Welch Whirl

Disneyland 2007

We had a great time at Disneyland and California Adventure. The best part was watching Wiley's reaction. When we arrived at the park, the first thing he wanted to do was meet Mickey Mouse. In fact, he refused to do anything until we did so. We think it was a gesture of good manners -- you know, like checking in with the host before enjoying the rest of the party.

After meeting Mickey, Wiley started trying to absorb the whole Disneyland experience. His little head was working overtime to figure what was real or what was fake. He would ask if something was a robot or a costume. (Later, on the scary rides, he would console himself by having us reassure him that "they were only robots." Somehow, that made him more comfortable.)

Because Ben and I didn't want to only go on sissy rides while there we decided that we would try and see what he thought of the larger more exciting rides. We tried a number of strategies in order to make this happen. First we tried to reason with him. Then we tried coercion. Eventually, we just dodged his questions and tried to distract him long enough -- usually with food -- in order to get him on the ride. Finally, we just gave him no choice. After all, Disneyland is for the kids -- but only to a point.

Still, he enjoyed the experience, even the scary rides. For instance, after we got off Star Tours, he turned to Ben and said, "Daddy, are we back in Disneyland now?" After seeing the Stars-Wars-themed gift shop after the ride, he consented going on the ride again (probably thinking that was the only way back in). When he got on the ride for the second time, after Ben had assured him that the ride never actually leaves the park -- or Earth, for that matter -- Wiley asked the attendant, "Excuse me? Excuse me? Do we go into space on this ride?" The Star Tours attendant, opting to remain in character, assured him that we did, after which he turned to Ben and gave him his patented "what are these lies you're feeding me" look. Is it any wonder that kids don't trust their parents?

Wiley's favorite rides were Buzz Lightyear, Soarin' Over California, Alice in Wonderland, Winnie the Pooh, Brother Bear's Playland and, of course, Pirates of the Carribean, which he rode 7 times. The parents were so tired of riding Pirates of the Carribean, in fact, that we started taking turns and playing other games in order to keep ourselves entertained. For instance, we put together a pool to see who could guess how long the ride takes from start to finish (17 minutes, 30 seconds).


Classic shot of Wiley with a Character. He could spot them easily, but he was judicious about the ones he chose to have his picture taken with. He's sort of a snob that way -- he probably gets it from his parents. (Then again, remember that Wiley prefers salmon and brown rice to chicken and fries.)

Wiley spent much of his time on Ben's lap or mine. His eyes were always wide open, just taking everything in. This look is what was always on his face on the first ride. The second time on the Jungle Cruise he started relaxing and talking.


This is Isaac and Alyssa James. They are family. We love the James family because they are always up for a trip and they make all of our trips so fun. Over the last 7-ish years of marriage there is no other family that we have vacationed more with. I guess you could call them our traveling buddies. By the way, this photograph is from one of our very first rides, the "Tea Cups," or as we like to call them in the Welch family, the "Pee Cups." Alas, to get the full story on that moniker you will have to talk to Ben's younger brother Aaron, who christened them -- literally -- several years ago.

One of the first things we did was go to Jedi training. Wiley was one of the many chosen to participate in the Jedi school. The Jedi master taught him a routine with the lightsaber and everything was going well until Darth Vader and Darth Maul showed up and started recruiting for the dark side. The Jedi students were supposed to fight one of the two, but as soon as they arrived Wiley put away his light saber and started chewing nervously on his fingertips, which means he is either excited or terrified. In this case, we guessed the latter. Ultimately, he chose not to fight to the and instead retired to one corner to watch his fellow students.

Afterward, we were worried that this experience might scar him for life with respect to Star Wars, but fifteen minutes after we left, he was absolutely jubilant. Thank goodness children have such short memories. Also, any concern about his affection for Star Wars was put to rest after he chose a Luke Skywalker Transformer from the Star Tours gift shop as his special Disneyland souvenir. After the purchase, we told him that he couldn't play with it until after we left the park. Not surprisingly, as soon as we walked out of the store, he said "I'm tired of Disneyland; let's go back to the car." It was 9:30 a.m.