A Bug's Land is closing this summer to make way for Marvel Super Hero Universe, which will open in a couple years. I felt a little sad on the Chew Chew train this morning. Not because Chad and I were two grown ups enjoying a ride meant for toddlers, but because A Bug's Land opened the year Ashley was born, and I have such sweet memories of the kids enjoying it since they were tiny, and it will be sad that we can't go back to visit when they have kids of their own.
At 9:00 we went to the Hollywood Backlot stage, where the River Ridge High School band was getting ready to perform. The kids performed beautifully and behaved so professionally, it was an excellent way to cap off Jackson's high school band career.
Ali and Ashley hung back with the band kids after the concert, and Chad and I walked through the park sampling items from the Food and Wine Festival booths. The jalepeno popper mac & cheese was perfection, and the avocado ice cream bar tasted exactly how you are probably imagining an ice cream bar made out of avocados would taste. Ali met up with us long enough to buy a schwarma-like snack called "Oumph!" with avo hummus and garlic sauce. Oumph is a protein-rich, plant-based food that resembles meat. It actually tasted like chicken and was delicious. "Why is the name so dumb?" you ask? I don't know, I asked the same question.
The rest of the day was spent with all of us going different directions, reconnecting, splitting up again, and park hopping. Chad and I had fast passes for Radiator Springs at 4:00. When we got to the ride we saw that the standby time was 120 minutes. We used our passes and waited in line for no more than 10 minutes. After the ride, we spent an hour wandering through Cars Land until the girls were ready to meet up with us.
We spent some time listening to a band called Grilled Cheese SoundWich perform 1980s cover songs and they were so fun. At 6:30 we got the call that our friend had arrived at Downtown Disney.
Our friend, Kris DeMonte, drove over 2 hours from Twentynine Palms just to come have dinner with us. I met Kris' mom Kelli when we were 6 years old in elementary school. We were friends for years, lost touch after high school, and then reconnected in 2007 when Kris was about 9 years old.
Now he is almost 20 and a Marine awaiting his 2nd deployment. Over dinner on the patio of Earl of Sandwich, I asked Kris a thousand questions and I tried to process that this man sitting in front of us is a highly trained soldier and no longer a 14-year-old boy backflipping off picnic tables.
Kris was so patient, answering all my questions and telling stories about his life as a Marine. As he explained his tattoos and the reasons behind them (they all hold deep meaning), Ali said, "Wait til you get a load of these bad boys," and pulled up her sleeves revealing two tiny, minimalist tattoos.
For 3 hours, we hung out with this amazing young man who, from a very early age, knew without a doubt that he wanted to serve our country. His mom also knew at an early age that she wanted to teach, and so she did what she dreamed of. She has since gone on to become a school principal. I went on to take lots of Disneyland trips. See? We all contribute something important.
We thanked Kris for his service and for protecting our country, but it felt insufficient. So we treated him to a free Disneyland-fireworks show to make up for it. I'm pretty sure we're even now.
After Kris left for his long drive home, we finished our night in Disneyland. On our way out of the park, as we passed under the tunnel below the Main Street Station, I looked up and saw my own boy sitting on the train waiting to depart. He was surrounded by his friends, all of them wearing matching grey Mickey Mouse sweatshirts, and he waved at me. I smiled and waved back. And for a split second, I envisioned him as a young marine leaving for deployment instead young of a man on an amusement park ride with his buddies.
Pray for Kris and his unit if you think about it.
--Rachel
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