Anna Poses For Pictures

I'm not sure who took these pictures, but Anna posed for them all during one day. It was more than fun being there. No one knows how great four days there can be with grandchildren, unless they experience it--the sounds of laughter, the faint aroma of of cinnamon and vanilla and the train whistles, and these things are just inside the front gate.

Anna enjoyed each picture, and her smile and pose were nothing but perfection. And she enjoyed the attention that grandma gave her, even as much as the rides.

Even though I spend a good deal of time in an electric cart, I still walk as much as I can; however, the joy of being there is just having time with grandchildren, whose eyes absorb everything. And yes, occasionally there are crying children who overdose on joy while at the park, crying because they can't go on a ride or have a toy, but the days we spent together there were more than spectacular.

As for the boys, it was something else entirely. They knew what rides they enjoyed, and what ones they wanted to avoid, and they did not want to waste time with pictures, especially if it meant standing at the very beginning of the morning on Main Street, as they watched families race to their favorite setting, but there a number of times during the day when grandma found a moment to photograph Anna, like while we were waiting for the new arcade ride called Toy Story Mania or at a photo stop while Kristin, Lydia, Jack and Tommy went on Thundermountain Railroad with me.

And like I said, for the boys, the picture taking was a slight irritation: time spent standing when we could stand in a line just as easily. Having spent hours at a store in Ogden, Utah called Fred M. Nye, while my sisters tried on stacks of clothing gave me insight to a situation that was slightly similar, yet we didn't spend hours taking pictures. Tommy did have "the look" on his face, however, and as soon as I noticed it, I tried to hurry everyone toward rides.

For my Annie and me, a visit at Disney Parks is time to cherish in memories, because you know that too soon the three little ones will have better things to do than ride with old people on Dumbo or spinning tea cups. They will have their own things they would like to do, and they may even have places they would rather visit, but as for me, I will sit and feel the vibes and remember memories like these any time of year. The cliche "any time of year" does not really have meaning in California. You have to live in snow country to understand its full meaning, and more importantly, you have to live in a place like where we live in Idaho where you have a short spring after ten months of winter.

Each picture my Annie and Lydia took is exceptional. When I look at the pictures, I can almost smell the churros and cotton candy, but then again, maybe its just me hallucinating after being on a diet for four weeks. Looking at a picture of the moon would probably do the same thing for me on some days when I really begin to miss some of the good, tasty things.

However, there is always a hope that starting this young to bring these three to Disney Parks means that they will continue to ride these rides with their grandma and Pop Pop when they are in high school or even college. It worked with my own children.

But even if that never happens, we all had some days in late November when the weather was warm, the crowds were light and our grandchildren were happy and having fun with us.