??An EXTREMELY important post??..please help

[Disneydays]

While I do realize that all posts are important..........I am requesting very special assistance.......
My mom is 80 years old....she has two artificial hips and severe arthritis....she does however insist on mowing her own lawn...cleaning her own gutters...etc....she is "cut from the old cloth"...whatever needs done gets done..with no help from anyone...she deals with her pain at day's end"....
She is the one that introduced me to WDW...back in 1978...shortly after the passing of her husband...(my dad)...she took my brother and his 2 sons and myself to "the World"...it was her first time flying in an airplane...(oh how she loved that)...she has not flown since....
My ??...I am planning on taking dd's to WDW in December of 2002....I don't know if my mom will last that long....
Tell me please....how I could take my mom and dd's to WDW.....for say...only 3 days....(she is a very stubborn woman who will not like to take a "scooter"...but I fear there is no other choice in her case...)....PLEASE....give me some advice for a short trip that will give my mom..and her dearly loved grandaughters...one last shot at WDW???
Anything I should know??....and can you recommend some rides that my mom can go on??...I remember her loving "It's A Small World"....
Would so appreciate any advice....I would give up THIS trip albeit small....for all others..........
Thanks so much in advance!!!!!!!

 

[Kermit]

I was just reading this board because I can't sleep, but your mom sounds exactly like my grandmother, so I may be able to help.

You didn't say if your dd's have been to WDW before or how old they are, but I would try to plan this trip mainly for your mom's benefit and make sure your girls know that you'll go back sometime for them. And then to make the trip less overwhelming, I would plan on just doing a few things. You should obviously do the MK since that's where the memories are, and maybe Epcot. She may really enjoy some of the attractions there, but it would require a lot of walking.

You could easily spend 3 days at MK and not run out of things to do if you took a mid-day break at your hotel. She should be able to ride just about anything that doesn't have height restrictions. A monorail hotel would be perfect, but any on-site resort would be nice as well.

If she's capable of flying by herself, you may want to consider having her go down with you and then sending her back on the third day so you and your dd's can explore the other parks.

Hope this helps.

 

[Disneydays]

Thanks so much for the reply Kermit!! I have goosebumps reading your reply and imagining my DM at WDW....DD's are 10 and 12 and already know that the trip would be for Gram...they love her so much that they would be as excited for her as she would be to "relive the Magic one more time!!!...(this would be an interim trip...as we have one planned for December 2002).
Thinking 3 days would be perfect...
Money of course is a concern for me....but I can't imagine a better way to spend it....this trip would be PRICELESS!!!
Thanks again.

 

[mnmom22]

Your post brought tears to my eyes --- I can't imagine anything more special than this trip you are planning. My mother is not a disney fan but the trips I've made with my daughter - now 20 are some of our best memories. Would staying at a monorail hotel be an option? That would cut down on the walking some. I bet you could find lots of suggestions about rooms close to transportation. Good luck with your planning --- Sprinkling lots of pixie dust your way!!!!

 

[SueM in MN]

Pixie dust for you!
MK will probably be the park that holds the most memories for your family. If she does use an ecv (scooter) or wheelchair, she will be able to stay sitting in it for some rides. My FIL has bad hips and knees. Besides the walking, the getting up and fown are real hard on the knees and hips. MK is one of the harder parks for someone with mobility problems. Because the rides are short and most won't accomidate staying in a wheelchair, there is a lot of up and down, in and out at that park.
Small World is one of those rides that will probably make her smile, but there is a long step down to the seat of the boat and another long step down to the seat. SHe could ask to use the wheelchair boat even without a wheelchair - she could walk down the ramp and get into a seat much easier that way. Pirates is another ride with a boat that you have to step down inot. There is no wheelchair car though on Pirates. She might enjoy Carousel of Progress, the paddleboat, and the steam train (you can stay in a wheelchair for all of them).
If she does use a wheelchair or ecv, the CMs will be clued in that she might need a little extra time for boarding. SOme rides can have the moving walkway slowed down or even stopped. This would make it much easier for her to get on and off. Don't feel shy about asking for things like that. The CMs want to make boarding easy, but they don't know what would be helpful unless you ask.
Epcot would be another good park to visit. With an ecv or wheelchair, she won't have to worry about the walking involved. Since the park is bigger and the walkways are spacious, it's an easier place for novice ecv users to use one. The rides at Epcot are a little easier for people with mobility problems. There are more things she could stay in the ecv or wheelchair for and less things that have a huge step down to get in.

What ever you do, have fun.

 

[scroot]

My wife has two artificial hips (knees also) A wheel chair grants extra lap time for a grandchild or in our case nieces. I can push two as easy as one! I wouldn't encourage a lap child in a moving ecv though. Even when dws health was at its best Disney has always requried a wheelchair. If she needs convincing regarding a chair or ecv the "better for the rest of us" approach might help. You could probably accomplish more in one day with a chair than three without Good luck and hope you have a magical time.

 

[mhopset]

I had a very difficult time when I finally had to start using an ECV (due to Muscular Dystrophy). I have to say now that I love the thing. It gives me so much more freedom to do things for my family. Such as let them rest while I got get drinks or food. One thing I did on my Dec 2000 trip. My wife and son do not like EPCOT and they wanted to swim and relax a day. I got on the bus and went to Epcot by myself. I had a GREAT time!!!!!! Print out this disscussion and give it to your mom to read. Let her know it is not a sign of weakness to be in an ECV. It is a gift of freedom. I do everything slow in my life, but when I am on that ECV i am a speed DEMON!!!!!!!

 

[Alaska]

I think that some of the rides have manual wheelchairs on hand for transfers from an ECV. In particular, I recall seeing folks transfer from ECVs to manual chairs so that they could use the wheelchair boat at Its a Small World.

Using an ECV will probably make your mother feel more independent than having to be pushed around in a manual wheelchair. However, it may be a little nerve-wracking for her to drive around in dense crowds if she is not used to driving one. When we were at Disneyworld in 1999, I saw a lot of folks who were probably new drivers making lurching starts and stops in their ECVs. Our son, who is really an expert driver of a very large motorized wheelchair (he was only 5 years old and his chair has an adult-sized frame) refused to drive himself anywhere in a crowd because he did not want to collide with anyone and folks frequently do not look where they are walking. You may want to rent an ECV in advance and let your mother practice so that she will not feel insecure about driving.

 

[Alaska]

I think that some of the rides have manual wheelchairs hand for transfers from an ECV. In particular, I recall seeing folks transfer from ECVs to manual chairs so that they could use the wheelchair boat at Its a Small World.

Using an ECV will probably make your mother feel more independent than having to be pushed around in a manual wheelchair. However, it may be a little nerve-wracking for her to drive around in dense crowds if she is not used to driving one. When we were at Disneyworld in 1999, I saw a lot of folks sho were probably new drivers making lurching starts and stops in their ECVs. Our son, who is really an expert driver of a very large motorized wheelchair (he was only 5 years old and his chair has an adult-sized frame) refused to drive himself anywhere in a crowd because he did not want to collide with anyone and folks frequently do not look where they are walking. You may want to rent an ECV in advance and let your mother practice so that she will not feel insecure about driving.

 

[SueM in MN]

the rides that require a transfer from an ecv to a wheelchair do have a wheelchair available.