Is It A Magic Spoiler?

[Nutz4Dizney]

DS4 was the one to mention on our last trip that "this is a different Cinderella than we saw yesterday". We don't go out of our way to say "no, of course that's Cinderella!!", and we also don't go out of our way to say "you're right - they are actors". We let them come to different realizations at their own pace.. "Huh, does she look different today?"

I have no problem with my son coming to me and saying he doesn't believe in something because realizattion finally hit him (it will happen one day ( .
I just don't want him to stop believing just because Johnny in 4th grade told him so. If you are the type of parent that teaches your kid reality, that's wonderful for you but do us "Believing" parents a favor and teach little JOhnny to keep it to himself. It is not fair for you to ruin other children's dream.

I think Disney parks are the only place my wife is comfortable with me having my picture taken with 21 year old coeds merely due to the fact that it isn't a college student but rather a princess from a far away land!

LOL that is so funny. My son has been checking Jasmine out since he was 2 years old. I always seemed to catch him looking down her top. I don't know if it was the "bling" or the "other things" that caught his eyes.

 

[bytheblood]

To clarify something: our whole family LOVES WDW!! We are DVC members and make it there at least once a year. I don't think that recognizing there are people in the costumes means that we "don't get what WDW is all about". Did you mean that about people who run around talking about costumes at the top of their lungs? As I said above, we would NEVER go around the park talking in anything above a whisper - and I don't even think we've even done that - about "costumes". We respect that people feel differently about this stuff.

We love immersing ourselves in the magic. We check into our DVC resort, and don't leave WDW property or the magic until we absolutely have to at the end of our 10-day trip. I can't stress enough how much we escape to WDW... honestly, we are immersed enough that someone talking about "costumes" doesn't mess with the experience for us. My husband would probably make a comment (just to our party) about how "that person must not understand how Disney magic works! ", and we would go about our business.

Yes, that is exactly what I mean. That is why I used the word most and not all.

 

[Nutz4Dizney]

When my oldest was in FIFTH grade, we tried to explain the facts of life about Santa. I honestly thought he was going to be made fun of by the other kids if we didn't. He was so deeply disturbed about it, I vowed never to share my thoughts on the matter with my other kids. I still haven't told the 15 year old. Of course, he DOES like to remind me of the one year I was puking over the toilet and begged him to wrap the gifts...... I like to explain that Santa just needed a little help from some good elves......

As for that mouse. We're all good with him being real and all..... but that dang mouse took it WAY too far by stowing away in our mini-van when we left Disneyland and headed for the Grand Canyon. NO ONE appreciated him showing up in our cabin in the middle of the night!!! (OK, so maybe it was one of Mickey's cousins............ but the boys thought Mickey had followed us when he smelled a few dollars left in our wallets........ )

As for the OP......... I really wish people would keep their OPINIONS to themselves. Mostly around young kids, but also around us BIG kids!

My son hardly see anything bought in this house. We go shopping when he's in school and the stuff goes right in the basement. When I buy for my nieces and nephews I just say you know how Aunt so and so buy you a gift well don't you think it's nice we buy their kid one.

Did the 5th graders "help" your explaination or did they believe? Just wondering how many more years hubby and I get to pretend.

OH and HOW dare you left Disney without being broke first LOL....

 

[Sassagoula Billy]

does it bother you or become a magic spoiler when you hear people around you say things like, "the person in that suit must be hot"?

I often say that about the guests -- until I realize, a) that isn't a suit, and b) oh my God, that isn't a suit.

 

[Planogirl]

My son was the one who announced it in a loud voice when he was only 5. I never told him otherwise, he just figured it out. I hope that no one gets annoyed at a 5 year old who announces it totally by surprise.

 

[Piper]

I taught Pre-K in a public school for many, many years. Every year in December, we would read different versions of "The Gingerbread Man" and discuss characters in each story.

Then, we would use our new reading and math skills to make a pan-sized Gingerbread Man of our own. I stayed with the kids in the room and when our timer rang to tell us he was ready, we went to get the Gingerbread Man. Hewas always gone! The pan was in the oven and a few crumbs would be found leading out the door. We had to go find him--then we ate him.

A few years ago, a former student who was a football player in Junior high came to "meet the teacher" night before school started. He asked me if I remembered making the Gingerbread Man. I told him I did. Then he asked me if it really ran away! I reminded him that I was with him the entire time and saw exactly what he saw. Then I asked him what he believed.

His reply kind of sums up Disney. He said, "My head knows what is true, but my heart still believes!"

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

I just don't want him to stop believing just because Johnny in 4th grade told him so. If you are the type of parent that teaches your kid reality, that's wonderful for you but do us "Believing" parents a favor and teach little JOhnny to keep it to himself. It is not fair for you to ruin other children's dream.

I get what you're saying, and we raise the kids to understand that different people believe different things, and that we need to respect that. This is true whether it's regarding religion, or belief in anything, really. That said, they are kids - it's impossible to control exactly what they are going to say or hear when they go out in the world. Since the belief spectrum is so wide - no matter what the subject - I think the key is talking to your own kids about your beliefs, etc. You can't change the world, and how that world interacts with your child. You can ultimately only affect/influence your own child's beliefs, so my personal feeling is that this is the place to focus.

DS just started preschool last year -- first time he was out of the home. Since then, the barrage of things he has brought home that don't necessarily align with what we would have taught him was surprising! Not that such issues came up, but that there were so many of them! I see it as my job to help him sort through all of this stuff, and decide for himself what he believes -- while making our personal beliefs as parents clear to him. Anyway... that's just my way of approaching it.

Yes, that is exactly what I mean. That is why I used the word most and not all.

Gotcha'!

 

[LoodlesNoodles]

This happened a few times when I went to Disneyland Paris recently with my friend's boyfriend. We were all waiting in line to meet Woody before the area opened and it was taking some time when he said 'Woody must've forgotten to put his head on' my friend and I were super vigilant and got real 'confused' as to his meaning saying that he (the boyfriend) forgot to put his head on that morning. He wasn't getting it though and kept digging and digging. There were really young kids about and I felt really uncomfortable with him saying such things.

It also happened at a character meal when my friend was discussing a friend of hers who works in entertainment seasonally and ended up talking about character heights. Whilst at a busy character meal. I ended up hissing at them not to have that conversation and to save it for when we got back to our room.

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

For all you santa lovers out there!

I know it not disney, but i thought i would share a gift i just bought for my father & stepmother....

Back story:
My Father & stepmother are very religious & every year at x-mas we would focus on the "reason for the season"
Santa does not come to my dad house
and they don't understand why i let my DD continue to believe in santa. or mickey for that matter
they would never tell my DD the santa is not real, but they still do not like it..
and if we come to vist them for x-mas
santa MUST come to my house before we vist them...

and altho i do understand the reason for the season i always felt like i missed out on something..
so i hope maybe this figure and book may help them understand...

That santa (just like mickey) has a place...

and NO they are not to thrill that we are going to WDW in the month of DEC...

 

[d1gitman]

I think it is simply rude for adults to not be respectful of those around them when at a place like WDW.

There are lots of little ears and lots of different family beliefs. For an adult to feel the need to be 'correct' about something like characters in costume is just plain rude.

I know a few people who are this way and rather than come off as 'intelligent', as they so desire to be viewed, they come off as ignorant. Ignorant of the thoughts and feelings of those who are around them.

Our oldest has long since figured 'it' out but also knows it's a big deal for other kids (including his younger brother, so he has fun playing along.

 

[d1gitman]

...Back story:
My Father & stepmother are very religious & every year at x-mas we would focus on the "reason for the season"
Santa does not come to my dad house
and they don't understand why i let my DD continue to believe in santa. or mickey for that matter
they would never tell my DD the santa is not real, but they still do not like it..
and if we come to vist them for x-mas
santa MUST come to my house before we vist them...

and altho i do understand the reason for the season i always felt like i missed out on something..
so i hope maybe this figure and book may help them understand...

That santa (just like mickey) has a place...

and yes they are not to thrill that we are going to WDW in the month of DEC...

Same at our house. Santa was an abomination. My mom is still uptight about him but we allow our kids to have their 'Santa' fun. We also teach them what we believe about the reason for the season. Our oldest gets 'it' and is fine. Two Christmas' ago he finally questioned Santa to the point of no return. I told him Mommy & Daddy were 'Santa'. At first he was sad but then I asked him if he was ever dissapointed with Santa's work. He smiled and said 'no'. All is well in the D1gitman household.

 

[OhhBother]

With apologies to the New York Sun ...

Yes, DIS boarders, there is a Mickey Mouse. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Mickey Mouse. It would be as dreary as if there were no DIS boarders. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Mickey Mouse! You might as well not believe in fairies! ... The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You may tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, DIS boarders, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Mickey Mouse! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, DIS boarders, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

 

[persimmondeb]

This year we finally told DS that there is no Easter Bunny (he was in the ninth grade) since DH was afraid that he was never going to figure it out on his own and it might become a problem at some point. OTH he has known that characters were people in suits since he was a toddler (and regularily rejected the easter bunny in the mall on these grounds). He figured out that mall santas were stand-ins for the real McCoy when he was nine or ten. Other children had been trying to tell him that there was no Santa, etc., for years, and he was ignoring them. BTW, he loves the characters, especially Chip and Dale.

 

[bytheblood]

My son was the one who announced it in a loud voice when he was only 5. I never told him otherwise, he just figured it out. I hope that no one gets annoyed at a 5 year old who announces it totally by surprise.

I was wondering how many posts it would take before somebody took it out of context and made it personal.

That is a completely different situation. And that is when you are a parent should quietly tell you child not to spoil the magic for others, just as you may not want somebody blurting loudly about some man in a santa suit.

 

[Nutz4Dizney]

no mickey mouse! Thank god! He lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, dis boarders, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

amen!!!!!

 

[Mouse's Shadow]

I love the Disney Magic, and I love being immersed in it. I would probably ask "What costume?", but I'm going to give the non-believer some slack. I think there are those who just don't get it. I don't think they are trying to ruin any one's magic. I don't think that it probably ever crossed their mind that someone would be ill affected by what they are saying. Unfortunately, reality often tries to find a way to creep into our lives. When it taps me on the shoulder, I just act oblivious to its presence.Oh, are we still talking about Disney?

 

[Aimros]

Our last trip to Disney we spent most of our time with my friend who was a CM working various positions in the parks. She would get very upset anytime we mentioned a costume or anything unmagical and quickly scold us and remind us that they weren't costumes or actors, etc. But then she also took us backstage and showed us some of the not so magical sides of WDW, so I don't know what she was trying to do there!

One particular instance was during Wishes. DFi and I had never seen Wishes before, so CM friend told us we had to be in a good spot to see Tink fly. I was really confused, because I didn't know what she meant... and it turned into a 15 minute confusing argument with me trying to figure out if Tink was a "real" person that comes from the castle, a hologram, or a small fake (as in plastic, toy, not human or character in any sense) Tink that was released from the window, because CM friend got really upset everytime I asked if Tink was a human (response: "NO! Of COURSE Tink is NOT a human/person/real adult! She's a FAIRY!"). Needless to say, in the midst of all this confusion, I never did see Tink fly and now Wishes in on my things to definitely do next year, only to see Tink fly! (Because now I'm super intrigued that a "real" character gets harnessed every night to fly down...)

With that being said, I make sure to not make comments about costumes, actors, cast members, etc. in front of kids at WDW, and I sure won't tell my own kids when I have them the "truth". Disney is suppose to be magical and I for one am not going to ruin a child's imagination/dreams!

 

[Pixie Princess]

He said, "My head knows what is true, but my heart still believes!"

LOVE THAT! Made me tear up just reading it. I probably would have dissolved in to a sobbing mess if I had been in your shoes.

 

[matt314hew]

I love the way the "characters" interact with us. I hate when people say that the person inside is hot. I always say "what person? That is the real 'character name'."

I had Belle get mad at me this year for saying I liked Gaston. I love to interact with them. I always pet pluto.

 

[DVCBELLE]

I forgot about a conversation I had with my DD recently - and it embodies how we feel about Disney...

She is in the 3rd grade and past the princess phase - she would not be caught dead wearing something with a princess on it...so while making our WDW plans for next month I casually mentioned that we could just skip all the princess stuff (I knew that would not be okay with her but wanted to hear what she thought about that) and she said to me

"I might be 8 years old here in Ohio but when I walk through the Disney gates its like I am a 4 year old little girl again!"

That's what I love most about her - her ability to just let go and really believe in magic!! She doesn't just do that at Disney but in her entire life!