Tag Archives: Disney World

2025: Stepping Up

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About three weeks ago, I sat down on the couch with the kids prior to school. Usually things are hectic in the morning and I don’t get the chance to hang with them before loading up the car.

I asked Sloan and Beau a question: What is a leader?

“The person who stands at the front of the line,” my son responded.

Hmmm. Not exactly what I was going for.

“Someone who sets an example and shows people how to do things,” Sloan said, before adding, “And brings others closer to God.”

In 2025, the themes of leadership and prioritization emerged (photo taken by Nicole Lynn Photography).

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It has been a good year. As I write in every one of these annual entries, even-numbered years always bring change and disruption to our family while odd-numbered years usually bring more consistency. This pattern once again held true as 2025—although busy and adventurous—didn’t pack life changes or any “rug pulled from under us” moments.

Our 2025 didn’t pack too many surprises…which isn’t a bad thing.

It was a busy 12 months for our family. Compared to last year, we boarded more planes, embarked on more trips, played more sports, and even lost more teeth. Let’s see if I can summarize 2025 in two paragraphs…

Usually, for us, the first half of the year is mellower than the second half. Don’t know if that was the case in 2025. The year started in South Carolina with Sidney’s family. Once back west, Sid celebrated her 33rd birthday at the end of January and Beau marked his “golden” birthday (5 years old) in early February. During this latter month, Sloan asked me to be her date to the Daddy/Daughter dance and she won a Taylor Swift trivia competition. Speaking of my sassy daughter, Sid threw her a spa-themed 8th birthday party in March and then our family friend, Fidela, took her to the real thing shortly after. Sports ramped up in April with soccer and t-ball seasons but the real highlight of the month was going on our first cruise. Before our Caribbean tans disappeared, we were off to Disney World a couple weeks later. June was nuts with participation in a color run, Catholic Summer Camp, a wedding in Brewster, and a family affair at Hoopfest.

Sloan and I living our best lives on Freedom of the Seas. Our family went on our first cruise in April 2025.

In July, we attended numerous community events from park concerts to parades to outdoor movies. But the ultimate pinnacle was becoming godparents to Neteyam. In August we watched my niece get married, spent 24 hours in Walla Walla, and vacationed in Leavenworth. Sidney’s uncle and aunt paid us a visit and I went with my brother and dad to Seattle to watch the Mariners play. Baseball was a constant theme throughout the summer as I took my kids to several Spokane Indians games and we even branched out and attended a professional soccer match. The fall brought the Spokane Interstate Fair, lots of high school football, a visit from Sid’s parents, and a weekend trip to Missoula. Both kids played fall soccer seasons, Sloan joined Chess Club, and Sid and I presided over our second Engaged Encounter retreat of the year. During the winter Beau played basketball, we tried our luck at bingo, we hired a babysitter for the first time, and we attended as many holiday events as possible.

During the second half of the year, Sid’s parents came and visited. We had the pleasure of taking them to Montana for a portion of that visit. This photo was at a Griz football game.

Dang, did you catch all that? If you didn’t, perhaps what I am about to discuss next will be easier to digest. As all the fun mentioned above transpired, a couple themes that defined the year developed…

The first theme of 2025 for us was leadership. In January, Sid and I were elected leaders of our Spokane Catholic Engaged Encounter chapter. We didn’t seek the position nor expect it, but it has been a blessing (and a lot of work) to oversee such an important ministry. Teaming up with Sid makes it even sweeter. 2025 also marked the first full year in my marketing director role at EWU. As I continue to manage more people than I have ever before, I seized the chance to sharpen my leadership chops. Additionally, Sid volunteered for a 24-hour work innovation challenge and ran point of her squad. Despite all that, Sid and I realized where our leadership is needed most of all: in our family. I feel like we have relished the role God has given us to be the best guiders and examples for/to our children.

Sid and I were elected leaders of the Spokane Catholic Engaged Encounter chapter in January 2025. In this photo we pose with Ric and Cindy Gaunt (former leaders) plus Fr. Ken Krall during an October 2025 retreat.

Speaking of Sid and I, the other theme that manifested itself in 2025 was prioritization. And what I mean by this is placing my relationship with my wife above all earthly things—including our children. The necessity of this became apparent during one of the Engaged Encounter weekends we gave in May. The couple we presented with conveyed the importance of this prioritization and it really hit home. Sid and I have enjoyed a fruitful marriage but I thought forever that I was “doing it right” by embracing a “kids are always first” attitude. We tweaked things after that retreat and things have never been better.

I am lucky to have such an awesome wife; we had a wonderful 2025. #Prioritization

With those two unique themes defining 2025, the big three values I pinpoint each year continued to be critical in our lives…

Let’s start with family. The prioritization theme I just finished explaining contributed to the positive dynamic in the Reser household this year. The truth is that when the husband/wife bond is placed before all earthly relationships, everything else—children, extended families, friends, in-laws—will seamlessly and orderly fall right in line behind it. With Sid and I taking more time for each other—even hiring a babysitter at times—we set the necessary foundation for solid family life. It was a blessing to spend time with Sloan and Beau in fun spots like the Caribbean, Orlando, and Leavenworth but we continued to make memories inside our own home. Perhaps some of the best bonding time occurred when we had movie nights centered on “classic” films that Sid and I watched as children. My parents’ home continued to be a haven for my siblings and our respective families to gather for birthdays, holidays, Sunday dinners, and special events. We were blessed to see Sid’s parents three times this year—South Carolina in January, Florida in May, and Washington in October. Perhaps I should add “Montana” to the October meeting because a true highlight of that trip was taking “Gami and Dada” to Big Sky Country for their first time when we spent a weekend in Missoula. The Florida excursion was especially meaningful because in addition to my in-laws, Sid’s siblings and their families joined us as well.

Welcome to the Reser family Thanksgiving table! We had a lot of good times around my parents’ dining room table in 2025.

Our faith was in action in 2025. Thanks to our election as Engaged Encounter leaders, we spent lots of time nurturing the ministry through planning retreats, running meetings, hosting social events, and doing the behind-the-scenes work to keep our chapter healthy. Sloan and Beau finished and started school years at St. Mary Catholic School, attended Catholic Summer Camp, and showed up for as many Family Faith Nights as possible. It was a big year for Sloan and the sacraments. She made her first confession and started prep for the Sacrament of Confirmation and the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist. Sid and I mentored two couples for marriage, gave two Engaged Encounter retreats, and became Godparents again. Other highlights included hiking to a sunrise mass, attending the Easter vigil, joining a Catholic young family group, continuing my membership with the Knights of Columbus, and worshipping as guests at some beautiful Catholic churches across the country. For the second year, I made it through the entire bible. We mourned the death of Pope Francis and cheered the election of Pope Leo. We celebrated the ordination anniversaries of Fr. Ken Krall (54th), Fr. Mike Kwiatkowski (47th), Fr. Pat Kerst (35th), and Fr. Jeff Lewis (14th).  It was a faithful year that can best be described in four words: Thanks be to God!

Me, Sidney, Fr. Jeff Lewis, Fidela, Neteyam, and Dylan pose for a photo in the St. Mary sanctuary after the baptism on July 6, 2025. Thanks be to God! (Photo courtesy of Dylan/Fidela/Family).

Our careers continued to progress thanks to the supportive family and strong faith I just highlighted. Sid earned her company’s national In-Synch Award, traveled to Orlando for special recognition, and was promoted to underwriter. I enjoyed my first full year at Eastern Washington University as I grew our team, marketed our academic programs, generated community pride for the return of commencement to Cheney, and produced the 2025 EWU holiday video. But my proudest accomplishment in 2025 was writing a successful proposal that funded our marketing program and enabled the launch of a major brand awareness campaign. The key to our professional success in 2025 was the support we gave each other. Whether it was visiting each other at our respective offices, attending one another’s work events, or just being a cheerleader/open ear, there was never a doubt that we valued the workplace growth of each other in the same way that we value our own.

It was a good professional year for both Sid and me. This photo shows me with my colleagues in November 2025 with communications director Linn Parish on the left and digital marketing supervisor Ginny Baxter on the right.

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My apologies, these year-end blog posts always run long. As I prepare to sign off, I want to mention those our family knew who passed away this year: Ed Galloway, James Gibson, Rob Heacock, and Susan Yarborough. May perpetual light shine on them all.

Although it has been a good year for our family, we did lose some really good people. This photo was taken on Christmas Day at my parents’ house.

Thanks to everyone who entered/remained in our orbit over the past 365 days. We thank God for his many blessings and hope to use the lessons learned and the experiences gained throughout 2025 in the years to come. Don’t Blink.

Disney World Magic and Memories

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Over the span of three full days, we jumped headfirst into all Disney World has to offer.

Hanging with these three at Disney World was a magical adventure! We jumped right in.

If that opening sentence seems a little abrupt or random to you, please read this past post that explains how we found ourselves at WDW in the first place.

Sloan poses for a photo with Sid’s parents and her cousin, Henry. It was awesome to see all of Sidney’s family again.

But for this post I want to jump right to the chase. As I am fond of doing, I wanted to highlight 10 themes/observations from our time at Disney World.

Beau, Sloan, and their cousin, Jack, wait at the entrance to Magic Kingdom.

Disney’s Yacht Club Resort – The four nights we spent at Disney World were under the roof of the Disney’s Yacht Club Resort. After most recently staying in a cruise ship cabin that the four of us could hardly move in, we enjoyed our more spacious quarters. I especially liked our balcony that overlooked the hotel grounds, the distinctive hotel scent that hit you the moment you walked in, and the adjoining door that connected us to Sid’s parents’ room.

Sloan hangs out on the balcony of our hotel room at the Disney Yacht Resort Club. We had a great stay!

Family – Speaking of my wife’s parents, this trip was special because we had the blessing of vacationing with my in-laws and Sid’s sisters (plus their families). Because they live in South Carolina, making the hour flight from Myrtle Beach to Orlando was manageable. It was awesome to catch up with everyone but perhaps nothing was better than watching all the cousins engage and play with each other.

Our Mathis group takes a couple moments to rest inside of Epcot. It was great to see everyone!

Packed Days – We tried to make the best use of our days with the limited time (three full days) that we had. Our crew hit up Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and Epcot. Disney lines are long so you must prioritize what you want to ride. It was interesting to observe the distinct vibes and unique characteristics of the parks! I liked each one for different reasons.

I liked all the parks for different reasons but it is tough to beat Magic Kingdom.

Character Breakfast – One of my favorite moments from our time at Disney was the character breakfast at Animal Kingdom. However, this isn’t near the top of my list solely because we got to meet Mickey but rather because of the food! The breakfast buffet was delicious and by far the best park food I ate. The French toast was delightful (perhaps the ample whipped cream had something to do with it?) and I loved that they randomly offered chicken curry as well.

All the cousins pose for a photo with Mickey at the character breakfast at Animal Kingdom. Best food all trip!

Sloan’s Fearlessness – I felt proud as I observed Sloan’s bravery. She rode all the coasters and thrill rides without thinking twice. She definitely doesn’t get her fearlessness from her dad—I don’t usually ride roller coasters—so it was neat to see her exhibit more guts than me.

Sloan was up for anything in Disney World and was a lot of fun to be around.

Favorite Rides – Even though I wasn’t usually with the group hopping on the big coasters, I still rode some rides that were fun and very well-done. Ratatouille (Epcot) was cute and incorporated aroma effects, DINOSAUR (Animal Kingdom) was intense and mission-based, Mickey’s Runaway Railway (Hollywood Studios) was an adventure, and racking up the high score of our group on Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin (Magic Kingdom) provided me some bragging rights. However, I have a soft spot for the Magic Kingdom classics like Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, and the Winnie the Pooh ride.

Hanging out with Beau and Sloan on the Ratatouille ride at Epcot.

Bonding With Beau – While Sloan was out being brave with the other thrill-seekers in our group, I spent a lot of time with Beau. I had so much fun with him! We hit up the tea cups, carousel, Dumbo ride, and many more. While not on rides, we tried pulling a sword out of a stone, ate Mickey ice cream bars, and played in splash pads. I am always touched by what a sweet boy Beau is and I feel thankful for the memories we made together.

I had a blast with Beau at Disney. Such a sweet boy!

Fireworks – Each park offers nightly fireworks and we took full advantage. Sid and I received front row seats for the Epcot show on Friday compliments of Traveler’s Insurance and our whole family group watched the Magic Kingdom display on Thursday. But the most magical experience came the first evening we were at Disney. While in our hotel room late at night, we heard fireworks exploding outside the building. Sloan rushed to the balcony and got to watch that evening’s 11 p.m. Epcot show. The view we had from our balcony was superb and provided the perfect way to close out that first evening.

Sloan and Sidney stroll as the fireworks fill the sky at Magic Kingdom.

Character Encounters – Beyond the character breakfast I mentioned earlier, the kids had an awesome time engaging with Disney heroes at other moments during our trip. They met Elsa and Anna in the duo’s summer home, randomly encountered Asha from “Wish” at Epcot, ran into Chip and Dale in our hotel lobby, and crossed paths with Daisy. Each time, Sloan and Beau pulled out their autograph books for signatures. These Disney cast members who portray the characters are expertly trained and undoubtedly talented!

The kids met a lot of Disney characters. This photo shows some of them.

Mass At St. Mary, Queen of the Universe – On Sunday morning, we attended mass at Mary, Queen of the Universe Basilica. It was built to serve the large population of Catholics who visit Disney each year. Seating approximately 2,000 people, the church is beautiful and the services are reverent. What a blessing it was to spend the third Sunday of Easter there.

Beau and Sloan stand in front of Mary, Queen of the Universe Basilica in Orlando.

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I am grateful our children experienced Disney World at an age of reason. Although Beau’s memories might be a little fuzzy 10 years from now, I know Sloan will forever remember this trip. I have never declared myself a Disney freak but I can at least admit that a palpable sense of magic does float through the parks. I hope Sloan and Beau saved some of that pixie dust to pair with their beloved Stitch stuffy souvenirs they brought home.

It was such a joy to spend time at Disney with these two little monkeys.

Thanks again to Sidney for helping us get to Disney via her Traveler’s Insurance professional prowess. I also owe additional gratitude to my wife for the enthusiasm and planning she exhibited in preparation for this very special trip.

Thanks to Sidney for making our Disney World trip possible.

Hats off to the Mouse himself for a great time—we sure enjoyed ourselves, Mickey! Don’t Blink.

Our Impromptu Trip to Disney World

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It didn’t take long after we left Myrtle Beach for the “suggestions” to start. As Sid, Sloan, and I started our evacuation to Jacksonville, my wife started to pitch me an idea.

Before we had even entered Georgia, Sidney had made her case that visiting Disney World while we escaped Hurricane Florence would make perfect sense. With mid-September a relative tame time by Disney standards and with Jacksonville only 2.5 hours away from Orlando, she had a point. With time to spare and a Disney-obessed wife along with a Mickey Mouse-loving daughter, I really couldn’t say no. By the time we rolled into Jacksonville on Wednesday night, I told Sid we could go. By Friday morning, we were walking through the Disney World gates.

This is a photo I snapped as we drove through the Disney World arch.

That left us with a short amount of time to prepare. On Thursday, we hatched our plan. We would make it a day trip and only visit Magic Kingdom. Sidney did research all afternoon and we purchased tickets that night. If someone told us a week prior that we would be going to Disney World in the near future, we would have laughed.

We left early Friday and made it to the Disney World parking lot by 10 a.m. We had to take a shuttle from the parking lot followed by a ferry boat ride to actually get inside the park. Once inside, the three of us found ourselves on Main Street USA right in front of Cinderella’s Castle. It was a surreal feeling.

Last week at this time, I had no idea we would be going to Disney World. A couple days later, we were right in front of Cinderella’s Castle.

The “how crazy is this moment?” soon passed as I realized something: It was hot! Like really, really hot. But the heat discomfort soon became an afterthought as I realized something else. Sloan was laughing and clapping her hands wildly as she watched a bunch of Disney characters and other cast members perform a dance number right in front of the castle. With a giddy Sidney crouched by Sloan pointing out everything that was going on, I knew at that point that we had made the right decision to go.

This picture, taken shortly after we entered the Disney World gates, says it all. I knew we had made the right decision.

With the impromptu Disney trip already off on a great note, we started to explore. We visited a couple of the different lands and rode Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, and It’s A Small World After All. Except for a couple antsy moments when Haunted Mansion stalled midway through, Sloan loved the rides! She sat between us and enjoyed every minute of the classic Disney attractions.

Sloan enjoyed the rides we went on during the morning.

Wait times for all the rides were 25 minutes or less. However, time flew by. After riding those three attractions and walking around, it was already lunch time. We ate at a Pinocchio-themed, air-conditioned restaurant.

Sloan enjoying her chicken nuggets and juice box at the Pinocchio-themed restaurant.

After lunch, we went back to Cinderella’s Castle and enjoyed probably the best part of the day. We had front row seats to the daily parade that showcased both classic Disney characters (Mickey, Donald, Goofy, etc.) and the movie Disney characters (Aladin, Frozen, Beauty and the Beast, Snow White, etc.). As the big floats passed by and the characters engaged with Sloan, I truly felt the Disney magic.

The Disney parade was special. It was enjoyed thoroughly by the three of us.

On a high from the parade, we went on more rides – Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, Ariel’s Undersea Adventure, and Dumbo the Flying Elephant attraction. With the heat starting to take its toll, we decided to seek out shelter.

Can you spot Sid?

We entered a structure made to resemble a large circus tent. Once inside, Sloan had the opportunity to meet Daisy Duck and Minnie Mouse. Although happy to see them at first, she would retreat to Sid as they crept closer. It didn’t take long for Sloan to eventually embrace them, following the lead of her mommy who hugged each one to show her that it was okay.

Sid and Sloan with Daisy and Minnie.

Did you think we would do Disney World without eating ice cream? Sidney got a Mickey ice cream sandwich and I got something called a Dole Whip, which is ice cream and pineapple fused together, a Disney World specialty I am told. Of course Sloan enjoyed generous portions of each.

Sidney with her Mickey ice cream sandwich.

Time continued to go by at a rapid pace. Because of a Halloween event that night, Magic Kingdom closed at 6 p.m. With only about 60 minutes left, we headed back to Mainstreet USA to pick out a souvenir. Sloan chose a baby Dumbo stuffed animal. Around this time, another parade was taking place. This particular one had an international flavor but still included all of the classic Disney characters. As the parade concluded, we watched as military guests retired the American flag and performed the Star Spangled Banner.

Sid barely beat me in the Lightyear Space Ranger Spin ride.

It was time for the grand finale! With just a few minutes to spare, we stood in line for our personal visit with Mickey Mouse. We were extrememly hot and looked absolutely miserable but I assure you that we were happy inside. Sloan constantly says “Mickey Mouse, Mickey Mouse, Mickey Mouse,” so it was a big deal that she could meet him in the flesh (or perhaps I should say in the furry costume?).

After a long and HOT day, we took this photo with Mickey (don’t judge).

After changing Sloan’s diaper it was back on the ferry boat and the shuttle. We got in the car and our daughter dozed off. The whole drive back to Jacksonville, Sid and I talked Disney non-stop, looking up various Disney-related Wikipedia articles along the way.

By the time we left the park, Sloan was one tired girl!

That night, before we went to bed, Sidney whispered to me, “Thanks for making my wish come true.” I am not the biggest Disney fan, but to hear my wife say that along with the joy I saw on Sloan’s face the entire day made me really happy that we visited the happiest place on Earth. We will hold these memories tight forever. Don’t Blink.

Disneyland is Just Better Than Disney World

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Thumbing through Parade Magazine today I couldn’t help but read the feature on Disneyland. In July the park will turn 60 years old and the magazine pointed out a few interesting facts about its very successful run. Reading about it brought up a semi-serious debate I have with Sidney from time to time.

Sidney will tell you that she has visited Disney World around 8 times. I have visited Disney World twice. I have also visited Disneyland. We will go back and forth on which park is better. It gets pretty serious.

Maybe it is my west coast bias, but I think Disneyland is better. Although I made that trip with my family when I was in fourth grade, I remember it very fondly. In fact, it goes down in the Reser history books as the best family vacation we ever went on. In the past five years, I have made the trip to Orlando twice. Both times I stayed at a Disney resort property and of course visited Disney World. Perhaps it was my old age, but I just didn’t think it was all that great. A little more on this in just a little bit.

Sidney uses her veteran Disney World status as reason on why that park trumps Disneyland. She has had numerous fabulous experiences going as a young girl with her family and then with her young niece as well. To her, there isn’t a better place on the planet so it must top the similar park in California. She also uses arguments that I can’t deny…Disney World is newer and bigger.

But in my opinion, newer and bigger isn’t always better. Disneyland is more intimate. In comparing my experiences in both parks, it just felt like Walt Disney’s spirit was hovering around me closer in Anaheim than it was in Orlando. Disneyland is just more magical, more historical, and more original. You can’t deny the originality aspect, Disney World is an east coast replica of the place that was built 16 years before it.

I think Disneyland wins on the intangibles as well. The consistent and pleasant sunny conditions that characterize life in southern California contrast with the unpredictable and stormy weather that plagues Orlando. While Disney World definitely receives many gorgeous days, it also is prone to nasty days as well. Trust me, I know. Yes, I already alluded to it but Disneyland will also always come first. It was the prototype and Disney World will simply never catch up to Disneyland in terms of nostalgia and pop culture references. Finally, Walt Disney practically built Disneyland with his own hands. He was five years dead before the Florida park opened.

Okay, there you have it. Once again I give you a heavy dose of my opinion. If I ever win a professional sports championship and they shove the microphone in my face I am telling them that I am going to Disneyland. Now it is your turn. What park do you feel is superior…Disneyland or Disney World? I am curious to know. Don’t Blink.