This is Sophie as she learns that Ariel is making her way over for a hug and a kiss.
Category Archives: Frazzled Working Mom’s Fleeting Moments (2007-2013)
A Disney Photo Preview
It was a great week filled with hundreds of terrific moments.
These two photos pretty much sum up our trip. Sophie in heaven after meeting all of her favorite princesses, and Chloe enjoying the the silliness that defines Disney, sometimes in spite of herself.
We have lots and lots of photos, and I’ll upload them for all of you to enjoy later this week.
And to whet your appetite a little further, a little video taken at the Fort Wilderness Chip ‘n Dale campfire.
The Princess Quintet
Imagine the ecstasy. You’re almost 4 years old and a huge fan of princesses. You have obsessively watched every single princess movie that exists in the Disney library. You love castles and fairytales and think that kissing is gross. Your boyfriend is Adam Lambert, the soon-to-be (we hope) crowned winner of American Idol.
You are living your pre-K dream of spending a week at the happiest place on earth, and the crowning moment is dinner in a Norwegian castle in Epcot with – your heart skips several beats – Belle, Aurora (Sleeping Beauty for those of you not in the know), Ariel (the two-legged human version), Cinderella and Snow White. Each one of them visits you at your banquet table and gives you a hug and blows you a kiss.
Sophie lived her dream tonight – and her 43 month-old life is now complete.
Chloe, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with the character dining. She would have been much happier eating among a Disney villain quintet (we love that idea and suggested she write a letter to Disney management to advocate for such a character meal). Sophie promptly let Sleeping Beauty know that her older sister was not at all interested in having her photo taken with her. Sleeping Beauty, the polite princess that she is, respected Chloe’s controversial decision to sit out the photo ops.
The highlight of Chloe’s day was the animated, interactive Kim Possible scavenger hunt in Epcot. She had a ball finding the clues in the various “countries” of World Showcase, and after collecting such mementos as a fortune cookie and an English tea bag, she plans to continue her adventure tomorrow in Japan, France and Mexico.
It’s Cinderella!
After our dinner last night at a family-style (read: unlimited portions of extremely unhealthy food) restaurant in the Magic Kingdom, we staked out a prime spot to watch the parade. I was amazed, although I should not have been surprised, that people were settling in to watch the spectacle about 90 minutes before show time. People are crazy.
That said, we didn’t want to miss out on the action. While Chloe took Maxime for a drive at the speedway (the photos of her grinning while “driving” the car are priceless), my mom, Sophie and I found the perfect spot to view the show. We arrived about one hour before it started, which I suppose makes us only marginally less crazy than those who got settled in earlier.
The time passed quickly, however. And Sophie had her second wind, and was performing in front of the live audience, singing and dancing and generally being merry.
For those of us, including myself, who tend to be cynical about Disney World, the parade is the perfect antidote. The electric light parade was truly spectacular (and of course the batteries in my camera ran out of juice just as it got underway) and temporarily transported me far away from any adult worries and stress back to the wonderment and awe of childhood. Sophie was shouting with glee, and when she saw Ariel, Cinderella and Snow White, she grinned a grin larger than that of the Cheshire Cat. Chloe was also entranced. As were we all. The parade, in all of its multicolor lighted glory, was worth the price of admission alone.
The icing on the cake was the fireworks display that started as we returned to the shore of Fort Wilderness. Having caught the boat just after the parade was over, we arrived at the Fort’s beach just in time to see Magic Kingdom’s nightly display. No need to endure the crowds at the park – the view from the shore was absolutely perfect.
The Happiest Place on Earth
We’re here. Finally. At the happiest place on earth. After a bit of a rocky start (i.e., tired and moody offspring), I think we’d all agree that by the end of the day today, we were all feeling pretty happy. Especially after our campfire with Chip and Dale earlier this evening. We all danced and sang and roasted marshmallows. We even convinced Chloe to pose alongside Sophie for a photo with the rodents. Chloe vowed she wouldn’t hug any characters during our stay at Disney – at 8 years old, she’s way too cool – so this concession on her part was both surprising and proof that no one is immune to the Disney machine.
The warm and fuzzy feelings of this evening were in stark contrast to the wrath of Sophie this morning. If you had asked our little at 8 AM if she felt happy, she would have thrown her shoes at you and told you she wanted to go home. Why, you ask? Aside from the fact that she was thoroughly exhausted, she was beside herself because she didn’t want to wear the outfit we chose for her. It wasn’t pink enough and it wasn’t a dress.
Things started to look up when we arrived at the Magic Kingdom and Sophie had a chance to admire the castle and pose with Cinderella’s stepsisters and stepmother. And ride the Winnie the Pooh ride, and Peter Pan’s Adventure, and watch “Mickey’s Philharmagic,” the 3-D movie starring Donald Duck. Chloe was a fairly good sport throughout the “baby rides,” and excepting her astonishing impatience (ok, not so astonishing since she is my daughter after all), was generally happy as a clam most of the day. She loved Big Thunder Mountain and the Haunted Mansion. Even Sophie, who sometimes expresses fear at the most innocuous of things, survived the ghosts with a smile.
Tomorrow we’re off to Disney Hollywood Studios. With a little luck, Sophie might see a princess and Chloe might be able to trade pins with a cast member or two. If they both get a little of what they want, we should be in for a great day.
BTW, photos and video to come.
Vacation!
It’s finally here. We’re on vacation. I started early, leaving work at 12:30 to take care of Sophie and enjoy the beautiful weather. Spent most of the afternoon outside, getting into the relaxed vacation mode that I’ve been yearning for since February. Did a little local shopping, visited with our neighbors and had an absolutely lovely day.
Yippee! Vacation, vacation, vacation. Sunshine, sunshine, sunshine. Mickey, Mickey, Mickey (ok, I’m going a little overboard here). The weather forecast in Florida is terrific – warm and sunny. I’ve packed the suntan lotion, the bug spray (just in case) and the tylenol. We’re ready to go.
Sophie’s Crush, Continued
Not to beat a dead horse, but Sophie was thrilled when I told her there were other videos of her boyfriend, Adam Lambert, singing. As she watched him intone – for the gazillionth time – the song she was familiar with, she was thrilled. “My boyfriend! My boyfriend!” she yelled. “He is SOOOO CUTE!” she exclaimed.
The love affair didn’t last, however. As soon as I started rolling videos of some of his other American Idol songs, she grew despondent. “I want the other Adam!” she lamented. She honestly didn’t realize that the Adam of “Mad World” and “Ring of Fire” (two songs she disliked immensely because they were too slow) was the same Adam of “Born to Be Wild.” She’s not so great with the concept of same person, different song.
What can you do? As long as her Adam is a one-trick “born to be wild” pony, Adam will remain her prince. I am ready to place bets that she’s going to despise next week’s disco theme. Poor Sophie. Poor me. Because as much as Adam is my pick to win, if I have to listen to “Born to Be Wild” one more time, I think I’ll pull my hair out.
Sophie Has a Crush
Sophie has a crush. We were just watching the recap of American Idol’s Adam Lambert performing “Born to Be Wild,” when Sophie exclaimed, “I like him. He’s cute. He’s my boyfriend.” She repeated herself five times for emphasis.
No matter that he’s purportedly gay and wouldn’t harbor romantic feelings for the fairer sex. She loves him. She truly loves him. She loves him so much, in fact, that I think his video has supplanted the You Tube video of “Ding Dong the Witch is Dead” in her fave rankings. And that’s saying quite a lot, since she’s watched the latter a gazillion times. Go Adam!
Chloe, For Real
Finally. A photo of Chloe that doesn’t involve special effects. She’s smiling because she had just finished her Easter egg hunt. This year, the clues were scrambled words. Once unscrambled, she had the location of the egg. It was a difficult puzzle and I was a little nervous that she’d lose patience and cause a scene. But she rose to the challenge and with a little bit of help, she found all of her eggs.
The other kids, however, managed to scoop up all 100+ eggs and assorted treats in record time. The older children hogged the backyard, while Sophie and her little friend each struggled to grab a handful. Next year, we’ll have to organize two separate hunts – one for the little ones and one for the big ones. But Sophie was happy nonetheless, and proceeded to scarf down all of her candy in about 5 minutes flat. Chloe displayed a little more restraint. She finished her candy in about 7 minutes.
Notice how Chloe is wearing her famously filthy winter jacket. She can’t seem to part with it. But the bigger story is that at 10 am on April 12, 2009, it was freezing outside. Literally (well, almost – I think the temperature hit a balmy 39 degrees). Yet another reason why I’m excited for our vacation.
Countdown to Disney
One short week left to go. Some may find it odd that I’ve been talking so much about this upcoming vacation, which many people likely think is an absolutely cringeworthy choice for a week away. “That’s no vacation!” would be the common refrain. While it is true that we will probably return from this trip even more exhausted (in my case, I honestly don’t know if that’s possible, considering how tired I am) than we were before we left, I don’t remember the last time I was this excited about a trip. Well, that’s not true. The last time I was this excited about a trip was the last time we went on vacation two years ago. That trip was notable because it was our first cruise, and because the first half of it was spent dealing with the wrath of a horrible storm back home that flooded our basement. I sincerely hope that next week’s voyage will dispense with any similar drama.
Needless to say, we leave in one week. And as a testament to the fact that I’m not the only crazy person in my household to be eagerly anticipating this trip, all four of us are basically packed. That’s right. With the exception of toiletries, we’re just about ready to go.
Crazy, right? You don’t know the half of it. We have NEVER packed ahead of time, for anything. NEVER. Not in almost 20 years of togetherness and 15 years of marriage. With the girls, the procrastination has only been worse than it was pre-kids. But here we are. Packed. Ready to leave tomorrow. See – I am not the only one in this household who’s ready to go. Even my anti-Disney husband has jumped on the bandwagon. Which makes him even more desperate to get away than me…