When Ian was seven, our family went to Disney Land. Disney is a rite of passage for parents with small children, an event that has to be crossed off the list. 

Truthfully, Steve and I weren’t excited about this vacation. We didn’t consider ourselves Disney-kind of people. We went because we didn’t want the fact that we were Disney Delinquents to be one more item to be mentioned to a therapist in the future. Also, we heard it was a great place to bring kids with autism. 

When we arrived at the park, we went to the Guest Services Office and showed them a letter from Ian’s neurologist explaining that he had autism. They gave us passes that enabled us to bypass all the lines. At each ride, the staff took us to a separate door that immediately put us on every ride. Other families waited in the hot sun for hours. We didn’t. Despite our too-cool-for-school attitude before going on this trip, we had the most amazing time ever.

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