Remember Me....

Remember me with smiles and laughter,

Because that's how I'll remember you all.

If you can only remember me with tears,

Then don't remember me at all..

~Michael Landon~

This is a quote that Michael Landon wrote for an episode of Little House on The Prairie. In the episode, Patricia Neal, plays a neighbor that has leukemia. She dies and Charles must find a home for her 3 children. This statement is read at her funeral. Heather and I watched this 2-part episode just a few days before her own leukemia diagnosis. This statement was read at Michael Landon's funeral. 

Bill and I took a small vacation to Disneyland this past weekend. It was very good to get away and have some fun. Each time I go, I seem to find many new treasures to bring home with me. The 1st time we went in August 2009, I wondered if things would be the same. Would it feel the same, different or could we really ever go back to this special place. The answer is yes and no.Yes in the fact that I feel like Heather is there every moment while I am at Disney. For the most part I have been able to do everything at Disneyland except for one ride...The Mad Hatter's Tea Party. 

Mad Tea Party is a spinning tea cup ride at all five Disneyland-style theme parks around the world. The ride theme is from the Unbirthday Party scene of Disney's Alice in Wonderland. The ride has gained infamy over the years for the amount of guests who get motion sickness as a result of the spinning component to the ride. The attraction is called Mad Tea Party at Disneyland and the Magic Kingdom. It is known as Alice's Tea Party at Tokyo Disneyland,  Mad Hatter's Tea Cups at Disneyland Paris, and Mad Hatter Tea Cups at Hong Kong Disneyland.

Disneyland

Tokyo

 All five versions of the attraction are located in Fantasyland, and all except the Tokyo version were opening day attractions at their respective parks. The Disneyland version was originally located directly behind Sleeping Beauty Castle (in the present-day location of King Arthur Carrousel and was moved to its present-day location in 1983. This version was modified in 2004 to make it more difficult to spin fast after a disabled rider lost his balance and slipped from a teacup.The Disneyland, Disneyland Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland versions are the only Mad Tea Party attraction that doesn't have a big teapot in the center of it.
 

During our first trip to Disneyland in 1996, the first ride that the girls and I did was the Tea Party-spinning tea cups. Bill was riding the new Indian Jones ride and Wendy was too short at the time. So Bill rode Indiana and we girls headed to Fantasyland. This is when the famous girls in the teacup photo was taken. Heather loved this ride. Due to sisters being motion sick she was not able to spin the teacup the way she wanted to. She watched the other teacups spinning and said she wanted to do that someday.

Every time we went, Heather and I tried to do the Tea Party ride. But due to the long lines and not wanting to leave the other people in our party, most of the time we just skipped it. Heather and I took a spin in the tea cups for spring break in 2006. We loved to get in the teacup and spin the wheel as hard and fast as we could. We had such a good rhythm going and we could make that cup fly. We took what was to be our last spin in October 2007. Heather had broken her toe, was in a wheel chair and we got to skip the long line. It was such a fantastic time. In December 2008 Heather was feeling a bit too urpy to her stomach to enjoy the teacups.
 

I walk by the ride and I long to sit and spin the cup with my Heather just one more time. My heart cannot begin to allow me to go on this ride alone or with anyone else right now. I stand and watch like the kid at the candy store glass longing to go inside and make a purchase. I am not sure if I will ever be able to spin in the Mad Hatter's Tea Party again. I am hoping that maybe Pea may want to spin with her Mimi in the teacups someday.

Sherry and Heather ready to spin-2007

Here we go---spin, spin, spin

 So, imagine my surprise as several new Disney items are focused on the Mad Hatter's Tea Party. Of course I managed to purchase all the tea cup collectables I found.The first was a souvenir plastic travel mug. Of course I did get the one soda filled in the cup at time of purchase. The next treasure was an actual teacup. It is a limited edition of 1000 adapted from the artwork of Kevin Kidney and Jody Daily. My final tea cup treasure is a Gallery of Light box by Robert Olszewski.

Actual replica tea cup

 Heather is in everything at Disneyland, every ride, every fireworks show, every parade and every restaurant. I doubt there will be a time when I go that I don't think of her and all the wonderful memories. To me Disneyland is Heather and Heather is Disneyland. One is not without the other. I know that Aunt Missy was smiling down on us as I watched Pea love the new stuffed Minnie Mouse I brought her. Pea made mouse sit with her and sit with me. She carried her around the neck and laid her next to her on the floor. Watching her was like watching Heather at a very young age play with her Minnies. It was priceless..

Mickey and Minnie take a spin