We had planned for a swim between AK and going to the Christmas party, so we ordered a late lunch/early dinner of sandwiches from KK and ate them poolside. I was a little torn and had always thought we'd do Christmas dinner at the Gingerbread House, but the girls really needed to unwind without structure, so this worked for us. After a quick swim and something to eat, we headed back to the villa for baths and dresses.
The girls wore the dresses and accessories Monica (cydswipe) and family sent for them. Here's a picture on our front patio while waiting for the bus to come. Most of the week we walked, but tonight, they wanted to try the bus.
Once we got to the Avenue of Angels, they wanted to go on the horse drawn carriage ride, so we went to get in line. On our way there, we met Wendy (BillWendy)! Unfortunately, we were only able to chat for a few minutes, but it was so very nice to connect!
The horse drawn carriages were really neat. The carriage was completely handicapped-accessible with a wheelchair lift on the back.
We met this really neat family while on the ride. It appeared to be a mom, her son, who appeared to be very involved medically, and maybe her sister and parents? At any rate, we were talking to the other woman (not mom) and she was explaining what an incredible week it was for them. In her words, "He went on eight rides at Disney. Eight rides. Can you believe that?" She was glowing, and just so pleased that he was able to experience so much. She said that they almost didn't get to come because his respiratory status had been so bad, but that since they had been there, she had never seen his numbers look so good. It's just one more way in which magic happens when you're at GKTW.
After the carriage ride, we headed down the Avenue of Angels where everything seemed to be going on. I don't know this guy's name, but he was cute!
Here comes the parade! Let's get this party started!
The girls cut up a rug with as many different volunteers as they could find. I had to keep wiping away the tears watching the girls have such a good time, especially Ali. She just doesn't take to unfamiliar people easily, yet she was bee-bopping around like she owned the place.
It was about this time that we met Ann (Wee Annie) and her family. Ironically enough, we were only a couple of villas away from each other, and it took me until Thursday to spot her. It was lovely chatting, and Elke is adorable - looks just like her mom.
Then we headed into the theater to see Santa. Word to the wise - visit Santa first. We waited well over an hour to see him - I think it was after 9pm by the time we finally got through.
Despite the amount of time it took us to get in there, and in spite of the size of the line still behind us, Santa still took the time to visit with the girls and make it meaningful. We so appreciated this, as I'm sure the families who continued to wait behind us did too. The girls chose kitten things that mewed and purred, and decided to call it a night.
On our way back to the villa, we had to stop for ice cream. It seems that everyone else had the same plan and the line was loooonnnng.
The girls fell into bed and were out in a matter of minutes. Garth and I had a speedy drink out on the patio, and then joined them. We had an amazing, amazing day from start to finish.