1,000 Free Vacations to Military Families

In honor of Veteran’s Day, Westgate Resorts is honoring U.S. military personnel who have and continue to serve our country by giving away 1,000 free vacations to those military members and their families at the company’s most recently renovated property, Westgate River Ranch Resort, a Florida-cowboy themed destination resort and the largest dude ranch east of the Mississippi.  This is the fourth year in a row that Westgate has honored our nation’s heroes with free vacations, and this current offer will bring the total to over 3,500 military families served by this program.

Eligible service members may call in to receive a complimentary three day, two night vacation during the week (Sunday through Thursday) at the Westgate River Ranch Resort located just one hour south of Orlando and one hour west of Tampa. 

To be eligible, military must have served in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, and/or The War on Terror. (Service dates of 9/11/2001 through today).

• Other past U.S. military members are eligible for the ranch’s military rate, which offers a savings of 25 percent on room rates.  

• The first 1,000 eligible military members who call will receive the complimentary stay.  The offer is only available by phone by calling 1-800-887-9312.

About Westgate River Ranch

Rooted in the history of the nation’s first cowboys, Westgate River Ranch lies on 1,700 lush acres in the heart of Florida’s cattle lands and is surrounded by approximately 400,000 acres of state and federally protected wetlands. The ranch offers Florida cowboy-themed accommodations, ranging from campgrounds to Glamping (glamorous camping); tents to two-bedroom cabins.  Westgate River Ranch boasts a multitude of recreational activities, including horseback riding, swimming, golf, a petting farm, nature hikes, trap and skeet shooting, mechanical bull, hayrides, cookouts and a full-service marina complete with boating, and fishing, and airboat and swamp buggy rides. Westgate River Ranch also features a 5,000-foot paved and lighted runway, award-winning Smokehouse Grill, River Ranch Saloon and the longest-running Saturday night championship rodeo in the United States, featuring trick riding, bull riding, calf roping and barrel racing at a 1,200-seat rodeo arena. A herd of grazing buffalo and Watusi cattle (known for their long, distinctive horns) makes its home at Westgate River Ranch. 

*Terms & Conditions: Offer valid as of November 8, 2013, at 9am EST. Offer available by phone ONLY. Valid Sundays – Thursdays ONLY. Based on availability. A credit card is required to book the reservation. Credit card will not be charged. Only ONE reservation per family. Offer valid for the first 1,000 reservations. Must travel before October 31, 2014. Free Room Type for Westgate River Ranch: Lodge Suite, Lodge Guest Room, Deluxe Lodge Suite and Glamping Tent Only. No Resort Preview Required. Not valid for Westgate employees. Upgrades are available for a minimal fee. Additional night(s) will receive 10% off of “Best Available Rate”. Blackout dates: Nov 18, 2013, Dec 5, 2013, Dec 25-26, 2013, Dec 31, 2013 – Jan 1, 2014, Feb 11-12, 2014, Mar 9-11, 2014, May 25-26, 2014, Oct 6-19, 2014. Other blackout dates may apply.

Shell Island - Florida

Next time you are in Panama City Beach rent a boat and take a trip out to Shell Island. Shell Island is a little island just out a ways in the Gulf and easily accessible from Panama City Beach, Florida. I promise you it will be an awesome day. You can rent a boat like we did or catch a shuttle from St. Andrews State Park - $16.95 Adults - $8.95 Children - Infants free. There are several places that rent boats, including the Tyndall AFB if your military.

Shell Island (Photo credit: pamramsey)

 On a nice day there will be a lot of boats out there. The water on the side that faces toward Panama City Beach, FL is quite calm. You can walk over the the other side that faces into the open Gulf of Mexico and the waves are much larger and there's more shells. 

This is the side with larger waves. You can see the difference.

We mostly stuck to the calm side where the kids could run, play, and swim.

Just for fun here's a few pictures of my kids having fun on the boat!

Magic Strollers – Orlando, FL

Magic Strollers is a great place to rent a stroller from in Orlando, Florida. You can do the whole rental online and it only takes a few minutes. They even rent  baby carriages, a push chair or a baby buggy for those that don't want the jogging stroller.

Free Delivery and Pickup

They will drop the stroller off at your hotel and pick it back up. We actually stayed at two different hotels and they dropped it off at one and picked it up from the other. It was so easy!

Double Jogging Stroller

I choose a double stroller even though my youngest two children are 6 and 9. Disney World, Universal, and Sea World is a lot of walking. A LOT OF WALKING. It makes everything so much easier when you can push them around. I would encourage everyone to either rent a stroller or take a stroller for their kids. It makes everything easier.

Thankfully Magic Strollers has the kind with a higher weight limit, because my 12 year old also went for a spin. (And, yes he is playing on his iPod instead of enjoying the most magical place on earth!)

The stroller was easy to fold up and fit on the Disney trams without problems. In the 1st photo you can see that the stroller has easy to use handles.

Related articles

• Enchanted Tales with Belle at Disney World
• Disney World's Electrical Parade at the Magic Kingdom

Flying Fish Cafe at Disney World

Flying Fish Cafe at Disney's Boardwalk

Flying Fish Cafe is an upscale restaurant located near the Boardwalk Resort at Disney World next door to Kat Cora’s restaurant Kouzinna. Flying Fish is one of the more expensive places to dine at Disney World. Our bill for the five of us, including tip was about $170. I actually thought it would be over $200, so it wasn’t as expensive as I thought it would be.









It was a great place to take the kids. Although you will be dining there for a while, it’s not nearly as long as California Grill or Jiko. The kid meal prices ranged from $7 - $12, which is not bad at all. There is a slight dress code. I recommend collard shirts for boys and a sundress for girls.
 

















The inside of the restaurant was small, but really neat and different. There are flying fish hanging from the ceiling. A bar wraps around the kitchen where participate in the Chef’s Tasting Wine Dinner a 5-course prix fixe menu with wine and you can interact with the culinary team.
 
    


  



Pineapple Upside Down Cake Martini
This is the best drink I’ve ever had at Disney World!

Pineapple Upside Down Cake Martini Recipe

1 oz vanilla vodka 
2 oz pineapple juice 
1 dash grenadine syrup 

Shake pineapple juice and vanilla vodka with ice in a tumbler. Pour into a martini cocktail glass with a dash of grenadine at the bottom, and serve.

 

Crispy Sesame and Togarashi-scented Calamari
Spiced Green Papaya, Wakame, and Vegetable Slaw with an Asian-inspired Dipping Sauce
$15.00

 

 

 

Flying Fish Cafe Kid’s Meals

Bowl of Mickey Pasta
Tomato Sauce and Parmesan with Creamy Alfredo or Creamy Cheddar Sauce
$8.00
Baked Florida Coast Fish "Sticks"
Roasted Red Potatoes and vegetables
$11.00

 

Flying Fish Cafe Entrees

 


Char-crusted Angus New York Strip Steak
Fingerling Potatoes, Haricot Vert, and Winter Crop Root Vegetables with Classic Sauce Foyot
$43.00

 

 

 

Rainforest Pepperberry-grilled Kurobuta Pork Tenderloin
Leek, Fontina, Truffle-laced Trofie Macaroni & Cheese
Grilled Asparagus with Kiln-dried and fresh Black Mission Fig, Port Wine, Balsamico, Bermuda Onion, and Trumpet Mushroom Compote
$42.00  

Flying Fish Cafe Desserts

The highlight of our dining experience here was dessert. I had read about Mickey’s Chocolate Puzzle dessert and all the reviews were spot on. It’s an awesome dessert for kids. .It’s made of white chocolate pieces that your kids put together to make a picture of Mickey. Then they can paint the chocolate picture with sugar paints. It also comes with a cupcake.   



Mickey's Chocolate Puzzle
White Chocolate Puzzle, Sugar "Paints", and Creamy-topped Chocolate Cupcake
$8.00



































What I hadn’t expect was how fabulous all the other desserts were. My daughter got Sorcerer Mickey's Milk Chocolate Cauldron which she loved!


    














Sorcerer Mickey's Milk Chocolate Cauldron 
Fun "Skewer" of Fudge Brownie, Marshmallow, Strawberry, and Angel Food Cake
$5.00

          


Caramel-Chocolate-Brioche Bread Pudding
Vanilla-Praline Gelato, Spicy Pecan Brittle, and a Cinnamon Anglaise Sauce
$8.00

More Disney World articles

• Beaches and Cream Soda Shop - A Disney World Restaurant 
• Disney World's Electrical Parade at the Magic Kingdom 

Spa at Ritz Carlton Orlando

A day at the spa is always the perfect way to spend the day with your girlfriends. I had the pleasure of spending the day with my fellow TMOM's at the Ritz Carlton Orlando Spa. I hadn't seen any of the gals in 6 months. Some of them I hadn't seen in a year! We had the perfect opportunity to get caught up with each other in a room perfect for small groups.

In the room they have 4 manicure stations set up and 4 or 5 pedicure stations. I had the special honey pedicure. The honey is made from the Ritz's very own bees. My pedicure was fantastic and lasted over an hour.

Beekeeper and Chef at Ritz Carlton Orlando

Not only can you get pampered at the Ritz Carlton Orlando Spa, but you can have your get together catered. Even for a small group the Ritz went all out with the food. We got to choose from delicious small plates and custom smoothies. 

Mexico Beach - Florida

Mexico Beach, Florida is a very private beach just east of Panama City Beach and just west of Port St. Joe. There is plenty of free parking. We usually park near Toucan's restaurant. We always eat there and they have a playground on the beach in front of their restaurant.

We went out to Mexico beach for the last time in May 2010 when Paul's parents came out to visit. We spent our afternoon out there collecting shells and swimming. There's an abundance of shells all along the beach. I think Mexico Beach is one of the best beaches for collecting seashells in Florida.

Noah, Eden and I bogey boarded. The waves at Mexico beach are not over powering like some beaches. It's a safe area for kids to play. Eden was only 5 and she was able to easily bogey board.

You can see how uncrowded this beach is in this picture.