The Magic of Disney

It has been ages since I have blogged. Not sure why I have neglected it. It sure isn't because nothing is going on around here. Au Contraire!!!! So, thanks to a little nudging by a friend, I am back. Some of you may be glad. Others may be saying, "Does she think we really care?" LOL If you fall into category two, then I say you must or you wouldn't be reading this right now!

Since my last writing, we took our first family trip (along with our good friends Evan and Cindy) to the wonderful land of Mickey! I was a little hesitant at taking a 3 year old and a 4 year old, but soon realized that they are the target audience for Disney!

Depending upon which child you ask, it was either the most wonderful trip ever (Evan) or the worst trip ever (Ian). It is funny how I have one glass half-full child and one glass half-empty.

Anyway, Evan was so awed by everything he saw. He loved the rides and the shows. The bigger the ride, the better for Evan. He is a little dare devil. He cried when we didn't get a chance to get back to ride Splash Mountain, but I think Big Thunder Railroad made up for it a little. If he had been big enough, he would have ridden Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom! I think his absolute fave was the Test Track at Epcot. He giggled and squealed the whole time!!!

It really hit home with me and Kenneth the moment at Epcot when we first saw Daisy Duck. His face lit up and you could see that he had fallen in love for the first time (with many more to follow during the next few days). He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her and stood very proudly as we took her picture with him and got her autograph. This same scene unfolded many times during the trip with just a substitution of a different female Disney character. Evan was quiet the 'ladies man' with all the princesses and female characters. At the "A Dream Come True" Parade at Magic Kingdom, every princess blew Evan a kiss. Of course it didn't hurt his cute factor in the fact that he had insisted on wearing his Mickey T-shirt (it has Mickey's body, but Evan's head is the head for the body) and his Mickey Ears. One of the dancers in the parade came over and gave him her streamers and gave him a kiss on the check before she moved along the route. He was so excited. It was one of the cutest moments in his short 3 years. Then, that night at the "Spectromagic" Parade, he was thrilled when Cinderella blew him a kiss from her carriage on her float and then winked it him. As if that wasn't enough for our little Casanova, at the end of the parade Minnie Mouse noticed him standing (still in Mickey Ears, but now with the addition of giant Mickey Hands) there waving at her. She motioned to him that she loved his ears and also blew him a kiss. To him, he was the only one at that parade and every character was waving and communicating only with him. (Isn't Disney great at creating that feeling with everyone!) All Evan could talk about (and still talks about) from the trip is how Cinderella blew him kiss and winked at him and how Minnie loved his ears!

Ian was the opposite. He cried when we mentioned riding Splash Mountain. We made him ride Big Thunder (which he liked while riding but wouldn't admit to after the ride ended). He also says he hated the shows (I'll have to tell you about his experience at "It's Tough to be a Bug" with the black widows. Thanks, Cindy!!! LOL) and all the other rides EXCEPT the Buzz Lightyear Spin and the Peter Pan Ride. He is so funny. He didn't even like the characters at first. When we stood in line to meet Buzz and Woody (2 of his absolute favorites) he refused get close to them! It was crazy! He did warm up better after we met Rafiki and Jiminy Cricket. He finally decided he liked the characters when we saw Daisy at Epcot. His flirt factor came out when we ran into Mary Poppins and Alice in Wonderland. He hugged on them and was blushing so much as I made his picture. It was precious. When you ask him about the trip now, he still insists (publicly) that it was horrible and the worst experience of his life. (But privately, he asked when we are going back!)

All in all, it was the most wonderful trip we have taken as a family. I teared up as I looked back down Main Street at the castle after the fireworks as we were leaving on our last night there. I whispered to Kenneth as we fought the crowd toward the gate that I didn't want to leave. I personally can't wait to go back. I know now why people go back year after year. I know that each visit will be a new adventure as the boys grow older. I can't wait to experience through their eyes the wonder of it all again and again.

Thanks for sharing your dream with us, Walt!