Princesses and Parades

Two major highlights for all five of us: princesses & parades.

This was my first time at Disney with a Princess Lover (Meera). It really changes the experience of Disney (or, at least, it did for me). I used to think that all those people who “chased princesses,” waiting in lines for hours for a 2 minute meet-and-greet, prioritizing the photos and autographs above so many other possible experiences, were just absolutely nutso. I still kinda think that, except now I kinda get it.

For Meera, at age 4, these were the REAL princesses. These are her superheroes. This is a major part of her world. It was such a complete thrill and delight for her to meet them in real life. I cannot relate (I was never that kind of kid); Braydon cannot relate (he wasn’t either); and Kyle and Owen cannot relate (they aren’t at all). But, because we all love her 100%, we can totally go there — to that Princess Place — with Meera, if we have to. And for all of us — in a strange twist of the unexpected — it turned into a major highlight.

For Braydon and I it was the looks on their faces, their reactions, the thrill we could see in our kids’ eyes. And for Kyle and Owen, it was the fact that they too got all caught up in it (they have, after all, watched every single princess movie with their sister). What began as something they needed to do for their sister, turned into something fantastical for themselves. They got 100% swept away with the thrill of it all. When the trip was over, in fact, Owen unselfconsciously reported that his favorite moment of our Disney trip was “meeting the princesses.” And for Meera, it is obvious: the princesses are huge, and were a huge part of Disney for her.

In anticipation of the Princess Thing, I had planned for a Princess Breakfast, in hopes that we’d get it all done in one fell swoop (and avoid those hours in lines). Booking a Princess Breakfast was the best thing we could have done; it worked completely. And we had an awesome breakfast to boot. In addition to that breakfast we met a few other princesses around the parks too. We never waited in line long, or felt like we were sacrificing other grandiose activities. And now these photos with the princesses, and the memories they represent, are prized possessions of the three bambinos and their two parents.

I have to admit, we got a lot of special attention from the princesses. They lingered with our kids a lot longer than with others (yes, they are very good at giving every kid attention, but believe me, they gave some hefty extra time to the J-M kids… proof of that is the sheer fact that their handlers were often pushing them on to the next group and politely reminding them to ‘move along’ because they were spending way too much time with K,O,M). I am not aloof enough to think this is coincidence, or arrogant enough to think this is because my kids are so special; I am sure it is because our family is so different. In our five days at Walt Disney World, seeing literally thousands and thousands of families, we noticed only 4 other families there that looked anything like ours. The princesses would have to be blind to not see it. At times I felt awkward about the amount of time we got (thinking to myself, “ok! it is time to move on to the next kids!”), but I tried to let it be what it was, to let the princesses be in control, and remind myself that this is just a small token my kids can receive in exchange for having to be so different in the great big world. If the princesses want to shower my kids with special attention, for whatever reasons (maybe they are trained to notice and give extra attention? maybe they do it out of their own personal curiosity?)… I am not going to stand in their way.

And so, Braydon and I stood back, and watched, grinning, and snapped some photos along the way.

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And then there are the parades. There is just nothing like a Disney parade! We are suckers for the Disney parades!!!

Coming up next: Hoop Dee Doo Review and Other Highlights!