Happiest Place on Earth

A couple of weekends ago C and I went to Disney Land (and California Adventure!) with his mom, aunt and two little cousins.  I love Disney Land!  Sure, it's expensive . . . and crowded . . . and you spend far more time walking around and waiting in lines than you ever spend on rides but it's also kind of magical.  Disney Land is so far removed from reality that it becomes easy to forget your real world concerns for a day and get caught up in the moment.  I have a lot of fond memories of Disney Land but when it comes down to it, they're not really about Disney Land, the place--they're about the people I'm with in Disney Land . . . and acting childish and totally silly and getting caught up in fits of uncontrollable laughter.

The gang: "We got soaked on Grizzly River Run!"

A favorite: California Screamin'!

Screamin' for ice cream!

Some evening tea?

Guess I'm not the king . . . *

The wildest ride in the wilderness!

Pluto being goofy!

Just Mickey the Mr. and Me! **

This trip to Disney Land was as happy and silly and memorable as ever.  C's aunt, Maddy,  consulted her guidebook for everything which proved to be both helpful and amusing.  Apparently, Thunder Mountain was too wild for one particular guidebook-reading-60-year-old so Maddy, who is nowhere near 60, decided to pass on the wildest ride in the wilderness (and many others).   C's mom and cousin, Ella, were much more adventurous though, and went on most of the "scawy" rides with us.  We even got Ella to go from 0 to 60 and upside down on our favorite ride, California Screamin' (and she had fun)!

I really enjoy going to Disney Land with different people.  I love to share the thrill of a favorite ride with someone new.  Rides are supposed to be shared.  You laugh and scream and hold your breath (and maybe someone holds your hand and nearly squeezes all the blood out of it!).  Then, once you're off the ride, you recount the shared twists and turns and splashes and laugh about it all over again.

A big thanks to my mother-in-law, aunt-in-law and cousins-in-laws for a super fun trip to the Magic Kingdom (and a nice break from reality)!

*photo taken by C
**photo taken by C's cousin, Ella