About Sweetmama Editor
Nadine Silverthorne’s love of journaling began in Grade One with the entry, “I am the greatest dancer!” Two babies (and countless diaper changes) later, she has found her home away from home as editor of SweetMama. Don’t miss her humorous bi-weekly accounts of the joys and pains of working while raising them fabulous.
Sunshine and Lollipops
silver spoons canada
(Nov.21.08)
Being a Sweetmama means sometimes having to make tough choices. Should you feel guilty about being invited to tour Walt Disney World solo? Do you downplay it to your colleagues? And what do you tell your kids? (We opted for "long work meeting.")
I was a bit skeptical at first. Was I off to be indoctrinated into the cult of the mouse? But bit-by-bit, my entire jaded, city girl exterior faded and I slowly began to channel my inner princess (I think it was all the wine pixie dust). Here are my top five moments in photos:
1. Cinderella's Castle. All lit up like the Eiffel Tower, it was a sight to behold. Getting pixie dusted at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique inside? Priceless. (Yeah, I was drinking the Kool-Aid and asking for seconds.)
2. The Gang. I cannot say enough about the lovely Disney people (the ladies to the left of the pixies) who lavished us with (uninterrupted) five-star dinners, queen size beds and spa treatments in the luxurious Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. Every single "cast member" we met seemed genuinely proud to work there -- as evidenced by the giant smiles on Tink and friends in Pixie Hollow here.
The ladies to the right of the pixies are us weathered journalist/blogger types. Even the most hardened of us (ahem, Julie) succumbed to the magic in the end. It's also worth noting that one should not wear fairly new heels to the Magic Kingdom. See my red foot behind the orange pixie? I missed Space Mountain because of those shoes! If I asked Magic Mirror, "Who's the Sweetmama-ist of them all?" the award would go to Racheal, who braved all the rides in heels and complained not once.
3. The Food. (Get your filthy mind out of my eggs benny!) In three days of breakfast, lunch and dinner on the resort, I was amazed by the options offered. The pulled pork sandwich at The Whispering Canyon Cafe offered a mini pitcher of BBQ sauce so I could control how saucy it was. But the piece de resistance was our final night in the French Pavilion at Epcot. Dinner at Les Chefs de France, a bistro with -- wait for it -- REAL. FRENCH. WAITERS! (Yum!)
4. Guilty Shopping. If one can't take one's kids to DisneyWorld, one tries to make up for it in stuff. Downtown Disney offers an abundance of options for getting said stuff. In my house, you can't go wrong with Lego. (Though you CAN give yourself a heart attack as you try to convince your preschooler to pick up every single piece so that your toddler doesn't choke on it.)
5. The A-ha Moment. On our last day, I got to sit out by the pool on a rare break between sightseeing. Though we were pretty much "working" from 7am to close to midnight each night, the Florida sun with its warmth (and humidity) was an exceptional treat -- especially with what we're dealing with at home a week later. (Temperatures below zero, snow, sleepless nights...)
I never imagined that my first ever trip to DisneyWorld (a place I once gathered pennies on the street in hopes of saving up to see) would be without my kids. Now I've been spoiled. I can't imagine going back with them. (Shhh...)
***************
Are you considering a trip to DisneyWorld? Do you have questions and need answers? Email us, and we'll have our Disney Mom Expert respond to them in a future Ask the Expert column. In the meantime, don't miss out on our Win a Dream Vacation contest. Enter now for your chance to win a six-day trip to DisneyWorld. (You might have to bring your kids though...)