71 days people. That’s where we are now. Due to our earlier than usual travel dates (April rather than August) most of our party have ESTAs that will still (just) be valid. That is of course unless the orange despot doesn’t wake up thinking he didn’t like Theresa May, her shoes or the fact that George Michael was gay and revoke all ESTAs on that basis of course.
Only Emily needs one so we’ll be applying for that later today. We’re at that stage where things seem close yet so far away. I have resolved today to begin my weight loss regime in preparation for inflicting my white wobbliness on the general public. I have been losing and gaining the same few pounds for most of my adult life and having done the former last summer and then the latter for most of the winter, it is time.
I made that resolution to shed some timber late last night. I had just got home from a gig and it was late or early depending on your view point and as usual after gigging I can’t go straight to bed. That’s normally due to my ears ringing and fighting off the groupies for an hour or two. So last night I made myself a brew and ate my own body weight in biscuits. If you read Keith Moon’s memoirs at his peak he was on a 40 a day Bourbon habit and could do three packets of Hob Nobs a day.
For me, it’s definitely a mental state. Once I’m in it, nothing can shake me from the path and I won’t and don’t let up until I have reached whatever number on the scales I have set as a goal. When I’m not in that state (the last few months) I eat like I’ll never see food again at every meal and most times in between too. You may know by now that I enjoy my food and it certainly cut my Calvin Klein modelling career short by a year or two.
As I get older though my give a shit-o-meter gets less sensitive and the thought of inflicting my dad bod on the folks on the beach falls into the “it’s their problem not mine” category. As long as I don’t need winching through the front window to get to the airport then it’s all good.
It can seem a little silly to take weight off prior to any specific occasion, just so you can put it back on but for a Florida holiday it is essential. Especially when your plans, like ours, revolve around food and the critical part of planning is how quickly we can possibly be hungry again after each meal so we can do another. Either way it’ll be no bad thing for me to be less girthy no matter what the reason. If I hadn’t followed this boom and bust circle of life for all of our trips right now I’d either by forty stone or dead.
It’s been a while since I shared my plans with you and as I have documented recently there have been lots of changes so here it is….as it stands…
Tuesday 11th April
Flights with Thomas Cook from Manchester at 10.15.
We check in to the Royal Pacific, with Mum and Dad checking in to Holiday Inn Across from Universal
Dinner at the Outback on I Drive
Wednesday 12th April
IOA
Lunch at Toothsome
Dinner at Cowfish
Thursday 13th April
Morning by the pool to avoid that second day weariness
Afternoon in Universal Studios
Dinner at Teak Neighbourhood Grill
Friday 14th April
Park hopping between IOA and Universal
Dinner at O’hana and a visit to Trader Sam’s for cocktails
Saturday 15th April
Check out of Universal and move to Siesta Key
Brunch at Hash House a Go Go
Maybe some shopping before getting to Siesta Key around 4. Dinner somewhere in the village.
Sunday 16th April
Beach
Dinner in the village
Monday 17th April
Beach
Dinner at Cheesecake Factory
Tuesday 18th April
Golf for me & Dad, Beach or the ladies
Dinner at Applebees
Wednesday 19th April
Beach
Dinner in the village
Thursday 20th April
Beach
Dinner at Olive Garden
Friday 21st April
Beach
Dinner in the village
Saturday 22nd April
Leave Siesta Key. Check in to Beach Club for us and All Stars for Mum & Dad
Epcot in the afternoon
Dinner at Sanaa
Jellyrolls
Sunday 23rd April
Animal Kingdom
Dinner at Yak & Yeti
Extra Magic Hours at Epcot with Reflections of Earth
Monday 24th April
Rest by the pool
Celebration late afternoon, dinner there with Disney Springs in the evening
Tuesday 25th April
Hollywood Studios
Dinner at Bahama Breeze
Back to DHS for Fantasmic
Wednesday 26th April
Magic Kingdom
Dinner at Trail’s End
Wishes etc, tears and the horror of leaving MK at the end of our trip.
Thursday 27th April
Packing, shopping for all those gifts we should have bought earlier
Airport, big pants, regrets, dealing with reality, wondering how quickly we can get back to Florida.
I told you I need to lose weight before we go!
Till the next time…..
Mkingdon's Blog 
Arrgh, torture!
We are doing an overnight at royal Pacific on the 11th April, will keep an eye out for the backpack!
See you there !!
Looks fab… I will be with you in spirit… for some reason I don’t understand, hubby says things need to be done on the house before we think about going back. I have a cunning plan, though; when we do go back it will be Beach Club all the way. That’ll teach him!
Oh my! How do you keep up the pace 🙂 I really don’t know how you manage to eat out on arrival day. We are either too tired or too full, after eating at airport and on the plane!
He who dares wins Rodders 🙂
It all sounds wonderful, I am appalled however that there are some nights without a restaurant listing! 😂😂😂
Poor I know…those are the nights at Siesta Key when we will be in laid back beach mode 😉