Following that visit, John and I agreed we would go again in three years. We didn't want to lose the "magic" of Disney in waiting too long, but because Disney will nearly suck the life out of you while there, as well as drain your bank account, we needed 3 years to build up stamina to slug it out again.
This year we planned to take one Large suitcase. Everything had to fit in that one large suitcase to avoid the huge fees the airlines are charging. That meant no diapers, no bottles, no formula, no dubbies, no stroller. That was a HUGE win for us this time around, and we were able to pack all 4 of us in to one suitcase. It was amazing. It was momentous. It was relief and a big step as parents not to be lugging all that extra gear around.
We also decided to surprise the kids. It was hard not to mention it, not to talk about it and plan it out in front of them. Of course, John was also training for the Bellingham Marathon, hoping to make a qualifying time for the Boston Marathon in the spring of 2013. It was not to be this time around, but the weeks leading up to the big trip found us very busy with training, family in town, 3 kids parties, my shared birthday with Isaac and soccer. There were times I didn't think we would pull it off, didn't think we could wait it out. I wanted to share with them our excitement, especially on the days where it was a struggle to get the kids out of the house and on to school. I so wanted to use it as a major reward, an incentive for good behavior, something fun to look forward to.
We pulled it off, though. We saved the surprise. On Monday we took the kids to school as planned, then went home to finalize our packing. We had Bruce ready to take us to the airport and most of our stuff ready to go when we walked back up to school to get the boys around lunchtime. We had the office staff pull the boys out, and it was so fun to see little Cooper walk down with his backpack all ready to go, but not sure why. He eagerly waited for Thomas to show up in the office. When Thomas arrived, straight off the playground, he stopped dead in his tracks, a stunned look on his face. "What?!" he cried. "I am NOT getting a shot! NO. I am not going!" He looked about ready to bolt...and cry...or both. John and I both burst out laughing, a little bit lost as to what to say. We quickly shooed them out the door and down to the house. We drug the surprise out a bit to allow Grandma time to see their reaction down at the house. We told them that we should probably take advantage of the sunshine and go out on the boat instead of school. The boys agreed with this, although not very excited. When down at the house, John continued with the little charade of Grandpa taking us out on the boat. I then piped up with, "I think we can do better than that, can't we?" "What if we said we were going to Disneyland?"
Of course you can imagine the whooping and hollering that followed. "When are we going?" they yelled. They still hadn't figured it out as we walked out the door to the packed car, ready and waiting for us to drive off. Thomas had a bit of anxiety, taking off quickly to find his Bounce. He didn't want to leave his little bunny. They each made a production of making sure I had packed Jace and Baby Bounce A Lot, their miniature stuffed animals they sleep and play with. Once they were assured of this, we took off for the airport.
Although the Bellingham Airport piece of the trip was very hassle free, our delayed arrival in Seattle and wrong Gate Number led us to be "that" family running down the concourse to find our correct gate. John literally ran ahead, with Thomas giving chase. I hustled down not quite at a sprint, 3 bags of "stuff" flopping along my body and little Cooper huffing beside me as we tried to keep up. I couldn't help but laugh as I imagined we were quite the show running down the hallway. We made it just in time, though. Just in time. And too close for any comfort.
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