A WDW Dream Vacation in the Making for Katelyn PTR

[disneymomma01]

Hi everyone!! We will start this PTR off with a little info about my wonderful family!! My name is Carrie & my husband's name is Chris...I am a homeschooling mommy to very cute & adorable Katelyn & trying to get a photography business up & running. My husband works in security for a local medical school, but is a very successful magician for kids & family events Katelyn made her grand appearance into this world 10 years ago with pomp & circumstance. I had a normal pregnancy and what appeared to be a healthy baby girl. So when she was born with a weird jelly sac on her back, we weren't alarmed. Even the OB wsn't alarmed. It was when the pediatrician came in that the world stopped.

We were told that Katelyn had a birth defect called Spina Bifida. Basically that means that a portion of her spinal cord grew outside & was covered by a thin jelly sac. We were told that she would never walk, and that she would always have issues with bathroom stuff. As new parents, my husband & I were devistated. How could this be? Katelyn was transferred to a nearby children's hospital, where she underwent surgery to repair the lesion. A few weeks later she was readmitted to place a shunt to drain off excess fluid & keep the pressure off of her developing brain. She has also had surgeries on her hips & on her ankle.

But let me tell you about her. Katelyn is a joy to everyone she meets. She plays tennis, she rides horses, & she walks...yes...she walks. She uses fore arm crutches & KAFO's (log leggedd braces to give her more support) but she has taken it upon herself to prove those doctors wrong. She is very funny...always ready with a joke to make us laugh. And is so caring & loving & gentle. We are so proud of her.

We just found out last week that her dream to go to WDW was granted by the Dream Factory. We are so excited. We don't have a definate date yet, but we are shooting for the 1st week in October. Katelyn is on medication that doesn't agree with heat, so summer trips are out for us. We are very anxious to get our trip planned so we can discover all of the magic that Disney & GTKTW has to offer us!!

Thanks for reading about my little family. We are a little family ready for some BIG fun in Disney!!

 

[mom2pixies]

A big welcome to the boards, Carrie and Chris and Katelyn!!!

Sounds like Katelyn is proving everyone wrong! So glad she is getting her wish. I'm hearing good things about October, and if we get our choice, I think that's when we'd pick to go, too!

I'm sure you'll find these boards very helpful in planning your trip! I look forward to reading more about your family and your Dream Factory wish!

 

[brookerene]

Welcome..... glad you are here... I do photography from home too... Love it...

 

[billwendy]

WELCOME!!!!! Cant wait to hear more about your family and your trip!! Tell me more about the Dream trip!!!!

 

[maroo]

Welcome!!!

I have added your wish trip to the Wish Trippers Unite thread! So hopefully you will get some people popping over to say hello!

AWESOME that Katelyn is walking!! That is fantastic! You go, Katelyn, Go!!!!


I don't know that I know any kids with Spina Bifida that are walking?!? That is really cool!

 

[teresajoy]

!!!! I hope you can post some pictures of your wonderful family!

 

[disneymomma01]

Thanks so much for the warm welcome!! You guys are FABULOUS!!!

We are so excited There are so many fabulous things to do in WDW & GTKTW I don't know how we will find the time!! LOL!!

As soon as I hit that 10th post (I should be close) I will post some pics of my family & hopefully I will have a date this week!! WOO HOO!!

 

[AmyK2003]

Carrie, your family's story is really touching and I actually started crying at work when I read it. I wish you all the best and look forward to hearing more about your trip planning. I'm taking my son (6) for his first trip right around that same time.

 

[disneymomma01]

This is my family...Chris, Carrie, & of course the diva Katelyn

My Dream kiddo and forever Princess, Katelyn

Another picture of Katelyn

 

[mom2pixies]

Fab photos--love the one of Katelyn in the hat! She is DIVA!!! Reminds me of a young Sophia Loren or another 1940s silver-screen star. Love it!

 

[DisneyTravelers2008]

Your daughter sounds like an amazing you lady! I hope your trip plans go smoothly and it turns out to be a great trip!! Keep us posted!!!

 

[disneymomma01]

Thanks again for the wonderful welcomes!!

I have been playing a serious game of phone tag with the lady who helps us plan our trip this week. So we are still waiting on our dates!! And to top it all off...my hubby has applied for a new job, and we are not sure how long until his vacation benefits will kick in...Halloween may become Christmas!! LOL!!

But we are planning away!! Deciding what to do, who to see, & what to ride!!

So far Katelyn's must do list is

Haunted Mansion
Tower of Terror (not on my top list)
The Mad Hatter's Tea Cups
and the BIG maybe
Rockin' ROller Coaster...she wants to ride, but is kinds leary!! She LOVES Steven Tyler...

And we want to do a character dining, just not sure which one, but leaning towards Chef Mickey. Much more to add, this is her beginning list!!

 

[blessedmom4]

Not sure how I missed your precious family's story; but, wanted to say

 

[disneymomma01]

So we survived the Holy Week & Easter services!! Hope you all had a very blessed Easter!!

A friend of Katelyn's bought her a planning book for her upcoming Dream Trip!! So I got her some post it flags so she could flag the definates...the maybe's...and the (as she calls them) not in this lifetime's!! LOL!! (Snow White is a not in this lifetime) LOL!!

I am again engaged in a game of phone tag with our planner, but we are busily trying to decide what all we MUST see on our trip!! I am enjoying reading all of the trip reports! It is so exciting!! Katelyn has a countdown on her laptop that is counting down the days...I think today was 158 days!! She thinks it sounds like an eternity...okay...so do I!!

Thanks for all of the support & any advice you guys have will be greatly appreciated!! Hopefully I can make some time here soon to join in on the conversations!! Only another couple of weeks of school for me & I am taking the summer off!! YAY!!

Thanks for keeping up with my family!! I am so lucky to have found you all!!

 

[shruley]

The days will go by fast I bet, and October will be here soon! I kind of wish we had a few more days to plan!! Loved reading about your family!

 

[Tonyababyrn]

Joining in on your pre-trip report!! We have a lot in common...homeschooling and photography!!

Katelyn is absolutely beautiful!! Can't wait to read all about her plans for her upcoming trip.

 

[blessedmom4]

On getting DATES!!!!!!!!!!

 

[disneymomma01]

So...we finally have our dates!!

We will be leaving EARLY on October 1st & come back on the 7th or 8th...

So now that is real, I will be making our character meal reservations SOON!! She has chosen Chef Mickey's. We are very excited about MNSSHP are getting the details of the costume down, so alll that will need to be done is just the ordering!!

Katelyn is just so excited. She is still planning away what she wants to do when we arrive! We started a Disney countdown journal, so she writes in it just about everyday. Each day starts with the official countdown from our countdown ticker on the desktop!! This is a good way for her to see how many days are left, she can plan her trip & it is kind of a creative writing class too!!!

We will also be doing a history lesson on Walt Disney, so we will just try to keep the excitement building!!

Thanks for checking in on us!!!

 

[disneymomma01]

We have reservations!! We will be dining at Chef Mickey's and maybe the Fantasmic dinner as well. Katelyn also decided that she wanted to do the BBB...so I made reservations for that today!! We are having such a great time planning our trip!! Hopefully soon, we will be able to get our itinerary together (preliminary, anyway!!). Katelyn said she will be taking the entire 5 months to decide whether she will ride the Rockin' Roller Coaster or not!! LOL!! She is a big Aerosmith fan (since American Idol) so that is really drawing her in, but she is still hearing that Chicken Little voice in her head!! I can't wait to see what she decides to do!!

We are looking so forward to getting away as a family!! We had a tough year, with me being diagnosed with a rare stomach cancer late last year. All is well & I am cancer free, but it was rough on all of us. Most of all Katelyn, she is a big worry wart anyway & she was very worried about her momma!! It really made us realize how precious each moment with loved ones really is.

I will keep everyone updated on all of our plans as we make them!! We are having a grand 'ole time planning!!

 

[disneymomma01]

Joining in on your pre-trip report!! We have a lot in common...homeschooling and photography!!

Katelyn is absolutely beautiful!! Can't wait to read all about her plans for her upcoming trip.

I just joined your trip thread as well!! Homeschoolers gotta stick together!! LOL!! I am in the process of trying to get my business off the ground!! It is slow going, but I am lovin' the ride!! (although my bank account nor my hubby agree with that!!)

Since you guys are going before us, I will just live vicariously thru you until our trip!! hahahah!!

Happy Planning!!