Kay~You are also a pure and unconditional "GIVER" by nature. The fact you pondered and worried about the $$ being expended for this trip reflects your inherent and sincere character. Your praise is appreciated and graciously accepted. Thank you.
Jynohn~sometimes, it takes a tragedy to make us more aware and conscientious of the "LIFE" passing us by. The essence of our existence on this planet is indeed "fragile", and none of us can ever predict tomorrow...or the next five minutes for that matter. If you keep putting off your travel for a time when it seems financially "comfortable", it may never transpire. In the meantime...years are peeling away, and you and your children are forging into the future (& maturity). Live your dreams TODAY. This is one of my FAVORITE themes for a WDW vacation. Hold fast to one another, and Live the MOMENTS of the present. You will never regret the time you have shared with your loved ones. In the end...it is TIME which is most precious. Spend it wisely, as it is more of a treasure than all the riches in the world. Enjoy your planning, and have a wonderful & Magical Time. I will keep your MIL in my prayers. PD to you and yours~**********~Take care.
Starz723~Dear child...your post made me cry as well.
"Our Family" unit, consists of my DH & myself...and our "ONLY CHILD"....DD.
We have been traveling with her to WDW since she was a tiny toddler (And YES...she remembers). Each consecutive year, we have planned and saved our way to the Kingdom of the Mouse! We have always traveled alone, just the "Three" of us. We treasure our time spent in each other's company. We have shared so many wonderful adventures, and the images of those times are merely a daydream away.
This past summer marked our 13th annual journey to the MAGIC. We have continued to "Stretch" our trips into the "just shy of eight weeks" we relished this past July/August visit. We are blessed to be able to enjoy such a visit, and thank the Good Lord for making it all possible. I can not begin to express the true meaning behind these pilgrimages. They have become an integral part of our lives. We actually hold family "planning" parties, where we watch the OLD & NEW Disney official vacation videos while enjoying freshly popped corn, read the latest Birnbaum's guide, review & reminisce over our summer MAPS of each park (with a little home--made journal reflecting each days events), peruse the following summer's calender and mark our intended dates/locations for our return.
Like you wrote, Starz723, we work our tails off to return each summer. Our DD is now 16, and is contemplating which COLLEGE she will attend in less than 2 years. If not for the comfort of my WDW memories, dear Friends and Family, and the wonderful support system on this board, I would already be a basket case. The steps she has taken in the past 6 months have sent her on the direct path towards autonomy. As much as I celebrate the young and independent woman she is becoming, my heart longs for the little dependent girl with the mouse-ears hat being "carried" (or pushed in the stroller) everywhere. Childhood is fleeting, at best.
Part of the reason I MUST return to WDW each summer, is due to these life-changes. Her personal shadows of childhood, (and us in young parenthood!), still dance safely hand-in-hand along the coves of Mainstreet USA. This summer, as she broke in front of me to rush to Cinderella's castle with her DF to check-in for our PS (Dinner), I saw the face of her...as a "five-year old" little girl. Her head had turned slowly back, laughing as she parted the crowded walkway with her daddy. She smiled, assuring me everything would be fine and they would meet me there. Instantly, the glow of the precious halo overhead illuminated the details of her cherubic kindergarten face. Her hair was lovingly brushed and pulled up with a Minnie Mouse Bow. It was only the voice, permeating the night air as it seemed to whisper into my ear, which gave away her true age. It was that of a maturing young adult, and lacked the sweet high pitch quality reflected in the summer of '92.
These glimpses of her "over the years" are maintained everywhere inside the MAGIC. I see her at various stages of growth, recalling exact images and memories of an experience here or there. As we twirl the wheel sitting opposite each other in the tea cups, I suddenly see a seven-year old (proud of her ability to actually SPIN the wheel alone!). As I sit on a wooden bench behind the shops in the U.K., after Illuminations has ended and another day is closing, I watch her and DH maneuver the MAZE of HEDGES! The soft yellow glow from the antique streetlamp overhead lends to the relaxing ambience. As always, they each take a side, and pledge to RACE to the finish. It's as if they are both "ageless and timeless" as they frolic together among these carefully trimmed evergreens, ducking and hiding, spinning and jumping. Laughter...pulses through the air like lightening. Inspirational? Surely. MAGICAL? No...just PAR FOR THE COURSE on this hallowed Ground deemed DISNEY.
The echoes of her unabashed and infectious laughter can be heard from the East depot of the POR, to the whimsically carpeted halls of the WDW Dolphin. The multitude of times we've "closed" a park...to ride a "special" chauffered bus back to our resort. The games we have invented while strolling back from MGM, Epcot to the Dolphin or the MK to the CR....are etched permanently into our souls. The blazing summer sunsets we have witnessed in awe, standing side by side. Each summer, there is something which occurs, which always evokes a NEW SAYING. I have recorded each in our vacation journals, and we are all instantaneously transported back in time at the mere mention of a humorous phrase.
These are all "insider" family notes. Experiences we alone have shared, which have inevitably shaped our lives and formed our circle. Each family is independently affected by the world around them. Our most vivid recollections are not of the day-to-day events which are more about "existing" than "LIVING". Ours consist of TRAVELS and EXPERIENCES beyond our front door, our neighborhood, town or state. It is the world beyond these borders, which beckons us back. The WORLD known around the world as WALT DISNEY.
There is a simple comfort in the "knowing". The continuity, of returning to a place which holds our past, is truly assuring in a world of unpredictability. The more things change (in WDW), the more they stay the same. Why, I still SEE "DELTA DREAMFLIGHT" everytime I ride Buzz Lightyear! (LOL). As soon as we arrive, we are all able to take a breath, (as if we've been holding it for the previous 10 months!), and SMILE. Memories vividly RUSH~IN with the first bite of the fresh Turkey Leg, or sip of frozen coke!
We will continue to return, as everything we desire in a summer vacation is contained in the enclaves of the Disney property. We can SEE THE WORLD in the showcase of Epcot. We can immerse in pure Fantasy in the Magic Kingdom. We can visit the WILD in Animal Kingdom, and the MOVIES in MGM. We can share sincere and heartfelt SMILES with strangers sharing our planet. Fireworks can be easily viewed on a nightly basis. Water parks and shops abound to round-out the adventure. Walt would be proud, his VISION has lived~on...and expanded through his initial courage and insight.
We may be only THREE in this family...but when we are at WDW...we are part of the millions which have visited before, and the thousands walking shoulder to shoulder with us each day. We share a glance, a word, some laughter. We all "GET IT". We are truly part of a distinct and MAGICAL family. We are all there for the same reasons, to preserve a piece of our time together. Time AS A FAMILY.
God Bless you all, for making it happen with your own families. We are the Dreamers of Dreams...and the MAKERS of the MAGIC!
Sorry...I did not mean to wax poetic. It's such a sensitive subject with me, one I hold very near/dear.
Enjoy your Sunday!
TTFN...DF99
We will definitely be collecting the toiletries this trip. 
You are such a sweet & genuinely kind-hearted person, and obviously care with great compassion and concern for everything/everyone around you. Your posts reflect these character traits, and are hear-warming to read. I know you will enjoy your time in the MAGIC. Just remember...the best things in life, are not THINGS...they are the moments we spend with loved ones. 
I hereby convene the meeting of Disboard Mutual Admiration Society.
When we are on vacation in WDW ... those topics don't come up! Probably the most difficult decision may be if we can make it to a particular PS on time or not!
