The quickest and simplest way to answer this is ..because it makes me happy….but here is why and how my love for Disney has changed over the years… hope you enjoy!

I remember like it was yesterday getting excited and looking forward to the new Disney film to be released every year. When I was young I always watched Disney movies and cartoons and every year my mum would organise for us to meet up with my Auntie and my 2 younger cousins, at the time, and go see the latest Disney film in the cinema. We would make a day of it, we would go in on the train, visit the Disney shop, go to McDonalds for food beforehand and get a happy meal which always had a toy related to the film we were going to see that day. (Is it me or did the McDonalds toys seem much more fun when I was a kid than they are today?!! Maybe I am getting old, anyway…) Then head on over to the cinema in time for the adverts and previews, which is probably why I still have to be in the cinema for the previews whenever we go, and enjoy watching the film.

Then from the age of about 7 years old we, myself, my mum and my dad, took a holiday to Walt Disney World in Florida for the first time. Since that 1st trip we went every year, except for 1 year where we went to Eurodisney when it opened, to Disney in Florida. It was always the highlight of my year, always got excited and was something to look forward to every year.

I loved going on Thunder and Space Mountain they were my favorite rides at the time, plus i loved meeting characters and getting their autographs. We never stayed on property we always stayed in a hotel nearby and hired a car for the whole trip because we liked going out and looking at other parks in Orlando and we gradually started staying down the coast for a couple of days, St Petes beach, in the middle of our holidays, then return to finish off Disney Parks.

As we became more and more used to Florida and the parks we would just visit our favorite parks and attractions and head down the coast for longer stays etc. Then a day or 2 before flying home we would stay back in Orlando and do 1 or 2 more parks and explore, what was then called, Downtown Disney (currently Disney Springs.) LOVED IT!!!

It was my visits to Disney where I decided I wanted to become an animator, and my dream was to animate for Disney one day. Back in those days not a lot of information was about to help me here in the UK to start or find out how to get into  animation career, and we really didn’t find any help regarding this at Disney in Florida either, just on how to become a cast member etc, which was great but my passion was animation. 

Anyhow as time goes on and you get older your interests change and your perception I guess changes and what you were in to when you were younger seemed to be for the younger generation and not for “Adults” in my eyes. I love, love, loved Disney but was aware that it may look silly if I still loved Disney in the same way, such as wear Disney clothes, wear Disney ears around the park etc.I felt as I grew up so did my likes and dislikes have to change.

My love for Disney never changed, I still wanted to pursue a career as an animator and Disney was the place I wanted to be, but I didn’t show it outwardly unless in a Disney Park, and it was reserved for a Disney Park.

We still visited the parks during our Florida trips but they weren’t specifically aimed at going to Disney and we just picked our favorites to visit. That was until 2003 when my now hubby came with us for the first time and we were going to Disneyfy him…He unlike me, my family and friends, wasn’t brought up on Disney, so this was new for him, but like me he loves rollercoasters etc so i knew he would enjoy it. We went to all the Disney parks as well as others in Orlando and we visited the coast too.. WE HAD A BLAST!! He really enjoyed the holiday, he was very exhausted after all the parks but thoroughly enjoyed them. HE’S A KEEPER!

As we were now dating, we wanted to go on our own trips and holidays, and with graduation and looking for jobs etc we felt more independent to go off on our own adventure. So my yearly trips to Florida died down to make way for new adventures with someone I really cared for and enjoyed being with. So in 2004 there was no trip to Florida planned we wanted to do our own trip…guess where we went…??

Yes we went to Disneyland Paris!….Shocker… we went during the start of the Halloween season, they were still getting the parks ready for the Halloween season. It was a bit different to how it is now it was a little more low key when we went, and probably more crazy at actual Halloween. This was the first time..in all the years going to Disney in Florida that i experienced a celebrated season at a Disney Park, and Halloween is one of my favorite seasons. So much had changed since 1992/93 when I went just after opening plus so much needed improving too, especially after visiting Walt Disney World in Florida all those years, but I still loved it. We had so much fun and it will be a trip i will treasure forever. (Is that because it was our 1st together or because i got to meet Maleficent…my fave villain, always said she was misunderstood!!, …only kidding it was because it was our 1st trip together as a couple) The best trip we have done as a couple, with sooo many laughs.

Obviously life, not gets in the way, but we graduated, had to find jobs etc and we wanted to save to get our own house etc.. so my Disney World disappeared for a while, to a point where I would pick  and choose the Disney films i wanted to see and many films I did not see until on DVD and some I am still catching up on, but as a growing couple other things became more important to us.

Now skip a few years, a wedding a few highs and very low lows to Aug/Sept 2017: Caitlyn was just over 3 years old and Alyssia was over 1 year old and the events of the past year started to hit home hard. I started to have small anxiety situations, being afraid to sleep, wanted everyone home together, felt really insecure. It was at this time we discussing going back to DIsneyland Paris for a family holiday with my parents. So, being me i was so excited I started researching Disneyland Paris on YouTube, and watching tips and tricks videos etc and hotel tours etc. This is where I came across so many Disney bloggers with different content regarding Disneyland Paris, and a combination of these helped us or me to organise and book our trip to Disneyland Paris. These channels i hold dear to me now as they helped to calm my anxieties I was experiencing and it became a new hobby of mine to watch these you tubers on a regular basis Disney themed or not.

What I learned was that its ok to love Disney and that Disney is becoming so much more than for kids many adults openly show their love for Disney, by wearing disney clothes, shoes, having accessories, vlog trips to Disney whether in Paris, Tokyo, Florida etc and my love because of what these channels and Disney did for me at my time of need was just incredible. 

Therefore, I am embracing my love for Disney and the past feeling i had for Disney have re-surfaced. Yes i get some funny looks when wearing my disney sweaters at school pick up etc and there have been a few comments on my love for disney and wearing it openly like jewellery and clothes, but it’s what makes me happy, how many people can say they have found that 1 thing, other than their family, that makes them happy and I have not looked back since and by the trip in May 2018 my anxieties had subsided dramatically and i feel normal. That trip was amazing and was the making of me and the best experience.

So I am living my life to the full with Disney by my side, yes my hubby is fully supportive..so watch this space. Let me know your stories about Disney and why you love it, any trips that inspired you, i would love to hear them.

Disney is my calm place in this crazy crazy world.

Bye for now..Thanks