Why I Love Disneyland

Tyler and Maddie inside the monkey cage on the Casey Jr. train.


David is so silly...This is his Disneyland garb...complete with "50 lb." backpack of necessary supplies. The second day he rented a wheelchair...to CARRY HIS BACKPACK FOR HIM!

WHY I LOVE DISNEYLAND...

People think I'm crazy for going to Disneyland so often. After all, it's crowded, expensive, hot, expensive, humid, expensive, crazy, expensive - an icon to the greed of American capitalism. I agree with all those labels...and yet, I still LOVE IT! It's also happy, joyful, magic, a wonderful escape, exciting, breathtaking, exhilarating, fun to share, and did I mention an escape from reality?

That is the key for me. When I go to Disneyland, I am in another world. The mundane cares of my real life are gone. I'm a princess, a Small World doll, a toy monster- blaster, a glider pilot, a pirate captain, a fairy on the way to Neverland. I can take a boat to a world of tiny storybook scenes that make me ask "Can I get out and PLAY??" I can lose my breath in a whoosh down an exciting elevator shaft that leaves my knees shaking so badly I can hardly walk after. I can go from 0-60mph in a few seconds while riding upside down - around Mickey's ear! I can listen to funny, silly-looking plastic birds singing in the Tiki room and later I can hear Tyler quote the birds and sing their song! I can see Ally run up to me shouting, "Gramma Linda, Gramma Linda! I went on Pirates of the Caribbean!" I can sit on a bench and watch people from many countries laughing and experiencing my same joy. I can comment about the gorgeous flowers while I wait in line for the Casey,Jr. train and the next day see an entirely different garden of flowers in the exact same spot - with no evidence that it's been replanted! It's magic! I can have breakfast with princesses! I can see joy on the faces of the people I love best and witness their excitement as they plan the "best way to see all the best things."

I watched the incredible new fireworks this past year and was amazed at Disneyland's creativity and showmanship. The show they created for the fiftieth birthday celebration is so amazingly beautiful and entertaining. This time as I watched, I happened to glance over at the rapt faces of Loretta, Julie, and Ally next to me. They were lined up in a row of perfect silhouettes, totally engrossed in the beauty and spectacle above them. It brought tears to my eyes and once again made me feel - "Why can't everybody have a family like this?"

I waited excitedly for two years for the new "Finding Nemo" submarine ride to open this summer. Then we waited an hour and forty minutes in line to go on the ride. Did Tyler love it? Not exactly. It was a little scary for him. Did I love it? Not exactly. I had to fight my claustrophobia to go down that little hole into that little space. (It seemed much bigger when I was a kid!!) Was it worth it? Absolutely! It was beautiful and the underwater projections were incredible. So much creativity and talent. Wait...I DID LOVE IT!

So, I'll probably never get tired of Disneyland. As long as I have grandchildren who have never been there, or who have only been there fifteen times, I'll probably keep going. Who am I kidding? I'll keep dragging Jeff there even if there comes a time when no one else wants to go. (Not likely to happen in this family...) As crazy as it may seem to some, I LOVE Disneyland!


Papa and Tyler with Tyler's favorite "tar" from "Tars."