What kind of mother takes her toddler into a Haunted Mansion?

So we went to Disneyland when Derek was just a few weeks shy of 3 years old (under three gets in for free!) All in all, he was remarkably well behaved, especially considering that most of the time he was strapped into a stroller. With the smorgasbord of interesting and exciting sights and activities around him, I'm sure he would have preferred to be allowed to wander and investigate it all for himself!

Speaking of excitement...I guess I was caught up in some form of it because I neglected to stop and think about the "scare factor" before (or even while) we waited to enter the Haunted Mansion attraction. This is what Disney's website has to say about the Haunted Mansion: "The ride itself is gentle, but young children may be frightened by the special effects."

Note to Mummy: DUH!!!!

But I was in frazzled-mummy-coordinating-vacation mode, and I had neglected to read the Disney.com ride warnings ahead of time, so we allowed ourselves to be herded into the "stretching room" of the Mansion tour with a totally unsuspecting, and innocently trusting little blonde boy in tow...

The "stretching room" (actually a large descending elevator) is where the Haunted Mansion attraction starts: Once the elevator is loaded, the doors slither shut (an optical illusion causes them to disappear into the wall), and then all the lights suddenly go out. Approximately 60 anxious people are standing like sardines in complete darkness and utter silence for about 3 seconds before some thunderous lightning crashes and flashes and the spooky narrator starts talking. As the doors slid closed, Derek's grip on my hand became extra tight. Then the lights went out, and as if on cue, Derek's sweet but shrill voice shattered the pitch black silence with a loud and desperate exclamation of

"Let's get out of here!"

This was uttered as he simultaneously and instantaneously found a way to get from the floor to my HEAD and firmly wrap his arms around my neck in a headlock hug of terror! It was both heartbreaking and hilarious in the same split second! I barely had a moment to reassure him before the lightening, thunder and ghostly narration began...but by clinging to me tightly and burying his head in my armpit, he managed to keep most of his composure for the duration of the ride. Of course the guilt-ridden worry-wart in me fears that the scary soundtrack will haunt him for years to come!