{"id":3568,"date":"2013-09-04T07:35:19","date_gmt":"2013-09-04T13:35:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/faithwalkers\/?p=3568"},"modified":"2013-09-04T07:35:19","modified_gmt":"2013-09-04T13:35:19","slug":"why-walt-disney-world-is-our-favorite-place-to-be-a-family","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/faithwalkers\/2013\/09\/why-walt-disney-world-is-our-favorite-place-to-be-a-family\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Walt Disney World is our Favorite Place to be a Family"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

The important thing is the family. If you can keep the family together\u2013and that\u2019s the backbone of our whole business, catering to families\u2013that\u2019s what we hope to do.\u00a0 ~\u00a0Walter Elias\u00a0Disney<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Over the Labor Day weekend, I talked to a few friends who are traveling to the \u201cHappiest PLace on Earth\u201d in the coming weeks. The conversation reminded me of some of the best family times we\u2019ve ever experienced there at the house the Mouse built.<\/p>\n

Walt\u2019s dream for Disney parks was inspired by his desire to share the fun with his children instead of simply sitting on a bench and just watching with other parents. His vision of creating a safe place for families remains\u00a0mostly true today, especially at\u00a0Walt Disney World\u00a0<\/a>(WDW) near Orlando, Florida. Our family visits Disney World as often as we can because it\u2019s a place where our family can just\u00a0be a family. And that\u2019s rather rare these days.<\/p>\n

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Our\u00a0Mayberrys are fading<\/a>, unfortunately.\u00a0We don\u2019t find many safe places for families to relax and have fun together anymore. Instead, most entertainment seems designed to appeal to one age group or another. Even church often splits us\u00a0into factions. That can\u2019t be good when we feel closer as a family at Disney World than at most Sunday morning worship services. [ See my post Where Have All the Children Gone in Your Church? ]<\/a><\/p>\n

For our family, WDW gives us a protected place to have fun together without worrying about constantly censoring most the stuff our current culture throws at us.\u00a0Profanity is rare, manners are almost always polite, and a spirit of generosity pervades the entire resort (well, maybe not at\u00a0Downtown Disney\u00a0<\/a>on Christmas Eve). Our favorite time of year to be at WDW is during the early Christmas season when \u201cstrangers we meet all\u00a0seem like friends\u201d and\u00a0greet one another with a hearty \u201cMerry Christmas!\u201d It\u2019s hard to teach that to kids anywhere else \u2014 well, except maybe some places here in the South.<\/p>\n

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Most importantly, we adults can relax, unplug from\u00a0other responsibilities, and be encouraged to dream big \u2014 a dangerous combination indeed.<\/p>\n

Safety is the highest of priorities at Disney which allows us as parents of six kids to take a deep, cleansing breath. We still keep an eye out, of course, but we know that if one child\u00a0gets separated, Disney is ready for that. We\u2019ve lost most of them at one time or another. Disney casts members have always\u00a0exceeded our expectations to WOW us\u00a0with their care for our kids. Don\u2019t get me wrong, I know it\u2019s because we paid to get in, but it still doesn\u2019t happen in\u00a0most other places.<\/p>\n

The Art of Disney WOW<\/h3>\n

We\u2019ve experienced their WOW guest service many times, but here are a few occasions:<\/strong><\/p>\n