An Un-Jolly Holiday with Mary

Maybe the title is a bit unfair. I rushed Mary Poppins this morning, and it turned out to be a really easy rush. I got there at what I thought to be 40 minutes before the box office opened, but it was already open and had no line. The guy actually sold me a ticket right away--no waiting! I hadn't originally planned on seeing Mary Poppins. My mom loves it, saw it last time she was in New York, and insisted I must see it. I told her repeatedly that I had no desire to see it unless the original London cast stars Laura Michelle Kelly (Mary Poppins) and Gavin Lee (Bert) were in. As luck would have it, they were together in the show starting in the middle of July. I caved. I love everything Disney and Broadway musicals, so I figured it would be a fun night. Well, it could've been. Don't get me wrong. The show was fun, the cast was energetic, and Laura was perfect as Mary in every way. So, what was wrong? Well, Mary Poppins had the rudest audience that I have ever had the displeasure of being a part of. To my right, a foreign school group of kids who could have cared less that they were at a Broadway show and gabbed away in French the whole show. In front of me, a dad and two kids who got up twice during the fist act to go buy different snacks and then twice again during the second act (how hungry can you possibly be? Why didn't you buy snacks at intermission?). To my left, a guy who pulls out a can of sour cream and onion pringles and muches away on them during the show (I like them too, but they smelled up the whole area!). To top that all off, I was really excited to hear and see the staging of Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. Right when the number started, I heard this sound that I swear sounded like someone ripping paper. In fact this noise got louder and faster and continued throughout the entire number (it tampered off a little after that but continued at odd moments throughout the rest of act 1). When intermission came around, I got up and tried to locate the sound. A few rows behind me under a seat with a child booster on it was a pile of shredded showbill (for those who don't know, Disney Broadway shows use "showbills" instead of "playbills"). What parent would allow their children to rip apart their showbill continuously and nosily throughout a show? This problem had an easy fix--take the showbill out of the kid's hands!!! Oh, and where were our ushers? This was a problem far more annoying and distracting then any of the people you yelled at for silently taking photos before the show even started. So, I was kind of pissed about my theatre experience. The show was great, but I just couldn't enjoy it.  Afterwards, I still went to the stage door. Little Jane and Michael were cute kids and couldn't seem to believe that people wanted to meet and talk to them. Gavin came out and spoke to us too. Then Laura Michelle Kelly came out, and I just want to say that Laura has to be the nicest, sweetest person I've ever seen at a stage door. She walked down the line and had genuine conversations with every child there. She inquired what they were into (dance, theatre, singing, the like), asked them various questions, offered advice, and seemed to genuinely care what they each had to say. While the experience inside made me initially regret my choice to rush this show (again, not on account of the show), my stage door encounter was the spoon full of sugar that made the horrible audience go down.

I ♥ Disney--every Disneylicious part!

For Spring break this year, we went to Disney. We got to visit Lindsey and Brian, and I got meet Azalea! I just couldn't stop giving her hugs and kisses! We stayed at All Star Music in the Rock 'N Roll Inn (which turned out to be right across from the Broadway Inn!

Disney's Broadway Inn at All Star Music

We teased Daddy about how he should've moved us over there!). We went to Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Hollywood Studios, but split it over two days this time, unlike our usual "let's-do-everything-in-one-day-that-most-people-do-in-a-week" strategy. Oh! Do you remember the Space Mountain conversation from about two years ago? Well, I am very pleased to announce that we finally got Codi to ride Space Mountain. In fact, during the whole duration of the ride, she was screaming and laughing things like "This is the best ride ever!,"" How have I not done this before?" and "I love this, I love this, I love this!"  Sigh.... We tried to tell her.

I'm gonna leave you with some pictures of me with my new buddy Azalea!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Where Dreams Come True and Logic Doesn't Exist

Disney's Magic Kingdom's three big rides are "mountains." There is Splash Mountain, where you get wet, Thunder Mountain, a roller coaster outside through a desert-like mountain, and Space Mountain, an indoor roller coaster in the dark with faux stars and stuff.

So, for the past four-ish years, Lindsey and I have been trying our hardest to get Codi on Space Mountain. It is, after all, hands down, Disney's best ride. She won't do it. She refuses and fusses and screams that she won't get on it. We are there for her birthday; she's officially a teenager now (can you believe it?), 13. We tell her, it would be a cool story to tell your friends. Nope. No budging. So her, my dad, and I get in line for Thunder Mountain, her favorite ride. The line is super long, estimated wait time is 80 minutes. We glimpse at the fast-pass station. You can get a pass, but the return time 7:30-8:30. The following conversation actually happened. I did not make this up!

Kerri: Space Mountain's line was shorter than this and it’s a better ride... why don't you just try it?
Codi: NO! Let's get a fast-pass and come back later.
Dad: We should just wait in line. The fast-pass time is too late into the night. It'll be dark by then.
Codi: I don't care. Riding a roller coaster is more fun in the dark when you can see the stars anyways.
Kerri: (taken back by previous statement) WHOA! If only there was a ride based on that concept that we could go to and ride now.... I wish there was...Oh wait! That's what Space Mountain is!

Can you believe she said that?

I most certainly cannot.

...afterwards, fyi, she still wouldn't ride Space Mountain.