magic

ever since returning from disneyworld, i've wondered how i could possibly do justice to our trip on our blog.  i've needed the ten days it took me to find our digital camera (which turned out to be stuck in a hidden interior pocket of our pool bag) to process the whole experience.  even in the midst of it all as it was happening, i'd try to hold onto images in my mind, desperate to remember the sights and sounds so i could recreate them with words later.  i'll have to write about their reaction to this ride! i'd think.  or, i'll definitely have to use this picture.  or, i can't wait to look back at this post and re-live these moments.  because, as much as i enjoy sharing our escapades with family and friends and whomever might somehow stumble upon this site, the reason i blog is to document our lives for our future selves.  i've mentioned before how at the end of every year, i print our blog as a hardbound book with dozens of added photos, and each sits on our coffee table in the family room in a slowly-growing stack.  nothing makes me happier than to find one or both of my children quietly poring over one of the albums as they re-live memories of years past.  the blog is our time capsule.  so now i'm faced with the daunting task of how to even attempt encapsulating our first-ever big family trip so that, when time has passed and our memories have begun to fade around the edges, we can turn to these few pages and remember.

i probably shouldn't admit this, but neither chris nor i were terribly excited about our upcoming adventure in the weeks leading up to our departure.  don't get me wrong -- we were looking forward to being down there, and knew that the kids were going to enjoy it.  but there are just so many details to take care of when it comes to packing up a family of four (and facing twenty hours round-trip in our car), especially for weather that necessitates a wardrobe that is stored away in the attic, that we got a little bogged down with the preparations.  i had to create a week's worth of lesson plans for my classes, make sure i had gathered up all of liam's make-up work from his multiple teachers, and find friends to substitute for me in my volunteer positions.  chris had to line up whatever he had to line up for work, coordinate petsitting for super, and make sure that our eight-year old SUV was ready to get us down there safely.  you know, all the mundane details that you have to take care of just to make sure the world doesn't stop spinning while you frolick and play in the sunshine three states away.

and on top of all of the normal necessities, our destination was disneyworld -- which, as every friend of ours warned us, requires extensive planning like no other trip does.  when i first brought home "the unofficial guide to disneyworld 2011" from the library back in november, chris's eyes grew wide as i read out some of the many pieces of advice contained in the tome's 800+ pages.  regarding securing a reservation for a character meal, you might find this as mind-boggling as we did:  " to get a table, you must dial at almost exactly 7 a.m. EST 90 days prior to the day you wish to dine.  we conducted synchronizing tests and determined that disney reservation-system clocks are accurate to within one to three seconds of the U.S. naval observatory clock.  as soon as a live agent comes on the line, interrupt immediately and don't engage in 'good mornings'. time is of the essence. "  (somehow the stars aligned, for i called only three months ahead of time and somehow secured a table for four in cinderella's castle on chris's birthday.  which is, incidentally, exactly what every man desires when he turns 36.)  i printed out touring guides of every park, which included step-by-step instructions of which rides to hit first, which ones to use fastpasses on, when to take breaks, and which exhibits were must-sees.  i even downloaded an app to my phone that kept up-to-the-minute reports on the lengths of lines.  i researched which parks were labeled Must Avoid on which days and when the parades were.  planning for disneyworld, suffice it to say, is not for the faint of heart.  (or a non-type A personality.)

but let me tell you something.  you know those disneyworld commercials that showcase the happiest families on earth with the biggest smiles on earth at the most magical place on earth?  the ones that, if you haven't ever been, you see and think that there's no way a place can actually be like that?  well ... we were those people.  we were the happiest family on earth and our smiles were the biggest smiles on earth.  and we are now sure that it really is the most magical place on earth. 

i'm convinced that disneyworld was designed for a four- and six-year old.  they're old enough to remember it, yet young enough to be awestruck.  their faces lit up each time they caught sight of one of the characters, whomever it might be.  susanna -- our quiet, reserved susanna -- would stalk the princesses, insisting on meeting them and introducing herself and posing for a picture.  liam engulfed pinocchio in a bear hug, and laughed the entire time while he and donald duck danced a jig. 

they were tall enough for every ride (well, susanna squeaked by with the assistance of her heeled cowgirl boots -- yet another detail to remember while packing) and loved each one.  they strapped on the safety belts in "mission: space" and to this day firmly believe that our ship might have crashed had it not been for their quick hands on the control pad.  they flew like birds in "soarin", giddy to find tinkerbell alongside of them for a moment or two.  they kept their hands on the triggers on toy story mania, sang along to the songs they knew at the little mermaid experience, and, as seen below, got throroughly soaked in splash mountain.

they sat on the curb of main street as they eagerly waited for the electrical parade to begin, and they beamed as they soaked in the lights and waved at the characters who walked past and waved back.  on our final night, they stood hand-in-hand with their little necks bent up towards the sky as they witnessed the most spectacular fireworks show they'd ever seen.  and as overly-sentimental as this sounds, i stood behind them with chris and became teary.  i felt so blessed to be able to give this gift to them.  and humbled to be a part of an experience that i know they will remember for the rest of their lives.

so the planning, the drive, the expense -- it was all worth it.  our trip was joy and discovery and love and laughter, all rolled into one.

it was magic.

wishin' upon a star