By JEANNIE WONG
SACRAMENTO — This is a portion of what I wrote on Sunday afternoon while sitting in the Orlando airport:

Going home! After five days and four nights at Disney World, we are pointing ourselves back toward Northern California.

So many cool memories, and — every parent will appreciate this — we’re taking home only a few toys. …

Oh Jeannie. How naive you are. Only minutes after writing my happy little missive, the news broke over the loudspeaker:

Because of the pouring rain, with the occasional lightening strikes — just the kind of conditions you want for a long flight — our plane to Salt Lake City was going to be delayed at least two hours, which would put the final leg of our trip, from Salt Lake City to Sacramento, in jeopardy, as well.

Well, in every great trip, a little @#$% must fall. And in this case, it came in the form of unrelenting rain.

OK, time to regroup. I looked over at my surprisingly patient and resilient girls — much more resilient than my stomach on this trip, let me tell you — and wondered if it would be fair to keep them waiting even more. As it was, we were forced to check out of our lovely resort at 10 this morning (Hellooooo, Hilton Resort People — you ever hear of the noon checkout, let alone at 1?) to then cool our heels at the nearby Downtown Disney, a huge mall-like venue also found in many other cities.

Then it was on to the airport, where we had already been hanging out for two hours when the news hit.

After a quick debate (with me voting to stay the night and trying again tomorrow), we went with The Spouse’s plan of getting the heck out of Dodge. In his mind, if the storm broke enough for us to fly out, that would be a good thing; bad weather was already predicted for the following day, possibly stranding us again.

Fortunately, the weather did break and we made it to Salt Lake City, but as we feared, not in time to make our connector. We were met at the gate at nearly 11 p.m. MountainTime by an incredibly cheery agent who handed us a hotel voucher and four travel kits (“Take them, they’re cool! There are T-shirts in them and everything!”) and off we stumbled.

(A side note: The folks in Salt Lake City, especially at the airport, were very kind and helpful to us; on the next day, when one of our daughters spilled her hot chocolate, a vendor at one of the eateries gave her another one for free. And we hadn’t even purchased ours there.)

The new hotel was clean and close, and our flight home today was mercifully uneventful and, at about an hour and a half, happily short. We landed this afternoon to clear skies and a spontaneous cry of “Yippee, we’re in Sacramento!” from one of my girls, eliciting smiles from the people in the next row.

So, as I look back now, what are some of the things I’ve learned from this trip?

Fast food can be a good thing:
That weak stomach I alluded to? It arrived unannounced on Saturday night, the last day of our vacation, when The Spouse and I thought we’d have something else besides chicken nuggets, pizza and hot dogs for meals. So we sat down to a nice dinner, complete with tablecloth, silverware and full table service, at one of the restaurants in the Magic Kingdom. And while it tasted great going down, it wasn’t so good for me a few hours later. I should have stuck with the hot dogs.

My girls are just as happy traveling four-star or two-star:
The voucher that the airline handed us in Salt Lake City was for a chain motel that, at $69 a night, was a far cry from the one-bedroom suite with full-kitchen and “waterfall” bath that my girls had been lapping up for the last few days. But I was pleased to see that they were just as excited about the $69 accommodations — in the individually wrapped Styrofoam cups in our room, in planning what they were going to eat for breakfast the next day in the tiny lobby.

Most parents will tell you that they don’t want to be raising spoiled little snobs and, at this point, it appears that my girls aren’t — even if their parents would have definitely preferred the one-bedroom suite.

My girls are good travelers overall:
I started out my guest posts on this blog by confessing that I had been a travel weenie, afraid of the hard work and/or anxiety that might come with traveling with young kids. Well, I’ve seen that my 6-year-olds can find the fun in whatever situation — easy or hard — that is put in front of them, making the best of things — and making my job on the road a whole lot easier.

So maybe traveling with the kids isn’t as scary as it seems. Just be flexible, keep a sense of humor — and make them wash their hands, ‘cos they’re gonna wanna touch EVERYTHING!

I envision many more family trips ahead. Thanks for following along on this one  — it was great having you with us!

(You’ll find links to Web sites with helpful tips, information and more on the Cool Travel Sites page. –G. Gross)

By JEANNIE WONG
ORLANDO — In childhood parlance, we got a do-over.

The days are back to being sunny and bright, with no signs of the thunderstorm that had chased us away, sopping (but surprisingly happy), from the Magic Kingdom earlier this week. We even got to see the parade again, in its entirety. Lovely.

Of course, with the sun, Spring Breakers and the approach of the weekend, the crowds have been growing increasingly dense, although not unmanageable. At least, not yet. Today is Saturday. We shall see how that goes. On Thursday, our first day at the park, the wait in lines was about 15 minutes; on Friday, that had moved up to 30 minutes. Still tolerable for adults, an eternity for 6-year-olds.

Another difference between adults and 6-year-olds? The kingdom seems a little less shiny, a bit more prosaic. Don’t get me wrong: I’m having an incredible time. Some of the new attractions are awesome, and the more established ones, still reliably fun. But I’m now enjoying it through the eyes and experiences of my children. Ack! Does that mean I’ve finally grown up?!

Let me suck down my third coffee and ponder that.

This morning, before we take off for our third — and final day — at the Kingdom, we took a slight respite and fired up the in-room DVD player, where my girls enjoyed another screening of “The Princess and the Frog,” a truly sweet movie, with wonderful music.

As I sat back and watched with them, I had to wonder why Princess Tiana, Disney’s first African-American princess, hasn’t had a more visible role at Disney World, alongside fellow royals Cinderella, Snow White, Belle and Sleeping Beauty. She should.

I’m told Tiana does play a stronger part at California’s Disneyland. I’m happy to hear it — it is a golden opportunity to show that it really is a small world, after all.

(You’ll find links to Web sites with helpful tips, information and more on the Cool Travel Sites page. –G. Gross)

ORLANDO — So it rained on my (Disney World) parade last night, and here I thought there was never any inclement weather at the Happiest Place on Earth.

And I’m not talking any old rain — it was a thunderstorm accompanied by wild gusts, causing parade-goers to scurry like rats. You gotta give it to the park’s “cast members,” however. They gamely performed and marched on, bolstered by cheers and applause from the soggy crowd.

Speaking of that crowd, most of what was left of it, my family included, huddled under a small, covered bench area during the show, and was still standing there long after the last lighted float had rounded the corner and out of sight. Now what?

Well, I had faith in Disney’s famously solicitous crew — they would save us. They’d bring umbrellas, hot chocolate, you’ll see. That’s what Walt would do.

Minutes passed, ticking quickly toward midnight. My wet daughters began to claw at our clothes — “Let’s go!” — and the tourists around us began debating game plans in French, Spanish and English.

“Well, I guess I’m just going to have to make a run for it,” muttered the guy standing next to us in a Southern drawl. And off he hoofed, leaving the rest of us to watch after him dolefully.

Well, I guess we were going to have to make a run for it, too. My girls had on thick hooded sweatshirts and my husband was at least wearing a baseball cap.

Me? I had nothing.

We bolted. Down Main Street, away from Cinderella’s Castle and toward the railroad station, standing like a beacon at the park entrance. We pulled our now-delighted girls behind us, trying to keep them from stopping and splashing in every puddle that we encountered.

No such luck.

When we reached the first shops, we stopped to catch our breath. And, of course, The Spouse decided that that was a good time to buy himself and the kids some ice cream. Because it’s always a good time for ice cream.

While he was doing that, I ducked across the street and into a store where I noticed people streaming out, wearing white vinyl ponchos. Aha! I knew Uncle Walt wouldn’t let us down. Up at the counter, I gave a broad smile. Two adult ponchos and two kid ponchos, please. And that would be $30.

OK.

As I worked my way back to the door, I bumped into a damp woman and her family: “Oh, good! Where did you get those?” she asked in a slight European accent. “Over there,” I pointed. “Four are $30.”

“What?!” she exclaimed, her eyes protruding. “When we were here the last time, they gave them out for free!”

Well, thank goodness I wasn’t the only one with sunny-side-up expectations.

In the end, everything turned out fine. It was a great day, and for my girls, the rain was one of the best parts, trumping most of the rides. (Although not the spinning tea cups. They rode those twice — wisely before dinner.)

The forecast today calls for partly cloudy skies. I’m taking the ponchos with us when we go back this afternoon.

Mine already has a hole in it.

(You’ll find links to Web sites with helpful tips, information and more on the Cool Travel Sites page. –G. Gross)