My Love Affair with Disney

I am a true Disney fan and I’m afraid I have passed that adoration to my children and my grandchildren. I know, to the moment, when it was born – It was 1963. I was eight years old. I was sitting in my grade 4 classroom, a bit shy and backward as I had just joined a new group of kids that I didn’t know (at that time I didn’t know that the future love-of-my-life was sitting in that classroom too). The morning bell hadn’t rung yet and one of my classmates, Helena Wagner, had just returned from California and was telling some students standing around her about her adventures at Disneyland and Knottsberry Farm. She talked of rides that I couldn’t fathom and wonderful treats and Mickey Mouse. She spoke about submarines, the Matterhorn bobsleds, the covered wagon ride and wonders that I had trouble even picturing in my imagination. I was not included in the group but was listening intently from a few seats back. It sounded wonderful and magical and like nothing I had ever experienced or even dreamed about. I had never travelled further than to my grandparents home in Manitoba but I pledged that day – that I would get there – maybe not soon, but one day, I would see those sights and experience the adventures that she described.

Fast forward 15 years. I still thought of Disneyland and the goal was tucked away in the back of my mind for future days but the present was full of excitement. I was no longer an I – I had become a We (married to the love of my life I met in that grade four classroom). I was in a new marriage, starting a new career, living in a new town, and was blessed with a new baby. We were busy paying back student loans, mortgages, and buying diapers and snowsuits. We were both teaching in Foam Lake, Saskatchewan and were Mom and Dad to a beautiful almost one-year-old precious little girl, Heather. Christmas was just around the corner. Heather had suffered a bout of gastroenteritis and we were still grating apples and cooking rice and using special formula to get her digestive system back on track. We hadn’t had much sleep for the last few weeks but were busy decorating our little home and getting ready for Christmas. The phone rang and it was my Mom’s doctor whom we loved and trusted and gave us such help and support during my parents’ aging years. He said, Patti – is your Mom with you? Her test results from awhile ago have finally come in and I’d like to speak to her. I told him that Mom and Dad had decided to go on a trip with my aunt and uncle. They were heading to Palm Springs to snow bird for a couple of months and had just arrived and settled in. “How’s she doing?” he asked. ” I replied, “She has a very sore back but is resting often and seems happy – at least that’s the message she is giving us”. A long thoughtful pause. “Patti – the news isn’t good. Your Mom’s tests show Multiple Myeloma. She could decline quickly. I’m not sure she should be down there”. “What would you do, if it was your Mom?” I asked. He replied, ” I’d go down and if she’s sick, bring her home with you. Her medical care down there could be horrendously expensive. If she’s well, I’d let her enjoy her time before we let her know. The future prognosis is not good.” Bam! One of those times life knocks you to your knees!

What do you do at 22 years old when you are broker than broke, and the doc suggests you check on your Mom two thousand miles away? You cry for awhile – that’s my Mom we are talking about being sick. What would I ever do without my Mom? We talked through the night, Jim was totally supportive and we decided we were going. We called Mom and Dad, told some half truths and they were thrilled that we planned to “get away” for Christmas. We applied for a new credit card, booked flights and planned for Christmas holidays in Palm Springs. Thank goodness for the innocence and bravado of youth. We were two kids who grew up in a rural Saskatchewan town with a population of seven hundred, with little to no travel experience….. but we never doubted our ability to fly off to Los Angeles with a recovering one year old, in debt up to our eye balls, rent a car at LA Airport and drive to Palm Springs and find my parents at 10 at night.

There is much to this story I won’t tell, but the highlight of the trip was that Mom and Dad met us at the door, both smiling and both appearing healthy and happy and excited we were there. We had a wonderful Christmas, Heather started walking on New Year’s Day in front of Grandpa and Grandma and we enjoyed days of sunshine and laughter together. As a Christmas surprise, Mom and Dad had planned an excursion 92 miles down the road to Disneyland on January 2. I couldn’t believe my ears. We were only 92 miles from Disneyland. One hour away from this magical place that I had imagined visiting for so many years. I knew someday I would get there but this was a total surprise. Mom and Dad booked a room at the Howard Johnson in Annaheim for us to share. It was right across the street from Disneyland. Off we went.

Walking into the Magic Kingdom and seeing the castle was a dream. I cried. Of course I cried. I cry with every big emotion in my life. I cry with sadness, joy, pride, love, anger, happiness, excitement, worry, kindness, and self-pity and probably many more. I’m not sure what the strong feelings were circling that moment but I stood there with tears running down my face. Standing on Main Street, USA with people I loved, in a place I had dreamed of coming to, was a pretty amazing Christmas present. My Mom was okay (for now) and standing beside me. I was not only seeing Disney but sharing it with my wonderful husband and baby daughter…. I felt blessed.

We took Heather on all of the kiddie rides we could find and we walked and gawked in amazement at this magical place. When Mom’s back got sore and Mom and Dad became tired, they offered to take Heather back to the hotel room and let Jim and I continue to explore. What a gift. We went on every attraction we could find, we ate every snack, we went to see the shows ‘The Walt Disney Story’ and ‘America Sings”. We watched the ‘Country Bear Jamboree’ and we climbed through the ‘Swiss Family Treehouse’. We took the skyway from Fantasyland to Tomorrow land and rode the cars in ‘Autopia’. We had a wonderful taste of Disney, a great Christmas holiday and left my Mom and Dad (with quiet prayers) to enjoy their winter in the sunshine.

I wish with all my heart, I had a better record of those days; a journal or a travel book to look back and remember. I do have a box of photos in the basement that one day I will sort and rediscover but as of right now, I have to depend on old memories.

That was the beginning of the Disney Story …… but only the beginning. We were back at Disneyland as soon as we could save enough money to make the trek. This time with Heather, age 11, younger sister Erin, age 8, and the latest and last edition to the family, Brennan, age 5. We headed south in the February school break and stayed down the street from Disney at Raffles Hotel. Such a great holiday. The kids loved Disney and the adventure of travel and the warm sun and swimming pools in February when home was cold and ice. We now had five Disney addicts.

At the same time as we were planning our Disney vacations so were very good family friends, the Rokochys. They loved it as much as we did. They had made the trip with their extended family close to the same time as we did. We started planning for a holiday together. In fact we started a small company sorting coupons for a distributor. We called in JPAC for Jim, Patti, Al and Charlene. We spent many a Sunday sorting hundreds of coupons and sending them off with the proceeds going to our JPAC account. The sorting was less than fun but the anticipation and the planning filled many hours together. We travelled to Disney World in Florida with the Rokochy Family in February of 1992. This was Disney holiday number three for us but Disney World number one and we were over the moon. We got to explore the favourite Magic Kingdom but also Epcot and Hollywood Studios and all that goes with the World of Disney. We even ventured over to Tampa to explore Busch Gardens. Another wonderful holiday in the books shared with great people and full of life long memories.

Were we getting our fill of Disney? – quite the opposite! The more we went the more we loved it. After Heather and Brad got married, and Erin was engaged to Dean – In Feb 2000 we headed down to DisneyWorld with our adult kids – well almost. Erin turned 21 while we were there and Bren was 17. Our trip this time was still about Disney and all the attractions but started to include fun nights at Pleasure Island and meals at some of the great restaurants at Epcot. We ventured off and experienced Universal and some of the Orlando area. This was a special trip just before our new generation of babies started to arrive. Spending time with the wonderful human beings our kids had turned into. No longer supervising them but just enjoying them as friends was a big part of the sweetness of that trip.

Next was a big one — The same good friends we travelled with earlier to Disney were retiring in the fall of 2010. They decided they wanted to spend their first winter of retirement in Florida and asked if we would consider joining them. It took us about 2 seconds to say YES YES YES. We rented a house in Hanes City about 40 minutes from Disney World and we bought annual passes to the Disney parks, to Universal Studios, and to Sea World. We headed down in the fall and thoroughly enjoyed the sunshine, the pool, the oranges but mostly Disney. We went often. We got to know the parks inside and out. Not only the rides and the attractions but all of the details that make Disney special. We attended some special events but mostly we just toured and loved our time and felt blessed to be able to experience this wonderful place every day we wanted to. Did we ever tire of DisneyWorld? — not once.

We wanted to include our families in this wonderful year so we invited them all down to join us in late January just before we ventured off to see the rest of Florida. For us that meant Heather and Brad, and their two children Mya (8) and Reid (5), Erin and Dean and their two children Jacey (8) and Tylan (5) and Brennan and his girlfriend Celise. There were many highlights and wonderful memories during that holiday but one of the biggest had to be….on the second last night of the trip, in front of the fireworks at Epcot, Brennan proposed to Celise and she accepted!!!! (He tried to get down on one knee but the meandering ducks wouldn’t stay away!) Another wonderful family milestone at Disney!

We’ve been back since that trip a few times. In 2013, Heather and Brad came to visit us in our winter home in Yuma and then invited us to join them in Disneyland. The kids were still at the wonderous age – where they were still enthralled by Mickey Mouse but ready to tackle anything. We enjoyed being part of it. We also flew last minute to Orlando in 2016 when the Helgasons went to DisneyWorld. The grandkids didn’t know we were coming but we showed up for breakfast and shared some of their holiday. Al and Charlene invited us to Disneyland in 2018 to celebrate their big anniversary and we shared another milestone together. Our latest trip was when we were invited to join Heather and Brad and family in May of 2022 in Orlando. Their family with the addition of Ry – Mya’s, loved-by-all boyfriend, spent two weeks together in Disney. We joined them for a week and it was such a fun trip. We realized part way through that we had enjoyed Disney with four generations and that the fifth was probably not too far away. Every one of those trips were special and we were so glad we got to share them. I only wish I had been blogging then so I had a better record and clearer memories.

Well, I am about to embark on my eleventh journey. This time by myself and then joining Bren, Celise, James and Nick. I know Jim will be with us in spirit. I am planning to do some solo travel and I thought Disney would be a wonderful place to start. I feel safe there and I know it well. The trip planning has been a God send. It has helped me plan an adventure and something exciting in my life at the same time as I am grieving so much of my past life, and missing Jim as part of my present and future. My grief counselling advised planning a positive event – and I truly believe it is a wise choice for anyone dealing with loss. It helps to look ahead. I want to go a few days before the kids and grandkids arrive because I know there will be some hard moments and some memories that will trigger some tears but I am okay with all of that. I just want to be ready to embrace Disney with James and Nicko and celebrate happiness and togetherness. They have experienced a lot of grief in the past couple of years and I want them to feel the joy of Disney too. Grandpa would have been very stern with his pep talk to me about that!! I am trying hard to listen!

My love of Disney, even with all its changes and popularity is sincere. Our family has so many shared memories and so much shared laughter and happiness there. I still cry when I see the castle or am standing watching fireworks. The tears of wonder have changed to tears of gratitude but I must admit, I am still a child at heart when I drive through those gates!

So two weeks from now I will be venturing off – Yuma to Dallas – Dallas to Orlando – and Orlando to Disney. This time I am going to blog the adventure as this blog is part of my story. If anyone chooses to visit and read it, I am hoping it may help them plan a Disney adventure too. I got so much wonderful feedback when I blogged our travels through Europe and was thrilled when people said they were heading to one of our destinations because the blog motivated them or helped guide them with their planning. I wish I was brave enough to vlog but blogging and pics will have to suffice. I just can’t get comfortable talking in front of the camera – well, I can talk – it’s the playing back and listening to myself that drives me crazy.

It feels good to be back writing. I had trouble getting at it for the past eighteen months but it is an outlet for me. I used to believe I would learn to paint or do cross stitch but I have learned that it is writing that I enjoy the most. It is right up there with the joy of Disney. Thanks for stopping by to share. Hope you enjoyed my little Disney tale. My pics are limited as I’m writing from Yuma so relying on what I have here but these are a happy taste!