The Fling

33

As we waited for California Adventure to open, Casey asked each of us what our top interests were. She then formulated a plan for a logical route to go to each attraction without doubling back or wasting time going out of our way.

Our first stop was the Monsters Inc. ride near the entrance, which Hannah requested because it was one of her favorite movies. The taxi cabs seated six, so we all got in one after being led to the front by Casey. Bertie asked that I sit next to him, and when it got dark, he grabbed onto my hand. I felt a flutter in my heart because of how pure and wholesome this was, and I realized how much more fun this day was going to be because of the kids. Usually amusement parks were all about the thrills, but I knew that seeing everything through their eyes would be better than any ride.

Casey walked us the short distance to the Guardians of the Galaxy drop tower ride, which was in the Avengers campus.

"Is it terrible that I preferred Tower of Terror?" Abigail asked.

"Not at all!" our guide responded. "Our hope is that all changes are positive, but we understand that many guests prefer the old versions, though over time, you might feel differently!"

As we approached the attraction, Bertie stopped and stared at the imposingly tall structure. "I don't think I'm ready for this."

"You're definitely tall enough," Casey said.

"I-I don't want to do it."

I placed a hand on the little guy's shoulder. "I'm not feeling big drops right now, either. You ladies go have fun and Bertie is going to help me find a snack nearby. That yogurt didn't cut it."

Abigail gave me a smile that expressed her gratitude. "Okay, that works for me."

"We could be gone anywhere between five and twenty minutes, since even if we go to the front, there's sometimes a wait. You might not want to go too far away," Casey said.

"Got it. We'll stay closer than Groot can reach with his branchy arms."

Bertie laughed and started looking around. "There's a churro place."

"I can get you something there, but I don't eat gluten."

Casey chimed in, "You might like Schmoozies! They have great smoothies."

"Thanks," I told her before turning to Abigail, "Go ride the ride and text me when you're done if we're not out here."

They left and Bertie grabbed my hand. "Can I get a smoothie?"

"You can get anything you want! This day is all about you and your sisters."

Using the map Casey provided, we located the smoothie place. I got one with mango and other tropical fruit, while Bertie opted for the strawberry-banana. We took our drinks and found a bench away from the crowds.

"This is good!" he declared. "Way better than that dumb ride."

"It's delicious, but you don't need to call the ride dumb just because it wasn't for you. It's totally okay to not want to do it."

"You don't think I'm being a baby?"

I shook my head. "Nope. It's actually really mature to know when to not do something. I didn't learn this until pretty recently. I thought I had to push through and do things that made me uncomfortable, but now I know it's better to say no."

"Can you tell Hannah that if she makes fun of me?"

"I got your back."

We'd just finished our smoothies when Abigail texted me saying they were done. Bertie and I made our way over to the ride and met up with our group.