Family - A Reason to Blog

With a crescendo of music and magic, the dragon exploded with a flash, sending sparks cascading into the air and a spray of glistening water droplets toward the sky. The lights dimmed, and the music quieted. Twinkling harp runs and flute trills ran up and down. Lights sparkled as a fairy flitted back and forth above the water, here, then there. A change in the music as it started to build, and then a flare of strings as they started playing the main theme. The music continued to intensify until out on the Rivers of America, with a crash of light and sound, Mickey appeared at the helm of the Mark Twain, accompanied by pin-wheeling fireworks, dozens of dancing Disney characters, and jets of water and arcing fireballs synchronized to a delightful score of music. The Rivers burst into flame, the sky lit up with thrilling, sparkling pyrotechnic energy.
And Mary went wild.
Have you ever watched Disneyland's Fantasmic with a five-year-old, princess-loving, imagination-driven little girl? Mary, our oldest, just lost it. She went crazy, swinging her arms around, bouncing, yelling "whoooo hoo!" and "yay!" and waving with both hands. Her whole body trembled with excitement in my arms. Her face was lit up, and she was more excited than I have ever seen her. It was a wonderful experience for a parent, and it was magical for both of us - for me because I love to see her be happy.
And besides, Fantasmic is wonderful - really fantastically orchestrated. And truth be told, Mary is perhaps a little more like me than I would like to admit. I remember times when I was younger (OK, so maybe it was less than a month ago before our family vacation to Disneyland) where I would jump, cheer or shake with excitement over some upcoming fun occasion. Sometimes, after a rough week at work, I still do that on Friday afternoon in my car as I drive home, just because it is the weekend.
Anyhow, I don't want to make my entry too long, but we did all have a very fun time at Disneyland and the beach. We went to Huntington Beach. Ann had never been to the ocean or to Disneyland. It delighted me to see her reaction to both. She was shocked by the immense size of the ocean. She had been expecting something like Lake Lahontan in Nevada. We went on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride first at Disneyland (a tradition of my parents - we went to Disneyland with my whole family) and then to the Haunted Mansion, and to put it mildly, Mary found those two rides decidedly unfavorable. She screamed like she was dying when the elevator doors closed in the Mansion. That initial impression for Mary didn't please Ann, but then we went off with just our small family, and after several children's rides, Ann was starting to have fun. Then she went on Space Mountain (we had to take turns on some rides, having four small children) and she was addicted. She loved it. She got teary-eyed when we left Disneyland on our last day. We both were really down as we drove back across the border into Utah. It isn't that often that we get to spend so much time for so long together as a family, and it was great.
Disneyland is awesome, and it really is magical, especially when you go as a family. I love it even more now as an adult than I did as a child. But what really made it that way was family.