Moments that make your heart melt...

[lettripp]

I love the threads about the "freakiest," "most out of place," "strangest" things you've seen at Walt Disney World, but for me, the most memorable moments are usually the sappiest. I'm just wondering: what is the sweetest/sappiest/most heart warming thing you've seen, heard or experienced in a Disney park?

[Wall-e]

My favorite moment at a disney park happened during a Christmas visit to Disneyland. I still get goose bumps when I think about it. We were sitting front row for the afternoon parade. My son, Colton, was proudly wearing his santa mickey hat that we had spent a couple of hours the day before trying to find a shop that could embroider his name into the fur on the front of the hat. Santa Clause was at the end of the parade and you could hear him over the park speakers giving Christmas greetings to all. Right when he got in front of us he said "Merry Christmas Colton!" I will never forget the look on my sons face! It was such a simple jesture, but it truely was the best memory of our trip. My son never put two and two together that Santa read his name off of his hat....and I will never tell him.

[SassyMadhatter]

Everytime, my daughter hugs a character melts my heart...I wish we had discovered Disney a long time ago! It was never in our means to afford family vacations before now, and I only wish we could have done this when she was little too...but even at 13, she is a big child as we all are when it comes to Disneyworld!

[brownie]

Everytime, my daughter hugs a character melts my heart...I wish we had discovered Disney a long time ago! It was never in our means to afford family vacations before now, and I only wish we could have done this when she was little too...but even at 13, she is a big child as we all are when it comes to Disneyworld!

Welcome to INTERCOT!

[whitney37354]

Watching DD dance with Prince Charming & seeing him twirl her around at dinner at 1900 PF. She was wearing her Cinderella dress at the time...

[Momto3littlemice]

Watching my kids see Wishes for the first time on this past trip. They had heard the music so many times -- to finally be able to put it all together. They were mesmerized... as was I

[AnnaMom]

We were in Epcot and my DD was 6 at the time, she was wearing a heart shaped necklace with her name "Anna" on it, she walked up to Slepping Beauty to get her autograph and Slepping Beauty said "Well hello Anna" my daughter almost fainted that a Princess knew who she was - Priceless!!

[wilcat]

Mine would be the year I surprised my DN Maria at WDW. Her parents took her down for her birthday and I flew down a couple of days before them. I was sitting under a tree at MK when they walked in. My niece screamed and ran into my arms. She was so speechless she just kept saying "your really here", "your really here" then she started to cry which got me started the everyone in the group started crying and finally I said enough of that we have memories to make, lets go!

[BraddyB]

Mine would be the year I surprised my DN Maria at WDW. Her parents took her down for her birthday and I flew down a couple of days before them. I was sitting under a tree at MK when they walked in. My niece screamed and ran into my arms. She was so speechless she just kept saying "your really here", "your really here" then she started to cry which got me started the everyone in the group started crying and finally I said enough of that we have memories to make, lets go!

Love this, we actually are doing that for my wife's niece and nephews on our trip in 2012. We are going to fly down the day before and be at the park when they get there. I hope it goes over as good as yours did !!

[BandMan]

I've mentioned this before in a thread a while back. We have 4 kids - DD18, DS16, DS14, DD9. Both our boys have autism. On our first trip with the family, about 5 years ago, my wife and I were scared to death we were going to get seperated from the boys and lose them in the crowds. Well, after several days, we all started to relax and just enjoy a slower pace. At one point we were in Tomorrowland and we let the boys - then 11 and 9 - just walk ahead on their own for a bit. They were great - just looking around and enjoying the atmosphere. For one, brief moment they were just my boys, not my disabled boys. It's hard to describe the feeling to someone else, but I'm tearing up as I'm typing this. I've often told people that I had a tiny glimpse of heaven that day.

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

So many...when my son was younger, he loved hugging the characters we have several pics...one of the dancing pigs in the MK Christmas parade left the parade and came over and kissed my son, Tigger at Crystal Palace last year saw us waiting outside last trip and opened the back door to shake my sons hand...just so many special things to think about.....I love people watching...little kids on their first trip are just so precious

[Ryan Towle]

When the main fanfare melody kicks in during Spectromagic.

[Jeff]

When I was 13 my family went to Disneyland. While we were watching the Main Street Electrical Parade I looked over at my mother, who was filming the parade on a "Super 8" film camera, and she was crying. I remember asking her "Mom, whats wrong"? And she said, "It's just so beautiful". Being a stupid 13 year old I didn't get it at the time!!!!

Years later, we took my daughter to WDW for the first time when she was 7. While at the MK my wife daughter and I were watching the Main Street Electric Parade and I started to cry like a baby remembering my mom. My mother had died from breast cancer when I was 30 and missed ever knowing my daughter by 5 months. My daughter looked at her tough guy dad and said, "Daddy, what's wrong"? All I could say was, "Honey, your Grandmother loved this parade". And so it goes, from one generation to the next!

[disneygal1210]

I went with my mom, sister, and nephew to Disney World last October. My nephew is in love with Buzz Lightyear! We did the Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party and my nephew and I wore costumes. He was buzz lightyear and when we stood in line we made him look the other way until he was the next one to see buzz lightyear and when we turned him around I thought my nephew was going to have a heartattack at 4! I started to cry and when buzz lightyear was jealous of his goggles, that made it even better for him. Another moment is when my nephew decided to trust his aunt and rode splash mountain and thunder mountain and loved it! Now that is all he talks about

[TheVBs]

BandMan & Jeff, you're stories got me all teary. Beautiful!

I can think of a couple... the first time our oldest saw Stitch, she was only 2 years old. When I pointed at him and asked her, "Who's that?" she replied in this awed whisper "Titch" (she used to drop the first S). The look on her face was unbelievable and she hugged him for so long. It was great!

The second one is when our youngest met Minnie, her favorite. She had such a look of love on her face.

[dbright]

As I wipe the tears from my eyes after reading all these great moments...I have a few to share...

The 1st visit with my 3 granddaughters...7 year old twins and their 3 year old baby sister.

When Maddie, the 3 year old, saw the castle from the monorail, she all by hyperventilated...she grabbed her dad's face between her hands, turning his head..." the castle, the castle...." The next day my daughter and I took the 3 girls dressed in their finest princess dresses for breakfast with the princesses in the castle...all 3 of them were mesmerized by the princesses. The twins LOVED getting their autographs. After breakfast, I sat with the twins to watch the show at outside the castle...they were oooin and ahing and I was crying watching them.
Ok, one more...we went to the Hoop-de-doo Review, Brianna (one of the twins) was SOOO taken with the female star of the show....almost like she was star struck. She kept saying she was so pretty. She wanted her autograph badly, but my daughter and she couldn't catch her to get it and Bri was heartbroken ...so, we did what we had to do...my daughter brought her back on the table, then said, "oh, I see her...Brianna, I'll be right back and ran...of course, she went out Bri's line of sight...signed the book and brought it back...oh, my gosh, baby, whew, I caught her...Bri's face lite up and she all but hugged her autograph book to her heart the rest of the evening. We're going back in Jan 2011 and Brianna, who will be 14 when we return, has requested we go back to the Hoop-dee-doo. Since then she's become quite the little musician herself...sings and plays guitar wonderfully. Still makes me tear up remembering that trip...I wouldn't have missed it for the world.
This trip will be their 6 year old brother's 1st time. He's SO excited about Jedi Training Academy...can't wait to see the World throw his eyes this go round!

[nfrustaci]

crying and booger filled..... have to gather my thoughts.... you all have such wonderful memories.

lets see my favorite memory is not remembering a thing the day i met cindarella for the 1st time. we were at the castle for breakfast and out comes cindarella and over to our table. i was sobbing so hard, i stood up and could barely move and then there she was hugging me and telling me not to cry, i said i have waited my whole life to meet you and with that she hugged me and thats all i can remember.... by the way did i mention i was 26 years old and on vacation with my new husbands family ?? oh and my niece who at the time was 5 still says remember when you were crying so much at the castle Aunt Nichole. she is now 17.
and just last year we went to 1900 park fare for the cindarella dinner and once again i was crying and so very excited to see her again.
we now have a 2 year old son and i just can't pick 1 special memory, they are all so wonderful. maybe i will have one that really stands out this year.

[nfrustaci]

Everytime, my daughter hugs a character melts my heart...I wish we had discovered Disney a long time ago! It was never in our means to afford family vacations before now, and I only wish we could have done this when she was little too...but even at 13, she is a big child as we all are when it comes to Disneyworld!

hey there sassy............. and it was wonderful being a part of your very 1st time and the 2nd and now the 3rd !!! xoxo

[PrettyMinnie]

Watching DD dance with Prince Charming & seeing him twirl her around at dinner at 1900 PF. She was wearing her Cinderella dress at the time...

That sounds too cute! I want to take a twirl with Prince Charming!!

[EJS-Houston]

I've mentioned this before in a thread a while back. We have 4 kids - DD18, DS16, DS14, DD9. Both our boys have autism. On our first trip with the family, about 5 years ago, my wife and I were scared to death we were going to get seperated from the boys and lose them in the crowds. Well, after several days, we all started to relax and just enjoy a slower pace. At one point we were in Tomorrowland and we let the boys - then 11 and 9 - just walk ahead on their own for a bit. They were great - just looking around and enjoying the atmosphere. For one, brief moment they were just my boys, not my disabled boys. It's hard to describe the feeling to someone else, but I'm tearing up as I'm typing this. I've often told people that I had a tiny glimpse of heaven that day.

You made me tear up just reading that. You described it beautifully.