I get home from trips and just want to marinate in the memories.
The past 12 months have brought in a lot of new, good memories for me. Sadly, most of them without my family. I almost always feel a huge amount of guilt for having to work out of state sometimes. What weighs hard on my heart and soul is experiencing fun, new things without the people I love the most. When the invite came in for Family Forward, there was no way I was turning it down. I wanted to treat my family to a trip they would remember and cherish forever. (Insert hearts here) My family loves traveling, the boys have been to more states than I had as a kid. I think it is vital for them to experience life out of their state. Family Forward was the window to see we are a Super Hero family and we have to continue working on ourselves and our community. 
At the welcome reception, Jyl and Troy Pattee shared about their family. I loved their story about the 50 states. Definitely inspired us to do a family mission statement and create our own wow factor!
“Those who are happiest are those who do the most for others.” ― Booker T. Washington
Our family loved the Super Hero Family Bingo activity. The goal was to socialize with the other families and I found out just how social and competitive my teens can be. Not only did they go for bingo, they went for blackout and filled up their whole card. I was so proud of them!
Sample questions:
Does your family like sushi?
Does your family go on road trips?
Do you have brothers?
Universal Orlando Resort surprised us by bringing out three important families at the opening kickoff. (Read about how I feel about The Simpsons here.) Family pictures are so hard for us sometimes and I absolutely adore these! It really gives you a sense of our family!
After the opening kickoff, we headed to Islands of Adventure to attend the private dessert party at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. What a treat it was. It was only open for us!!! My absolute favorite was the bottomless frozen Butterbeer. I guzzled my butterbeer, licked my moustache off and we headed to Three Broomsticks to stuff our faces with sweets.
The Frog Choir was amazing. I could have listened to them all night long.
Ollivanders. I hear the line is always long. Whatever you do, wait in it. I really loved the magic inside. (If you don't want to wait and just buy a wand, you can walk into the store via Dervish and Banges or The Owl Post)
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. The teens could not stop raving about how good this ride is. I decided to wait with the baby in the "child swap" area. I cannot praise Universal Orlando enough for child swap. You wait in a little room while the rest of your party enjoys the attraction and then when they are done, it's your turn. Seriously, best idea ever. Universal Orlando makes it easy when you travel with kids.
Inside Dervish and Banges - that's The Monster Book of Monsters (stand very close!)
Honeydukes - Oh my. I spent 20 minutes inside just looking around at all the sweets. Because, sweets. Fancy a chocolate frog? I bet you do!
The teens loved all the rides, I fell in love with the details. Duke wants to watch the movies now. Nighttime at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is electrifying but we had to return in the day to see it again. You just have to. I cannot wait till Diagon Alley opens in 2014. Are you excited?
Disclosure: This is not a compensated or sponsored post. We purchased a heavily discounted family pass to Family Forward. All thoughts are my own. Labels: Family Forward, Mom It Forward, Travel, Universal Orlando Resort, Wizarding World Of Harry Potter