I've been visiting Disney World with my teens since they were young. Here are their pros and cons.

• I'm a theme-park journalist who's been taking my kids to Walt Disney World for a decade.
• I recently asked them what they liked and didn't like about their 10 years of visiting Disney.

The first time I took my kids to Disney World, they were 3 and 5 years old. We lived in Maryland at the time. We made a few more trips during their younger years and eventually moved to a small beach town about 90 minutes from Disney when they were 6 and 8. Like any good Floridian, we signed up for annual Disney passes and started visiting more.

Since moving to Florida, I've attended press junkets for the opening of new attractions like Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway and Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, and my kids have been able to come with me.

This has given my kids lots of fun experiences and special memories, but I'd be lying if I didn't also say having a theme-park writer as a mom has sometimes been exhausting for them. In fact, in recent years we've let their annual passes expire, because in a lot of ways they feel "Disneyed out."

Here's what my now 13- and 15-year-olds say they loved and didn't love about spending so much time in Disney parks over the course of a decade.

A lot of attractions at Disney just aren't worth the wait

If I had known 10 years ago that I'd be writing an article like this, I might have clocked how many hours we've standing in long lines at Disney parks — it's a lot. While we've always used the former FastPass system and current Genie+ system for skipping attraction lines, we've still done our fair share of waiting for any rides that were a must for my kids.

Looking back, they say many of the lines were too long and the ride often wasn't worth the wait, either because the attraction itself was so short or just not entertaining enough to merit spending so much time waiting.

Parades and fireworks are only fun if you get a great view

One thing my kids both agree is worth waiting for is a prime seating spot for the parades and nighttime fireworks shows offered at Disney parks. Whenever we prioritize an event like this, we make sure to grab some snacks and drinks and choose a great seat along the parade route or close to the fireworks. It's a good opportunity to rest and refuel, and seeing the show without battling crowds is well worth it.

The cast members at Disney make it magical

After over 10 years of visiting Walt Disney World, my kids have special memories of encountering cast members (Disney's term for employees). Disney magic feels real thanks to the people who work there. When my daughter Kennedy was small, she met a cast member who shared her name; she was so excited to meet another Kennedy that he let her wear his name tag. It's a memory she still talks about when we walk through that section of Disney's Hollywood Studios years later.

A lot of the pricey souvenirs weren't worth it

As much as my daughter had to have that Elsa doll at the time or my son wanted to make a lightsaber after riding Star Tours, we all laugh now about how many of their must-have items ended up being donated to Goodwill. Sure, $30 churro ears are adorable, but in the end, most of the novelties my kids were desperate to own faded out of fashion fast.

Even when you're a 'cool' teenager, Disney is a safe place to act like a kid

Although they're at an age where there's pressure to fit into a mold or impress friends, my kids agree that Disney remains a safe place to act like a kid and have fun. Am I raising two future Disney adults? Maybe, but I'm OK with that. Although they don't visit Disney with me as often now, when they do, I can see them let their guard down and enjoy the fun of it all, something that makes my mom heart happy.

As my kids have grown, they've found new ways to enjoy Disney

While my kids now give me a hard no for things like waiting in line to ride Seven Dwarfs Mine Train or taking photos with Mickey and Minnie during a character dining experience, some Disney experiences still capture their new teenage interests. My son loves spending a day in the parks with me, especially at Disney's Hollywood Studios, where he gets his fill of movie-themed attractions like Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge and Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular.

My daughter loves spending an evening at Disney Springs, Disney's shopping, retail, and entertainment district, where we'll eat a fancy dinner somewhere like Wine Bar George and indulge her love of shopping. As a theater fan, she also loves seeing the Cirque du Soleil show at Disney Springs, "Drawn to Life."

While I know my kids sometimes feel tired of visiting Disney, I'll never regret the times I took them to the theme parks. I smile when I see photos of my daughter meeting Elsa for the first time at age 4 or my son and I having dinner together at our favorite restaurant at Disney's Hollywood Studios, Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant. Our visits together when they were little allowed us to spend quality time together and make amazing memories.

In the future, I know we'll continue to visit Disney, but on their terms and arranged around their much busier teenage schedules. The good news is that Mickey Mouse and the magic he's helped my family create aren't going anywhere anytime soon.