Now, where were we?

If you've been worried about me, all is well. The kids did not do me in! We just got so busy that I figured I would wait until we reached the relative quiet of my mom's house to continue.

Our 3rd Disney day was spent at Disney Quest, which is probably pretty cool if your kid is older than my kids. They have virtual reality games and rides (most with a height requirement of 51", meaning even I am barely tall enough to ride), as well as some video game type things.

Caitlyn made up a song about puppy love, and Chris got to engineer a tune about never wanting to grow up. Lorelei just danced to both of them. The kids also learned how to draw Mickey Mouse, though Caitlyn got bored halfway through because her circles weren't round enough.

After a couple hours at Disney Quest, we headed to Bongo's, a Cuban restaurant at Downtown Disney. I was so proud of Chris because he tried lots of new things. He is our "chicken nuggets and fries or I'm not eating" kid, so it was a big deal for him to sample plantains. Caitlyn tried a couple of new things, but stuck to cheese pizza since she is now a plant-eater, as she calls herself. Lorelei ate it all. That child will eat anything.

After dinner, we got some jelly beans and headed down to the water to listen to the band. The kids were having a great time eating candy and dancing, and then these monks came over to watch.

I knew that Tibetan monks traveled, but I never thought they would hit up Disney World. It doesn't really seem like the type of place that would be appealing (rampant commercialized money fest that it is!), but it was interesting to watch and see what things were interesting to them. They had a guide who was translating to English, and of course, I listened. It seemed like they really enjoyed watching the water and ducks, the landscaping, the music and the energy of the area. They sat down on a bench next to us to people-watch, and they quickly became entertained by my kids.

One monk was particularly fascinated with Lorelei. He waved at her, and she blew him kisses. They played a wordless, peek-a-boo, and he watched her every move with a rapt smile that lit up his whole face. Honestly, their entire interaction was sweet and beautiful, and it was fun to watch someone else be won over by our red head. He asked, through gesture, if he could take her picture, and she ended up giving him a great big hug.

At this point, Chris, who'd been watching bugs crawl along the sidewalk, let out some exuberant karate yell and stomped on a caterpillar.

Really.

My daughter was creating a transcendental relationship that needed no words or language (with a freaking MONK who treasures nature), and here was my son, stomping to death the innocent bits of nature these monks HAD been enjoying. I was so humiliated--so much for imparting the idea that all life is sacred and special.

At this point, I hurriedly gathered up the kids, hoping that these men had not seen the massacre, and Lorelei waved good bye to her new friend. Chris got a long lecture about why we don't just stomp on bugs, and once Caitlyn figured out what we were talking about, she launched into a cryfest over the death of a caterpillar.

"But why did you kill it?" she wailed. "What about its family? That's not nice!"

She's a little protective of animals.

Anyway, kids all got calmed down, bathed and put to bed. Another mostly successful day.

Next up- a 12 hour day at Sea World, the kids who ate the world and a torrential downpour of fun.