MAGIC KINGDOM CELEBRATES 40th ANNIVERSARY SATURDAY, OCTOBER 1st, THE BARRETT'S CELEBRATE TOO !

Making our plans to be there bright and early on Saturday morning to celebrate the 40th Anniversary,    I have been thinking about the very first time I went to the Magic Kingdom, we were definitely up bright and early that day too.  I have written about it before, but anniversaries are a time for telling the old stories.

It was January 1989,  we were living in Oklahoma City.  Steve was going to a business conference in the Hilton on Hotel Plaza Boulevard.  At this fixed point in time Steve and I were not particularly excited,   not having been before, we were happy to be going but not especially excited. HA!  that was going to change.

My decision to join Steve on his business trips generally revolved around where he was going.  Humm, Oklahoma can have cold winters, he was going to Walt Disney World Resorts in Florida, we had a 5 year old son.  I did not think about it too long.

When we are going somewhere new I generally go to book stores and look for relevant travel books.   Without much thought I purchased a few Walt Disney World guide books, including the official one, the unofficial one and  a few others  on Florida.  Naively I actually was worried that we would run out of things to do.

Not one single book had been reviewed when we boarded the plane.  I sat next to our son  while he finished his kindergarten homework. Steve sat behind us.

Unbeknown to his wife and son,  Steve was having a life altering read. 

 Upon landing, Steve steps into the aisle and proceeds to start hopping, Yes, hopping   Winnie the Pooh could not have done a better job at rocking that plane.  I am about to have some stern words with my husband when our son  whispers to him that Mom gets very upset when young men do not behave properly in public. I was sincerely touched by our son's earnest efforts to protect his Dad from Mom's  "behavior corrections". 

                          above is a recent picture of our son still looking out for his Dad in Walt Disney World.

Steve stopped hopping while announcing that we were renting a car and going immediately to the Magic Kingdom.  The plane landed around 10 o'clock at night on a week day in January.  I announced we were not doing that.

 Usually I describe Steve as kind, loving, mild mannered easy going guy who rarely hurries anywhere.   I have often joked that if the house were on fire I would have run in and out 10 times and Steve would be calmly meandering out the door.  Just the kind of guy that would stop and notice Hidden Mickeys.  Referring to him as General Steve is rather jarring, but on this occasion it applies.

Early the next morning, General Steve rounded up the troops (that would be our son and I ) had us firmly placed at the base of the  entrance to Magic Kingdom an hour before opening and charged us up what I have ever since referred to as Magic Kingdom's San Juan Hill.  Now I am not aware that anyone else refers to that gentle slope leading up the Magic Kingdom turnstiles as San Juan Hill.  But I am guessing a few of you know what I am talking about, there is an early morning intensity among the more fanatical Disney fans.

IT WAS A MARVELOUS FIRST DAY !   It was a slow week day in January on our first trip to the Magic Kingdom.  Steve had treated the guidebooks as scientific textbooks to be memorized and followed.  We easily accomplished riding every ride without a long wait.

I have later joked that I did not know there were flowers on the first day as I spent all my time following Steve and making sure our 5 year old son was able to keep the pace.  Not really a true complaint on my part, as I can also say that we rode every ride and I too fell in love.  It is no secret that my husband is a bit more obsessed than I am, but to be fair you have to grasp how obsessed he is before you judge me.  I too enjoy the magic.

The following day the conference started and my son and I slowed down and enjoyed the flowers, the music, the live entertainment, the weather, sitting on the bench eating ice cream,  the popcorn, the character meet and greets and we especially enjoyed Dad joining us mid afternoon.  Epcot was also open and we spent several evenings there.   My favorite Walt Disney World fireworks are the ones set to Rhapsody in Blue on the World Showcase Lagoon.   

As the years went by we made an average of 3 trips a year before moving to Florida 10 years later.