How can I possibly find the words to describe our first day at the Magic Kingdom with Robbie?  They all sound so trite, so cliche.  But it really was magical.

As soon as the gates opened, we headed for the Astro Orbiters,  a ride Justin loved when he was little but that just wasn’t geared for a thirty-something man without a child.  As we made our way to Tomorrowland, Robbie got more and more excited about all the spaceships he was seeing.  You can only imagine his excitement when he found out that he was actually going to get to fly one!  Actually, it was a little bit of terror following take-off.  But, as soon as he realized he could move the ship up and down, life got a little better.

We continued to make our way through Tomorrowland on the Peoplemover, one of Grandmama’s favorites.  Robbie got a little tense when the ride went dark, telling us that it was “really dark, but that’s OK”.  And then he got to control our space ship while Justin and I battled it out on the Buzz Lightyear ride.  He loved spinning us around in circles, much to Justin’s dismay (he takes that ride and the shooting of aliens very seriously).

From there, it was a day of pure childhood bliss.  A round on the Speedway.  A ride – or three – on the tea cups (with that “silly mouse, Mom!”).  Meeting the White Rabbit.  Heading over to Snow White (which Robbie declared “a little scary, Mom”), Small World, Haunted Mansion (“really scary, Mom!”) and Pirates of the Caribbean.  And then we happened on the parade.

It was meant to be.  Some how, we wound up with “front curb” seats, and the floats stopped right in front of us.  Then, miracle of all miracles, a dance party started.  Kids were invited to dance in the street with characters.  And who was the character right in front of us? You guessed it – Woody.  Robbie, having no fear, ran right up to dance with him.  And, boy, did they dance!  At one point, Woody tried to grab Robbie’s hand to lead a conga line, but he wasn’t paying attention.

He spent the rest of the day meeting characters – Pooh and Tigger (who was thrilled to see Robbie wearing a Tigger hat), Mickey and Minnie (they did the Hot Dog Dance when Robbie told them he knew it), and then dinner with Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, and Eeyore.  And a dance party with Chip, Dale, and Stitch.  Are you kidding me?  Could it possibly get any better?

Yes, it could.  Just a little.  A dessert buffet on the Tomorrowland Terrace with a perfect view of the fireworks.  And Robbie, finally, passed out from sheer exhaustion of the best day of his life.