Glow-in-the-Dark Mini Golf

 A few months ago I purchased a Groupon to Putting Edge in Festival Bay Mall on International Drive. For $10, I got 18 holes of glow-in-the-dark mini golf for two. This weekend I finally got a chance to go for the first time, and it was a lot of fun! Putting Edge offers indoor putt-putt (great for hot Florida days) featuring 18 holes lit by black-light and decorated with bright characters and obstacles. This location also hosts birthday parties and has a small arcade.

The course wasn't very difficult, and there were no moving parts that you might see at other mini golf courses, but the music was good and there were fun little games to play at certain holes that made it more interesting. For instance, one hole insisted that you hit the ball using only your foot. Another said that everyone must be touching the putter while you make your shot. With two people, we finished all 18 holes in about an hour. It was a lot more fun than I had expected. Thanks, Groupon, for introducing me to a fun new experience in Orlando!

My Vinylmation Collection

Disney Vinylmation is a recent craze that involves collecting artistically decorated Mickey figures that come in a huge variety of colors and designs. People have been collecting pins at Disney for years (see a previous blog post about my pins here, and another here), and Vinylmation provides Disney fans with another fun way to collect and trade with one another. Vinylmation.net is a great website that provides more information about Vinylmation is, as well as info about the artists and upcoming series.

Each figure comes in a blind box, meaning you don't know which one you'll get until you open it. There are different themes for each series, like Urban, Park, Muppets, Cutesters, Star Wars, Holiday, Toy Story, Sports, and more. If you don't like the one you got, you can trade it at multiple retail locations all over Disney. Besides the excitement of not knowing which figure you'll get, trading is the best part! Sometimes the Vinylmations available for trade are displayed in a clear box near the register, and other times you can do a mystery trade from a numbered blind box. Just pick a number, and you'll get whatever figure is hiding behind the door!

The photos in this post represent my current Vinylmation collection. However, my collection will definitely change as I trade and collect new figures. Disney releases new sets pretty often, and it's fun trying to chase after the one you really want. I'm trying to collect figures that represent different experiences and memories I've made at Disney. I won't have my Disney annual passes forever, so these small toys will always serve as a reminder of all the fun I've had at the Disney parks.  :)