Orlando is not known for ice, or even snow, but this time of year you can find it for 20 bucks a pop. And it’s worth every penny.

The Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Orlando, Fla. (near Disney actually) hosts a frozen exhibit each year that allows families (and big kids too) to experience winter in the Sunshine State. ICE! is an attraction that visitors walk though, viewing exhibits made entirely of ice blocks. You’ll see a huge train, larger-than-life ice cream cones, an igloo and an entire life-size Nativity made of carved ice.

My husband and I took our two-year-old and met our friends (who also have a two-year-old). The kids loved being all bundled up and walking through all the colored areas. My son kept wanting to go back to the see the “choo-choo.” At the end of the exhibit, there are three slides — two for adults and one for kiddies under 40 inches tall.

If you are planning on going, buy your tickets online to save a couple of bucks.

A friend and I are taking our 2-year-olds to do some Christmas stuff around town next month and it got me thinking of how much there is to do in Orlando this time of year. I did some research and came up with a list of my favorite things that I’ve either reported on as an Orlando travel editor, or that I want to do now that I have a kid. Most of the events on my list don’t require theme park admission because I like to do things on the cheap, but I do include a few that do. Here goes:

ICE — The Gaylord Palms resort hosts a cool (HA!) event every year, that I have yet to attend, but am planning on taking my son to this year. They bring in 2,000,000 (that’s two million) pounds of ice sculptures and keep them at 9 degrees (that’s cold for Floridians!). Read the resort’s blog, Behind the Scenes of ICE!

Disney hotels — They are all decorated to the hilt. Your kid won’t need to go to a theme park. We usually park at Disney’s boardwalk and go into one or two of the hotels there, then walk around the boardwalk to see the other sights.

Snow in Celebration — The town that Disney built near Orlando has a “snow fall” every evening (really just bubbles that blow every hour) with carolers, Santa, the “Celebration Express” and horse drawn carriage rides. The snow falls hourly from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

Mall at Millenia Santa — He’s the best in the world. Really. He’s the real deal. I call him, “old-fashioned Santa.” Prepare to wait in line, unless you get there on a weekday, early in the morning.

Theme parks:

There’s a ton to do at the theme parks this time of year, but I’ll mention two of the ones that I know most about:

Islands of Adventure — I love, love, love what they do at IOA during the holidays. Suessville comes to life with The Grinch and all the Who’s from Whooville. It is truly a magical place to be and the kids love all the singing and action.

Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights (Disney-MGM Studios) — I haven’t been to this event, but I hear raves about it every year. If you are at Disney this season it’s a must stop.

Photo courtesy of Universal Orlando Resort.

So, I might be crazy. I’m going to IKEA grand opening today. Although, I’m not as crazy as some people I’ve been reading about this week. I’m talking about the people who’ve camped out in front of the store, in tents, since Monday. I’ve seen the pictures. It’s all over the news here.

But it is a big day for Central Florida. IKEA is a huge retailer that offers people furniture and home accessories at affordable prices. I’m not convinced of the quality of all IKEA furniture, but I’m also to the point that I don’t need my furniture to last more than 10 years. It goes out of style. Or I get bored and want to redecorate.

For years, we had the “early matrimonial” decorating style — i.e. hand-me-downs. The problems with things you get from others are that 1) you don’t get to define any type of style (you get what you get and use what you have) and 2) it’s hard to get rid of because now you don’t “need” anything. IKEA items are reasonably priced so that average Joes can afford to buy new things for their homes. It’s what makes IKEA such a pop-culture icon today. We love IKEA.

So, call me crazy for wanting some new things. Just don’t call me today — I’ll be in line at IKEA!