The streak had to end sometime...

Hilton Head Island, Disney World... you knew camping had to crop up again sometime soon. We headed to the backwaters of the Mississippi to test our "sea legs" on the parental units' houseboat. (Do not confuse houseboat with yacht - while the boat is a spectacular get away, sleeping 10 had us busting at the gills and all horizontal space accounted for).

With gas as expensive as it is, we opted to stay in the marina most of the weekend but even that provided some campingesque relaxation. Yours truly spent most of his time on "the Lido deck" drinking ice cold beverages and eating sandwiches.

The kids enjoyed the fishing and the marina's pool and even went to bed without too much fuss each night. Of course, sleeping in such close quarters with three distinct family groups makes things extremely interesting - especially when you have Mexican for two different meals. We'll just leave it at that.

Disney World!

Well, we did it. We ascended to the pinnacle of the family vacation mountain. The broke homeowners just returned from the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, FL. Without a doubt, this was the biggest vacation to date for our family of four.

We were theme-park militants - using our "park hopper" passes to visit all four parks multiple times on each of the five days we roamed "the world." From Expedition Everest to the Jungle Safari, from the Tower of Terror to the "It's a Bug's Life" play area, from Test Track to The Seas with Nemo, from Space Mountain to It's a Small World, we did it all.

This was not only our kids first trip to see "the mouse," but also their first plane ride and first limo ride for one of them. As such, the fun started as soon as our ride arrived for the airport on departure day. Those of you who have seen the movie Stuart Little can appreciate the rousing chorus of "It's today, it's today!" that we woke to that morning.

After our arrival at the Polynesian Resort, we settled into the room and strolled around the grounds before sitting down for a bite to eat. After a dip in the pool, we turned in early to prepare for the park hopping that would ensue first thing the next morning.

That first morning, it was full-speed-ahead at Hollywood Studios to take advantage of the early opening compliments of Disney's Extra Magic Hours. After "knocking that park out," it was back to the room, via boat-ride to Epcot and monorail ride to the Ticket and Transportation Center, for a quick dip in the pool and a brief nap. For the evening, we were off to Animal Kingdom and the Extra Magic Hours there. We made it back to the Polynesian just in time to watch the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom from across Seven Seas Lagoon.

Day two, was a little later start as we joined Mickey, Pluto, Lilo, and Stitch for breakfast at 'Ohana. Man, that was good eatin'! Following breakfast, it was off for a full day at Magic Kingdom.

Day three had us back up at the crack of dawn to get in to Animal Kingdom an hour early for their Extra Magic Hour - early morning is the best time to see the animals on safari, don't you know! After another afternoon dip in the pool and snooze, we were back at it in Epcot. We even caught the fireworks at Epcot that night before turning in for the night.

Day four, we were back at Epcot to hit some of the major attractions that had unreasonable lines the previous evening. We had a tasty lunch in Mexico (in the World Showcase) and dodged some thunderstorms to get in another full day. Late afternoon, we went back for our (almost) daily swim and nap to prepare for the Spirit of Aloha Luau that night. That was good fun, too. The kids loved the fire dances! (Your's truly found it pretty cool, too.)

Day five - our last day of park hopping - we spent the entire day back at the Magic Kingdom. We were a little slow getting going but still hit the park right about opening time. We had some luck on our side that day as we walked right on to several rides! Following our daily dip in the pool and nap, it was back to the Magic Kingdom to see the fireworks and Tinkerbell then back to the attractions. Extra Magic Hours had the park open until 2:00am Saturday morning and we took almost full advantage turning in just after 1:00am!

Whew, what a week! The kids were troopers, and with the exception of one 5:00am "vomit incident" (see bad hot dog, over-heated, and way tired), everyone managed to stay healthy and relatively well-rested. I'm tellin' ya - those Disney folks have it down. Six Flags can't even compete. Needless to say, the trip was a raging success and we're already talking about "next time!"

The Big Kahuna!

Soon, the Broke Homeowners will be embarking on the family vacation of all family vacations... The pinnacle of family destinations... That's right folks, we're headed to the "happiest place on earth" - Walt Disney World!

We've grown into some nicer vacations over the years (camping is still the defacto standard), but this will be the first family trip to see The Mouse for this crew of four. We're staying at the Polynesian (we figured if we were going, we'd better do it up) and purchased the Park Hopper pass as well as the dining plan which, from what we've heard, is well worth it.

So, the countdown's on - we'll be sure to let you know how it goes.

Hilton Head Island

Ah, spring break - that annual pilgrimage to sun-drenched beaches. Beaches filled with hard-bodies and endless supplies of alcohol... Yeah, maybe 20 years ago!

Over the winter, a family friend who is a full-time resident of HHI, SC (that's Hilton Head Island to the locals) invited the family to spend spring break with her. With free accommodations being just barely affordable for us, we eagerly accepted. The countdown began and on Good Friday (aren't they all good?) we loaded up the family truckster and headed out on our 16-hour adventure to South Carolina.

With their Nintendo DSs and PS2 in tow, the kiddies actually did an excellent job in the car-only a handful of "are we there yets" (and those were toward the end) and I don't think I had to threaten to pull the car over at all.

Upon safe arrival, we quickly settled in to "island time" and roamed the beaches looking for dolphins, sea shells, and jellyfish. Yes, days filled with leisurely bike-rides, miniature golf excursions and kite-flying were just our speed. Add spectacular food, the "Salty Dog," dolphin, and alligator sightings and everyone was content.

Of course, there was that small matter of the 16-hour return drive looming at the end of the week. But even that wasn't so bad. And, even when you've got your own room with a king-size bed and attached bathroom, there's nothing quite like sleeping in your own bed.

Door County

So, after the Vegas trips, we decided it was time to try a little slower pace for our anniversary. The Bay Point Inn in Door County Wisconsin seemed to fit the bill. After checking in, we quickly adjusted to "do nothing" relaxation mode.

The only things we had planned we're reading by the pool and a nice dinner at Christophe's to celebrate the actual anniversary. As such, we were quick to make a few drinks for ourselves and hit the pool.

After a few dips, we decided it was time for a bite to eat and headed out for Shipwrecked, a local tavern and grill that was a great little "dive" and looked like it would be good fun after the sun went down.

With the exception of our one formal dinner, that was about the extent of our daily ritual. Wake up (whenever we wanted to!), read, swim in the pool, have some drinks, and eat. Come to think of it, without the desert oasis, tigers, magicians and overcrowded Strip, it wasn't all that unlike Vegas. ;)

Ski Vail

Ah, skiing in the Rockies. Definitely not a cheap vacation. Unless of course you have friends who have a house about 10 miles outside of Vail, can get you a deal on a rent-a-car and there's an air fare war on.

So, we make the trek and hook up with about 15 of our closest friends (big house, huh?) for a week of skiing at Vail and Beaver Creek. It was fantastic - great snow, warm temperatures and, of course, plenty of Apres-ski. This picture pretty well sums up the fun we had one evening after stopping in a local tavern for "one beer" - famous last words. Of course, we're not really getting arrested. We just couldn't resist the urge to get frisked on a Saab 9000 police car. That's my story and I'm sticking with it.

Camping on the Menominee Indian Reservation

Ah yes, camping. The poor man's vacation. Not a bad way to spend a three-day weekend with six of your best friends, either.

After the four-hour trek to the Menominee Indian Reservation, we pull into "Big Dave's Rustic Camping" and settle in for a nice weekend. The campground was actually "Big Dave's" back yard and certainly was rustic. Although, there was a shower facility with hot water and all.

So, we get the tents set up and commence lounging around the fire while enjoying some snacks and beverages. After several beverages, we decide that three days of just sitting around the fire is going to get old, so we plan a rafting trip.

The following morning, the entire crew heads to the Wolf River for the adventure. After handing over 15 bucks and signing some "death waiver," we hop on some old, beat-up, hunk-of-junk school bus and head up-stream. This being my first rafting experience, I calmly ask Shotgun Eddie if he has any pointers. He replies, "Follow the river."

So we did. We're cruising along enjoying the weather when we look down-stream and see Shotgun Eddie floating in his raft just off-shore. I was pretty sure he was waving, but as we got closer, you could hear the unmistakable sound of a water fall. It wasn't until then that we realized he wasn't waving. He was telling us to sit our butts down so we didn't get tossed as we want over the falls. I think there was only one minor head-injury.

Of course, after that experience, nobody wanted to be the first raft to hit the next set of rapids, so we all pretty much hung together. Curiously enough, after we'd successfully navigated about 9 sets of rapids and went to return our rafts, we noticed that Shotgun Eddie & Company we're only counting the number of rafts that returned, not the number of people! All of a sudden that seemingly standard "death waiver" seemed a whole lot less standard. I guess safety standards are a bit loose on the Reservation.