OH NO! IT'S POOH! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!

I've known a few characters in my time. I mean it in both senses of the word, but I really want to talk about the people who play the Characters in the Parks. In fact, I've had conversations with people who were two of the most popular characters at Disney World. Mickey and Tigger.

That resulted in a very interesting revelation. The Castmembers who work inside those costumes generally prefer the adults who approach them. Part of it is that the adults usually play along with the act. They get a kick out of seeing grown people get as excited to see them as the kids. In a good-natured way.

Another part of that is that adults don't cry or scream in fear when they see them. Unfortunately, many children, especially very young children, do. Sometimes not shattering the illusion of fantasy has a dark side. And that is, that suddenly the safe little cartoon characters your toddler was happily watching when at home are now extremely huge, with unnatural proportions and very oddly silent.

My own daughter doesn't like any of the characters she isn't familiar with. She accepted Mickey and the gang, but didn't want to have anything to do with Chip N' Dale or Meeko from Pocahontas the last time we went. Her experience up to then had been Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on the Disney Channel and old Mickey cartoons. I've since remedied that situation by exposing her to more films, especially the characters that are most commonly encountered. She still won't have anything to do with costumed characters outside of Disney World, however. And these are just the good guys! Keep in mind that a child could have a huge freak out if they actually see a villian. In my daughter's case it would be Maleficent or the Hag from Snow White.

There are some ways to ease this situation, however before you book that character meal. Let them see the live action Disney Sing-along DVDs set at the Parks, where they can see real kids interacting with the characters. This gives them a sense of scale and what to expect. Also, during other parts of the year you can test them out with Santa and the Easter Bunny closer to home. Chances are they will react the same way at Disney World.

If you want to show them the character ahead of time, here is a list of the characters that seem to pop up the most frequently and usually also have short lines compared to the long ones to see Mickey (And he's always a special case). All others appear only in certain areas at certain times or require a long wait in line inside a building. They aren't as unexpectedly and frequently encountered as the following:

Chip N' Dale
Pluto
Goofy
Tigger
Rafiki (The Lion King)
Louie (Jungle Book)
Baloo (Jungle Book)
Mr. Fox (Pinocchio)
Cinderella's Mice
Meeko

Still, your child may act in ways you don't expect in such a different environment than they are used to. So be sure to back off and don't force them to see characters if they don't want to.