When your kids finally discovered that there were real people under the costumes.....

[Manda]

I don't see how any child that understands Halloween and playing dress up wouldn't realize the characters aren't real.

That's pretty much how it's been at our house. DS seems to have always just understood that the characters are people wearing costumes - just like Halloween. I never told him one way or another. He just used common sense, I guess.

 

[kimluvswdw]

My kids never really cared about the characters. They have picures with all of them, but now they don't ask to see them anymore.

 

[Anne's Family]

I had to tell my kids before we ever left for our first trip. They were already scared of the characters at Six Flags. They were 5 and 7 at the time. It took us about 3 days into the vacation at WDW before they would approach any of them for pictures. Now, they just pretend they're real!

 

[kakiegirl]

My dd is 8 and I think she summed it up perfectly last year. We were at MK with friends and she was talking about how excited she was to go to AK the next day and meet Stitch. She had a Stitch hat (like Mickey ears), a stuffed Stitch and a Stitch Tatoo on her arm, she wanted to show him she was his #1fan. Well my friends little boy told her you know he is not real just someone in a costume. They fuss alot so I thought that would really set her off, but she just looked at him and smiled and said "he is real to me". One of our reasons we love Disney so much is it is the one place we have found were we can go as a family and escape reality for a few days. I don't think DD even stops to consider if they are the characters or people in costume she just loves the magic.

 

[drewswife]

In my 10 year old DD's head she knows they are real people - but in heart it is the real Mickey. She still wonders how is is in his tent and at Chef Mickeys. Or When we were in DL (when she was 8) she wondered How could he be there when he lives in Florida (We told wher we were very lucky to catch him on vacation).

I still get a special feeling hugging Pooh even though I know it is just a guy in a costume. At that moment I believe it is Pooh

 

[ekball]

We are going through something similar with DD 4...

She has been looking through our pictures and noticing that the princesses don't always look the same - i.e. she had her picture taked with 2 different Cinderellas, 2 different Jasmines, 2 different Snow Whites, etc. She can see that they look different, and that they look different from the characters in the books or movies. :-( I was bummed that she was picking up on this already. I thought we'd get at least one more trip in before she started figuring out that these may not be the REAL princesses.

 

[rotlex]

My general response would be exactly what I was told when i asked about Santa a LONG time ago:

He is real for as long as you believe in him, and as long as you want him to be. That's what makes him as special as he is.

Same goes for Disney characters and princesses!

 

[DisneyLandMan]

My kids have always known (older cousin ), but I will tell you that it has never made a difference -- DS still lights up when he sees Pluto, Mickey, or Stitch.

im a 25 year old grown man and i STILL light up when i see mickey, tigger or chip and dale

 

[aimeeg]

I have a pretty cool story about this . . . I will try to make it short.

Last June DH and I took our girls 3 and 11 months to WDW for the first time. DH had been when he was younger but it was more of an inconvience for his parents. KWIM I went before I could remember. I honestly think I have never been so excited about anything ever!

So a couple days into our trip we had breakfast at the castle. Our ressies were right at 8:00. I skipped down mainstreet with my DD in her gown. We met Cinderella and heading upstairs. Well all of a sudden music starts playing and all the princesses come out to see us. My DD's face light up and just for a moment I forgot that it was not "real." Honestly for about a minute I felt like I was five years old. It is the best WDW memory I could ever ask for.

DD is going to be 4 in March. She truly believes she is a princess. So help me God if anyone ever tells her the truth!

 

[abeyst]

My Mother started the non-believing for DD5, as we were watching the video from our last trip of MVMCP. It was the "Twas the Night Before Christmas" show, and I made a comment about how well they can dance and move considering.... and I didn't finish my sentence. But my mom sure did! "Yeah, with the big Minnie head that girl has to wear!" I whipped her a dirty look, and it took her a second to realize what she did. DD didn't say anything and hasn't said anything ever about them, but I have a feeling she probably already knows but doesn't want to say anything.

2 years ago DS was 7 and we were playing duck, duck goose with Mickey and Pluto in Fantasyland. DS says "Pluto's not real, I can see his zipper!" I told him it wasn't a zipper, and he most certainly IS real. He never brought it up again.

Both my kids probably know the truth, but are probably afraid to say anything to me for fear of hurting my feelings because they think that I think they're real (since that's what I always tell them)!!

 

[karajeboo]

We're going through this now with DD7 - last time we went she had just turned 5 and everything was real for her. We were really nervous about her reactions, because she was terrified of Chuck E Cheese (literally would hide under the table), but she promised us she wouldn't be afraid of Mickey "because he's real and Chuck E Cheese is just a man in a costume." Don't know how she separated them but it worked!

Now we're going through the whole Santa thing. Darn those big mouth kids on the bus!!! I blame their parents for not teaching them to not discuss it once they "know." I remember my mother having that conversation with me. But DD argued back because Santa actually stopped by our house this year on Christmas Eve to deliver a new puppy in person, before he headed out to deliver presents to the rest of the world. So, yes, Santa is still real, and so are the princesses. Not so sure about Mickey and the gang though!

 

[TxMickeyLover]

I don't have children yet, but I know for me personally, I still feel like the characters are real. Of course, I know in my head they are really people in costumes. But when I'm in the park, fantasy seems to take over, and they become real to me. Heck, isn't that what Disney is for?

Of course, I still believe in Santa.....

 

[PoohsFan1]

We went when my son was 5 and the characters were so real to him it was amazing. We were at a pancake breakfast shortly after our wdw trip and they had some characters- spongebob and others, and when we left, he said to me, "spongebob wasn't a real character, I saw his zipper."

I hope they stay real to him for many more years.

The same thing happened to us. My kids (and of course I do too) believe that all characters at Disney are real. However, we went to our State Fair over the summer and they had a guy dressed up as Mickey Mouse...very scarry looking one to add...and my dd4 said that he wasn't real because only the real Mickey Mouse lives in Disney World. Good for her!!!

 

[PiperPizzaz]

Ok, I give.

Actually I don't remember EVER thinking they were real. I think that is why I didn't care for them as a child. It seemed very odd to me. Now I like them and have conversations with them. I 'know' it is some college kid under there but, I still get excited when I get our photo taken with Chip N Dale. So, I guess they are more real to me now that I am older, ha ha.

I plan on not saying anything to son one way or the other.

 

[tigerdragon]

Our last trip was in March 2007 when my DS was 6. He was very excited to meet as many characters as he could. He never said anything about them being people in costumes during the trip. When we got home we were looking through the pictures he said "Mom, I know they are just people in costumes, but I like seeing them anyway". He's still excited about meeting characters again in November and even has a goal to fill up his autograph book. He does still believe in Santa and the Easter Bunny, although he is asking a lot of questions about them. I think this might be our last year for Santa to be "real".

 

[livie1205]

my ds knows..he is 10 but my dd27 months would be heartbroken if she knew... as a matter of fact something really sweet happened today...I was at the mall with dd and the salesgirl at the store I was in noticed my babys mickey crocs and asked id she had been to wdw...I said YES she loves the place and aura was her #1 and the girl said she worked at wdw when she was not in school and I asked her what she did...she said in a really low voice so my dd could not hear (even though she is so young) "she is good friends with aura (it was her, she played aura) it was so sweet we got to meet a princess and we were not even at wdw!

 

[sharona]

my little girl (6) came home after school a couple of weeks after our October trip and said one of the girls at school told her the characters were in costume. She asked me if it was true, and I said, what do you think? She said she thought they were the real characters so I let her think it....they're only little once. Maybe it was a good idea to do that, maybe not. But I couldn't spoil the magic.

I had the identical conversation last night with my just turned 5yo daughter. We had been talking about our upcoming trip (3/5). She was telling me what she was going to ask Goofy. I gave her a heads up that the characters don't talk except the princesses. She asked if the other characters are real and I said what do you think? and she said yes. Then she said "they're just on mute".

 

[disney[xo]sweetie]

WHAT?!?! MY GOD THERE ARE PEOPLE UNDER THERE!

WHAT HAS THIS WORLD BECOME!

kidding.
my dd6's know that its not really winnie the pooh under there.
its his alter-ego, pooh bear.

 

[jfap]

im a 25 year old grown man and i STILL light up when i see mickey, tigger or chip and dale

I'm a 59 year old woman and I still light up when i see Capt. Jack!!!!!!!!!
arrrrrrr

 

[MouseyMin]

When my nephew was 4 years old, I took him to see "Mickey's Twas the Night Before Christmas" Show at the Magic Kingdom. I'll never forget his reaction during one famous scene - "Wow, Goofy's wearing a Santa Claus costume"!!!! P.S. Goofy was real, of course.