Lisa Rupe's blog

Yesterday was our day off - lots of time in the pool and naps!
This morning we started out at Epcot. We went to the Nemo ride and Turtle Talk with Crush (really impressed with the technology to do that). I loved the Soarin' ride - so did the rest of my family, so we went on it twice. The Land boat ride was closed.
Then we cut across and went on Mission space (the big golf ball). It was pretty dull, but we can say we went on it.

Today was HOT! The recorded temperature was in the 90s, but it felt like over 100. It was a good day to do the smallest park with the ride that gets you the most wet!

We started out in Dinoland riding the Triceratops. I knew the kids liked that Dumbo-like ride. We went on it a few times. Then we tried out the small roller coaster there. Kyle and Ella loved it so we went on again. It was tame enough even for me.

We had the whole family together today. I refuse to go on rollercoasters, but I have a 6-year-old thrill seeking roller coaster junkie who was more than willing to go on rollercoasters with Daddy. So, Ella and Ryan went on the Rock 'n Roller coaster twice - they had to use the fast pass since Kyle wasn't going along to use his Guest Pass. They also went on the Tower of Terror. Ryan did not know anything about either of these rides, so was surprised. Ella had been pretty well briefed ahead of time. Ryan went back on the Tower with Kyle - the picture is great.

We got a later start than I had planned because this was the one night a month that Kyle was up at 3:30am and stayed up. Today was hot and I thought it was crowded. This is off-peak,and isn't there supposed to be a recession? Not at Disney.

Our trip here was pretty uneventful - so nice. We made it through the security check in Milwaukee easily. I explained that my son had liquids in his bag. He is on a special diet and has some meds along. The TSA agent asked if he had diabetes, I said, no autism - she immediately understood! This is a big difference from San Diego 4 years ago. San Diego TSA has my letter in their training materials - one of those "how could we have handled this situation better" situations.

We are taking our first real family vacation ever. Kyle, my son with autism, is 8. And Ella, my daughter who almost had autism, is 6. We're flying to Orlando and taking advantage of the great military rate on Disney tickets. We are staying at a condo about a mile away and renting a car. I plan to do most of our dinners at the condo and pack lunches for the parks during the day. I'm excited! I've heard from more than one person that this is the best place to take an autistic child for vacation. Wish us luck!