To Infinity and Beyond!
“Which park this year?” My friend, Melissa texted me. We affectionately call her “Disney Melissa” in our family because of our tradition of visiting Disney Parks with her. It was a huge surprise and blessing on our family when she offered to take us the first year.
“I think it’s Magic Kingdom, this year,” I respond.
Melissa went to work reserving fast passes and then messaged me again. “I also have some 'bring a friend' passes at the fun spot. Anyone 54 inches can drive a go-cart.”
"Sounds great!” I reply. “Oh, and just so you know Buzz Lightyear is all the rage.”
Tuesday night, we met up at the Fun Spot. The older kids went right over to a roller coaster and I told Truman, “We’ll go ride an airplane.” He started to follow me, but right at that time, they launched some people on the Skycoaster - a 250 foot drop and swing attractions. He looked up and stopped walking.
"Let’s go!” I said, trying to drag him to the kiddie section for the little baron airplanes.
He planted his feet, looked up, and very clearly said, “I think I’m a little too scared for that airplane,” as he pointed at the sky coaster.
“Oh!” I finally understood. “That one is not your level. Look over here, there are other airplanes just your level.” I pointed him in the direction of the baron planes and a big smiles went across his face. Those planes were his favorite ride the summer that we had Cedar Fair passes. He settled right in.
We stayed about 4 hours, with the go-karts being the main attraction. Truman just barely cleared 36” and got to be a passenger. We tried to leave early enough that we would have energy for Disney the next day.
Traveling with a baby is no joke at Disney. I warned Melissa that I would look like a bag lady. “Don’t worry,” she said. “Fidelity will sit better in your stroller and I’ll rent a double to carry our things.” and that is what we did.
Melissa listened to my hint, and our first stop was the Buzz Lightyear ride. We had a great time shooting targets, but Buzz was not out meeting kids yet. We continued through riding rides and then circled back around when we saw Buzz. The line was actually short (I’m always surprised how crowded it is on a weekday during school).
I asked the kids to let Truman meet Buzz before they jumped in for a picture. Truman was smiles, ear-to-ear. At Disney, the character Buzz does not actually talk, so he tried to get Truman to play peek-a-boo. I told him that Truman had been acting as Woody all week and he should pull the string on his back for a special treat. Buzz did just that. Truman didn’t miss a beat. “There’s a snake in my boot!” he said, and everyone cheered.
Once we got that out of the way, we continued throughout the park, riding rides, having snacks, hunting treasures, fighting sorcerers with cards, and enjoying the company. At the end of the night, Truman requested to buy a Buzz Lightyear action figure with his Christmas money. It was on the other side of the park, so Michael, Melissa, and Truman hiked it over after the fireworks and met us at the car.
Melissa always, gets the big thanks because she is the one who books the tickets and schedules the day, but I want to give a big shout out to a couple of people from Melissa’s family. Even when it was not a work day, they went out of their way to make our Disney day a great experience. First and foremost, Melissa’s husband Drew. Drew does not love theme parks. He does not ride a lot of ride. He tags along with us, well, because we need his tickets - BUT- he offers the day as a sacrifice and volunteers to sit with the baby while I ride the rides. Even Truman screamed the whole time I was stuck in line 2 years ago, he still volunteered to take Fidelity. Thank you Drew!
Secondly, Brayden and Logan - thanks for bringing great attitudes, walking extra, and making it a priority to ride the rides that we wanted, even if it meant not getting to ride the ones you were most exited about. Thanks for trading cards and leading the way and sharing all your favorite things with us so they can become our favorite things!