Grand Marshalls at the Magic Kingdom

Friday was a pretty cool day. Not the weather; that was perfect--low 90s, nice breeze, lots of air-conditioned shops and rides.

A and several of her pageant cohorts were awarded the honor of being Grand Marshalls of the "Dreams Come True" parade at the Magic Kingdom that afternoon. Even though A and B2 get to go to Walt Disney World fairly often, being in a WDW parade is pretty exciting for a kid. (Their MomMom, too.)

There were the obligatory photo ops, but they were gotten out of the way fairly efficiently, and we had a few hours to explore before the parade. B2's favorite rides are the People Mover and the Carousel of Progress, conveniently located adjacent to each other. While A, Jennifer, A's friend A2, and Tina, A2's mother, all rode Space Mountain (panic attacks, people. I will Never. Ride. That. Again. I decided that last time I rode it, and no amount of A's wheedling will get me back on that thing.), B2 and I did the People Mover and C of P.

The C of P was made by Walt Disney for the 1964 World Fair. It's nothing but a bunch of rooms with rows of seats that rotate around a core of vignettes of America's technological progress, from the early 1920s to, supposedly, the present (or was it supposed to be the future? The fixtures in the "future" are a little dated now.). B2 laughs and sings and would sit through the presentation over and over, if anyone would consent to it. I like it because there's rarely a line for it and it's always cool (temp-wise, that it) and there are seats.





The People Mover is just a bunch of conveyances that go around and through a number of Tomorrowland's attractions. B2 would ride it all day if he could. He always laughs and repeats "Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress" when it's announced.

I like it because it's covered and it has seats.

We also rode Buzz Lightyear, which is really a lot of fun for me, too. He's not so interested in the "laser" guns that blast moving targets in a series of rooms. He likes the colors, the movement, the noise, the lever that twirls the pod around in jerky circles. I like it because it's fun, it's got a/c, and I like to shoot the lasers. And I love to watch B2's excitement.

The parade was over before it began, pretty much. Here come the singing man and woman carrying the "Grand Marshall" sign, then the family who won a night in Cinderella's Castle's suite, then the buggy carrying the five girls. Boom, there they are, and there they go. I shoved B2 back into his stroller (he's already worn out one, and he's too big for this one, but for heaven's sake, he's only 3!) and ran to the front of the park so I could take some photos. A looked absolutely radiant and was so happy. She was given a certificate to authenticate the occasion.



We shopped a little, and A and A2 were chosen to participate in a "Magical Moment" (what, you don't pay attention to WDW commercials?). They got to accessorize a child-size Cinderella doll in the Emporium, then they waved magic wands and sprinkled pixie dust (Cinderella carriage-shaped metallic confetti). They were each given a fancy Cinderella pen with feathers and a light, with metallic turquoise ink.



Back into the park for more rides, then around 6 p.m. we left for home. It was probably my nicest day at WDW. We were all in good moods (even at the Happiest Place on Earth, there are a lot of screaming, whiny kids and screaming, pissed-off parents), the weather was nice, and the kids had a blast.



So did I.