Bradley's Super Dee Duper Special Wish

[moe10378]

Hi all! My name is Mindy, and I'm a stay at home Momma to 3 boys!! I have been married to my high school sweetie (Shawn) for 17 yrs! Our oldest son, Shawn Michael is 16, and just about ready to get his license He is going to be a junior this yr ? Man I'm feeling old now! He's also in the Jr Cadet Firefighter program, and is working on being ordained as a minister soon. We are very proud of him! We also have twins, Bradley and Bailey, who are 13 now! The twins were born premature at 32 wks. Bradley weighed in at 3 lbs 13 oz and 16 in long, Bay at 3 lbs 15 oz, and also 16 in long. Bradley had to be ventilated two days after birth, so they were transferred to our local Children's Hospital. He came off the vent the very next day!! Both boys came home after a short two and a half wk stay in the NICU!! They were re admitted for RSV two wks later, and spent 9 days in the hospital. They came home for about two wks, and back in again with more respiratory issues. Since then they have remained relatively healthy. They were behind on there milestones, and dear Dr. kept saying it was due to prematurity. Finally at 3 yrs old they were diagnosed with autism. They are both non verbal, and not potty trained. They are at about a 3 yr old age level.

You may be finding all of this familiar?? Maybe if you ready Bailey's trip report from his wish trip last fall. If not, check it out in my link. Anyways, Bailey started having seizures almost 4 yrs ago. I kept asking, what's the chances of Bradley also having them? They kept saying oh no, the brain gets changed from a variety of things from birth on. Being Momma, I couldn't help but worry that that other shoe was gonna drop. It did! Last Aug we were on a Poker Run given by our local VFW for Bailey's wish trip. Bradley went into a grammal seizure and wasn't coming out of it. We had to call the squad. We were taken to Childrens, and the ER never ran one single solitary test, no seizure work up, nothing! They said it was "PROBABLY" from the heat. They even told us we could go back to the Poker Run. Poor Brad has continued to have seizures about every 3 mos. The seizures he has do not stop without medical intervention. He loses oxygen quickly, and gets very ill afterward. His Dr. filled out the papers, and he qualified for a wish trip. Even though he is non verbal, I knew what he would want. A private meeting with Blake Shelton Ok, ok, that never works..... He would want to go see Barney again!!! I have NEVER seen either one of those boys as happy as they were when they met Barney during Bailey's wish trip last yr. So we are heading off to GKTW!!!! We have dates!!! Almost exactly one yr from our trip last yr!! We are flying out on Sept. 28!! More to come....stay tuned!!!

 

[moe10378]

I just wanted to throw a pic of Bradley up here b4 I head to bed. He was very happy, and loving on me in this photo. I'll get some more up later!

 

[moe10378]

Ok, so, where was I? So, we were again able to get approved for My Mom (Cindy, aka: Meemaw), and Brandon to go as providers. Shawns mom ( Pam, aka: Meemaw 2), will also going with us!! GKTW is graciously allowing her to stay in the villa with us!! Of course, she has to pay for her own tickets, etc. We are just thrilled to be sharing this experience with her!! We have had such a horrid year, and although the death of Shawn's brother was shocking, and horrid, it was brought us all closer together. I am very VERY fortunate to have a wonderful MIL!!!! The extra hands will be nice 2!! Shawn and MeeMaw 2 has decided to drive on our own dime. They are leaving Fri (we fly out Sun), and they are going to stop in Gatlinburg and stay all night. Shawn is very excited to take his Momma through Cade's Cove.

We also have been fortunate enough to extend for an additional wk, and will be staying in Daytona, on the beach!! The gentleman that owns the condo we are staying in was very nice, and is giving us a GREAT deal!!

As excited as I am, I am a bit sad. My uncle Jerry has been on many trips with us through the yrs. He has been like a dad to me. Sadly he passed away in Jan on the boys' 13th Bday. We've had so much loss in the last yr, this trip is sorely needed.

More to come, stay tuned.....

 

[moe10378]

One more thing I wanted to share. I was fortunate enough to spend last yr at Magic Kingdom for my 35 Bday! Guess what?? Since we are going almost exactly a yr later (last yr we left on 29th), I will again get to spend my Bday in a magical place!!

 

[moe10378]

Looks like we will be flying Southwest this time! We depart at 11:20, and set to arrive at 1:30. Thank God it's straight through!

 

[moe10378]

Day 1 Sunday: We fly out Sunday. Depending on how things go, we hope to be at GKTW by 3:00. We will grab a bite to eat, explore the village, get some ice cream lol, and just enjoy what GKTW has to offer. We will have to go to orientation of course, and Shawn is going to do that this yr, since I went last yr. While he's doing that I'll probably take the boys swimming or unpack. Then we'll eat dinner, and hopefully attend The Worlds Largest Candy Land Party. I'll follow the boys' cues on this one. If this yr is anything like last, we will order pizza. I'll do a load of laundry, get everyone bathed, and hit the hay!!

Day 2 Monday: 8:00 - 10:00 is Disney character photos, which I am going to be sure and do this yr!! We'll grab breakfast, and head to Universal! We will ride some rides, but our main focus is Barney of course lol. We are planning on attending back to back shows, 11:30 and 12:30!! We'll follow the boys cue, and leave when we sense they've had enough. We have grown pretty adept at reading these two. The goal is to squeeze in as much fun as possible, but head out b4 they are to over sensitized. When this happens, we'll head back to GKTW! The Halloween party is tonight, so we will be planning on attending! Laundy, baths, and bed!

Day 3 Tuesday: We will probably skip the Nick character photos which are from 8:30-9:00, but not positive. Breakfast, and then we'll head to Sea World! This time I want to catch the shows! I LOVE dolphins! I also want to take the boys on Journey to Atlantis again! Mayor Clayton's Bday Part is at 7:30, we we'll head to that! Then again, order pizza, do landry, bath, and bed!

Day 4 Wed: We will head out to Animal Kingdom. I, personally, can't wait to ride Expedition Everest again!! I know the boys will love the safari, and we all wanna ride the rapids! Probably hit up a few characters also! Shawn wants to see Village Idol this evening at GKTW.

Day 5 Thurs: Disney character photos today 8:00-10:00, if we happen to miss Monday, we will hit this up! Not sure in which order we will do Thurs and Fri, but we are taking a break one of these days. Probably Thurs. Tonight is Christmas in the village. My boys missed Santa last yr, so we wanna be sure they get to see him this yr!! The line was WAY to long last yr, and they don't understand they have to wait in line. My aunt will be in Daytona, actually two aunts, and they, along with my cousin, will probably come visit today also! Then Pizza, Baths, and bed!! See a patter here? lol.

Day 6 Fri: 8:30-9:00 Universal Character Photos! We are praying praying praying Barney will be here!! That would make 2 little boys so very happy!! I know it's probably a long shot, but we can always hope!! We will eat, and head to Universal again! We will focus on the same 11:30 and 12:30 shows!! This may seem crazy to some, but go look at Bailey's Wish trip photos!! That crazy purple dinosaur made my boys happier than I have EVER seen them!! I am going to get a park map, and plan out our rides also, I don't wanna be running around wondering where to go, and what to do! We also plan on heading over to Island of Adventure! 7:30-8:30 is the Pirate and Princess Party, we'll probably at least go and swim during this!! Then, you guessed it, Pizza, laundry, baths, and bed!!

Day 7 Sat: We have to be out of our villa by 11:00 today, gonna be a sad day It will be a bit easier knowing we are heading to a beautiful condo on the beach!!

As far as our extention goes, we don't have days planned out. We know we wanna visit the board walk, rent a pontoon, but mainly we are gonna relax and enjoy beautiful FL!!

We will not follow this to a t, and of course we will wanna visit the playground, puttputt, etc. I will wanna do Brad's start early in the wk, it's important to me to see it once the Star Fairy puts it up also!! I wanna see Bay's stars to.

Now, some of you may be wondering, where is Magic Kingdom? Don't stone me, I love(d) Magic Kingdom. However, last yr we were treated rather badly, and I will not be going back. My kids enjoyed Universal more anyways...... I will not bad mouth them, it was one CM, but that one was enough. We spent a whole 3 hrs there last yr, and he ruined it for us completely.

For the first and probably only time in my life, I will get to celebrate Christmas on my Bday this yr!!!

 

[Chicago Mo]

Hi I am here too.. and again confused! This report is for the other twin! that took me a minute..

I am so sorry one CM ruined MK for you.. That is really horrible. Going to read on GKTW now..

 

[moe10378]

Hi I am here too.. and again confused! This report is for the other twin! that took me a minute..

I am so sorry one CM ruined MK for you.. That is really horrible. Going to read on GKTW now..

Thanks for coming over!! I think you may be as busy as me! LOL. You can check out website at www.gktw.org!! They work with different wish organizations, like Make a Wish, A Special Wish, etc.... I hope you are a bit less confused now lol. I will touch a bit on what happened at Magic Kingdom in Bailey's trip report, but like I said, I don't want to bad mouth them. For one, a lot of kids have a spectacular time there!

 

[moe10378]

Bradley waiting for the Dr!


A family pic in Tenn a couple yrs ago

 

[moe10378]

Won't be long! Got neuro's approval for rides for both boys!!! This Sunday will make 7 wks away!!!!

In other news, Brad has an upcoming eeg, followed by a neuro appt, a gi appt (having issues going poo), a psychology appt for some aggression he's been showing lately (possibly seizure med related), and a reg med check. Not to mention Bays upcoming appts! Whew, I'm tired thinking about it all!!

On the plus side, school starts on the 20th!!! That following Sunday will be 5 wks away!!!

 

[moe10378]

 

[moe10378]

Nothing really new on the planning side, but thought I would share a pic of the boys when they were in the NICU. This pic is actually the first time I got to hold them both at the same time.



Here's a pic of them riding the golf cart the other day! They love riding!!!



And here's a pic of Meemaw 2

Last, here's a pic of Bradley visiting Bailey in the hospital in June. We were playing in the play room.



Well, can't leave Bay out, here he is in the hospital same day

 

[moe10378]

I wanted to share the special shirts Brandon and I designed and had made for our trip. We will probably wear the Charlie shirt at Sea World, and maybe the Jerry shirt at Animal Kingdom.





and





We just wanted to do something to kinda bring Jerry and Charlie on the trip with us..... We still miss them so very much.......

 

[Chicago Mo]

 

[moe10378]

As you can probably tell, we are getting super excited!!!! I think I want to have a wish trip shirt made for Bradley still, but almost got our shirts all done for the trip

 

[moe10378]

School starts a wk from today. Lots of changes for the boys. New teacher, New aide, new classroom..... Praying they adjust well. Once school starts (the following Sunday) will mark 5 wks til our trip!! I figured Id wait two wks, then probably put in for the boys' vacations. I wont have a problem with Bradley and Bailey. Shawn Michael may be another story..... He knows he'll have to buckle down, and work hard. Just praying they'll give him the chance. I really don't know what we'll do if they wont allow him the time. Figured this is a once in a life time trip, and the boys really can't handle the heat in the summer. Praying for some magic

We are all super excited!! I know it'll be here b4 I know it, and the wk will go sooo fast. I just can't wait to see the boys faces when they see Barney again. These boys are my life, making them happy is what makes me happy!

 

[Chicago Mo]

I hope it works out with Sean Michael's school.... Can't wait to see your pictures when you get back!!! they will be over the moon! Hopefully you will have a good time in MK this time.

 

[moe10378]

We are skipping Magic Kingdom. I won't take my boys back again. We will be going to Animal Kingdom, but that's it as far as Disney Parks. GKTW gives us a 3 day Disney Hopper, a two day Universal Hopper, and a Sea World Pass. We plan on two days at Universal, a day at Animal Kingdom, and Sea World.

 

[moe10378]

Six wks from today!!! Woohoo!!!! I'm so ready!!!

 

[moe10378]

Well, the kids started school, and I still can't get anything done!!! By the time I get caught up, it'll be vacation time, and I'll get behind again!! Lol

Since Shawn and Meemaw 2 leave On Fri, they are officially 5 wks away!!! So Sunday we will have 5 wks!! That means we should get our pre arrival packet from GKTW in about 2 wks!!!! Yeah!!!! We so need the break! Charlie has been gone a yr now. We've been ordering headstones, and such. My heart is still heavy w/ the loss of him and Jerry.