5th Birthday at Disneyland!

This year our little Roo decided that she wanted to celebrate her 5th Birthday at Disneyland Park and California Adventure!

One of the key ingredients of traveling with a child on the spectrum is ensuring that they know what to expect, especially when it comes to theme parks. I wanted to make sure that her Birthday went as smoothly as possible so we sat down a few weeks prior to the trip and I let her plan out her entire day!

Because she had so much control over her special day she was extra excited although I had a few tricks up my sleeve for the day!

I surprised her with a Cinderella costume from “Tinkerbell,” to which she responded, “My wish came true…” I asked her what she meant, and she told me that the night before she wished to be a character, and now her wish was coming true. I immediately got choked up, but I was so proud of her and all of the progress she had made and how much more was to come for her 5th year of life!

After we got dressed and headed into the park, we started the day off riding the Ariel’s Undersea Adventure ride! She was overly excited to start her customized itinerary, but when we surprised her with a special breakfast she started crying and shut down for a few minutes because she was emotionally overwhelmed. It was in this moment that I was so happy that she a stroller that she could use a cocoon and have some alone time.

We had such a special time at Ariel’s Grotto! Roo got the opportunity to meet Ariel herself at and also Tiana, Rapunzel, and Cinderella while dining at Ariel’s Grotto!