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8 Years in Florida and I Still Haven’t Seen the Mermaids

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  When I first moved to Florida almost eight years ago, I had grand visions of what my life would look like. I pictured weekend road trips to hidden clear-water springs, quirky roadside attractions, coastal kayak tours, and endless sunshine-filled adventures. Fast forward nearly a decade, and if I’m being honest? Most of my "living in paradise" experience has consisted of navigating traffic on I-4, dodging afternoon thunderstorms, running errands in air-conditioned sanctuaries, and telling myself, “I’ll check that out next weekend.” Living somewhere creates a funny paradox: when paradise is in your backyard, you treat it like an errand you can run anytime. And so, time slips by. The #1 Missing Item: Weeki Wachee Springs If you ask anyone who knows me what sits at the absolute top of my Florida bucket list, they’ll tell you instantly: The World-Famous Mermaid Show at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park . Since 1947, performers have been putting on underwater ballet performances in...
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Cars Land Cozy Cone Chicken Chile Verde Recipe

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With Covid-19 in full effect, there are a ton of people that are having Disney withdrawal!  We moved to Florida almost two years ago just so that we wouldn't experience this feeling.  I love irony as much as anyone, but this is borderline cruel :) While I do miss the rides and attactions, that's not the thing that I am really jonesing for.  I want some good food!!!  When we didn't live so close to Disney and wanted to get our theme park food fix, we would look for recipes.  My wife has pretty much perfected the cheese soup from Le Celier!  So I thought this would be a good time to add a recipe for another of our favorites. I haven't been to Disneyland since 2013.  Even then, I didn't have a park ticket.  I ran through the parks for the Disneyland half marathon (which hasn't been held for a few years now).  But one of my all-time favorite Disney food items (note to self, I should put together a list of my top five faves) was the Chicken Ch...
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Animal Kingdom Backstage Tales - Immediate Feedback Video

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In July of 2017, our oldest daughter and I participated in the Backstage Tale tour at Disney's Animal Kingdom.  We did a video right after we had finished the tour.  It is un-edited and the sound quality isn't great.  But I am glad that we have it:  A few other miscellaneous pics: Entering the empty park An empty Africa Participation gifts Close-up of the elephant treat
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Taking advantage of DVC Perks - Advanced Movie Screenings

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Taking advantage of DVC Perks - Advanced Movie Screenings There are many advantages of being a Disney Vacation Club member.  The perks and benefits aren't enough to justify membership, but they are a great "icing on the cake."  This is particularly true now that we have moved to Florida and can be in Orlando without flying.  The most recent example is an opportunity to pre-screen the new Pixar movie "Onward" on Leap Day.  We received an email on Tuesday, February 26th, that notified us of the opportunity for DVC owners to pre-screen the movie on Leap Day.  My wife registered us, and we were looking forward to it! The doors were to open at 10:00 am on February 29th.  According to the "fineprint", it was a possibility that there were not enough seats for everyone.  Since we know how eager DVC people can be, we arrived at Disney Springs about 45 minutes early and were able to take a few pictures outside the theater:    Not onl...
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Dining Review - Chef Art Smith's Homcomin'

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Homecomin' is located in Disney Springs and is one of my favorite restaurants on Disney World property.  I've been there a handful of times and have not had a bad meal.  That's not to say that it's always great.  During peak times, I have had meals that were good but not exceptional.  My most recent trip was during lunch on a weekday.  They were at about half-capacity and the meal was outstanding and the service was amazing!  I was on the dining plan, which included a drink and desert.  I knew what entree that I wanted but asked for input from the bartender for the other courses.  I was very happy! The "Old Fashioned Elder" For my entree I selected the signature dish, "Art's Famous Fried Chicken".  This is every bit as good as the Mid-West Potluck fried chicken that I remember from my youth!  The portions are generous and I had leftovers.  My one criticism is that the mashed potatoes are instant.  That's...
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Focus on Florida Livin'

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I am long overdue for a new post here at ArmsInsideTheVehicle! The last year has been whirlwind of events and activities, with a couple of them being in the "life-changing" category! No joke and no exaggerating needed. Perhaps the biggest event was relocating our family from Arizona to Florida. Big, HUGE event for us! It hasn't been easy and a ton of adjusting had to occur. A year later, I can safely say that it was a great decision! And nothing that I've ever experienced represents the philosophy of "Please keep your hands, arms, feet, and legs inside the vehicle" better than our life journey of the last year. That's not to say that there are not things that we miss. People! We still miss our friends and family from Kansas the most. We also miss the relationships that we formed over the 7+ years in AZ. Mountains! The highest point of Florida is probably the top of a bridge that was built to allow ship traffic under it! No rain! We miss no...
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