Last week my family and I returned from the most magical place on earth, Disney World.
We returned with a bucket full of core memories, a stronger bond, full hearts, a couple souvenirs and stories we will share for years to come.
The last time we went to Disney my oldest was only five and the youngest was a baby; she was 10 -months old, remembers nothing and yes we were crazy.
The trip was a marathon as we were exhausted, worn thin and out of patience.
We had to pack the diaper bag every morning with baby food, wipes, diapers, soothers, a change of clothes and all the things needed to keep this little bundle of joy feeling joyful.
It was exhausting.
And might I say again, we were crazy. Upon our return we needed a holiday from our holiday just to get some rest and relaxation, so when my husband surprised us with a trip to Disney I checked his temperature to make sure he was feeing okay.
As the kids jumped and squealed around the living room, I quietly mouthed the words, “Really? Are you sure?”, to him, hoping that he would snap out of it and remember what a crazy ride it had been the last time.
But he was sure and assured me that the kids were older and my youngest deserved a chance to partake in the magic and actually be old enough to remember it.
Now I myself am a huge Disney fan. I went as a child with my family a few times and I still vividly remember all of the details and magic. Every time I step onto those grounds it is just as magical as the first time and I feel giddy and elataed.
It’s a place to be a kid.
A place to laugh, scream, sing and skip.
A place where pretty much every family is in some sort of matching ensemble or at least sporting some Mickey ears.
It’s a place where calories don’t count, Mickey waffles are your daily breakfast, followed by Dole Whip, pretzels and beignets.
It’s a place where you forget about everything happening outside of this magical, little world and where you somehow feel lighter and free for the entire time you are there.
It is just what we all needed.
Boarding the plane, we were leaving behind a few crazy months of dance competition chaos and my health scare that played a huge toll on all of us.
As the plane rose above the clouds I could hear my daughter’s giggles and feel their excitement and I knew that this was the best medicine for all of us.
It had been a long time since we had done a trip like this and my excitement was overflowing knowing all of the magic that we would be arriving to.
Our days were full and our hearts were overflowing.
We hugged every character in the park, got autographs, ate the things, rode the rides, watched the fireworks, took late night dips and forgot about absolutely everything else but the magic.
One memory that we will all hold onto for a long time was our breakfast with Stitch on the day the new Lilo and Stitch movie came out.
Not only was the food delicious, the atmosphere beautiful and the engagements we shared with the characters memorable… it was more than that.
You see the main line in the film was, “Ohana means family.”
Our whole family used that as our mantra all week and we vowed that no one would get left out and whatever we did, we did together.
That included the insanely terrifying ride the Guardians of the Galaxy at Epcot, which swirled and spun so fast I was sure my youngest would go flying out and her dad and I wouldn’t live to tell the tale.
I discovered in that moment that as much as my younger self would not approve, that my older self was more of a princess meet-and-greet kind of girl, rather than a thrill seeker.
As we spun around at lightening speed I couldn’t help but think how brave my girls were. How eager they were to try anything and how much faith they had in us that if we could do it they could too.
That ride with the theme song, “one way or the other…I’m gonna get you, get you, get you”, will be something we never forget because we did it together.
On our last night at the resort my youngest was crying when we tucked her in.
When we asked her what was wrong she said that she didn’t want to go back to being apart. She loved all sleeping in one room, eating all of our meals together and being with each other all day long.
That tugged at my heart strings because here we were in the land that dreams were made of and all my daughter wanted was more time together.
Not another stuffie to add to her collection, not another ice cream cone or dole whip, but just more time as a family.
It didn’t have to be anything big and grand… It just had to be time together.
“Ohana” definitely has a whole new meaning now and that weird, blue alien like dog has a place in my heart.
Family means no one gets left behind or forgotten… together we’re better…we’ve got this!
@half_full_most_days