It is safe to say that we are a Disney family. We own practically every movie that the House of Mouse has ever produced. McKinley’s morning plea for Mickey Mouse Club House is the toddler equivalent of the working adult’s battle cry of, “but first, coffee!”  And  Anna and Elsa? Lets just say they are a really big deal in these parts.

In case you couldn’t tell by the sudden onslaught of Disney related posts on Facebook last week, our family took our first pilgrimmage ( I use that word tongue in cheek) to “the happiest place on earth.”   We had so much fun as a family and were so thankful that Erin’s parents and my Dad were able to share in the week with us!  We rode down with Erin’s family in their RV and my Dad joined us on the back half of the trip from his new place just outside of Orlando.  We stayed at Fort Wilderness (Disney’s campground) where we were a short boat ride from the Magic Kingdom and where Chip and Dale throw a nightly rager complete with campfire songs and s’mores. Erin and I spent a few nights at another Disney Resort towards the end of our week and enjoyed  some time at Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival and at Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party.

The best part for Erin and me (apart from the food, AHHH so good!) was experiencing it all through McKinley’s eyes.  Months of anticipation and build up, of begging us to take her to see “Mickey’s castle” and to “say hi to Rapunzel and Goofy” and to “ride dumbo wit me?!” were finally realized.  You could literally see the sparkle in her eyes as she took it all in.  She was dazzled, and if we’re being honest, so were we.  While it is true to say that this trip was everything we could have hoped it would be, it is also entirely possible for the following to be compatible with that truth; it left us wanting.  There is no such thing as a “perfect” family vacation.  In a day when all we ever see is the best of what people want us to see about their lives, it is tempting to scroll through the pages of social media and think to yourself; “Man, I wish I had a marriage like that” or “Their kids are so good and so cute, how do they do it?”  I promised that this blog would be a place that is real and vulnerable, so at the expense of oversharing let me tell you about what you didn’t see posted on Facebook last week.  Missing was the picture (and the smell) of when the elated potty training toddler exploded in her pull-up, while next in line to meet her two most favorite sisters from Arendelle. Also conspicuously absent was the post of Erin’s iPhone shattered into a thousand tiny daggers as it enjoyed its own turn bouncing freely about the cart on Space Mountain.  And if only we had the presence of mind  to snap a few pics of the look, of shock and horror on the faces of those trapped on the shuttle with us as Mckinley heaved up every last bit (and then some) of all she had eaten that day. Between the posts of beautiful castle shots and meeting princesses we failed to mention that we left Magic Kingdom just as fireworks were about to start because one of my girls was screaming for it to be “nite-nite time” and the other was feeling defeated by the stares and pushing of others.

While non of these instances succeeded in making it onto my news feed, I can honestly say that I was thankful for each one of them, not because they were pleasant to experience (on the contrary) but because experiencing them helped us to lean in to what is important, what is eternal, what is true happiness.  More than anything I relish the moments that followed these instances that would never have happened had we not been put through the trial. It was the prayer huddles at bed time; thanking God that most of the puke made its way into our cooler and not on ourselves and others, singing Amazing Grace as the two year old belts out “was blind, but now I see” rather than “The cold never bothered me anyway!”, and being captivated by the eternality of God as we read his word.

We are thankful for the memories and the pictures, but we are most thankful for the picture of what Disney isn’t. Erin has made it a practice to write a memory journal to Mckinley that we plan to give her one day in the distant future.  The following is an excerpt from a recent entry that I think sums it up better than if I tried to do it myself.  Though its written to McKinley, its truth can be applied to each of our hearts:

“Mommy and Daddy had a great time experiencing Disney with you and we made lots of great memories.  Somethings, though, that Mommy and Daddy had to keep in mind all week and we hope that you will one day come to realize too, is that as great as Disney is, it’s not the most exciting thing we have to look forward to.  There is a place that is happier than Disney World; a place where everyone is always in a good mood, nothing ever breaks down, and you could never be disappointed or have a bad day.  That place is Heaven. Greater than meeting any of your favorite characters will be meeting Jesus face to face.  As awesome as it was going to the banquet hall in Norway at Epcot and having the princesses join us at the feast, one day there will be a real royal banquet in heaven for those who follow Jesus.  Everyone at that feast will be brothers and sister in Christ and not just a bunch of strangers. The best part is that it will never have to come to an end!  So the amount of time, energy, and resources that we put into planning our trip, and preparing you for what you should expect to see once you finally arrived, pale in comparison to the amount of time, energy, and resources we want to put into helping you to meet and know King Jesus.  That is our goal, and our prayer, and our promise to you as your parents.  We love you Kinley girl!”