Little Green Giant

In previous blogs I've tackled the topic of family legacy and good family traits being passed down from generations past. Of course, there are those good traits that I wish I had acquired but apparently were not passed down to me. Case in point: To have a green thumb, or not to have a green thumb. I learned early on that I apparently skipped that gene and definitely fall into the "not" category.  My mom was a master gardener and plant grower extraordinaire. In my youth, I remember the vegetable garden she had. Plump red tomatoes that sprawled across the yard and up the chain link fence. When the Ade's were our neighbor our gardens were only separated by the fence and we would often compare produce. My mom was the envy of the neighbors. Cucumbers, green peppers, green beans. I'm not sure why my mom was so successful with the gardening, especially since we backed up to woods and we had plenty of critters living nearby. And it wasn't just her outside garden. My mom had dozens of indoor plants. Beautiful cascading hanging pots and an equal amount of table top varieties. For many years she had a glass table set up behind her living room chair that was in the room solely to have a place to keep her plants. They even draped over her sewing machine. Definitely a gifted gardener she was.

I'm not sure my sisters inherited this gene either. I remember my mom recounting the story of Cindy's ill-fated marigold from early elementary school. I imagine it was a spring school project that came home, which Cindy enthusiastically over-watered and effectively killed. In the spirit of true motherly love, our mom went to a local nursery and replaced it without her knowledge.  In vain my mom would prune her overgrown plants and send me home with them already potted.. Even gave me clear instructions on how to care for the particular variety she was passing along to me. Lo and behold, none of them ever survived. And a vegetable garden? Why bother. The thought makes me laugh. I think I'd better stick with driving to the local grocer and bagging my own.

Pam and I recently discussed this, too, as she pointed to the fake tree in the corner of her living room. Pam and her husband have had a vegetable garden over the years. Unfortunately, I think the majority of the produce gets eaten by the squirrels and rabbits despite their hard work. We joked how neither one of us have a single live plant in our home. Unless you count the cactus I brought back from Arizona in 2001 after visiting Bil and Thel Keane, which is still alive and kicking. Of course, I think you have to work pretty hard at killing a cactus. Just an observation that I think the cactus is surviving in spite of me being its owner. There is strange comfort in knowing I'm not the only daughter killing plant life.

Recently, I found out that apparently this gene did not entirely disappear, it merely skipped a generation. The story began innocently enough when I was cooking up a large bean, pasta and vegetable mixture to supplement the diet of our birds. Elise had been learning about growing plants and asked if we could grow a bean. She promptly swiped one from the pasta cuisine and placed it in water. Somehow I couldn't convince her that an already cooked bean wouldn't grow. After a few days, she finally relented and decided she would try something else. It took a while for me to come up with an idea to use our whole sunflower seeds that are also for our birds. Tony and Elise wrapped up the sunflowers in a damp paper towel and placed the dozen or so seeds in the baggie. 

Let me be clear: Tony was skeptical. While he was going through the motions of seed growth, Tony really felt that Elise was going to be disappointed again. Still, we needed to make a worthy effort. We documented their first day.


But, alas, within just a few days many of the seeds sprouted. Ever vigilant, Elise cared for her seeds diligently and enjoyed watching the progression of their growth.  Several times a day, much to my chagrin, she would ask to see them, as if she could actually see them growing. Friends and family who happened by would be accosted by her insistence for them to admire her seeds. She was proud of them. Rightly so after knowing my lack of success in plant growth....

After just a matter of about two weeks, it became abundantly clear that these little boogers were going to out grow their baggies. They grew at an alarming rate so one day Elise and Tony planted them in one of my abandoned pots from days gone by. Wanting to give them a solid chance of survival, Tony placed them by the kitchen sink where our cactus also resides. After all, if that thing can survive, maybe it's good karma for the sunflower seeds.

Fast forward a mere two weeks and those puppies have tripled or quadrupled in length. Un-be-lie-va-ble. We have a real life house plant in our midst. All at the hands of our 5 year old daughter. Not sure if I should be embarrassed or proud, we all enjoyed the fruits of our collaborative effort.

Heck, the plant has been so successful that in just two weeks more time, it appears to be outgrowing its pot. All in 6 weeks or less. What's ironic is that none of this had anything to do with me, really. It was Elise's vision, her due diligence and her care. Soon it will be time to transplant.outdoors to its final home. Amazing. I certainly cannot take the credit for this one. Thanks, Mom, for giving us one of your gifts in one of my greatest gifts--Elise.

Common Courtesy is Not So Common Anymore

"I'd like to think that this is chivalry in action, but something tells me...." I said, trailing off as the two men standing before me stopped their horseplay and turned around, chuckling.  They agreed that it wasn't exactly chivalry. It was more like a fun power play of asserting their man-power, which really had nothing to do with me at all. I just happened to start the ruckus between the men when I needed a church closet unlocked and they both arrived at the same time with the master key. Anyway, you get the picture.

While I thoroughly enjoyed the playful banter between the Lead Pastor over adult ministries and the Associate Director over junior high ministries, it actually brought to mind a bigger issue that I have grappled with over the last two years of my volunteer services at our church. My service to the church is hospitality in nature. Once or twice monthly I arrive at the church nearly two hours before the contemporary service and with a small group of volunteers, including my faithful son, I slice dozens of donuts, bagels and muffins; prepare five 2 gallon carafes of coffee and an assortment of other beverages. Part of my service is to make a Sam's run for the muffins and bagels, along with the occasional purchase of lemonade, hot chocolate packets or assorted hot teas. Thus, every week that I work, Adam and I carry in the large, and usually awkward, box of assorted goodies. Normally I arrive just as the first service is starting so I park a distance away. Let's just say that by the time I reach the double doors, I'm pretty weighted down. High heels and skirts look cute and all, but not always the most efficient on my work Sundays.  To my advantage there are usually 100 or more teen boys milling around the parking lot and near the entrance to the church, if they aren't already milling around inside. A damsel in distress? No problem, right? Think again. Never has anyone offered to help me carry in the food that they will later ingest. Never. I am lucky though, that sometimes there is a greeter or two at the door and they at least open the door for me as I arrive. There is one older white haired gentleman greeter who always whisks the box from my hands if I look weighted down. He carries them to the kitchen for me. But let me be clear. He is the only one.

My next task is finding the two tubs of assorted supplies and taking them to the aforementioned kitchen from the aforementioned closet. The closet is an interesting entity. While it is a decent sized space, it is packed. On more than one occasion I've tripped  while in the closet searching for my goods and make a thud as I'm sprawled out across the box of bulletins or coffee urns. And yes, there has always been a man walking by at just that time. Surely, chivalry is alive and well, right? Well, you'd think so but once I stand up and brush myself off and prove that I don't need an ambulance, the man who ever so briefly stopped in front of the open door to see what the ruckus was about, will saunter off without asking if I am OK. Nary a word. Nice.

And the two or three times I've dropped the contents of the  box on the way between the closet and the kitchen?  I've picked up my spilled contents without help from the dozen or more persons standing around doing nothing more than chatting.  (I'm sounding rather like a klutz. I didn't say I was coordinated, just have a servant's heart)

Which brings me to the point of this blog because I do have one.  Where is chivalry on a woman's behalf? Forgetting chivalry, where is just the common courtesy from one human toward another? Week after week I find myself aghast that people so blatantly tend to their own needs rather than caring about the needs of others. Philippians 2:4 says  "Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."  Over and over I've watched men in particular watch me handle boxes that are awkward, if not heavy--or see me make multiple trips back and forth. Silently watching but never assisting.

Honestly, if this was limited to the teenagers of the world, I'd make more allowances. I shouldn't have to, but sadly, I find myself making excuses for the teenager's lack of manners. But the examples I've listed are not limited to the teenagers. This is a pervasive theme with all the men in these real life case scenarios. Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised that our youth struggles with this issues when their fathers, uncles, grandpas and older brothers aren't being a role model in this area. What is doubly sad is that this bad behavior is in church. Best foot forward. Act bad the the rest of the week but bring your best behavior with you on Sunday morning, right? This is your best? Wow. Eye opening for me--it really is.

In January I quietly went into the junior high worship service and asked if two of the four adult men sitting in the back pews could help me in the kitchen. All four jumped up to my aid. It encouraged my heart. So, when I jested with Paul and Steve about their playful fight over unlocking the door for me being a chivalrous moment, I was only half joking. And now you know why.

Truth for Mature Humans

Even though 95 percent of my blogs are my own, occasionally, I run across one that is too good not to share publicly.


1. I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

2. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.

3. I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

4. There is great need for a sarcasm front.

5. How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

6. Was learning cursive really necessary?

7. Map Quest really needs to start their directions on # 5. I'm pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

8. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

9. I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

10. Bad decisions make good stories.

11. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren't going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.

12. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blue Ray? I don't want to have to restart my collection...again.

13. I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page technical report that I swear I did not make any changes to.

14. "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this - ever.

15. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Dang it!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voice mail. What did you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and  run away?

16. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

17. I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

18. I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

19. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lite than Kay.

20. I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

21. Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the heck was going on when I first saw it.

22. I would rather try to carry 10 over-loaded plastic bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

23. The only time I look forward to a red light is when I'm trying to finish a text.

24. I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

25. How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear or understand a word they said?

26. I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers and sisters!

27. Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.

28. Is it just me or do high school kids get dumber & dumber every year?

29. There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

30. As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate bicyclists.

31. Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

32. Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey - but I'd bet my ass everyone can find and push the snooze button
from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time, every time!

Our Disney Trip (Day Three): The Little Engine That Could

If I was to name the most memorable part of our time at Magic Kingdom, I would point to the first roller coaster ride for our entire family. Elise was tall enough--and brave enough--to ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. It reminded me a lot of Six Flag's first roller coaster, the Mine Train. Only the Disney one had a little more kick to it.

As it turned out, we sat in the last two cars of our train. Tony sat with Elise for protection. I think we were both a little apprehensive of how she would do on it. Up to this point, the only ride that packed a punch was Splash Mountain, which she loved. But, nonetheless, there are a lot of people who cannot handle roller coasters and Elise is only 5.....

But off we go. I glance behind me and while she is wide eyed and tense, she's smiling, too. Yet, we make the final incline inside a mini-tunnel, only to come to a slow crawl, and then after inching forward, to a stop. The animated voice coming from the tunnel for "special effects" repeats his phrase three or four times. Then it stopped. It occurs to me then that maybe something is wrong. The ride has broken down while we're on it.

Making the most of the situation, I am thinking "This is cool. How often do you get to break down on a roller coaster. What a story to add to our Disney adventure. And for Elise, what a great story to tell about her first roller coaster."

After sitting on the track for at least five or ten minutes, I decide it's a good time to break out the camera and snap some pictures from our eagle eye's view. After all, how often to you get to take pictures on the track? Tony broke out the video camera and filmed, too.

                                                                     Waiting. Waiting....

Waiting some more....

We were in the final turn of the track and before it stopped completely, we had leveled out on the track. Once I realized the train was going nowhere and we'd be making an "emergency exit" , I did glance to the side to see our walking path, which included steps leading to the exit. The back end of the train tracks was up higher than the front end, and it was going to require someone hoisting me and the kids out of our seats and down to safety. When the workers came seat by seat to release us, they most likely breathed a sigh of relief I wasn't 300 pounds as they lifted me over. It occurred to me that had we been only four people behind in line, we would have missed the ride altogether and instead, been turned away from riding at all.

Much to the chagrin of the frazzled teenager in charge, I snapped one more picture exiting the ride. At least we were all handed fast passes for any ride in the park for our time and trouble.  What did we use it on? Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Once it was up and running, of course!!

Unexpected Sightings at Disney World

Lilo and Stitch.  Peter Pan and Wendy. Cinderella's fairy godmother. Pocahontas. Those are just some of the character sightings on our week-long trip. I suppose in my first blog about Magic Kingdom, I've placed a lot of emphasis on who we saw and took the time to stand in line for. I was probably more enthusiastic about them than the kids. Then there were the characters I wanted to see: Chip and Dale, Ariel, Monsters Inc. characters. Maybe even Pinocchio and the Seven Dwarf's. For me, that is part of the magic of Disney. Where else can you get up so close and personal. The joy on Elise's face was priceless, too.

What struck me, though, was the frequency we ran into people we did know from back home. On our first day in Magic Kingdom we were in line for the Dumbo ride. We met a nice family from Texas, Dave and his wife Janie, and their two daughters. We chatted while we waited. After discovering we were from St. Louis, we talked about his brother who lives just 10 minutes from us. We talked about the church we attend and the church where he works. We also talked about this being our first big Disney trip and they gave us a run down on their itinerary. Lovely family. Lo and behold, just three days later we run into them at Animal Kingdom. Again, we stopped and chatted about how our trips were coming along. We joked about how exhausting and overwhelming the parks had been, yet how much fun we were having at the same time. As luck would have it, we ran into them one more time two days later at Downtown Disney, outside the Lego shop. Seriously, what are the odds? Hundreds of thousands of people and we run into them not once, but twice more?  In hindsight, I wish we had exchanged numbers or emails. It would have been fun to swap stories and pictures.

On that same first day at Magic Kingdom we ran into the Patton's from Adam's school and cub scout den,while in line to see Buzz Lightyear. As luck would have it, we ran into them again exiting the raft water ride at Animal Kingdom. We also ran into some kids from Adam's church class in Tomorrowland. 

Just days before leaving on our trip, I discovered that we would be there the same week as a friend from high school that I hadn't seen since graduation 25 years earlier. Keith and I exchanged numbers and decided that on Thursday of our trips might be the time to try to meet up. Sadly, we missed the opportunity by about 30 minutes. We were driving to Downtown Disney just moments after they had left. It was frustrating to be so close and yet for the timing to not work out. At least we tried.

I told Adam that most likely we would run into people we knew at some point, but to run into the same families multiple times? Who would have thought the odds of seeing familiar faces from home would actually be easier than seeing Dopey? Go figure.

Our Disney Trip (Day Three): Magic Kingdom (Part 2)

Our second day in Orlando started out much the same as the first. Clear, sunny skies with a high of 70 degrees expected. Since temperatures had reached 71 the day before, we knew it would be another perfect day. I must admit there is a learning curve to the parks. Certain rides have incredibly long waits in the high-traffic season. It is certainly smart to use their fast pass option. You place your admission ticket into a machine of the attraction you want to ride and it spits out a pass with an hour long time slot for you to return and by-pass the line. It took until the second day to really get the hang of it. It certainly saved us a lot of time in line and we found ourselves moving through the rides at a much quicker pace.

The first ride we went to was Space Mountain. Of all the rides at Magic Kingdom, this is the one Adam talked about the most. He was very patient in waiting until the second day to ride it, so it certainly was our priority on day two. Elise was not tall enough to ride, so we also utilized the ride share/ride switch option. When I talked with Adam about the rides, I really encouraged him to ride everything. For years his classmates had talked about their Disney experiences and created a lot of buzz about Space Mountain and Splash Mountain. It was finally Adam's turn to be part of that group of kids and I knew he would regret chickening out at the last minute. I also promised him a "I Rode Space Mountain" t-shirt if he conquered his fear. Fortunately, he did ride it and we had twenty less dollars in our pocket. Again, money well spent. Adam was proud of himself and loved the ride.

What was interesting about this day is that we had a lot of the scarier rides left, which meant that Elise's opinion of "rides" was probably going to change. From there we went to Splash Mountain. It's a water ride with a roller coaster element. There is one incredibly steep drop, which Elise had never experienced. Fortunately, she LOVED it. We couldn't resist buying the print the park offers. We thought our expressions were pretty hysterical. The fact that Elise is tucked down into the seat is pretty hilarious too. She was scared in the moment but had so much fun in the end.

Another highlight for Adam was the Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor. It is an audience participation comedy show. In the opening sequence they flashed Adam up on the jumbo tron screen, which he thought was the most awesome experience.  Out of literally hundreds of people, they singled him out.   They had a "name" for Adam underneath his image, but we don't remember what it said now. He said he was famous in the Disney world now. OK....we'll give him that one. No need to burst his bubble. The show itself was not one of Tony and my favorites but the kids really enjoyed it.

What surprised me most was how busy the Frontierland section was. I couldn't figure out if there was less walkway or what, but since there was only a half dozen rides and shows, it certainly didn't seem like it should be so jam packed. Insanely busy. Truly insane. It was here we enjoyed Elise's first real roller coaster, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.  Like I said, my daughter was fearless, entirely eager to ride everything she could, including this one. I liken this coaster to our Mine Train with a kick. The four of us had the last two cars in the train, with Tony and Elise riding in the caboose.  Her reaction when it was over? Well, I am saving that for my next pictorial blog. This ride ended up being the most memorable of the day. It deserves it's own blog. Really.

Our big restaurant of this day was the character lunch at Crystal Palace. It was here we ate with Pooh bear, Piglet, Tigger and, my favorite, Eeyore. We had done this lunch with Michael and Brandon 11 years ago and knew it would be fun for our two. We love the 100 acre woods friends. With the efficiency of the princess breakfast, I was sorely disappointed with the lack of coordination with this luncheon. First, I missed Eeyore, which had nothing to do with them, but it really irked me that I was in the buffet line when he donned our table. After Eeyore, Pooh came by in orderly fashion. But then it took what seemed like forever Tigger to come by the table. And Piglet was just missing in action. We were done eating and ready to leave, with my fingers tapping on the table, wondering why he was absent. I suppose I assumed their greetings were done in orderly fashion like the princesses. Not that I wanted to rush through our meals, but we had a lot to do yet, and I did not want to waste any time. Perhaps a server noticed the angst in my face, or heard me kvetching, but finally she asked who we had yet to see. Within 5 minutes, Piglet made his way to our table. Of all the restaurants we dined over the week's time, this was certainly the one I felt lacked the Disney professionalism.

By the end of our second day, we had experienced 35 of the 40 shows and rides (with Cinderella's Carousel being ridden 3 times in the two days. It remained one of her favorites!)  It was also at the end of our first day that I realized that Tony and I had come on this trip with two different expectations. He intended on staying until the parks closed each night. On the other hand, I was content to stay only as late as we had energy. We found ourselves at odds a bit the first night at Magic Kingdom. After 12 hours, I was exhausted and my feet and legs ached. I was ready to go home. He wanted to stay for the parade. In the end, I won out. On the second night, we knew we would stay until the park closed.

By staying, it allowed us to ride Speedway a second time (which Elise drove with me the second time. And can I just say she was a better driver than Adam. It was seriously funny and I joked around with Adam about it later) and ride a few rides that had longer lines earlier in the day. It was also when we finally made our way through Mickey and Minnie's Toontown, which is where Mickey and Minnie stay for character greeting. Much to Tony's chagrin, we waited in line for about 30 minutes to finally meet them. I could not fathom leaving the park without seeing them. I was concerned that our odds of finding them at the other parks would be lessened. Now or never mentality.

The parade was certainly a highlight. We saw a lot of characters we had missed throughout the day. Often times, if I saw a character but we didn't want to stand in line, I'd take a picture from a distance. Sometimes a random child would be in my photograph but a girls got to do what a girls got to do. While I wanted to make character sightings a priority, I also did not want to waste all our time in line either. It was a fair compromise. Anyone who comes to Disney and misses the parade is missing the essence of Disney. It was magical.

Leaving Magic Kingdom, we were exhausted but pleased with how much we had seen and done in two days. After the monorail experience the first day, we opted to ride the ferry back to the parking lot. It was cold and windy, but a lot of fun for the kids. This trip they were experiencing plane rides, subway-type train rides (in the airport between terminals), the monorail and now a ferry. Awesome.

Our Disney Trip (Day Two): Magic Kingdom (Part 1)

On our first morning in Orlando, we awoke to a crisp blue, sunny sky. It allowed me to breathe a sigh of relief.  The bad weather that had plagued Florida the previous few days happily departed upon our arrival. High temperature for the day was slated to be about 70 degrees with sunny skies. Perfect weather. After a travel day that was more frustrating than rewarding, I was thankful to be getting off to a strong start. Tony and I carefully packed our day bag together: money, tickets, snacks, camera, camcorder. Checked and double checked, we were ready to make our drive to the parks.

First up, princess breakfast at Cinderella's castle. Leading up to our vacation, if you were to ask Elise if she was excited about our trip, she would probably give you a vague shrug of the shoulders and answer "I guess". Rather than stemming from over-indulgence and being spoiled, her answer comes from blissful ignorance. Even though Adam and I had gone to Six Flags a dozen times in the last 5 years, Elise had never been to an amusement park. Call me cheap or lazy, but with prices being what they are, my kids generally do not don the doors of our local Six Flags until they are about 6 years old. When we tried to explain she would be riding rides and seeing shows, she really had no concept of what that actually meant. In our attempt to encourage excitement and enthusiasm we switched emphasis and told her we would have breakfast with Cinderella, Belle, Snow White, etc. on our first morning---and meet up with Mickey and Minnie and other Disney characters throughout the day. That helped create the buzz of excitement for her.  Having said that, Elise is definitely not as into the Disney princesses as some girls her own age. She likes them and all, but she does not spend her day wanting to play dress up and having tea parties. But having taken this trip 11 years ago with Tony's two older boys the princess breakfast was one experience we didn't have before, so we thought it a perfect opportunity.  We were hopeful that it would be a highlight of her Magic Kingdom rememberances. At $149 for two adults and two children to eat breakfast, we sure hoped so, at least!

We make our way into the parking lot and ready to board the tram promptly at 9 a.m. when Tony grabbed our backpack and said "Got the video camera?", to which mine was a resounding "No, I do not. We must have left it at the condo." Lovely. Since the still camera was with it, we had no choice but for Tony to drive back to the condo to get it. There was no way I would spend our first day without it.  But make no mistake, I was mad. Not at myself or Tony. It was not necessarily anyone's fault and nothing was going to be made right by placing blame. But I was thinking "Not only will Tony miss our first big event, but I won't even have a camera to capture the moment." Honestly, it just sucked.

Still, we had to make our way forward. I plod forward with the kids, riding the monorail across the parking lot to the park gates. My initial reaction? Recession. What recession? A sea of people have flooded the entrance. From my perspective, Orlando is still the most magical place on earth. Consider the economy stimulated. Sheesh. It was enough to make your head swim.

Arriving at breakfast, I explain that not everyone was there and Tony is at least 30 minutes or maybe even an hour behind us. There was good news and bad news. The good news is that they will hold your reservation but you must wait until your whole party has arrived to be seated. The bad news is that I had both cell phones (yeah, I know!) and  I had no idea how long we would be waiting. I knew in the end I would be happier for him not to miss it and to have the cameras to capture it. Still, waiting with the kids was maddening. We wandered along the general area of main street, even allowing the staff photographer to photograph us in front of the castle and enjoyed the mosaic piece inside the castle. But having to stay in plain sight of Tony definitely limited my ability to entertain the kids. They were understandably hungry and anxious.

We really did enjoy breakfast. In addition to the princesses listed above, we also had Aurora and Jasmine come by our table for photos. We wondered if they would add the Princess and the Frog, which they did not.  And, Ariel. She was missing. Because she is a mermaid, they keep her in her grotto in Fantasyland. You have to stand in a line to meet her. (The line to see Ariel was always incredibly long, and in the end, we never did see her, which was alright by Elise. I think she was so dazzled by everything going on around her, she really did not notice her absence.)  Honestly, the breakfast was so well done that even Adam really enjoyed himself. For the boys, they handed out swords, and for the girls they had magic wands. And "wishing stars" for both. (Jasmine was my favorite. Her abs were amazing and she was dazzling in her costume. I would think Tony would be in agreement with me!) Plus they give you an 8x10 of your kids with Cinderella and an 8x10 of the castle as part of the package, tip included. It was money well spent.

We had lost a solid hour but since we would have two days in this park, we definitely felt like we could pace ourselves. My personal goal was to make sure Elise was not overwhelmed as we began the rides. While we were waiting for Tony, Elise had her eye on the carrousel. I like carrousels as much as the next guy, but really? At Disney World, THAT is what she wants to ride? It's named Cinderella's Golden Carrousel but it is like any other one you would find elsewhere. Certainly nothing spectacular about it. Still, she was hell bent on riding it, so we went there first. We stayed in the Fantasyland portion of the park for the better part of our first day, much to Adam's chagrin. On our plane ride, he and I had mapped out the rides he was looking forward to at each park. Adam was looking forward to the big rides, Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Pirates of the Caribbean. Somehow riding Dumbo and Winnie the Pooh wasn't necessarily his first choice. Still, watching Elise's excitement and joy riding these rides was infectious. I promised him that we would get to all his favorite rides, too. We did briefly make our way to Tomorrowland to ride Speedway. We also rode Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, which is much like our Scooby Doo ride at Six Flags. Being spring break we certainly encountered some waiting in line for each ride, but this was by far the longest wait at an hour. I'd have to say that it was the one ride that I didn't feel like was worth the wait. :( 

The kids enjoyed their first 3-D show experience, which was Philhar-Magic. I probably watched Elise reaching out in front of her to grab the image as much as I watched the show. Tony and I discovered early on that Elise was fearless. When other kids were cautious or downright scared, she was all smiles.

For me, character sighting was a huge part of what I was looking forward to. I knew that this would be the one trip to Disney that both kids would probably agree to be photographed with them. I had memories of having a lot more character sightings 11 years ago. Perhaps they employ less, or keep them contained to certain areas of the park, but when we managed to get to the end of the day without a glimpse of Mickey and Minnie, I was shocked. Despite some disappointments from an adult perspective, at the end of our very tiring day, we certainly counted it a success.