Notices
Walt Disney World and Florida Trip Reports Trip Reports and Videos

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
Old 21 Oct 16, 02:55 PM  
Link to this Post
#1
JoJo88
VIP Dibber
 
Join Date: Jul 08
Talking No Parks, All Recreation! Team Jamerica's 2016 Brexit - Day 5 - Florida Mall / Longhorns

No Parks, All Recreation!

Team Jamerica’s 2016 Brexit

INDEX

Sunday 21st August 2016

Day 5 – Florida Mall / Longhorns


Today’s plan was to hit Florida Mall, therefore completing our tour of retail destinations for the holiday – Disney Springs, Outlets & a Mall. This doesn’t include Target of course, or any other super markets, visits to Target being almost as essential as visits to the loo……

As the Mall doesn’t open until 12 on a Sunday we had no rush in the morning which meant the possibility of a lie in. Ha! I was awake at 6, which was after Simon as he was already tucking into yet more Power, and the coffee was already on the go. He’d found his coffee the day before had tasted a bit off, and between him & Grandad they came to the conclusion it’s because he was using water from the tap whereas my Dad was using bottled water. This was definitely the case as today’s coffee was up to scratch.

Everyone else woke up soon after I did, and even though Dan was the last to surface, predictably he was the first in the pool, just before 8.





Adam soon followed, and they messed around in the water for a while doing laps, and handstands, bombs, (but no heavy petting of course!)





Grandma & I tried to attach the volleyball net but to no avail, and after half an hour or so in the water the boys got out for some breakfast.

We all had the usual cereal, bagels, fruit (and I might have accidentally had a Krispy Kreme that fell into my trolley the night before! )

Over breakfast the boys came up with the idea of holding the Olympics, so they kept themselves entertained working out which events we could all do and discussing the finer details of teams etc.

We (well, Grandma!) also put on some washing. We (again, Grandma) has probably done a load most days as it’s so quick and easy. We do seem to get through the towels, of which there were plenty, both bath towels and for the pool. I know laundry is usually a chore, but it doesn’t feel like it on holiday, (probably because Grandma does it ) and we find it much easier than having to think about what to wear and nagging at the boys to try and keep clean! It’s something we said we’d miss when we move to the hotel, and in fact, we all had a conversation about moving to the hotel, and we all agreed that we’d miss the space of the villa, and would actually be quite happy to stay for the rest of the holiday. That’s how we felt at that particular time anyway!

The car needed refuelling and rather than waiting until we were on our way to the Mall, Simon decided to head out to get it over and done with. It was only 9.15 by now so we still had loads of time to fill (not kill!) before setting off.

I went with him, and I’m glad I did as we saw the Sons of Anarchy, quite obviously following in the footsteps of Modern Family and The Middle by filming an episode at Disney…



There’s definitely Mickey ears under those helmets!

We headed south down Hwy 27 to find fuel. We didn’t have to go far, there was a petrol station at the junction of Ronald Reagan Parkway. There was a Subway onsite too which was handy to know for a quick lunch, although I think Simon would travel and extra hour to go to ‘Paneena’ Bread for his sarnies!

It was $32 to fill the car up…..

Back at the villa the boys will still sorting out the Olympics, had drawn up a medals chart and had assigned teams. They put themselves together, which you’d think would be ideal, i.e. one of them wins, they both win, but that’s not always the case, as obviously they then blame one another if they lose…… Simon & I put together, which left the Grandparents as a team. The decision was made that only one team member would be put forward for each event, so we had to consider carefully what each of us was going to do, taking into account our strengths and weaknesses. Which in Simon’s eyes meant he was doing everything and I was a mere spectator

We eventually left for the Mall at around 11, with Simon once again taking on the driving. There had been a ‘discussion’ inside when Grandad picked up the keys, only for Simon to say that he didn’t mind driving. Grandad was still adamant that it was his turn though until I intervened (as I’m fully qualified for a role at United Nations after being the Mother of two boys for the last 11 years!) and suggested that it made more sense for Simon to drive as he really enjoyed it, particularly as it came to light that Grandad really didn’t enjoy driving over there.



I’d also made the decision to separate the boys in the car too, which definitely helped. I had Adam in the back with me and Daniel sat in the middle with Grandma.

We pulled up at the Mall just before noon, so it had taken us almost an hour. The traffic around Seaworld had been really slow.

Simon dropped us off at the door, issuing his usual instruction to get us either out of the villa, or out of the car - ‘roll out regulators’ (don’t ask! ), and then went off to find a parking space. He had another catchphrase for the holiday too, for when things weren’t quite going to plan - ‘Hold Up’, but pronounced ‘Hold Urrrp’. It keeps him entertained

Good to see that the Mall was StormReady for Hurricane Matthew who was waiting in the wings….



We decided to split from Grandma & Grandad, and once again, they didn’t pay attention to the finer details and forgot to take at least one boy with them….

First stop for us was M&M World where the boys paid overinflated prices for sugar coated treats, simply because somebody had gone to the trouble of sorting them into colours….



But then if it’s good enough for Matt Lucas, it’s good enough for us….



Simon wanted to go to Abercrombie & Fitch, and Adam wanted to go to the loo, so we split from Simon, arranging to meet in or around Hollister in a little while, and me & the boys went on a wild goose chase to find the loos. I swear they put those little signs with arrows pointing forwards, but they don’t actually lead you anywhere other than in circles. Eventually we made it to the food court and spotted a rest room, but suddenly the need to try the chicken samples became far more important than the need to empty bladders. I asked Daniel to go too while we were there but he insisted he didn’t need to…………

We met back up with Simon who had managed to secure himself some t shirts in A&F and Hollister as well as some frozen yogurt in Frobes. As soon as we got back to Simon, Daniel then announced he needed a wee. Please tell me it’s not just my kids that do that?!

So we marched back to the food court and decided to have lunch while we were there.

Adam had a pizza slice from Sbarro, Daniel & I shared bourbon chicken, noodles, and another chicken something or other, and Simon continued with his yogurt.



It’s nice to see him tucking into different things, as once upon a trip report all he would eat on holiday was chicken nuggets, the only variety being that one night it would be tenders, the next goujons and sometimes nuggets!

Adam’s pizza slice was $4.25 and our meal was $8.49 and $2.19 for a drink, which came to $11.38 including tax.

Grandma & Grandad caught up with us in the food court too, and Grandma also had some Chinese food.

The boys were irritating each other again which was a real shame as Adam saw some astro turf trainers he liked in a nearby shop but I refused to get them for him until he stopped being a PIA. He did offer up an apology but I didn’t budge. In truth, I wouldn’t have bought them anyway as they were expensive and I knew I’d get them cheaper online, but it was a good chance for me to prove I can be mean when I want to be, or at least pretend as much…….

Next up was the only shop I really wanted to go to, and that was Bath & Body Works. A kind Dibber had sent me a discount coupon, but unfortunately it didn’t arrive until after we’d left the UK. Thank you anyway

We all spent ages in B&BW, and Simon enjoyed picking out a new fragrance of hand sanitiser for his car. It’s almost routine for him now, mirror, signal, manoeuvre, sanitise! He opted for strawberry in the end.

I picked up some foaming handwash and pocket hand gel, as well as a couple of soap holders and some body lotion as gifts for some very special friends (you know who you are! ). I didn’t take a photo at the time, but here’s what I bought, showing considerable restraint I must add..



It might not look much but it came to $80, and the only coupon I was given at the till wasn’t valid until after we came home, so no discounts to be had on this trip. I paid the kind act forward and offered my coupon on the Dibb Grandma also bought a few bits and pieces, which Grandad had apparently commented was a lot. That was until he saw my bag – for some reason my purchases had been put in an unnecessarily huge carrier!

We had a look in World of Soccer for boots for Daniel but there was nothing in there he liked the look of and there didn’t appear to be any bargains anyway. He’s not one for fancy boots which doesn’t leave him a lot of choice these days, and ideally he wanted to get the exact same ones he already had, but that were literally falling apart.



Despite Simon’s best efforts, he won’t go for a pair of World Cups…..



Next up we passed the Microsoft store and could see someone in the window trying the Virtual Reality system. Adam was in there like a greyhound (altogether now! ) “out of trap three at Hackney Wick” and queued up for his turn. Daniel joined him in the line but unfortunately didn’t meet the minimum age requirements, I think you had to be 13. Of course that went down particularly well, and not entirely unexpectedly Daniel then stomped off to play some Fifa and refused to watch Adam take his turn…..



As it happened, another lad joined the line, he was 17 and yet because he didn’t have an adult with him to sign the waiver, he too wasn’t allowed to have a go. I’m not sure, but I’ve a feeling he might have stomped off to play some Fifa too!

After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, Adam was then kitted out and took up position in the shop window!





It looked good fun, and Adam really enjoyed it. I don’t know a lot about these things but I’m not sure if it won’t be one of those gimmicky things that you end up paying out for and then there’s only a few games for it. As it is, Adam has asked for VR for his PS4 for Christmas, but we shall see…..

It was around 3pm by now and we were just bimbling about. There was one other shop that Simon wanted to go in though, and became his favourite shop of the holiday….



There’s a particular department in the shop that he loves over any other too, and it’s not what you think. It’s not the guns, it’s not the fancy trainers. No, this is what Simon loves looking at most….



Just look how happy he is!



We had a good wander around, and had a quick peep at the football boots, just in case. Well, whaddya know, first boots Daniel clapped eyes on were these, and they had his size too!



All for the princely sum of $30! As it happens, only 6 weeks into the season, these new ones are starting to fall apart too, so perhaps there’s a lot to be said for the flashy ones

We also needed to get Daniel some goggles as his were quite leaky. There was a gentleman at the goggles with his little boy, he must have been about 4, and he was asking Daniel which ones he would pick out as being cool! We picked some up for Dan ($16) and finally made our way out of the shop. After we’d paid of course! In fact, looking at the receipt now, we spent almost an hour in Dicks!

We’d left Grandma and Grandad in some comfy chairs outside and once we’d reconvened we realised we were all done at the Mall and so made our way back to the car.

Daniel had his rebound ball on his wrist, so throwing it in front of him, he was absolutely mortified when the Velcro came loose and the ball went hurtling through the air. Ooooops! A man caught it, looking less than impressed and handed it back to Daniel whose face was still a picture. I know it’s wrong, but once we knew no damage had been done, and once Daniel realised he wasn’t in trouble, we really did laugh about it!

It was almost 4pm by the time we piled into the car, and we decided that there was no point going back to the villa if it was going to take an hour to get there, we might as well go for dinner first. With our appetites and waistlines steadily increasing, we felt it was about the right time for us to pay our first visit to Longhorns.

We weren’t desperately hungry yet so it made sense to go to the branch nearest ‘home’ at Rolling Oaks. It only took us half an hour to get there!



Having spent most of the day indoors it’s easy to forget about the Florida heat, but even just getting from the car to the restaurant was enough to remind us!



We were shown to a table straight away, in the same part of the restaurant where we always seem to end up, perhaps it’s just for us tourists?!

With Grandma & Grandad’s birthdays being in July & August I’d come up with a cunning plan. I never know what to get them so I put a home made voucher in each of their birthday cards for a meal at Longhorns, and tonight they would be redeeming it!

Grandma usually goes for Flo’s Fillet with lobster tail, but for some reason she didn’t have the lobster tonight, and just went for the steak. And Grandad went for a Sirloin special, despite us saying to have whatever he would normally have. I was a bit disappointed as I didn’t want them to feel they couldn’t have what they wanted but they assured me that wasn’t the case.

I had a Flo’s Fillet too, I don’t think I even bothered to look at the menu, and so did Simon & Adam. Daniel had a sirloin off the kid’s menu.

We had salads and bread to start with, which always go down a treat whilst waiting for the headline act!



Adam tried a Caesar salad for the first time and really enjoyed it.

Now for the steaks…..I usually have mine well done but decided to try something different tonight and went for medium/well. So did Grandma. At the time of ordering our server had clarified that medium/well meant it was well cooked on the outside but there would be a bit of pink inside. That sounded perfect. Unfortunately, when our steaks arrived I was horrified. Mine was really red and swimming in red juice - a good vet could’ve brought it back to life, same for Grandma too! Grandma didn’t mind hers like that, but I really couldn’t eat mine and so sent it back.

Thankfully it was fine when it came back out and everyone else was happy with their meal.



I’ve only included a few of the steaks as they all look the same!

As we were tucking in a server walked past and managed to spill a bowl of sloppy ice cream over a family that were sat in a booth to the side of us. Some of it also hit Grandad on his leg. Anyway, after commenting to one another about it, the ‘Mum’ of the family leaned over and asked if she could ask us a question. She then asked if we were Dibbers! Well, we all know the answer to that! She had first recognised Simon, and then the boys and finally the rest of us! I said to her that as she knew who we were, it was only fair that she let us know who she was, so Hello DisneyKel it was lovely to meet you, thank you for introducing yourself, and I hope you enjoyed the rest of your holiday

With no room for desserts, we settled up the bill



And without even a backward glance at Target and TJ Maxx, we headed straight for home.

I challenged Daniel to a game of table tennis when we go home, with the loser having to jump straight into the pool. I lost! However, he did allow me to get changed first!

We all got in the pool and had another go at trying to attach the volleyball net, which we succeed with!

‘Scuse the blurry photo, it’s just to show you the net



We had a few games of volleyball, did some laps and generally just messed around. Even though it had been a hot day, I found that if I stood around in the pool for too long without moving I felt quite cold, so at around 7pm I went inside and had a warm bath. Showers and baths all round for the others and by 9pm we were ready to start a game of Blob.

I was storming ahead during the first half of the game, getting all my predictions right, but dipped out in the latter half, and came in second in the end, losing to Grandad.



The boys were even on the last round, and thankfully managed to finish even at the end too! The last thing they needed was something else to bicker about. My secret aim was for them to try and make it through a day without me having to tell them off about something.

By 10pm we were all getting ready for bed, and discussed loosely maybe visiting a water park the following day, but no plans were set in stone, and on this holiday, that’s the way we seemed to like it!



Today's spends:
Meals: $147
Snacks: $7
Clothes: $125
Misc: $106

Edited at 07:03 AM.
JoJo88 is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 21 Oct 16, 03:52 PM  
Link to this Post
#2
Redrach1903
Disney Dreaming :)
 
Redrach1903's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 09

Redrach1903's Reviews
DIBB Villa Reviews: 2
Mobile

So glad this popped up! I'm sat in the hairdresser and sooooo bored! Thank you

Sounds like another fun day!

Love love love BABW! I'm so glad there is one where Chris is working just now!

Glad your steak got changed and it turned out fine! I'd have had to send it back too!

And how cool being Dibb spotted you celebrity you!

Xxx
Redrach1903 is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 21 Oct 16, 04:13 PM  
Link to this Post
#3
slow.jo
Very Serious Dibber
 
Join Date: Nov 10
Mobile

Great day Jo! You did well with your purchases again

Wow, after an hour of Dicks I think I'd really have had enough!



Your steak shouldn't have had made any blood on your plate! I have my steak medium-rare and I don't expect that. It's a sign it hasn't been rested properly.

TFS and all that!

Jo xx

#howardfamous
__________________
IG: joannesear

Stewboy's Trip Reports
slow.jo is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 21 Oct 16, 04:37 PM  
Link to this Post
#4
dixonsontour
VIP Dibber
 
dixonsontour's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 09

dixonsontour's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 2

theDIBB Guidebook
Guidebook Photos: 12
Mobile

Some serious shopping
dixonsontour is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 21 Oct 16, 04:51 PM  
Link to this Post
#5
abiknox
Imagineer
 
Join Date: Jan 10

abiknox's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 1
Restaurant Reviews: 5
Another lovely day, I do love these more relaxed holidays.

Longhorns looks good & how great to see another Dibber
abiknox is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 21 Oct 16, 05:59 PM  
Link to this Post
#6
mick
VIP Dibber
 
mick's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 04
Location: Rugby

mick's Reviews
Hotel Reviews: 1
Another great day Jo lots of shopping and a nice haul from B&BW

I love a nice bloody steak

Joan
__________________
mick is offline Boy Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 21 Oct 16, 07:40 PM  
Link to this Post
#7
Milner
Imagineer
 
Milner's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 08
Great read.
__________________
Carole
Hampton Lakes - October 2007, The Hamlets, Westhaven - July/August 2009, The Sanctuary, Westhaven - July/August 2012, Dibb Villa Highgate Park & 1 night at HRH - July 2015 2017 6 nights NY, 11 nights in Florida Dibb villa, Westhaven, Xmas 2018 Villa 1 night RPR 2019 7 nights in New York, 2020 Dibb Villa booked in Highlands, 3 nights in Cape Coral
Milner is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 21 Oct 16, 08:11 PM  
Link to this Post
#8
i love jack
Apprentice Imagineer
 
i love jack's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 07
Mmmm steak swimming in 'red juice' sounds like my perfect steak!
Another lovely day (can't beat looking at cool boxes! )
__________________
Emma
i love jack is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 21 Oct 16, 08:15 PM  
Link to this Post
#9
sheluk
Imagineer
 
sheluk's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 13
Mobile

Another great day - B&BW win! Glad you sent the steak back i absolutely would have too! X
sheluk is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 21 Oct 16, 08:39 PM  
Link to this Post
#10
Midges17
Apprentice Imagineer
 
Join Date: Mar 12
Great day! Why do boys always need the toilet the minute you get to any destination whether shop/park/restaurant!
__________________
: Lesley :
Midges17 is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 07:40 PM.


Powered by vBulletin - Copyright © 2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
DIBB Savings
AttractionTickets.com

Get £10 off each Disney Ticket with the code ATDIBB10

Get up to £50 off per room at Disney or Universal with the code DIBBHOTELS


theDIBB Blog
One of the the five worlds found in Epic Universe, How to Train Your Dragon... Read More »
Disney announced that a new nighttime show, “Disney Dreams That Soar,” will run nightly at... Read More »
Walt Disney World Resort guests can get ready to have a “glowing’’ good time when... Read More »


theDIBB Menu


Exchange Rates
US Dollar Rates
ASDA  $1.2361
CaxtonFX  $1.2306
Covent Garden FX  $1.2543
FAIRFX  $1.2350
John Lewis  $1.2380
M&S  $1.2178
Sainsburys  $1.2354
TESCO  $1.2364
Travelex  $1.2353
Updated: 18:30 28/03/2024
Euro Rates
ASDA  €1.1445
CaxtonFX  €1.1403
Covent Garden FX  €1.1508
FAIRFX  €1.1432
John Lewis  €1.1457
M&S  €1.1263
Sainsburys  €1.1440
TESCO  €1.1445
Travelex  €1.1435
Updated: 18:30 28/03/2024

DIBB Premium Membership
Did you know you can help support theDIBB with Premium Membership?

Check out this link for more information and benefits, such as...

"No adverts on theDIBB Forums"

Upgrade Now



X