Family, travel, mom blog | Theme Park Mom (Leigh Caldwell)

Ne-Yo, Kelly Clarkson and Montgomery Gentry are among the strong concert lineup at Universal Orlando’s Mardi Gras this year. The festival kicks off Saturday with KC and the Sunshine Band.

The Mardi Gras celebration happens every spring at Universal. This year, the festivities run on Saturday and select Sunday nights from Feb. 7 through April 18. In addition to the concerts, there’s a Mardi Gras parade a French Quarter area with musicians from New Orleans. (more…)

Photo by Mhowry

Fear of a bad economy has led Universal Orlando to close the show “Fear Factor Live” temporarily. Universal says the show will reopen in the spring.

The show allows audience members to participate in stunts, and it was a favorite with many Theme Park Dads.

Universal also says it is making “seasonal adjustments” to the hours of some other attractions at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. No word yet on exactly what those changes are.

Photo by Andrew in Raleigh

Disneyland’s It’s A Small World ride is opening to both cheers and jeers for the new renovations. The ride, which debuted at the 1964 World’s Fair, has been closed for more than a year for refurbishing. The attraction now has a “Spirit of America” section. And a new flume channel for boats, because the old one had sprung leaks and had so many patches that boats no longer sailed smoothly through the ride.

But “It’s A Small World” now also has 29 Disney and Pixar characters, sprinkled into the countries where their stories take place. And while many see that as just more of the Disney magic, there are traditionalists who believe it’s too much of a marketing ploy.

The L.A. Times says Disney’s imagineers consulted illustrator Mary Blair’s original drawings for the ride, to try to remain true to her vision. In fact, Disney says the “Spirit of America” section part of Blair’s original concept, but never made it into the original finished product. But even Blair’s family has called inserting the characters “a gross desecration.”

It’s A Small World was sponsored by Unicef at that World’s Fair, and it was designed to spread a message that all the world’s children are the same. Will a glimpse of Peter Pan or Ariel negate this message?

An L.A. Times reviewer says the characters are inserted in a subtle way and that they don’t detract from the ride’s nostalgic feel. Here’s a video look inside. What do you think?

Photo by larry&flo

The Bud & BBQ fest starts this weekend at Sea World Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. The monthlong event happens on Saturdays at Sea World and Sundays at Busch Gardens. In addition to the beer and grub, there are concerts each night. The food costs money, of course. But the music is free with your regular admission to the park. Here’s the lineup:

SEA WORLD ORLANDO

Feb. 7: Blake Shelton

Feb. 14: Kenny Rogers

Feb. 21: Darryl Hall & John Oates

Feb. 28: Jason Aldean

BUSCH GARDENS TAMPA BAY

Feb. 8: Phil Vassar and Josh Gracin

Feb. 15: Gretchen Wilson

Feb. 22: Miranda Lambert

March 1: Greg Allman

The Real Music Series runs concurrently at Busch Gardens, with concerts in the Stanleyville Theater. Here’s the lineup for that:

Feb. 11-14: Paul Revere and the Raiders

Feb. 18-21: Herman’s Hermits with Peter Noone

Feb. 25-28: The Osmond Brothers

March 4-7: The Monkeys Lead Singer Micky Dolenz

March 11-14: Little River Band

March 18-21: The Fifth Dimension

And if you’re a Florida resident, don’t forget that it’s Fun Card time at both of these parks. Pay for a single day of admissions, and you can come back unlimited times through Dec. 31, 2009.