Last week, we boarded a plane (Conor’s first) and high tailed it down to Florida for a long-planned trip to Disney World. We planned it back last summer – long before, you know, all of the crap – and thought long and hard about whether we should still go.

We realize we have been the beneficiaries of very generous friends and family. We wondered, “Would this seem tacky? Will people see this as a ‘waste’?”

Well, friends, it took us about 24 hours to remember that every single one of you would be delighted for us to go on this trip, because we really, really needed some magic in our lives.

So. We went. And it was so incredibly lovely. It was exactly what the Mann/Willcox clan needed.

First things first – without Kristin Staley of Kristin’s Magical Bookings (kristinsmagicalbookings (at) gmail.com) this trip WOULD NOT have happened. We planned this a while ago, and she literally kept up with everything the whole time. Made fast pass reservations. Made sure we didn’t miss important deadlines. Wrote out an entire travel plan complete with tips. For a Disney novice like myself, it was beyond helpful.

We spent 4 full days there – 2 at Magic Kingdom, 1 at Animal Kingdom, and C had a day at the resort while P and I hit up Harry Potter World. Both sets of grandparents came for part of the trip. We rode all kinds of rides. Conor met Mickey Mouse (twice). We stayed in pirate-themed rooms. We had fun and left before it stopped being fun.

In addition to the regular magic of Disney, a friend of P’s found out that we were going down there and sent some extra pixie dust our way. We had VIP access to shows and the parade, and met some folks that made even more magic happen – gifts in our room, extra fast passes, access to characters – so many people were so very lovely.

You’ve heard me say this before, and I’m not going to stop – we are so very, very fortunate. I am grateful that we were able to go and make some beautiful memories. As we head into what is sure to be a challenging Spring, this was a much-needed breath of fresh air.

Oh, the important part – pictures!