Disney

So my family and I are sitting in an Orlando airport.  We’ve just experienced Disney as a family.  Actually, we experienced a lot of moments as a family, and Disney was just one of the special treats along the way.

Back when I was about two months pregnant with Shepherd, Brian and I sat through a timeshare presentation.  While I like the concept of a timeshare, we weren’t (and aren’t) in a position to invest in that commitment.  We’re paying off debts and, at the time, were also bracing ourselves for a four month maternity leave.  Even though we declined (and declined… and declined…) the timeshare, we were still entitled to this trip for having sat through the presentation.  They covered the round trip airfare, the hotel and a day at the Magic Kingdom!  I tried to schedule this as close to Brian’s birthday as possible and it turns out that late January is a perfect time to get away from NoVa’s cruddy weather and enjoy life in the 70’s.

The day before Disney, we laid low in Florida.  Reeeeeeeeeeeeeal low.  Brian made it so I could sleep in (a real treat) and eventually we lazily mosied over to the pool.  It was perfection to not have to be anywhere “on time.”  This was a hard choice.  I mean being in Kissimmee with so many sights and shows, how could we possibly do… nothing?  How can I tell my clients that we flew to Florida and spent a day going nowhere but to dinner?  But I’m telling you, no dazzling-light experience could do for my brain what ONE, much-needed day of rest did.  I didn’t have to coordinate nap times, nursing times, departure times, arrival times,hair-drying time… AND I didn’t have to repeat myself twenty times to get Bennett to put his shoes on.  (Essentially, we were saving our strength for the next day.)

When Brian’s hotel key deactivated next to the credit card in his wallet, it was no big deal that I had to sit outside our hotel door (in a bikini, with a six month old, a four year old and two cupcakes) while we waited.  Under any other circumstances, this would have been a fiasco, but on a true day of rest?  Not so much.  Nothing was pressing.

Moral of the story: We need to do less more often.  I loved the snuggle time with Bennett.  He’s really been into tablet games lately.  I absolutely hate it.  I hate seeing him lower his eyes and lose sight of the world like the rest of us.  But this week, it was nice to show interest in what captivates him so much; and he thoroughly enjoyed me participating in his anti-social time.  

Then the next day was the exact opposite.  There were go times and maps and fast passes and rides and reservations.  It was Disney.  And it was also a pleasure!  Brian rode most of the rides with Bennett.  And while I waited for them, I thoroughly enjoyed pin trading!  Right on up my nerdy alley.  It’s not that Brian and I didn’t intend to swap Shepherd so that I could ride with Bennett, too; but every time we got a Rider Switch pass for me to go with Bennett a second time, he’d decide he didn’t like the ride and had no interest in repeating it!  

Phew.  I’m beat.  I’d love to share more details, but this will have to suffice for now!  Thank the Lord I planned a day to recover from vacation before jumping back into work!