They call Florida the lightning capitol of the world for a reason. Amazing lightning last night and we were caught driving in it on I4 coming back from Disney World. It was all around us and coming right down to the ground. Moving to Florida is a true testament to my getting over my fear of storms that lasted for years after being caught in a very scary microburst that trapped us inside, ripped a restaurant roof off over my head and caused a deadly gas leak. Now I can't have a storm go by without my camera to record it. Of course only while parked or on foot!!! Felt more like boating home than driving home. The last cloud to ground was maybe 4 dancing bolts at once in the same spot. Just amazing, terrifying and awesome all at once!!! Gotta LOVE Florida!!! Enjoy the video with regular speed and slowmo.

Below enjoy a 31 pic slideshow of the amazing cloud to ground strikes plus the amazing colors of the sky which are not photoshopped. The purple is amazing!  

See my fun Disney and Central Florida GIF animations and FX pix

These people are either the craziest or bravest I have ever seen. This is from Gatorland and is with Brandon and Savannah Bowen who I have seen so close to these gators in the past. This is the Breeding Marsh and we have seen these huge'uns up close. Cannot believe anyone would want to get this close to one this big but it is amazing to watch.  

My fun Disney and Central Florida GIF animations
and FX pix

This is Gatorland's video. I have my own wonderful posts of going to Gatorland and feeding gators etc. but I so love these little guys and this video is too cute to not share! Can you believe they become the huge monsters that they do? SO love Gatorland! 

My fun Disney and Central Florida GIF animations and special FX pix

We had such a great time feeding the gators. This was a new thing since last year. A great way to get interactive with the gators and see them open their mouths for some great photo ops and videos. It amazes me how they can be so scary and so cute at the same time. You get 3 fish for $5 so each of our kids did 1 fish. Very nice that they have a nylon string that comes undone fairly easily so the gators can bite and chew but don't get tangled up in the rope between their teeth. We are so impressed by Gatorland and the way they take care of their animals. It is truly a special place! 

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I don't know how these guys do this!!! They are either the bravest souls ever or the craziest. Maybe a little of both! The gators coming out of this water after the food during the Jumparoo Show at Gatorland are humongous! Monstrous! They are hand feeding them and I don't know how the gators know where the hand stops and the chicken begins. You will see more of their incredible size in the breeding marsh pics and vids down the page a bit. Enjoy! 

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The breeding marsh is one of the coolest places ever! You walk along a deck type path above the swamp and the humongous gators you see in my pics and videos below are right below you. The deck is very sturdy and well constructed so no worries about that but seeing these massive, epic creatures so close up is an amazing experience! This is our second time at Gatorland and we saw and heard some amazing sights and sounds including teeth clacking together and growling, but the first time we were here, a monstrous gator was growling with it's throat up against the bridge you walk on and it literally vibrated the bridge. Quite cool! Even more amazing, the zip line goes across and over this breeding marsh. I had a good time watching OTHER PEOPLE do that zip line. I am not quite that brave! LOL 

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Was show so much fun! Our daughter got to help him pick the gator he would show us. She also got to be first sitting on the gator for the pic. She loves gators, snakes, lizards etc. and this was such a thrill for her!!! For us too! 

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They were so adorable and so cute! I cannot believe these tiny, little guys grow into those huge monsters but they do. They look like they are always smiling to me. Ya think they are?

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We have never stood so close to such a wonderful creature! Feeding these Galapagos Tortoises was so much fun. They reminded us of E.T. with the way their necks went up and down. Majestic and adorable at the same time. So excited and blessed to spend so much time in their enclosure with them. I love so much how well taken care of and how clean and well kept the animals and grounds are at Gatorland! 

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​The Emus at Gatorland are so cute. They eat right out of your hand. 

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A very funny moment during this show with spiders and snakes. The girl on the left was a laugh riot which you can see in both the pics and vids here. She was all excited to be up on stage and curious about what she would see until they brought out the humongous snake for her to hold with the other 4 people! She screamed took off running. It was so funny! I cannot say I would have been any different! LOL Our daughter who loves snakes was sad she did not get picked. She would take the thing home and name it! LOL I loved seeing all the creepy crawlies as long as I didn't have to touch them. These guys are funny and so full of info about the creatures. Another great show at Gatorland!  

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A short 6 pic hilarious slideshow showing this one girl who was all excited to be up there until she saw the snake they were going to hand her. I'm not sure I have seen anyone run that fast before in my life. Her scream was awesome too which you can hear on video below. 

​​The color in these birds is mind blowing! They are so close to you too so you can see every detail! Awesome birds!

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​Gorgeous Peacock up close and personal, an amazing huge bird that looks to have a vulture head and Egret or crane body and last but definitely not least we got to see a gorgeous mommy bird feeding her babies in the nest. I got great pics and a couple seconds of video but sadly my camera was at the end of it's battery when she was feeding them so I sadly missed it.

​34 pics in slideshow. You can advance manually by clicking on it or watch the slideshow.

​Not only were they so cute and it was fun to feed them, but the room was immaculately clean and pleasant. I am not a bird person at all. My family was stunned and amazed that I went into an aviary at all. They asked me who I was and what I had done with mom but I had to get the video and photo ops that were happening in there. Once I saw the tiny colorful little bird land on our son's hat, I had to get pics and vids of that! 

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I love how they have their petting zoo set up at Gatorland. You don't walk in it or through it. You walk around it. No poopy shoes which is always a good thing. Once again, the animals are very well cared for and seem happy and comfortable which is always nice to see. So many fun things to do at Gatorland Orlando. A true gem of a place! ​​

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Both terrifying and awesome all at once, from tiny babies to monstrous gators that look more like dinosaurs, this place blew our minds. We have lived in Central Fla since 2013, but only this year was the first time we were able to get to Gatorland. We saw amazing animals and shows and got to see what I think might have been our own up close and personal rescue of a gator that went in somewhere too small for him.  Before he climbed in that place, he let out a growl at close range that will haunt my memories. You can hear it in a video below. Hope you enjoy the videos and pics we think are amazing and if you want more follow me on my social media pages below on Facebook and Pinterest.   

Pics 1-60 here... more pic and vids below...

More pics and amazing videos below...