Bennett family wraps up Disney vacation at Magic Kingdom

This is the final part in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ve spent one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We hit the Universal Studios theme parks to begin our vacation, then hoofed it around Animal Kingdom, EPCOT and Hollywood Studios. We finished with one of the most visited theme parks in the world, Magic Kingdom.

Dad’s pick

SpectroMagic. If you’re a fan of parades, then this could also be one of your favorites. The SpectroMagic parade is different than the many other parades Disney puts on in that it takes place after dark.

The...

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Bennett family enjoys American Idol Experience at Hollywood Studios

This is the fifth in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We hit the Universal Studios theme parks to begin our vacation, then hoofed it around Animal Kingdom and EPCOT. Next up was Hollywood Studios.

Dad’s pick

The American Idol Experience. I won’t say I’m a closet American Idol fan, mainly because I tell anyone who’ll listen how much I enjoy the show. I don’t fit the teeny-bopper demographic that the show tries to hit, but I fit right in at the live new show at Hollywood...

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Bennett family finds lots to do but too much to eat in one day at Epcot

This is the fourth in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We hit the Universal Studios theme parks to begin our vacation, then hoofed it around Animal Kingdom. Next up was Epcot, which stands for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, a theme park split between Future World — where kids will have the most fun — and World Showcase — a group of miniaturized versions of countries all over the globe.

Dad’s pick

San Angel Inn. I have to start right off by mixing up the theme of these blogs, and...

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Plenty of photo ops as Bennett family visits Disney’s Animal Kingdom

This is the third in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We hit the Universal Studios theme parks to begin our vacation, then it was on to Disney’s Animal Kingdom, one of the most picturesque (and toughest to walk) theme parks in Orlando.

Dad’s pick

Finding Nemo, the Musical. It’s no secret that I love attending Broadway shows, and I particularly love Disney-based shows because I can share my love of the theater with my children. My lone actual Broadway show — meaning right in the theater district of New...

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Bennett family finds Universal Studios a good mix of rides and shows

This is the second in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

After going to Islands of Adventure on Day 1, we followed up with Universal Studios.

Dad’s pick

Universal Horror Make-Up Show. Unless you hit the comedy improv show at Pleasure Island in Downtown Disney, there isn’t a lot of adult-driven shows during a typical Disney trip. The horror makeup show is probably not recommended for younger kids, as it explains some of the gorier moments in filmmaking history and has a few of those off-color moments — such as...

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Bennett family finds lots of favorites at Universal Studios’ Islands of Adventure

This will be the first in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We’ll begin with Universal Studios’ Islands of Adventure.

Dad’s pick

The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man. Easy pick for me, as I’ve been a comic book fanatic for the bulk of my life. I have the Amazing Spider-Man #14 — the first appearance of the Green Goblin — locked up in a safe, and I have the Joker — my favorite character — forever etched onto my left shoulder.

So a comic book-themed 3-D ride? You better believe this one...

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A neat family trip … this time, close to home

My daughter Stephanie finally got her dream vacation this month. No, not Disney World. We do that every two years. No, not historical venues like Philadelphia and Washington D.C. She’s been to them all. Not even a geographical wonder like Niagara Falls – she’s been there three times – was a top priority for Stephanie when it came to her getaway wish list. No, my daughter wanted to pack up the car and travel the whole 40 minutes to the Kalahari resort in Sandusky.

It started four years ago – Stephanie is now 7 – when we received a Kalahari vacation-planning DVD in the mail. Whether I sent away for it or the resort somehow knew a demographic sucker when it saw one is still up for debate, but my daughter wore the silver off that disc. She watched...

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Guilt: It’s a wonderful thing

I’ve never strayed during any of the relationships in my life, not even the “puppy love” ones throughout high school. Yet, I’ve got a strong understanding of the importance of the “guilt” gift men buy when they’ve hurt the special ladies in their life.

My job as a sportswriter often puts me out on the road. Sometimes it’s just a day trip to Detroit to see LeBron James drop 25 straight points on the Pistons in a double-overtime win.

Then there was the time that I was gone every weekend for a month and broke my 5-year-old daughter’s heart.

It started with my annual trip to Columbus to cover the high school state wrestling tournament, which normally takes place during...

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My baby is growing up too fast

When it comes to looks of worry, I’ve seen a wide range of them cross my wife’s face over the 11 years we’ve been together. From the strange-noise-in-the-house look to the  how-are-we-going-to-get-hold-of-the-latest-Christmas-craze-toy to the I-forgot-to-tell-them-no-cheese-on-my-bean-burrito-at-Taco-Bell look.

But the worried look I saw on her face as we were crossing the parking lot to our car at the Playhouse Square Theater in Cleveland on Sunday afternoon made me want to laugh and cry for her all in the same moment.

A couple years ago, we began taking our daughter to the theater. We saw “Beauty and the Beast” on Broadway during our Summer 2006 trip to NYC, and we’ve seen “The Lion...

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Daddy’s little girl gets her ears pierced … finally

So a war I’ve been waging for seven-plus years has finally come to an end.

My daughter went to the mall last night and got her ears pierced. I think I first made mention that I wanted to get Stephanie’s ears pierced to my wife Mary while she was still laying on the exam table with the sonogram goo spread all over her belly. The doctor had just told us that we would be having a little girl, and I thought about cute dresses, barettes for her pigtails and, yes, all the neat earrings she could wear as she grew up from my baby to my little girl into my rebellious teen.

My wife wasn’t having any of it. She said that she didn’t believe in getting a baby’s ears pierced, and that I was going to have to wait until Stephanie turned 5, and then it would be up to my daughter...

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