Let the fun begin MAW/GKTW PTR Chase June 23-29-2010 [Archive] - The DIS Discussion Forums

wish_upon_a_star35

03-17-2010, 03:50 PM

Hello everyone! Let me introduce myself. I am very new to this board but have been lurking around and reading for 3 days! :D

My name is Leah and last year my beautiful daughter Selah got her very own wish through the Make a Wish Foundation. She loves princesses (of course) and DORA a trip to Disney made perfect sense. Selah was four when her wish was granted. Along for the trip were Courtney, my 14 year old daughter, Chase 3 (gets his very own wish) and my mother!

Background on Selah. I was a foster parent for 5 years and Selah was my very first placement. I had no intentions taking infants because my daughter was 9 at the time. I was thiking I would foster children close to her age. For some reason when I got the call for Selah, something in me said "Do it." I never blinked, never thought twice. Selah was born three months premature weighing 1lb 8ounces. She was on oxygen and an apnea monitor because she had stoppped breathing several times. When I met Selah she was one month old and still in the hospital. She had been transferred to a special "preemie" hospital so that she could get more individual care. I instantly fell in love :D

It was a very long road medically and our journey unfortunately isn't over. Selah suffers from a chronic lung disease and only has a few months out of the year that she isn't suffering. (a little of spring and a little of fall) I had no idea how difficult it was going to be to care for a sick infant, but everything fell into place, we developed a routine and with a lot of support from family and friends, we made it work. So much so that I often fostered two babies at a time!

Our fostering journey lead me to be able to become her forever mommy and for that I am eternally greatful. People always say how blessed she is to have me, but it is honestly the other way around!

I heard about Make A Wish through another family who had just returned from a trip. I honestly had never thought about a wish...I didn't know a lot about the organization. And like most people I thought that wishes were exclusive to termially ill chilldren.

This is getting long...I can ramble on and on. I'm going to come back shortly. I have so much to tell.

But I am really glad that I have found this place and so happy that my son will get a wish of his very own!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-17-2010, 06:21 PM

So when my little Selah was 2 years old I got another call for a baby..fresh out of the hospital's NICU! A baby boy! My little Chase! I was excited and scared at the same time, I'd never fostered a boy before.

I was so excited when I went to visit him for the first time. He was tiny as he was also a preemie. He only weighed a little four pounds when I took him home. The nurses were all very nice and helpful. It was then that I found out that he was exposed to several harmful drugs before he was born. The nurses told me what to expect and what to look out for.

He was so tiny and thin that he had a lot of extra wrinkly skin around his kneees and elbows. But he was so precious!

Almost immediately I started to notice a few things that scared me. He did NOT like to be held. He would cry until you put him down. I had to swaddle him tightly so while we were in the house most of the times he only had on a diaper, booties, a onesie and a hat. He would not let me hold him while I fed him, I'd have to put him in his baby seat and hold the bottle. So I'd try to get as close to him as I could, I'd put my cheek next to his and just talk to him, hum to him and sing to him to try and keep him calm.

I noticed that he would not hold his baby formula down. Projectile vomitting is putting it mildly. I found out later that he had a problem with one of his valves and reflux. About one month into caring for him he began wheezing and he stopped breathing several times also. It was a very rough time but I found out that he too had a lung disease. So tiny, and fragile but at the time so strong. He has always been a trooper!

When he was around three months a family member was playing with him and she noticed that he would not make eye contact with her while she sang or cooed. I had explained that to her earlier and when she tried it she noticed the same. About three months later we noticed his eyes turning in. He is actually scheduled to have surgery to correct that this coming May!

During the time while he was an infant things were pretty difficult. He cried for the first five months of his life basically nonstop. But magically after around five and a half months he just stopped out of nowhere and then came the smiles! Oh what a joy it was to see my little guy happy! The bond was unbreakable by that point and I knew that I would get to adopt him very soon! I was overcome with joy to learn that his adoption date was actually schedule on National Adoption Day! What a blessing!

Be back later with more!

tinytreasures

03-17-2010, 06:28 PM

Welcome :lovestruc
I can't wait to hear all about your wish popcorn::

wish_upon_a_star35

03-17-2010, 10:48 PM

Thank you tinytreasures! I can't wait for things to really start happening. I guess things are actually moving along pretty well because.......

I got a letter in the mail today from Make a Wish! Our wish granters have been identified AND they are the same two wonderful women who did my daughter's trip!! How awesome is that????? So the letter says that they will contact me within 7 days to schedule a day to come out and talk to Chase about his wish :goodvibes

Hmmm..so where did I leave off? Okay so after I adopted Chase (his nickname is DJ <---long story, I will fill you guys in one day soon!) Things were going very well. But I knew between the two little ones and my biodaughter who has mental health issues, I had my hands extremely full!

I am a single mom and I just really felt that I could handle the three children I had very well...but to continue fostering, would put a strain on the house so after a lot of consideration I decided to close my home. It was sooo bittersweet. I never thought that I would adopt one..let alone two precious angels. My goal was to help as many children for as long as I could until they could return back home to their families.

But you know what they say...if you want to make God laugh...make plans! He truly had his own plans and I am more than happy to continue to be a vessel!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-18-2010, 02:51 PM

So I have decided that after I get the information about the dates etc. I am not going to tell the kids! I want it to be a surprise. I'm not going to say one word. I'm going to pack their things while they are not around and the morning of the trip I am going to get them up and surprise them! I really hope this works.

I know that they will know we are going somewhere, especially my oldest. She's 14 and she knows that Chase got a wish. She is going to be sooo excited!! I really hope I can keep this secret!!!

Anyway, today is a beautiful day! The sun is shining and it's almost 70 degrees. After the long winter we had, this is definitely a welcome change!

Now I said I would explain why we nicknamed Chase, Dj! Well when I found out that I could adopt him I was looking forward to changing his name. Since he was still a newborn when I found out I would be able to adopt we had never called him by his biological name. It was a very old fashioned name. So trying to find a name for him became a real challenge. My oldest daughter Courtney came up with a name that she liked and we thought it would stick. Dallas Jordan. So we called him DJ for short. That worked really well. But whenever we called him Dallas....it just didn't seem right. So we came up with the Name Chase Jordan about a month before his adoption was finalized....so you ask why didn't we just call him CJ? :rotfl:Well...he doesn't look like a CJ..and that didn't fit either, lol. So we call him Chase...or DJ for short!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful day today! I am taking the kids to get their pictures taken this evening.

By the way, I would love to post pictures here but I have NO IDEA how to go about doing that. Any assistance would be great!

Thanks!

Mtopher4

03-18-2010, 05:08 PM

Hi... Yeah another wish trip.. WOW a single Mom with 3 kids and special needs ones at that.. You ROCK

Looking forward to reading more

wish_upon_a_star35

03-19-2010, 03:01 PM

Thank you Mtopher4! It's hard work but I love it!

Now onto some more good news! I got a call this afternoon from one of the wish granters! They are going to come out on Monday morning! YAY!!!! I'm really excited and looking forward to meeting with them again.

I have no plans for the weekend at all. Too much running around during the week so I'm actually looking forward to the down time.

I hope everyone is well! :)

wish_upon_a_star35

03-20-2010, 07:42 PM

So far this weekend has been extremely nice! I took the kids to the park and let them play themselves silly. They got so dirty I couldn't wait to come home and give them a bath!

1 down...two to go. My little Selah is sleeping soundly! I think it's really awesome that Disney Channel is showing a lot of classic movies today. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is on right now. Mulan comes on next.

I'm really looking forward to meeting with the wish granters on Monday. I didn't even tell the kids they were coming! :)

cmp1111

03-20-2010, 08:18 PM

Wow. You are one special lady. My biological twins were only 8 weeks premature (I say only, compared to your situation, but...) and were born around the 4 pound mark. Smaller, and with issues, and on your own... You're fantastic. :goodvibes

I never feel like I explain this well, but here's the picture process:
1. Upload the pictures to a photo sharing site. I like photobucket.com - it's free and very easy to use, and you can make it private. Because the DIS is so large, we just can't "store" all the photos the members would put up, so you can't upload your pictures directly to the DIS.
2. If you use photobucket, under each picture you should see a link to "share" photos. You want a direct link, with a full http://www address.
3. Keeping the photobucket and DIS windows open on separate tabs, copy the web or sharing address, then click on the little "mountain" icon you can see in the DIS window, at the top of where you type your posts.
4. That mountain will open a window where you copy the full web address of the picture.
5. Voila, once you post the post, the pictures should turn up.

For more help, see:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1977120
on our Tech Board. :)

wish_upon_a_star35

03-20-2010, 09:24 PM

Thank you very much cmp1111! I'm going to try my hand at posting pics of everyone tomorrow!

I've heard of photobucket before. I'm kind of challenged when it comes to some things so hopefully it will work well.

Aww twins! I LOVE babies. Caring for preemies was definitely a challenge. But I so loved watching them grow and get healthier! It continues to be such an exciting journey!

Well, tomorrow starts me and the little ones 100 book challenge. We are participating in it through our local library! So we will see how that goes! Courtney, my oldest daughter, already does something similar at her school. I'm pretty excited to see how it will turn out!

I hope everyone has a wonderful night!

tinytreasures

03-21-2010, 05:01 PM

Yah for wish granters coming
you have to have 10 posts I think to post pictures ;)

we just told the kids we were going to Disney world on monday they didn't have a clue we were leaving on sunday to get there :lmao:

wish_upon_a_star35

03-21-2010, 05:17 PM

I LOVE that tinytreasures! I'm really excited. One of the wish granters called to say that the other wish granter needed to change the day to Tuesday! Which is actually better for me! I'm still very excited!

I just want the kids to be surprised. And the two little ones will understand that we are going somewhere, but until we get on that airplane I don't think it will sink in.

Now my oldest, Courtney??? She definitely is excited and I already told her that I'm not sure what his wish will be or when we are going. I told her that I wasn't going to tell her the date and she LOVED the idea of being totally surprised!

I sooo hope I can pull it off. It will be hard keeping it a secret. But I have you guys to talk to about it!

Oh, thanks for letting me know about the 10 post mininum! I already started putting a ton of pics on photobucket! So as soon as I reach my goal I'll give it a try!

mrsksomeday

03-21-2010, 06:13 PM

You are a wonderful person for being a foster parent then adopting :goodvibes. It is really fun surprising someone with a Disney trip. Good luck on Tuesday, I can't wait to read all about it and see your pictures.

wish_upon_a_star35

03-21-2010, 08:26 PM

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/064.jpg

I am sooo hoping this works!!

Here is a picture of me and the kids!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-21-2010, 08:28 PM

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/064.jpg

Hoping this works!!

Selah, Me, Chase and Courtney!

mrsksomeday

03-21-2010, 08:31 PM

You and your children are gorgeous, what a beautiful family!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-21-2010, 08:34 PM

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/07670032.jpg
baby chase!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-21-2010, 08:37 PM

http://http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/17580009.jpg

Chase and Selah before his first haircut!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-21-2010, 08:38 PM

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/17580016.jpg
Little Miss Selah

wish_upon_a_star35

03-21-2010, 08:41 PM

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/17580021.jpg

After looking at these pictures, I realize how much I miss when they were this little!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-21-2010, 08:43 PM

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/07670031.jpg

Sisterly Fun!!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-21-2010, 08:45 PM

You guys are really in for it, lol! Tomorrow I will post some pics of Selah's Disney Wish Trip!

I'm really glad I found you guys! I hope everyone has a wonderful evening!

We've Harry Potter'd ourselves to death this weekend! We are HUGE Harry fans and ABC Family has been showing the movies all weekend. We have all the movies, but there's just something about them coming on regular tv that gets us all excited!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-22-2010, 09:05 AM

This was all of us outside of our villa. My mom and chase, me, courtney and little miss selah (she was getting sleepy!)

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Selahs%20Wish%20trip%20Disney%202009/000_0003.jpg

wish_upon_a_star35

03-22-2010, 09:09 AM

Selah getting ready to ride her horse. We were at the Village!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Selahs%20Wish%20trip%20Disney%202009/DSC01243.jpg

She was getting kind of scared!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Selahs%20Wish%20trip%20Disney%202009/DSC01246.jpg

Mtopher4

03-22-2010, 11:46 PM

So true.. You and your kids are beautiful :-)

Thank you so much for sharing the pics :-)

Can't wait to hear about the wish granters coming tomorrow:yay:

wish_upon_a_star35

03-23-2010, 10:21 AM

Well, it's a rainy day here in Pittsburgh but you sure couldn't tell from my house!

I told my son that he is having special friends coming this evening to see him and he is so excited! He doesn't even know who or for why, but he keeps saying he can't wait to see his friends lol!

We are even going to make some cookies for his special friends...hmmmm maybe that's why he's so excited!

I will definitely keep you guys posted and let you know how everything goes tonight!

I'm not sure if my oldest daughter is going to be home in time. She has pre audition rehersals tonight and won't be home until close to seven, I think!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-23-2010, 06:25 PM

The wish granters just left not too long ago! I'm so sad that my battery on my digital camera died!!!

Anyway, the little ones were extremely excited! The wish granters came with all kinds of MAW goodies. T-shirts, balls, water bottles and a beautiful MAW bear for the wish boy!

We caught up on everything that's been going on over the past year. And guess what? They remembered something that I had been going through with Selah! Selah as really bad sleep issues (that's another topic for another day) but they are not your typical I don't want to go to bed issues. These are she stays awake for three whole day issues!!!

Anyway it was nice of them to remember and ask me how she is doing and if thing improved! They asked Chase all kinds of questions. Most of which he just smiled and laughed! He is sooo silly. They asked him what kinds of things does he like. He told them he likes spaceships, boats, trains, plains, motorcycles and moster jam trucks, lol.

I asked him if he wanted to be someone and he said NEMO!

They asked him if he wanted to go somewhere and he said "I want to go back to Disney World!" :goodvibes

So I gave them some dates! One of the wish granters daid that Halloween is a great time to go because some (or one) of the parks stay open a little later and they have a seperate parade and all kinds of things. She said that only people with the special pass can get in. You can purchase the pass for an additional fee. MAW takes care of all that.

Hmmm.....now I'm not so sure when to go, lol. The dates I gave were in May and June.(early June)

His birthday is in Novemeber.

Because of the children's breathing difficulties early June is the latest that I think it would be safe for them to go...and that might be pushing it a little.

I better give it some more though!

So what do you guys think??

tinytreasures

03-23-2010, 07:07 PM

love the pictures :love:
we are huge Harry Potter fans here too we watched all weekend long also
Yah for the wish granters

dh and I went last yr to the Halloween party it was so much fun I know it is a long way out but it was a blast

wish_upon_a_star35

03-24-2010, 07:15 AM

hmmmmm!!!! Now I don't know what to do!! lol What was the halloween party like? I don't konw if I'll be able to keep my secret that long! But that would be so coool!

I was just thikning about somethings that I would do differently this time around. We were actually Disney First timers last year! I went to disney when I was like 7 but that doesn't count, lol. I think they were just finished with Epcott maybe?

Anyway there are some differences. My mom isn't going to go this time. Our MAW chapter was extremely gracious in allowing her to go. She does not live with us however she was supposed to go to help me out with the littles. Plus I don't drive, due to a medical condition so we figured this would be the best way. Well, the kids were a bit much for grandma! I'm used to the chaos and hustle and bustle because I'm with them everyday. Grandma, wasn't as enthusiastic about helping out as I thought she would be. Not mad at her at all. But I knew then, if we ever got a chance to go back or anywhere else for seven days that it would just be me and the kids.

So, with no second pair of adult hands and no minivan, we are going to have to plan....plan...plan!!!

The first thing is the airport!!! When we went last year it was winter here, so we had coats and everything to deal with. We had to de-layer to go through the line. This time we are going simple. Can you say FLIP FLOPS!!!! Also my son is a very busy little guy! We only had one portable dvd player last year. This year I'm going to purchase an extra one. Plus in his carryon, lots of little things to keep him busy! Any ideas for what worked for some of you would be very helpful!

The other thing that I am trying to decide about is when to go to the parks. Last year we went in the morning, first thing!! By 3-4 oclock the little ones were pooped and we were leaving to go back to the village. So we never made the fireworks. My kids aren't huge fireworks fans but I think it would be nice to see anyways. But I've read a lot of reviews about how long it took to wait, and how a lot of poeple couldn't get good spots! I also read about how long it took to get out of there when it was time time to go...so... I don't know if we're going to try for it or not.

I was thiking that we could maybe go early one day, go back to the village to unwind and then maybe go back just for the fireworks???? UGH!!!!

I'm really getting excited. Because if I don't hold out until Halloween, or Chase's birthday which is in November, we could be going as early as the end of May!!!!!! Anyone going in May? How about around Halloween??? Or around Novemeber 14th!!!

I'm going to drive you guys nuts.

I also realize I better put my trip link in my signature!!! I keep forgetting!

Hope everyone's day is off to a magical start!

pacrosby

03-24-2010, 10:28 AM

Hi Leah!

Welcome:)

Have you found the 'Wish Trippers Unite' thread? It's under the 'Disabilities' forum (not the 'Disabilities Community' forum, just 'Disabilities'). There are alot of Wish trippers in the planning stages here and I'm sure they don't realize you are here or they'd all be posting to welcome you and help you out. There's also a bunch of us who have already gone and now are in the midst of writing our Trip Reports (I would be one of those, we went in December). So hurry up and pop on over and introduce yourself oik? :)

BabyEeyore

03-24-2010, 10:47 AM

You are a great person to foster and adopt. It takes a special person. :) Your family is beautiful! I can't wait to read more.

lbuzz52

03-24-2010, 12:02 PM

First of all, it seems that you really have a great outlook on life! i wish more people did:goodvibes

your family is beautiful!

we went last year actually over halloween. it was an outright blaaaasstt! i would definitely recommend it.

what we did was scheduled a breakfast early, and then went back and took naps. we went back to the magic kingdom late afternoon for the party. there are trick or treat stations, tons of characters (some you dont see during the regular year), shows, dance stations with characters, etc. they have two parades and in between them they have fireworks. the fireworks are 360, so you dont actually have to find a spot to sit and wait for them- you can see them from everywhere. then we scheduled the next day lighter becuase of our late night. we picked somewhere it wasn't as crucial to be there early for fastpasses.

the weather was really nice- still summer like. and the crowds were really really light.

wish_upon_a_star35

03-24-2010, 02:50 PM

You know sometimes things happen so fast you don't even see them coming. Selah was a little under the weather last week. She missed a few days of school. She had a lot of congestion and wheezing but no fever. The worse was her coughing. Her condition has her coughing constantly while she is sick. Then comes the wheezing..and the shortness of breath or the no breaths (very scary)

But she did so much better over the weekend. But I noticed Chase coughing a little...nothing major!

So today I get both of the kids up for school and give meds and breathing treatments.

Chase's school bus comes and he is so excited! He LOVES riding on his "Little school bus!" and his drivers are awesome!

Next I walk with Selah to school and stay a few minutes to get her settled. Once I get home and start cleaning up I get a phone call from Chase's school that he is having a really hard time breathing. They were nice enough to call the bus company and bring him home. RIGHT after I hang up the phone it's Selah's school calling saying that she seems to be having a hard time breathing, so I immediately run out the house (forgot my shoes :eek: so I had to run back) but I go to pick her up and bring her home. Just as I get int he door, Chase's bus pulls up. So I've got two sick little ones. Now with Selah whenever she wheezes I HAVE to take her to see her Ped. I call the nurse and she says the magic words "Bring her in" I tell her that Chase is sick too so they opened slots for both the kids.

Needless to say that I have to very tired and cranky little ones at home. And even after being seen at the Pediatrician's office, things aren't sounding too good here. So it looks like we are off to the ER! My third home!

Just wanted to update everyone while I have time. Plus I have to wait until Courtney gets home in a few minutes to leave.

If you guys could please say an extra prayer for my little ones tonight we would greatly appreciate it!

Will update as soon as I get a chance!

BabyEeyore

03-24-2010, 03:09 PM

Your family will be in my prayers! :hug:

Momofwishkid

03-24-2010, 04:50 PM

Im so glad you came over to the wish thread and introduced yourself so Welcome!! You have a beautiful family. So amazing you get to go on a second Disney Trip but Im sorry your situation allows it. I will be keeping the kids in my thoughts. Hope it's nothing to serious.

cantwaittoseemickey

03-24-2010, 05:11 PM

Hi Leah. Thanks for posting in the Wish Trippers thread. I missed your ptr somehow. I am in awe at the gift you have given these children. Your family is beautiful!

I hope they both feel better soon!

tinytreasures

03-24-2010, 07:12 PM

prayers for your little ones
update us when you can

xanphylus

03-24-2010, 09:02 PM

Awww.... poor little guys! Hope they feel better soon. I hate it when my little one is sick and he doesn't have special needs, much less do I have 2 little ones sick at the same time! We will def pray for you guys!! :goodvibes

I love your PTR so far and hope to read lots more! We went during the halloween party and it rocked! My youngest turned 1 the day after the party and even he had fun. You can go look at pictures of it if you like on my TR- I will get to that section tonight. Maybe they will help you decide if the party is for you! My 9 year old loved it for sure though.

yinyanggirls

03-25-2010, 01:03 AM

Hurray for another Wish Trip!!:woohoo: Your family is beautiful. My husband and I adopted both of our girls (the youngest was our foster child first, also finalized on Nat'l Adoption Day!). They both have some "issues" but my oldest is the "special needs" child who is going on her wish trip in about 3 weeks!!!:eek: It's so nice to meet you guys. I don't know how you do it as a single mom, so kudos to you!!! Have you narrowed down your dates yet?
Hope everyone is doing better today. :hug:

aspinc2001

03-25-2010, 02:09 AM

Hope your little one's are OK! I loved reading your story. My 6 year old son is adopted. They told us at the orphanage that he had several medical issues but he's perfectly healthy. We were mentally prepared for special needs and were stunned when we got home and he didn't have any real issues. Since my parents live with us and my dad is paralyzed, God probably knew that we would already be busy with their needs. I wish I could take my dad to Disney one last time but he cannot sit up at all and we have to transport him on a stretcher. I've sent my mother to Disney (with my aunt) for her birthday for the last 2 years. I had a scooter dropped off at her resort. She has a great time and loves it. I guess that's her wish trip. Praying that your little ones are home from the hospital. I work at one and know they aren't a fun place for adults or children. God bless!!!

maroo

03-25-2010, 08:40 AM

Hello!

First of all, I hope your kids are feeling much better today! :hug:

As far as dates...I LOVE the Halloween season. But...I think the first thing to think through is what time of year is best for your kids...the Halloween party is fun, but if they are feeling bad...it won't be worth it.

I like the times of the year when the parties are going on because it gives a wish family an extra "day" of Disney while they are there. Usually MAW trips only get three days of Disney, 1 of Sea World and 2 Universal (and you basically have 5 full days to use the tickets.

We went in early October and it was a great time to go. The weather was cooler (but still warm! and sometimes hot, honestly).

In my signature I have a PINK link to Lauren's trip report. It has links on there so that you can see particular posts. I posted a link of them at the Halloween Party. It was one of the highlights of our trip.

Fireworks at Disney are magical. If they really hate the loud noises, you can get ear plugs for the kids. If they REALLY are not going to do well, you could always go the beach at the Polynesian (anyone can go out there to watch) and stand close to a speaker...they will pipe the music in so you can hear it...and you can watch from there. Generally, though, Disney does a good job of picking fireworks that are more pretty than loud...if that makes any sense.

There are activities at GKTW that you are probably going to want to catch, too, though...so the evenings are a bit hard to plan - lots to do and not so many nights to do them. :confused3

The key with planning the trip is that you know your kids and what they will like - so just go with your gut. Go with your gut on everything...dates, activities, parks...all of it. :) And we can help with suggestions, too.

I put a link to your TR on the Wish Trippers thread! :)

wish_upon_a_star35

03-25-2010, 02:50 PM

Okay, let me first thank all of you guys for your prayers!! What a long night. Selah had to stay overnight but Chase really did not. It was a long, long night. Of course she didn't get much sleep becaue they kept coming in every hour to take her vitals and breathing treatment after treatment.

So now we are home and relaxing! It is so hard staying in the hospital and I am very greatful not to have had too many overnights with the kids.

Now, onto the fun stuff!!! So I've been back and forth about when to go. And I would really like to go around Halloween, but after thinking about it a lot. That is generally the start of a VERY bad time of the year for us health wise. It was around that time the kids got h1n1 last year. And if memory serves me correctly Selah got admitted shortly after halloween two years ago. So, it may be fun...but it'd be a gamble. So I'm back to leaving around May/June. I'd go in April but Courtney has statewide testing going on. And we definitely don't want her to miss that!

I'm still very excited and looking forward to surprising the kids. As soon as we get a date I'm hitting the stores to go shopping!!! I'm hoping tha the weather is nice this weekend so that I can go out into our shed (that's where I've packed up all of our summer clothes!) It's going to be fun going through everything to see what fits and what doesn't.

One thing I do know is this time around we will not be taking NEARLY as much as we lugged last time. With me being the only adult I know the less baggage we have, the easier it's going to be. Last year I packed about 14 outfits a piece (don't laugh lol ) This year we are packing light with the clothes. We ended up washing each night anyway! I packed a ton of shoes,most of them I didn't even wear. Truthfully I am a flip flop/sneaker kind of gal! We went to Downtown Disney one night and had dinner at Bongos (great cuban food) So I did get a chance to dress up.

The one thing that makes me nervous is the whole airport deal. We were so slow getting through the line and getting the kids together with all of our junk. I definitely have to be more organized this trip and PLAN better. I'm going to make sure that each kid has a little book bag on wheels for their carry on. That way they can drag those themselves.

I'm going to look around at more TR's!! This is sooo addictive! As I'm sure all of you already know :)

Thanks again for reading my little Report and praying for my babies! Prayer really does work, I'm a firm believer of that!!!

Here are some more pictures of us!

Baby Chase again
http://http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/17580008.jpg

Chase on the airplane on our way to Disney!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000006.jpg

Courtney on the airplane!
http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000008.jpg

Selah at the airport in Fl with her sign!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000012.jpg

yinyanggirls

03-25-2010, 04:36 PM

wish_upon_a_star35

03-25-2010, 09:17 PM

Sounds like a good idea to go with your gut on the season. Plus, that means you can go sooner! ;)
I forgot to mention that Phoebe, my oldest and our WISH child, had eye surgery a few years ago. It actually OVER corrected her eyes and now when she is being lazy and not focusing her eyes wander outward. :sad2: I know a couple of other people whose children had the same corrective surgery and had to do more than one to get it right. I'm sure there are many who get it the first try, so I'm not trying to be all "doom and gloom" but just so you are prepared for the possibility.

I'm laughing at the overpacking. We have so many clothes to bring I think we will be changing half way through each day.

Also, I love your girls' hair! I haven't found a good hair place near me to take my youngest to. I'm still hoping it's out there!

yiniyanggirls I just was not thinking at all. I would actually love to go during a holiday, but it wouldn't be good for the kids healthwise! I don't want the kids to be sick during Chase's big wish! We only have a short period of time on each season where Selah is not sick. Chase seems to deal with his condition a lot better than Selah. But sometimes he still has a lot of problems. I just want him to get the most out of his time!

The muscle surgeon was honest enough (thank God) to tell me that he may have to have the surgery more than once. And with our luck I bet he may (but praying he doesn't have to) Since we began patching his good eye, I've noticed that they are both turning in. I feel soo bad. Today I was trying to get him to pell the back off of some stickers (Thomas the Train) and put them onto a paper. And he was having the hardest time. He even had a hard time taking the stickers from between my fingers. He just seems to have a very hard time with things very close to him. And he still avoids direct eye contact. He also avoides a lot of physical contact unless it's on his terms. He will want to sit on your lap. But once he gets on your lap and you go to hug him he will get down immediately. He prefers to "crash into you" I think it's something about "contact" that is tough for him.

He's got a complete developmental/behavioral evaluation coming up next month. I will be very interested in the outcome. Several people have mentioned the possibility of Asperger's...but I'm just not sure.

I've been thinking a lot about our trip today, and I'm gettin nervous. I pray that I can do a good job with the kids on my own. It's easy to handle them in the house or even at the doctors (which is extremely taxing) for a few hours. I wish I had a reliable dependable adult. I'm going to just pray about it and remain positive, focused and have a plan. The one thing I'm not going to do is plan out every detail. I'm going to make a few minor plans. There are a few places that I KNOW the kids want to see. They REALLY loved Universal Island of Adventure. The Suesville area was a hit!! And I'd like to do a character meal. I'm goin to have to reasearch that a bit more. For Selah we went to Epcott and had lunc at Norway. The princesses were AWESOME but the food was NOT kid friendly. And Courtney and Chase are very GOOD eaters. Selah honestly could care less. At five years old she is only 29 pounds and does not eat a lot. She's a milk/pediasure addict.

The kids also like Sea World. I know they really enjoyed seeing the show and we did not get a chance to feed the Dolphins. That's a must. Also I read on another Trip Report about the Clam dive! I now the kids would like that. There was also a lady making gold bracelets. I got myself one last year with my name on it. I didn't get Courtney and Selah one because I though they were tooo young. I lost mine a few months ago and I cried like a baby. I definitely am praying that they are there this year and I will DEFINITELY get the girls bracelets this year!!! And I will guard mine with my life!!!

We absolutely loved doing things at the village. Courtney loved the pool area. Chase LOVED the train and the ice cream. We did the Christmas night! That's another must do!

Selah really enjoyed her time at the beauty salon area. As well as the horses.

Chase was too young last year to ride the horses. I'm wondering if he is old enough this year. I hope so. If he isn't we will probably skip that all together. He had a real meltdown over not being able to ride and I don't want him to have to experience that for "His wish". Does anyone know how old the kids have to be to participate in the horse riding?

I'm sure we will ride the carosel a lot!

The kids did not get tucked in by the Mayor and we are definitely going to do that. We also only had breakfast at GKTW. I'm hoping to have dinner there at least once.

We didn't see Animal Kingdom at all! So we need to go there for sure!

The one thing I am trying to figure out is the beach. Chases LOVES and and water. I would love for him to be able to go to the beach. But without taking my mother along (who drives because I don't due to a medical condition) I don't think we will be able to swing it. We didn't have time last year. I'm thinking though that if Blizzard Beach has sand...maybe we could make that work???? I guess I need to plan more things than I thought!

Well, I pray that all of you guys have a wonderful nights sleep! Dreams of Mickey and Pixie dust!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-25-2010, 09:22 PM

Mtopher4

03-25-2010, 09:56 PM

yinyanggirls

03-26-2010, 01:34 AM

Oh I also forgot to say yinyanggirls! There are some awesome sights on the web with some good ideas about aa/biracial hair ideas! I can pass them along to you and I also have a lot of good websites for hair care products. And in Pittsburgh we have a lot of very cool places to buy hair accessories. If you are looking for anything like beads, barrettes etc. Let me know!! I LOVE shopping for little girls. Thanks for the compliments on the girls hair. They both have something different going on this year! Selah is into beads heavily and Courtney loves braids! They are both so girly and I love it!

Leah, thanks so much. I'll PM you so you can email me the info. We live in a somewhat rural area, so there just isn;t much variety in general. We have to drive 45 mins to a mall, car dealer, chain restaurant, etc. I learned a lot about biracial hair when we first fostered my youngest but it's only now at 4 yrs old that she finally has enough to do something serious with. I have attempted a few simple styles but my carpal tunnel makes me shy of anything too time consuming. Well, enough rambling...I'll PM you. :surfweb:

pnutallergymom

03-26-2010, 07:46 AM

Hi Leah!!!

I just wanted to stop in and say HI!!!! :wave2: Your kids are adorable!!!

Congrats on the wish and I can't wait to keep following along!!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-27-2010, 10:07 PM

Sorry that it has taken me a few days to update. Had some major computer issues :( Had to get another pc and just spent a few days taking care of the little ones!

They are both feeling MUCH better but still have a little ways to go.

I did not get a chance to mail in the documents that MAW needs. Not sure if they were going to use all of the info from last time. But I decided to just make copies of everything all over again and mail it out just incase! Don't want to hold anything up. Still comfortable with going late May or sometime in June. I will call the wish granters on Monday to touch base and let them know that Disney is definitely on Chase's mind! He is really excited about going back. I almost thought about Disney Land, but I really enjoyed watching the kids have so much fun at GKTW!!!!

I have no idea how we are going to do the ride situation. Courtney is going to want to ride all of the thrill rides. I hope she will be able to get on them. I LOVE to ride too, but with me being the only adult I will be happy just to take the little ones on whatever they are able to ride!

Hope that everyone is enjoying the weekend. They go sooo fast. I can't believe tomorrow is Sunday already. I haven't bought one single thing for EASTER!!! I have to get on the ball!

wish_upon_a_star35

03-27-2010, 10:35 PM

Here are some of the pictures that we took during Selah's wish trip when we saw the princesses!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000092.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000093.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000099.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000098.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000095.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000103.jpg

yinyanggirls

03-28-2010, 04:19 PM

Cute princess pics! I love a PTR that has lots of pics. It helps us know you so much better by the time your TR comes around. ;)

wish_upon_a_star35

03-30-2010, 09:14 AM

Hello everyone! Things are pretty much back to normal around here. Selah went back to school today and Chase is off for spring break! But they are both feeling much, much better! Thanks for the well wishes and prayers!

I've been reading a lot of trip reports! It's been some really great reading!

yinyanggirls, I LOVE reading the reports with pictures too!!! I have many, many more to post too!!!

I sent my documents off to MAW yesterday and I'm going to call the wish granters today to touch base! I can't wait to get a date for the trip!!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-01-2010, 08:21 AM

Hope all of you guys are having a great week! Starting today my two little ones are home for spring break. Courtney's last day is today. I really should have planned some things for everyone to do. So I guess that's what I will spend this morning doing. The weather is going to be beautiful so that should help a lot. We definitely have to go to the mall one of these days. That won't be so fun for them. So maybe we can make it to the children's museum or something like that!

I spoke to one of my wish granters the other day and told her that Chase definitely wants to go back to Disney! So now we are just waiting on the dates! I wonder if I have enough time to lose about 20 pounds, lol!

I would really like to plan one character meal. MAW planned one for Selah when we went. I wonder if I should look around and see if there's anything that might be exciting for Chase. He loves Nemo, Cars, Toy story, and all kind of other characters. I will check around!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-02-2010, 12:05 PM

I spoke to one of the wish granters yesterday! Our MAW office is closed today so she told me that I should hear something back next week about a date! She's pushing for May!!! OMG we could be leaving next month. I kept it in the back of my mind but just looking at the calendar and thinking about it makes me smile!!!

I'm sooo excited!!! Looking forward to taking Chase and seeing Disney through his eyes! I am praying for excellent weather and a safe trip.

I do need to call his doctor though. They sent the form for her to fill out saying that it's okay for him to travel. That is going to be on my agenda first thing Monday morning!!!!!

Hope you all are having a good day and Happy Friday! Going to take the kids out to lunch this afternoon, run some errands and take the kids to the park later to wear them out!

kellyw8863

04-02-2010, 01:07 PM

You have a beautiful family.:goodvibes

wish_upon_a_star35

04-02-2010, 07:43 PM

Thanks Kelly!

Well, today was another beautiful day! The weather was awesome and I took the kids out for lunch a little shopping and then we spent the rest of the day at the park. They are all tired out :) I think I'm going to relax and check out a few of the park websites and make myself even more excited! lol

yinyanggirls

04-03-2010, 01:13 AM

Wow, May??? We had a really long wait for our trip and it always amazed me when families would join the Wish board and have only a month (sometimes less!) for planning! How fun to just get the dates and be on your way!

cantwaittoseemickey

04-03-2010, 06:50 AM

:cool1: May would be nice with the flower show going on. But wow is that quick!! Power pack!!:cool1:

wish_upon_a_star35

04-03-2010, 05:51 PM

I was a little surprised at how quickly they will be able to pull it off also. One of the wish granters told me that GKTW is pretty much booked solid for April but there are openings starting around the second week of May on.

Thinking back when Selah got her wish. We started the process in October and she got her wish granted in February.

Today was a very nice day! I took the kids to an Easter egg hunt (forgot to take my camera along) and then I got a little break from the kids for a little while. So I went to the store to get some things for their baskets. They love coloring books and workbooks and I found some really cute ones!

We've been watching Hannah Montanna for the past hour and a half. This is the last episode! We are going to make homemade pizzas and then the sitter is coming because I am going out with a few girlfriends for dinner and a movie! Such a rare occasion but I am going to enjoy it!

Hope you guys had a wonderful day!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-05-2010, 02:51 PM

Boy oh boy did this weekend go by fast! It's another lovely day here! I took the girls to breakfast (Chase had school) and we did a quick bit of grocery shopping.

I called the doctor's office regarding the travel form and they said they got it but it's not filled out. Chase's Dr. is on vacation until tomorrow so I will talk to the dr. then.

Hoping to here about a date sometime this week YAY! Then the fun really begins. The planning and the deciding what to pack and all that good stuff. I've got somethings I need to buy too. Not going to go overboard because I'd rather buy a ton of Disney wear once we get there :cheer2:

Still praying for excellent weather!!

cantwaittoseemickey

04-06-2010, 10:10 AM

wish_upon_a_star35

04-06-2010, 10:12 AM

Well I spoke to one of the wish granters last night. It looks as if I will be able to take another adult. Last year when Selah got her wish my mother came with us. I didn't really think to ask them if she would be able to come this time for several reasons. I know her schedule is busy this time of the year and she wasn't as much help as I needed her to be last time. But I think that her coming along will be a good idea. The Wish Team actually recommended it. So I guess what I've been reading about every chapter being different is so true. So I called my mother last night and talked it over with her. She is going to come.

The only thing is I did give them some dates that we would be available for in June. My mother can't go in June. May is best for her. So I'm going to try and push for anytime in May. If it has to be June then it looks like we may have to go in October or possibly in November around Chase's birhthday and pray really hard that the kids do NOT get sick!

She also said that they are trying to put together a few surprises for Chase's wish :goodvibes How exciting is that! So I will call the wish granter back and tell her that my mom is a GO. They are able to use all of the same info from last year so it looks like we don't have to submit any extra paperwork.

Since the pediatrician was off yesterday I'm calling back this afternoon to get them to fax that travel form!

I am ready to get a DATE!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-06-2010, 10:31 AM

maroo

04-06-2010, 11:20 AM

You guys are just going to have to bear with me, lol. Sooo I just found out that the Harry Potter stuff doesn't open until June 18th?? Well we are HUGE HARRY POTTER FANATICS!!! May might be out, lol!!! Let me go back and check to make sure!!!

YES!

Actually...though...

Some people booked Harry Potter packages starting in late May - May 28th...and Universal has SAID that they WILL allow those select few people in the HP attraction.

BUT...I am POSITIVE...that if they had a wish child on a wish trip that wanted to see it - and it was safe and open to some of the public - that they WOULD let them at least go see it.

Having said that...this summer is going to be CRAZY busy at Universal because of the opening of HP. Even I - who have NEVER been to Universal - am planning a trip to go there.

I think I would highly recommend the fall...but did you say that your kids are more likely to get sick in the fall?? If so...then I don't know what I think. But in the fall you are able to attend a Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party and it is awesome! :) In November it is the Christmas party! :)

Anyway...that is my 10 cents.

I am glad your Mom is going. Hopefully she has a better idea of what it entails now and maybe will be a bit more helpful?

wish_upon_a_star35

04-06-2010, 01:37 PM

Oh man so you have to actually Book the HP package? :confused3 hmmm...Well I put in a call to one of the wish granters. I'm going to run it by her and let them take it from there, lol.

I was thiking....if we don't get to see HP because we end up going in May....Maybe, just maybe I could save for a trip either this November and go specifically for that. I bet airfare for the four of us, a hotel for the weekend and tickets to Universal for two days would be a little pricey but still doable. If not for this November then definitely by Valentines day or early spring!!! I'll wait to find out when we are going. But I have to say...the Harry Potter deal changes a lot. I thought it was already open, lol.

wish_upon_a_star35

04-06-2010, 01:39 PM

When I was looking around the website it talked about the attraction and it sounds absolutely awesome!! They've made a replica of Hogsmeade!!! The Three Broomsticks!! How cool would it be to take pictures of Chase drinking some ButterBeer and eating one of those Chocolate frogs!! He would be in HP Heaven!!!!!

kellyw8863

04-06-2010, 04:34 PM

I hope that you can figure things out and get your dates soon. I was surprised at how stressful it all was while waiting for all the plans to be firmed up. Or maybe that was just due to the fact that I don't do well with waiting.:rotfl2: It would awesome if you could go see HP!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-06-2010, 04:57 PM

Kelly, I am actually going crazy thinking about it!!! All the back and forth is killing me, lol! It's exciting but I get so nervous because so many things are up in the air!

Like right now May is the best time for my mother to go. But Harry Potter is in June so she might not be able to go. That would mean me having to possibly take my cousin. Our MAW office said that they would entertain another adult besides my mother if she couldn't come. The problem with my cousin is that she is soooo slow. She has adult ADD very bad!! She's constantly late but she loves my kids and is a great help! So on one hand you have my mother who is exactly like me. She is a planner and is always ready to go. She loves to drive and get things done. We had a great time exploring all of the sites. She was willing to go to any of the parks. But she just didn't help out with the kids like I felt she could have. She wasn't really open to diaper changes at all. And last year Chase was in diapers and I made Selah wear a pull up while we were at the parks. She didn't want to share a room with any of the kids which was fine...after we figured things out. She wouldn't even take them to go potty :( Rides were really difficult. She would ride the big rides with Courtney. But she didn't do to well waiting with the littl ones while I rode the big rides with Courtney.

If she is the one to go this year we are definitely going to have "The Talk" This is Chase's wish and Disney is a BIG thing. I know the kids are young but I want them to have a fantastic time. And if they do have any memories of these trips when they are older...I want them to have the best and fondest memories. Childhood goes by so fast. And I want my children to have the best childhood that I can give them.

So anyway..now that I've gone off on a tangent, lol. I really hope to wrap all of this up before the end of the week...I hope it can happen.

I did speak to the wish granter again a little while ago! (She has been extremely awesome) and I told her about possibly going during the HP opening. I do have a few concerns about the crowds and things like that. So she said that she would contact the head wish team lady and find out everything she could. She said that she thought it would be AWESOME to go during that time. And anything that they could do to make that time special for Chase, they would definitnely do.

By the way...this is getting so hard to keep from Courtney, lol I am trying so hard. But we are sooo close and talk about a lot of things. She's my go to girl. And it's hard not being able to get excited with her and share all of this!!!!

Thanks for letting me ramble! I think it's time for more pictures in this PTR!!! I think I will have time to post some this evening or tomorrow morning. I need to upload more to photobucket!

wishin' on a star

04-06-2010, 06:31 PM

I just wanted to say hello! You have a beautiful family!! I'm sure you can't wait to get your dates finalized and get some plans made!!! We are going May 17th to GKTW. We got our dates in early March, and it felt pretty close to make all of our dinner plans and such, but it worked. It's going to be such a magical trip!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-06-2010, 08:52 PM

Thank you so much! I am so ready to start making some good plans! I want to do a character meal that my son will absolutely LOVE!!! And see what else I can plan!

I'm just ready to get it started! Plus I feel like I'm going to burst soon! All this secrecy is driving me batty. But I am determined to keep it that way.

wish_upon_a_star35

04-07-2010, 01:38 PM

Such a busy day today! Courtney, my oldest daughter has an audition in a little while for a performing arts charter school. She's been practicing like crazy and today is the big day. If she doesn't get in this year, she can audition again next year.

I'd actually her audition next year and get in! She's only going to grade 8 next year so she still technically has one year to go at the school she is already in. And I LOVE her school! But she wanted to try out so I figured the best thing to do is to back her up and stand behind her 100%.

I have the worse headache today though but I'm still going to get everything together.

I've been reading a LOT of PTR's and TR's and I love it!!! Soo much info on these boards it's crazy!!! Hope you all are having a wonderful day! The weather is awesome again so I am trying to soak up as much of it as I can!

yinyanggirls

04-08-2010, 03:48 AM

That's great that they are letting you bring another adult. Tough decision on which one. :lmao:

cantwaittoseemickey

04-08-2010, 10:54 AM

The HP thing threw me off too lol. My dd is a huge HP fan. We were originally supposed to go in Feb but due to an unforseen emergency we had to reschedule. It worked out for us since now we can go to the HP part. We are going in July. It will be very hot:scared1:

I can understand the hard decision on who to bring. You should really bring the person that will help you the most and be open to what Chase wants to do. Not an easy decision for sure:hug:

wish_upon_a_star35

04-08-2010, 06:40 PM

Okay so I'm really trying to figure out if we should once during HP is open. The week of June 20th is open and possibly the week of the 27th? I'll have to double check though because the wish granter wasn't sure with that being the week of the 4th of July. But maybe I could just say anytime at the end of June?

I need to do more rsearch regarding this whole thing. She said that if we just go during that week that could be fine. She said that we have to be careful though because a wish specifically to go there to see the HP opening is a seperate wish. We don't just want to see the HP stuff though. We'd only spend one whole day there. My mom did say that she could go after the 17th of June. So I will call her back and let her know that anytime after the 17th of June is good. PLUS Courtney is finished with school on the 17th!

But what I'm not sure of is if the opening on June 18th is actually open to the whole public? or just a special event?

wish_upon_a_star35

04-09-2010, 09:10 AM

Chase's doctor faxed the form back saying that it's okay for him to travel! Yay! So today I will call my wonderful wish granter Ericka and give her my dates. If we can go in June I am open to leaving anywhere after June 17th as long as we can return by the 27. If that is not available then anytime in May is good.

So, let's keep our fingers crossed! I'm really pushing it in June becasue of the weather. I bet it's probably very hot. But I will pray about it and make the little ones dr. appt's before we leave so that I can have a game plan. I'm also trying to see if I can get at least one of them a portable nebulizer. That wouuld be awesome. I think what may be on our side is that the weather will be warm here too so we won't be leaving a freezing cold place going to a blazing hot place? When we came back last year of course they both got sick!

Anyway, I hope everyone is doing well! I have NO plans at all for the weekend. This is going to be a weekend to slow down and relax. Lots of movie watching, games with the kids and cuddle time!

yinyanggirls

04-09-2010, 10:42 AM

Sorry, I know nothing about HP. My girls are too young to know the HP stuff and it won't be open yet when we go next week. I'm sure the info is out there somewhere!

I hope you get the dates you ask for! I know that was such a stress for me, waiting to hear back about ours. It took a couple of tries before we found the right combo of availability and what would work for us.

cantwaittoseemickey

04-09-2010, 11:37 AM

wish_upon_a_star35

04-09-2010, 06:38 PM

:goodvibes I spoke to my wish granter again today and gave her the dates! So now I'm just waiting to hear back to find out if we go in June or May. Either way I am psyched!!!!!

That is a GREAT idea about the nebulizer and I am definitely going to ask. I really want to "pack light" this time. We lugged so much crap it was ridiculous and then we came back with even more stuff!! This time I'm going to use my head.

yinyanggirls!! I am gettins soooo excited for you!!!! It's almost time to go. Just think this time next week you will be ready to have a fun filled and exciting week! I can't wait to hear all about your trip!!! It's going to be awesome I just know it!

I was looking through all of my Disney stuff from last year trying to decide how to plan our days. Uggh!!! I want to definitely do more than we did last year. We never made it to AK. I'm thinking we don't need to spend a whole day there. We may be able to do Sea World and AK all in one day. Universal is one day though. We REALLY loved that park. I hope we get to drive to the beach if not I guess Wet N wild will do...or I may spring for Blizzard Beach tickets.

yinyanggirls

04-09-2010, 11:39 PM

I can't believe we leave in a week! June is just around the corner for you!

It is so hard to decide what to prioritize. There is just too little time for all the options!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-10-2010, 09:23 AM

yinyanggirls

04-11-2010, 01:26 AM

It seems to vary from chapter to chapter, and you have to check out of GKTW. They are too full to offer any extensions. Some people have been told absolutely NO extending (Liability issues? someone stuck them with the bill somehow?) and others have been told no problem. Thankfully we were told no problem and our chapter just made our return flight for the date we requested. We check out of GKTW and return the rental car and then we are on our own. I read somewhere that you can move your flight for a fee with the airlines directly, rather than go through MAW, but I don't know the details.

kellyw8863

04-11-2010, 08:43 AM

There is soo much to do in so little time. I really wish I could extend our trip even for a day or two. I wonder if that's even possible.

Well it's finally the weekend. Didn't get a chance to sleep in at all. But I don't mind. Looks like we're going to watch a movie and then see what the day brings!
We were able to extend our trip after signing boatloads of paperwork indicating that we don't hold MAW responsible for any of the planning or finances. We're only able to extend by one day because of our work schedules, but we're all pumped to spend a night at AKL to kind of decompress before heading home. As for the nebulizer, MAW asked us what medical equipment Ali uses on a regular basis. We listed the nebulizer as a strong possibility (we were planning on bringing our own), and when we got the wish paperwork last week, it indicated that one has been rented for us and will be in the villa when we arrive. So if it's something that you do or might use, I would let them know. My guess is that GKTW has a relationship with a local DME vendor.

wish_upon_a_star35

04-11-2010, 09:05 AM

kellyw8863

04-11-2010, 09:07 AM

I will definitely talk to one of th wish granters about the nebulizer. Both of my little ones use it every day. That would be great if all I had to do was bring the meds and not lug the machine! One less thing to pack.

It would be cool to be able to stay at least one extra day! I think some of the tickets are good for two weeks right? That would give us an extra day to at least go to the beach or enjoy another park. Then maybe we wouldn't have to squeaze in two parks in one day.

I guess I will look around and see if I can find a reasonable rate someowhere. I wouldn't have any problems signing any paperwork at all! They've already been so great to us!

That was our thinking, too. It will be nice to have a day to just sit around and do nothing and not feel guilty about it. We booked our room through travelocity.com and paid almost $100 less than what was advertised directly through Disney. I hope that they don't give you a hard time and that you're able to extend.:thumbsup2

wish_upon_a_star35

04-11-2010, 09:19 AM

Haven't posted any pictures in a while!

Here is Selah with her favorite girl Dora!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/082.jpg

The kids all trying to squeaze in the picture while we were at the park!
http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/07670023.jpg

Pictures of the kids in one of the double strollers at one of the parks, lol. I sure can't remember which one!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Selahs%20Wish%20trip%20Disney%202009/DSC01258.jpg

Selah's Adoption Day Party Cake!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/16560025.jpg

Courtney with her face all painted up at the party!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/16560022.jpg

It was waaay past her nap time!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/16560019.jpg

cantwaittoseemickey

04-11-2010, 12:42 PM

Adorable pictures!

yinyanggirls

04-12-2010, 02:21 AM

Cute pics! When we adopted Tessa it was National Adoption Day and the courthouse was so festive! I love that you guys had a party for Selah!

wishin' on a star

04-12-2010, 08:06 AM

Great pics! I can't wait until you get your news about dates!:goodvibes

wish_upon_a_star35

04-12-2010, 11:06 AM

Hello everyone! I am going crazy waiting to hear about the dates!!!! The wish granter that I've beenin contact with is out of town this week. So I'm not sure if the other wish granter will call me this week with good news or not :confused3 I can tell already this is going to be a long drawn out week, lol.

So here's what I did last night to keep myself into the spirit of GKTW and Disney! I dug out my Disney bag! I should be ashamed of myself because I haven't put together a scrapbook from Selah's trip yet. I guess I will be busy this summer doing both of the books!

Anyway I pulled out all of the park brochures to try and come up with some ideas of at least which parks to go see. Now this of course is EXTREMELY tentative. But I came up with something that could work.

Universal (both parks)
Magic Kingdom
Sea World/Disney Studious
Epcott
Animal Kingdom/Wet N Wild or Blizzard Beach

I tried to think of how much fun we had at each park and when I looked at the brochures I rememberd there was a lot that we didn't get to see because the little ones got tired out so much.

I'm sure that we should definitely spend entire days at MK, Epcott and Universal. We could try going early the first time and see how long the little ones will last. IF they get pooped out too early than perhaps we could go later when we have our next "All day park adventure" ? I'm not sure if we'd be up to leave the park, go back to the villa and then go back to the park. That just seems like so much work.

We never made it to Animal Kingdom last year but I'd like to try it this year. From the reviews and just by knowing my kids I don't think that's an all day park for us. I bet if we packed our swim things and got to that park a little after it opens...around lunchtime or a little after they would probably be ready to go. AND they LOVE water parks too.

As soon as I get some dates I'm goin gto plan some ADR's! I don't want to plan too many characther meals because we are going to go to most of the breakfast/character meals at the village! lol

One thing we are definitely doing differently than last year is the shopping. I just found my reciepts from last year. Totally crazy. We went to Walmart everyday and bought most of the souveniers from there. I spent waaay too much money there. About $800 between Walmart and various other little shops. Definitely not doing that. We can take part of a day and hit the outlets or the mall (Courtney LOVES the mall of course) and maybe the first day a visit to Walmart (Nana loves Walmart) that way everyone should be satisfied!

I'd like to really cover some ground at the parks this year. And spend some time at the village as well. Chase REALLY LOVES the train and the candyland park. Chase and Selah BOTH love the carousel and Courtney loves the pool!

I swear I hope we can add at least one more day onto our trip, lol!! I can see why people stay for 2 weeks. If I could afford it, I would definitely do it!!! But we would have to bring bologna and ramen noodles to make that happen lol!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-12-2010, 12:37 PM

Cute pics! When we adopted Tessa it was National Adoption Day and the courthouse was so festive! I love that you guys had a party for Selah!

National Adoption Day was the coolest! I had no idea what to expect. When we finalized Selah's adoption it was very nice and calm. We were all really happy. But my goodness!! Chase's Adoption was soo different. The media was there, they had a petting zoo, clowns, food and all kinds of things. So we didn't do a party for him because we had it there, lol! I invited all of my close family and we stayed the day and enjoyed the festivities and then went out to eat!

I really would love to adopt again. I'm thinking about it once they get a little older. For the most part I think I could do it. But there are times when I get scared at the thought of starting over from scratch. I'll be 40 soon and wonder if I'll have the energy.

yinyanggirls

04-12-2010, 04:55 PM

I'd like to really cover some ground at the parks this year. And spend some time at the village as well. Chase REALLY LOVES the train and the candyland park. Chase and Selah BOTH love the carousel and Courtney loves the pool!

I swear I hope we can add at least one more day onto our trip, lol!! I can see why people stay for 2 weeks. If I could afford it, I would definitely do it!!! But we would have to bring bologna and ramen noodles to make that happen lol!

Was the new pool area open when you guys went for Selah? It looks really fun!

We are one that added an entire week to ours, as DH rarely uses his vacation time and lots saved up. We decided to leave Orlando. We haven't explored much past Texas so we really wanted to take advantage of the plane tickets. We also haven't had a family vacation (not counting reunions and visits to grandma, etc) since Phoebe was 3 (5 1/2 years ago). We are driving north to Savannah and Charleston with stops at beaches along the way. :woohoo: We also signed some papers relieving them of cost and responsibility, as well as outlining an itinerary of where we would be.

I hope they say it's okay for you to extend as long as you like!

National Adoption Day was the coolest! I had no idea what to expect. When we finalized Selah's adoption it was very nice and calm. We were all really happy. But my goodness!! Chase's Adoption was soo different. The media was there, they had a petting zoo, clowns, food and all kinds of things. So we didn't do a party for him because we had it there, lol! I invited all of my close family and we stayed the day and enjoyed the festivities and then went out to eat!

I really would love to adopt again. I'm thinking about it once they get a little older. For the most part I think I could do it. But there are times when I get scared at the thought of starting over from scratch. I'll be 40 soon and wonder if I'll have the energy.

I get it! I am nearing 40 myself and feel content that 2 is it for us, most days. We used to want 4 or 5 kids, but with Phoebe's special needs and Tessa's, well, HIGH needs, I'm burnt out by the end of each day! I admire you so much for tackling adoptive parenthood on your own!

kellyw8863

04-12-2010, 06:09 PM

My brother and I are both adopted, and we have fostered, so adoptive/foster parents hold a special place in my heart.:lovestruc Growing up, it was never a secret for either my brother or me - it was something celebrated. We always and "Kelly Day" and "Michael Day," which are the days we were adopted, and were more special than our actual birthdays. My mother still says that birth is nature's gift, but adoption is God's gift. In other words, anyone can give birth, but only a special few are matched through adoption.:lovestruc

wish_upon_a_star35

04-12-2010, 08:23 PM

I think that is so great that you are able to extend your trip! Your girls are REALLY going to remember this vacation. And isn't it nice to just take a break from the day to day stresses for a while?? Aaahhhh I am so looking forward to it!

On top of all of the other delays Chase has he recently started stuttering. At first it wasn't so bad...but now it's getting really bad. He is stuttering about 80% of the time. I spoke with his teacher today and she said that normally they don't worry about it too much. But given his history we should get him evaluated just to be on the safe side. Poor little guy. If he ends up needed speech therapy that is going to be good for him in the long run. But he already has sooo many services at school already. But the great thing is at least we have access to so many great services!

I think part of me wanting to adopt is partly because I was an only child growing up. It wasn't horrible at all, just a little lonely at times. I got over though as I got older and realized that I did get all of my mom's attention! But I always wished that I had a sister or brother.

The other things that led me to adopt were I had an aunt who adopted four children after her biological son was an adult. I LOVE her children they are amazing.

Also when I was in my early 20's, I got a chance to work as a receptionist at a fostercare agency. I saw a lot and knew that it was something that I would consider.

But I only wanted to foster at first. I didn't know if I would be any good at fosterparenting let alone at adopting. But it only took a short while to realize how much it meant to me. The kids I fell in love with each and every one of my placements...and I'll be honest...I had a few doozeys! So I think about returning to fostercare often. But I know right now, there's no way. But maybe someday the time will be right again? Who knows!

Kelly, I love the Idea of celebrating your actual adoption day every year! That is a very good idea! It is so important for children to know that they are indeed blessings no matter where they came from!!

yinyanggirls

04-12-2010, 10:16 PM

On top of all of the other delays Chase has he recently started stuttering. At first it wasn't so bad...but now it's getting really bad. He is stuttering about 80% of the time. I spoke with his teacher today and she said that normally they don't worry about it too much. But given his history we should get him evaluated just to be on the safe side. Poor little guy. If he ends up needed speech therapy that is going to be good for him in the long run. But he already has sooo many services at school already. But the great thing is at least we have access to so many great services!

Are there any changes in his life that could be triggering it? I know my DH stutters occasionally when he gets excited about something. You can barely notice, and I actually think it's kind of cute. At least you have great services! We have horrible services here. I miss what we had in Texas. It makes all the difference.

I think part of me wanting to adopt is partly because I was an only child growing up. It wasn't horrible at all, just a little lonely at times. I got over though as I got older and realized that I did get all of my mom's attention! But I always wished that I had a sister or brother.

The other things that led me to adopt were I had an aunt who adopted four children after her biological son was an adult. I LOVE her children they are amazing.

Also when I was in my early 20's, I got a chance to work as a receptionist at a fostercare agency. I saw a lot and knew that it was something that I would consider.

That's great that you had so much experience going into it. It can certainly be a roller coaster and it helps if you know what's "normal". I did volunteer work for adoptive couples and adoption law advocacy before we fostered and it helped to have seen a lot of other situations.

But I only wanted to foster at first. I didn't know if I would be any good at fosterparenting let alone at adopting. But it only took a short while to realize how much it meant to me. The kids I fell in love with each and every one of my placements...and I'll be honest...I had a few doozeys! So I think about returning to fostercare often. But I know right now, there's no way. But maybe someday the time will be right again? Who knows!

Sounds like you really have a calling for it! I was terrified of fostering an older child until I was placed with one and she an angel. Much easier than her younger siblings. :lmao:

Kelly, I love the Idea of celebrating your actual adoption day every year! That is a very good idea! It is so important for children to know that they are indeed blessings no matter where they came from!!

We have a book called "Happy Adoption Day" and talk about it from time to time but have never had an actual "Gotcha Day" party. We were placed with our girls both very early, so those dates are very close to their bdays so I felt like one celebration kinda covered it all.
Kelly, it's nice to hear that your parents were so open about it and you guys felt good about it growing up. It seems like so many earlier generations tried to keep it a secret and it was worse for everyone in the end. We are very open as well but unfortunately with Tessa we don't have much info to share with her. I hope that not knowing (even though we would share if we knew) doesn't affect her later. Only time will tell.

wish_upon_a_star35

04-15-2010, 10:13 AM

I have a ton of info and pictures of Selah's birth family...but nothing for Chase. I know that he has two older brothers and a sister born a year after him. (I got called to take her as a placement but I just couldn't).

We have Lifebooks for both of them and Selah's is so huge and detailed. Chase's is a little on the small side. I'm not giving up hope though. Perhaps one day I will be able to add some information in.

Well I haven't heard anything at all about the trip. I'm guessing my wish granter is still out of town :( Hopefully soon though!! The weather is getting nicer and school will be out before I know it! I'm in the process of making plans for the kids summer activities. That should be a lot of fun!!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-18-2010, 07:53 PM

cantwaittoseemickey

04-18-2010, 08:25 PM

I totally agree. It went way too fast;) Praying you get dates this week!

wishin' on a star

04-19-2010, 05:36 PM

Well the weekend is winding down. Why does it have to go so fast?? I didn't get nearly enough rest and I surely didn't get enough accomplished, lol.

Let's pray for a date this week! My wish granter should be back and I am crossing my fingers that I hear something this week!

I am always looking forward to Monday, so I can actually get some rest! The weekend always seems to get me behind on laundry and housecleaning!

I hope your wish granter is back in town and you get some information and DATES this week!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-21-2010, 12:59 PM

I swear if I didn't have so much on my plate I'd be a madwoman by now!!! I talked to my wish granter yesterday. She called just to check in. She was wondering if anyone had contacted me last week in her absence. She said that she emailed and put a phone call in about my dates. So she should definitely know something soon. Goodness GRACIOUS I'm getting ready to go batty!!!!

Could I possibly find out....today??? I sure hope so!

Aside from that. Things are going pretty well. Selah has severe allergies. Her eyes are red. She is sneezing constantly and has a runny nose. She even had a nose bleed this morning. Time to make an appointment. She is on Singulair but I suspect with this allergy season being so bad...she may need something different.

Chase is Chase :lol: His developmental evaluation is tomorrow! I'm very excited because I have so many question and concerns. Hopefull I can find somethings out very soon.

I went in my shed to find the kids summer clothes from last year. I've already tried on Chase's things so I know what fits and what doesn't. I have a ton of stuff of his to give away.

It's almost time to pick Selah up from school so I guess I'll have her try on all of her old stuff too! That's what my afternoon will be. Plus I'm going to try and get a work out in.

I've been doing very well with my eating and working out over the past two weeks. I'm down 7 pounds but I still have a long way to go. I'd like to lose around 40 pounds. Tracking my nutrition and exercise on the internet is definitely helping with keeping myself accountable.

Hope everyone is doing well! The weather has been beautiful!!

pacrosby

04-21-2010, 09:48 PM

I just wanted to let you know (having worked as a speech/language pathologist for 16 yrs) that a sudden onset of stuttering on or about 4 yrs of age is developmentally normal and the overwheming majority of kids just stop as suddenly as they start. My 4 yr old went through it awhile ago (just seemed to start overnight and now, nothing) and my oldest (now 8) did the same thing when he was 4. It is much more common in boys.

Anyway............just wanted to let you know that:)

And as far as losing energy post-40!!!! Nahhhhhhhh It's all in the attitude (that's my motto anyway). I didn't START having kids until 38 and had my fourth at 43. I'm closing in on 50 now and still have one at home fulll-time!!! Lovin' every minute of it........................ I think they keep me young:)

Momofwishkid

04-22-2010, 12:03 AM

Waiting for your dates is definetley the hardest part of the waiting. Hope you find out soon. Way to go on the weight loss!!:woohoo:

wish_upon_a_star35

04-22-2010, 09:06 PM

WE GOT DATES!!!! I talked to my wish granter Erika today AND she told me to pencil in June 18th-24th!!! How cool is that. We will be there for Harry Potter!!! It doesn't matter that it won't be on the opening day, I'm fine with just being there and I KNOW that Chase will absolutely LOVE it!!She said that they still have all the plans to make but those dates are good! That means we will leave the day after Courtney's last day of school!! :cool1: Now I may be able to make some plans...YIPEE!!! I guess I need to change my title now? Or don't I?? lol

Thank you very much for the info on the stuttering. I have noticed that it is slowing down some already but he is still doing it a good bit. I did notice that there are two boys in Selah's class that stutter also. They are around 4. Both of their mother's said that it just started out of the blue. I guess I will just be patient and wait it out. I was told by his teacher that if he is still stutterin by the end of the summer they will definitely do an evaluation and go from there. I am very satisfied with that.

In so many ways, I think that I could still have a lot of energy after 40. Quite honestly I have a lot more patience now than I did when my oldest daughter Courtney was little. And I have two little ones. And believe me they are both a handful plus some. As a matter of fact. We had Chase's develpmental/behavioral evaluation today and he has ADHD. I was pretty sure they would say that. He is definitely extremely hyperactive and impulsive. So we came up with some really good strategies, plans and goals. I'm happy with the outcome and also glad that I chose a great doctor who isn't MED happy. (not that there is anything wrong with meds when they are needed) but Chase is only three and I believe he has a long way to go before we even consider medication. Thankfully we live in a good county that offers a lot of helpful services. And I thank God every night that they have good medical coverage that covers so many of the sevices that they have needed.

Thanks for the encouragement on the weight loss. Today was a rest day for me so this is the first day in about two weeks that I did not workout. Plus I knew that I wasn't going to be able to follow my eating plan. So I've got a lot of work to do tomorrow. I've already got my days menu planned as well as my workout routine. Just want to make sure that I stick to it! I feel really good about what I've been doing. I know one thing, I am definitely sleeping a lot better and seem to have a lot more energy during the day! And I definitely need the energy!

Well I hope all of you guys are doing well. Thanks for hanging in there with me. It was so frustrating not having a date. But now I do! And the countdown begins. I guess I have sooo much to do to get ready. I'd love to get the kids some shirts made for our trip! I know they would love that. And I saw another poster that made little surprises for each day of the trip. I'm going to try that idea and see how creative I can be? That's going to take a lot of thought!

cantwaittoseemickey

04-23-2010, 11:02 AM

:cool1: Congratulations on your dates!! It will be here before you know it!

wishin' on a star

04-23-2010, 12:14 PM

Hooray for dates!!! :cool1: June will be here before you know it!! Get to making those ADR's now!!

Sorry about the ADHD diagnosis, but I am with you on waiting for meds. I agree with trying all of the behavioral, diet, etc things first. Sounds like you have a good plan in place and lots of good resources.

I turn 40 on 5/5, and I am trying to find my "patient place" where my kids are concerned. It does seem to be getting better as I grow up!:rotfl:

Can't wait to follow along with more of your plans!!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-24-2010, 03:03 PM

Ut oh!!! So I get a package in the mail from GKTW...and it has a date on the front of 5/23/10 :eek: I'm not sure if that's the right date or not...but I sure hope not.

Chase has eye surgery schedule on the 26th and Courtney is in a play for school... I don't have the date yet but I will find out on Monday...Goodness gracious. I don't know if they've started the flight reservations yet but now I am panicking and stressing out.

I guess I just have to wait until Monday to find out anything :( I sure don't want to call the wish granter on the weekend...I'll feel bad.

wishin' on a star

04-24-2010, 04:06 PM

Hmmmm, that's strange. I wonder if they initially booked you sooner, but then changed the dates. We don't go until 5/17 and I still haven't seen the package from GKTW...I wonder where our package is?!

I hope you get it straightened out!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-24-2010, 06:31 PM

I was very shocked to get an envelope in the mail because we didn't get one last time :confused3 I don't know what gives. The post date onthe envelope is April 21st.

I can't wait to get this all sorted out on Monday!!!

I had to hide the envelope, lol. I didn't want Courtney to see it!!!!

cantwaittoseemickey

04-24-2010, 08:43 PM

That is quite a date difference. I hope you get it all sorted out next week;)

wish_upon_a_star35

04-26-2010, 03:19 PM

Okay guys so here's what I found out! Courtney's play isn't until the first or second week of June.

I talked to the actual lady at our Wish office who does the reservations on the Pittsburgh end and she said that 5-23 was an old date. She called down to GKTW and 6-18 is all booked. She told me that I could have that date as a tentative date and if someone cancels I'm in or I could pick a different date.

We chose 6-23-6-29! Now my mom is complaining but guess what??? I'm keeping it. I did tell them that if someone cancels on 6-18 we will take it though. lol.

So now that I have my date, I can start trying to make an ADR or two. After reading a lot of reviews and thinking a lot I have decided NOT to make many at all. We've already had the experience with the princesses and we will see the characters at the village each morning for breakfast so I will try to make one or two but that's about it.

I think my mom really wanted to go in May but I'd rather wait. I'd really like for the kids to see the HP attraction and that gives me more time to work on my weight loss goal, :rotfl: Plus none of the kids will miss school but Courtney will miss the first two days of camp. I will have to check and see if that is okay or not. And if not I will have to find a different camp for her to attend.

So I guess we are good now...but sort of still in limbo!! The lady at the MAW office said that she is going to keep her eye on our date over the next two weeks and see if anything changes. I REALLY liked 6-18!!!

Anyway, just wanted to keep you guys posted!

It's rainy and dreary here and I feel like sleeping but still have so much work to do today. I volunteer at a food pantry in our area once each month and today was the day. It's an all day thing and usually leaves me absolutely exhausted but today things went smoothly and we actually finished up early. Now I'm on to a monthly meeting this evening. When we get back home I have to finish Selah's hair. I usually put beads in her hair. But I ran out of time today. So I braided it...but I didn't have time to put the beads on! It's going to be such a long evening! By the time the kids finally go to bed, I may just need a glass of wine to relax! (I say that now but by the time 9:30 rolls around I will probably be passed out! :rotfl: )

cantwaittoseemickey

04-26-2010, 03:33 PM

Aw Im glad you have your dates worked out "sort of". I hope it works out for you:hug:

Momofwishkid

04-26-2010, 09:32 PM

So glad you got the dates. Hope you can get the 18th though. Enjoy that glass of wine. Sounds like you deserve one. :goodvibes

wish_upon_a_star35

04-27-2010, 07:01 PM

I forgot to say that I never did make it long enough to have that wine! lol I figured I wouldn't!

I finally made some ADR's but I'm going to have to wait until the kids go to bed to post them. Plus I realized that I should have looked at the itinerary for GKTW. There are two events that are a must for our family in the evening! One is the winter wonderland! The kids had a great time there and the other is Village Idol. My little Courtney is a young performer and she sang last year and has been talking about it ever since. So now I'm going to have to match our ADR's up against the events and pray I did good!

wishin' on a star

04-27-2010, 08:35 PM

It's a rare night when I don't have time for my glass of wine to relax before bed! :lmao: Good news that you were able to get some ADRs! I hope they fit into the schedule!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-28-2010, 01:55 PM

I know what you mean about the wine! I think after this week, by Friday I will definitely need a glass! So I've just finished working on everything and here is what I have so far. Now of course this is all subject to change if we end up getting the 18th! And I'm not sure if MAW is going to do anything special for Chase. When Selah went they reserved the princess lunch at epcott for her...but I have NO idea what they would/could do for a boy.

Wed 6/23
Check in Explore the village
7:45-9 p.m. Village Idol at GKTW

Thurs 6/24

Breakfast at GKTW-Disney Characters
Universal Day (Both parks if possible)
Hopefully back at GKTW by 7 for Winter Wonderland/Carriage rides up until 8 p.m. and Santa up until 8:30

Friday 6/25 -

Breakfast at GKTW Disney Characters
Animal Kingdom and possibly Wet N Wild or Blizzard Beach
1900 Park Fare for dinner at 7:25 (This gives us time to go back to GKTW and change)

Sat 6/26 -
Ohana's Breakfast at 9 a.m.
Epcott Day!!
Garden Grill for dinner at 7:25 p.m.

Sun 6/27 -

Hollywood and vine Breakfast at 9:40 a.m.
Disney Hollywood Studios/Seaworld
Back to the village for Teen party 9-10:30 p.m.

Mon 6/28 -
Disney Characters for Breakfast (We may skip this)
Magic Kingdom until we DROP!!!
Crystal Palace 1:00 p.m. Lunch!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-28-2010, 02:07 PM

I have to say that I'm pretty excited about the itinerary so far! And I can't believe that I actually got good reservations! I thought I was going to have a very hard time getting ADR's but it was quite simple and there was a good bit of stuff available!

There are a few days I'm not sure of yet. Our Animal Kingdom/wet n wild day is may be kind of hard. We've never been to Animal Kingdom so I'm not sure how that will go. I may check their hours and then switch and do the water park first if Animal Kingdom is open late? Let me go check and see now, lol.

Hmmm...it says that it closes at 6? I wonder if that's all year or just now. In that case we may go ahead and keep it the way I planned initially.

Also I got another packet in the mail today from MAW! It's our flight itinerary! This whole process is going a lot differently from Selah's wish trip. Not complaining at all. It's been great and all of the people that I've been working with have been absolutely awesome!

Anyway our flight isn't until 1 p.m. On 6/23. I was kind of hoping that we would leave early in the morning like last time. But now that I think about it, I'm sure this is going to work out waaaay better!

Because now, I can let the kids wake themselves up when they are ready. None of them sleep past 8:30 anyway, lol. Even that's a push. So we can get up and start getting dressed like normal and then when my mom comes with her luggage SUPRISE!!!!! :goodvibes

I see that no matter how hard we try we still aren't going to get a lot of time to hang around the village. I'm guessing the day we check in we should just really try and do as much exploring as possible.

I think that our Epcott Day and MK day are going to be our long ones for the kids. On Sunday when Courtney has the teen party I can always stay with the little ones and get them situated for bed so that doesn't have to be a long day for them.

The only problem I think I may have is that Chase still naps. Selah has never been a napper and can honestly survive off of little to NO sleep. Seriously. She has sleep issues (actually takes medication) but in the past she has been known to stay up for THREE days at a time :( So I'm actually not worried about her. My mom may get tired, but I've already told her not to worry. She can rest in the Wish Lounge...or if it gets bad she can go back to the villa and nap and join us after her nap :rotfl:

wish_upon_a_star35

04-28-2010, 02:09 PM

Oh yeah, and our flight doesn't leave orlando on June 29th until 2 in the afternoon! That's awesome because at least we won't be rushing through breakfast. And the kids should be able to take one last carousel/train ride and get their last scoops of ice cream in!!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-29-2010, 09:53 PM

Today was a great day! Chase didn't have school today so we hung around the house practicing letters and then played in the park for a while.

Tonight I took the kids to see Stars on Ice with all of the Olympic skaters and it was soo nice! They all had a great time. I'm so happy that they are getting old enough to enjoy things like this! It gets a little tough sometimes because eventually Chase starts getting restless (Thank God for intermission!) But all and all we had a great time!

I am hoping for some good weather this weekend. I would really like to do something outdoors with the kids but I see that there is rain in the forecast. Maybe....just maybe it will hold off? I sure hope so!

Hope everyone is doing well! I am getting so excited about our trip! Moreso now that I have made some plans. I was thinking about changing a few things around. I'll play around with a few things tomorrow and see what I come up with. My friend was telling me that they really LOVE Animal Kingdom and that we should consider spending the whole day there instead of epcott? Hmmm...when I thought about it, I think that Epcott was the park that we didn't stay at too long last year. I think there wasn't a lot that we wanted to see?? I wish I could ask Courtney, lol she has THE BEST memory!!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

04-29-2010, 09:55 PM

Oh yeah on my itinerary I made a mistake. Friday is Universal Characters. Not Disney Characters!

kellyw8863

05-01-2010, 07:55 AM

We chose 6-23-6-29! Now my mom is complaining but guess what??? I'm keeping it. I did tell them that if someone cancels on 6-18 we will take it though. lol.

So now that I have my date, I can start trying to make an ADR or two. After reading a lot of reviews and thinking a lot I have decided NOT to make many at all. We've already had the experience with the princesses and we will see the characters at the village each morning for breakfast so I will try to make one or two but that's about it.

Congrats on dates!!!! I initially made tons of ADRs and then scaled back to only a couple, which was definitely a good way to go. As good of a time as we had, it was torturous to get ready to head back out after relaxing in the pool, or what have you.

Wed 6/23
Check in Explore the village
7:45-9 p.m. Village Idol at GKTW

Thurs 6/24

Breakfast at GKTW-Disney Characters
Universal Day (Both parks if possible)
Hopefully back at GKTW by 7 for Winter Wonderland/Carriage rides up until 8 p.m. and Santa up until 8:30

Friday 6/25 -

Breakfast at GKTW Disney Characters
Animal Kingdom and possibly Wet N Wild or Blizzard Beach
1900 Park Fare for dinner at 7:25 (This gives us time to go back to GKTW and change)

Sat 6/26 -
Ohana's Breakfast at 9 a.m.
Epcott Day!!
Garden Grill for dinner at 7:25 p.m.

Sun 6/27 -

Hollywood and vine Breakfast at 9:40 a.m.
Disney Hollywood Studios/Seaworld
Back to the village for Teen party 9-10:30 p.m.

Mon 6/28 -
Disney Characters for Breakfast (We may skip this)
Magic Kingdom until we DROP!!!
Crystal Palace 1:00 p.m. Lunch!

I think your itinerary looks great! I wish that we could have kept Ali going so that we could have seen more. Oh well! I hope you have a great time!:goodvibes

I have to say that I'm pretty excited about the itinerary so far! And I can't believe that I actually got good reservations! I thought I was going to have a very hard time getting ADR's but it was quite simple and there was a good bit of stuff available!

There are a few days I'm not sure of yet. Our Animal Kingdom/wet n wild day is may be kind of hard. We've never been to Animal Kingdom so I'm not sure how that will go. I may check their hours and then switch and do the water park first if Animal Kingdom is open late? Let me go check and see now, lol.

Hmmm...it says that it closes at 6? I wonder if that's all year or just now. In that case we may go ahead and keep it the way I planned initially.

Also I got another packet in the mail today from MAW! It's our flight itinerary! This whole process is going a lot differently from Selah's wish trip. Not complaining at all. It's been great and all of the people that I've been working with have been absolutely awesome!

Anyway our flight isn't until 1 p.m. On 6/23. I was kind of hoping that we would leave early in the morning like last time. But now that I think about it, I'm sure this is going to work out waaaay better!

Because now, I can let the kids wake themselves up when they are ready. None of them sleep past 8:30 anyway, lol. Even that's a push. So we can get up and start getting dressed like normal and then when my mom comes with her luggage SUPRISE!!!!! :goodvibes

I see that no matter how hard we try we still aren't going to get a lot of time to hang around the village. I'm guessing the day we check in we should just really try and do as much exploring as possible.

I think that our Epcott Day and MK day are going to be our long ones for the kids. On Sunday when Courtney has the teen party I can always stay with the little ones and get them situated for bed so that doesn't have to be a long day for them.

The only problem I think I may have is that Chase still naps. Selah has never been a napper and can honestly survive off of little to NO sleep. Seriously. She has sleep issues (actually takes medication) but in the past she has been known to stay up for THREE days at a time :( So I'm actually not worried about her. My mom may get tired, but I've already told her not to worry. She can rest in the Wish Lounge...or if it gets bad she can go back to the villa and nap and join us after her nap :rotfl:

We loved, loved, loved Animal Kingdom - it was definitely our favorite park! The girls were truly treated like royalty there, and the grounds are just beautiful. I would give yourselves some time. We spent almost an entire day there and still didn't see everything that we could have seen. I think we got there around 9:30am and left about 4:30pm. I'm so excited for you - you're going to have such a great time!

Kelly

wish_upon_a_star35

05-02-2010, 06:25 PM

What a busy couple of days. I am exhausted. Both of the little ones have been sick. Selah's allergies are getting out of control. She is miserable. Had to take Chase the ER, he was having a lot of trouble breathing and has a horrible cough. So I haven't been getting much sleep because I've been up in the middle of the night each night with both of them. I'm so sleepy I am delirious! Hopefully tonight will be a much better night!

The weather was so beautiful yesterday I did manage to get out for a couple of hours to do some grocery shopping and run a few errands. I picked up a few things for the trip for the little ones. I got them Mickey and Minnie mouse tennis shoes! I hope they can still fit them when we go away :rotfl: This week I will make my list of what to pack so that I can see what I need to buy.

I am still very excited for our trip and I still haven't said anything to Courtney! I am praying it can stay a secret!!:) I am hoping that this monthy goes by quickly. We have a lot of appointments and things. Chase's eye surgery is at the end of the month. Selah has her kindergarten screening coming up too!

Kelly I am sooo happy that you guys had a wonderful time! And I am really looking forward to going to Animal Kingdom!

I wasn't going to do a lot of ADR's either but when I called there was so much available I just couldn't help myself.

I've been looking over on the dining board and I am wondering if I should try to get Ohana's for dinenr??? Also there is this Luau place that looks absolutely awesome. I need to take a lot at that again and see if we could possible get that in on our first night there maybe?

yinyanggirls

05-02-2010, 08:48 PM

I'm glad that date thing was just a mix-up! It would be nice if they could squeeze you in for 6/18 so Courtney doesn't miss any camp. Your itinerary looks good if your kids can handle it. ;) The WISH lounge was great for naps. I hope the allergies clear up. That can be so miserable.

wish_upon_a_star35

05-03-2010, 06:28 AM

Thank you for reminding me about the wish lounge! Did it ever get crowded in there? lol. I'm wondering if Chase would nap there. I already know that Selah won't. But she doesn't normally need a nap at all. I can't even remember the last time she took a nap. And she has a LOT of energy. But Chase tends to get sleepy in the afternoon. Instead of him taking a nap, he gets VERY cranky and miserable. And he's picky...doesn't just fall asleep anywhere. He needs a bed. Maybe that's where Nana can come in :) If he would nap in the wish lounge for a bit that would be GREAT. If not, we may have to go back to GKTW for a bit. Thank goodness it's only a short distance away!

Momofwishkid

05-03-2010, 12:17 PM

I know when we were there the wish lounge was completly empty. There's couches and those huge round pillows on the ground that are really comfy and the perfect nap spot.

wish_upon_a_star35

05-03-2010, 01:59 PM

sounds like a great place for nana and chase to relax. I don't know why we didn't use this last year. So there is one at MK? What about any of the other parks?

I was reading some of the other TR's and saw a few people went to Ohana's for dinner. I tried to get a ressie and couldn't. Also I saw that someone went to the Aloha Luau thingy? There are several dates available for that dinner show...but sheesh is it expensive. I've got to put a little more thought into it. Plus it's around two hours....I don't know if the kids would do well for two hours? Perhaps they may because I'm sure it's exciting...but $30 for dinner is steep for small kids. Especially for Selah...I know she's not going to eat much if anything. She eats VERY VERY little!

On a positive note. I spoke with Erika our wish granter and she said that they will have a nebulizer at GKTW for us. And she is working on the Pediasure. I asked her if it would be okay to ship it down there and she told me that she would see if that is something they could take care of also! How cool is that?

cantwaittoseemickey

05-03-2010, 08:01 PM

Sounds like it is all coming together:cool1: Glad to hear they will have a nebulizer for you. With Ty our home health care place is going to ship it all down for us a few days before. Maybe yours could do that? The Wish Lounge sounds like a great place for a nap. Nice and cool and cozy:thumbsup2

wish_upon_a_star35

05-04-2010, 08:06 AM

I'm woke, sleep deprived but I'm up! I was just thinking back to Selah's wish trip and laughing about all of the good memories! I am really excited but more importantly greatful that we are able to experience the magic of a wish trip again. I read a few PTR's and TR'S yesterday and I felt overwhelmed with so many emotions. I truly understand how depressing it can be when you return from the wish trip. It's like reality sets back in. So I decided to look at our pictures from last year again!

Here are some pictures of us when we checked in!
http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000015.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000014.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000017.jpg

Selah and her FAVORITE character of all time! DORA!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000026.jpg

Here we are all trying to sneak a peak at Selah because she just ooohed and awed and giggled the whole time we spent with Dora and Diego! Chase was not as excited!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000027.jpg

wish_upon_a_star35

05-04-2010, 08:19 AM

We managed to spend some time in the arcade one evening.

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000156.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000157.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000160.jpg

I think we should have tried this place out! We had such a wonderful time at USIOA I know the kids will LOVE going back!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/DH000146.jpg

wish_upon_a_star35

05-05-2010, 01:04 PM

So last night as I was drifting off to sleep I had an epiphany! My mother has been back and forth about what to do with her car for the trip. So I decided that it would be cool to go stay the night at Nana's house the evening before we leave! I'm sure that will add to the whole trip experience! AND it will put my mother's little heart at ease. She didn't want to park it at my house because I don't have a garage and she babies her sweetheart! I don't blame her.

Also....I have some really, really good and exciting news!

I got asked to participate in the BIG GIVE :yay: :banana: & :cool1:

I am so greatful, excited and overwhelmed at all of the wonderful people here on this board! So....things are really coming along and time is definitely winding down!!

49 days to go!!!

yinyanggirls

05-05-2010, 10:14 PM

Thank you for reminding me about the wish lounge! Did it ever get crowded in there?

I wasn't sure Phoebe would or not. She definitely naps during the day but I wasn't sure if the new place would distract her. She was so exhausted she slept just fine! Even after a couple of other families came in she didn't wake up. We saw some people coming and going but the most crowded it was was with two other families (there was plenty of room in there) for about 15 mins. By the looks of the sign in sheet, it was typically used for 10-15 mins a couple times a day. Epcot has some sort of VIP lounge also but I didn't see it.

So I decided that it would be cool to go stay the night at Nana's house the evening before we leave! I'm sure that will add to the whole trip experience!

That's a great idea!

I got asked to participate in the BIG GIVE :yay: :banana: & :cool1:

Woohoo!!!! They are so awesome! The kids will love all those surprises. :woohoo:

visitingapril09

05-06-2010, 04:10 PM

Have to say your family is beautiful and so are you!

We went on our wish trip in April of 04 and it was magical. We are returning for two weeks next March. Loving reading your pre wish report.

wishin' on a star

05-06-2010, 04:17 PM

cantwaittoseemickey

05-06-2010, 09:29 PM

CONGRATULATIONS on the BIG GIVE:banana::cool1: What a wonderful group of people!! Can't wait to see all your pictures with your goodies:)

wish_upon_a_star35

05-06-2010, 09:40 PM

Thank you guys so much! I am definitely excited about the big give! I know the kids are going to be so funny! They LOVE presents and surprises!!!! This year for Christmas Chase finally got into opening gifts. In the previous years he was sooo not interested! I actually felt sad because I wanted him to be as excited as I was, lol.

But this past Christmas he opened ever single one of his gifts! I'll have to find the pictures and post them!

This board and the excitement of the trip have me thinking about planning another trip. I'm almost positive I won't be able to swing it for next year, but I'm thinking 2012 would be perfect. I'm thinking about doing a few days in the park and then taking the Disney Cruise. I think the kids would love it!! Chase is really into transportation so I know he would look at that HUGE ship and be so tickled!! He loves everything that moves!! The bigger and louder the better!

I spoke to Erika our wish granter again about my new idea to leave and return from my mom's house and she agreed that would be an awesome idea!! :goodvibes I am so excited AND ready to go. I just can't wait to see the kids faces!

I've been reading around a lot and I'm thinking that since Courtney is getting so old :rotfl: I'm going to get her a gift card so that she will have some spending money while we are there. I decided on a gift card because she absolutely loves those! That's mostly what she requests for the big holidays! I figure if I just get her a VISA one she'll be good to go. Of course I will hold it in my wallet for her until she needs it. She is growing up but that poor girl loses EVERYTHING!!!! I just have to decide a reasonable amount for her to spend!!

Onto Chase news! He is growing and learning right now at an amazing pace. I am so pleased and proud of my little guy! We've been practicing recognizing letters and numbers and he is doing so well. He's still got a long way to go when it comes to writing, but fine motor skills is not his strong area.

Well thank you guys again for reading my PTR!! Time is definitely ticking :)

MousekaMaddi

05-06-2010, 10:16 PM

what a lovely family....... Im reading along on your great report and cant wait for more!! U are one amazing Mom!! Happy Mothers Day!!;)

wish_upon_a_star35

05-07-2010, 09:34 AM

Thank you MousekaMaddi! :goodvibes

rcq925

05-07-2010, 02:36 PM

kellyw8863

05-08-2010, 08:50 AM

Congrats on the BIG GIVE!:woohoo::woohoo:

wish_upon_a_star35

05-08-2010, 09:54 AM

I just found your PTR! I had been concentrating so much on reading trip reports to see what GKTW was like that I wasn't reading any of the PTR's getting to know people!

Your children are beautiful!! Your itinerary looks great and I cannot wait to hear all about your trip when you get back!!

Thank you so much!! I know how it is! I lurked around here for about three days nonstop reading PTR's and getting to know the place. I did so much reding that I never got a chance to respond to everything!!

Congrats on the BIG GIVE!:woohoo::woohoo:

I am really excited ona the BIG Give! I explained it to my mom and she just started crying!!! We are really big cry babies!!! She told me that it might be a good idea to tell Courtney about the trip, especially with the Big Give coming up and she may be right! We'll see. It's been really hard keeping it a secret! :rotfl: But I have managed so far!

This morning has been crazy! Last night we had really bad thunderstorms. And our power went out and Chase was in desperate need of a breathing treatment!! There is a senior building about three blocks down from our house so I was tempted to go down there. But I looked out my door and there just "happened" to be an ambulance across the street!! All I kept thinking to myself was "Thank God!!" I ran across the street barefoot IN the rain with Chase wrapped up in a blanket And the EMT's were extremely nice!! I guess they saw the desperartion all over my face. I just couldn't believe my luck!!! So after all of that excitement who could sleep? :rotfl: By this time it was 3:30 a.m. and Chase was wide awake wanting to watch his FAVORITE movie of all time Cars on our little portable DVD player (definitely happy it was charged up!) He loves that movie and calls it Car Cars! Imagine our dismay when the dang dvd did not work. Too old with quite a few scratches :( Oh what a night!!!

So after sining and rocking him back to sleep, I was still unable to drift off so I just stayed up listening to the rain. The power finally came back on and I got up and made some tea. It is still very windy and I'm so exhausted that the plans I made for today..may not be happening until later. I was going to take the kids out to the mall. There is a little play area that they love to play in. Maybe we can do that after mommy takes a nap!!!

cantwaittoseemickey

05-08-2010, 10:59 AM

Sounds like you sure had a rough night. Great timing on the Amublance being in front of your house! I hope you get some rest today before heading out:hug:

yinyanggirls

05-09-2010, 12:35 AM

Another interrupted night. Ah, motherhood. :goodvibes I'm glad it turned out okay. Hope you have an awesome Mother's Day because you are an awesome mother!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

05-09-2010, 02:49 PM

Thanks for the Mother's Day wish! I got a chance to spend the weekend doing a little bit of everything I like to do!

Went shopping and had lunch with my mom! Joe's Crabshack. Did a little relaxing and actually took a nap today. It was only for 20 minutes but it was very refreshing

Watched a movie uninterruped!!! YAY

All in all it was a good weekend. Hope all of you ladies had a great weekend as well!

Happy Mother's Day!

wish_upon_a_star35

05-11-2010, 08:09 AM

Well, today is such a rainy and cold day. My allergies are driving me crazy!! I just keep looking at the calendar in excitement! I'm going to go shopping this weekend to pick up a few things for the trip. Time to buy sunscreen and a few other pool items. I think I should get some of those floaties for the little ones! I also have to pick up a new hose for the back yard. My friend has a power washer that she is going to let me use. My house could definitely use a little attention on the outside!

It's such a peaceful morning. Chase doesn't have school today and he is actually still sleeping! I'm going to enjoy the quietness because I am sure it won't last long!

cajunfan

05-11-2010, 08:22 AM

I know I read this, but I am too lazy :rolleyes1 to go back and look, but your Mom is not going with you on this trip right?

Lynn

wish_upon_a_star35

05-11-2010, 08:28 AM

Don't feel bad! I have subbed to so many PTR's that sometimes I get a little confused at first :ssst:

My mom as been approved to go with us! The kids are going to be happy to have Nana along!

billwendy

05-14-2010, 10:12 PM

HI!!

Your kids are soooo CUTE!!! I hope you have an awesome time!! Congrads on the BIG GIVE!! We were just recipients of it for my nephews trip - it was AMAZING!!!

HAve FUN!!!

Wendy:goodvibes

wish_upon_a_star35

05-15-2010, 02:35 PM

Thanks Wendy! I am really excited about the Big Give! We are huge fans of the mailman/Ups man in our house so the kids are going to REALLY get a kick out of this :goodvibes

I see you have a count down to Camp Promise in your sig! My daughter went last year and RAVED about it!! I am hoping that she may be able to go again this summer, but we are having a hard time being able to fit in all of her activities! I hope it works out though!

Well it has been a really hectic week around here. We had a family falling out of sorts with some extended family members who seem to not think that my two precious angels that I adopted are not really a part of our family :mad: This has really opened my eyes up to a lot of things and I was hurt at first but I have to say that I have really been able to make peace with things over the last few days. I guess what's hard for me is that I accept everyone for who they are. We have a pretty small family, however we have so many extended family members because of cousins being in relationships and marrying people who already have children. And I think that's great! I accept their children as part of our family because they are! But I've come to realize that you can't force people to be tolerant or accepting. And it's just really not worth it. My grandfather's wife (he passed away two summers ago) made some really nasty and rude comments to my mother about Chase and Selah not being her "Real" grandchildren. She went on to say that I should have never taken in sick children with so many issues when I have my own child. :mad: I just couldn't believe it. But eh...I guess the old saying is true. When someone shows you who they really are, believe them. So it's better to know how she really fells about my children rather than to believe that she loves them and cares for them. It's a shame though...but it's her loss. She's going to miss out on knowing some really awesome kids!

On the bright side! We are getting closer to our trip!! My mom is really excited and looking forward to it! And so am I!! I keep reading trip reports and looking at all of the yummy food posts and I am too excited!!! I still have a lot to do between now and then. Selah's kindergarten screening is coming up, Chase's eye surgery, Courtney's play, doctor/dental appointments and I will be volunteering a lot at Selah's school over the next few weeks! Also they are having an end of the year celebration at Chase's school next Friday. It's his last day of school and then they take a three week break. He attends a DART preschool so there is a small summer session. But it doesn't start until mid June! I just know the time is going to go by quickly and we will be on the plane in no time!!

cantwaittoseemickey

05-15-2010, 08:38 PM

Many hugs to you. Falling outs with family is so hard:hug: I am glad you are getting through it. Yayyy not too long!!! :banana:

wish_upon_a_star35

05-19-2010, 07:23 PM

I can't believe we only have 35 days left!!! :cool1:

Time is really going by quickly. Chase has been having a lot of problems breathing his oxygen levels have not been the greatest at all. He has a few appointments coming up. I'm hoping he will be cleared to have his eye surgery next week!

Other than that, we are all just hanging in there! Courtney has been doing pretty well in school and she is enjoying her afterschool job! Selah is being Selah :rotfl: and Chase has a new nose picking/blowing habbit!!! It's actually pretty gross, but my mom says boys will be boys! :confused3

visitingapril09

05-20-2010, 10:09 AM

Your little ones are as much yours as if you have birthed them! (subbing)

yinyanggirls

05-20-2010, 04:11 PM

I'm so sorry to hear the story about your extended family's comments. My in-laws have made a few over the years, and it shows me that they consider my children less "real" than their other grandkids. That's fine with me, because thankfully my parents don't feel that way at all. If anything, my kids are the faves because my sister's kids don't "need" them anymore. You are the important one in their lives. :lovestruc

Hey, I wanted to tell you that you can change the title of your PTR to add the date. If you go to the first post of this thread, and click on advanced edit it will let you change the title and you can put your dates in. I just keep forgetting that you are leaving so soon, because I see the "no dates yet" in your title. So it would be great if you would help me out a little. Hehe.:lmao:

You guys are getting reallllly close now.

wish_upon_a_star35

05-21-2010, 11:23 PM

Thank you guys for the words of encouragement! And thank you Melissa for the advice on how to change my title to include the dates! :rotfl: I have been trying to figure out a way to do that for a while now!!

Now for some really great news!!!!!!!!

WE GOT OUR FIRST BIG GIVE GIFTS TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was sooo excited! Courtney checked the mail once she came home frome school today. We live in a complex so our mailbox is about 50 fett from our house. She comes running down to the house excited because the package was for her!! Now mind you I hadn't told her the whole truth about Chase's wish. I was going to keep it a secret but once I we got asked to participate in the Big Give I decided that I would wait until we started to get packages to tell her. BUT I'm still not telling her the date!! I've decided that I will keep that a secret from her. She thinks that we are going around Chase's birthday which is in November!!! Mainly because it's so hot in the summer!

Anyway I'm going to post the pictures of her and the beautiful things she got from Ellenbenny tomorrow! :goodvibes SHE LOVED her stuff!!! AND Courtney is very much like me so after she opened her gifts she was a little confused until I explained to her about the Big Give and she just boo hooed her little self silly!! I felt extremely happy and overwhelmed with a sense of humbleness while I was explaining the generousity of people who take time out of their busy lives to do something absolutely AMAZING for families that they've never met. I look at things like this as learning opportunities. This event prompted a long discussion about giving back and paying it forward. Courtney has always done that, however now she feels compelled more than ever to continue and to try to be a person of service. :goodvibes I can not explain how proud of her I am!

So I will be posting the pictures tomorrow! This week has been physically and emotionally demanding and next week is going to be even more crazy! I won't lie though, I love being busy because it makes me appreciate my downtime even more!

On Monday I volunteer all day at a food pantry. It's usually an all day affair. I meet up with some older ladies in this community not too far from my house. Help them unload the truck, pack the bags and distribute the food. However I'm only going to be able to dedicate half a day because we have a tour of our Children's Hospital on Monday afternoon. Chase's eye surgery is scheduled for Wednesday so they offered to take us on a tour of everything so that it won't be so confusing on the day of surgery. I was planning on getting a sitter for Selah but they encouraged me to bring her along because they have an awesome Sibling Center! She will be able to play with the other children who have a sibling there getting procedures done. So that actually takes a load off of my mind.

We are almost at the thirty day countdown mark :yay: So I can really get excited now! (as if I haven't been already! :rotfl: )

yinyanggirls

05-22-2010, 02:54 AM

wish_upon_a_star35

05-23-2010, 12:40 PM

Here are the wonderful gifts from Ellenbenny!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/175.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/176.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/177.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/181.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/184.jpg

This pic was taken right after she read the card and I explained (confessed) that we were going to Disney for Chase's wish trip!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/183.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/189.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/001.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/002.jpg

So needless to say, Courtney loves her gifts AND she felt so special to be the first one to get presents, lol. As you can see...Selah was none to happy :lmao: Chase napped during the whole event!

wish_upon_a_star35

05-23-2010, 12:44 PM

Thinking about the Big Givers brings tears to my eyes, too. They are so amazing! I'm can't wait to see what fun things the kids will be opening!

You have a very busy week, but those are the ones that move faster. Nice to hear about the sibling center at the hospital. My husband needs a procedure done next week, then Phoebe's EEG is the week after and I've been going crazy trying to figure out what to do with Tessa during these days. What hospital will he be at? It sounds like a good one already.

I am looking forward to seeing the kids faces when they see their Big Give gifts also! I know it's going to add so much more to this whole experience!

Chase's procedure is going to be at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. They recently moved less than a year ago and the new facility is absolutely amazing! It's a little farther away than it used to be. But that's okay. The doctors there are really great! Courtney had to have her umbilical hernia repaired when she was around 5 or 6 and they made it a very comfortable experience. It wasn't a serious procedure, but I was still a nervous wreck!

cantwaittoseemickey

05-23-2010, 02:23 PM

I love Courtney's Big Give goodies! What a neat shirt. Her expression is priceless! Can't wait to see more!

ellenbenny

05-23-2010, 08:55 PM

Here are the wonderful gifts from Ellenbenny!

This pic was taken right after she read the card and I explained (confessed) that we were going to Disney for Chase's wish trip!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/183.jpg

So needless to say, Courtney loves her gifts AND she felt so special to be the first one to get presents, lol. As you can see...Selah was none to happy :lmao: Chase napped during the whole event!

I am so happy that Courtney received her gifts and liked everything. I absolutely love this picture!! I can't wait to see all the rest of the big give stuff and watch the little ones get a chance to open theirs!

I hope you all have a great trip,

Ellen

wish_upon_a_star35

05-24-2010, 10:00 PM

Thank you so much Ellen! Courtney is so mad because I will not let her carry her bag to school!! I told her she has to save it for our trip!! Of course right now I am the meanest mommy :laughing: That's okay though. They will thank me later!!!

AND

We got ANOTHER BIG GIVE BOX!!!!

This one was from Naomi aka Canyon girl and family!!! It was around 5:30 this evening (our UPS guy makes late stops which I don't mind) I was actually on the computer smiling while reading yinyanggirls TR! And I heard the infamous knock on the door!! (I order a lot of stuff off of amazon and ebay so me and the UPS man have a very special relationship!) :lmao: I RUSH to the door and open it up and low and behold our SECOND Big Give package! This one was addressed to the Walker Family :goodvibes I was so excited I actually did a little dance!! But then sadness set in because the girls weren't home and Chase was napping!!!!! I couldn't believe it!!! I knew I had to do the right thing and wait for until this evening to open the package. The girls were at the community center that Courtney works at. I woke Chase up and ran to the grocery store for dinner. By the time we came back and fixed dinner the girls were ready to come home. Courtney was exhausted and wanted to shower before dinner so I STILL had to wait :sad2: by the time all of the kids finished with their baths and came down for dinner they were starving like they hadn't eaten in years so I let them eat. After they finished eating and cleaning up from dinner I got out the camera and the package!

I will upload all of the pics shortly but I have to say WE ALL LOVED our Big Give Goodies!!!!!! Thank you Canyon girl!! You REALLY made our day!!!

Especially mine. I had a really long day today. One of my friends has Sickle Cell and is really having a hard time lately. So I paid her a visit today and helped her do some things around the house that she was just too tired to do! I volunteered for a short while at the food pantry and then took Chase and Selah on the hospital Tour. Selah was extremely hyper active and basically was bouncing off the walls. Chase didn't want any parts of the tour so it was a very looong afternoon!!!! I was actually feeling a little down and frustrated so I decided to work out. I've lost 9 pounds so far (have a long way to go). I think I over did it one the squats because my knees are killing me (My age is starting to catch up with me!)

wish_upon_a_star35

05-24-2010, 10:22 PM

I just want to say in advance that I LOVE to take pictures!! I'm not very good it at, lol but we always take a million pictures so just bear with me!!!

Of course Courtney wants to be the one to open the package!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/008.jpg

Courtney insists on reading the letter! Selah and Chase are ready to rip the box open!! Notice Chase's eye in this picture!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/011.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/012.jpg

The anticipation was killing us!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/013.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/014.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/016.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/017.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/018.jpg

wish_upon_a_star35

05-24-2010, 10:35 PM

Selah never misses an opportunity to smile for the camera! Notice Chase is the serious one! Well for today anyway!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/010.jpg

Selah is saying "Oooh Princess Tiona!!!"

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/019.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/020.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/022.jpg

Chase was extremely happy about his "Thomas bag" an even more excited when he realized there was a surprise inside!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/023.jpg

For MEEEEE!!! Selah is so excited!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/025.jpg

Not sure if you can see or not, but it's a really cool keychain that says Courtney!! She loves name stuff!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/027.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/028.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/029.jpg

This was Selah's happy face when I asked her if she loved her gifts!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/030.jpg

A close up of Chase's bag!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/032.jpg

wish_upon_a_star35

05-24-2010, 10:39 PM

Close ups of the bags and the contents!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/034.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/035.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/036.jpg

Chase is so excited when I tell him he can take his goodies to Disney World!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/039.jpg

Selah is just as excited when she learns she can take her bag to Disney too!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/041.jpg

wish_upon_a_star35

05-24-2010, 10:46 PM

So to Naomi and family! We say a BIG THANK YOU!!!!! Chase loved all of his gifts. He is a THOMAS and CARS fanatic!!! He goes absolutley bonkers whenever he sees any trains or fancy cars!!!

Selah is just so taken with her Tiona bag that she asked me to sleep with her bag and promised to be a big girl and not pee in the bed if I let her sleep with it :rotfl:

Courtney is now begging me for a sewing machine for Christmas because she is so inspired by yours and Ellen's handiwork and generousity!!!

And I absolutely LOVE my goodies!! I will be putting them all to good use!

So here is what was inside of the kids bags!

Courtney got a lovely key ring that she so desperately needed. She lost her last keyring! She got a really cute Disney Princess word search. A cute notebook and pencil! I told her that she can take notes and do her very own TR if she'd like to!

Selah, got a Princess notebook and pencil as well and the cutest Disney princess raft (we plan on using that ALL summer long!!)

Chase's bag had a Cars swimming ring. That is exactly what he needed as he has not yet realized how deep pools actually are! He does not realize that he cannont swim and gives me mini heart attacks EVERY time we go swimming or to water parks!!! He also got a cool pencil and a Buzz Lightyear notebook!!

My package included EVEVERYTHING that I will need to make this trip more bearable :rotfl: Aleve, gum for the plane, peanuts for protein a first aid kit and many many more goodies!!!

Thank you to Naomi you are an awesome Big Giver! :thumbsup2

teresajoy

05-25-2010, 07:57 AM

It's so much fun to see the kids so excited about all the Big Give stuff!!!! Thank you so much for posting the pictures for us!!!

I sent you a PM yesterday, I'm not sure if you noticed it, since they don't pop up at you anymore! :rotfl: I just need you to confirm Chase's waist measurement. I have a few people anxiously awaiting your reply! :rotfl: Thanks! :thumbsup2

wish_upon_a_star35

05-25-2010, 08:50 AM

We had such a blast opening up the gifts. It kind of puts all of your problems or worries on hold for that time and you just enjoy the moment! It was really wonderful to hear the kids laughing and see them so excited over the goodies! I don't know how I missed the pm! But I did send the information!! And I am so glad that you guys caught that error!!

wishin' on a star

05-25-2010, 10:12 AM

Canyon girl

05-25-2010, 01:32 PM

So to Naomi and family! We say a BIG THANK YOU!!!!! Thank you to Naomi you are an awesome Big Giver! :thumbsup2

We are so happy that you all enjoyed your gifts. If the back packs are too loose on Selah and Chase, just add another knot further up from the first one. I have to say that my kids have really gotten involved in this! DD made the keychains. Both DD and DS love looking at the store for things to put in the bags, and then when it is time to pack a box up, both of them are digging through the bin to find just the right items to add. I have to say that it makes me proud how they have embraced being involved with this. You should see DD and DS when I announce that their package has been received. They come running over to the computer to see! I have to say that this is as much of a blessing to our family as it is to yours.

cantwaittoseemickey

05-25-2010, 01:37 PM

Oh those are soo cute!! I love their faces!! Isn't that cooler and the "essentials" a neat idea? It definately puts a very warm feeling on the trip doesn't it? :love::love:

Canyon girl

05-25-2010, 01:37 PM

wish_upon_a_star35

05-25-2010, 08:14 PM

What wonderful big gives!! I can just feel your family's excitement in the pictures. You captured it well. The ladies who do the Big Give are so generous with their time and talent. It's inspiring, and I have been begging my husband for a sewing machine just like Courtney is to you! :rotfl:

Thank you! I tried to take as many pictures while they were opening the gifts as I could! Everything was happening so fast! I really admire the ladies. I learned how to sew in high school. We made clothes and prom gowns and everything. I loved it!! I really wish I would have stuck with it. I might have been pretty good by now!

I think getting Courtney a machine is a great idea. She's had little toy ones and she's really enjoyed using them. She is extremely creative and dreams of having her own clothing line one day so she may as well get started now!

We are so happy that you all enjoyed your gifts. If the back packs are too loose on Selah and Chase, just add another knot further up from the first one. I have to say that my kids have really gotten involved in this! DD made the keychains. Both DD and DS love looking at the store for things to put in the bags, and then when it is time to pack a box up, both of them are digging through the bin to find just the right items to add. I have to say that it makes me proud how they have embraced being involved with this. You should see DD and DS when I announce that their package has been received. They come running over to the computer to see! I have to say that this is as much of a blessing to our family as it is to yours.

The back packs are actually a good fit! I think it's wonderful that your children are so involved with this and it is definitely something to be proud of! I think that raising selfless children who "get something" from giving is an awesome accomplishment :goodvibes I've always tried to teach Courtney that it feels so good to give of yourself! So this has brought everything full circle.

Oh those are soo cute!! I love their faces!! Isn't that cooler and the "essentials" a neat idea? It definately puts a very warm feeling on the trip doesn't it? :love::love:

I was so tickled with my gift! I keep opening the cooler up and looking at all the fun stuff! I can tell that all of those things are definitely going to come in handy! Especially the Aleve!! :rotfl:

Laura, this has actually become a family affair for us. It has become such an inspiration for my two children. I hope that if you become involved, too, that it will help inspire your children as well.

This whole process has been so humbling for all of us. When I think about how everything is and has been unfolding I get so overwhelmed I can't help but feel emotional!

wish_upon_a_star35

05-25-2010, 08:17 PM

Well Chase's eye surgery is tomorrow so hopefully everything will go just fine! We had a great day playing at the park. I had Chase help me make some homemade pizza today and we made cookie doh. We are participatingin a cookie exchange this weekend so he was very excited to help me prepare!

We are in the 20's now so I'm really getting antsy!!! :yay:

visitingapril09

05-25-2010, 11:55 PM

yinyanggirls

05-26-2010, 08:32 AM

Chase's procedure is going to be at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. They recently moved less than a year ago and the new facility is absolutely amazing! It's a little farther away than it used to be. But that's okay. The doctors there are really great! Courtney had to have her umbilical hernia repaired when she was around 5 or 6 and they made it a very comfortable experience. It wasn't a serious procedure, but I was still a nervous wreck!

I'm glad you have a nice hospital. It does make a difference in the comfort level. I hope he's doing great and the surgery went well! Phoebe did not like the anesthesia but other than that did well. A little itchy, maybe, since she kept trying to rub her eyes, but no serious pain. Give us an update on the little man when you have time!

28 days!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

05-26-2010, 05:08 PM

I have to tell you I am so thoroughly loving reading all your entries. You have a beautiful family and you must be an incredibly lovely and beautiful person based on all I have read.

Blessings to you!
Alison

Thank you Alison! I don't know why I get so happy to see that people are follwoing along. :woohoo: I guess I'm just a chatty person and I've gotten so much from reading the posts and the TR's on here, so I always hope that I am doing the same!

I'm glad you have a nice hospital. It does make a difference in the comfort level. I hope he's doing great and the surgery went well! Phoebe did not like the anesthesia but other than that did well. A little itchy, maybe, since she kept trying to rub her eyes, but no serious pain. Give us an update on the little man when you have time!

28 days!!!

We are back and he did pretty well. He wasn't as hungry as I thought this morning. I tried to let him sleep in as late as I could. We didn't have to be at the hospital until 10:30. So he woke up around 8:30. He asked for food a few times but I gave him some apple juice twice. He couldn't have anything to drink past 9:30. The nurses and staff were really nice. Chase was extremely tightly wound and in full energy mode today! He even got a little bratty when there were a lot people in the room. I noticed that when there are crowds arounod him his behavoir gets odd. He stops using words and grunts and retreats, or starts clinging to one person. I guess that's how his sensory issues effect him.

They let him drive a play car all the way up to the OR doors. I was really happy about that!

He didn't do too well with the anesthesia. He was awful waking up. I know a lot of kids and even adults are. It took him two hours to fully wake up. And boy was it a looong two hours. His eyes are very red. And the nurse said that he bled a lot more than most kids who have had the surgery. But it did stop. He is also still in a good deal of pain which is a little odd. I have Tylenol though so I'm sure he will be fine. I have to take him to see the doctor tomorrow afternoon for her to check him over. But so far so good. His appetites is already back to normal :rotfl: I'm sure by this time tomorrow he will be just fine! Thanks for asking about my little guy! I know it was a pretty minor surgery...but sheesh it never feels minor when your there.

Can I just say...I am soo ready to pack my bags! :)

yinyanggirls

05-27-2010, 02:31 AM

I'm glad to hear it went "okay". I didn't want to say anything before he went, but Phoebe had a horrible time with the anesthesia that time also. She's been under a few times and that was the only bad one, for some reason. I hope it's the only one Chase will need! I bet it was a long day for both of you. :hug:

wish_upon_a_star35

05-28-2010, 11:48 AM

Well little Chase is starting to perk up a bit. His eyes are still sore and red but they do look better today than they did yesterday! Thank goodness for that. Also his appetite is picking up which is good because I'd look to cook out on Sunday for the Memorial Day Holiday!

Now for some really good news! Yesterday we got our official GKTW packet in the mail! We had gotten one a few weeks ago but it didn'thave the right date. So now I feel like not only is it "Officia" but it's sooo close :cheer2:

Also! We got ANOTHER BIG GIVE BOX TODAY!!!!!

I'm really looking forward to opening it up this evening! I was feel a little frustrated this morning because I stepped on the scale and I noticed that I have only lost 9 pounds. That really sucks I feel like it should be much more but at least the scale is going in the right direction!

Soooo...we have to wait until Courtney comes home from school to open the box! And I think this will cheer her up too. Her grades have fallen since she has started her job at the after school community center and that was one of our rules. So she is going to have to give up the job for now unfortunately. So she understood but was a little sad about the money. I told her that she could always do some extra chores around the house if she'd like :rotfl:

Anyway I will post later once we all get a chance to open up the Big Give box!

yinyanggirls

05-29-2010, 01:35 AM

9 pounds is awesome! Great job! The slower it goes, the better you'll be at keeping it off, or so I'm told. :thumbsup2
Poor Courtney. Think she'll take you up on the chores?:lmao:

wish_upon_a_star35

05-29-2010, 01:09 PM

Our Big Give package that we got today came from Jill Roberts and family! (I'm not sure what her DIS name is)

The lighting was a little bad but that won't stop you from being able to see the smiles!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/043.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/044.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/046-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/047-1.jpg

I don't know why Selah looks so sleepy in this picture she certainly didn't SOUND sleepy!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/048.jpg

Chase is still a little out of it from surgery, but Selah is ready to wear her shirt!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/049.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/050.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/051.jpg

There goes a smile from Chase! He LOVES his shirt!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/052-1.jpg

And they fit wonderfully! I was hoping the shirts would have room because we plan on getting some good wear out of our BIG Give stuff!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/053-1.jpg

So to Jill Roberts and Family we send a big THANK YOU!!! I have to say I was secretly hoping for some shirts like these that we could all wear!! :yay: I've seen similar ones since I've been around on Disboards and I think they are too awesome!! You really made our day. My mom is coming over on Sunday so she will see her shirt too! I called her up immediately and told her and she is so excited! I will post pictures of her checking out all of our wonderful gifts! And I can have Courtney take a picture of me and nana with our shirts!!! So we still have another picture or two of Jill's BIG Give box coming!

wish_upon_a_star35

05-29-2010, 01:18 PM

Melissa, I can only think back to when I was Courtney's age and chores were the last thing I EVER wanted to do!!! :lmao: My guess is probably not!

Well on this beautiful Saturday morning we got another BIG GIVE BOX!!!!

I just have to take a moment out to say that we are feeling extremely spoiled right now!! The kids are getting sooo excited. And also you all should know that we are a very silly family! So we often make up songs and corny little dances! AND we have a new song that we sing whenever we get a Big Give package! Those of you who have ever had to watch Blues Clues with your children will know this! We sing: "Present time it's present time, open the present and see what's inside!!" :rotfl: Yes we are very silly!!

This package is from Liz Laxton and family! I have to say that Liz sent us a some really great things and wrote each of us individual letters and me and Courtney shed quite a few tears reading her touching sentiments! The pics are uploading now so I will post them in a few minutes!

wish_upon_a_star35

05-29-2010, 01:57 PM

So I told the kids they could sit up on the table this ONE time to open up the package! They were a little unsure at first lol:

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/001-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/003-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/004-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/005-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/006-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/007-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/008-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/009-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/011-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/011-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/013-1.jpg

What you guys can't see is that Chase laughed and was so happy he had tears running down his face and a belly/side ache from all of the laughing!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/014-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/016-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/017-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/018-1.jpg

wish_upon_a_star35

05-29-2010, 02:01 PM

So right in the middle of me posting pics to this thread, I knocked over a glass of Crystal light :rotfl: I swear only me!! So I'm going to finish cleaning this up and post the rest of the pictures! I might just be overtaking the pictures or overposting them! But I LOVE to take pictures and I am really trying hard to capture the moment for everyone reading! :goodvibes

wish_upon_a_star35

05-29-2010, 02:17 PM

More pictures of the Big Give!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/019-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/020-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/023-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/029-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/030-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/031-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/032-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/033-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/027-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/045-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/046-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/047-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/048-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/049-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/050-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/051-1.jpg

Courtney LOVES her shirt!! Her favorite color is purple!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/034-1.jpg

She is so dramatic and emotional and got teary eyed while reading her letter and finding out that Liz has a daughter named Courtney as well :goodvibes

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/035-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/036-1.jpg

I was ordered to read my letter out loud too!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/038-1.jpg

I am so loving my shirt!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/040-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/041-1.jpg

Inside of our package was:

Selah: A pack of Disney Aerial Mermaid undies, Minnie lip gloss, a sticker book (she LOVES) and the most adorable outfit ever!!!!

Chase: A pack of Disney underpants, a sticker book, and his favorite Cars (or Car cars as he calls them) outfit!

Courtney: Courtney T-shirt and Minnie lip gloss!

Me: Leah T-shirt and a really lovely Disney 2010 picture frame!!

Also, we even loved our bags!

So to Liz we send a BIG Thank you!!! I think we are all just so excited and amazed at the talent and energy you guys have put into making our Disney Trip thru Make A Wish so special! We each thank you from the bottom of our hearts!!

wish_upon_a_star35

05-29-2010, 02:35 PM

I forgot to say that everything is fitting wonderfully! Selah is very tiny and she actually can actually still fit a 24 month in some things. Especially around the waist...but they would of course be too short! She was a preemie and just hasn't managed to catch up yet!

wishin' on a star

05-30-2010, 10:53 AM

llaxton

05-30-2010, 04:14 PM

I am so glad everything fit and everybody liked it. I hope you have an awesome time!

yinyanggirls

05-30-2010, 11:14 PM

Those are amazing Big Gives! I love the expressions on Courtney's face. And the tears on Chase's cheeks!!!:lmao: Glad to see your smiling face in there too. ;)

wish_upon_a_star35

05-31-2010, 03:32 PM

Leah, what beautiful Big Gives! We got the same Wish shirts from Jill, and loved them!! And Liz already knows how special she is in my heart. :lovestruc Looks like you all got great packages from her. Love all the pictures...and I think it's just wonderful that the Big Givers so generously give to the whole family...because I can just tell how amazing Courtney thinks all of this is. That's awesome. :goodvibes

The Big Gives have been absolutely amazing! It makes me wish I would have stuck with sewing! :rotfl: And Courtney is so excited!! She said that all she can think about (even while she is at school) is the Big Give and our trip to Disney!! Thank goodness there's only a couple of weeks left for school!! But honestly Courtney has always been such a wonderful young lady. She's always kind of taken to the "underdog" so to speak. She constantly makes friends with kids who normally don't have a lot of friends (one of her oldest and dearest friends has CP and is mostly nonverbal) and she loves to help other people all of the time. She has been talking about doing something similar to this at her school nonstop since the Big Give began! One of her teachers called me on Friday and told me that she would like to brainstorm with us about a few projects she has in mind that she'd love for Courtney to help her with over the summer!

I am so glad everything fit and everybody liked it. I hope you have an awesome time!

Everything fit wonderfully and that little Selah looked absolutely adorable. AND Chase is a Cars finatic!!! He talks about his Car Cars outfit all the time!!

Those are amazing Big Gives! I love the expressions on Courtney's face. And the tears on Chase's cheeks!!!:lmao: Glad to see your smiling face in there too. ;)

I hate taking pictures!! But I was so excited that I forgot all about my dislike of the camera :rotfl: I'm going to have to get over that because I plan on taking lots of pictures at Disney!!

cantwaittoseemickey

06-01-2010, 06:51 AM

Fabulous BIG GIVES! I love your shirts! I see Chases tear. Heart melting for sure:love:Bless his heart! I'm so glad he did well with this surgery! Not much longer!! Your under 30 days:banana:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-01-2010, 07:49 PM

Tonya, I am so glad that his surgery went well and his little eyes are starting to clear up little by little!

His pediatrician want him to have a sweat test to check for CF. Selah just had one a few months ago and it was negative. I was so shocked because she seems to have most of the symptoms. Chase does too, but I'm betting his will be negative also.

So today we got 2 MORE BIG GIVE PACKAGAGES!!!! I have to say that I might be a little more excited than the kids about all of this :lol: Also I did a little bit of shopping for our trip and picked up Mickey and Minnie mouse tennis shoes for Chase and Selah and got Courtney a few sundresses for the trip. I even picked up a couple of sundresses for myself. Too bad I look like I'm expecing!!! :lmao: But with that Florida heat I don't think I will care much!!!

I just came back from a very long and overwhelming meeting. I sit on a board for High fidelity wraparound services for children who are in foster care placements and or have involvement with the juevenile justice system. I have a bit of reading to do and some emails to send out while all of this info is still fresh in my head! I'm hoping to post the pictures of our Big Give Goodies later on tonight or tomorrow!! So stay tuned! :goodvibes

wishin' on a star

06-02-2010, 07:38 AM

Can't wait to see the latest Big Gives! Sounds like you got some good stuff shopping. Three weeks away!!!:cool1:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-02-2010, 08:12 AM

Can't wait to see the latest Big Gives! Sounds like you got some good stuff shopping. Three weeks away!!!:cool1:

I managed to get some really good things yesterday! I still have a good bit to pick up but I am getting there! I'm going to pick up a few more things this weekend. I think we are missing a beach towel or two and I know Courtney loves flip flops so I am going to get her a few pairs. I'm so sad that I missed Old Navy's flip flop event a few weeks ago :(

Yes!! Just three weeks away! We even got a cool email from GKTW! Chase is still sleeping (Imagine that, he's usually a very early riser) so when he wakes up we can explore the website and then get started with our busy day!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-02-2010, 08:33 AM

We were all very happy to get more packages yesterday! One was from gcast1. She sent an awesome box full of goodies :yay:

Courtney: TinkerBell collector Card Ballpoint pen! (very cute!

TinkerBell crayon rollup! (I saw these on another Big Give TPR so I am very happy to have gotten these for the kids. Courtney is quite the artist too!)

TinkerBell playing cards
A really cute polka dot journal (Courtney is also a great writer)

Tinker bell journal

Tinker bell wordsearch

Chase:

Mickey Mous crayon roll up!
Cool Mickey pen
Mater from Cars notebook
Mickey Mouse coloring book
Mickey Mouse coloring and activity book with stickers
Disney Cars sticker book

Selah:

Disney Princess Spiral journal
Disney Princess coloring and activity book with stickers
Cool Minnie Mouse pen
Disney Princess sticker album
Jumbo Princess coloring book!

And a beautiful princess and the frog crayong roll up!!!

Can you believe all the cool things??? I am just amazed! I'm going to have so much fun packing their little suitcases and carryons! I was extremely nervous about the plane ride. Bot Selah and Chase are very hyperactive. Both of them have been diagnosed with ADHD among other things. So anytime that they have to "sit still" for any length of time, I get stressed out lol. But I think that we will be fine now!!! There's nothing like playing with "New Toys" to keep a childs attention! :rotfl:

Now for the pictures!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/065-1.jpg

The kids opening their gifts!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/066-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/067.jpg

Oooh Mickey Mouse!
http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/068.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/069-1.jpg

Ooooh Cool!!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/070-1.jpg

She LOVES it!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/071-1.jpg

I'm so sorry, I didn't realize that I didn't fit the Mickey crayon roll up in the picture!!!
http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/073-1.jpg

I don't want you to take my stuff until Disney!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/074.jpg

wish_upon_a_star35

06-02-2010, 08:48 AM

More presents!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/076.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/078.jpg

The next package that we opened came from cjbear and family!!! It had the cutest card inside! This package was for Little Miss Selah!!! The perfect outfit for a "girly girl" like her!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/057.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/058.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/059.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/060.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/061.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/062.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/064-1.jpg

Look at me!!!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/079.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/080.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/081-1.jpg

So to gcast1 and cjbear and their families we say a BIG Thank you!!! Selah's outfit fits perfectly!!! :goodvibes I was nervous about the measurements because I haven't had to breakout the measuring tape in forever!!! But everything so far has been perfect!! We are going to be so cute on our trip!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-02-2010, 08:50 AM

I just noticed that my digital camera has the wrong date on it :rotfl: I guess I need to change that before our trip!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-02-2010, 01:51 PM

Another BIG GIVE PACKAGE!!!!

We have another Big Give package all the way from wonderful Canada!!! I was going to wait until Courtney came home but Selah already started opening the package :lmao: Her and Chase were under the dining room table conspiring on how to open it and who would do the honors!!!

So I let the little ones open theirs and Courtney will open hers when she gets in from school. I will be posting the pictures tonight! Another awesome Big Give!! I can't wait for you all to see!

yinyanggirls

06-02-2010, 09:25 PM

visitingapril09

06-02-2010, 11:32 PM

:wizard:Another BIG GIVE PACKAGE!!!!

We have another Big Give package all the way from wonderful Canada!!! I was going to wait until Courtney came home but Selah already started opening the package :lmao: Her and Chase were under the dining room table conspiring on how to open it and who would do the honors!!!

So I let the little ones open theirs and Courtney will open hers when she gets in from school. I will be posting the pictures tonight! Another awesome Big Give!! I can't wait for you all to see!

hhmmmmmm........I'm in Canada!!:wizard:

cajunfan

06-03-2010, 06:15 AM

I'm going to pick up a few more things this weekend. I think we are missing a beach towel or two and I know Courtney loves flip flops so I am going to get her a few pairs.

You might want to hold off on purchasing those beach towels!;)

Lynn

wish_upon_a_star35

06-03-2010, 02:43 PM

You've been a busy lady. I'm glad that PA allows you to be so involved in various aspects of foster care. When we lived in TX a friend of mine worked for Adult Protective Services and they removed a child from their home after deciding that this was somehow a conflict of interest. I was livid for them! They had so many problems like that, they finally gave up trying to adopt. Makes me feel lucky.

Anyway, I love how animated Courtney is. If she's faking it, she's good. ;)

Before I did fostercare, I was a children's mental health advocate. Thankfully in the county that I live in, services are abundant and we are a model county for mental health services. However we still have a loooong way to go. While I did fostercare, (after I adopted Chase and Selah I closed my home) I was still able to advocate and my passion grew stronger becasue I saw how broken the fostercare and juvenile justice system really is.

Courtney has always been extremely animated. Overly so at times she is definitely my drama queen and she knows it too!!!

:wizard:

hhmmmmmm........I'm in Canada!!:wizard:

You sure are!! :woohoo:

You might want to hold off on purchasing those beach towels!;)

Lynn

Really!! :yay: Let me act like I didn't see that :lmao:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-03-2010, 03:08 PM

Here are the pictures of our BIG GIVE goodies that we got yesterday from visitingapril09!!!

Selah was sooo happy that HER name was on the package! She really gets a kick out of that!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/001.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/003.jpg

Chase's turn!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/005-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/006-1.jpg

He is concentrating HARD on getting his gift open!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/007-1.jpg

I just melt when he smiles!!! :goodvibes

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/009-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/010-1.jpg

Sorry this one is so blury!
http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/011-1.jpg

Sorry about her sad face. She was letting me know I was a mean mommie, becasue I told her she couldn't wear her beautiful dress to school!! :rotfl:

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/015-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/016-1.jpg

Courtney LOVES Tink!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/017-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/021-1.jpg

Here's what the kids got!

Courtney: A really cute initial bag with tinkerbell on the letter C.
A tinkerbell notebook and tinkerbell color pencils!

Selah: An initial bag with Tinkerbell on the letter S.
A Disney Princess sticker album and The princess and the frog stickers!
The cutest Tinkerbell dress!!

*By the way...she woke me up at 1:34 a.m. this morning and asked if she could PLEASE wear her "Tinkerbell" dress to school!!! So, the dress was definitely a BIG Give Hit!!! :rotfl:

Chase: An initial bag with Mickey Mouse on the letter C!
A Cars sticker book with Toy story stickers! :thumbsup2

And the nicest card from Alison who told us that her family was a previous Wish Family!! :cool1: We were all very happy about that! Courtney is going to read all about Andrews Journey tonight!

So to Alison we say a BIG THANK YOU! I LOVE Selah's beautiful dress and the kids LOVE their bags!

And to everyone reading this PTR I have to say that the pictures I have taken really don't do the BIG GIVE items justice!!! The things that these ladies have made for our family have been absolutely awesome!! They are very talented!! I told the kids that these gifts were all made especially for them and they have been amazed! Well....Chase thinks that also includes the sticker Books too! :lmao:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-03-2010, 03:43 PM

Guess what guys?????

4 MORE BIG GIVE PACKAGES TODAY!!!!!

We just got finished opening them. I'm going to help Courtney with her homework and get dinner together and I will post all of the wonderful gifts!!

I'm trying hard not to fall behind!! It gets crazy trying to keep everything together so that nothing gets mixed up!! I hope I haven't mixed anything up yet while I've been listing everything. If I have I am very sorry! :love: It gets excitingly cahotic at "Present time!"

visitingapril09

06-03-2010, 06:45 PM

cantwaittoseemickey

06-03-2010, 07:15 PM

Oh I love the Tink dress! The goodie bags are too cute. I love the initials! How sweet she woke you up to ask to wear it again. :love:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-03-2010, 09:10 PM

Okay! So I've finally got some peace and quiet! I uploaded the pictures and I'm ready!!

Up first is a BIG GIVE package from Deann in TN (not sure of her DIS name)

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/044.jpg

A Totally Terrific Tink Shirt for Courtney (she made me promise to type it EXACTLY like that!!)

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/045-1.jpg

Courtney was really loving the stitching on her new shirt! I think we are onto something here (I already know what her big Christmas present is going to be!)

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/047-1.jpg

She is a Classic Disney Princess LOVER so she was really happy to see Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/048.jpg

Next is a Marvelous Mickey outfit (Again Courtney's wording :rotfl: ) from jeniamt!! I absolutely adore this outfit and it is going to go great with the Mickey Mouse tennis shoes I just got him!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/049.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/050.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/051.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/052-1.jpg

Next is a box of much needed necessities from Scott and Nancy Davis! I never thought about a stain pen! BUT I definitely should have. With two little ones we are always spilling, and dripping stuff everywhere! And I really am glad for the disposable camera! I just stole an awesome idea from yinyanggirls! I'm going to let the kids take pictures of their own so that they will have some memories to share AND it will be great to see Disney from their "eyes"!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/053-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/055-1.jpg

This BIG GIVE package is from Dania and comes all the way from TX! I'm not sure what her DIS name is. But she really sent some GREAT GOODIES!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/056-1.jpg

Notice Selah's face. She is trying to be patient and use her "sharing skills" but she is having a really hard time. She was very upset that Chase got to open the box :lmao:

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/057.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/060.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/068.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/069-1.jpg

Some of the pictures on my camera got deleted by a mysterious little guy :rolleyes1 so I will post pictures of Chase in his cute outfit tomorrow! He looks absolutely too cute in it! And it fits GREAT!

So to Dania, The Davis Family, jeniamt and Deann my family says a BIG THANK YOU! I can not believe how much you guys have given to us! I am seriously going to have to start packing this weekend! I am going to try and have their suitcases packed up the Monday before we leave. Since Courtney still doesn't realize that we are going so soon. I'm going to take them over to her house when the kids aren't home. The night before we leave for Disney. We are going to go stay at my mom's house. So we will only have small overnight bags (which are actually our carry ons!)I will fill their carry ons with the great stuff you guys have sent! And the next morning VOILA! :wizard:

So of course that is the plan right now!!! But you know what happens when you make FOOL PROOF plans :rotfl:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-03-2010, 09:15 PM

Aww......I am so glad that everyone enjoyed their little 'goodie' bags ane Selah liked her Tink dress! I can't tell you how nice it was to sew for a little girl again. My 'little' girl is 16 and then she has 3 brothers so I love the chance to sew for little princess' (especially when I get to sew Disney wear! I am also glad that it fit ok..........and yes, what a mean mommy........not letting her wear it to school!!:lovestruc Thanks for sharing the photos and I am so glad it got there so quickly!

No problem at all! I LOVE sharing photos eventhough I know I am not the best photographer! Selah is definitely enjoying all of her customs!! I am so excited for our trip! She is going to have so many little cute things to wear. I'm already searching for matching shoes for her stuff! Girls are so much more fun to shop for and dress. I can only imagine how I would be if I would have stuck with sewing!!! And I almost broke down and let her wear her dress!! Her little pleas almost wore me down!

Oh I love the Tink dress! The goodie bags are too cute. I love the initials! How sweet she woke you up to ask to wear it again. :love:

It is sweet now...but I was so disoriented in the middle of the night. I almost thought it was a dream!! :rotfl2:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-04-2010, 09:14 AM

I just wanted to say that WE ARE IN THE TEENS NOW!!!! :yay::yay:

visitingapril09

06-04-2010, 10:36 AM

It will be here before you know it! The lead up is fun too:goodvibes

BabyEeyore

06-04-2010, 11:48 AM

How exciting! You'll be there before you know it. :goodvibes

rcq925

06-04-2010, 12:02 PM

You are getting so close! I am so jealous!! You guys are going to have a blast! And the Big Give team does such a wonderful job and they are so generous!!

Way to go Big Givers!! I love seeing all the pictures of the gifts and the kids faces! They are so exicted and happy!!!

Good luck packing :goodvibes

jessica52877

06-05-2010, 06:43 AM

I love Courtney's Chip n Dale sweatshirt! I also love how you asks you type things and follow along! I know that we would get along well! If you buy her :rolleyes1 for christmas then you'll have to send her to the disboutiquers thread to follow along with us!

Selah is just adorable! I love how she wants to wear her stuff!

I think giving the kids a camera to use is a wonderful idea. Seeing it through Chase's eyes will be fun. When Dallas was about 4 we gave him one and then developed the roll of film. It was so much fun to see all his pictures. He'll use my digital all the time but I tend not to print out the pictures and it isn't the same then.

wish_upon_a_star35

06-08-2010, 08:46 AM

It will be here before you know it! The lead up is fun too:goodvibes

I can't believe we have just about two weeks to go!! I am going to start packing some stuff today! And you are right, the lead up has been awesome!!

How exciting! You'll be there before you know it. :goodvibes

I am ready to go now! lol

You are getting so close! I am so jealous!! You guys are going to have a blast! And the Big Give team does such a wonderful job and they are so generous!!

Way to go Big Givers!! I love seeing all the pictures of the gifts and the kids faces! They are so exicted and happy!!!

Good luck packing :goodvibes

The Big Give team has done an amazing job! I am soo excited!! Packing is going to be a lot of fun! I get to re-live all of the Big Give moments :rotfl:

I love Courtney's Chip n Dale sweatshirt! I also love how you asks you type things and follow along! I know that we would get along well! If you buy her :rolleyes1 for christmas then you'll have to send her to the disboutiquers thread to follow along with us!

Selah is just adorable! I love how she wants to wear her stuff!

I think giving the kids a camera to use is a wonderful idea. Seeing it through Chase's eyes will be fun. When Dallas was about 4 we gave him one and then developed the roll of film. It was so much fun to see all his pictures. He'll use my digital all the time but I tend not to print out the pictures and it isn't the same then.

That is Courtney's favorite sweatshirt!! She is not technically supposed to wear that to school because she has a uniform..but she sneaks it in here and there! She is so happy to be involved in the Big Give! She is always telling people about it! And I know she would love to follow along with disboutiquers! She is going to need a lot of tips and advice. I'm going to make sure that she gets to take some classes. Funny thing is when I was in school we still had homec! That's how I learned to sew!! Why did they ever take that out????

I'm looking forward to seeing what the kids come up with when they take their pictures!! It should be so interesting!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-08-2010, 09:01 AM

Sorry I haven't been around much! Had a migraine all weekend so I was trying to rest. I managed to take the kids to the zoo on Saturday and it was a loong day. It rained on and off the whole time we were there but that's okay. I have to say the zoo is not one of my favorite places at all. But I do take the kids at least once each year because they really love it and Pittsburgh really has a great zoo. But I will admitt, I am relieved that we won't be going back until next year...and who knows...maybe I can get Nana or my favorite cousin to go with the kids :rotfl:

We got another BIG GIVE PACKAGE yesterday!

This one was from cajunfan! :cool1:

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/001-1-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/002-1-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/005-1-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/008-1-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/009-1-2.jpg

The kids LOVED their beach towels!!!

Courtney: Tinkerbell!
Selah: The little mermaid (one of her most favorites!)
Chase: Cars!!

So to canjunfan we say a BIG Thank you!!! :goodvibes I will be packing these today!!

Here is a picture that got deleted the other day. We got a wonderful package in the mail from Dania and Courtney's goodies got deleted!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/012-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/Big%20Give/011-2.jpg

So again to we say a BIG THANK YOU! To Dania! The kids really loved all of their wonderful gifts!

You guys ROCK!!! :hippie:

cantwaittoseemickey

06-08-2010, 05:14 PM

Oh cuute beach towels! I hope you are feeling better!! I love those concentration pictures:)

wish_upon_a_star35

06-09-2010, 02:56 PM

I think it's my age catching up with me. I've been so sluggish and exhausted lately. I know it's my iron levels. I have zero energy and so much to do over the next few days.

Today was Courtney's performance at school! She takes a class at school called Broadway and Beyond! She LOVES musicals and they were doing a shortened version of In the heights. She tried out for a singing solo and got it! Every semester her school puts on a performance called the celebration of learning. It's a showcase of each grades work. They offer karate, hip hop dancing, african drums and all kinds of other things for 6-12 weeks at a time. The kids always do such an amazing job! Last performance she had a 2 minute dance solo! She did an awesome job and today she sang. :goodvibes She did a great job!!! I am so glad because there are three girls that constantly bully and harass her. This has been going on for 2 years!! Yesterday the kids did a "mock" celebration of learning for the staff and students. And the girls were so rude and covered their ears, made all kind of rude comments and everything. Courtney was sooo crushed! I told her to pay those girls no mind. She got the part because she is good. She auditioned and everything. Those girls don't have the voice or the guts to try for a solo!

Anyway, just wanted to share some good news!

Chase's eyes are still red and they seem to still be sore from time to time. I think it's because he is a head bager at night and at nap time. And maybe the pressure of him banging his head hurts his eyes? :confused: They do look better than they did at first. But he's still got a ways to go. Hopefully they won't be red on our vacation!! People keep asking me if he has pink eye!!

jeniamt

06-09-2010, 06:25 PM

wish_upon_a_star35

06-10-2010, 02:27 PM

You are too sweet! I received your thank-you note today... completely unnecessary. I'm glad you liked the pirate mickey, I made the same outfits for my boys when we went on the Disney Cruise in November. I forgot to mention in my note that I try not put the appliqued shirts in the dryer. If they do find their way through the dryer, the appliques tend to get crinkly.

I love seeing your kids opening their gifts! You are doing a great job with the photos... keep it up while you are at Disney. You know we all want to see the photos of you guys in the parks!

Have a wonderful time!!!! Gosh, you are getting so close :yay: :yay: :yay:

Thanks so much for the tip on the applique! I am certain that I would have put it in the regular wash and then had a fit if something would have happened!!! I am looking forward to taking lots of pictures! We still look at the pictures of our trip from last year! I have been horrible about organizing them though :sad2: I definitely have to do better with that this time around!

So today has been a really good day so far. It started off pretty rocky..another migraine!!! However I got some rest and quiet and I'm feeling much better. I'm sure that getting 2 more BIG GIVE packages in the mail today helped a lot! :goodvibes

We also got our Itinerary from MAW!! And now I have a dilema!!!

They have booked us breakfast on 6/28 at Ohana's. I already have ADR's for breakfast at Ohana's and dinner at the garden grill on 6/26!!! I'm not sure what to do!!

On 6/26 we have an ADR for the Crystal Palace for lunch at 1:00.

Any suggestions?

I may post this in the wish trippers thread also!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-12-2010, 09:28 PM

I wanted to post the pictures of some awesome BIG GIVE stuff that we got in the mail!

First I have cute T-shirts from Billwendy!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/042.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/041.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/040.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/039.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/037.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/035.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/056-2.jpg

I apologize for posting the pictures out of order!

So to Billwendy we would like to say a BIG Thank you!!! She was sweet enough to send shirts for me and my mom too! We all LOVE our shirts!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-12-2010, 09:37 PM

Next we have adorable outfits from Jessica Lee! Not sure what her dis name is?

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/044-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/046-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/047-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/048-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/050-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/051-1.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/052-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/053-2.jpg

So to Jessica in GA we say a BIG Thank you!!! I have to say that you REALLY made Chase's day with the Thomas outfit!!! I had picked up a pair of Thomas sandals and a matching Thomas swim trunk with beach hat outfit and he is so ready to wear his stuff NOW :rotfl: so of course we Have to have a whole Thomas outfit day. And of course I already have a Thomas movie and sticker book all ready for him!!

And Selah and Courtney absolutely adore their things. Selah twirled and curtsied in her skirt!!

I have to go back and look on my camera, not sure if I got the pic of Courtney with her shirt! But she LOVES it!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-12-2010, 09:51 PM

Good I just checked and I see it!! I've been having some little faux paus with my camera and batteries. Plus Chase has been extremely interested in my camera lately...maybe it's all the pictures I've been taking!! :lmao: But he has found out how to erase my pictures!! I think he believes that he is taking pictures when instead he is deleting them!!

I've been thinking a lot about the double Ohana breakfast ressies! And I may just cancel the ones we have. I'm not sure if we need a whole day at Epcott? We may go to the beach that morning or do wet in wild or one of Disney's water parks and go to Epcott after lunch and stay for the rest of the day and keep our Garden grill ressie for that evening. So...will I be able to go to Epcott twice during our visit? We could go the second time just for Breakfast and then move onto somewhere else the day that MAW has us scheduled for breakfast there at Ohanas!

I'm sure things will all work out!! But it sure is stressing me out now!!

Today was an awesome day! I had an early morning doctor appointment and ran into a friend I hadn't spoken to in a while! It was great seeing her and we made promises to get the kids together for a play date very soon!

I did the LAST of my big shopping for our trip!! :banana: I just have a few little odds and ends to pick up on Wednesday.. I just wanted to pick up sunglasses for the kids. Chase already has a pair so naturally I have to get some for Selah and Courtney. And I have to pick up some Ziploc bags for our spare changes of clothes which will be in our backpacks at the parks. AND BATTERIES!!! lol. I may save those few things and get them while we are down there. We are going to make the obligatory trip to Walmart our fist day there so I guess it's no biggie!

So now, I can really get the packing underway this week while Courtney is at school. Thursday is her last day and boy is she excited!

Friday we are going to pick up her new glasses and take Chase's in to be fixed. If the kids are up to it we may go check out Karate Kid. They are dying to see it! Saturday Courtney has a hair appointment to get her hair braided and I will begin cleaning the house and finish doing my flowers and yard. I am hoping the weather is nice so that I can fill up the pool and let the little ones have a nice day splashing around. Sundays are my lazy days mixed in with some laundry and cleaning out the fridge. Monday I havea hair appointment and Selah has speech and OT at Chase's school and he has school. I will continue cleaning up and getting ready. Tuesday the girls are going to be a the community center doing activities all day and that evening we are going to get pedis/manis! and my mom will pick us up that night!! Wednesday we are off!!

Time is really moving along!!! I feel like I have a million things to do but I am trying not to get too crazy about it!!! I already know this schedule is going to change a million and one times!! And ho9pefully I can just roll with the punches.

billwendy

06-12-2010, 10:00 PM

Woo Hoo!! so glad they arrived!!! The kids look adorable!! Cant wait to see you all matching together!!! Have FUN!!!!!:cool1:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-14-2010, 07:34 AM

Woo Hoo!! so glad they arrived!!! The kids look adorable!! Cant wait to see you all matching together!!! Have FUN!!!!!:cool1:

Thank you billwendy!!!

I can officially do the single digit dance!!! :banana: :dance3: :cool1: :yay:

Well I'm getting ready to take Selah to her weekly summer OT/Speech group! This is her first session and I hope it goes well!!

I packed Selah and Chase's medicine in their suitcase. The only things left to go in are some new tooth brushes, sunscreen and I almost forgot to look for a dress for Selah to wear for CRT :rotfl: now how in the world did I forget about that??? Last year she just wore a regular outfit but I'm thinking this year she may wear a dress. She kind of has one that she plays dress up in from time to time, but I'm going to look around and see if I can find one this week...I hope...if I have time!! :lmao:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-14-2010, 04:38 PM

I spoke to my wish granter today and she is trying to help me sort through my Ohana's dilema!! She is going to contact the Wish office to see if there is anyway that we could possibly get Chef Mickey's on our Magic Kingdom day INSTEAD of Ohana's on our MK day! That way I can keep our Ohana's!!!

If id doesn't work out I will understand but I really appreciate her trying!! Also she is going to find out about making sure there are car seats for our transportation to the airport AND for our mini van while we are in Orlando!

They've already got the Nebulizer ready for us and I packed all of their meds already. I picked up scripts over the weekend so I am all good there! Selah and Chase have dr. appt's on Tuesday morning just to get lung checks and all that good stuff! Thankfully they both have been doing wonderfully! The pediatrician said that she has a portable nebulizer that I can borrow and take with us! I think it's battery operated or something? :confused3 That would be a BIG load off of my back!

Selah's first day of OT/Speech group went wonderfully! They said she was a little "busy" but redirectable. And she participated in the activities very well! :cool1: hopefully she will keep up the good work!

I am going to start packing Courtney's stuff tonight or tomorrow and see if there are any last minute things of hers I forgot! She has horrible allergies so I had to remember her meds as well!

wishin' on a star

06-14-2010, 06:50 PM

cantwaittoseemickey

06-15-2010, 06:12 PM

Oh those are nice Big Give shirts!! I love the Mickey's! Chase and Selah's outfits are adorable!! I can't believe you only have 8 days:cool1:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-16-2010, 06:49 AM

I noticed in one of your recent posts that you mentioned having breakfast at Ohanas at Epcot...except I think Ohanas is at the Polynesian? I've never been there, but I would think you could definitely do Ohanas on a MK day. Of course, if they get you a Chef Mickey's ressie, then that's a great option as well!

You are getting so close...sounds like you have everything ready, and are well prepared!!

:rotfl: I am pretty sure you are right!! I don't know what in the world I was thinking!!! Well that solves my dilema doesn't it? LOL!

Oh those are nice Big Give shirts!! I love the Mickey's! Chase and Selah's outfits are adorable!! I can't believe you only have 8 days:cool1:

I am so excited over all of the BIG Give stuff that we all got!! I know the kids are going to look so cute on our trip!!!

I can't believe we leave in ONE week!!! :cheer2: I still have a ridiculous amount of stuff to do!! I couldn't find my suitcase so I tore this house AND my shed up looking for it yesterday!! It was under my bed....go figure! So now on top of starting to pack my suitcase, print out the directions to our ADR's, make phone calls, take chase to his dr. appt and register him for summer camp, I now have to clean up the mess I made today!!! UGGG!!!

And I just remembered that Selah's pre school teacher is coming by the house today for her end of the year home visit! AND Courtney has a camp meeting this evening :confused3 Tomorrow and Friday look more of the same!!! Sheesh at least I will busy!

On a good note! I have just a few more items to put in Courtney's suitcase and she is all done! I slid quite a few suprises in there for her! I know she is going to be so happy!! Selah and Chase are all packed up! I will get their carryons together on Friday morning. I think I will take our suitcases over my mom's on Saturday morning while Courtney has her hair appt!

Thank God she still has NO clue we are leaving next week!! Am I really going to have pulled this off??? I sure hope so!

cantwaittoseemickey

06-16-2010, 09:55 AM

:rotfl: I am pretty sure you are right!! I don't know what in the world I was thinking!!! Well that solves my dilema doesn't it? LOL!

I am so excited over all of the BIG Give stuff that we all got!! I know the kids are going to look so cute on our trip!!!

I can't believe we leave in ONE week!!! :cheer2: I still have a ridiculous amount of stuff to do!! I couldn't find my suitcase so I tore this house AND my shed up looking for it yesterday!! It was under my bed....go figure! So now on top of starting to pack my suitcase, print out the directions to our ADR's, make phone calls, take chase to his dr. appt and register him for summer camp, I now have to clean up the mess I made today!!! UGGG!!!

And I just remembered that Selah's pre school teacher is coming by the house today for her end of the year home visit! AND Courtney has a camp meeting this evening :confused3 Tomorrow and Friday look more of the same!!! Sheesh at least I will busy!

On a good note! I have just a few more items to put in Courtney's suitcase and she is all done! I slid quite a few suprises in there for her! I know she is going to be so happy!! Selah and Chase are all packed up! I will get their carryons together on Friday morning. I think I will take our suitcases over my mom's on Saturday morning while Courtney has her hair appt!

Thank God she still has NO clue we are leaving next week!! Am I really going to have pulled this off??? I sure hope so!

OH WOW!!!!:cool1::banana: I am so excited for you all!!! Sounds like your packing is coming along. Oh I love how you are putting some surprises in there. That is a neat idea. Wow are you busy:scared1: I cannot wait to read your TR! But I am not rushing your trip through or anything like that;) JUST EXCITED FOR YOU ALL!!!!! :banana::love::yay:

wish_upon_a_star35

06-16-2010, 04:40 PM

OH WOW!!!!:cool1::banana: I am so excited for you all!!! Sounds like your packing is coming along. Oh I love how you are putting some surprises in there. That is a neat idea. Wow are you busy:scared1: I cannot wait to read your TR! But I am not rushing your trip through or anything like that;) JUST EXCITED FOR YOU ALL!!!!! :banana::love::yay:

I tried to put little treats in everyone's bag! Even my mom's :) It is definitely going to be a busy week. And I am looking forward to doing my TR too...but I'm actually a little nervous!! I've read some really good ones!!!

yinyanggirls

06-17-2010, 12:17 AM

cajunfan

06-17-2010, 08:57 AM

What a wonderful idea of putting the surprises in everyone's suitecases! I would do that, except my son would never actualy look in his...what can I say, he is a 16 year old boy...:rotfl2:

But, I just think that is really sweet of you to want to make this so special for everyone!

Lynn

wish_upon_a_star35

06-17-2010, 03:50 PM

Wow, you are a busy woman! I can't believe you've kept the date a secret also! Good job! The busy schedule will help the time go faster, but maybe that's not a good thing! lol I laughed that you couldn't find your suitcase.

How are Chase's eyes doing?

I can laugh now! But I was going absolutely MAD looking for it :rotfl:
Chase's eyes are STILL red :( I just thought for sure they would be all clear by the time we left. I'm not so sure now. They are no where near as bad as they were, but it is still very noticeable. I'm just worried because people are always asking me if he has pink eye! I don't want anyone at the pools to think that he has it.

What a wonderful idea of putting the surprises in everyone's suitecases! I would do that, except my son would never actualy look in his...what can I say, he is a 16 year old boy...:rotfl2:

But, I just think that is really sweet of you to want to make this so special for everyone!

Lynn

Oh I am defnitely going to have to "point" the surprises out to Courtney! She is at that age where if if doesn't "jump out" at you, it doesn't exist! :rolleyes1

So today I worked on my suitcase. It took me forever and I still need two small items. I tried on so many things that looked like crap I started to get discouraged for a moment. Then I remembered my old trusty SPANX and all is right with the world again :lmao:

I'm going to work on their carryons tonight and that should be it!! I think this is a record for me. I usually pack the day before!!! Can you imagine the madness????

Anyway, I'm going out with my mom tomorrow to help her pick out a few last minute things and get these eyebrows of mine whipped into shape. I'm looking forward to this weekend. Hopefully I can cook out on our grill on Saturday and we have some water balloons to play with! I am going to totally veg out on Sunday though because I have been running non-stop!

Courtney's last day of school was today and her report card was just awesome!!

She ended up with 2 A's, 3 B's and 2 C's! Now that may not seem that great to some, but little Miss Courtney has come a long way!! She has always struggled in school. And she has never qualified for any kind of services as she has always been just under the radar. It has been extremely stressful for us. Knowing that she needs, help but isn't able to get any. However the school that she goes to now is extremely AWESOME. Courtney has thrived continuously from the first year she attended. The teachers adore her and many keep in touch with her over the summer. One teacher takes her to plays (Courtney is a musical fanatic) and her and another teacher ride bikes and do all kind of other things. It's a good feeling when teachers and school staff go above and beyond these days. There are still so many good teachers out there who love doing their job!

Well, I'm going to relax for a few minutes and then take Selah out for a spin on her new skates. Chase isn't feeling so hot today. He's been sleepy on and off all day. I pray that he is not coming down with anything!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-17-2010, 03:55 PM

I've been so busy that I forgot to tell you guys that we got another package from llaxton! She was so sweet to give Selah an outfit for Epcott that her daughter had outgrown before she'd even got a chance to wear it!

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/007-2.jpg

http://i1012.photobucket.com/albums/af246/lwalker3106/008-2.jpg

Thanks again for the adorable outfit!!

We are absolutely all set for our trip! The ladies and their families in the BIG GIVE were so generous to us!! The kids are going to look awesome in all of their customs!! We have so much to take with us! I just smiled and cried while I packed the kids stuff! I got overwhelmed all over again!!!

yinyanggirls

06-17-2010, 11:41 PM

jessica52877

06-18-2010, 05:31 AM

What cute things that have arrived!! I am glad you are all ready and can't believe Courtney still doesn't know! She did do a great job in school. Sounds like a wonderful place with wonderful teachers!

Glad to see that Chase loved his Thomas outfit. When I read that he liked Thomas I knew I just had to make him something Thomas.

Have a great trip in case I don't check in again!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-18-2010, 10:20 AM

Great job Courtney!!! As her momma you know her best, and if she's worked hard and shown improvement she deserves a big pat on the back.

Cute Epcot outfit! That's one that would work outside "the world" also. :thumbsup2 Gotta love those!

I agree that outfit is just adorable. It has been so hard not letting them wear their stuff all this time. But I know once we get there I will be happy that I didn't let them!

What cute things that have arrived!! I am glad you are all ready and can't believe Courtney still doesn't know! She did do a great job in school. Sounds like a wonderful place with wonderful teachers!

Glad to see that Chase loved his Thomas outfit. When I read that he liked Thomas I knew I just had to make him something Thomas.

Have a great trip in case I don't check in again!

She has no clue. She thinks we are going in the fall because Chase's birthday is in November :lmao: Chase is going to be so cute in his Thomas outfit! He has Thomas shoes, a Thomas blankie and Thomas swim trunks! That boy is going to be in Thomas heaven!!!

Well we are getting close. We picked up Courtney's glasses today. How I left out the house and forgot Chases's glasses I don't know :( I was supposed to take his glasses in to be fixed, but rushing around...I forgot them!!

Now I'm off for my walk. My goal today is to get three miles in! Later on this afternoon I will be shopping with my mom for her last minute trip items!! Busy, Busy, Busy!!

cantwaittoseemickey

06-19-2010, 10:21 AM

Oh I love Selahs outfit. That is too sweet!! Shopping and walking all in one day Oh my! You sure did a great job of keeping this a secret:yay:

Way to go Courtney!! That is wonderful grades!!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-19-2010, 03:21 PM

Oh I love Selahs outfit. That is too sweet!! Shopping and walking all in one day Oh my! You sure did a great job of keeping this a secret:yay:

Way to go Courtney!! That is wonderful grades!!

Believe me, it has been sooo hard!!! There have been many "almost" slip ups!!!:rotfl:

We are down to the wire now!!! Courtney had a hair appointment today so I've been doing pretty much nothing, lol. On a good note, we are ALL packed and everything is over my mother's house INCLUDING our carryons!! (except for mine)

I think I am just going to relax for the rest of the day watching movies. Tonight is "game night" and tomorrow I will do some housework and we will do our yard stuff and cookout!

4 MORE DAYS!!! I can't believe it!!!

wish_upon_a_star35

06-19-2010, 03:47 PM

Well I just finished reading a few posts about WWOHP and Oh my :scared1: The lines are record breaking and just awful. They are saying that there was a wait of quite a few hours to even get into that area of the park :( I pray that everything works out. Chase watched the segment on the Today show about it and Courtney saw it as well, she's been talking about it nonstop and JUST now asked me if we could have a Harry Marathon tomorrow.

There's no way I'd say no to that!! I can't wait LOL!! We are getting ready to go to the store to get our popcorn (I have one of those old school air poppers lol) and I'm going to let everyone pick ONE candy just like we do when we go to the movies!! They are really excited too. Courtney has requested that we get up and shower early in the morning change into some comfy clothes and get the marathon started. We haven't done this in AGES!!!

casper_jj11

06-19-2010, 07:55 PM

The Lurker

06-19-2010, 08:50 PM

I was just watching the local news to see what they are saying about the crowds at US. They remain heavy and they are expected to remain heavy through the weekend. If you go, mid week should be better as you won't have the locals. What they are doing now is limiting the number they allow in the Harry Potter area, so once you get in there, it shouldn't be as crowded. The biggest line in the area is still the butter beer line. Perhaps you should try bypassing the line and go straight to the Harry Potter area and ask there about getting in. Apparently it is still quite unorganized, so you may have to ask several employes before you find someone who will let you in. However, they are interviewing people who say it is worth the wait. Good news is that we are in our "afternoon rain" season - but they are talking about the weather drying out a bit later in the week. Just be sure to get in as many of your "outdoor" activities in the morning.

I will try to keep checking.

Katie

wish_upon_a_star35

06-20-2010, 07:07 AM

Leah I've been watching the info on HP as well. I was wondering if any of the wish kids would be there around opening time. I saw your post on the US forum. You know, as long as you can get into the park, if you speak with a TM, I really think they'll make something happen. I can't imagine them having a wish child wait in line to get into that section of the park....at least I'm hoping that's what they'll do. My main concern would be making sure you're at the park early enough to get parking. (I haven't read much on today's happenings there but I haven't seen anything about the park being filled to capacity today like it was yesterday.)

I'd love to hear how it works out for you. Sydney is too young to know who HP is but my oldest is just getting into it and DH is a huge fan ... I'd love for them all to at least experience the land.

Have you called US to ask? Or GKTW? They may have some answers for you.

I'm going to make a few calls today and see if I can find anything out. I knew we'd be taking a chance going this close to the opening, but it's something that I know he'd love along with Toy Story and Cars. Plus I'd love to get in and take a ton of pictures too!! :rotfl:

I was just watching the local news to see what they are saying about the crowds at US. They remain heavy and they are expected to remain heavy through the weekend. If you go, mid week should be better as you won't have the locals. What they are doing now is limiting the number they allow in the Harry Potter area, so once you get in there, it shouldn't be as crowded. The biggest line in the area is still the butter beer line. Perhaps you should try bypassing the line and go straight to the Harry Potter area and ask there about getting in. Apparently it is still quite unorganized, so you may have to ask several employes before you find someone who will let you in. However, they are interviewing people who say it is worth the wait. Good news is that we are in our "afternoon rain" season - but they are talking about the weather drying out a bit later in the week. Just be sure to get in as many of your "outdoor" activities in the morning.

I will try to keep checking.

Katie

Thank you so very much for your update Katie! I also read about the butter beer line being extremely long. I'd love for them to have some...but if not that's okay. At least if we can get in that'd be perfect! I'm definitely going to try and seek out some employees right away.

I've been watching the weather forecast for a few days now and I noticed that there's a chance of rain pretty much everyday! Just our luck. Does the rain pass by quickly? Or is it a total washout?

jessica52877

06-20-2010, 07:16 AM

My experience with Florida rain is that it rains almost everyday and only for an hour or so. I lived in Florida for a few years in high school and of course we go atleast once a year. I have never much worried about the rain, but do always have a poncho under the stroller (more or less to cover the stroller so it wasn't wet).

cantwaittoseemickey

06-20-2010, 09:57 AM

3 DAYS!! Whoa!! I am really getting uneasy about getting into HP too. That is alot of people. There is no way Ty would last that long waiting to get into an area. It would be meltdown city. I hope you are all able to get in without waiting for hours. Your HP marathon sounds so cozy!

We have a Air popper too!:rotfl2: We love it!

Well I just finished reading a few posts about WWOHP and Oh my :scared1: The lines are record breaking and just awful. They are saying that there was a wait of quite a few hours to even get into that area of the park :( I pray that everything works out. Chase watched the segment on the Today show about it and Courtney saw it as well, she's been talking about it nonstop and JUST now asked me if we could have a Harry Marathon tomorrow.

There's no way I'd say no to that!! I can't wait LOL!! We are getting ready to go to the store to get our popcorn (I have one of those old school air poppers lol) and I'm going to let everyone pick ONE candy just like we do when we go to the movies!! They are really excited too. Courtney has requested that we get up and shower early in the morning change into some comfy clothes and get the marathon started. We haven't done this in AGES!!!

The Lurker

06-20-2010, 03:04 PM

Generally the rain lasts about 1/2 hour to an hour but sometimes as long as 4 hours. This is our typical summer pattern. The rain can be spotty. I just plan on rain every afternoon until November and am happy when it doesn't come. There is a low pressure that might come at the end of the week. If it does - that could be all day rain - but if heads to the central gulf states it will pull everything with it and we could have a few days of no rain.

My hubby told me that on the late news last night they said the line was "only" two hours yesterday compared to 5-6 on the opening day.

Lots of descriptions at the Orlando Sentinel web site.

Katie

wish_upon_a_star35

06-21-2010, 05:01 PM

Well guys we are really getting close now! I spent the day running around finishing up some last minute things I had to do. Made it to my hair appt started cleaning the house and I emptied out the fridge!

We are going to the park after dinner tonight so that I can tire the kids out and finish up the cleaning. Tomorrow is going to be a VERY busy day. In the morning I've got to take Selah and Chase to summer camp. After camp Chase needs a haircut and I have to go to the bank. Once we get home I will gather up the stuff to take to my mom's for the night and we will be off to my mom's to stay overnight. Now I'm kind of wishing for one more night in my own bed! :rotfl:

Anyway, I spoke to our airport greeter last night! He is going to meet us at the Pittsburgh International airport and he will stay with us all the way until we get on the plane. (Has anyone else had this experience?) He said that he will take us to the get and get us boarding sleeves so that we can board first (unless there are wheelchairs of course). Well that's a wonderful thing! He said that he will also take us to get our traveler's checks for the trip. He's a really nice guy and has been doing this for 11 years! How awesome is that!

Well I better go get some dinner together so we can go to the park this evening!