Chloe's 5th Birthday at Disneyland

Five is such a great age. Chloe looked forward to this day with relish and she seemed to savor every moment. It was such a joy to be a part of it.

We started the day by dressing the girls in some cute skirts I made them and we put on Chloe's special Birthday Badge. We went to a Character Breakfast at Goofy's kitchen and Chloe was able visit with Chip, Dale, Aladin and Goofy and some old professor-like character (maybe Geppeto?). They brought Chloe out a birthday cupcake and sang to her. She was too embarrassed to blow out the candle, so Mom assisted.

We spent the day at Disney's California Adventure park and it was crowded, but there were no long lines. People constantly wished Chloe a happy birthday and she just soaked it all in. I had researched the rides ahead of time and studied the ones with height limits. For the moderate rides the height limit was 40" and for the more adventurous rides, the height limit was 42". I thought we would have no problem as I have measured Chloe at home on several occasions and she has been stuck at 40" for a long time.

We approached a very benign ride that looked about as scary as riding in an elevator and the attendant asked to measure Chloe. He measured her over and over and over again and then denied her admittance to the ride because she was 1/4" BELOW the bar. I felt so bad for her because she weighs more than her big sister who is 2" taller and she is braver too.

Later on, I mentioned to Chloe that it would be OK to ease up onto her tippy toes just a tiny bit, until her head hit the bar. We had no more trouble with ride admissions after that! She even went back later and rode the ride she was earlier refused.

That afternoon, we took the girls back to the hotel to rest for a little bit. Later, I dressed them up in the special princess dresses I had brought for just this occasion. Chloe was dressed in pink as Sleeping Beauty and Pearl was dressed in red and gold as Belle. We had dinner reservations at Ariel's Grotto, where several of the Disney princesses come to your table to visit, sign autographs and pose for pictures.

Once the girls were dressed, we had a long walk through Downtown Disney on our way back to the park. I was a little uncomfortable as the girls were garnering so much attention. They were quite the picture in their gowns, tiarras, tights and fancy shoes. So many people smiled and stared and gawked at the two little girls gracefully strolling by the shops and fountains.

Once inside the park, heads continued to turn as we made our way to Ariel's Grotto. We were a bit early, so we rode a ride and came back to be seated for dinner. Ariel greeted us at the entrance and posed for pictures with the girls. Shortly after being seated, Princess Cinderella was introduced and came to our table to visit with the girls. A few moments later, they announced Sleeping Beauty, and then Belle, and then finally Snow White. Chloe and Pearl were totally enjoying every minute. After dinner, they brought out a little cake for Chloe and sang Happy Birthday. This time she blew out the candle all by herself.

We rode a few more rides and then began the long walk back to the hotel room. On the way through Downtown Disney, we stopped in the Disney Store and this time, allowed the girls to pick out a few items that they wanted. People were still turning their heads and staring at the girls. Pete said one women told him our girls were "priviledged". Well, I don't know if that was meant to be a compliment or an insult, but I did do my best to ensure a special birthday experience for my girls. We don't buy big fancy toys and we do watch our pennies. I guess we are all priviledged to share our lives together.