"Do You Mind?" - Disney Adventures with Teens August Trip Report

[scottny]

Hi,
Got your postcard today thank you so much. I cannot wait.

 

[swwake]

We are back from Disney World, but we still have a long day of travel today before arriving home - expected around midnight tonight.

We had a great time. I can't wait to share with you all. We took over 960 pictures, plus 60+ Photopass pictures, so I have some sorting to do.

Mom is home in Memphis, and we are on the road. We have to stop in Mena, Arkansas. Sadly, Paxton passed away on Monday and her viewing is today. Katie and I will stop by. We are traveling with the two dogs and a gerbil (my sister's). Magic is still recuperating, so we have to make frequent stops for her. This is quite a "vacation"!

I will be doing a trip report, but I think it will take a long time to get through it all. Probably won't be complete before Scott and others of you leave. I think it may take 3-4 chapters per vacation day.

It was a whirlwind; we are worn out; but it was SO worth it. One of those "vacations of a lifetime". We are so glad we did it.

 

[SwansLoveDisney]

Can't wait to hear all about your trip!

 

[klj27]

Glad to hear that it was a wonderful trip!

I am so happy that you took the time to visit Paxton at the start of your trip.

 

[dddisrunner]

WELCOME BACK! Glad to hear you had a great time! I can't wait to hear all about it! I am sorry to hear about Paxton, at least she is at peace and no longer suffering Have a safe journey back to Austin!

 

[dreamer17555]

Welcome back! I can't wait to see all of your pictures.

I am so sorry about Paxton. At least she isn't in pain anymore.

Now bring on the TR!

-Becca-

 

[Donald is #1]

Sadly, Paxton passed away on Monday and her viewing is today. Katie and I will stop by.

Oh no! How is Katie doing? I'm so sorry to hear that Paxton passed away.

 

[stagemomx3]

Sorry to hear about Paxton!

 

[scottny]

welcome back.

sorry to hear about Paxton.

 

[Charleston Princess]

Welcome back! I am super excited to read all about your trip and see all of your pictures!

I am so sorry about Paxton.

 

[NMAmy]

I'm glad you had a great time and that Magic is doing okay. I'm so sorry to hear about Paxton.

 

[Native NYer]

Welcome home!!!

I am so sorry to hear about Paxton.

 

[swwake]

I am so happy that Magic is okay. that must have been SO scary.

Have a wonderful time and I can't wait to read all about it when you return!

Thanks so much. We are glad too. We did have a great time.

I'm glad Magic is ok!

Thanks Chel!

I am so glad that Magic is okay!!!

Thanks Jackie too!!

Yippeeee....so glad it all worked out for Magic ! Now, go off and have a Magical Stay...of course, if you let us know how YC/BC is we'd appreciate it

Thanks so much and we did have a Magical Stay.

Yes - thanks for your thoughts!!

yeah, for Magic!! So glad you were around to catch this.

Of course, have a wonderful vacation!!!! (but any little updates you can make along the way would be great!)

Either way, we'll be waiting!

I am glad too. And that Dad had the experience to recognize it early. We had a great vacation. Sorry I couldn't update more often, but I'm sure you all know how it goes. So busy all the time.

glad to hear Magic is doing well

Thanks Scott. She's still doing great - moving a little slowly, but fine.

Oh, I can't wait to hear about the KTTK tour. I hear it's terrific!!

and that drink looks wonderful!! Would love to be sipping on the non-alcoholic one right now!!

I will have details on KTTK coming on Day 4 of the trip. That may be a week or more away. Sorry to keep you in suspense.

The drink was great! That was Day 3. I will elaborate on that later as well.

That drink looks very yummy! It's really neat how it glows in the dark! So glad that you are having a great time and got a good room location!

Jackie - the drink was yummy!! Loved our room and had a great time!

 

[Grandma Bonnie]

Loved our room and had a great time!

I've been waiting for Susan to start responding re: the trip. I don't want to steal her opportunity to share the trip with all of our disfriends.

But, I have to agree with everything she has said so far.

We had a great time with the exception of the news re: Paxton. Being in WDW so soon after the MAW trip w/Pax did make it a little more emotional for Katie. But she's a trooper and did well considering everything.

And I'm not sure I would want to stay anywhere else but the BC. It is a wonderful location.

 

[swwake]

great photo!!

Makes me feel like I'm there too!!

Thanks! Glad I could add some Disney Magic to your day.

Oh, and gorgeous blue dress! That is awesome -- so chic!!

I thought that was really cute too. These girls are so fashion-savvy. You will see in the TR.

very nice photo.

23 days

Thanks Scott. I can't believe you are under 3 weeks away! So exciting. The time will FLY!

THANKS so much for the PC and spreading the magic to our family Hoping you are having a splendid time. Can't wait to hear all about it! 10 days to the BC

You're very welcome. Did you post it right on your fridge?

Susan, I hope your are having a GREAT time! Have a safe trip back home, we can't wait to hear ALL about it!

We were having a great time. The whole trip was a blast.

Hi,
Got your postcard today thank you so much. I cannot wait.

You're very welcome. Glad to do it. What did the postmark look like?

Can't wait to hear all about your trip!

I can't wait to share! It's so hard writing the first couple of posts and not going straight to the fun stuff!

Glad to hear that it was a wonderful trip!

I am so happy that you took the time to visit Paxton at the start of your trip.

Oh, we are so happy that we stopped too. It was a great memory that we will look back on fondly. Paxton was truly happy to see Katie.

WELCOME BACK! Glad to hear you had a great time! I can't wait to hear all about it! I am sorry to hear about Paxton, at least she is at peace and no longer suffering Have a safe journey back to Austin!

Can't wait to share. Thanks for the thoughts on Paxton. You're right. No more suffering, no more treatments, no more ports. She can go be a little girl like she was meant to be. Almost home now! about 2 hours or less.

Welcome back! I can't wait to see all of your pictures.

I am so sorry about Paxton. At least she isn't in pain anymore.

Now bring on the TR!

-Becca-

I have to edit down those pics a bit. I will go through them. I've been deleting the obviously bad ones either on the camera or after download, but I think I need to cull through and delete more.

TR coming soon. Thanks for the thoughts on Paxton.

Are your meds doing their job? Did you get some rest this weekend? I hope you're healing quickly.

Oh no! How is Katie doing? I'm so sorry to hear that Paxton passed away.

Yes, it is sad. Thanks for your thoughts. Katie is doing very well, considering. She is so mature. She handled the viewing very strongly.

Sorry to hear about Paxton!

Thanks for the thoughts Chel. She is so much better off now.

welcome back.

sorry to hear about Paxton.

Thanks. Thanks for your thoughts re: Paxton.

Welcome back! I am super excited to read all about your trip and see all of your pictures!

I am so sorry about Paxton.

Thank you. I am excited to share. We had so many adventures and made so many magical moments of our own. Thanks also for the thoughts on Paxton.

 

[swwake]

I'm glad you had a great time and that Magic is doing okay. I'm so sorry to hear about Paxton.

Thank you. Magic is doing great. She is recuperating well. Thanks for your thoughts on Pax. She is so much better off now. It is always sad to see young children lost. I am so glad Katie and Paxton got to go to Disneyworld in May.

Welcome home!!!

I am so sorry to hear about Paxton.

Thank you! You too! I can't wait to hear about your rumored pixie dust. I wonder if we saw you?

Thanks for the thoughts on Paxton.

 

[swwake]

I thought it would be more appropriate to post these comments here than at the end of a trip report from a fabulous vacation. But I thought some of you friends may want to know.

We stopped by the viewing for about 45 minutes today. Mena, AR is a very small town. Paxton's body was transported from Little Rock to Mena sometime last week and embalmed, prior to cremation.

Katie's dad and Paxton's mother were very thankful that we made the detour and took the time to visit. Of course, it was a solemn occasion. Katie has only attended one funeral before, and that was her great-grandmother's when she was 5 years old. She barely remembers.

Katie and I wore sweats and shorts in the car (dogs jumping on us, dog slobber, dog hair, etc.) and changed quickly when we got to the funeral home. I went in with her while Chris and Caitlin went to Wal Mart with the dogs and got them leashes (which we forgot to get from Dad when we picked the dogs up this morning).

I told Katie to do whatever she was comfortable with, and she was very strong. She and I spoke to her dad first, then Paxton's grandmother, some family friends, and the great-grandparents. Then we went near the side of the casket, where they had a computer with a slide show of various pictures of Paxton. Many of them included Katie and were from Disneyworld, or from the 5 years previous when Katie sometimes visited her dad and played with Paxton.

Katie was very emotional seeing the pictures. She told me a few minutes ago that was the hardest part. She didn't want to go to the casket at first.

A few minutes later, I was talking to Katie's grandmother and some other family friends and Katie's dad took her to the casket when she was ready. Katie's comment is "that's not Paxton." She knows that Paxton is now in a better place.

Paxton held a little cloth napkin or something similar. I asked Katie about it and she said "that's her woobie. She never went anywhere without one. She had many of them." She also held a rose. Her nails were painted very pretty.

I spoke to Paxton's mother for a long time. She told me that Paxton ultimately passed from heart failure and that, although she was in ICU and they thought she wouldn't be able to talk, she was able to respond to her mother's "I love you, Paxton" with "I know. I love you too, Mom" before her last breath.

We visited for a few more minutes, then met Chris and Caitlin at the truck. There, we visited a little more with Katie's dad and another friend before leaving. It was about an hour to 1.25 stop. I am glad we did it, and I am so proud of Katie for being so strong.

We were given a copy of the paper with the obituary, in which Katie is listed as Paxton's sister. This is an honor to Katie, as Paxton's mother and Katie's father never married and are now going their separate ways. Paxton always considered Katie as a sister.

 

[Grandma Bonnie]

I thought it would be more appropriate to post these comments here than at the end of a trip report from a fabulous vacation. But I thought some of you friends may want to know.

We stopped by the viewing for about 45 minutes today. Mena, AR is a very small town. Paxton's body was transported from Little Rock to Mena sometime last week and embalmed, prior to cremation.

Katie's dad and Paxton's mother were very thankful that we made the detour and took the time to visit. Of course, it was a solemn occasion. Katie has only attended one funeral before, and that was her great-grandmother's when she was 5 years old. She barely remembers.

Katie and I wore sweats and shorts in the car (dogs jumping on us, dog slobber, dog hair, etc.) and changed quickly when we got to the funeral home. I went in with her while Chris and Caitlin went to Wal Mart with the dogs and got them leashes (which we forgot to get from Dad when we picked the dogs up this morning).

I told Katie to do whatever she was comfortable with, and she was very strong. She and I spoke to her dad first, then Paxton's grandmother, some family friends, and the great-grandparents. Then we went near the side of the casket, where they had a computer with a slide show of various pictures of Paxton. Many of them included Katie and were from Disneyworld, or from the 5 years previous when Katie sometimes visited her dad and played with Paxton.

Katie was very emotional seeing the pictures. She told me a few minutes ago that was the hardest part. She didn't want to go to the casket at first.

A few minutes later, I was talking to Katie's grandmother and some other family friends and Katie's dad took her to the casket when she was ready. Katie's comment is "that's not Paxton." She knows that Paxton is now in a better place.

Paxton held a little cloth napkin or something similar. I asked Katie about it and she said "that's her woobie. She never went anywhere without one. She had many of them." She also held a rose. Her nails were painted very pretty.

I spoke to Paxton's mother for a long time. She told me that Paxton ultimately passed from heart failure and that, although she was in ICU and they thought she wouldn't be able to talk, she was able to respond to her mother's "I love you, Paxton" with "I know. I love you too, Mom" before her last breath.

We visited for a few more minutes, then met Chris and Caitlin at the truck. There, we visited a little more with Katie's dad and another friend before leaving. It was about an hour to 1.25 stop. I am glad we did it, and I am so proud of Katie for being so strong.

We were given a copy of the paper with the obituary, in which Katie is listed as Paxton's sister. This is an honor to Katie, as Paxton's mother and Katie's father never married and are now going their separate ways. Paxton always considered Katie as a sister.

This report is so beautifully written. It brought tears and closure.

 

[swwake]

"Do You Mind??"

Disney Adventures with Teens August 2008 Trip Report​

Preface: Dates, Location and Chapter Links

We just returned from our annual family vacation. Our trip was from Friday, August 8th through Sunday, August 17th, 2008. Our actual Disney World vacation was from Saturday, the 9th through Saturday the 16th. We stayed at Disney’s Beach Club Resort.

On this post, I will include updates and chapter links.

We had a Pre-Trip Report, which you can view here. We had almost as much fun planning the trip as we did on the vacation. Also, had I not become so obsessed with planning, there are some things we may not have been able to experience, so we are all really glad that I planned so much.

We took over 960 pictures and we had over 66 Photopass pictures taken. I also kept a journal during the trip and tried to jot down as many details as possible. This will help with writing the trip report.

Mom will likely chime in from time to time. We love readers and we look forward to sharing our adventures with you!

Chapters:
Cast of Characters
Part I, Chapter 1 - And We're Off...
Part I, Chapter 2 - 3 Adults, 2 Teens and 2 Goldens
Part I, Chapter 3 - Ease On Down The Road
Part I, Chapter 4 - Melodies and Memories
Part I, Chapter 5 - Like Saltwater Taffy
Part I, Chapter 6 - Squeezing Howard
Part II, Prologue - A Teaser of Sorts
Part II, Chapter 1 - Journey to Lake Buena Vista
Part II, Chapter 2 - What's that Funny Smell?
Part II, Chapter 3 - Strolling the Boardwalk
Part II, Chapter 4 - He Had Me At: "Rock Candy Syrup"
Part II, Chapter 5 - Can You Sing Solo?

 

[scottny]

nothing I can say.