Disney Daze

We have been in Disneyland!! We are so blessed to have friends and family who felt it was important for us to get to do something fun. When we were in the hospital with Seth, I told Leland that no matter how things turned out, we NEEDED to do something fun with our "big kids". This became known as our "life affirming vacation". I think it proved to the kids, and myself, that life WILL go on and we WILL be okay.

In addition to just experiencing the WARM weather in southern California (and it's SNOWED at home!), we were blessed to experience true Disney magic. We were able to visit the park for a couple of days courtesy of a Disney employee who's a "friend of a friend". We were also instructed to check in to City Hall on Wednesday morning (our first day in the park). Upon checking in, we recieved a small package. It included a letter that shared a bit about the magic awaiting us, and mouse ears with Seth's name on them! I was so touched by that.. I wanted Mouse Ears for Seth because when I explained to Sean how we could afford this trip (on the generosity of others, trying to help us feel better after losing Seth, and no doubt listening to God), Sean said "So in a way, Seth gave us this trip?". Yes, buddy, Seth gave us this trip and what better way to memorialize it than Mouse Ears for Seth!

So what other kind of magic did we experience? Well, I'm so glad you asked! We recieved a "Magic Pass" for the Finding Nemo submarine ride. This was the ride Kayleigh had been most looking forward to. We rushed over there Wednesday right after rope drop and a very sweet cast member walked us to the front of the line AND joined us on the ride. She filled us in on all kinds of fun facts & trivia regarding the Nemo ride and the old submarine ride, showed us the Hidden Mickey and generally increased our atomosphere of fun. After Nemo, we headed over to it's a Small World and then straight over to Mark Twain where arrangements were in place for us to ride in the Wheel House. Sean, Cary & Kayleigh got to "steer" the big ol' Riverboat and even pull the bells & whistles! The rest of Wednesday was on our own and relatively uneventful.

Thursday & Friday we explored the parks some more. Spent time hauling Kayleigh on rides that were "too scawy for me", poor girl! Friday afternoon, we had preferred seating for the Pixar Play Parade which was an AWESOME perk and after that we were joined by some friends in the park. We got to have fun with them Friday evening and all day Saturday. Sunday was our last day in the park and we had lunch at Princess Ariel's grotto, the best part of which was the YUMMY desserts!

We had more adventures that I may share later. Overall, our Disneyland trip was a HUMONGOUS success and we are following it up with a day or two at my sister's home. We are indeed blessed!