Make a Wish (and other organizations!) - Wish Trippers...UNITE!! Volume 2!

[jessica52877]

LindaBabe, I did use my real name only, but that's because Amy and I had struck up quite an email correspondence as well as posting frequently on each other's pre-trip reports. Their wish trip was not long before ours. The real issue on which we bonded related to the wonderful contribution of a SM at Universal - Fred of the Scooby Doo gang - who went so far above expectations and gave Clay memories of a lifetime. Amy wanted so much to ensure that "Fred" was recognized for all he did, that he would understand the impact that he had on Clay's Wish Trip. However, she wasn't getting much reaction from Guest Services at Universal. Amy's trip report had touched me deeply and I wanted to help, put on my thinking cap, checked out how Universal management is organized and called the assistant to the CEO of Universal Parks. Who's a really stand up guy, it turns out. Amy wrote a fabulous letter about their trip, including excerpts from her Ttrip report and sent it along. After a while she received an amazing response and Fred was recognized in team meetings - I mentioned it to "Shaggy" when we were at Universal and they all remembered it.

Anyway, that's along way to say you might want to include your DIS name too. She has a special place in her hearts for us, and all our kids.

Alison

Are you all settled into your *new* redone house? How are the kids doing? I often think of you and your family.

 

[josabbimommy]

The Candyland game is played at Matthew's Boundless Playground which is open all the time. Our was actually played in the Castle of Miracles because it was raining but it was still loads of fun.

I've updated my TR some more and will be working on it throughit today and tomorrow.

 

[merneric]

The Candyland game is played at Matthew's Boundless Playground which is open all the time. Our was actually played in the Castle of Miracles because it was raining but it was still loads of fun.

I've updated my TR some more and will be working on it throughit today and tomorrow.

Oh good, I haven't told Sam about it, but I know he will go nuts when he sees that! He could play that game all day long!
How do you get to your trip report? I don't see a link for it??
Mary Anne

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I have a question about the Candyland night at GKTW. We are going to miss it (we leave Sunday morning) and Sam LOVES Candyland. Can you play it at all during the week, or is it just on that specific night?
Thanks!
Mary Anne

It is only the one specific night. There is a really neat story behind it:

It used to be that GKTW hosted a parents' night out in which angels would watch your kids while you went somewhere else. The CPs often would come VoluntEAR for this. For some reason they got rid of it (can't remember why).

Anyway, the wife of the founder had contacted Hasboro about creating a Candyland game based on GKTW. They told her no. She was very persistent and finally wrote to them and described the resot. They finally agreed, and to debut the game they played a life sized version of it at the resort (the world's largest game of Candyland!) Now they do a slightly downsized version of it every week.

Each night is a different special event: Mayor Clayton's Birthday, Candyland, and Christmas just to name a few. Each event only happens one night. So to participate in an even you will have to be there that night. You will receive a copy of the actual board game, so even if you dont get to play it at the resort, you will have the game to take home with you.

 

[merneric]

It is only the one specific night. There is a really neat story behind it:

It used to be that GKTW hosted a parents' night out in which angels would watch your kids while you went somewhere else. The CPs often would come VoluntEAR for this. For some reason they got rid of it (can't remember why).

Anyway, the wife of the founder had contacted Hasboro about creating a Candyland game based on GKTW. They told her no. She was very persistent and finally wrote to them and described the resot. They finally agreed, and to debut the game they played a life sized version of it at the resort (the world's largest game of Candyland!) Now they do a slightly downsized version of it every week.

Each night is a different special event: Mayor Clayton's Birthday, Candyland, and Christmas just to name a few. Each event only happens one night. So to participate in an even you will have to be there that night. You will receive a copy of the actual board game, so even if you dont get to play it at the resort, you will have the game to take home with you.

Oh man, that stinks that we will miss it, but I think it is on Sunday and we are leaving early Sunday. Oh well, I am sure there will be many more things that he will love! I just thought that sounded so cool!
Thanks!
Mary Anne

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

You're welcome! There really are so many neat things at GKTW, so even if you miss it, there will be many more wonderful things to do. I used to be an Angel there, mostly I drove the Cookie Cart and Little and Big Blue (the trains!) I definitely recommend the trains if you get a chance!

I think Christmas is my favorite night. If you can only be there for one of the night events, that is the one that I would pick (although they are all a lot of fun!)

 

[josabbimommy]

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2140175&page=6

You will get a Candyland board game to take home with you. It's the GKTW version and very cool. On the last day (the day before you leave) you will get a GKTW tote to bring all your stuff home in. It was not big enough for all the stuff we'd received and we ended up shipping some things home from the FedEx store across the street from Wal-Mart.

 

[kmparrish5]

The trip report has begun!

 

[Matt1026]

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2140175&page=6

You will get a Candyland board game to take home with you. It's the GKTW version and very cool. On the last day (the day before you leave) you will get a GKTW tote to bring all your stuff home in. It was not big enough for all the stuff we'd received and we ended up shipping some things home from the FedEx store across the street from Wal-Mart.

Thank you for posting about the Fed Ex. My husband was just mentioning that today. He was wondering if there was a Fed Ex close by. So thank you for that info.

 

[sammie girl]

I have posted some pics to my pre-trip report.

 

[tbelfonti]

Which would be better for the kids? Mayor's B-Day party or the pirate and princess party?

Also is it worth seeing Barney at GKTW or is it just as good at the park? I can get DD in to meet Snow White at 8:00 am but she was soooo looking forward to Barney and I didn't tell her just incase the breakfast res. is filled again.

I would say BOTH are equally incredible. And be sure to schedule your tuck in with Mayor Clayton or Miss Merry early in your trip. We almost missed out because we waited too long.

We never saw Barney at GKTW. When we were there it was Spongebob one day and Curious George w/ the Man in the Yellow Hat the other day. I think it depends on who's available to come out to the resort. I'm sure if you show up at Universal and request a meet & greet with Barney you'll most likely get it. Universal was VERY accommodating and made sure we saw everyone we wanted to.

 

[dawson20]

Well I just hit my 10 posts so figured I'd post a quick intro!

Christine (Jakes mom) referred me here as we just got approval for Brandons wish!

My name is Keely, my husband Dave and I have 2 boys, Brandon (6) and Tyler (4).

Brandon was diagnosed in 2005 with Mitochondrial Encephalomyopathy (Complex 1 Deficiency). He struggles with several issues caused by this - the big ones are a clinical diagnosis of 'parkinsonism' (his brain looks and acts exactly the way a parkinsons patients would), as well as severe apraxia (he's completely non verbal - uses signs and communication devices). He also struggles with GI issues (has a feeding tube) and a host of other less severe struggles along the way.

In spite of it he is a happy, funny, smart, typical first grader.

Brandons little brother Tyler is also suspected of being affected by mito as am I (its believed our case is 'maternally inherited - meaning i have it, and passed it onto the boys - were all affected differently though, and Brandon was the first to get diagnosed), however thankfully Tylers issues are much milder than Brandons.

We had our wish meeting a few weeks back (MAW - a Canadian office), and Brandon was granted his first choice wish which was to go to Disney, stay at GKTW, and see hte Kennedy Space Centre while were there!

He has been sleeping with the Disney brochures since we got the approval


We will be at GKTW December 2-9th, and Brandons 7th birthday falls on the 5th so we are really excited to be able to spend it there!!!

Looking forward to getting to know you all and reading more about your trips!!

 

[maroo]

Hello, everyone!!! I am glad to be home and very, very tired!

Gosh...I missed a LOT!! I lurked on here and it seemed like most of you guys got all of your questions answered...so I will just comment on a few here!

Happy Birthday Liam Hope you have a great day. It is also my nephew's b-day.

Happy Birthday, Liam! Belated! But Happy Birthday!!

I have posted our Trip Report with TONS of pictures......

Here is the link, and it is in my signature.

Post-Trip Report[/URL]

This was a GREAT TR! I need to go read it all again and comment on there...but thank you so much for sharing it with us and I hope all of you guys were able to read it, too!!

Hi I had called my dd's wish granter over the weekend to find out when the flights are and also when her princess lunch is for. She hasn't called back. Is it rude to keep trying. I don't want to be a pest but would like to know something. We leave in exactly 3 weeks. I would really like to have some kinda plan. Anyone have any suggestions?

THAT explains it!!! Heather and I have tried to figure out why one of the Wish families wore Panama Jack shirts so often on their trip!!! We were like, huh? they must REALLY like Panama Jack!
How silly of them not to put GKTW on the FRONT Though! Do those only come in a big size? Becasue the one we saw the kids were just SWIMMING in the shirt!

This is just so funny!!!

We have times for our flights and they are fabulous
The princess lunch is out because they were all booked up. Anyone have any hints on how to get my daughter a meet and preferably a lunch with Snow White????? She really really wants this.
Also has anyone taken traveler's checks? I am a fan of just carrying cash but this was recommended. I have never used them and am not sure how it works.

I think that several people responded to this...but the main thing for me is to call every day...have you been able to get one scheduled yet?

We carried small amounts of cash for our stay...each day in separate envelopes for each person...so it would not get stolen. Travelers Checks seem like a pain to me? Especially since most things are already paid for...so hopefully small bits of cash would work for you guys? Plus it helps to stay on budget!

That is wonderful! I would call disney reservations yourself everyday and kindly explain the situation (wish trip). People cancel often and I have heard good stories about wish trippers getting to eat places. If that doesn't work I would check first thing again upon entering the park.

Exactly!

I just saw on Facebook that Amy, Goofydoo posted that Lance (her husband, I think) died. Does anyone know what happened? I was stunned to see it.

This just makes me sick! I am so saddened by this.

Hello...yes, I am here...been missing for a while, but here today, and heartbroken at this news. Theirs was such a wonderful story, such a magical trip and such terrific family memories made.

Does anyone know what happened? Which facebook page? It's late, and I"m a little shell-shocked, so still thinking what we could possibly do...prayer, of course, for healing, but my, how terrible for them all...

Alison

I am so glad you are still around here! I am pretty sad, too. Seems like it was certainly not expected.

What items do I need to take pictures of ie: photopass card, place we are staying's address, kids each morning so we know what they are wearing. I know there is more I just can't seem to remember them all. I wrote them down some where and guess what I can't find them now.

Please help if you have any hints.

Thanks,

Diane

The only other thing I can think of is the parking space. Also...and this just is something I have just started doing...is taking lots more pictures...not necessarily pictures you would share, but just general pics that would show you where you went next...Like I took pics this week of restaurant signs, general shots of scenes...just so I could remember what we did and what order we did it in...even if it was not a keeper photograph.

I'm going in November! We don't have exact dates yet, though.
Has anyone from Canada done the pressed pennies, and used canadian pennies? I've been searching through my penny bucket and have found 3 american pennies. Canadian would be much easier haha.

Cool!!! Let us know when you get exact dates! No idea about Canadian pennies?

Hey strangers, hope all is well. Aidan's therapy is taking more time up learning to feed then I ever imagined, but it's going well. My is about to finish Kindergarten and her teacher say's she is one of the brightest student's she has ever had. She's been teaching a long time as well. They just did year end testing and she was amazed at Mya's Analytical Skills. She would state she didn't know the answer on some questions but then work through it by getting rid of the answers she knew were incorrect. Most of the time she would be left with one answer and it was the correct one. She stated she's never had a student do things like that. So maybe she will keep it up and help pay for her own college with a scholarship or two.

I'm on Facebook to if you want to look me up. Matthew McIntosh. Put Dis on the request.

Good to hear from you guys! Is Aidan catching on to the eating? Is it working?

Those analytical skills will help her in every single area of her life!

It looks like they mistakenly moved your TR to the completed TR section. Which, means we can't comment and you can't add to it! If you go here:
http://www.disboards.com/member.php?u=9199 you can ask them to move it back to the regular TR section.

Uh oh! Were you able to get this fixed?

I have a question about the Candyland night at GKTW. We are going to miss it (we leave Sunday morning) and Sam LOVES Candyland. Can you play it at all during the week, or is it just on that specific night?
Thanks!
Mary Anne

The playground is open all the time and you get the coolest version of the game!

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2140175&page=6

You will get a Candyland board game to take home with you. It's the GKTW version and very cool. On the last day (the day before you leave) you will get a GKTW tote to bring all your stuff home in. It was not big enough for all the stuff we'd received and we ended up shipping some things home from the FedEx store across the street from Wal-Mart.

This is a great idea!! FedEx some stuff home to yourself!

 

[maroo]

Well I just hit my 10 posts so figured I'd post a quick intro!

Christine (Jakes mom) referred me here as we just got approval for Brandons wish!

My name is Keely, my husband Dave and I have 2 boys, Brandon (6) and Tyler (4).

Brandon was diagnosed in 2005 with Mitochondrial Encephalomyopathy (Complex 1 Deficiency). He struggles with several issues caused by this - the big ones are a clinical diagnosis of 'parkinsonism' (his brain looks and acts exactly the way a parkinsons patients would), as well as severe apraxia (he's completely non verbal - uses signs and communication devices). He also struggles with GI issues (has a feeding tube) and a host of other less severe struggles along the way.

In spite of it he is a happy, funny, smart, typical first grader.

Brandons little brother Tyler is also suspected of being affected by mito as am I (its believed our case is 'maternally inherited - meaning i have it, and passed it onto the boys - were all affected differently though, and Brandon was the first to get diagnosed), however thankfully Tylers issues are much milder than Brandons.

We had our wish meeting a few weeks back (MAW - a Canadian office), and Brandon was granted his first choice wish which was to go to Disney, stay at GKTW, and see hte Kennedy Space Centre while were there!

He has been sleeping with the Disney brochures since we got the approval


We will be at GKTW December 2-9th, and Brandons 7th birthday falls on the 5th so we are really excited to be able to spend it there!!!

Looking forward to getting to know you all and reading more about your trips!!

I am so glad you have joined us!! I keep up with Jake on Caring Bridge and we have had so much fun getting to know them!

It sounds like you guys have been through a LOT...

I don't know if Amber still checks in here (Amber...are you out there? ) But it sounds like her daughter may have a Mito condition, too...so maybe she will pipe in here.

I am so excited about your dates! That is a GREAT week to go to Disney. Awesome decorations, but low crowds. It may be a little chilly, but could also be hot enough to swim! And since you are from Canada, it will be perfect...because you won't be cold!

I think it is so sweet that he is sleeping with the Disney brochures!

Anyway...

 

[merneric]

Welcome back, Maroo! I hope you had a great trip!

 

[sammie girl]

Welcome back Maroo
Glad you all made it back safely.
Thanks for the advice I did keep calling and got a res for the Friday (day after we arrive.) We will miss Barney but I think we will keep up our hopes that we will meet him at Universal.

 

[WishMom09]

So glad to see you around Maroo! Hope Lauren got to feeling better! How was your trip??

 

[maroo]

Thanks for all of the welcome back posts!

The trip was GREAT! Lauren was only sick that one time...we really tried to pace ourselves. She only missed two programs and we carefully chose the ones that would be ok for her to miss. We also sent her to bed "early" if there were events she could miss in the evening and the strategy worked very well, she held up quite nicely!!

I posted a mini TR about the Chicago trip on my "3 trips in one" pre-trippie (green link)...you can read all about the Chicago trip there!

It even has a few Disney references. To keep it "legal" for the DIS, of course!

I am so tired. I think I ran on adrenaline through last night's Homecoming Concert...but I woke up this morning so very tired! I am catching up at work, though (only really missed 3 work days because of the schedule that I work, so it is not too bad).

I am hoping to get Muffin (my dog) back this afternoon later and then go to bed very, very early tonight!

The only thing I am not ever going to catch up on is all of the things on the DIS!!!!

 

[twinmum]

Well I just hit my 10 posts so figured I'd post a quick intro!

Christine (Jakes mom) referred me here as we just got approval for Brandons wish!

My name is Keely, my husband Dave and I have 2 boys, Brandon (6) and Tyler (4).

Brandon was diagnosed in 2005 with Mitochondrial Encephalomyopathy (Complex 1 Deficiency). He struggles with several issues caused by this - the big ones are a clinical diagnosis of 'parkinsonism' (his brain looks and acts exactly the way a parkinsons patients would), as well as severe apraxia (he's completely non verbal - uses signs and communication devices). He also struggles with GI issues (has a feeding tube) and a host of other less severe struggles along the way.

In spite of it he is a happy, funny, smart, typical first grader.

Brandons little brother Tyler is also suspected of being affected by mito as am I (its believed our case is 'maternally inherited - meaning i have it, and passed it onto the boys - were all affected differently though, and Brandon was the first to get diagnosed), however thankfully Tylers issues are much milder than Brandons.

We had our wish meeting a few weeks back (MAW - a Canadian office), and Brandon was granted his first choice wish which was to go to Disney, stay at GKTW, and see hte Kennedy Space Centre while were there!

He has been sleeping with the Disney brochures since we got the approval


We will be at GKTW December 2-9th, and Brandons 7th birthday falls on the 5th so we are really excited to be able to spend it there!!!

Looking forward to getting to know you all and reading more about your trips!!

Hello and Welcome! Another Wish Trip to look forward to - and of course, I had to say hello to a fellow Canadian. There are a few of us here. Where are you from? We're from Toronto, and we went on our Wish Trip in November 2008. I haven't written a full report yet, if you can believe it! (Long story, just too much happening, but not all bad) Around the time we had our trip, there were so many magnificent, photo enriched trip reports that the idea of starting seemed intimidating. These days, trip reports have been coming in all shapes and sizes, which is great. We all love revisiting WDW with you, and remembering our own special times!

Hope to learn more about your family and your trip as you continue to plan,
Alison

 

[Corrine 1973]

Do you hear that? No, listen closer.
If you listen real hard you will hear a chior of angels singing because
Our Dates Are Completly Confirmed!!!!!!

We will be leaving Chicago at 8:05 in the morning and getting to Florida about 11:45, and we will be leaving Florida at 3:14 in the afternoon.

So you know what that means Maroo, you can now offically change me from TBA to September 13th-19th.

What a huge relief to have that off my shoulders. I was so worried about getting to excited about the dates untill everything was confirmed and now they are.