I now officially think it’s impossible for a mom to take her child to Disneyland for the first time and not cry. Because, yes, I CRIED. And, I learned something too… but I’ll get to that later.
Frankly, I had nothing to cry about. Two-an-a-half LadyP and I were ecstatic to spend a day (her FIRST day) at Disneyland to check out the NEWLY-REVAMPED “Disney Junior – Live on Stage!” attraction at Disney California Adventure Park (ok, I was ecstatic… she had no idea what we were in for before we got there). See, our most favorite characters on Disney Junior – Sofia the First and Doc McStuffins – have recently joined the casts of Jake and the Neverland Pirates and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse for a toddler-perfect extravaganza. And we are, like, OBSESSED with Sofia, people. (Squeal now. We did.) This was gonna be a big deal.
Mes-mer-ized. Before the fangirl freakout.
Being part of a live audience experience is something that Disney is doing more and more these days (which I adore!), and it’s a riot to see all the other tots sitting on the floor with their parents singing and rocking out with their fave characters right at their eye-level onstage in front of them. LadyP was in a true fan-crazed state: at first she was stunned, quiet and awe-stricken, and then it quickly turned into me almost having to restrain her from rushing the stage and tackling Mickey. (Bless my little fangirl.) Thankfully, shrieking “Sofia! Amber! It’s James!” and jumping and pointing during the show is welcomed. I died. And happy-cried. And kinda felt bad for the people in front of us. But I guess she learns it from her mother: I sang and yelled my little heart out too. We particularly got all jacked up (or, “Jaked” up? ha) about some certain recurring surprises that fell from the ceiling (that’s all I’m gonna spoil, folks).
The fabulous warm-up guy… pre-show.
The whole thing is [unsurprisingly] downright adorable. I happen to think it’s PERFECT for toddlers: the characters onstage are actually ‘Muppet-sized’ puppets (so they’re not huge and scary (if you have a bit of a ‘fraidy-cat like my LadyP), it’s a good length (about 30 minutes, I think) and they’ve got these fabulously-charismatic audience warmer-uppers that keep your kids movin’ and entertained the second you walk in the space and park your bottom on the floor so there’s no restless time before the actual show starts. Not to mention, there’s something magical about being on the floor with your kid and experiencing things at their level (just remember to not wear tight jeans.)
Talk about a perfect day. But the MOST fabulous thing that happened was me realizing how much LadyP and I needed one-on-one time. I so often direct my focus on being such a ‘team’ at our house, I sometimes I forget how much little ones might want alone-time with their mommy… and vice-versa too.
So after the live show, we hopped across to Disneyland and it was all about LadyP and me that day: making wishes in Snow White’s well (even though she got a little ticked off when I ran out of pennies),
About a buck and a half later (in pennies).
hamming it up in front of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle (which royally freaked us out when we actually did the walk-through inside, saw how dark it was and then were frightened by a little green CG-monster who popped out at us from the wall),
Don’t blame us. Sleeping Beauty was already awake when we got there.
and investigating the water situation at Small World (contrary to what you might assume, no, we didn’t get kicked out for this).
Just trying to find pennies so we can go back to that well.
So yes, my eyes welled up several times that day on account of soaking in every “first” that happened that day, and reliving my childhood with the new characters (Sofia and Doc) that my little girl will remember when she grows up. And even though we missed having LilMiss with us (LadyP even asked for her a few times, which broke my heart in another amazing way), having that one-on-one time with my first ‘baby’ for a single afternoon was fabulous. We both needed it and I didn’t even know it until afterwards. As ridiculous as this sounds, it reconnected us. (LilMiss, I’m comin’ for you next.)
So if your kiddo loves Sofia, Doc, Jake or Mickey, go claim your one-on-one time. The new “Disney Junior – Live on Stage!” is open at Disney California Adventure Park now and has several shows throughout the day. Park admission required.
DISCLOSURE: TheFabMom was generously provided tickets to Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park for purposes of this post. Any and all experiences and/or statements shared are the opinion of TheFabMom.
