made super eventful with an explosion from our 3 year old...it was a good think he was wearing a sweater and we had a change of clothes.  However as the train ride progressed we were a bit worried that Tavish and Kyle would run out of clean clothes.  Aside from the intestinal issues and small bumpy bathrooms (these two things don't mix well) we had a great train ride, in my opinion a bit short.

We had a family bedroom which worked out perfect with two adult beds and two child beds.  I loved this bedroom as it was a good amount of space for 18hrs and a train.  The nice part about this room is that you have window's on both side of the train so you don't miss a thing.  Dinner is served on the train and while it's not 5 star dining it's pretty good considering you are on a moving train.  Breakfast was nothing special but again its on a train.

All in all the train was the perfect way to get to Disney World and it was nice to have our own car as we were not stay on Disney property.  I almost would have preferred to take the train back from Disney (due to cost we decided to only take the train one way) as it would end a Disney vacation on a relaxing note.  I must say I'm looking forward to my next train trip.

 Super excited to be on the train

 In his train PJ's and playing on the top bunk

 Callen chilling out with his owl

Time for some travel games

Nice and sunny and time for our cars to come

Franklyn Institute and Academy of Natural Sciences

Lunch - After we finished the second floor it was time for lunch so we headed for foodworks.  It was okay museum food, I had a pre-made sandwich which was pretty good, well for a pre-made sandwich.  I'm sure that there are better restaurants in the are but this was convenient.

After lunch we moved on to the first floor where the Kid Science, Space Command, and The Train Factory were.  Kid science was a lot of fun.  It's like a children's museum without the ciaos.    The Kids area had a nautical theme and Tavish really liked playing on the boat.

The train area was okay and maybe it would be better if the train had been moving.  There is a real train which people can go on but for some reason it was not working (I'm not sure how the train moves but apparently it does).

To round off the first floor was Space Command.  I must say that this space area was not overly memorable. Tavish and this other boy did have a great time sending marbles into orbit.

To wrap up the Franklyn Institute we headed to the third floor to Sports Challenge.  This exhibit is very similar to the one at the Science Center in Toronto.  Regardless it was a lot of fun.  I had a great time surfing and climbing oh and so did Tavish.

Figure Skating - Spin Spin Spin

Surfs Up

On Belay

Overall the Franklyn Institite is a MUST see in Philly.  I can't wait to go back.  That cannot be said for the Academy of Natural Science, it was BORING.  The dinosaurs were okay but the rest of the museum was lame.  I would not suggest going to this museum unless you buy the City Pass and have time to kill.

Tuesday's Travel Tips - Pregnant Travels

Today's Travel Tip - Flying (Travelling) While Pregnant

A few more tips for those taking longer flights while pregnant:

-drink lots of water to help keep yourself hydrated
-get a seat near a bathroom (with all that extra water your drinking you'll need to get up to use the facilities a few times)
-walk around as much as you can as this help keeps blood in your legs circulating
-check out the back of the plane on international flights.  There is usually food and drinks back there and it's a great place to stretch and walk for a bit.
-bring as little as possible but make sure you have everything you need including a change of underwear and pants (you never know when a sneeze will be an issue)
-if you suffer from morning sickness, bring a toothbrush, some mints and anything that might help keep food down
-most airplane food is not the greatest so pack some food you know you and you'll baby will like

Note: these tips will work for other modes of transportation such as train and bus trips

I'm about 9 weeks pregnant on my Glacier Express Train Trip in Switzerland.