Trev's Star Wars MAW trip

[Redwavess]

Hi,

I just came across your trip report. I am all caught up... I read the Pre-Trip report too!! What cute little kiddos you have. I am so glad that you all were part of the Big Give!! We were too and it was such an AMAZING experience. I have enjoyed reading about your family and your adventures so far!! Hooray that Grandpa got to come too!!

My wish trip kid and one of your daughters share a love for Rudolph. In fact it looks to me like they have the same build a bear Rudolph. My daughter also shares something in common with your son... They both have pulmonary atresia. And if I'm reading your trip report correctly they are the same age and in the same grade (8 years old and going into 3rd grade right )!! They should be pen pals!!

Have you heard about the camp in Southern California for kids with heart defects. Here is the website http://www.campdelcorazon.org/aboutus.html. I know you would have to fly or make a long drive but I thought I would share since I saw that you were planning on driving down to San Diego. The camp has the round the clock medical care available and is free of cost. Our daughter will be 9 years old next summer, so we think (at this moment in time) that it is old enough!! Maybe this would be a possibility and something new to look forward to!! Kids go from age 7-17 so you have lots of opportunities to attend.

I am sorry to hear that so much of your trip was rained out!! On a small level I can relate because when we were at the airport waiting to fly to Orlando we heard over the loud speaker that our plane had serious mechanical difficulties and was grounded. They assured us that they would attempt to get us another flight. Well after waiting for what seemed like ever they called us up to the counter with our Make-A-Wish shirts on and all.. and said now you are the people we have bad news for. We are unable to get you a flight!!! I stepped away from the family to call Make-A-Wish when I ended having a meltdown. In the end we were able to extend the trip so it worked out okay for us, but that day I just had this huge feeling of sorrow. I think it is hard for some people to understand because they have not been through it and feel like it should be easy to just grin and bear and look on the bright side. But I feel for you... since it is a Make-A-Wish it is about so much more than a vacation. Hugs to you !! Keep in mind that you did everything you could to make it a wonderful wish trip and luckily for us the kids don't have the same guilt/feelings that we do about the situation. For them it was about the rain, for you it was so much more. I totally get it!!! I'm surprised and happy to see that you were able to make the best of it!!! I think it is great that you have chosen to focus on the Star Wars Wish Day!!

I remember one day at Disneyland it poured, we tried to have good attitudes and succeeded for the 1st couple of hours, but one can only be soaked and disappointed for too long then you feel you just have to throw the towel in (actually I wish we had some towels to throw in that day, maybe we could've dried off some )!! It seems like the rain gave you the opportunity to do more at Give Kids the World then you might have otherwise. Looking back we wish we would have spent more time at Give Kids the World. After all we only got to have free ice cream once!! Reading trip reports I see that many other families felt Give Kids the World was not just a place to sleep, but a main attraction too!! I hope that brings you some comfort!! We also know families who return to Disney World and visit Give Kids the World after their wish trip. I hope that for you and your family or at least a trip to Disneyland you talked about!!

Wow did I go on and on... I hope that something I said helps!!! I promise I don't usually ramble on like... okay maybe I do... but I try not to!! I'll just blame it on the fact that it is almost 1am!!

I'm looking forward to reading more of your trip report when you have time. I know you busy with surgery. I'll say a prayer of health and happiness for all of you!!

See you soon,

Madeline

PS Did I mention I'm slightly obsessed with the smilies!!

 

[Lilfoot93]

Hi,

I just came across your trip report. I am all caught up... I read the Pre-Trip report too!! What cute little kiddos you have. I am so glad that you all were part of the Big Give!! We were too and it was such an AMAZING experience. I have enjoyed reading about your family and your adventures so far!! Hooray that Grandpa got to come too!!

My wish trip kid and one of your daughters share a love for Rudolph. In fact it looks to me like they have the same build a bear Rudolph. My daughter also shares something in common with your son... They both have pulmonary atresia. And if I'm reading your trip report correctly they are the same age and in the same grade (8 years old and going into 3rd grade right )!! They should be pen pals!!

Have you heard about the camp in Southern California for kids with heart defects. Here is the website http://www.campdelcorazon.org/aboutus.html. I know you would have to fly or make a long drive but I thought I would share since I saw that you were planning on driving down to San Diego. The camp has the round the clock medical care available and is free of cost. Our daughter will be 9 years old next summer, so we think (at this moment in time) that it is old enough!! Maybe this would be a possibility and something new to look forward to!! Kids go from age 7-17 so you have lots of opportunities to attend.

I am sorry to hear that so much of your trip was rained out!! On a small level I can relate because when we were at the airport waiting to fly to Orlando we heard over the loud speaker that our plane had serious mechanical difficulties and was grounded. They assured us that they would attempt to get us another flight. Well after waiting for what seemed like ever they called us up to the counter with our Make-A-Wish shirts on and all.. and said now you are the people we have bad news for. We are unable to get you a flight!!! I stepped away from the family to call Make-A-Wish when I ended having a meltdown. In the end we were able to extend the trip so it worked out okay for us, but that day I just had this huge feeling of sorrow. I think it is hard for some people to understand because they have not been through it and feel like it should be easy to just grin and bear and look on the bright side. But I feel for you... since it is a Make-A-Wish it is about so much more than a vacation. Hugs to you !! Keep in mind that you did everything you could to make it a wonderful wish trip and luckily for us the kids don't have the same guilt/feelings that we do about the situation. For them it was about the rain, for you it was so much more. I totally get it!!! I'm surprised and happy to see that you were able to make the best of it!!! I think it is great that you have chosen to focus on the Star Wars Wish Day!!

I remember one day at Disneyland it poured, we tried to have good attitudes and succeeded for the 1st couple of hours, but one can only be soaked and disappointed for too long then you feel you just have to throw the towel in (actually I wish we had some towels to throw in that day, maybe we could've dried off some )!! It seems like the rain gave you the opportunity to do more at Give Kids the World then you might have otherwise. Looking back we wish we would have spent more time at Give Kids the World. After all we only got to have free ice cream once!! Reading trip reports I see that many other families felt Give Kids the World was not just a place to sleep, but a main attraction too!! I hope that brings you some comfort!! We also know families who return to Disney World and visit Give Kids the World after their wish trip. I hope that for you and your family or at least a trip to Disneyland you talked about!!





See you soon,

Madeline

PS Did I mention I'm slightly obsessed with the smilies!!

Welcome!! Being part of the Big Give was a HUGE blessing to our family! I am glad you got to enjoy it too. The kids still love wearing all their cute clothes!

My daughter LOVES Rudolph! She watches the movie A LOT!! Rudolph was even her first choice for both surgeries. No other stuffies or toys would do! I asked Trev about being pen pals and he loved the idea! Yes, he just turned 8 and will be starting 3rd grade in a few weeks... I can't believe it is already time to get ready for the school schedule! We have enjoyed the late summer nights staying up way to late

As for the camp I have heard about it. We were thinking of doing some fundraising so we could get him to California. It sounds like a great camp!

Yes. It was a bummer it rained so much. It was hard at time because the kids just wanted to go home! There were some fun times but we felt like we missed out on a lot too. We did get to spend more time at GKTW but most activities were inside because of the rain so it was SO crowded so it was hard to enjoy it. The tuck ins were cancelled all but one day so we did not have a chance for that. The pool and carasoul were closed due to weather for part of it too which was a huge bummer. Hopefully when we go to Disneyland it will be a little drier

Jackie

 

[Lilfoot93]

It started raining again right before 3pm and did.not.stop.for.the.rest.of.the.night. Now we found out where all this rain was coming from and SHE had a name! Tropical Storm Andrea! This was a REAL rainmaker! Not that having a name made us feel any better... It was actually a little scary as we do not have these kind of events and they were even talking about the chance of tornadoes! Another thing we do not get... I think that is what made it the worst as it had shaken us a little and it was hard to have a good time over the next day or so knowing that tornadoes were a possibility. We drove back in the pouring rain and it was SO hard to see! We finally made it to Walmart so the kids could pick out "souveniers". The girls picked out an Ariel playset and Trev a Mickey Mouse. That was all they wanted so that was pretty easy on the wallet!

As of now the kids do not want to go back to the parks because they are SO wet! They want to stay in the villa until it stops raining... Uh it looks like that could be a few more days... It is sad that this is their first vacation and first Disney experience. I was hoping for SO much more!

After Walmart we arrived "home" ate dinner had some ice cream and went swimming in the rain. The thunder would come later and shut it down. But since we were already wet from the rain why not enjoy ourselves in the pool! Tomorrow will most likely be a stay at indoors day as TS Andrea is suppose to be right over our area. And with possible tornadoes I don't want to be caught out in one!

 

[Lilfoot93]

We slept in as we new that TS Andrea was on its way and going to be a rain maker! The rain was coming down SO hard! The front area of our house has been one HUGE puddle since Monday morning. We went to breakfast and took our time as we had NO plans to go out in it. It was so rainy and miserable... The kids just wanted to go back to the villa and play with their toys and watch movies. The pool was closed, the carasoul, mini golf. We did go see Pluto in the morning then went and had ice cream for our after breakfast treat

The rain was still coming down super hard and tornado warnings/watches were in effect until 10pm that night. Throughout the day there had been a couple warnings which was SUPER scary! Especially to someone who never experienced one before. We decided to stay at the village and met up with Joe, Michelle and JJ. The kids hit it off right away! They played for awhile at our villa then headed off for another round of ice cream before lunch They left right after ice cream. They couldn't stay long but it was still fun for the short time we got to visit. Thank you SO much for meeting up with us and it was great meeting you guys! The kids STILL talk about their new friend JJ!

Around 1pm the rain started slowing down a bit and we were getting bored and restless so we decided we would go to Universal and try it out...


Trev and JJ

 

[Lilfoot93]

We got a quick lunch at Katie's kitchen. I asked if silverware and napkins were in the bag as we were eating it in the car... They assured us they were... When we were on the road we got the food out and there were no utensils or napkins... Eating mac and cheese and mashed potatoes were interesting

We arrived at Universal about 2pm and sure enough it was a downpour! We got on our ponchos and headed for the gates. We went straight to Harry Potter! but when we got there the hippograf ride was closed due to the excess rain... As were a few other rides... It was a real bummer. This was the one park I was really looking forward to as I have dreamt about going to HP world since I first heard they were opening it! We did take a walking tour inside the castle. The kids were not tall enough to go on this ride but at least we got to look inside a little bit. When we were done we were hoping the skies would have cleared a little... NOPE! It was raining even HARDER!!

We headed over to the wand shop. Trev was picked to have a wand pick him. He thought it was pretty fun and of course we ended up buying the wand because he wanted it so badly... And now it sits in a box... One of these days we will have to get something to put it on display. The magic tricks scared the girls and they were crying!

It was STILL raining (At this point it shouldn't be such a big surprise but one can hope... right!?!) so we went and bought chocolate frogs and every flavor beans. (They are not joking when they say every flavor!) We ate lunch at Suess Landing and it the rain FINALLY let up! We were able to go on two rides, one of which was red fish blue fish that gets you WET! Which was fine because we were getting wet on OUR terms! Then the rains started again... This time only for a few minutes. Yay!! We then headed over to Spiderman ride. Kara LOVED it! The other two were scared. Kara went on it twice! We left shortly after that because it was pouring again!


A wand picking Trev

 

[Redwavess]

Hi again!!

Pen Pals hooray!! I'll PM you our address!! Mallory is starting 3rd grade tomorrow (in eight hours)!!

The kids look so adorable in their clothes, how cute!! I love the picture where they are all drinking smoothies, it is just adorable! I can relate to the Katie's Kitchen food with no silverware, that happened to us on our way to one of the parks too!! Made for a fun eating experience!! My family joins Kara in her love of Spiderman it was our favorite ride, everyone in my family loved and we rode it multiple times too!!!

Wow a tropical storm with a name and tornado warnings I can't believe that!! I'm so sorry that you guys had such bad weather!!

I'm off to send you a PM with my address for pen pals!!

See you soon,

Madeline

 

[NEmel]

Finally got all caught up on your TR. Summer has been too busy! Your pictures are so cute and the kiddos looked great in all their awesome outfits. It stinks that there was so much rain. Usually storms don't start so soon and June is so hot. Glad the you got to do a lot of fun things anyway. I would have been very disappointed and sad as well. Hope the kids are having a great summer!!

 

[Redwavess]

Hi,

I hope you all are doing well. I'm thinking you might be doing the whole back to school thing like we are doing right now!! So might be super busy.

Are the girls going to kindergarten this year? How is 3rd grade going for Trev?

I hope you are having a nice end to your summer and that back to school goes or maybe already went smoothly!!

I can't wait to read about Star Wars Weekend when you have time to post more!!

Talk to you soon,

Madeline

 

[Lilfoot93]

Finally got all caught up on your TR. Summer has been too busy! Your pictures are so cute and the kiddos looked great in all their awesome outfits. It stinks that there was so much rain. Usually storms don't start so soon and June is so hot. Glad the you got to do a lot of fun things anyway. I would have been very disappointed and sad as well. Hope the kids are having a great summer!!

That is what everyone has been saying... The first of June is HOT not SO wet! It was a bummer that it was SO wet when we were there. We tried to make the best of it but at times it was REALLY hard! Especially when it would not stop raining and the kids just wanted to go back home.

We have been having a pretty good summer. Weather wise it is the nicest summer in years! Of course it happens while Kara is recovering from surgery and can not get her ear wet for 2 months

I hope you guys are having a great summer too!

Hi,

I hope you all are doing well. I'm thinking you might be doing the whole back to school thing like we are doing right now!! So might be super busy.

Are the girls going to kindergarten this year? How is 3rd grade going for Trev?

I hope you are having a nice end to your summer and that back to school goes or maybe already went smoothly!!

I can't wait to read about Star Wars Weekend when you have time to post more!!

Talk to you soon,

Madeline

We are doing well. Kara ended her activity restrictions so we have been squeezing in a few day trips before school starts next week. The kids will be in for a rude awakening when they have to wake up early for school next week... I have been trying to prep them by getting them in bed earlier but with it still light out at 8pm it is tough!

Allie and Kara start Kindergarten this year. They are SO excited!! They turn 5 a couple days after Kindergarten starts. Trev is starting 3rd grade. He too is pretty excited for school to start up again. He misses seeing his friends everyday. Although he has seen them a lot this summer!

I hope school has been an easy transition for you guys this year!

Jackie

 

[Lilfoot93]

We got back to the village about 7:30. Tonight was Christmas sot he kids got pics with Santa. Since it was raining (the theme for the whole trip...) they had a dance party inside. It was a little too crowded for the kiddos so we went swimming in the rain and then ate pizza for dinner. The rain hadn't really let up all day. At least the tornado warnings were coming to an end this evening. We then were off to bed as Trev's Star Wars Day is tomorrow!! Praying for sun!!

 

[Lilfoot93]

Trev's Wish Day!! Star Wars Weekend!! We woke up early and had breakfast on the go. For the first time in days the sun was shining bright, white fluffy clouds in the sky and our little lizard friends were out to greet us again! NO sight of rain today! Low 90's forecasted!! I was SO happy that after days of rain it was GONE!! We got to HS at 9:45am and met our tour guide, Rachel, at 10:30. We were expecting to be in a large group but we had her to ourselves!! Only one other wish kid had asked for SWW for that day so we both had our own tour guides!! How cool is that!?!

Trev was asked to be in the motorcade parade so we checked with our tour guide and she said "yes" he can be in the parade. He was SO excited to be a Jedi in the parade rather than sitting on the sidelines watching it! The smile on Trev's face was PRICELESS! He had on his Jedi robe and walked the parade. Luckily it was still morning so the heat hadn't started bothering him too much at this point. The rest of us got reserved seating while Scott walked in the parade with Trev. I wasn't able to get any pics as I had both girls on my lap and sitting down it was hard to get pics. We were told that the professionals would be taking pics and we would get a copy... Later that night we realized they did not get any good shots of Trev. SUPER bummed about that! Same thing happened when the girls met Ariel. We took a little video of the girls thinking we could get pics from the photopass but somehow all our Ariel pics were lost!

After the parade we got Mickey Ice Cream sandwiches then we were off to a private meet and greet. The other wish kiddo was there too. We met Chewbacca, Queen Amadalla and Chip and Dale. The characters were with the kids for about 5 minutes or so before they headed off. We had to wait about a half hour before going to our lunch reservations. In the meantime Trev was presented with a Star Wars gift basket. It was pretty cool! It had pins, buttons, shirt, hat, poster, calendar, magnet, a couple star wars figures and a couple little cars.

Then it was off to lunch at the Sci-Fi dine in movie theater. Our wonderful tour guide was able to get us last minute reservations. This was the first time we actually sat in a restaurant our whole trip. Before this we either had counter service or ate the sack lunches we had packed each morning. We then were off and got to see Darth Vader, Jedi Mickey, storm troopers and Phinneas. Even with a private tour guide we did not have time to take in half of what SWW had to offer let alone the rest of HS. So if any wish kiddos out there want SWW as their wish make sure to ask for ALL 3 days!!

The only ride we had time for was Star Tours. Allie and Trev backed out at the last minute so they stayed with the tour guide while the rest of us went on it. Of course they wanted to later in the day but there was NO time! It was SUPER hot outside! Lots of sunscreen and water today! It felt WONDERFUL. We sure preferred this over all the rain we had the days before!

We were then off to see Stars of the Saga. Trev and the girls were not impressed. Knowing now what it was about I would have declined this and met some of the other characters Trev wanted to see. Then we raced over to Jedi training. Trev was SO excited!! This is what he had been waiting for!!
While Trev was preparing for Jedi training the girls and I had another Mickey ice cream treat

Trev battled Darth Vader and won!! He then used the force on the storm troopers! After Jedi training it was off to watch the voices show. It was pretty cool how one guy can do SO many voices! The kids thought it was cool at first but not really there thing overall.

We then stopped and got pretzels and R2-D2 snack packs. We were able to get reserved seating for Hyperspace Hoopla but the only bad thing is we were behind so many rows of people the kids (or I ) couldn't see very well. We then headed off to Fantasmic. It was a GREAT show!! FINALLY we were able to watch a show since it was DRY!!!! At 9pm we finally ate dinner as the show was starting. The kids had a blast!

Today went by SO fast! But it was still an AMAZING day!! I really think that if you want to really experience SWW you need to go all 3 days. We felt rushed at times and felt we missed a lot. But we still had a great day! Our tour guide was AMAZING!! Now that the sun has finally come out we are wanting to stay longer. But of course our flight leaves tomorrow evening. The kids have been AMAZING all week even though we have been staying out late each night and getting up early. At least we have the whole day tomorrow and now that the sun is out maybe we can get some more adventures in....






Trev during the parade. He is in the red shirt and blue hat.

 

[Lilfoot93]

We slept in this morning because of our late night last night. We had a hard time getting the kids out of bed but eventually they were out of bed playing with their new toys. It was a BEAUTIFUL morning! The sun was shining... But our lizard friends were gone... Did they know something we didn't???

My Dad and I went to get breakfast while Scott was *trying* to get the kiddos packed up. After breakfast I took the girls for horseback riding. They LOVED it! Trev was in the villa playing with his new toys from the night before. After the horse back riding I went to check out while the others were loading up our van to leave. Of course now that the sun was shining and it was beautiful outside it was time to leave! We found a couple little lizards and said good bye to them. The kids said they would see them in the pet store when we got home

After checking out we went to see Trev's star. We had not had a chance all week as it was raining so much all week all events were in the same area as the stars. (The kids did not get tucked in by mayor clayton either as that was cancelled because of all the rain). It was pretty emotional knowing his star was there with all the other wish kiddos. We took lots of pictures. We then headed to the ice cream parlor for one last ice cream sundae. After saying goodbye to GKTW and buying some souvenirs from there we headed off to DTD as we had not gone yet.

We went to the Disney store and Lego store to look around. It was HOT and muggy. The kids (and my Dad) really wanted to go to Gatorland. So we headed off to Gatorland for a few hours before our plane left... Or so we thought...



His star is on the bottom circle 2nd row from the bottom in the middle part of the circle.

 

[Lilfoot93]

We arrived at Gatorland and were amazed at all the gators!! I have never seen SO many gators in one place before! We were able to get a pic of us holding a gator and a snake. We then headed off to see a show. As soon as we sat down they informed us it would probably be cut short because a storm was coming in... Of course one last parting shot before we left

Sure enough the sky was lighting up! It was hard to concentrate on the show right in front of us when the sky was putting on an impressive show of its own. The winds started picking up and the flood gates opened up... Torrential downpours. Again! You have to be kidding me!?! The show was cut short. We made our way into the gift shop hoping to wait it out. But we should know better by now that doesn't happen around here... We eventually gave away our train tickets and decided to just head to the airport where it was DRY!!! There was no relief from the rain and if it were possible it seemed to be raining HARDER!!! I took some video of all the rain because I didn't think people back home would believe me how hard it rains in Florida... We just do not see that kind of rain here! It is hard to believe we get less rain than Florida. I guess the difference being is that our rain is light and drizzly and lasts ALL day so it seems like it rains FOREVER!! I am not going to complain about it our rain for A LONG time!!

It was very hard driving in the rain to the airport. The streets were flooded and you could not see out the windshield. At one point we had to pull over and try and wait it out. Of course it went on and on and on.... Once again we were SO glad to be leaving Florida and leaving all this rain behind us! I have a feeling we will not be back anytime soon nor the desire to come back anytime soon. Next time it will be to sunny California and I will stick with DL

It took us SO long to drive to the airport because of the rain and getting through security took A LONG time that we did not have time to eat dinner. It was chips and cereal for dinner. Our plane was delayed because of the stormy weather. It was still thundering/lightening/torrential downpours outside. It had been raining for HOURS! By this time I was questioning everyone who said that it rained for about 20-30 minutes each afternoon and you would be glad it did. I think it was dry for about 20-30 minutes each day We are very thankful though that Trev's wish day was dry and hot.

Once again Trev got to meet the captain and sit in the cockpit. This time he got to speak on the intercom. He didn't want to so I did first then he followed We taxied for awhile then we were finally off! So glad to be going home to escape all the rain... Never thought I'd be saying that! The kids once again were AMAZING on the plane! We were comped movie players and Trev was comped a kids food pack. So of course we had to buy one for each of the girls... Couldn't have one kid have one and not the others

On the way home we hit some VERY rough turbulence. I already am not a great flyer and this only made it worse. I was white knuckling it while Allie loudly exclaims " This is FUN when the plane dips and rocks!!!" with an excitement only a child has

For the most part it was a noisy plane ride. The kids in front of us kept fighting. I wanted to tell the parent to sit in between his kids so I did not have to listen to them! We had to separate ours a couple times. But the only words we really heard from them were if we were ready to land yet... It was a LONG 6 hour flight! But they did great overall! We chased the sun all the way home and that was fun. We arrived home about 9:45 and the sun had just set so you could see all the lights in the city. Kara exclaims "City lights! City lights! I see city lights!!! You could see some fireworks going off in the distance too.

We had a greeter from MAW meet us at baggage claim welcoming us back home. We were SO glad to be home! It was warm and DRY! In fact it did not rain for over a month when we got back! And when it did it was a little drizzle that lasted for about 10 minutes. It felt so good to be home.

We were super bummed it rained so much on Trev's MAW trip. However, we are very grateful for the opportunity to have gone to DW and SWW. But for now we have no desire to go back. Thank you to everyone who helped make our trip magical. From those of you who gave us advice to the Big Give. The kids have LOVED wearing all their "Mickey Mail" clothes! I know you could not see all of them in the photos but we wore our ponchos A LOT!! So those cute outfits were under those most of the time. They still fit in most of the clothes and wear them constantly. Every time they use their crayons, water bottles, blankets etc. they comment that these are their Mickey Mail items and they love using all their goodies and wearing their clothes!

 

[Redwavess]

Hooray for good weather on the SWW day!!

It looks like Trev had a great time defeating Darth Vader!! Good for him!!!

I love the pictures!!! They are so awesome!! The Big Give Clothes are ADORABLE!!

My favorite picture is the one with Chewbacca and the and the one with Darth Vader!! So Cool!!

I hope back to school goes great!!! Mallory sent Trev a pen pal letter. We were looking at all your pictures and she said, "He looks cool!!" I thought that was so cute!!

Happy Weekend,

Madeline

 

[Lilfoot93]

We were very lucky to have such a nice day especially since it rained so much!

I think fighting Darth Vader was Trevs favorite part!

Thanks for the pen pal letter. Trev loved it! Mallory should be getting one soon

Jackie

 

[Redwavess]

We were very lucky to have such a nice day especially since it rained so much!

I think fighting Darth Vader was Trevs favorite part!

Thanks for the pen pal letter. Trev loved it! Mallory should be getting one soon

Jackie

Oh great I'm glad he got the letter!! Mallory will be happy to know that too!!

I'm glad I came across your trip report!!

Yes, I can't believe all that rain. I hope you guys get to Disneyland!! You certainly deserve a rain free, awesome trip to Disney!! I'm actually a little surprised that MAW doesn't offer something special to families that have issues on their trip like you guys did!!

Hugs,

Madeline

 

[lovethattink]

We got back to the village about 7:30. Tonight was Christmas sot he kids got pics with Santa. Since it was raining (the theme for the whole trip...) they had a dance party inside. It was a little too crowded for the kiddos so we went swimming in the rain and then ate pizza for dinner. The rain hadn't really let up all day. At least the tornado warnings were coming to an end this evening. We then were off to bed as Trev's Star Wars Day is tomorrow!! Praying for sun!!

I'm so glad we got the chance to visit with you and your family this day. The rain cooperated for that. It wasn't torrential downpour like later. Wish we would have had more time. The kids got along so nicely and had so much fun. JJ also talks about them. He keeps asking when he's going to see them again.

Trev's Wish Day!! Star Wars Weekend!! We woke up early and had breakfast on the go. For the first time in days the sun was shining bright, white fluffy clouds in the sky and our little lizard friends were out to greet us again! NO sight of rain today! Low 90's forecasted!! I was SO happy that after days of rain it was GONE!! We got to HS at 9:45am and met our tour guide, Rachel, at 10:30. We were expecting to be in a large group but we had her to ourselves!! Only one other wish kid had asked for SWW for that day so we both had our own tour guides!! How cool is that!?!

Trev was asked to be in the motorcade parade so we checked with our tour guide and she said "yes" he can be in the parade. He was SO excited to be a Jedi in the parade rather than sitting on the sidelines watching it! The smile on Trev's face was PRICELESS! He had on his Jedi robe and walked the parade. Luckily it was still morning so the heat hadn't started bothering him too much at this point. The rest of us got reserved seating while Scott walked in the parade with Trev. I wasn't able to get any pics as I had both girls on my lap and sitting down it was hard to get pics. We were told that the professionals would be taking pics and we would get a copy... Later that night we realized they did not get any good shots of Trev. SUPER bummed about that! Same thing happened when the girls met Ariel. We took a little video of the girls thinking we could get pics from the photopass but somehow all our Ariel pics were lost!

After the parade we got Mickey Ice Cream sandwiches then we were off to a private meet and greet. The other wish kiddo was there too. We met Chewbacca, Queen Amadalla and Chip and Dale. The characters were with the kids for about 5 minutes or so before they headed off. We had to wait about a half hour before going to our lunch reservations. In the meantime Trev was presented with a Star Wars gift basket. It was pretty cool! It had pins, buttons, shirt, hat, poster, calendar, magnet, a couple star wars figures and a couple little cars.

Then it was off to lunch at the Sci-Fi dine in movie theater. Our wonderful tour guide was able to get us last minute reservations. This was the first time we actually sat in a restaurant our whole trip. Before this we either had counter service or ate the sack lunches we had packed each morning. We then were off and got to see Darth Vader, Jedi Mickey, storm troopers and Phinneas. Even with a private tour guide we did not have time to take in half of what SWW had to offer let alone the rest of HS. So if any wish kiddos out there want SWW as their wish make sure to ask for ALL 3 days!!

The only ride we had time for was Star Tours. Allie and Trev backed out at the last minute so they stayed with the tour guide while the rest of us went on it. Of course they wanted to later in the day but there was NO time! It was SUPER hot outside! Lots of sunscreen and water today! It felt WONDERFUL. We sure preferred this over all the rain we had the days before!

We were then off to see Stars of the Saga. Trev and the girls were not impressed. Knowing now what it was about I would have declined this and met some of the other characters Trev wanted to see. Then we raced over to Jedi training. Trev was SO excited!! This is what he had been waiting for!!
While Trev was preparing for Jedi training the girls and I had another Mickey ice cream treat

Trev battled Darth Vader and won!! He then used the force on the storm troopers! After Jedi training it was off to watch the voices show. It was pretty cool how one guy can do SO many voices! The kids thought it was cool at first but not really there thing overall.

We then stopped and got pretzels and R2-D2 snack packs. We were able to get reserved seating for Hyperspace Hoopla but the only bad thing is we were behind so many rows of people the kids (or I ) couldn't see very well. We then headed off to Fantasmic. It was a GREAT show!! FINALLY we were able to watch a show since it was DRY!!!! At 9pm we finally ate dinner as the show was starting. The kids had a blast!

Today went by SO fast! But it was still an AMAZING day!! I really think that if you want to really experience SWW you need to go all 3 days. We felt rushed at times and felt we missed a lot. But we still had a great day! Our tour guide was AMAZING!! Now that the sun has finally come out we are wanting to stay longer. But of course our flight leaves tomorrow evening. The kids have been AMAZING all week even though we have been staying out late each night and getting up early. At least we have the whole day tomorrow and now that the sun is out maybe we can get some more adventures in....



Trev during the parade. He is in the red shirt and blue hat.

It's too bad the photopass pictures didn't have more of Trevor. The picture after the parade of JJ and Trevor went MIA.

How wonderful that you had your own private meet and greet.

Stars of the Saga would have been one to skip and the Voices show would have been the one to see. How did Trev like the storm trooper preshow? That's the best part.

Very cool you got in to Sci-Fi at the last minute.

I'm so glad the weather held out for his MAW SWW day.

I wish we could have stayed longer that day. It was great seeing Trevor in the parade and Jedi Training. I think I got a few pictures of him. When I get to that part of my TR, I'll post them on here too.

We slept in this morning because of our late night last night. We had a hard time getting the kids out of bed but eventually they were out of bed playing with their new toys. It was a BEAUTIFUL morning! The sun was shining... But our lizard friends were gone... Did they know something we didn't???

My Dad and I went to get breakfast while Scott was *trying* to get the kiddos packed up. After breakfast I took the girls for horseback riding. They LOVED it! Trev was in the villa playing with his new toys from the night before. After the horse back riding I went to check out while the others were loading up our van to leave. Of course now that the sun was shining and it was beautiful outside it was time to leave! We found a couple little lizards and said good bye to them. The kids said they would see them in the pet store when we got home

After checking out we went to see Trev's star. We had not had a chance all week as it was raining so much all week all events were in the same area as the stars. (The kids did not get tucked in by mayor clayton either as that was cancelled because of all the rain). It was pretty emotional knowing his star was there with all the other wish kiddos. We took lots of pictures. We then headed to the ice cream parlor for one last ice cream sundae. After saying goodbye to GKTW and buying some souvenirs from there we headed off to DTD as we had not gone yet.

We went to the Disney store and Lego store to look around. It was HOT and muggy. The kids (and my Dad) really wanted to go to Gatorland. So we headed off to Gatorland for a few hours before our plane left... Or so we thought...

Very cool finding the star.

We arrived at Gatorland and were amazed at all the gators!! I have never seen SO many gators in one place before! We were able to get a pic of us holding a gator and a snake. We then headed off to see a show. As soon as we sat down they informed us it would probably be cut short because a storm was coming in... Of course one last parting shot before we left

Sure enough the sky was lighting up! It was hard to concentrate on the show right in front of us when the sky was putting on an impressive show of its own. The winds started picking up and the flood gates opened up... Torrential downpours. Again! You have to be kidding me!?! The show was cut short. We made our way into the gift shop hoping to wait it out. But we should know better by now that doesn't happen around here... We eventually gave away our train tickets and decided to just head to the airport where it was DRY!!! There was no relief from the rain and if it were possible it seemed to be raining HARDER!!! I took some video of all the rain because I didn't think people back home would believe me how hard it rains in Florida... We just do not see that kind of rain here! It is hard to believe we get less rain than Florida. I guess the difference being is that our rain is light and drizzly and lasts ALL day so it seems like it rains FOREVER!! I am not going to complain about it our rain for A LONG time!!

It was very hard driving in the rain to the airport. The streets were flooded and you could not see out the windshield. At one point we had to pull over and try and wait it out. Of course it went on and on and on.... Once again we were SO glad to be leaving Florida and leaving all this rain behind us! I have a feeling we will not be back anytime soon nor the desire to come back anytime soon. Next time it will be to sunny California and I will stick with DL

It took us SO long to drive to the airport because of the rain and getting through security took A LONG time that we did not have time to eat dinner. It was chips and cereal for dinner. Our plane was delayed because of the stormy weather. It was still thundering/lightening/torrential downpours outside. It had been raining for HOURS! By this time I was questioning everyone who said that it rained for about 20-30 minutes each afternoon and you would be glad it did. I think it was dry for about 20-30 minutes each day We are very thankful though that Trev's wish day was dry and hot.

Once again Trev got to meet the captain and sit in the cockpit. This time he got to speak on the intercom. He didn't want to so I did first then he followed We taxied for awhile then we were finally off! So glad to be going home to escape all the rain... Never thought I'd be saying that! The kids once again were AMAZING on the plane! We were comped movie players and Trev was comped a kids food pack. So of course we had to buy one for each of the girls... Couldn't have one kid have one and not the others

On the way home we hit some VERY rough turbulence. I already am not a great flyer and this only made it worse. I was white knuckling it while Allie loudly exclaims " This is FUN when the plane dips and rocks!!!" with an excitement only a child has

For the most part it was a noisy plane ride. The kids in front of us kept fighting. I wanted to tell the parent to sit in between his kids so I did not have to listen to them! We had to separate ours a couple times. But the only words we really heard from them were if we were ready to land yet... It was a LONG 6 hour flight! But they did great overall! We chased the sun all the way home and that was fun. We arrived home about 9:45 and the sun had just set so you could see all the lights in the city. Kara exclaims "City lights! City lights! I see city lights!!! You could see some fireworks going off in the distance too.

We had a greeter from MAW meet us at baggage claim welcoming us back home. We were SO glad to be home! It was warm and DRY! In fact it did not rain for over a month when we got back! And when it did it was a little drizzle that lasted for about 10 minutes. It felt so good to be home.

We were super bummed it rained so much on Trev's MAW trip. However, we are very grateful for the opportunity to have gone to DW and SWW. But for now we have no desire to go back. Thank you to everyone who helped make our trip magical. From those of you who gave us advice to the Big Give. The kids have LOVED wearing all their "Mickey Mail" clothes! I know you could not see all of them in the photos but we wore our ponchos A LOT!! So those cute outfits were under those most of the time. They still fit in most of the clothes and wear them constantly. Every time they use their crayons, water bottles, blankets etc. they comment that these are their Mickey Mail items and they love using all their goodies and wearing their clothes!

Love the pictures with the gators. Again, bummer about the rain.

I'm glad he had the chance to make his dream come true and be a Jedi for the day. The added pixie dust of a tour guide, the parade, and everything else made for a very special day. Especially the weather cooperating.

You all made the best of the bad weather. I'm sorry the rain left a sour feeling for Florida. Hopefully if you ever return to Florida your weather will be perfect.

Does Trev know that Star Wars Celebration Anaheim is in 2015 to coincide with the release of the new movie?! I sure hope JJ is better by then, we'd love to go. It would be awesome if you guys were there as well.

 

[jediprincess23]

Fellow Star Wars fan here! Your story is so inspiring and your kids are adorable!

 

[Lilfoot93]

Oh great I'm glad he got the letter!! Mallory will be happy to know that too!! I'm glad I came across your trip report!! Yes, I can't believe all that rain. I hope you guys get to Disneyland!! You certainly deserve a rain free, awesome trip to Disney!! I'm actually a little surprised that MAW doesn't offer something special to families that have issues on their trip like you guys did!! Hugs, Madeline

I hope Mallory received her letter. Trev tells everyone about his pen pals in Cali and Florida!! It was pretty wet when we were there! When we mentioned it MAW said that happens in Florida when you go in the summer... I didn't think it would be SO wet going the first week of June'

We are hoping to go to DL next December. We will plan more after Trevs next cardiology appt in Jan.

Jackie

 

[Lilfoot93]

I'm so glad we got the chance to visit with you and your family this day. The rain cooperated for that. It wasn't torrential downpour like later. Wish we would have had more time. The kids got along so nicely and had so much fun. JJ also talks about them. He keeps asking when he's going to see them again. It's too bad the photopass pictures didn't have more of Trevor. The picture after the parade of JJ and Trevor went MIA. How wonderful that you had your own private meet and greet. Stars of the Saga would have been one to skip and the Voices show would have been the one to see. How did Trev like the storm trooper preshow? That's the best part. Very cool you got in to Sci-Fi at the last minute. I'm so glad the weather held out for his MAW SWW day. I wish we could have stayed longer that day. It was great seeing Trevor in the parade and Jedi Training. I think I got a few pictures of him. When I get to that part of my TR, I'll post them on here too. Very cool finding the star. Love the pictures with the gators. Again, bummer about the rain. I'm glad he had the chance to make his dream come true and be a Jedi for the day. The added pixie dust of a tour guide, the parade, and everything else made for a very special day. Especially the weather cooperating. You all made the best of the bad weather. I'm sorry the rain left a sour feeling for Florida. Hopefully if you ever return to Florida your weather will be perfect. Does Trev know that Star Wars Celebration Anaheim is in 2015 to coincide with the release of the new movie?! I sure hope JJ is better by then, we'd love to go. It would be awesome if you guys were there as well.

You know you have a place to stay if you come out here I know the kids would love it!

We did not see the pre show that 3 hour time difference really caught up to us by then!

Trev does not know about the Star Wars Celebration. That will be something to look into!

I hope all is well with you guys!

Jackie