Dear Minnie,

I'm sure you get fan mail all the time… lots of kids all around the world can probably identify you better than their own government leaders. I can't imagine how you find time to do it all; your lipstick is always perfect and your shoes are never scuffed. You're a class act, dear Minnie, and I wanted to drop you a note and say thanks.

We just got home from Max's first Disneyland trip a couple of weeks ago; we've been talking about the trip for as long as Max can remember, and he was SO excited to meet you, Mickey, Goofy, all of his favorite friends from TV, in person on our trip. I had heard stories of kids about Max's ago who got scared when they were actually faced with in-person celebrity such as yours… Max is an outgoing kid, so I wasn't concerned.

I was even less concerned when, last July, we went to a local San Francisco Giants game and Max had the chance to meet the mascot, Lou Seal. He ran right up to Lou and gave him a hug, no pause, no worry, just excitement to meet one of his favorite famous animals. (I even captioned the image at left with “Max was so excited to meet Lou! This removes my concerns about meeting characters at Disneyland!”

So imagine my surprise when, about five minutes into our Disneyland adventure, we encountered Goofy, and Max was completely freaked out and not interested in meeting him. He didn't even want to walk by! He made a wide arc around the corner where Goofy stood; keeping his worried eyes on him the whole time, never going closer than about 50 feet.

We saw Mickey, same reaction. Don't even get me started on what happened when we spotted Donald and Daisy in Toontown! You would have thought that they'd threatened Max with bodily harm, he was so freaked out and needing to stay VERY clear of them!

Then, finally, Thursday morning rolled around. Our Magic Morning early entry day! We walked into the park like we had every other morning that week. I saw Pluto across the way, but Max wasn't interested, and actually asked me to carry him, he was so concerned about coming into contact.

Then we saw you.

I've been a fan of yours for as long as I can remember; when I was growing up, you and Tink were the only girls we had! The Princesses weren't really a thing yet, so I latched on to you. I wasn't going to let something like Max's nerves keep me from saying hi!

We approached carefully; Max's grip on my arm pinching tighter and tighter as we approached. You spotted us and waved. I waved and smiled, and Max squeezed me tighter.

And then this happened:

As soon as your blown kiss reached Max, everything changed. He whispered in my ear, “She likes me, Mommy!” and his viselike grip on my arm loosened. He smiled at you as you walked closer, and his grin just grew and grew.

So thanks, Minnie, for helping make this last highlight of a Disney trip possible. Photos with our favorite folks!

Love,
Lizz