Jedi Jack

This is Jack's first light saber, one we found in a store in Idaho Falls. It was a Yoda model, one very short, perfectly suited for Jack at the time who would hold it in both hands and swing it as hard as he could. At that time, you could tell when he was doing his best durin a saber fight. He would swing the plastic weapon in time and bend his right leg at the same time, almost like a right-handed batter in baseball who lifts a foot a bit just before he gets a swing at his favorite pitch. But then again, I only played baseball on playgrounds and parks with friends, so our vision of hitting one as far as we could probably is different than people who do it for a living. We were just farm boys having fun in a park on a weekend. But Jack learned that little tactic without playing with friends in a park. When we bought this first Star Wars toy at Fred Meyer in Idaho Falls, grandma was unsure of the whole "weapon" thing. Jack pushed the toy's button repeatedly. The humm of the Yoda's saber would sound, and then the Master Jedi's voice would say, "Afraid are you?" While Ann and pushed Jack and his new toy in the shopping cart toward the cash register, our little two-year old would humm the Star Wars theme loud enough for smiling customers to enjoy as they watched the excited little boy with his doting grandparents.

Years later when he had an assortment of Jedi weapons, Jack would select two. He would use stealth to come up behind me, while I sat in this leather chair in our TV room. Suddenly the plastic blade would rest on my chest. "Say your last words, Pop Pop!" he would say.

"Jackson Tyler Ward is a bean belly," was my standard response, although I occasionally had another one like "Jack is Pop Pop's pooky bear." Either one would elicit the same response: shock at the disrespect shown to him, a young Jedi Master."Hmmm," he would respond in disgust--a sound between a grunt and an angry growl--before he reacted gently hitting Darth Pop Pop with his Jedi weapon. In the next second, he would place a second light saber in my hand. "Let's battle, Pop Pop," he would say. This is where Jack and Tommy developed some of their light saber skills, fighting Pop Pop in the TV room. During those battles with both boys, I would spin, much like the Jedi and Sith did in the movies, and mom, Lydia and Kristin would laugh while the three boys had the time of their life, and more importantly, I would pretend that one of the occasional swings from both boys, which landed on my nuckles, did not hurt. Showing pain would have forced their moms to stop the battles. Both boys were proud to stand on stage, and as a proud Pop Pop, I did a separate blog for both boys. Getting his Jedi robe was fun for Jack, because ascending to the stage, as already explained in another blog, is not an easy process, and getting both boys there like we did this trip was too fun for words. Once the participants stood at attention for a few moments, their training began.It's great that I enjoy times like this when I do, because seeing the world in the eyes of my grandchildren is fun at this point, although some changes are difficult--especially when you want them to stay little forever. The last time I picked up Jack from Kindergarten, he informed me that I was not to hold his hand. He whispered it to me as he pulled away from me slowly, so as not to draw the attention of his newly-found friends at school. But as soon as we were in the car, it was alright to give him a hug, and later in the day it was alright to take him by the hand any time.

Even before the selection at Tomorrowland Terrace began, Jack began stretching and warming up for the "whole 'awesome' Jedi thing."

The times we have had with grandchildren are treasured memories. Things change so quickly as our little ones get older, yet they still love us as much as ever, which makes Disneyland trips like the one above where Jedi Jack and Jedi Tommy each confronted Darth Vader on stage that warm November afternoon even more fun.

Regardless what changes we see happening now, both Tommy and Jack are still little boys who enjoy the world with every ounce of imagination they can muster, and this event was one that really excited both of them. It was fun to see how they reacted on stage, and even more importantly, it was amazing to see the pride that was in their eyes from doing well, which began after confronting Vader, Darth Maul and two Imperial Troopers.

Bright lights lit the terrace area, and the evil Sith appeared on an elevator that lifted them to the stage, briefly hidden by smoke.

The path of the Jedi is difficult, but looking at the feet of our two padawans, they knew what path they walked that day, and again the pride they had shining in their eyes was worth a twelve-hour drive any day of the week.

The Things You Do To Become A Jedi

1. Wear a Star Wars T-shirt

2. Sit at the front and in the middle

The first two things were not a problem. We came out of Buzz Lightyear, and noticed that it was almost time for the Jedi Academy to begin, so Lydia found a great spot. We hoped that we could talk both boys into trying to get on stage, so we made sure that we didn't leave the hotel without both of them wearing Star Wars stuff.


The wait was the worst part. There are so many things to do at the park, and for the boys, sitting was not something you wanted to do at Disneyland. Luckily, the park was not busy on this day, even though the weather was beautiful. It was an advantage to be at the park when California schools were in session. The wildfires had also taken their toll, and though the day before had seen a day where smoke hovered in the sky above Disneyland, it was a beautiful day the day the boys sat and waited briefly.

3. Cheer and clap your hands

As soon as the music and lights appear, both boys jumped into action. They were old enough now to understand what they had to do to be one of the "chosen" ones. It was about to be the beginning of a series of things that would "make the trip."

Getting instructions from Buzz Lightyear

We always seem to begin our day on this ride, not so much for the boys or even Anna, but it seems that it has just become a tradition. When the ride was new, it filled up immediately after they dropped the rope on Main Street and allowed people to enter. We always went at least two or three times.

During this visit, there were no lines in the park on any of the days we were there, but it was just a fun way of starting our day. Ever since both boys could stand on their own and grab the rail, this section fascinated them. They both had seen Buzz Lightyear in the Toy Story films and later on the Disney Channel on the short cartoon show that appears each day, so it was fun to stand and watch him speak.

I could never figure why people refused to take their small children to Disneyland. Jack and Tommy were only one year old on that first visit, and it was a magical time. We went on most of the rides, except for the roller coaster things, and both boys loved the time we spent there. And they still do, and they like returning to those places--like this one--where they found something so interesting and fun, like Buzz and the giant Etch A Sketch.

A Time For Sleeping

There was a time in the early years when we began experiencing Disneyland with grandchildren, when we left the park to let the little ones sleep on a bed in the hotel, thinking it would be more comfortable for them, but we soon learned that staying at places further away from the park was cheaper, financially enough that we could actually do another trip rather than staying in the Disneyland Hotel.

But the disadvantage was the amount of time getting back and forth from shuttles, driving through parking lots and loading and unloading grandchildren, so we came up with another plan: with free strollers as a benefit on our credit cards, we made sure we had one for each grandchild. And since they seem to be built like a mini hammock, they worked fine. Each stroller even has a small visor to keep the sun away. Both boys, even at an early age showed that leaving the park was not a good idea. By the time we fought traffic, carried everything back to the hotel and entered the room, the only ones taking a nap were grandma and Pop Pop, so naps just never worked well. And after I arrived at the point in time where I had more energy, I refused to leave the park when my Annie worried about me and began hinting how the "boys" needed a nap. When I refused to leave, everyone began staying. So this was how Anna experienced her nap, and we took turns staying with her while everyone went on rides. It worked well.

The Horrors of Disneyland

The three little ones were so excited to get to Disneyland, because it had been a while since we were there last. Jack had not been there since February, when Jeff and Lydia and Tommy and Anna spent the last week with us there. They were very excited.

And then Pop Pop began making suggestions without thinking about their reactions. It was not until late in the day I realized that my fun rides may or may not be fun for them. On the first day, it was over 90 degrees, so I had to do Grizzly River Run. Even more exciting for me was being able to go on the ride for the first time with Jack and Tommy together. The boys were uneasy, and after I heard this strange sound, I looked around for a moment. It was Lydia! It wasn't a squeal, a laugh, and she didn't curse. It was this guttural high pitched sound you would make if chased in a boat by a giant squid or something. But then I recognized it--the sound Lydia made when I wiped a swipe of Guacamole on her cheek with my index finger. She likes it now, but then it was the color that was offensive.

Later in the day, I found different rides I was careful of with each of the grand kids. With Jack, it was any verbal mention of a fast roller coaster ride. His eyes would fill will abject horror, and his skin would turn clammy. But Tommy loves anything that twists and turns at high speeds.

For Tommy, it was the notion of being at the front of ride on Splash Mountain. It scared him, because he was afraid he would fall, even if you held him close to you.

And for Tommy and Anna, anything 3D would not work, because I made the mistake of taking the three of them on "Honey, I Shrunk the Audience." Jack loves 3D movies, so I thought I would try it. I forgot the snakes, the mice, the dog. When the snake struck at the audience and then wiggled his tongue at the lenses of those weird glasses everyone wears, Tommy and Anna jumped Olympic style. Anna pressed her face into one arm pit and Tommy occupied the other. Meanwhile, Lydia had to take Jack to the bathroom just before we entered the theater, so we didn't get the chance to see it together. The mice scurry off the screen and toward the audience, and these little bits of plastic flip at your legs. Tommy's legs immediately went against his chest, and the glasses went down. Of course the theater was dark, so he put them back on just in time for the cat and the dog. When Anna saw the gigantic version of a tan Toto put its sniffing nose toward her, that was the end of Western Civilization as we and everyone in the theater knew it. I held her the rest of the time, and I exited the theater feeling guilty for taking the traumatized little ones with me: Anna in my arms and Tommy gripped firmly in hand. But it didn't stop us from finding other alternatives that everyone could enjoy.

Darth Maul Meets Lydia's Nikon

Lydia sat by me and watched both boys perform, but the spectacle of the show added to the fun. The Darth Maul character sneered at the audience, doing somersaults and slicing the air with his double-handed light saber. One grandmother, who obviously was also a Star Wars fan, laughed out loud and extended her arm toward him. She was using the force to threaten him. I had never seen anyone--beyond the age of ten--do that before. Lydia and I enjoyed the fun, and as Lydia sat forward to get the picture, the Sith warrior turned and leaned inches away from Lydia's lens as she took this picture.

It was just another part of a fantastic day.

Tommy Intimidates Darth Vader On Stage

In the midst of all the excitement of both boys getting the chance to be on stage, the workers chose a number of those to confront Vader. Not everyone gets the chance. Some children are too timid, and others get the chance to do something else. Jack and Tommy had their turn. I enjoyed every minute of it.

And like Jack did in one of our early trips, Tommy fought valiantly, like he did when playing at home with Jack and Pop Pop. He swung his short, green light saber frantically, forcing the Vader character to take a step back and allowing the audience to erupt into laughter and cheers. Like Jack once did, Tommy stole the show, and we enjoyed it so much, we didn't get a movie clip of it. I was hoping I could persuade both boys to do it again, but they are older now, and I think they each had a little stage fright. It didn't happen, and looking at it now, I recognize the time at Disneyland was about my three grandchildren having fun and not about Pop Pop smiling proudly in the audience as his grandsons performed bravely. But that part--the proud Pop Pop thing--was fun too. I can't imagine what it will be like in the future when each child finds something they choose to express their talents. Tommy loves to draw. Jack loves music and movies. Anna is still a bit too young to set her path, because she loves to draw too, but I am sure she will find something just like each of the boys did in her own time, according to her own terms. The first step was getting the robe and Jedi weapon, and the Disney people did it very well, completing each step so that the boys listened and paid attention. There was no time for young minds to wander. And everything had a focus that ultimately led to something that young minds could enjoy very much.

The reactions of parents and grandparents were fun too. Some shouted encouragement and others took massive numbers of pictures and movie clips with cameras and phones.

It all happened, one step at a time: each sequence building on the next to make even more fun for the boys. After selection, the boys stood briefly in their Jedi robes listening to initial instructions that were important for the show, and then they received their light sabers.

As soon as the Jedi Master instructed the padawans to activate their weapons, each boy and girl did as they were told. It was almost eerie how every one of them stood listening intently. As a school teacher, things never really happened that way, but I guess toting a light saber makes a difference. The NRA probably expresses strong feelings about that issue and endorses the use of a Jedi weapon by teachers in schools. As long as it is a plastic version, I could have lived with that mandate, although I would have taken it home to my grandchildren rather than leaving it at school.

Grandma even got all artsy about this picture, getting a different angle that really looks good. Although initially I was disappointed not to have a video clip of Tommy's battle on stage, the clips sometimes do not work on the blog, and the pictures were all fantastic.

Even more impressive for me is the fact that trees in Anaheim still have green leaves, and people in the afternoon not only don't wear coats, but they also disregard sweatshirts. The weather is just like summer, just another reason why a twelve-hour drive is not out of the question any time of the week. Luckily, Jack is in school, or I would drive there often.

Before Ann retired, I teased her once by saying that if she came home from work and found the house empty, Jack and I were on our way to warmth and sunshine. Grandma didn't think it was funny, and Kristin didn't either. I was teasing, or at least I think I was.

The only disadvantage about a trip going as nicely as this last one is how badly I want to return to those summer breezes.

The light saber fight that Tommy had that afternoon "brought down the house." It is why I put the picture at the top of the blog. People clapped, they cheered, they laughed. Tommy took it very seriously, and just like we practiced in our TV room, Tommy fought valiantly in his green clogs. And because it was one of the memories of that trip I won't ever forget, I added two more pictures of the scene. At the end, the Disney worker actually stepped in to stop the action. The Jedi Master on stage said to Tommy, "Your saber moves are hypnotizing my young padawan." More laughter erupted from the crowd. Tommy's crocs helped as a padawan walk the path of the Jedi, because they are comfortable, and besides Yoda would have liked this shade of green. For my grandchildren, their shoes have brought me fun memories. Jack had his canvas retro Converse high-tops, and although I had a pair for Tommy too, he didn't like them as much as Jack did. Tommy liked these. As for Anna, when she gets to the stage, she will be wearing a Princess Leia outfit with matching slippers.

Tommy Gets His Jedi Robe

As silly as it seems for those who know nothing about our family, one of the things that made this trip was seeing Tommy get a spot during the Jedi Training. We had tried on numerous trips to jump and wave our arms to get the Disney workers to notice us. I even tried to jump a bit with Tommy in my arms, and as I am sure the Richter Scale readings in the area testify, I should have been able to draw their eye without waving my arms too, but I did both. That probably scared Tommy and most of the other children too, so this time, we were more casual.

We let Jack and Tommy do the jump and wave drill. Before entering the park, we dressed both boys in Star Wars T-shirts, and as soon as the Jedi Master pointed at Jack and said, "The little boy in the Star Wars shirt, come forward!" both boys stepped into action. It could not have been planned better, and having both boys on stage made my trip.

Cruising In Mr. Toad's Car

My three grandchildren enjoy Disneyland, but all three learned how to close their eyes when things become too bothersome, even in Fantasyland. I guess in some cases they seem between a world of what is real and what is pretend. On one tour of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, it stopped momentarily while Jack's car was in hell with the dragon and devils laughing that hideous laugh that reminds me of one of my high school classmates. Jack's were like bleached white sand dollars on a beach. On a second ride, I noticed how he covered both eyes when headlight and chugging sound of a train began to echo in the darkness.

But outside the ride itself in this extra car, all three could enjoy the ride without their hands doing anything but grasping the steering wheel. Only Anna was at a disadvantage here, as the two boys just let her look at the wheel, but like her grandma Annie, maybe she was telling them how to drive.

Covering eyes is really a good thing. It allowed the three little ones to have fun while coping with things that frightened them, and like all children and most adults, some of the things that scared them were the very things that made the ride so much fun, especially the ones in Fantasyland.

Oh, To Be A Princess!

On the first day of entering the park, it was funny to see Anna. Like a moth attracted to light, Anna found a window with scenes of Disney Princesses. Lydia had already told her that she was not to ask grandma for any more princess dresses. There was the one that grandma bought during our last trip, and than the chest of three or four grandma and Pop Pop found in a store in Pocatello and sent immediately, so that Anna could wear them before the trip.

As soon as Anna was alone with us, she looked at grandma.

"Grandma, I want a princess dress." We laughed, because it was so cute. And it is so fun to spoil grandchildren.


When I was young, I remember watching Charlton Heston in epic movies--Ben Hur, The Ten Commandments, El Cid. Then came the NRA and his tenure as president of that organization. One of the things I remember him saying, as he held a black powder rifle above his head, was that the government would have to pry his dead fingers away from it to get it. It is not one of my favorite quotes, and that is not why I am writing it now, because personally, I am not really thrilled about the NRA or about that media event either, but when I saw this next picture, I thought about the actor who once was Moses.



Prying tiny fingers, formed into rigid fists, would have been the only way to get Anna's new princess dress off that night. She loved it, and grandma loved buying it, although she looked somewhat sheepish at Lydia at the first moment when mom spotted Anna strutting her stuff in a white princess dress with long gloves.

Every child deserves a doting grandparent, and every grandparent deserves a moment to do to grandchildren what they saw parents do to their own children. It's not a bad thing. We just do it because we love them.

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.