Today we all agreed to wake up early
(which has proven a little hard for our group)
and spend the day at Disneyland!
Every time I go there I promise myself I'm never going back.
It's crowded and busy, and loud and for an introvert like me,
Disneyland isn't my cup of tea.
But, this trip was a little different, for one thing, Spencer had looked into
getting me a special pass because of my skin condition
that would make it so our group never had
to wait in any lines in the hot sun which to be perfectly honest is one of the
worst things for my burned skin even with SPF 1000 sunscreen on!
(And a sweatshirt, too!)
So that was so super helpful AND, the Nies are getting older and can go
on all the rides, which made it so much more fun!
No one had to wait with the little ones behind, no switching turns,
and no missing out. So that was great.
(Except Lindsay did with Milo once or twice).
Our tickets included the California Adventure park and I think we
spent more time there especially on the Incrediacoaster
which is the most thrilling and fun in my opinion.
But I had to beg and beg Gigs to try it.
All the pressure was really making him mad and stubborn and he refused,
and it didn't help to see his younger sister going on it.
But, I pulled him aside and said I thought that just he and I should slip away
from our group and pretend like we're going to the bathroom and just go on it.
No pressure, no attention, nothing.
He agreed to my suggestion and we disappeared.
But he didn't like it and there were a few times in line that I had to hold tightly on
his shirt so he wouldn't break away and make a run for it.
Somewhere on the loop de loop portion of the coaster, and
through his puberty screams, his 14-year-old voice changed
and he departed the ride as a 14-year-old man!
(I'm NOT kidding!!).
After that ride, we went on it over and over and over again,
and with everyone, too!
It was a BLAST!
Jane was pretty excited about visiting Peter Parker's apartment
since she's mildly obsessed with him.
Oliver made sure I had a hand to hold and someone to pal around
with in Christian's absence. My kids are so good to me!
After we face-timed with Christian and Gigs told him (in his new manly voice)
about him overcoming his deathly fears and finally just doing it.
It took some encouragement and support (physical muscle, too) to
get him on the coaster, but I told him to trust me because I knew
he would be safe, I knew he'd have fun, and be proud of himself, too!
And that was all true.
It's the unknown that is so frightening!
I've thought a lot about that since.
Is the Lord saying the same things to me when I encounter hard times
and when I need the strength to just trust him and take the chance?
Is He saying to me that I'll be safe? I'll have fun? And I'll be
grateful and proud of the hardships I've endured?
It was a good lesson for both of us.
We squeezed in as many rides as we could
leaving the park at night with the rest of the stragglers
who couldn't get enough of all things Disney.
Our car was one of the last to leave the parking lot.
(Kind of like our family at church!)
So now, I don't hate Disneyland anymore.
(PS...these two are the BEST of buddies and someday they might get married,
and when they do, I have some AMAZING photos of them!)
