Thanksgiving we woke up late and watched football until lunch was ready (lunch at 3pm, great huh?). We had smoked and fried turkey, beans with bacon, sweet potato, gravy (though it's WAY different from gravy back home), the best mashed potato I've ever tasted, cranberry sauce, curried eggs and this sweet potato desert mixed with brown sugar with marshmallows on top. Lunch was great because we sat around eating and talking. That day we met Nathan and Jacob's sister Suzanne and her girlfriend Talisha, and had some great laughs with everyone (I'll put some videos up later but pictures are on FaceBook)! We then sat around watching football until we went out and tried to play football with 6 of us. Unfortunately we were very full so it didn't go so well. After that we had to go to the airport to pick up Amber and Courtney. When Nathan and I got there we looked at the board and realised that there were no flights coming from Orlando which is where they said they were flying in from. Turns out they were flying in from Chicago. When they arrived Nathan embarrassed Amber by presenting her with an eggplant (her nickname). We went home (after Nathan got lost) and played Apples to Apples. Logan and I gave out the presents we'd taken with us so it was a bit like Christmas. Everyone loved the Pineapple Lumps, Jaffas, Minties and especially the Crunchies we'd brought over with us.
Friday came and we didn't sleep. Instead we headed out at about 2am to WalMart where Courtney brought me a Nerf gun (EXCITING stuff!) and we got a few other little bits and pieces. Nathan headed off and joined the other guys while we went to Kholes. I got some good deals and saved nearly $50! While Courtney and Amber napped in the car I joined the guys in waiting outside a sports shop much like Rebel Sports. The doors opened at 5am and we got paintball games and some other wee bits and bobs. We finally got home at 6am and crashed.
When we woke up we sat around talking and watching more football. Just before dinner was ready Courtney and Amber helped me to make a pavlova. It turned out really good apart from the small part that collapsed because the oven got bumped. Because we had no kiwifruit or chocolate chips we put cream on it and Hershey's chocolate sauce. Everyone loved it which was awesome! When the boys came home from work Charlie arrived and we sat around talking before heading out to the woods in the early hours of the morning to play paintball. It was weird playing in the dark and somewhere where you didn't know but it was lots of fun!
Monday, November 29, 2010
22-24 November
On Monday we drove to Orlando and on the way went to the Kennedy Space Centre. It was pretty rad seeing all the different rockets and how they have changed over time. Had fun watching the boys climb in and out of the pods, trying to push the buttons and things. We went on a simulator that basically showed what it is like when a rocket took off. We also played these loading and docking games on computers in the children's area; who's too old for computer games? Not these boys! Hehe. After the Space Centre we went to the Astronaut Hall of Fame where there was a whole lot of hands on games and displays teaching people about space. We then left and traveled to where we were staying in Orlando. For dinner we went to Golden Corral which is like a massive buffet with all sorts of different food, way better than any in New Zealand. Loved the free refills! After dinner we then went home and watched Community (which I now love) and went to bed. Gave the guys a nice fright in the night by screaming more than once!
Tuesday, we went to DisneyWorld (about lunch time because the boys wouldn't get out of bed!). Because it was Thanksgiving week the lines were longer than normal so we didn't go on many rides. Space Mountain was my favourite! So many twists and turns in the dark, and I only screamed once! We also went on a Stitch ride and a Buzz Lightyear one. We watched the Dream Come True parade and explored the castle. Because I didn't get to see Ariel at DisneyLand I wanted to see her here. I waited an hour in line and when I was about 7 people from the front they said she needed to take a 15 minute break. Because we had to get to Cirque du Soleil I couldn't wait... So gutted! Nathan and Jacob dropped us off at Cirque du Soleil where we saw La Nouba. It was AMAZING! Acrabats, jugglers, tightrope walkers, trampalinests, bikers etc etc. We sat in awe, so good! It was there we had our first giant pretzel. It was good though very salty! When we got home we had pizza and watched Toy Story 3. Here is the link to La Nouba: http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/lanouba/default.aspx
Wednesday morning we woke up about half an hour before check out so it was a rushed morning but we got away on time. We traveled to Tampa where we were meant to meet up with Mel but unfortunately she got stuck at work on her day off. We decided that we'd go and see Tangled at the movies but unfortunately Nathan and I got seperated from Logan and Jacob and lost so we didn't catch the movie in time. So while they were in the movie we wandered around the mall chatting. It's a good way to get to know someone more. When they came out of the movie we took a trip to Walgreens to fill in more time. A guy who works there laughed at me because I got excited over Milk duds. Jacob, Logan and I then went to a hockey game. The Tampa Bay Lightning played the New York Rangers and won! It was a close and exciting game... Love watching ice hockey! After the game we watched MC Hammer perform live (!) and then grabbed Wendy's and headed home. We got home about 2am and crashed.
Had a great few days!
Tuesday, we went to DisneyWorld (about lunch time because the boys wouldn't get out of bed!). Because it was Thanksgiving week the lines were longer than normal so we didn't go on many rides. Space Mountain was my favourite! So many twists and turns in the dark, and I only screamed once! We also went on a Stitch ride and a Buzz Lightyear one. We watched the Dream Come True parade and explored the castle. Because I didn't get to see Ariel at DisneyLand I wanted to see her here. I waited an hour in line and when I was about 7 people from the front they said she needed to take a 15 minute break. Because we had to get to Cirque du Soleil I couldn't wait... So gutted! Nathan and Jacob dropped us off at Cirque du Soleil where we saw La Nouba. It was AMAZING! Acrabats, jugglers, tightrope walkers, trampalinests, bikers etc etc. We sat in awe, so good! It was there we had our first giant pretzel. It was good though very salty! When we got home we had pizza and watched Toy Story 3. Here is the link to La Nouba: http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/lanouba/default.aspx
Wednesday morning we woke up about half an hour before check out so it was a rushed morning but we got away on time. We traveled to Tampa where we were meant to meet up with Mel but unfortunately she got stuck at work on her day off. We decided that we'd go and see Tangled at the movies but unfortunately Nathan and I got seperated from Logan and Jacob and lost so we didn't catch the movie in time. So while they were in the movie we wandered around the mall chatting. It's a good way to get to know someone more. When they came out of the movie we took a trip to Walgreens to fill in more time. A guy who works there laughed at me because I got excited over Milk duds. Jacob, Logan and I then went to a hockey game. The Tampa Bay Lightning played the New York Rangers and won! It was a close and exciting game... Love watching ice hockey! After the game we watched MC Hammer perform live (!) and then grabbed Wendy's and headed home. We got home about 2am and crashed.
Had a great few days!
Thursday, November 25, 2010
21 November
Sunday we went to a football game; the Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Cleveland Browns. The stadium was HUGE! So many people there even though it was a 'small crowd' according to Jacob. At the start of the game after the national anthem a B52 flew over and they reunited a soldier with his family who they hadn't seen for ages. We felt right at home in our Jaguars t-shirts and hats, even though we didn't understand the game. The game was insanely close and was really good to watch! The Jaguars ended up winning 23-20! And man do Americans get irate with sports!
When we got home Nathan and I had a great Nerf war while everyone gave me strange looks. Stayed up late playing play station then crashed because we were so tired.
When we got home Nathan and I had a great Nerf war while everyone gave me strange looks. Stayed up late playing play station then crashed because we were so tired.
20 November
The flight from Auckland to LA went slowly, with Logan and I just watched movies, ate and slept. The airplane food was really tasty with chicken lasagna and a mini choc bar for dinner, and scrambled eggs, bacon, a hashbrown, fruit and a bread roll for breakfast. Once we got to LA we were hungry again so decided to have BurgerKing which turned out to be a not so good idea. It was really funny on the way to the domestic terminal from the international terminal because Logan was in awe of the size of LA even though you could barely see any of it. Going through airport security Logan got so many comments about his toe shoes which kept us amused.
From LA to Miami Logan and I weren't seated together which made the flight seem to take even longer. Once we got to Miami we were running late so we were running through the airport trying to work out if we needed to deal with our bags or not. We did the length of the airport about 2 1/2 times. When we finally got to the gate it was the final boarding call and just made it on in time. The flight to Jacksonville went fine. It was a great time just to chat and stare out the window in share awe of the size of Miami... The lights went on for ever!
The boys were waiting for us at the airport but unfortunately our bags weren't. Turns out that they hadn't gotten on the plane with us and would come in the morning. Because of this we went to WalMart and had that experience. We were in there for about 2 hours and got home about 2.30am.
From LA to Miami Logan and I weren't seated together which made the flight seem to take even longer. Once we got to Miami we were running late so we were running through the airport trying to work out if we needed to deal with our bags or not. We did the length of the airport about 2 1/2 times. When we finally got to the gate it was the final boarding call and just made it on in time. The flight to Jacksonville went fine. It was a great time just to chat and stare out the window in share awe of the size of Miami... The lights went on for ever!
The boys were waiting for us at the airport but unfortunately our bags weren't. Turns out that they hadn't gotten on the plane with us and would come in the morning. Because of this we went to WalMart and had that experience. We were in there for about 2 hours and got home about 2.30am.
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