Hero for a Day

This past week, we had the wonderful opportunity to got to Florida with my parents, my sister, and my 7 month old niece. Our days included early morning sunrises with Krispy Kreme doughnuts, walks on the beach, seashell hunting, swimming, laying out, eating out at yummy restaurants, laughing, people watching, walks on the boardwalk, shopping, etc. Most of the time was spent at the beach and pool but we took one day and headed to Disney World for the day. Lina'e, Kagon, and Adriana both had a special shirt to wear for the day, they each had a cute Disney Stroller, they had their sunglasses, and they were ready for the day. The whole time we were in the car on the way to Disney, my excitement grew and grew. I was excited because I had experienced the whole Disney thing before and loved it. I was even more excited this time because I got to take my kiddos this time. I couldn't wait to see their reactions. I couldn't wait to experience Disney this time, through their eyes.

We got there shortly after Magic Kingdom opened. We got our tickets, took potty breaks, and then we were just in time for the parade that was about to start in 10 minutes. We were right on the sidewalk, right where the parade would be coming through, so we parked our strollers, and sat down and tried to wait patiently for the parade to start. Those 10 minutes seemed like an eternity. See, to my 2 little kids, we were just sitting on an ordinary sidewalk as a family enjoying the nice Florida breeze. Then the music began to play. My heart started racing, the excitement was stronger than ever in my heart.

As a parent, I am sure many of you can relate. Times are sometimes tough and although we want to give our kids the world, and would love to do something like this everyday for them, reality is...we can't. So, when we as parents can do something this special for our children, it feels soooooo good. The music began to play, and I could hear cheering and clapping, and could see glimpses of the Disney floats. I hear Mickey and Minnie talking and then the talking gets closer. There they are. There are the mice that we had been counting down the days to see. Lina'e claps and and yells, "There he (Mickey) is!!!" Then comes Cinderella, and Snow White, and Beauty and the Beast, Ariel, etc. Seeing our 1 year old little boy wave to Mickey Mouse like he has never waved before, and to see our 2 year old little girl blow kisses back to Cinderella were enough to make tears flow from my eyes. The whole thing was magical. I wish I could take those few seconds of pure magic from my kids' perspective, and bottle it up forever. My tears were not tears of sadness, but tears of happiness. That day, I felt like I did give them the world. That day as we rode Dumbo, It's A Small World, Ariel, etc., I enjoyed the magic through my kids eyes. It isn't everyday that they get to experience that.

After spending about 14 hours at the most magical place on earth, we loaded up the car, put the kids in their carseats with their new soft Mickey and Minnie Mouse, and within minutes, both children were out. As I looked back into the back seat and saw their cute little faces fast asleep, squeezing tight their Mickey and Minnie, I could only imagine what kind of dreams they were having. Just as they were squeezing their Mickey and Minnie, I prayed that God would allow them to hang on tight to the memories of that day, even though they are only 2 years old and 1 year old. What a great day of memories with our children. That day, I truly felt like their hero!