It all started when I was just a girl. My obsession with Disneyland/WDW began with our yearly summer trips while mom and dad were still together. We lived in California. My dad was a school teacher and mom stayed at home to care for my twin sister and me. We weren't wealthy or even comfortably middle class. We struggled (although as a kid I wasn't aware of this), but somehow we managed to pull together enough money for a yearly summer vacation to Disneyland.
My parents were the ones who instilled the routine that I still use today for my own family vacations. We were up bright and early for rope drop, took a few hours to rest in the afternoon, and back to the park until closing. These were some of my happiest childhood memories.
I will share a specific one that still makes me smile today.
It's 1975. My sister and I are 8 years old and we are up early for our first Disneyland day. Disneyland didn't have the resort experience that WDW has today where you eat at a nice counter service restaurant and then hop on a bus to the park. We stayed at a modest motel outside of the park and always ate our breakfast once we got to Disneyland.
Today was no different than other mornings. We decided to stop at the Carnation Restaurant in Frontierland, right across from the Pirates of the Carribean. They served Mickey Mouse pancakes there. Although pancakes were not my breakfast of choice on most days, I couldn't resist the cute edible Mickey head with raisins for eyes and a pineapple mouth. We sat at a window seat with a wonderful view of the front of PotC. My sister and I quicky ate our breakfast, eagerly eyeing the que of the Pirates of the Carribean. It was among our top three rides at the time, and always a first stop for our family.
As we sat there with empty plates in front of us, we were relieved that mom and dad were also nearly done with their breakfasts. We knew that PotC was only minutes away, maybe even seconds. Then....Dad gets up from his seat as if to clear his tray. But rather than clearing the table, he refills his coffee cup! Mom does the same! And they sit down as if they are ready to relax for a while while gleefully sipping coffee!! My sister and I panic. "The line is getting longer! Let's go!" No, they were going to sit there and enjoy their coffee. My sister and I now become not only frantic, but aggitated that the silly adults want to do something that they can do ANYWHERE! We begged and pleaded with them to quickly drink their steaming hot cups of coffee, all the while making sure that they noticed the growing que across from us.
They torture us for a minute or so longer (it felt like hours) and then tell us to ride PotC once without them and then they'll join us for another run when we get off. What great news! We were let go to enjoy Disneyland without an adult!
I don't know why that memory sticks in my mind, but it's one of my favorites. I think it was the first time that sis and I were allowed to go off on our own a bit, and it was freeing knowing that we could go do something that we really wanted to do without rushing mom and dad who just wanted to relax like adults sometimes like to do.
Do any of you have a childhood memory you'd like to share?
My parents were the ones who instilled the routine that I still use today for my own family vacations. We were up bright and early for rope drop, took a few hours to rest in the afternoon, and back to the park until closing. These were some of my happiest childhood memories.
I will share a specific one that still makes me smile today.
It's 1975. My sister and I are 8 years old and we are up early for our first Disneyland day. Disneyland didn't have the resort experience that WDW has today where you eat at a nice counter service restaurant and then hop on a bus to the park. We stayed at a modest motel outside of the park and always ate our breakfast once we got to Disneyland.
Today was no different than other mornings. We decided to stop at the Carnation Restaurant in Frontierland, right across from the Pirates of the Carribean. They served Mickey Mouse pancakes there. Although pancakes were not my breakfast of choice on most days, I couldn't resist the cute edible Mickey head with raisins for eyes and a pineapple mouth. We sat at a window seat with a wonderful view of the front of PotC. My sister and I quicky ate our breakfast, eagerly eyeing the que of the Pirates of the Carribean. It was among our top three rides at the time, and always a first stop for our family.
As we sat there with empty plates in front of us, we were relieved that mom and dad were also nearly done with their breakfasts. We knew that PotC was only minutes away, maybe even seconds. Then....Dad gets up from his seat as if to clear his tray. But rather than clearing the table, he refills his coffee cup! Mom does the same! And they sit down as if they are ready to relax for a while while gleefully sipping coffee!! My sister and I panic. "The line is getting longer! Let's go!" No, they were going to sit there and enjoy their coffee. My sister and I now become not only frantic, but aggitated that the silly adults want to do something that they can do ANYWHERE! We begged and pleaded with them to quickly drink their steaming hot cups of coffee, all the while making sure that they noticed the growing que across from us.
They torture us for a minute or so longer (it felt like hours) and then tell us to ride PotC once without them and then they'll join us for another run when we get off. What great news! We were let go to enjoy Disneyland without an adult!
I don't know why that memory sticks in my mind, but it's one of my favorites. I think it was the first time that sis and I were allowed to go off on our own a bit, and it was freeing knowing that we could go do something that we really wanted to do without rushing mom and dad who just wanted to relax like adults sometimes like to do.
Do any of you have a childhood memory you'd like to share?
How random is that??
