The Cook Family

All in all, Benjamin did really well. We typically spent from 9-1 at the Magic Kingdom riding rides, visiting shows, and letting Benjamin explore. He was mesmerized by the 3D musical Mickey show, even though he refused the 3D glasses. He was absolutely thrilled to ride anything that whirled him around in the air, such as Dumbo, the Teacups, the carousel, or the Magic Carpets. He clawed at me like an animal anytime a ride took us into the darkness or splashed us with water. And he napped like it was his job anytime he was at the condo.My favorite part of taking Benjamin to Disney World was watching him enjoy the music. Our first night in Orlando, we visited Downtown Disney for a stroll. Right outside one of the stores was a large plaza where a man with a headset was blasting pop songs and leading the gathered crowd in a bunch of dance moves. Ben was overjoyed that there was loud music playing and a crowd of people to dance with. He marched right into the thick of it, hands clapping enthusiastically. We got priceless footage of him attempting to do the motions like the rest of the crowd and giddily walking around the plaza clapping wildly. At the Magic Kingdom, we witnessed something similar during a Shake It Up dance party involving floats, Disney characters, dancers, people on stilts, and of course some very very loud music. Once again, Ben couldn’t be kept away from the crowd nor could he control his clapping hands. It was worth the whole trip just to watch him.

My parents were able to come down for the last couple days of our trip to take Benjamin to the Animal Kingdom and Epcot. At the Animal Kingdom, Benjamin oo-ed and ah-ed at all the animals. Needless to say, we heard a lot of animal sounds coming from our child that morning. It’s not at all surprising that Ben’s favorite part of this park was the Lion King Musical. We were so busy watching Benjamin dance, sing, roar, and clap that we nearly missed half the show ourselves! His least favorite part was probably the last experience we did – It’s Tough to Be a Bug 3D show. At the end, the seats were equipped with some kind of contraption that made it feel like bugs were crawling underneath you, which made my mom scream…right into Ben’s face….multiple times. He cried and cried. But my parents made up for it the next day. All of us headed to Epcot, but Josh and I went together and Ben hung out with my parents the whole time. It was one of the most fun dates Josh and I have ever been on. And I’m pretty sure Ben had the time of his life getting spoiled to death at Epcot by his grandparents.

There were some meltdowns on Ben’s part, and some very sore feet on mine, but the memories we made on that trip were more than worth it. I will treasure the pictures and videos we took forever. Josh and I cannot wait to take Benjamin and Samuel back to Disney World in a couple of years with both sets of grandparents. It was a wonderful experience that every kid needs to have at some point in their lives.