Listen to the Land...

Warning: Epic vacation slide show post ahead. I will not be offended (or know, frankly) if you choose to skip. But I owe posts, so deal. 

We just wrapped up day 2 of a 4 day trip to Disneyland. It has been pretty fantastic. Please note: as any parent of small children will tell you, "pretty fantastic" means "short bouts of joy book-ended by fits of screaming, wondering where one of the children has wandered off too and rummaging up snacks 30 seconds after paying $19 for a slice of pizza that none of the kids would eat because they "weren't hungry" but then suddenly are "starving."" So, yeah, pretty fantastic. Sometimes I am a little bit this:

But usually I am more of this:

Our kids love it here, and look forward to coming every year, so we get a lot of this from them:

One of the characteristics about kids with asperger's is that they get extremely agitated in crowds and waiting for things. So Disneyland is the perfect place to spend the day. Sure, you say, my kids hate waiting in line too! But it is different. Noel gets devastated when he even sees a line and sobs and cries and screams when he has to wait in one. He is virtually inconsolable. But riding the rides is the best thing ever for him. He loves exhilaration and speed and is so excited by everything. ("Look, Dad! A light!") In years past, when Noel didn't have his diagnosis, we would do everything we could think of to keep him happy in line. We would bring video games, snacks, books, whatever. And usually one of us would end up carrying him (which always helps calm him down) but carrying a 5 year old around is like carrying an air conditioning unit around. Do you want to wait in line for Storybook Land Canal Boats while carrying an air conditioning unit? This year, since we are card carrying members of Club Asperger's we were able to get a pass that allows us to use the "Special Needs/Wheelchair" line. It isn't perfect, and we still have to wait (there are usually other families waiting and they only let a few people through at a time) but it has made a huge difference and we are super grateful. Sometimes I feel a little bit guilty, but then I remember that it isn't about how I feel - it is about doing anything we can to reduce anxiety in Noel's life. We will take whatever help we can get.

Jonah has Disneyland in his genetic code somehow and he is happier and more well-behaved here than he is anywhere else in the world. He is a great helper and cooperative and patient, except when we keep insisting on taking pictures of him (in bright sunlight.)

Since we've arrived, Jonah has been kind of obsessed with these Vinylmation toys. They are little figurines that are all shaped like Mickey Mouse, but they are all painted differently by different artists. The catch is that when you buy one, you don't know what you get until you open it. Jonah really wanted one, but I was trying to remind him that when he opens it it could be ANYTHING and not to be upset, or have a fit. Like it could be this one: 

Jonah is usually the King of Disappointment: when something doesn't go the way he imagines it to go, it is terrible. And I felt like this vinylmation had disappointment written all over it. But, he actually ended up getting this one:

I thought it was pretty great, and he seemed to, too. Tonight when we got back to the hotel I was complimenting Jonah on how well he had been behaved today. He said "Yeah, like when I opened my Mickey and it wasn't really the one I wanted I said to myself "Just go with it!" and I did and now I DO like it."  I like that somehow being in Disneyland makes him want to give mental pep-talks to himself and say encourage himself to just go with it. I wish he would do that more at home, like when we want him to clean his room - just go with it!

We are lucky enough to be here with family, too, so Jonah and Noel get to spend a lot of time with their cousins. They all get along great and are pretty stinkin' cute together.

Lila loves it here. She has been before, but this is the first year that she really gets it. She thinks it is the greatest place on earth and squeals every time she sees Mickey (you can imagine. It is frequent) and says "Mickey!!" in her cute little voice. 

She has been a trooper, and even though she doesn't get naps (and even though on the day we flew here she woke up for the day at 3am) she remains pretty pleasant. We hope for a crash at least once a day to get some sort of nap in. Tonight it was at about 6pm while waiting for a shuttle bus for 15 min. Yesterday it was about 90 min on Mom's shoulder.

Lila thinks everything is amazing and doesn't cry on scary rides and wanted to jump off the Small World boat and play with and/or eat one of the dolls. Unfortunately, she did:

We love it here. It is one of my favorite places on earth and brings back all sorts of happy memories. Each trip usually involves me crying at some point (usually during Fantasmic.) So I am glad my kids love it so much, too.

 If you are not totally bored, you can see a few more pictures on my facebook page here or here.