Our Happiest Moments

What made us happiest on our trip to The Happiest Place on Earth?  I'll show you:

COUSINS!  I don't think "overjoyed" is too strong a word to describe how these cousins felt about seeing each other again.  It was all skipping and hugging and hand-holding our first night together, and our dinner at Goofy's Kitchen (with Snow White, Aurora, Chip, Dale, Goofy, Pluto, and Minnie) was a big hit.

MICKEY!  Look at Nat's face!  She loved meeting all the characters (even the evil ones like The Queen of Hearts and Snow White's Queen) but was especially thrilled to meet Mickey Mouse.

COTTON CANDY!  Grandma indulged her girls in a sweet treat while waiting for Oscar to ride California Screamin'--I think he would have ridden it every day, all day if we had let him.

MATTERHORN MACAROONS AND MAD HATS!  Oh, the macaroons.  The Dole Whip wasn't as good as I remembered it, and the cookies and cupcakes we tried all looked better than they tasted, but the Matterhorn Macaroons!  They were divine, worth every calorie.  And do you like my hat?  It was my birthday present to me, and I loved it.

THE DARK LORD!  For Oscar, the only thing cooler than California Screamin' was the chance to meet, and later fight, Darth Vader.  He was HUGE and very imperious--kind of scary, really, as he should be.

PRINCESS KISSES!  Belle gave Oscar a big, red smooch, which he rather liked.  Our hearts were melting, then she offered him her hand.  He looked at her hand in his, then looked at her.  She nodded and said, "Go for it," and he kissed her hand!  It was possibly me very favorite moment of the whole trip.

MINT JULEPS AND BEIGNETS!  In all of my trips to Disneyland I had never sampled the beignets from the French Market, and I now know I had been missing out!  Fresh and hot, crispy and chewy, and shaped like Mickey! 

BROTHERLY LOVE!  Jake and Greg got plenty of snuggle time together--only mildly disturbing, isn't it?

ARR, PIRATES!  Grandma's favorite thing was taking all her grandkids on her favorite ride, Pirates of the Caribbean.  Yo, ho, ho!

MAGIC!  Cinderella and her Fairy Godmother taught us how to pose with "princess hands".  Love those Princesses!