If Randy had a place that he considered paradise on earth, it was definitely Florida. To be more specific – Disney World! In fact, his dream job was to work at Disney World and walk the characters out to meet the lines of kids lol. Knowing Randy, he would’ve done more talking to the characters than he would actually bringing them out to meet others, but he truly loved going to Florida and Disney World. He loved to meet characters, ride his favorite rides, like Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, and the Buzz Lightyear ride (the Space Ranger Shootout). We even enjoyed waiting in the line to get on the Buzz Lightyear ride because it was done up like something out of Toy Story.
However, my favorite rides with him were Space Mountain and Splash Mountain. Space Mountain was torture for him, because I’d make him sit in the very first seat and I’d mess with him THE ENTIRE RIDE lol! And it was dark in there, so all he could do is wait to see where I’d flick his ear or touch the side of his face. In fact, NONE of my kids like riding in the front seat with me behind them lol. Splash Mountain was one of his favorites, and mine too. The line had a lot of stuff to see, so it didn’t feel like it took too long to get up to the ride itself. Once we were on the ride, he was totally into it! It was a good pace and he enjoyed seeing how the inside of the ride was set up. Randy got to see characters he wouldn’t have even heard of without that ride.
Besides Disney World, he was a huge fan of the Nickelodeon Hotel (before they closed and remodeled it as something else). Randy was a big Teenage Mutant Turtles fan (Donatello being his favorite), and he got an opportunity to meet them (see picture, circa 2013). When we asked him how much he liked meeting them, he said it was “the greatest day of my life”. It meant that much to him, and I think the picture at the top of this blog shows his enthusiasm. Not only did he get to meet the Turtles, but he also got to compete in all the poolside games they’d have, got to participate in playing Double Dare (which was awesome), and he got slimed regularly lol. Randy even got to have dinner with the Turtles, which I’ll post another time.
Our Florida memories with him are among the best memories I’ve ever had in MY life. I got to enjoy some magical moments with my children, and we made memories with Randy that he called the best of his life. I never really knew what those trips meant to him, but now…I get it. And I thank God that my family and I were in the position to be able to make those memories. Not just Randy, but all of my kids deserved to have that fun. Looking back, those trips meant just as much to me as they did to him. Thanks for being my favorite Space Ranger, Randy…..I’ll miss our wars, but I’ll never forget them.
For the love of Randy... 