The Disneyland Flu

I'm still processing our recent trip to Disneyland and Southern California, both mentally and photographically.

Thank goodness for those photos, because a big chunk of our vacation feels like a hazy memory right now.

I blame the media.

I had planned this trip a year ago, and saved up for it even longer, but in the months and weeks leading up to our departure it started to feel like there was a conspiracy to stress me out with scary news stories about swine flu.

It sounded almost inevitable that our trip would be ruined somehow, either on the plane surrounded by coughing passengers, or in the park where every surface we touched might contain the next deadly strain of H1N1.

The people I talked to never said, "Have a good time!" Instead, it was, "Be careful! Wear a mask and gloves on the plane, guzzle vitamins, carry hand sanitizer in your pockets. There's an EPIDEMIC, you know!"

So, rather than relax and enjoy the family having fun in Disneyland, I spent most of our first few days there with one recurring thought playing loudly in my head, "Don't get sick, don't get sick, don't ANYBODY GET SICK!"

And it wasn't necessarily because I'm afraid of the flu. No, my main concern was all those non-refundable tickets I had purchased ahead of time. Tickets for Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm, San Diego Zoo, and Universal Studios. Not to mention Alaska Airlines.

But you know what? As with most good vacations, my mind began to clear after about three days. It was on our fourth day, at Universal Studios, that I stopped gritting my teeth and actually thought, "Hey, we're having fun."

I hope to share some of the experiences we had on what has now been deemed The Really Big Family Trip To Southern California. Hey, with well over a thousand photos, you didn't think I'd post a few here?

For now, I just want to give some advice to parents planning their next big family vacation.

Learn to stop worrying. Everything will be fine. You are all going to have fun.

That needs to be your mantra if you want to enjoy your time with the family.

I'll get it right on the next trip.