A whirlwind day at Disney....

Since our Florida family time had us flying into and out of Orlando, Gwen and Tim decided to take the kids (and Grandma) to Disney for a one day, whirlwind trip to the Magic Kingdom.  Our plan was to leave our "Paradise" vacation rental after sunset and drive to Orlando to a hotel near to Disney.  We arrived at the hotel pretty late, but that last sunset on the beach was worth it!  We got up early the next morning and got a fairly close parking spot (we didn't need the shuttle to the monorail), took the monorail to the entrance and saw the opening show!  We actually arrived at the park at 8:30am and didn't leave the park until 11:30pm.  Yes, it was a very long and very HOT day.  

I did a lot of sitting in the shade while the rest of the crew went on various attractions.  I did go on a few things and I especially enjoyed watching the kids see the characters.  Stich was really neat and he reacted to Lia showing him her "Stich" earrings!  

In Cinderella's castle the girls got to see her glass slipper.  And then it was on to meet some princesses!  

Zeke's day was complete with riding all of the rollercoaster type rides in the park, including Space Mountain, Big Thunder Railroad, and one which they waited an hour to get on.... I don't remember the name of that one.  We all went on Small World and Little Mermaid and the People Mover.  

During the hottest part of the day we all went to the Tiki Room - a rather outdated, but fun presentation of lots of mechanical birds that sing.  The room was air conditioned and you could sit down for a few minutes, so it was worth it.  After that, I found a kind of hidden bench in the shade and parked myself there, while the others went off to various rides.  Little did we know, that bench was a prime spot to see the parades and shows!  I had an up close view as the parades went by.  I even got a wave from Mickey!

I was really that close!  Additionally, the shows were just through the trees and I managed to see (from the side) and hear all of the shows that included Olaf, Elsa and Anna as well as some fireworks!  When the rest of the crew had assembled at my bench, Ellie was delighted to see Marie from Aristocats since that was the backpack that she had picked!  Gwen was able to get a video of Ellie showing Marie her backpack and getting a big response from her.  

We stayed through the last show which included an amazing display on the walls of the castle, the lights and the fireworks and also a special "Fly by" of Tinkerbell.  

After the fireworks, the park was open for a couple more hours.  So it was off to sit on yet another bench while the kids went back for more attractions.  I think they did Space Mountain another time.  It was dark and much cooler by that time, and very enjoyable to people watch.  We left the park after hitting the shops for a few souvenirs.  We had a short wait for the monorail back to the parking lot, but got back to our hotel before midnight.  The good news was that we didn't have to get up early the next morning since our flight left in the afternoon!  

This was actually my 3rd visit to Disney World.  My first trip was in 1976 when the park was very new.  Ken and I had come to Florida for his Grandpa Baker's funeral.  We decided at the last minute to take a side trip to Disney.  It was only the Magic Kingdom at that time and I remember that we had actual ticket books and each attraction took different amounts of tickets.  We did the Haunted Mansion, Small World and The Hall of Presidents.  We also saw The Hall of Tomorrow (which I think has been renamed) but I can remember being really amazed at all of the animatronics.  I don't have a single picture from that trip.  My 2nd visit was in 1995.

Ken and I took Gwen and Doug and we actually stayed in the park at one of the resorts.  We had park hopper passes and visited them all!  Lots of good memories from that trip.  Doug actually went water skiing on Disney Lake!  

My observations at Disney on this trip were that it was a great family place.  They have had lots of years of experience to make this as little wait time as possible at every turn.  There was plenty of food and water available and lots of shade and places to sit.  The park was clean and well maintained.  The people were friendly and helpful.  I was surprised at how easy it was to navigate around the park and how easy it was to find out wait times for various attractions.  And the fireworks were some of the best I have ever seen anywhere.  It was spectacular.

I know that there is a lot of controversy over Disney right now.  And many people think that you should shield your kids from everything that is "fantasy".  Just like so many things in the world right now, you really can't help but have your kids exposed to this.  The important thing is that there is an understanding about the fiction verses the truth.  I know that Lia, Ellie, Zeke and Anna know that Disney is about made up stories.  They also know that some of the recent Disney movies are based on long held cultural stories that have been told for generations.  I also know that each of these kids has a firm understanding of Jesus and the truth of the Bible.  For me, spending time seeing the kids so happy was just a treat.  

  

I had plenty of time to see God's hand moving during my bench-sitting.  I spoke to so many different people.  Had wonderful conversations with some folks visiting from England.  I also met a nice young family who had moved to Orlando from Pakistan three years ago.  They bring their daughter to the park often after dinner (they have a membership) to see the parades.  I met another grandma at the park with her grandchildren.  The youngest one was tired and needed a rest on the bench.  So many people to pray for!  I am so thankful for the opportunity to spend the day seeing so many happy people.

It was a stellar end to our vacation.  I think it was exactly what Ken would have wanted.  

Jesus, thank you for the reminder that we can be IN the world without being OF the world.  Holy Spirit, it was amazing to witness the creativity you have given to humans.  Thank you for families and the joy and wonder of children.  Jesus, give us all courage to walk into the world with boldness to share your love and kindness with others.  Amen