Princesses Galore

Anyone who reads our blog or has met Anna, knows the obsession and love she has for the Toy Story movies.  Woody, Buzz, Jessie, Slinky, Alien and Wheezy are not just characters from the movies – they are her playmates.  But, the Toy Story characters have some new competition in the fight for Anna’s attention…enter the PRINCESSES.

Seemingly overnight Anna has become a princess-obsessed little girl.  What started as a mild interest after watching Beauty and the Beast, turned into a full blown desire to be a member of the royal court after seeing Tangled.  I’ve never been a big fan of calling little girls princesses, but I am all-in when it comes to playing with princesses, watching the movies and playing dress up (Anna, not me…).  I like to cater to these stages because I feel like they are the essence of childhood. 

Her interest came at a perfect time considering we were heading to Disney World.  And, knowing this stage won’t last forever, I wanted to make sure we captured some of that ole Disney magic and let Anna meet the Princesses in person.  Coincidentally, this trip also coincided with “the wedding”.  I showed her a snippet on the news before we headed out to Disney and Anna’s eyes grew huge as I explained that William and Catherine are a real prince and princess.

Anyways, first up were Rapunzel and Flynn Rider from Tangled.  After an hour wait (Anna and Jason enjoyed the Tea Cups and the Buzz Lightyear ride while James and I secured our spot for the meet & greet – yay iPhone for distraction!), the big moment arrived.  Anna was very excited about Rapunzel but Flynn nearly swept her off her feet.  It was adorable to watch how she reacted to this “prince charming”.  He gave her the famous “smolder” from the movie and she about fell over.

The next morning was the big princess day.  We had breakfast reservations to dine with the princesses and Anna was giddy.  She donned her specially requested Belle and Beast shirt for the occasion.

Much to her pleasure, we were greeted by Belle and she got to spend a few minutes chatting and taking photos with her.  Belle is by far Anna’s favorite princess because she LOVES Beauty and the Beast.  She can quote the movie and sings all the songs by heart, (all of us can, courtesy of a CD in the car that needs to be removed immediately so parents don’t go crazy), so getting extra time with Belle was icing on the cake.

During the rest of the breakfast we were visited at the table by Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel and Snow White.  Anna had stars in her eyes each time a new princess came up and Jason and I absolutely loved watching her interact with them.  I think it was the equivalent to me going to a meal and having the cast of Ocean’s 11 stop by the table for a chat…

Before each princess came by, we supplied her with some questions she could ask them to help “break the ice”.  Those questions and the fact that her name was on her shirt both added to the experience.  As each princess approached, she would proclaim, “Why Princess  Anna, it is so wonderful to see you!”  She was amazed they knew her name and never once attributed it to her shirt.  And, when she asked questions, the princesses were great at answering.

For example, she asked Cinderella how the “mouses” were doing.  Cinderella went on and on about the fun the mice were having making new clothes and she would be sure to tell them that Anna said hello.  She asked Snow White how Dopey was and Ariel what Flounder and Sebastian were doing.  Each princess in turn engaged her in conversation, making the experience that much more memorable for her.

For his part, James was a pretty sleepy “Future Prince Charming”.  Upon seeing him, Sleeping Beauty remarked, “Oh, I hope he didn’t prick his finger on a spinning wheel, too!”  So cute!

Getting to meet the princesses was definitely the highlight of this visit to Disney.  And somehow they followed us home…where two months ago we had only a Rapunzel doll, we now have a whole gaggle of princesses and even princess jammies, courtesy of Gramma Turner.  I swear these things materialize out of thin air.  On a recent weekend Anna borrowed a castle from a pal down the street and now talks daily about what she will do when she gets her own castle to play with.  We’ve told her to put it on her wishlist for Santa…