Disney Cruise Day 2: The Audrey Card

Kids like Audrey don’t get any advantages in life, but Disney does their best to offer special accommodations for kids with disabilities.  I have no problem playing the Audrey card to get front row seats or special assistance. We got front row seats for the Bon Voyage party and the Pirate Dance party. If you request it, Disney will provide ASL interpreters on the boat.  Our interpreters, Alex and Brian, would accompany Audrey to any activity that we requested.  For the musicals at night, Alex and Brian would stand up front at stage left and perform the show.  We were the only family that requested an interpreter on this cruise, and Disney provided them just for Audrey.  They even reserve seats for us at the front of this General Admission-only performance.  That may not sound like much, but not having to arrive 30 minutes early to get a good seat is a nice perk.  I remember last year when we sat down in our second-row seats one minute before the show started, a father behind us said, “Wait, we were told you couldn’t reserve seats.  That’s not fair.” I decided not to engage him in a battle about what is fair and what is not fair.  I wasn’t mad at him. He just had no idea what unfair truly means.

This morning was our annual trip to the Bippity Boppity Boutique, where little girls can pick out a Princess dress and get their hair and makeup done.  Ella decided that this year she wanted Audrey’s dress to match hers, so she picked out Tiana. She thought it was Tinkerbell, the dress she had picked out weeks ago, but I didn’t have the heart to tell her. It’s close to the same color as Tinkerbell, so what’s the difference, anyway? Both girls looked incredibly cute in their matching dresses, but you can see that Audrey insists on wearing a t-shirt under her Disney uniform. She’s like the Patrick Ewing of Disney Princesses.

When getting her hair and makeup done, Audrey sat next to Ella.  Not our Ella, but the same Ella we sat by at the Bon Voyage party.  It was easy for me to remember this Ella, because she has a disability as well.  Even if we hadn’t been sitting in the reserved section with the handicapped sign, I could tell right away that this Ella was different.  Raising Audrey has given me a radar for kids who need extra help. We watched as the beautician turned Ella into a princess.  Ella turned around to see herself dressed up as a princess for the first time. A huge smile came over her face as she said, “Oh, wow!”

The Disney Cruise is great for all kids (and adults, too), but it’s extra special for kids with disabilities. Audrey won’t get many first-row seats in life. And children like Audrey rarely get the chance to be treated like a princess.  But Audrey will be treated like a VIP for five days. Now, Disney does, on occasion, charge handsomely for these privileges. I know what a trip to the Bippity Boppity Boutique costs, and I will not hesitate when writing that check for the rest of my life.