HEY MICKEY YOU'RE SO FINE,YOU'RE SO FINE YOU BLOW MY..MONEY. MAY 2019 Day 12:AQUATICA &CHEESECAKE!

[gjdjud]

HEY MICKEY YOU'RE SO FINE,YOU'RE SO FINE YOU BLOW MY..MONEY. MAY 2019 Day 12:AQUATICA &CHEESECAKE!

DAY 12

HEY MICKEY YOU'RE SO FINE,YOU'RE SO FINE YOU BLOW MY..MONEY. MAY 2019 Index

So today was Evie Mae's 12th birthday. I really can't believe how quickly she is growing up. All through the planning of this trip I always checked with Evie what she wanted to do on her birthday. It was pretty much a certainty that she'd choose a waterpark and she chose Aquatica.

She opened her presents first thing and got various presents and a whole wedge of cash. Kelly did a good job of smuggling everything with us in the cases.

Aquatica was opening at 10am but we were going to be having breakfast out first. Keke's was initially Evie's first choice but I thought it might be awkward going there first then driving back to Aquatica so we settled on Village Inn which is on the doorstep of the Seaworld parks. We were soon dressed and out the door about 8.30am.

It was a fairly straightforward drive down the I4 before we arrived at the Village Inn. We’ve been before and enjoyed it.

It was fairly quiet and we were seated straight away. Again way too much choice on the menu.

Kelly went for ultimate Skillet which was Two cherrywood-smoked bacon strips, two sausage links, diced ham, mushrooms, green peppers, onions, tomatoes and melted cheeses. It came with pancakes as well. She got hers without mushrooms and she loved it.

The rest went V.I.B which was basically pick your own

Lily went for sausage, scrambled egg, toast hash browns which she liked.

Evie went for sausage, chocolate chip pancakes, hash browns and bacon. She really enjoyed this.

I went for sausage patty, breakfast potatoes, bacon and small fried chicken with country gravy. Yes you read that right. I had fried chicken as I'm a legend. It was good but nothing spectacular.

Overall a good breakfast. With drinks it was around $55 and good place to go if your visiting the Seaworld parks.

Some of the pies they have on display. Wednesday is free slice of pie day with an entree

When we came out we realised it was a bit early so we drove around to see if we could find somewhere to get a magazine or two for Kelly. We found a CVS. I chose to wait in the car. I didn't really have any interest in going in an American Boots. I settled in knowing they'd be a little while. I amused myself by watching Bill Hader's amazing Arnie impression on youtube.

They were soon out. They didn't have magazines but Kelly bought herself a book instead. Typically as we drove off we saw a 7/11 where she could have got magazines.

It was a 2 minute drive to Aquatica and we were soon pulling in. I again had my tickets handy for the parking. We were directed to the disabled parking before heading in.

Kelly had bought a packet of Chips Ahoy!(our cookie of choice in the US) but as were were going through the bag check Kelly was told they couldn't be brought in. i would have chucked them but after a stern look i was soon trudging back to the car cookies in hand muttering under my breath about how life was so unfair.

I was soon back and after a successful bag entry check this time we were soon in heading to the cabana check in area.

We had gotten a cabana last time for a cost of $99 and it was pretty successful so I decided to go for it again. It was more this time at $149 but as it was Evie's birthday I decided to go for it again. Kelly isn't mad about water parks so it gave her a place to chill out. I had booked this online back in January. The check in was very quick and easy. I also asked about disability ride access passes for Evie. This was no issue and Evie was given a wristband. This would make queuing easier for her but truth be told we didn't really use it much.

Our cabana was situated in the Roa's Rapids section. We knew where we heading as it was the same location as we had last time. it was a fairly short walk. An attendant showed us our cabana. It was lovely. It has a locker, fridge stocked with water and towels included with it. We got sorted before heading off to go on some rides.

It was incredibly hot but at this early morning stage the floor wasn't baking hot. Yet! Our first ride was the the new Ray Rush. We began the long climb up the stairs. Its the thing I dislike the most about water parks, the stairs.

I rode with Evie. We loved it but I was a little worried about making sure Evie held on properly when it went up the side! It was fun though. Kelly didn't think so and hated it! She was terrified that Lily was going to fall out! Be warned that you actually stand on scales to check your weight on this!

Kelly didn't want to go Walhala Wave situated next door so me and the girls headed on to ride a raft that held 3. Back in 2015 when riding this Evie had banged her mouth on my knee knocking out a loose baby tooth. We tried to see if the tooth had lodged itself somewhere but surprisingly 4 years later we couldn't see it anywhere. We enjoyed it and the girls wanted to ride again but I couldn't face going up the stairs!

So we headed of to a firm family favourite Roa's Rapids! We love this ride and always spend a fair amount of time in this. We equipped ourselves with the life vests before joining the rapids.

One thing that was obvious straight away that it wasn't as quick as the equivalent ride at Volcano Bay but it was a far nicer environment to be so we all loved it as normal. Photos are being taken by my phone. I had it one of those cheap waterproof cases that I had round my neck. It worked really well.

We went round 2 or 3 times before we made got out this. The getting out is the hardest part against the current but also the most fun part as well!

Next we decided to head over to the wave pool to check that out. The floor was an absolute killer and water shoes should have been worn to be honest. I still won't as I hate them! There is no way enough sprinklers around the park. A tiny gripe I have with Aquatica. We arrived at the wave pool practically sprinting and prancing into any shade like we were Peter Pan. We soon were in.

The girls were getting a little annoyed as Kelly wouldn't let them go out as far as they'd like and Evie was adamant that she wouldn't wear a life vest. Neither was budging so the usual stand off between the two of them occurred. Evie blinked first though and a life vest was eventually donned.

We enjoyed it in there but Typhoon Lagoon is a far superior wave pool. The temperature on the big screen was saying 97. It was a hot one!

So we pranced over the baking hot floor to our next location(usually here I'd bring in Ini Kamoze but Kelly has banned me from using the hotstepper and lyrical gangster references anymore). Next ride was the Omaka Rocker. These are raft rides were you have to drag the inflatable rafts to the top. the girls would ride together and I would ride single. The girls attempts at dragging the rafts up was frankly pathetic so I ended up dragging mine with one hand while helping them. What does Danny Glover keep saying in Lethal Weapon? Well I certainly was! It was fun and the girls enjoyed it. I got talked into going up once more but this time on the Whanau Wave. A ride attendant noticed evie's band and explained we could use the quick queue line. This was exactly the same as the regular line though. i'm sure when its much busier then it would be good. Again a fun ride but after I got out the water I needed a holiday.

We made our way over the hot coals back to the cabana for a little rest. We made use of the water in the fridge. It the cabana area there is a lot of shade so if you want sun then they aren't great. I did find a little sun trap so made use of it for 20 minutes.

The girls soon got restless and wanted to go back to the wave pool. Kelly stayed to read her book while we once again braved the surface of the sun back to the wave pool. Complete strangers were huddled together in the odd puddle of water getting up the courage to move to the next prime bit of a puddle real estate.

We spent some more time back in the wave pool before Roa's Rapids was calling our name. They'd opened up a fastpass system for the puddles of water so we had to sprint past them. We detoured to tell Kelly but she was happy where she was. I know I'm going on about it but I can't describe how hot the floor was. We were plotting routes like a Tom Tom to get the fastest way. We made it just and enjoyed a few loops round. Each time we passed our cabana we'd scream out Kelly's name so she could her us. She did but we couldn't see each other.

Once back Kelly was keen to go on the lazy river so we did that next. It's not a great lazy river so we didn't go round too much but its nice being able to see the Commerson's dolphins.

The girls were keen to get something to eat so while they went back to the cabana I went and got them some food. It was a little annoying as it was supposed to a big breakfast and a snack before dinner but they ended up with a kids meal each. They shared hot dog, nuggets and fries.

I got Kelly’s fruit pot and I got some cookies which I saw one of

Overall it was ok.$23

Me and the girls braved the stairs and the carrying of the rafts to go back on each ride again before we headed back to Roa's Rapids. I don't think we could ever get bored of it and we went round a few more times. We went and found Kelly and the girls upset her by moaning at her about not going on the rides. Kelly isn't that confident in the water and the girls were being unfair.

evie really wanted ro ride Tassie's Twisters(think a big drain) Its a bit annoying to get on as you access it through the lazy river. Kelly and Lily joined us but stayed on the lazy river. Me and Evie had a slight wait to get on the ride but it could have been worse. It was fun but I didn't think we'd ever get flushed down as we seemed to get stuck.

We headed back to the cabana again before going to the kids area, Walkabout Waters. We left the girls to it and chilled in the shallow water. It's always a little nerve wracking for us watching Evie in these and it can be a bit dangerous as she can't see anything in there so Lily has to keep an eye on her.

It was about 3.30pm at this point so me and the girls did one more dash to the wave pool while Kelly went and got dressed. It's easier for her to get dressed first as even though the girls are 12 and 10 they seem incapable of getting dressed themselves!

I went and got dressed myself afterwards. I took a seat on a bench but soon a large family crowded round me gradually edging me of the bench so I felt compelled to move. I held me ground though until the others appeared.

We had a little look in the gift shop and we persuaded Evie to get a rash vest for our upcoming trip to the beach. we also got 10% off as we had the cabana. I wouldn't have known but the lady saw my cabana wristband.

And that was us done. We had a really enjoyable day. I think Aquatica is our favourite park and we love having the cabana. Unfortunately as said in the Seaworld day that we won't do the Seaworld parks next time so we will miss out. I'm sure we will be back one day though.

From here we were heading directly to the Mall Of Millenia so we could go to The Cheesecake Factory for dinner and some shopping.

When we got close to the Mall, Kelly spotted a Super Target. Her and Lily got excited but an almighty argument broke out as Evie said there was no way she was going on her birthday. I kept out of it. In the end we didn't go but with the promise Target would be visited again at another time.

We parked up but instantly could feel the difference in this mall to the malls. I'm wasn't sure if we'd like it as it looked a bit posh!

Dinner was going to be first.

Again somewhere we’d read about but had never been so were looking forward to this.

Famous for its big portion sizes so off course we got appetisers as well as we are idiots

There was no wait for a table which was a surprise. The server sounded exactly like Sara(with no H as H’s are eew) from Jimmy Fallon which was funny but she was very knowledgeable about the menu.

The menu here is ridiculous. It makes War and Peace seem like a light read. We kept telling our server to come back as weren’t ready. It was actually quite stressful.

We were also given bread which was nice.

Lily chose Cheeseburger Egg rolls. These were ok but a bit crispy.

Kelly chose Chicken Pot stickers which she liked. Problem was Lily liked them more and Kelly ended up swapping.

I went for Nashville Hot nuggets. These were great and pretty hot.

Evie went for chicken taquitos. These were like egg rolls but made with nachos. Unfortunately they forgot these and she had to wait. I thought she was going to kick off big style and take out the whole Cheesecake Factory. They eventually arrived but they were taken off the bill as they were late which was good.

For mains Lily went for the Mac and Cheese Burger. I thought there was more chance of me winning the lottery than her finishing it. I was correct. She loved the Mac and cheese but not the burger.

Evie went for a turkey club which was huge. She enjoyed this and made a good dent in it.

Kelly went for her go to meal again of teriyaki chicken with rice. She thought this was good.

I went for crispy chicken Costoletta. I wanted something different. Basically chicken breadcrumbs with a lemon sauce. It came with mash. It was a little dull but overall ok and by no means the worst thing I’ve eaten.

We were truly stuffed but did a good job and there wasn’t loads left which was surprising.

The plan was to look around the mall and grab some cheesecakes later on way out which we did.

Evie got Red Velvet which she loved.

Kelly Key Lime Pie Cheesecake which said was really good.

Nothing for me and Lily. The Cheesecake takeout wait took longer than the meal. Not really but it felt like it. You know your in trouble when they call no 32 and your 46

So overall it wasn’t bad. Somewhere off the to do list but a bit pricey. I don’t think we’d make an effort to go there. So with the cheesecakes and tips around $150 .

So off in to the Mall itself. Yep. Waaaayyyyyy to posh for us. Designer and expensive.

We didn't really see anything that took our fancy. Kelly bought some Dadio shampoo from Lush. The girls have a weird obsession with hand sanitizers so bought a job lot each from Bath And Body works. To be honest we didn't really like it in there so we were out easily within an hour. I felt a little disappointed for evie I made a deal of her being able to spend her birthday money. She was ok as she is actually tighter than me so she was happy to save her money.`

It took us awhile to get out of the car park as there was a lot of traffic. I don't think we'd rush back to the Mall Of Millenia. The drive back to Encantada took awhile as well which was a little annoying.

Evie seemed happy though. She'd had a good birthday!

Once back we got all our stuff ready for the next day. We had an early start as we were fulfilling something I'd always wanted to do. An overnight at Clearwater Beach!

Thanks for reading!

George

[jothp]

Another great day. We've never managed a full day at a water park. DH and I have usually had enough after a few hours. I think the girls would be happy to stay in the lazy river for hours though! Your meals at Cheesecake factory look good. I've always fancied trying some of the cheesecake from there.

[gjdjud]

Originally Posted by jothp

Another great day. We've never managed a full day at a water park. DH and I have usually had enough after a few hours. I think the girls would be happy to stay in the lazy river for hours though! Your meals at Cheesecake factory look good. I've always fancied trying some of the cheesecake from there.

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Aquatica is the only water park we stay that long. I’d only go to Cheesecake Factory if I was over that way. They are building one near Vineland Outlets though.

[MaryMendes]

I think the Macy’s side of Mall of Millenia is good - just regular shops. We also like the food court there as they have Chick Fil A.

It’s a handy place to go if you are staying at Universal & want a quick trip out. I’m quite a fan.

[GezzasGem]

Glad Evie had a good time! Must confess never done cheesecake factory and think I would take hours in picking from that lot! 😄

[Animagus]

We’ve never been to Aquatica but our next trip will be Universal and the SeaWorld parks only so we will definitely visit. The cabana looks nice. I’m not mad on water parks so could be tempted by that.
Glad Evie enjoyed her birthday.

[Minnie Mum]

We loved our breakfast at village inn on our aquatica day. Food looks great

[gjdjud]

Originally Posted by MaryMendes

I think the Macy’s side of Mall of Millenia is good - just regular shops. We also like the food court there as they have Chick Fil A.

It’s a handy place to go if you are staying at Universal & want a quick trip out. I’m quite a fan.

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We might not have got over that side of the mall

Originally Posted by GezzasGem

Glad Evie had a good time! Must confess never done cheesecake factory and think I would take hours in picking from that lot! 😄

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Thank you. There was quite a choice. I can’t believe looking back I didn’t get any

Originally Posted by Animagus

We’ve never been to Aquatica but our next trip will be Universal and the SeaWorld parks only so we will definitely visit. The cabana looks nice. I’m not mad on water parks so could be tempted by that.
Glad Evie enjoyed her birthday.

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It’s definitely our favourite water park. Depending on time of year the cabanas aren’t the extortionate prices they are else where.

Originally Posted by Minnie Mum

We loved our breakfast at village inn on our aquatica day. Food looks great

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Thanks for reading

[collybird]

I read on here years ago that Mall of Millenia is very high end, so definitely not for me. We will visit sometime purely just for the Cheesecake Factory though!

[gjdjud]

Originally Posted by collybird

I read on here years ago that Mall of Millenia is very high end, so definitely not for me. We will visit sometime purely just for the Cheesecake Factory though!

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They are building one near Vineland Outlets so that might be a better bet