Day 2, Part 2: Afternoon Parade, and Wesleys Surprise!
So Wesleys sleeping, Kims shopping, and Im sitting. I seldom get to do that at The World. It was actually really nice and relaxing. At 2:30, I called Mark to tell him that there was no one lined up for the afternoon parade. The only thing I could figure was that folks were avoiding the MK like the plague that day, due to it being Grad Night. I dont know how that would affect anything, since it doesnt start until
AFTER the MK closes
but I was definitely not complaining. For the most part, lines here were comparable to what wed had in January. At 11:20, when Id gotten BTMRR FPs, the standby line was only 10 minutes.
As it got closer to parade time, we had a couple of high school bands march through. Magic Music Days, you know. Wesley was so tired that he didnt even
move when the bands came through. By now, a British family had come up behind us: Mom, Dad, teenaged son. Another family was to the right of our stroller. They were foreign, but Im not certain what nationality. Even this close to parade time, it wasnt uncomfortably crowded. I finally woke Wesley up, so he wouldnt miss anything. He stood right by the rope, as he always does, and got ready to greet all of his friends in the parade.
We have changed so much since Wesley came along
thats natural, life certainly DOES change, once you become a parent. But we never expected our Disney experience to change so much. We used to be Park Commandos. Nikki had nothing on us!! Reading our reports, you may think we are
still Commandos. But I assure you, we arent. It may seem to you that we cram a LOT into our trips, and make poor Wesley suffer through without sleep
but it is all carefully orchestrated, so that we can do all of Wesleys favorite things, plus see plenty of characters (which, technically, is a part of his favorite things), and eat at all the best restaurants: OUR favorite things. The parades have also become very important to us. Unthinkable, that the never-slow-down-thrill-riders-thrill-riders-thrill-riders would take over an hour out of their day (two, if you count SpectroMagic) to not only watch the parade, but to save a spot for it
Hey, if youre a thrill rider, by all means, keep riding. Without a doubt, the lines
are shorter during the parades. But weve had such magical moments during the parades
we wouldnt think of skipping them now!
First up is Walt, of course. Walt generally acknowledges Wesley in some way. And well he should, considering how much Wesley (and his family) have added to the Disney family coffers in recent years. This time there was much more interaction with him. Walt has never talked to Wesley that much before. (Apparently his financial statements are looking good.) The parade was off to a great start!
After Walt, many others in the parade waved and spoke to him, including Captain Hook. He seems to think we have information concerning where Peter hid his treasure, or some such thing. He nearly always singles Wesley out. But the real thrill came when the Blue Fairy rode by. Even though she was facing the other side of the parade route, she was turned to our side until after she passed Wesley! The same was true for the Princess Float
all of the princesses and princes were turned OUR way, until after they passed Wesley. (Sorry, to all of you who were sitting opposite us on the parade route!) Coincidence? Maybe! But I prefer to think that Tinker Bell was spreading more pixie dust
Tink did miss one thing, though
that foreign family to our right? They seemed to think that WE, 6 inches to their left, had a better view of the parade than they did. Therefore, about halfway through the parade, foreign lady climbs
OVER both our stroller and
ME, to get between me and Kim to take pictures. For five loooong minutes, her uhh...cheeks... were plastered to my (face) cheeks.
Am I wearing a sign that says, If you're foreign, please paste your body to mine?? Ive said it before, I know Ill say it again: Disney Parades
They just bring out the best in people, dont they? As close as this woman was to me, I wondered if it might have been the same woman I got to know so well in ToonTown. Never saw her face, either time. I knew I couldnt identify her.
Aside from that, though, the parade was magical. Really and truly. And I was getting very, very close to having Kim hooked on Disney. I dont think anyone could go to Disney World with Wesley and not find the magic in it. Well~some people probably could. But why would we want to go with them, anyway?? The British family who had been sitting behind us (and keeping quite a respectable distance between any of their body parts and mine) commented on the attention Wesley got, and offered to take a picture of the three of us. They were very nice, and seemed to have enjoyed watching Wesley and the characters. Plus, they got great views of the Blue Fairy and all the princesses, thanks to Wesley!!
And now its time to tell Wesley his big surprise! Which I did. But I cant tell
YOU yet
would ruin the rest of this part of the report! He was very excited, though.
Its off to Splash Mountain! Did I mention that Kim wasnt too keen on this? Did I also mention that Wesley refuses to ride it without a poncho? Did I further mention that, no matter how hot it is, walking around in wet unmentionables is not my idea of a good time? We wear ponchos. Laugh at me. Scoff. Call me a cheater. I dont care. Im dry; youre wet. That makes it worth it to me. Only, Kim sat too much on her poncho and couldnt get it pulled over her head all the way. That
is a danger. But she only got a little wet. I think she has forgiven me. By now. Besides, she dried pretty fast.
Once done with Splash Mountain, we headed back towards Main Street. We needed a potty break, so we went to the one between Caseys and the Crystal Palace. And then we watched part of Cinderellabration from way back, so Kim could actually see the show, rather than just the princesses. Shes a theatre geek. She likes that kind of stuff. Makeup, lighting, use of the stage. You know. We didnt get to see the entire show. Because
It is finally time for Wesleys big surprise!!
He had been issued an invitation to the castle, courtesy of Tinker Bell (and friends). So we took ourselves to the back of the castle, near the entrance to CRT, and waited. And waited. And waited some more. Finally someone came out and asked our name. And then we waited still more. At last, we were ushered in to find our very gracious hosts waiting for us.
Okay, lets review. Wesley loves the princesses.
Aurora is his favorite.
He IS Prince Phillip. Prince Phillip (the
REAL one) is almost impossible to find in the parks. You can find him at Mickeys Very Merry Christmas Party,
IF youre lucky. Thats pretty much it. Are you understanding this? Prince Phillip is Wesleys
HERO. The child watches Sleeping Beauty at least twice a week (this week, 14 times in 4 days
what can I say, hes been ill with strep throat). Every single time he watches it, he acts the movie out. The entire movie. He knows every line. Every action. Every facial expression. He does it in costume. No, not that terribly ugly Prince Phillip costume that Disney Direct sells. A homemade one. He made it up himself. And he has a sword and shield. And a broom (actually, mop) horse~Samson. I am not kidding. We have pictures of this. We have it on video. Even this week, while hes been sick, he has acted out the movie. Fourteen times. In costume. Although when Phillip wasnt on the screen, Wesley would take a little rest. He didnt stand the entire movie, as he usually does. Thats how I could tell when his fever was going up: hed sit down. So are you with me here? For Wesley, Aurora and Phillip are a
Definite FastPass. Its another reason we love Cinderellabration so much~Phillip is in it. We can take pictures of Phillip, even if Wesley isnt in them. Alrighty, review over. Back to the present
where we are about to be greeted by our very special hosts
PRINCESS AURORA AND PRINCE PHILLIP!!!
(A GREAT, BIG, HUGE THANK YOU TO TINK AND HER OTHER PIXIE FRIENDS WHO MADE THIS HAPPEN!!! ESPECIALLY THE QUEEN, WHO WAS OUR LONG DISTANCE COORDINATOR!!!)
After the initial greeting and hugs for both, Wesley did his special hat off/bow/hand kissing thing for Aurora. Without being prompted. In fact, I hadnt even mentioned it! Both talked with Wesley at length, about what hed been doing that day, how Samson was, if Maleficent had reformed
during their conversation, Princess Aurora told Prince Phillip that Prince Wesley knew
EVERYTHING there was to know about their movie. (She has no idea how right she was!) Wesley had some carrots leftover from his lunch, which he now offered to Prince Phillip, to take to Samson. He and Aurora shared a dance, and she gave him a big princess kiss on the cheek. She also gave him a princess kiss in the book he had with him. (Prince Phillip signed the book, but Aurora *remembered* that she had signed it the day before, at Epcot.)
If youve never had the opportunity to have a special one on one time with characters, you dont know what youre missing. This is where luck has been so kind to us. We have had numerous happenstance situations where Wesley has had characters all to himself. And I'm not talking about Wendell the Country Bear, either.
I'm talking superstar type: we met Cinderella, Prince Charming, Aurora and Prince Phillip in the castle~all alone~during a Christmas party a couple of years ago, and had them all to ourselves for about 10 minutes (see pic in my siggie). The thing is, these situations dont happen to Commandos. When youre always rushing to the next ride, you never have time to scope out why a handler is standing outside the castle, all alone
and discover two princesses and two princes inside. You dont have time to notice that Wendy, Peter, Alice and the Mad Hatter are all alone inside Exposition Hall, and you certainly dont have time to stop and play with them for 20 minutes. (See other siggie pic!) You probably dont even have time to talk with a hiccuping Aurora in France for 15 minutes! I will fill you in even more on these types of things later. But for now
Wesley was flying high. On Cloud Nine. All that kind of stuff. And when we were done, we called Daddy, to tell him all about it. Daddy got an earful. All of it good. We were all flying high. And now, Kim is sold. Shes a Disney convert for life!! (Youre welcome, Walt! Now when do I start getting those dividend checks??)
).
