Call Me a Lover of Dolphins

Most of you who know me are aware of my fish phobia (as a college friend puts it.) I can’t tolerate the smell, I won’t eat seafood, and I will not (not for anything!) touch fish. On a trip to Destin, I shocked my family by actually going out into the gulf waters. But as soon as I saw and felt the fish, I was out of there!

So I suppose I shocked everyone when I agreed to go to a dolphin encounter on our recent trip to Cozumel. My husband was laying bets against me even going through with it. But dolphins are NOT FISH! They are mammals who just happen to live in the sea. And they’re cuter than anything in the oceans!

I love dolphins. I love all the stories of how they help humans. I believe God created these amazing creatures specifically to help us in ways we didn’t even anticipate. Plus, they have so much personality!

We were very fortunate to be able to go into the waters with the dolphins at Dolphinaris, Cozumel. We were the only ones for our particular adventure so we had a lot of one-on-one time with the dolphin, Electra, her baby, Golden Boy, and their trainer, Carlos.

Surprisingly, it was Red who freaked out. She was very wary of the dolphins and it took her awhile to warm up to them. (I think it was their size.) Normally, she’s so curious about animals. In fact, she’s our fearless kid who even pets snakes. But that’s another story…

Back to the dolphins…Electra was amazing. She was so laidback. She let us pet her, hug her, kiss her, and obey our commands to sing, dance, and speak. She allowed us to examine her fins, her teeth, her back and tummy. Her baby, Golden Boy, who was eight months old and quite a ham, wanted in on the action. He wanted us to play with him. He would swim over top his mother and try to come to us. The trainer kept tossing him back. But that didn’t deter the playful dolphin. Golden Boy, who, as his name suggests, likes to be the center of attention. He swam off to find one of the other babies to play with and brought Helen back to see us too. Finally, he finally splashed us playfully trying to get our attention. And he got it…but not in a good way. Red had her eyes and mouth filled with seawater and she just about lost it!

For 45 wonderful minutes we enjoyed these majestic creatures. There were 4 other moms and 4 other babies in the tank and we were able to see the 10 jump together. It was incredible. Oh yes, I even fed Electra her snack of dead fish. (Pictures to prove it!) It was disgusting but totally worth it.

At the very end, Golden Boy slid up for a goodbye. Red finally consented to touch him and loved it! Of course…at the very end.

Guess what Red wants to be when she grows up? Yep. A dolphin trainer.

For now,

Call us dolphin lovers!

Call Me Fairy Godmother

I kind of felt like one this past weekend…that is if Fairy Godmothers really existed. We took our daughter, Redhead, to Walt Disney World. Watching her experience Disney for the first time was enjoyment enough for  me.

It’s the Year of a Million Dreams at Disney and everywhere you go, they are making your “dreams come true.” Some get to be the Grand Marshals of the parade, others get a day of Fast Pass tickets (no line waiting!) and the biggest get is the Cinderella Castle Suite stay. One lucky person wins a night in the Magic Kingdom’s only in-park accommodation.

For my daughter, wishes and dreams she didn’t even know she had came true! Red was already excited as we boarded the bus from our resort to the park. She wanted to kiss and hug all the characters and ride “all the rides, Mommy!” We accidentally stumbled upon a character meet-and-greet in the Animal Kingdom and found that Red enjoyed this more than anything. She would stand in line for 20 minutes without fussing just to meet Pluto or Minnie or best of all, Donald Duck. Her autograph book is full and so is our camera’s memory card!

With a kindergartner, we figured we could bypass the rollercoasters and scary rides. No such luck. One look at Splash Mountain, a rollercoaster that drops you down a 52 foot plunge into water, and she was begging to go. Thankfully her daddy and grandmother agreed to go. During the quite scary ride, she took my mother’s hand and told her it would be okay. “Just be brave, Grandma. It’s not scary.” As my husband and mom were shakily disembarking the ride, Red piped, “Let’s do it again!” Thankfully they were saved from a repeat by the appearance of Goofy and she ran to get an autograph.

Star Tours, a simulator ride, was next on the agenda. She was pulled out of line by a cast member to insure that she really did meet the height requirement. After suffering that indignity, she regained her good spirits and laughed throughout the ride while her mother tried not to throw up. I was holding her hand tightly thinking she’d be scared. Part way through, she said, “Mom, let me go! I don’t need your hand.”

The only ride that scared her was the slow paced Snow White adventure. It went completely dark at one point and she burrowed into her Grandma’s side. Go figure.

Out of all this excitement, I believe her greatest wish was granted. She became a princess. At the Magic Kingdom, we visited the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and she was transformed into Belle from Beauty and the Beast. She had her hair, nails and makeup done. She changed into a lovely yellow gown with sparkling shoes, a crown, and wand. She didn’t take off the dress the rest of the vacation! She sat up tall in her stroller- excuse me, carriage. The stroller was no longer. When the Princess rode, it was always in her carriage. Cast members greeted her by exclaiming, “Welcome, Princess Belle!” and followed it with a curtsy or bow. The characters she met kissed her hands. She was in her element!

As Belle, she couldn’t possibly miss the Beauty and the Beast show so we headed there. As luck would have it, it wasn’t open yet but a cast member caught us and asked Red if she wanted to be in the show. She agreed and we were given VIP seating. At the end of the performance, Red was escorted to the stage and presented with a rose from the Prince. She glowed and the audience oohed and ahhed for her.

“Mommy, all my wishes and dreams came true!” she whispered to me one evening. Oh to be four years old again when life was simple and dreams came true like that!