Right here goes! It has taken me until today really to feel back to normal, so thats 6 days. Oh we had such a fantastic time. Got off to a really pleasant start by checking our luggage into Gatwick the day before using Virgins twilight Service, brilliant, empty airport. Then 10 mins down the road to stay overnight at the most fantastic place, Collendean Farm, a real working farm, we stayed in our own mini cottage, part of a barn conversion. It was so sweet, tiny room with everything you need inc microwave, fridge, kettle, toaster etc, Christine leaves you food to make your own breakfast, I have never seen such a well stocked fridge to help yourself to, eggs, milk, butter, jams, ham, cheese, yogurts, etc etc etc. Upstairs a super triple bedded room and a sweet double next door overlooking fab country side, fields for the kids to go off and explore, a swimming pool for the summer. All this was £112 for the night, transfer and three weeks parking, it was such a nice way to start our holiday. Also because we had already checked in we had to be at the airport 1 hour before instead of 3.Excellent flight to Orlando with Virgin, well looked after. Arrived in Orlando to find it was raining, but too excited to care, upgraded our car to a Dodge people carrier as they were doing an offer, it was 3 weeks old and wonderful. Found our villa, it was so much more than I had expected, huge, total luxury, and wonderful pool and spa. We had paid extra to have pool heating and I am glad we did, you do need it at this time of the year, even though the weather was fantastic, around the 80s all the time, and no HURRICANES! The first day we spent getting our bearings, the villa was in a fantastic location, a very easy 10 min drive to Disney and it had a very good Mall two mins drive away with restaurants and a huge supermarket, very handy. So off we went to the parks and we had such fun! We had 5 days at the Magic Kingdom, 2 days at the Animal Kingdom, 2 days at Seaworld (2nd day was free!) and 1 day at Kennedy Space Center which was truly AWESOME as they say over there. It was all so wonderful, busy yes, but not horrendously so. We had a happy magical time, saw so much, did so much. No bad experiences, no cross words, and just loved it all. Then after 13 days in Orlando we drove to Anna Maria Island, about 3-4 hours drive across towards Sarasota, Bradenton way. Found our house on Oak St, it was not executive status like the Orlando home, but was very homely and just 1 mins walk to the most perfect beach with sand like sugar and hundreds of pretty shells, it was bliss. Anna Maria is lovely, only 7 miles long and a couple wide, the locals told me its as near youll get today to the old Florida. Pretty shops, lots of lovely restaurants, and I fell in love with the trolley which is part owned by a super 82yr old called Betty who asked me to go visit over at her house! Everyone was so friendly where ever we went. The trolley by the way takes you all around the island, you hop on and off where ever you want to go and its free! The kids were amazing, so good about the queues at Disney, they had a ball, and both boys learnt to swim in the pool in 3 days! My head is still buzzing with it all, I just think how lucky I am at nearly 53 to have 6yr old triplets and be able to have such fun, most of my friends now are off on their own, kids flown so they are having 5 star luxury. Well, the only thing that was missing was Matthew, how my heart ached at times, watching Thomas and James doing the same things Matthew had done in Disneyland in 1993. We were going to take him to Florida in 1995, he died in 94, he so wanted to go to Kennedy Space Center. I walked around there and felt that I was there for him, that place is very special, you have such respect for it, it sent shivers up me, but there was one moment there that as I looked up at the setting sun I felt he was there with me, it was a very lovely moment. As we drove back from there that night the most fantastic thunderstorm broke out, the sky was the most beautiful I think I have ever seen, raging orange, red, yellow, so magnificent, it just seemed to say that the power of life was there all around us, to learn from, respect, not be afraid of. It made me feel that Matthew was in a truly wonderful place and for now I am just an onlooker, gazing up, whilst he gazes down and watches over us................
oh gosh, I have got carried away, but it was a deeply moving experience that day at the space center, I will never forget it. So my head and heart are full of very special, happy memories, worth every dollar we spent!