When you wish upon a star...

Can I say Disney is AWESOME? We had a great time and can't wait to go back one day. We left Nashville Monday morning at 6:45 and a little over 2 hours later we were in Orlando. It was Liam's 1st time to fly and he loved it! We gave him the window seat and just watched as he took it all in. Like me, he loved the take-off. I told him it was the ultimate form of drag racing and though he may not know what that is yet, you can bet one day he will, if there's any of his Pa and me in him. We went to Animal Kingdom and he headed straight for DINOSAUR. This is the one ride he's had his heart set on since he found out it existed. He couldn't wait to get on. When he got off his attitude had changed a little. "That's NOT what I expected!" he said. He hid his face through most of it but didn't cry. I wouldn't dare ride that (or much of anything else). I was proud of him for getting on. It's more than I did. Will rode Expedition Everest while we took a nice calm ride on TriceraTop Spin. I can handle rides like these. Next was my turn. We went on Kilimanjaro Safaris. This is where you ride through an African savanna and see real animals. I got to see my giraffe and elephant. Then it was off to the jungle. The Maharajah Jungle Trek took us through the ruins of an ancient palace where we saw a beautiful tiger, birds, & giant bats. Mercifully I was spared seeing the Komodo Dragon. Of course Liam runs up, looks at it and declares "that's not scary." Maybe not for you brother, but Ellen doesn't do lizards and that's a BIG lizard. Of course our future paleontologist had to stop at The Boneyard for a little exploring. He couldn't pass up the chance to dig up some Mammoth bones. It was off to Tusker House Restaurant for supper with an African touch. It was different but pretty good. I wanted to see the Lion King show but it was too late, the last performance had already started. I was aggravated about this but then I spotted Mickey! Finally! Liam got to hug him and we had our picture taken with him.

It was cute. I will admit that up until this point I was starting to wonder why we came. It seemed like Animal Kingdom was nothing more than the Nashville Zoo meets Opryland. Where was the Disney? Where was the magic? I was about to find out...

Tuesday we went to Magic Kingdom. There IS something magical about walking down Main Street, U.S.A. and standing in front of Cinderella's castle. I stood in awe of it till Will drug me off to eat. This wasn't too difficult considering we were going to be seeing Pooh & friends. I, uh I mean Liam, got to hug all of them and have pictures taken. This was a great start to an awesome day. We flew over Agrabah on a magic carpet with Aladdin, one of Will's favorite Disney movies. Sailed with Captain Jack on Pirates of the Caribbean, this was fun even if you do go down a hill in the dark. We escaped the pirates and went on a jungle cruise. It was a fun safari boat ride until we went thru the temple with the Cobras. I know they're not real but they want you to think they are. Of course it was dark in there. To be the most magical place on Earth it sure has a lot of very dark rides. That took some getting used to for me & Liam. We found ourselves in Frontierland next. Liam & Will rode Splash Mountain. I watched. Liam loved it and wanted to go again. The thought of plunging 5 stories into Brer Rabbit's Laughin' Place didn't seem that funny to me, but I wanted to leave Disney (alive) and be able to say I rode something slightly daring. That was 'awesome' on the Liam fun-ometer, so I gave in. I felt sick in the line and searched for a way out but there wasn't one. I rode and survived and you know what, I might even do it again one day. Liam braved Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and loved it except for the dark cave with the bats. He loves the rides but hates the dark and whatever might be lurking in it. I have a problem with both. We floated on a raft over to Tom Sawyer Island. This was cool until we were forced to go thru a cave, again in the dark, and then somehow got separated. I was ready to get off that island. We took our chances in The Haunted Mansion. Will & I liked it but Liam was scared. It's funny what is scary to one is fun to the other. I couldn't wait to ride this but I was not about to ride any roller coaster. Liam was afraid in the line but was ready for the next "wild ride". Fantasyland was definitely more for me. We all rode most everything there. Peter Pan's Flight was fun. We rode that twice. It's cool to see the cars moving when you're flying over London. I was kissed on Cinderella's Carrousel by my little Prince Charming. Of course we had to do the classic Disney rides: "it's a small world", Dumbo and my favorite, the tea cups. Liam and I thought they rocked. None of us had ever seen a 3-D movie so it was off to Mickey's PhilharMagic. It was a very sensory experience You could smell the pie & feel the wind and the water. It was alot of fun. We took our chances with the witch in Snow White's Scary Adventures and made a trip to the Hundred-Acre wood for Pooh. What's not to love about riding in a giant honey pot to see a bear of very little brain. I love Pooh. The day was far from over as we made our way to Mickey's Toontown Fair. We went in Minnie's house, Mickey's house and Donald's boat. These were adorable! We rode the train around the park for a break. Liam enjoyed this. I'm happy to know that despite all this Transformer mess, he still loves trains. After a little more down time we were ready for an adventure on Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. The night ended with a fireworks show, a visit from TinkerBell and a stroll through the castle. I'd waited 34 years to do that. Thank you Will. Dreams do come true...