We were at the pool today with our sweet, incredibly active 19 month old, and I noticed a lady with a little one a tad younger than Logan. She was chasing the little girl while the little girl kept falling over into the ankle deep water. The woman was right there to catch her every time. I looked at her and said, “Going to the pool is not as relaxing as it used to be!” She laughed and said emphatically, “No, it isn’t!”

This is the new vacation. Nathan and I used to enjoy long, hot days at the pool, quiet dinners at fancy restaurants, leisurely night walks as the sun set over the ocean. Vacation looks a lot different now.

This is our last evening of our first Disney trip with Logan. I’m not going to lie, I was a tad nervous for this trip. I was always one of those people that said I would never take my children to Disney until they were at LEAST 4 years old. My mom approached me about taking a trip to Orlando to visit her mom so that Logan could spend some time with his great-grandma. Eventually, through the process of planning this trip, Disney became inevitable. Ah! What are we thinking?!

I just want to share some thoughts on this new vacation of a life we now live.

It was wonderful.

Logan’s favorite part of the trip was the open petting zoo at the Animal Kingdom.

My new favorite picture of my buddy and me. 🙂

Honestly, there were so many moments I quietly thanked the Lord for the beauty of laughter, rest and fun. He is the Giver of so many wonderful gifts, and I was able to turn my gratefulness to Him into small moments of worship throughout the trip. Did everything go according to plan? Absolutely not! Behind each adorable photo I posted on Facebook was a temper tantrum because someone didn’t want to get back into the stroller for the 100th time, or a little boy running the opposite direction in every. single. line. (Child does not like lines.) “Active” is an understatement when describing Logan. In one line, a lady said, “I always thought those parents who put leashes on kids were crazy, but after seeing your little guy, I think I would invest in one.” Hahahahaha!

Watching Logan have so much fun and also enjoying time together as a family made all the hard stuff worth it. I am a scheduler. I like Logan to take his naps and go to bed when he is supposed to. It works for us; it keeps him happy. I am actually a firm believer in schedules being what kids need. But, I knew if a trip like this was going to work, I needed to be a little flexible. One day, we tried napping at the park, while the next we took Logan back to the hotel for a nap and then went back out in the evening. The 2 days we did that, I did feel a little guilty. It was so nice outside and here we were in the hotel! But, you know what? This pregnant momma needed a nap and Logan certainly needed a nap, and we all were much more refreshed for an enjoyable evening out!

Sheer joy. Thank you, Lord for joy.

4 generations! And Donald.

If you are planning a trip in the future with your young child, just enjoy every minute. Does every day go perfectly and as planned when we are all at home? No. Of course not. So we shouldn’t expect every day to go perfectly on vacation. There will be tantrums, children will be overtired, etc. But, the time we get to spend together as a family without the distractions of home and work or worth it. Try not to be afraid to take a break from the every day to mix things up a little and spend some time as a family. It may go well; it may not. But our children certainly will remember the fun times way over their own times of fussiness or tiredness.

Goodbye Disney! You bet we will be back!

We loved having Gigi with us!