My sweet girl recently celebrated her 17th birthday. We were supposed to have commemorated this monumental time at her favorite place, Disney World. But she has some underlying conditions that put her more at risk for getting sick, therefore making a fun day at the happiest place on Earth not a viable option. It is also why we made the extremely hard decision to have her start her senior year of high school virtually at home. There have been many tears from us both as she has been forced to mourn her old ideas and expectations as to how this time of her life was supposed to be and reluctantly accept her new norm. Perhaps this is why I felt the need to make her birthday even more special this year, so she would have a physical reminder that, while things may not be what she imagined, they still can be great!
The morning of her birthday started off normal with all her breakfast favorites, and then she opened presents we had bought her. She was so grateful – and honestly, that alone would have been enough – but Mama had other ideas. She laughed excitedly when I told her the plans for the day. “We are going to have a DISNEY DAY here,” I told her. “So, get dressed ’cause our first Fast Pass for the Magic Kingdom is coming up.” She donned her Tomorrowland Transit Authority Mouse Ears, and we virtually boarded her favorite ride, the People Mover! Folding chairs were placed in the middle of the room facing each other, like the ride, and we watched a point-of-view video on YouTube that someone had recorded, making it feel like we really were there.
Next, we went on the Buzz Lightyear ride, where I handed out plastic squirt guns that we pointed at the aliens on the TV from a different video. In Fantasyland, we virtually rode the Teacups and Winnie the Pooh. She laughed so hard when I told her to get in line for two Meet and Greets and then brought out our dogs who were dressed up in costumes to look like Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. And because a day at the Magic Kingdom for us always includes getting Dole Whip … we did that, too. I had found a recipe online, gotten the three ingredients needed, and set it out in front of her to literally whip up. We both were amazed at how much it tasted like the real deal. We rode Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion, where we even took a picture with our own hitchhiker ghost. Then, we took the monorail over to Epcot.
My son took over the ride part, taking her virtually on Soaring and Journey Into Imagination while I set up the next special surprise … a cookie stroll. I had gone online and found cookies that were native to each of the World Showcase Countries, and one by one, we tried them all. The cacao et noisette crêpe dentelle fourrée (cocoa-and-hazelnut-rolled, wafer-filled cookies) from France were her favorite. We all ended up in a sugar coma by the time we worked our way to Mexico, but we genuinely enjoyed the experience.
In Hollywood Studios, we went on Rise of Resistance, Slinky Dog, and Mickey and Minnie’s Railway. Our trip to Animal Kingdom included a visit to Pandora and her favorite part of the day – an Animation Experience where she created an amazing picture of Scar.
We then watched the movie Tangled projected onto my living room wall with the glow of lanterns and tea lights all around us. It was the perfect movie because, after all, Rapunzel celebrates her birthday basically in quarantine, too. It was magical and the ideal ending to an awesome day, or so my daughter thought it was. A day at Disney usually ends with a parade … so I arranged to have several of her close friends, past teachers, and our neighbors do a driveby parade. She was so touched by the gesture.
That night, as she hugged and thanked me for what seemed like the millionth time (not that I was complaining), I whispered in her ear, ”I know today was not how you imagined you would be spending your birthday.” To which she replied, “Are you kidding me? It was so much better!” “Exactly,” I said. “Different doesn’t have to be bad. Even when things change and it would be so easy to get lost in all the gloom and doom, promise me you will remember today and that you still have so many BEST DAYS EVER ahead of you!” She smiled and hugged me for the millionth-and-one time.
