That one moment **TISSUE ALERT**

[hucifer]

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[jeff p]

Bump

 

[cfmarie79]

My best friend and I had just finished an epic dinner at Bistro in France, we were leisurely walking back to the front of the park and were the only people in world showcase. We stopped just beyond France at the bridge overlooking the water when I became overwhelmed with a feeling of joy and contentment. It was so incredibly beautiful! It was her first visit and I vividly remember saying to her, "These are the moments that life is all about. This is what keeps us going." That was 10 years ago and it is burned in my memory. The two of us are planning another trip for October 2016

 

[leebee]

We have been to Disney World so many times, I've pretty much lost count, but I think we are up to trip #27. I still have a memory from that very first trip in March of 1999. DD was 5 1/2 and my niece was just 1. We hadn't planned on going to Disney, even though my DH had a conference in Orlando. However, as more friends from grad school started contacting us, saying they'd be there with their spouses/kids, we decided we wanted to be there, too. However, we were looking at this as a trip to reconnect with old friends; Disney was very much the secondary attraction. At almost the last minute, my sister, BIL, and niece decided to come along. We had NO idea of what we were doing- we'd done almost no planning, just read portions of the Unofficial Guide. ANYHOW... fast forward to our day at MGM. TO THIS DAY I will never forget the looks on my DD5's and Dniece1's faces as they watched Beauty and the Beast. Niece was kneeling on the bench so she could see, DD had her arm around her, and they were both absolutely enchanted! I will always remember the awe and joy on those two sweet little faces, even though my niece is almost 18 and DD just turned 22! (and yes, I cried... I ALWAYS cry at WDW!)

SO many amazing memories... DD being pulled into the "Remember the Magic" parade to dance and play with Dopey... DD (when she was maybe 16?) being led around the museum in the China pavilion by Mulan (her favorite)... DD quietly, sweetly singing "Silent Night" into my ear, in French, with the Candlelight Processional soloist (who was also singing in French)... The first time DD and I saw Wishes together, DD maybe 12 leaning against me, crying along with me... Sitting out on the Boardwalk at night in 2014, celebrating DD's 21st birthday with a frozen margarita and watching the Boardwalk area settle in for the night. There are SO many wonderful Disney memories.

I've been more and more disenchanted with WDW lately; changes have come about that don't work so well for us, prices increasing, attractions closing, etc. We leave for another WDW vacation in one short month, and to be honest, I've been wondering if it's worth it anymore and if the magic still lives. Even though it's old, this thread has rekindled my love for WDW. I am EXCITED to be going back, yet again, with DD (now 22... been taking her to WDW for 17 years now!), and will be looking for the magic that I KNOW is still there!

 

[rrrsinni]

Love these stories ! Disney is amazing

 

[rrrsinni]

Love these stories ! Disney is amazing

 

[Hisgirl]

One of my favorite memories happened this past spring. My husband and I had been given some 'magical' fast passes that were good for anytime to anything. We rode Peter Pan and decided to call it a day. We still had one fast pass left. As we stood outside of the princess hall where the Frozen princesses were, we saw family after family, go up to the CM to inquire about admission and time and time again, they walked away looking sad, not realizing the slots were all taken 60 days in advance.

We decided to make someone's day and 'lend' our magic bands to a little girl and a parent. The first was a Dad and his little girl who was in a wheelchair. They were walking away, looking sad at hearing they couldn't go in, so we happily shared our good news. They could use our pass! He looked at us suspiciously, and said 'No thank you'. Hmmm...that didn't go as we had expected!

Another family walked up, spoke with the CM, then walked off looking disappointed. We approached them and shared our plan and instantly, their little girl, who was wearing a princess dress, lifted up her arm to receive my magic band....completely understanding that she had just heard some great news!

Her Daddy joined her and they got to meet the Frozen princesses and get many pictures taken. They let us know later that their little girl was over the moon. It blessed our hearts to make a little girl's dream come true!

 

[Carrie Gruber]

I have a lot of moments but the ones that stand out –

1. When I was 11 and at that funky age where you’re not a little kid but not a teenager, we went to Disney. I was excited, of course, but not real thrilled about the “kiddie” stuff. Well, we got to see the nighttime parade at MK one night and I remember sitting on the curb, watching the floats go by and it hit me – just this warm, fuzzy, amazing, giddy feeling and I thought “Wow, this is just the best thing ever”. For the rest of the trip, I forgot how old I was and just enjoyed everything. I’ve been hooked ever since.
   
   
2. When I finally got to take my husband and 2 children for their first trip, they posed in front of the Partners statue and I started tearing up as they put their arms around each other for a picture and they were completely happy, not arguing or whining – just happy to be there together.
   
   
3. On that same trip, they both got pulled into the Hoe-Down in Frontierland (that we had no idea was happening until we were in the middle of it) and the looks on their faces were PRICELESS. They thought that was awesome and we’re hoping to catch it again this year with our one year old who loves to dance.
   

We’re heading back down to the World in two days, so I’m sure I’ll have more magical moments to add to the list in a couple of weeks

 

[999miles]

I know it's an old post, but I have to share. We went to Disney world as kids with our families, but the first time we went as a family was with our two older kids. Our youngest was 18 months old. She wasn't talking much yet but in the muppet show she looked up, giggled, and very clearly said "bubbles!" We count it as her first word.

We adopted a little girl this past December. She spent 5 months in the nicu and I would sing "a dream is a wish" from Cinderella to her as I rocked her. I sang as she was on a ventilator, I sang as her oxygen levels dipped, and I sang when she had to have brain surgery, twice. We are taking her to Disney world the day after her first birthday. We have adr's at CRT for lunch and she has a Cinderella dress to wear. I will sob because I dreamed of her being healthy enough to take her there.

 

[P&L@WDW]

I actually have a few from my last trip, but this is the one that sticks out...

On my last trip in 2014, about half way through my 2 week vacation, I got a call from home - my great grandmother had passed away. I also got very strict instructions from my grandmother that I was -not- to come home early; the memorial and funeral would be held after I got home. Needless to say, I had a rough couple of days after getting the news, but one moment helped remind me that good things can come from tragedies.

I knew I had a few extra dining credits on my Dining Plan. On the morning after getting the news, I had brunch scheduled at the Grand Floridian Cafe. When I got there, I spoke with the two hostesses, trying to ask if they could keep an eye out for an older lady, or a couple, eating together as I wanted to take care of their meal, and I wanted to do so anonymously in honour of my great grandmother. I, of course, promptly started crying, which made explaining that difficult - I think the poor hostesses were scared I was some looney toons lady sobbing at their desk. I ended up not being able to get them to understand - once I sat, I was able to compose myself and speak more clearly with my waitress. She went and talked to the hostesses, and came back and said they had someone in mind.

A little while later, I saw a sweet older lady leaving - her eyes were red like she'd been crying, but she was smiling and she gave my waitress a big hug. My waitress came to me after she left and explained her story, and why she too was dining alone that day:

The lady had had a vacation planned with her husband to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary - he had passed away a few months before the trip, but she'd decided to take it on her own to celebrate his life. It was the first day of her vacation, and her first meal at Disney without him.

I will never forget that lady.

 

[KaSe]

As a family we'd been to Disney numerous times (and so many times prior to having kids), but the one moment that stands out to me involved my 2nd child, my son. My son was a very late talker. We had already been through numerous evaluations for him and because he always fell into a 'gray' area with the testing, we didn't have a definitive diagnosis. Receptive/Expressive lang. delay? Autism? Natural late talker? Apraxic? We just didn't know for sure. Well, when he was 3 we took our annual trip to WDW and there was just something magical about it. He started talking, he started being more interested in things, he was so full of joy and trying to communicate everything he saw to us! While in line for It's A Small World he said "Mommy" and he clapped his hands and said "Ride." It was by far a turning point for us, for him. It truly will always be a trip to remember for our family. From that point on, his speech really took off. We continue to go to WDW every year, and it seems like every year he is still making improvements!!

I think the curiosity and wonderment that Disney evokes works magic, I truly do. No one will ever convince me of anything different.

I realize this post is several years old, but Oh My!!! That gave me goose bumps -- pure Disney magic. LOVE this!!