Gavin's First Disney Adventure

I've spent the better part of this past week thinking of how to sum up our Disney vacation in a blog entry -- how to do it justice, how to capture the magic of Gavin's joy, how to explain the sheer exhaustion (and perfection) of taking a toddler to the Happiest Place on Earth.

I've edited hundreds of photos.  I've created a Shutterfly book (shared on this blog, below).  I've thought constantly about how fortunate we were to have gotten to spend a full week focusing on nothing but our son and his love for all things Mickey.

I could take a few approaches here -- I could summarize what we did day-to-day.  I could post endless pictures of our precious child giggling on rides and while watching street parades (let's be real, I'll probably do that anyway).  I could write a how-to for navigating the parks with a toddler.

Instead, I think I'll just say this:

When we told people we were taking a 15-month old to Disney, people thought we were pretty crazy.  "He won't remember it," they said.  In our opinion, that ended up being the #1 reason we were SO GLAD to have taken him at 15-months.  He won't remember that Mama didn't do her research and forgot about Daylight Savings, so we had to wake him up at what felt like 5:00 am to leave for the airport.  He won't remember that we had no real understanding of the layout of each park, so we spent a lot of time just aimlessly walking around looking for various rides.  He won't remember his fear of Tigger at the Crystal Palace character dinner (though somehow he still loves Winnie the Pooh).  He won't remember the things we know now to change for our next visit.  He also won't remember some really great things -- like his SHEER JOY upon seeing Mickey Mouse for the first time, or his excitement on the Dumbo ride.  Stephen and I will remember those things, but he won't.

Going into this trip, we knew it wouldn't be perfect.  We had two strikes against us -- a pregnant woman and a toddler.  We also knew it wouldn't be relaxing.  It was a total learning experience, and for us, it was just what we needed.  With our daughter arriving in early July, we needed a week to really focus on Gavin.  This trip was about him -- giving him our undivided attention, doing things that were fun and special for him, making sure his needs were met.  And honestly, that goal was 100% accomplished.  Our expectations were realistic -- never for a minute did we think we'd hit every attraction, or manage to stay at the parks for the nightly fireworks.  We went back to the resort for a nap every afternoon, never pushing Gavin to sleep in his stroller or "tough it out" when he was tired.  If he wanted to walk -- which he did, often -- we'd let him.  We wanted him to explore, to experience, and to ENJOY his time in Florida.  And as a result, we truly enjoyed seeing him so free and happy.

Once we got back home, it was back to the daily grind.  Stephen and I went back to work on Monday and life resumed as though this magical week never happened.  Gavin has his well-baby pediatrician visit (and shots) tomorrow morning, and I have an OB appointment later in the afternoon.  It really feels as though our week in Disney existed in its own little "bubble" -- and the memories we made on our special trip will carry us through until we are afforded the opportunity to travel again!  (Where to next?)