Wekiva Springs, Site #27 April 2011

This has to be my favorite non-full hookup State Parks.

You can reserve these spots at www.reserveamerica.com. It was very hard to get into, as they were doing construction, but one that we will be visiting again as soon as we can, as it was only an hour from home!! Can't be beat, as well as they have the springs for the beautiful Florida summers. We had to have had one of the best sites, close to the restrooms, and next to a super large field, that we had a family baseball game in. They also have a book share closet with kids and parent books and games to borrow and check out. The kids are excited to bring back some of our older already read books to share with other campers...

This park had it all, camping, swimming, hiking, fishing, walking, so plenty to do over the next few days!
We started out Saturday with a trip to the Springs, which also had a Springs Festival going on! Some of the participants were the Sanford Zoo who had a live gator and snake to pet. The Orange County Water Conservation group where the kids learned first hand how water conservation worked. They got a shower water timer to save water, rulers and pencils for school, as well as maps of all the springs in Florida to visit and camp at, and lots of other neat groups to learn from. Then they got to swim! Which kid doesn't want to do that, oh yeah, that would be my 5 year old, who is scared of the natural springs. I enjoyed a little snuggling time, but he got to be heavy in the water, so we got to hang out on the shore catching some sun, while the others snorkeled and explored the amazing spring. (Which by the way is really cold ~ year round!) It was so beautiful, and clean, and not mossy bottom like some of them that we frequent, so mom was very happy!!!

We got to go on a bike ride around the park, a great long 3 mile hike the same day!

We even went to get a special treat ~ Sundaes at McDonalds (which my cell phone showed close) but sent us 20 miles away :)) The next morning, the boys went fishing and gator sighting while Janie and Owen joined me on a bike ride, which we caught a ride back with the boys, as the bike ride was too "hilly" for those two to make it all the way back!

 

This visit ended too quickly, as there was alot to do in such a beautiful park. We thoroughly enjoyed this trip and was in a great location in the Orlando area, and allowed each of the kids lots of the favorite things to do. The only problem we had was on the way out, everyone was leaving at the same time. We had drove separately so I took 1/2 of the crew home while he had to wait with the camper at the one and only dump station, which was almost a 30 minute delay. We will definitely go back and recommend to other family campers!

Turkey Lake Park, Orlando, FL October 1-3, Site 11

Must do park for families. This is Hubby's now all time favorite park due to the amazing fishing lake and super cheap boat rentals. He had a nice Morning out on Saturday from 7-11am for a $20 boat rental charge. Mom caught up on a book my sister lent me (Steven Curtis Chapman's wife's) while the kids played all morning at the awesome playground!

 This was a must go to park if you have an adventurous bone. Great full hook up sites and a cozy little park, where the kids rode their bikes for hours!

And they have a pool, to combat the Florida heat... This park had it all. It was in the center of Orlando, but it was a little piece of solitude hiding away. Did I mention that they also had a petting zoo!

This park had it all, and will definitely be a go back to park once we finish our goal to see all the Florida state parks.

Lake in the Forest, Oklawaha (Ocala), FL Site 39 ~ 9/03/10-9/06/10

This was our first 3 Night ~ Holiday Camping Trip. We got there Friday night after they closed at 5:30, but the owner stayed late for our arrival, around 7:30pm. Great family owned and managed campground. We settled in fairly quickly, for a really unleveled site. It was a challenge to assist with directing Neil on pulling through and backing up and so forth and so on, onto itty bitty wood planks to "level" the site. The wood pieces were a bit too thin for my liking, or for the trailer's desire as they would not stay put on these pieces, but he prevailed, as always... and did the best he could to level out the camper for the next few nights. It is always a bit tense, while the kids have got to sit tight until we get set up, but then they were off. They went out in teams to explore, but in site of parents while we I got dinner ready. After a quick dinner and setting up the chairs and mat outside, we got to relax for a bit before we started the bedtime camping routine :) But before that, we went on a family bike ride. It was tough, as Owen had on his training wheels which don't mix well with the soft sand. We brought all the bikes for the first time (carting them in the camper) and took full advantage of our new mobility. We found a few trails, especially the one that leads to the dock.

Morning started early, as the boys were anxious to get a chance on the dirt trails on their bikes. . While I was working on the inside cooking, Neil was out cooking on the outside griddle, all while helping my youngest get his training wheels off(as I was unaware). When I came out to call them all to breakfast ~ he was officially was a true bike rider (amazing quick learner, all of 20 minutes) We had been trying this for about 6 months, so this was a HUGE accomplishment. Once he learned ~ he was off all weekend, trying to jump trails with his older brothers!!

Our daughter got to head to the rec room for the first of the scheduled crafts ~ a glass picture frame ~ that she got to create and design! This campground was cool for this, as they had fun crafts lined up all weekend for the kids, which there were alot of at the campground. After she was done, we headed to the pool for a few hours of relaxation and a little sun before the sprinkles started. Saturday night, our little singer loved the fact that they had a band there and 8000 songs to choose from for Karaoke. If anyone knows her, knows she loves the spotlight. She was one of the first to sign up, and did so 6 times. She sang Miley Cyrus, Hannah, Carrie Underwood, and was disapointed that they didn't have any Zradio artists (Christian Contemporary) She did an awesome job, and loved getting to watch the videos that we got of her singing. The youngest got to go up on stage on the last song :)  

The next day, more swiming, bike riding, exploring, fishing, gator watching but most of all llama and goat walking. Yes they had a small petting zoo to feed, walk, and pet the animals :)

I told you they were kid friendly...

REVIEW: Nice family friends campground, with 40 sites and 8 or so cabins. Lake front access with canoe/kayak rentals, heated pool, full hook ups, kids activities, rec hall, and lots of room to play. The kids loved the group campfire along with karaoke and dancing Saturday night and the chance to meet lots of other kids!!! The site that we had was the only pull through that they had (or could tell) but it was very unlevel. Great and complete shade and pretty much on it's own. Some of the other sites were fairly close to one another, but all sites looked pretty nice. Will come back to same site with the leveling blocks next time!