‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring…because they were all sick in bed with the stomach flu. So, it took me a little later than usual to post my blog this week due to the fact that I brought the stomach flu down to Southern California with me and infected my entire family for the holidays (including my 93 year old grandmother). Merry Christmas Everyone! I felt pretty bad about it and although it couldn’t be stopped I felt comforted by the fact that this particular strain is of the 24-hour variety. Yesterday, I spent the day watching my two kids in between running up and down the stairs to bring toast and ginger ale to my sick loved ones. Ugh!

But prior to this day of sickness, we had one of the best days together at none other than the so-called, “Happiest Place on Earth”. Yes, that’s right; we took our two kids to Disneyland for their very first visit. I think it was pretty brave of us considering that I’m feeling pretty pregnant these days, my kids are only 18 months and 3 years old, and it was Christmas week at Disneyland which is arguably one of the busiest weeks of the year to go. But we had a blast. I do have a few recommendations for myself for next time we go down. Here they are just a couple in no order of importance (email me if you want the full list):

1)      Pack your own food for not only yourself but the kids.

Because I have some food allergies, I packed what I needed for the day at the Magic Kingdom, but I figured we’d buy food for the kids there. That was a mistake. As I was sitting down to eat my packed lunch, my husband set out to find food for the kids. He came back $20 later with a pretzel, a veggie skewer, and a chicken skewer. I’m not sure whose kids he was buying lunch for, and he admits having a bad feeling about it at the time, but our kids have a hard time eating veggies, let alone veggies that have been grilled and speared. So we traded jobs and I set out to find something else for them while he ate his lunch. I came back $8.50 later with a happy meal-sized box of fried chicken, fries, and two milks. They ate it but after the day was all said and done I swear my kids ate the worst they have ever eaten in their lives and it took me all day the next day to rectify it through proper nutrition. I wouldn’t want them to think that they can always have cotton candy, a cookie with sprinkles, a few fries and chicken, and a churro for their daily food intake. I think it’s funny that they ate that but I vow never to take them to McDonald’s.

2)      Relax and breathe. Christmas week is going to be hectic.

I knew it was a popular week to visit, but I didn’t expect to have to navigate through such a huge sea of people at every turn. At one point I was almost taken out by a small child who darted out of the bathroom and almost knocked me over onto my pregnant belly. I have to admit the look I gave that kids mother and words uttered under my breath were less than friendly. Thankfully, we had gotten there early enough to immediately enjoy getting the kids on the Small World, which was all decked out for the holidays. We rode Dumbo, met Mickey, visited the Tiki room, rode Pirates of the Caribbean (my girls were only mildly scared), and saw a fantastic holiday parade. I was definitely surprised by the fact that waiting in line with small kids was going to be so challenging. As the day went on I had to remember that I was there for the kids and I wasn’t going to get to ride on all the rides I had wanted to see because the lines were so long.

Overall, it was hard to let go of the fact that we were paying so much money to visit Disney land only to ride a few rides and see a few sights. But as I think back to the look on my girl’s faces when they got to meet Mickey Mouse, watch Princess Tiana dance by, and see Winnie the Pooh in the holiday parade, than it was by far worth it and I would gladly do it again in a heartbeat.

To all my friends and those reading this blog, may toddler tantrums be avoided, all long lines move quickly for you, parking spaces appear, and if you find yourself catching the stomach bug, may it be short lived.  My wish for you this Christmas Eve is for having one of the happiest Christmases on Earth.