Last week, we headed to Disney World so my wife could attend the Disney Social Media Moms conference. While she attended sessions to learn how better to utilize social media, I was left alone with my boys… and three park hopper Disney World tickets.
Our first day together, we headed to Epcot to go character hunting. It also happens to be Epcot’s annual International Flower and Garden Festival. We travelled from country to country. We took photos of topiaries. We waited on lines to greet characters. We also explored the details and shops that the countries had to offer. (At one point, I even turned a UK-style phone booth into a Twitter experiment. (Thanks for making it a success and it was great talking to you moth_editor!)
The next day, we headed to the Magic Kingdom with plans to ride some rides that tend to get long lines. We started on Dumbo, moved on to Small World, took in the new and improved line for the Winnie the Pooh ride and then headed off to fly on Aladdin’s Magic Carpet.
At some point during this time, I realized something. I wasn’t live-tweeting the experience. Sure, I was sending out a tweet here and there, but nowhere near what I could be doing. The importance of tweeting diminished and I found myself living in the moment with my boys. I enjoyed each outburst of excitement. The joyous runs towards characters with their autograph book and pen in hand. The screams of joy as they ran through a hedge maze after each other. The enjoyment on their faces as we soared above the clouds atop a flying elephant.
During this time, we formed memories that will last for years to come. Yes, there are pictures to share. Videos, too. They will have to wait for another day, though. And they will be shown to my sons to help keep those wonderful memories as fresh as the day they were formed.
