Last night the girls and I went down to opening night of Philly's Disney on Ice Celebrates 100 Years of Magic at the Wachovia Center, thanks to Moms Central and the Feld Family Activator Program.

As always, Disney knows how to put on an amazing show. No holds barred, lots of cool special effects, amazing skaters doing cool routines in costumes and fantastic fireworks at the end. We had some awesome seats too!

The show was a compilation of all the Disney story lines (except Sleeping Beauty which my daughter could not stop bringing up – I don't know why. She's at the age that noticing what is missing must be cool instead of being grateful for the representation of every other storyline that existed.) I will say that as with any compilation, you don't get the strength of any one storyline – only the highlights.

BUT, you really did feel like you got a sneak peek into what going to Disney offers since Cinderella's castle was the backdrop and the evening ended with fireworks shooting off the top.

Only, they forgot to add the monorail to get us back to our cars and out of the parking lot. I only honked once at a man who pulled right into my lane. You feel a little guilty since small children are in cars all around you but he was truly putting us ALL at danger so I justified getting all my driving angst out on him with a good resounding horn blowing.

The GREAT part about going with pre-teens (age 11 & 12) is that 1) they already have light up toys gathering dust at home so they are totally cool when you say NO; 2) they love to analyze the sets (like "did you see that Mulan was the only one to change costume in the middle of the ice when someone helped her turn around her coat"); 3) they can go to the bathroom by themselves and call you on your cell phone from the lobby; and 4) they don't melt down on the way home (instead they want to blast their Taylor Swift music which I have to admit I truly enjoy too).

The SAD (for me) part is that they DON'T want to get their pictures with the characters any more. We were so close to the ice and several performers were milling around near the edge. Lots of parents and kids headed down for a quick snap. I tried one lame, "Want you picture made with the characters?" only to be greeted with the typical pre-teen, "Yeah, right, Mom. Uh, no."

THE BEST part about going with a group like the Feld Family Activator Program is that you get to see fellow bloggers which is always a treat. I didn't get to talk to anyone except Mel from A Box of Chocolates who I sat beside but we had fun talking as always! Her daughter was so cute to watch as she took it all in with awe and wonder. I miss that age but I love this age too with my girls. New wonders all the time.

I have to add ONE thing. Disney, can't you come up with better wigs for those guys? Oh my. I know, I know, they have to be sturdy to fly around the ice and stay on but they really did look like fuzzy rugs on their head. Okay, now that is out of my system.

THANK YOU, Mom Central and the Feld Family Activator Program for send us to Disney on Ice!!