Off to see the "Real Tree" - April 19th - April 26th! Ali's Wish Trip PTR!

[dmbfan]

YEAH.... It had to have been our talk about Give Kids The World tonight... I am just so excitied for you, of course if Ali says she wants Disney and the Franklin Park Zoo..

This really is a wish of a lifetime for a child that loves Disney....

 

[kellyw8863]

YEAH.... It had to have been our talk about Give Kids The World tonight... I am just so excitied for you, of course if Ali says she wants Disney and the Franklin Park Zoo..

This really is a wish of a lifetime for a child that loves Disney....

Dorchestah here we come!

 

[pipersmom]

Woohoo..I'm so glad you heard from your wish granter!! At least now you know when you'll have contact again. I think it's neat that it's someone you all know at least somewhat that will be facilitating your wish, at least you know how to get in touch with him I'm sorry you can't meet until after the 4th, I know the waiting is hard!!

 

[Momofwishkid]

Im so glad you heard from your wish granter and how funny he is a parent. DH better watch the punishing J/K

 

[kellyw8863]

Woohoo..I'm so glad you heard from your wish granter!! At least now you know when you'll have contact again. I think it's neat that it's someone you all know at least somewhat that will be facilitating your wish, at least you know how to get in touch with him I'm sorry you can't meet until after the 4th, I know the waiting is hard!!

Thanks! It's really okay. Now we at least have contact and it feels like things are moving in the right direction. And things will be so busy around here that I'm sure the time will fly by!

Im so glad you heard from your wish granter and how funny he is a parent. DH better watch the punishing J/K

Right?! I did find out, though, that his son does not run track so we're at least in the clear on that one. But when I was getting ready to put the kids to bed last night, I was explaining it all to DH, who was like, "Wait...What did you say his name is?" And when I told him, he was like . He works for the town, and we have had several run-ins with him (not necessarily bad) over some things going on in our development. DH even has his phone number in his cell phone.

I am thrilled to announce that school is officially out for winter break. It was nothing short of a hellish two weeks with six fights, two drug busts, one drug overdose, and many mouthy teenagers. And for the record, I work in a high school, not a prison. It's been crazy. Now to get everything done in the next 24 hours!

On that note, I better get off the 'puter and do something!

 

[Momofwishkid]

Wow! It sounds like you have had a crazy time lately. Where do you live, I'll be sure not to move there. J/K I know high schools every where are crazy now a days. Makes me scared for my kids getting to that age. Hope you have a much deserved relaxing winter break.

 

[maroo]

I finally found you!

Thank you for pointing this out!

Your family is precious.

Have you guys seen the movie Blindsided? It seems like it is about football...but it sounds a lot like your family! Made me smile from ear to ear to hear that you guys have taken in Gabriel. He seems like a very nice young man!

I hear you on the high school junk. I went to a very interesting junior and high school myself here in Little Rock. In Junior High the student who sat next to me in Honors English was gunned down on the school playground...and that was YEARS before school shootings were everywhere.

I can't wait to see how the wish granting talks go!! I hope she doesn't end up at her local zoo.

You guys have got to make sure (assuming you go to Disney) that you eat at Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge - and check out the Savannah.

 

[cantwaittoseemickey]

What a handsome young man Gabe is. How wonderfuly you have given him a awsome family and life.I hope you are able to meet with the Wish granter soon after the 1st.

 

[Applemomma]

Just found your PTR and I'm already in love with your family!! Can't wait to hear about all your adventures!

 

[kellyw8863]

Wow! It sounds like you have had a crazy time lately. Where do you live, I'll be sure not to move there. J/K I know high schools every where are crazy now a days. Makes me scared for my kids getting to that age. Hope you have a much deserved relaxing winter break.

We live out in North Central Massachusetts, and it's actually a great place to live. Unfortunately, there is also a lot of rural poverty out here and a lot of kids who have nothing to look forward to over the holidays. The good definitely outweighs the bad, and our community really is filled with wonderful people. I hope you had a great holiday!

I finally found you!

Thank you for pointing this out!

Your family is precious.

Have you guys seen the movie Blindsided? It seems like it is about football...but it sounds a lot like your family! Made me smile from ear to ear to hear that you guys have taken in Gabriel. He seems like a very nice young man!

I hear you on the high school junk. I went to a very interesting junior and high school myself here in Little Rock. In Junior High the student who sat next to me in Honors English was gunned down on the school playground...and that was YEARS before school shootings were everywhere.

I can't wait to see how the wish granting talks go!! I hope she doesn't end up at her local zoo.

You guys have got to make sure (assuming you go to Disney) that you eat at Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge - and check out the Savannah.

Hi Maroo! Thanks so much for linking me up! We actually took Gabe out to dinner and to see The Blind Side a couple of weeks ago, and it did certainly hit close to home for all of us. As corny as it sounds, we do really feel as though our family is now complete. He's such a good kid and has given as much to us as we have to him.

You know, as challenging as teaching high school is, I truly, truly love what I do. Just the night before (the 22nd), we had about 15 of my students here Christmas caroling, and it really made my night. And then there's always those moments when I'm walking down the hall and hear a group of students talking about something we did or read in class that morning, and my day is made. The violence does make things difficult, though. I'm sorry that you had the experience of knowing someone who was gunned down.

I can't wait to meet our wish granter, though my husband has met him on several occasions. It will be interesting to see where things go with the whole zoo thing. We are planning on extending our trip by one night and staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, assuming that we can get away with booking only a single night there.

I do hope that you had a wonderful holiday and that you are all rested up after your trip. I am full of admiration for you for all that you do for the wish families over here and elsewhere.

What a handsome young man Gabe is. How wonderfuly you have given him a awsome family and life.I hope you are able to meet with the Wish granter soon after the 1st.

Thanks! He is such a good young man. It's amazing how well he has turned out with all the garbage that he has been through. I just pray that we are able to give him what he needs as he enters adulthood. How are things going with you guys? Did you all have a nice holiday?

Just found your PTR and I'm already in love with your family!! Can't wait to hear about all your adventures!

Hello there! We have a good time around these parts and truly just enjoy being together. Thanks for reading!

Well, we talked to the wish granter again on the 24th, and it looks like we'll be getting together sometime the week of the 4th. He's having a hard time coordinating with his partner, so it's unlikely it will happen before then. But that's okay. Everyone is busy this time of year, which is to be expected.

We had a great day yesterday. The girls' big gift was a DS for each, and Gabe's big gift was a Playstation 3. We spent way, way too much money this year, but it was so important to us to make sure that Gabe had a good first Christmas here. He has never received gifts that were just for him and he literally came to us with nothing. And I know it's not about the gifts, but it's also hard when he's never had anything. You can just tell that he's so pleased.

Poor Ali has hit rock bottom. She's been fighting a cold all week, and add to that a series of very long days. By this evening, she was screaming that her legs hurt and she wasn't tolerating anything through her tube. Tomorrow we'll spend some time laying around and PLANNING, and hopefully she'll be back to new on Monday. We're off to see Nemo on Ice through the Starlight Foundation, so hopefully she's feeling better.

Off for a piece of Coldstone ice cream cake before it disappears!

 

[kellyw8863]

I just posted a "year in review" to Ali's caringbridge page if anyone is interested. The link is in my siggie.

 

[dmbfan]

I just posted a "year in review" to Ali's caringbridge page if anyone is interested. The link is in my siggie.

Just read it...love the positve attitude......of course you have always had one..lol...anyway...glad things are going well on the medical side of things at the moment, and I pray that 2010 is even a better year health wise for Ali. Well, I am sure we will catch up by phone this week....

 

[kellyw8863]

Meh. You've certainly seen me in many not so shining moments. At any rate, I'll give you a ring. I hope you guys had a great Christmas!

 

[kcandbella]

Just found your PTR and am in awe of your wonderful family. I can't wait to read more!

 

[KateMW]

Just found your PTR and am in awe of your wonderful family. I can't wait to read more!

Me too!

 

[kellyw8863]

Just found your PTR and am in awe of your wonderful family. I can't wait to read more!

Me too!

Hey there! Thanks so much. I think our family is pretty nifty myself, but then again, I am biased.

Ali's still hanging in there. We're dealing with temps off and on still, but I'm not convinced she has a sinus infection. Quiet day yesterday and today, so hopefully she'll have turned a corner by tomorrow. We'll see!

 

[Momofwishkid]

Im sorry Ali is dealing with the temps and hope she is better soon. I havent had a chance to go read her year-in-review but I plan on doing it soon.

 

[pnutallergymom]

Hi Kelly,

I just wanted to check in and see how Ali was feeling tonight. Hoping you guys aren't headed inpatient. Keeping you all in our thoughts and prayers. Can't wait to hear more about your trip plans.

 

[pipersmom]

Hey Kelly..
Keeping Ali in our thoughts and prayers and hoping the extra rest helped!!

 

[yinyanggirls]

Hi Kelly, I've missed so much this past week! I think my list of subscribed threads lies to me sometimes. It is not always showing me which ones have new posts. Anyway, I'm so sorry to hear Ali is so sick. This is the one and only thing I hate about this time of year. I hope she's doing better tomorrow. It's frustrating when it goes beyond a week!
On the wish side of things, our wish granter came alone because her partner had another appt. She gave me all of her contact info, just in case, but months later, we've only ever dealt with the one we first met. How funny that you guys already knew yours.
Sounds like you had a nice Cmas. I know what you mean about trying to make up for Gabe's past. I think he got the best Cmas present ever, with his new family.
I'll be sure to check in more often, now that I know my list is lying to me.