People who know me well knows I'm a glass-half-full kind of person. I try to see the positive, focus on the highlights, see the best in situations.
Perhaps my hopes were too high for today.
There is, after all, a lot of pressure once you get to Disney. For one, it's damn expensive. We spent more on tickets for two days of amusement parks for our family of four than we did on airfare to get to Florida. And when you spend that much money on a single experience, you want to eek out every piece of enjoyment.
Perhaps I had forgotten that I have children who don't do well with change, that a lack of a consistent routine throws them off. I had forgotten about Lindsey's lack of confidence in new surroundings, that she needs a long time to become accustomed to a new environment.
They whined.
They cried.
They stomped off in frustration and anger.
I had to take Marissa out of our lunching spot to calm down after she hit me and told me she hated me.
They could not agree on what they wanted to do, so we spent time trying to decide what to do, and ultimately decided that they could not decide.
All day long we only made it on two rides. We talked about splitting up, so each girl could go with one parent and do what exactly what she wanted. But then they argued over which of them got to stay with the double stroller that we spent $31 renting for the day, knowing that if they'd walked the whole way they would've been even more tired and cranky. Looking back, I'm not sure that that was possible.
The biggest smile and "YES!" we got out of the day was when we told them we were leaving to go back to the pool at the resort.
And as we were leaving, they got into such a scuffle that it attracted the attention of all the other park goers around us, who shook their heads and sighed.
Sorry Sweetheart that the day was so miserable for both parents and children. I recall Ned commenting one time some years ago that he wished he had paid attention when he was a kid and his parents took their family on vacations to D.C. etc. He said they were too young to appreciate their surroundings. I have long thought that to be true. Obviously we didn't have such theme parks when I was that age, but my comfort zone was home, not someplace different. My grandchildren will grow out of it, but it sounds like the resort is their wonderland. Hope all is well.
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