Orlando Part 3-Emeril's, Citiwalk & Swimming

I am finally posting the rest of our Florida pics. Some of these are in random order......there were so many that it was taking me forever to get them in the order I wanted them! Here they are.... :)

I made us reservations at Emeril's online before we left Missouri. The food was absolutely FABULOUS!

View from the outside. Emeril's is located at Universal Citiwalk.

Miss Ella pointing at Daddy. I was worried she might be too rowdy for such a nice restaraunt, but she was perfect!

This is a picture of the dining room. There are several seating sections in the restaraunt. We were lucky enough to be right by a window.

This picture and the next one aren't mine, I got them online. But mine turned out a little dark and this way you could see how beautiful the restaraunt really was.

View from the stairs leading upstairs.

The three of us outside, after dinner.

Ella and Daddy on the water taxi from the hotel to CitiWalk (one of the many times we went!)

A little blurry, but this gives you an idea of how the CitiWalk looks at night. It is VERY busy and bright!

Another view....a little less blurry!

The three of us in front of the water. In the distance across the water you can see the Universal Sign.

Happy as can be!!

Margaritaville sign lit up at night (again, at CitiWalk).

You've had the camera in my face this whole trip, Mama!

I'm not a NASCAR girl, but had to take advantage of the photo op ;)
Just chillin' :)

We had dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. on Thursday night. VERY yummy, and a super fun atmosphere.

Ella and Mommy enjoying some chocolate chip cookie dough gelato. Yum-O!

Self portrait of Tom and I, waiting for the water taxi.

Watching the water and the other boats go by. She didn't feel very good that day....can you tell by her face??
How do I look?
Cheese!
My turn :)
We got the chance to take Ella swimming several times while at the hotel. They had three different pools that were all beautiful. She loves being in the water now. Here we are walking to the pool across the piazza.
She's very excited :)
She looks like such a big girl in this picture.
Splash, splash!! She kept bringing her knees way up like this even though the water wasn't very deep!
Ella waiting for the water taxi.
The Universal sign at CitiWalk and the entrance to Universal Studios behind it on the right.
Ella and Daddy, being lazy in the morning before I had to go to class.
I LOVE this picture. My girl giving me kisses.
Oooh, it sure is hot and sunny here. I'm glad I have my sunglasses and my hat!
Another view at CitiWalk across the water to Hard Rock Cafe.
Ella pointing to her new t-shirt. She loves Spongebob (unfortunately) and there was Spongebob stuff EVERYWHERE while we were there. So we thought this would be cute. It says 'My First Spongebob Tee"- Universal Studios. Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a huge fan of characters on clothing, but she was so excited, I couldn't say no :)

We had a great time. It was nice to make a little mini-vacation out of one of my work trips. I love traveling with my family. Ella was such a good girl on the plane. I can't wait til our next vacation!

Orlando, Part 2-Portofino Bay Hotel

Ok, so here are some more pictures from our trip. My conference was held at the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Studios. It was beautiful. The entire hotel grounds are set up as a replica of the village of Portofino, Italy. Gorgeous.

Here is the view as we drove up to the hotel.

I liked how the entrance had Italian looking cars and scooters parked outside.

Seating in the lobby. This is where I could sit and check my email during my meeting breaks.

Fountain in the foyer.

Another view of the fountain and the decor.

This was a view from inside the piazza, our room was right in the middle of this picture. The grounds were set up around the bay, and you could take the water taxi over to Universal CitiWalk.

All of us in the hotel lobby, the day we left.

The meeting room where my conference was held. There were over 400 people there!

This is what our room looked like. Ella had her own crib (not pictured).

Ella walking around the grounds with Daddy. I love this picture because it looks like one of those pics in a magazine where a celebrity has been caught off guard by the paparazzi!

Lit up at night. We just got off the water taxi and were walking back to our room.

View from the water taxi. Beautiful!

I just thought it was such a unique place, and the service was wonderful. Stay tuned for pictures of Citi Walk and Emeril's!

Orlando, Part 1- SEA WORLD!

We just got back from a wonderful trip to Orlando! I had a conference there for work, so we decided to go up a day early and take Ella to Sea World. We had a great time....it was VERY hot that day, as you can tell by the pictures. Ella's cheeks were rosy red! But it didn't seem to bother her too bad and we had such a great day. There is something so awesome about watching your little one experience something for the first time. I loved watching her as she watched the animals and the shows. There are so many pictures, I had a hard time narrowing them down, so bare with me :)

Here we are just getting to Sea World. Ella got her own big girl stroller at the park.

One of the first things we did was go to the "Believe" show at Shamu Stadium. It was unbelievable. I had seen it once before when I was younger, but didn't remember it too well. It is the most amazing thing. These huge killer whales swimming around with people. Tom and I both decided our new dream is to be a trainer to one of these magnificent animals.

If you look, you can see the trainer getting his feet steady on Shamu's nose, then he pushes him through the water and up.....
How fun does THIS look? Um, please sir, can I have a turn? :)

It was neat watching them interact. Shamu is so smart!

Every time he did a "trick," he got a handful of fresh fish as a reward.

Rosy cheeks!

Wow! Did you see that?
One of the trainers, riding on Shamu's belly.
What the heck are those people doing?
It was the neatest show.

A family self portrait.

Ooooh, Mama! Look at that!

This is what happens to Ella's hair in the extreme humidity!

What a sweet smile. She will do this on command now when you ask her to show you her teeth.
Outside the stadium, after the show.
Trying to cool off in the water. Ella was a little hesitant, but liked to look from the sidelines.

The dolphin nursery. They are so precious! Doesn't it look like he's smiling at the camera?

Ella with Daddy on the carousel. She's looking a bit glazed over here.
The Clyde and Seamore Sea Lion show....although I think there was just one sea lion. Isn't he cute?
Posing for the camera. Work it, work it....
SHARKS!

The pictures didn't come out that great, because it was low lighting and behind glass. But I think you get the picture. Yikes! Not quite as cute and approachable as Shamu ;)
I couldn't get a decent picture of the penguins, again, because of the low lighting. So I thought I'd pose in front of the "penguin habitat" backdrop. Not at all cheesy, right?
Ella pooped out on Daddy. She was such a good sport, though. She had missed naptime and it was 95 degrees out. But she never cried or fussed. She just fell asleep :)
Daddy's hat providing some shade for sleeping beauty.
One last picture before leaving the park.

We had such a great day together. Stay tuned for more pictures from our trip! A preview of things to come: Portofino Bay Hotel (gorgeous!), Universal CitiWalk, Bubba Gump Shrimp, swimming and dinner at EMERIL'S!! Check back later!!......