Daytime dates: Disney springs

The Daytime Dates idea was sparked when my husband and I struggled to have date nights because of limited care for our kids. Then the light bulb went off–why not establish daytime dates? Daytime Dates was introduced to allow us to have more alone time while the kids were at school. See the previous post “Daytime Dates for Busy Couples.” The kids spend 6-8 hours at school depending on the day. Our children have the safety of being cared for by adults that have an established relationship with them. My husband and I could spend more quality time together without being boxed into a few hours in the evening with the traditional date night.

As mentioned in the Daytime Date post, we now have the freedom to explore the group activities that typically limits us as parents. We originally wanted to have an ATV day. But, one of the locations is closed on Monday’s and the other company was already booked that day. We had to change our plans, but it was no biggie.

We ate breakfast at Omelet Bar. I have been to this restaurant a few times. The customer service, quality of food, and atmosphere is the main reason I keep going back. The pancakes are a heavenly delight and taste better than any other pancakes I’ve had! I couldn’t wait for my husband to experience all the things I enjoy about this restaurant. Of course, he loved it too. While at breakfast, we narrowed our plans to either horseback riding or checking out NBA Experience at Disney Springs. I wanted my husband Corey to choose the activity for this date since I picked last time. He chose NBA Experience… duh–I knew he would choose that one.

Friendly fact about me - I love sports as well… especially basketball, college football, and watching the Olympics. So, when we entered NBA Experience I turned into a sports geek. The NBA Store had all the legends of past and present showcased with the glitz it deserves. I was immediately on the hunt for my favorite NBA basketball team, the Knicks. My husband is a fan of those people on the west coast who wear colors that don’t match like yellow and purple; or is it gold and purple? Nonetheless, not my team and not my business! The greatest Knickerbocker jersey was there–Patrick Ewing. That's all that mattered.

We proceeded further and found ourselves on center court surrounded by the Jumbotron. Okay, cool! My insides were getting even giddier. There was a section on the ground floor that had interactive touchscreens that took pictures of you with the legendary NBA trophy. The pictures were connected to a Disney card that you used throughout the experience and then later use to download pictures and videos. Since we are Disney pass holders and already have an account, we didn’t have to do anything additional. The next station on the ground floor was a replica of player jerseys. There were two theaters that played a seven-minute movie of inspirational NBA stories. We watched a short film with Jhru Holiday about his wife overcoming brain surgery after birthing their daughter. It was a heartfelt loving story that had me tearing up a little. Lastly, we had our arms’ reach and jumps measured. My leap was very weak, I must say. The last skill test was to check our free-throw shooting abilities. And, that for me was pretty weak as well. My husband, on the other hand, is a talented basketball player. He excelled in all the drills.

Second floor NBA Experience

Please understand that the word “Experience” is in the name for a reason. You will definitely have an experience with the interactive games awaiting you on the second floor. Shoot! is the skills test where you have to compete in a timed shooting drill. There are numbered markers on the court for where you need to stand. The drill is also arranged by your level of skills that were entered prior on your Disney card. My drills were set on “easy” even though it took me forever to make a basket. Even after the clock stopped, the employee allowed me to take a few more shots after the buzzer, so I could get at least one basket. My husband’s drills level was set on “experienced” which made his shots more difficult. He was able to sink 4/5 baskets.

Up next-Slingshot! This is literally a slingshot for tossing the ball into the hoop. Let's just say, this wasn't my game either. It was so much fun trying to align your shot by using a slingshot. My husband didn't do well on this drill either.

Next, we were off to Dunk! to test our dunking abilities. There was a basketball hoop placed low enough for almost anyone to dunk. Oh my, I’m so uncoordinated! I struggled on all my dunks but I managed to land a few. It was simple for Corey. He was having his own dunk fest. My only recommendation is to have the hoop adjusted based on the individual's height. While I struggled to reach it, my husband is 6’2 and the hoop was a little low for him.

Last was Dribble!-the dribbling drill. I was not too shabby on this drill. Corey's accuracy was much higher than mine, of course. That concluded our time at NBA Experience. It is a great way to spend an interactive date with your spouse.

The day was still young enough for us to do more stuff. We decided to walk over to the movie theater. It was perfect. They had an early showing for the Fast & Furious: Hobbs & Shaw movie. We had about ten minutes to waste, so we had a refreshing daiquiri at the bar. After the movie was over, it was time for us to turn back into a pumpkin of a parent. So long, until our next Daytime Date!