Who knew 9 degrees could be this cold?

New Years Eve day my friend from Jacksonville, Sue, called. She had heard about this thing called "Ice" at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Conference Center in Orlando and did I want to go. It's basically a maze of ice sculptures that you walk thru. They give you a special blue parka to protect you from the cold because the whole place is actually 9 degrees. The sculptures themselves are nothing short of amazing and the whole thing ends in an ice slide! The Gaylord Palms itself is awesome with areas designed to be Key West, St. Augustine and The Everglades with live alligators and everything. Of course the place is also decked out for Christmas. Here are a few pics of the hotel itself. This represents the Fort in the St. Augustine area

Here are the kids at one of the Koi streams

Here are all four kids with brothers and sisters pretending they like each other

Here are those alligators I told you about

This is what I want my Christmas tree to look like next year...

And this is the one that didn't get away!

Here we are getting ready to go into "Ice"
And here we are inside.. EVERYTHING is made of ice.

The full size nativity scene was too cool (if you'll pardon the pun)

And here are the kids inside a real igloo!

It got so cold that right at the end Richard was having trouble speaking ~ he was so cold. I think it had a lot to do with the fact that he was sweating before we went in and he used his own jacket and had no hat on! Silly boy ~ you'd think he'd learn.

After leaving "Ice" we wandered around the hotel ~ got some lunch and hot chocolate and there was a Hunt for Gnomes throughout the hotel that the kids thoroughly enjoyed. Richard helped them out while Sue & I had a nice chance to "chill". We ended the day with a Rock Music/Acrobatic/laser light show in the center of the hotel

And Nathaniel was excited to get to meet the guys in the band

All in all it was a very "cool" day ~ get it ~ "cool day!" I just crack myself up.
Well ~ you know how the end of this goes.... So, How was Your day?