Wish Trippers...Unite!! Volume One

[alizesmom]

Karen thanks i think it's cute one. as long as he doesn't share to much drool we'll be fine. How's Alize doing?

becca

I'm so glad that Jonah will get his hearing aids. Alize is pretty good, he had a cold for awhile but seems to have beat it. We stay pretty busy between him and his new sister who also happens to be a champion drooler (can anyone say 4 dozen bibs and 3 dozen cloth diapers?). Karen

 

[bex271]

Now that he's in bed. I can give a little bit of the back ground.
Jonah is getting bone anchored hearing aids. He had the screws put in last march and the doctor said wait 10 months, we had assumed (big mistake) that the insurance had been taken care of at this point. So we made the surgery schedule for january 7th. We get a call jan 4th saying insurance had denied everything and the second stage of the surgery had been canceled and we'll get back to you on monday to let you know the course of action to take.
We had to get more info from all his therapist and doctors and teachers and anyone that has anything to do with jonah on a regular bases. We filed the appeal and one of the appeals were denied and then had to do more paper work and they approved it on the second appeal. We had been told that we might have to wait till his birthday because of age regulations with insurance and medicaid. I found out that he had the surgery 2 years ahead of schedule. So to end this he isn't going to have to wear head band anymore after the surgery and we'll have it all taken care of before we go on his wish trip.

becca

 

[LindaBabe]

Oh, Becca, that is SO GREAT! He'll be able to HEAR all the great sounds of the world! I am SO excited for both of you!

 

[LeeLee2U]

becca
Oh that child is beautifull. Jonah has got some amazing eyes and skin!
We're right there with you on the therapy. Braeton has PT, OT, VI, O&M, and Hippo. The speech therapist at school used to use him to help her when he was in PPCD. He didn't talk until he was almost 3 and then his third word was himmopothamus. And no that wasn't a spelling error. That was how he pronounced it!!
Horses are wonderfull creatures!!!

So glad that ya'll can get all the surgery stuff taken care of before your trip. Braeton was to have ear reconstruction surgery the week after we came back from our trip, only to have them call me while we were at the world to tell me it was denied for the 2cd time. Come to find out (AFTER we came back) the sec made a mistake they just needed to reschedule for 2 weeks later. But oh talk about a shocker and a downer.

Thanks for sharing.

Karen I was wondering how you were doing. I hope this means that ya'll are doing well. A little wet but well!

 

[bex271]

leelee what kind of ear reconstruction was going to done? Jonah is going to have to have both ears done when he's older.

becca

 

[bex271]

my typing was really bad in that last post.
I also meant to ask what VI and O&M are, and horses are wonderful creatures.
We are trying to get jonah a communication device.We have one on loan right now and he's doing pretty good with it. He can choose pictures too which is what the speech therapist uses a lot at school.

Wendy i hope everything is going o.k.

becca

 

[eternaldisneyfan]

I use an electric wheelchair full-time and can't sit up without complete support.

When the map says ECVs must transfer-it is talking about the 3 wheeled scooters or the chairs Disney rents NOT electric wheelchairs. Here is a list of rides that you can drive your wheelchair directly onto without transferring, sorted by park:

Magic Kingdom---

Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin

Stitches Great Escape -only manual chairs

Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (ask for the bounce button)

it’s a small world (easy access)

Liberty Belle Riverboat (Tour around a lake with some props and animatronics-kinda long-chair sits below level of bars, partially blocking view)

Main Street U.S.A.-Railroad-steam train ride (I loved it. Round trip is best, there are scenes along the way.)

Jungle Cruise (recently converted)

The Magic Carpets of Aladdin-only manual chairs

All the Character Greeting Areas and shows are wheelchair accessible. There are always spaces for wheelchairs with seats for family members adjoining


Swiss Family Treehouse and Tom Sawyer Island are impossible for wheelchairs (you can do a roundtrip on the raft that goes to Tom Sawyer Island)

All night-time shows and parades have special wheelchair viewing areas-ask a CM, they're marked on a map- arrive 1-2 hours early for a seat and you cannot leave—nighttime shows are my favorite and are well worth the wait
Spectromagic parade (nighttime parade of lights)

Wishes Fireworks does NOT have specified wheelchair seating but if you watch Spectromagic by the statue you will have a good guaranteed view

Epcot—

Ellen’s Energy Adventure (easily accessible-cute Jeapordy style beginning that then takes you back in time to Dinosaurs)-manual chairs only

Journey Into Your Imagination (easily accessible-really cute/fun ride with a fully accessible interactive special effects playground afterwards)

Living with the Land (informational tour about various climates and agriculture)

El Rio Del Tiempo (accessible-boat ride tour of Mexico)

The Living Seas (all areas accessible, although some areas may have alternate access. At your own pace viewing of a live sea aquarium and the new Crush attraction and a new ride that is wheelchair accessible The Seas with Nemo and Friends)

The World Showcase (all areas accessible, although some areas may have alternate access)

Street shows are hard to see unless you arrive a little early to sit in front

All the Character Greeting Areas and shows (including Innoventions) are wheelchair accessible (*note: The Kid cot fun stop crafts will be difficult to do unless you have a tray on your wheelchair because the table and chairs are low and the supplies are scattered)

All night-time shows and parades have special wheelchair viewing areas-ask a CM- arrive 1-2 hours early for a seat and you cannot leave-- nighttime shows are my favorite and are well worth the wait


MGM Studios—

Great Movie Ride

Star Tours has a nonmotion option available at night or if it's not busy

All the Character Greeting Areas and shows are wheelchair accessible

MGM has a lot of good shows

All night-time shows and parades have special wheelchair viewing areas-ask a CM- arrive 1-2 hours early for a seat and you cannot leave—nighttime shows are my favorite and are well worth the wait

Animal Kingdom-

Wildlife Express Train (train that shows you how Disney cares for their animals and takes you to the Conservation Station-may have to back on)

Triceratop Spin

Kilimanjaro Safaris (mild thrill ride with a guide that drives you through authentic habitats to view real exotic animals-best experienced in the morning. Note: This ride is bumpy. You may need to back in to the ride vehicle.)

All the Character Greeting Areas and shows are wheelchair accessible (*the Boneyard is not. *Conservation is listed as accessible but I didn’t visit it.)

All the nature trails are accessible and have beautiful wildlife. There are many exhibits-a few viewing areas are a little difficult to get to.

All night-time shows and parades have special wheelchair viewing areas-ask a CM- arrive 1-2 hours early for a seat and you cannot leave—nighttime shows are my favorite and are well worth the wait

I hope I helped.

Remember all shows are wheelchair accessible-don't miss the nighttime shows-especially Fantasmic-and don't miss Festival of the Lion King.

If there is anyway to transfer, I would do it for Soarin’ in Epcot. The ride is awesome. Even I was able to do it. You can pull your chair right up to seat and the movements of the ride are smooth. The seat is also elevated.

Peter Pan's Flight and Dumbo are NOT wheelchair accessible

I use an electric wheelchair full-time, 24/7 gj tube feeds, trach, and vent part-time. You can get all the details of my trip in my trip report (link in signature) Get a GAC

We also went to Sea World. 90% is shows and they are all good. They all have wheelchair seating. Jonah and one caregiver get tickets at 1/2 price.

-Christamae

 

[bex271]

Christamae,
Thank you sooo much that is a HUGE help. I appreciate you taking the time to do that for us. I'm going to start reading your report. I think that got my hubby excited seeing everything that jonah will be able to ride. I can't thank you enough

becca

 

[bex271]

did i kill the thread?

 

[alizesmom]

did i kill the thread?

Isn't that an awful feeling? Nope, the thread is still here. I've been busy misbehaving on other threads. . Karen

 

[Queenie122]

Doesn't that child have beautiful eyes?!

fyi, There is horse riding at GKTW, too.

I ditto this - what a beautiful shade - are they gray?

I'm so excited we just heard that insurance has approved jonah's hearing aid surgery. This was suppose to have been in january but it got denied a few days before it happened. Long story short the date is march 10th right now, i haven't spoken to the scheduling nurse yet but hopefully tomorrow it will be a more concrete date. i'm just about jumping out of my skin. We thought we were going to have wait a lot longer
I explain more about the surgery later but i've gotta feed jonah. I just had to tell someone since hubby isn't home yet to help celebrate

becca

Congrats! You would think the money that we pay to insurance that it wouldn't be such a fight to get the things these kids so obviously need. Thank goodness it got approved and March 10th will be here before you know it (and before your trip!!)

did i kill the thread?

Heh, I feel like I do that all the time!

Bella's team finally made it over yesterday! They were supposed to come on Tuesday but for the first and probably one time this year it snowed here so we had to cancel. Anyway, rescheduled to yesterday and they made it!

We met with two members of Make a Wish luckily my daughter Bella was very cooperative (it's good they canceled on Tuesday, she was very cranky and was saying her wish was for books instead of the trip, even though she has hundreds of books in her room ). They brought her a special Make a Wish teddy bear, a baby doll almost as big as her and two crowns - one Cinderella and one Ariel. She proceeded to make Mommy and Daddy wear them for the rest of the visit They were very nice as you'd expect and for her wish they actually her "Where do you want to go?" because we mentioned the possibility of a trip. She screamed "DISNEY WORLD!!!!" and they were laughing hysterically. Then she said, "To see the princesses and dance with them" exactly as she's been telling us for weeks now. So that went smoothly - not so much with the other questions - she answered "orange" to her favorite color (which is generally red) and "Snakpak" to her favorite snack. What the heck is a snack pak?? She should have a cheesehead she eats so much cheese and that is definitely her favorite snack.

Basically this visit we signed paperwork - waivers for Make a Wish and the Give Kids the World Village and also publicity paperwork for MAW. They thought our daughter was a doll so who knows, maybe she'll make it in the local MAW brochure or on their website!

We live with my father and brother (well, they live with us ). I'd really like my Mom to get to come along on this trip, she has been the one really there for us with Bella - taking days off from work, spending countless days in the hospital, driving to the hospital, getting hotels so we could stay overnight nearby, spending tons of money on her. So we asked if Mom could come along, even if it was her own dime. Yesterday they told us that my father and brother might be able to come along for free because they live with us. My Dad is medically not able so I'm hoping I can get my Mom and brother both along. We really could all use the break plus I want them to experience the happiness through Bella.

We told them we didn't want to go when it was hot. Hubby's boss has off two weeks in the beginning of May so we said we would have to go before that or in the Fall. March and April are open we told her but she seemed to think March was too fast so she put late April - then October and November. Of course we'd like to go sooner rather than later and I also have some personal reasons for this too (hubby and I want to try to have another baby and I'd rather not wait to start until the end of the year). But, what will be will be.

We have family who live in Orlando and they offered to extend our vacation on their dime! But I was embarrassed to ask them about that I don't want them to think we're not grateful for what they're doing!

So now I'm in this weird spot. We're either going 6-8 weeks or in the fall. 6 weeks isn't much and in an attempt to not go crazy getting ready the couple of weeks before I have started trying to organize the "what ifs." But not knowing for sure if we are going sorta throws a kink in that and I'm not really sure what to do. Like, should I start a pre trip report? I have so many questions and thoughts about it but don't know if I should wait until I hear back for certain about our dates. On the other hand, I am a planner and I will be so nuts if I only end up with 3 or 4 weeks to get everything organized and packed up. I want to make Bella a couple of tshirts and also the Pixie Dust thank you cards and would need some time to get these things done.

So, ladies, do you have any advice for me? I obviously need it!!

 

[alizesmom]

Way off topic but I had to share:

Daughter Ciara and grandson Marek. Karen

 

[bex271]

Queenie,
His eyes are blue but they change colors sometimes.

I'm glad that you got to meet your team. I hope y'all can go sooner than later. We still don't have our dates yet.


Karen,
she is sooo cute and your grandson listening with the stethoscope is really cute too. I'm glad to see a pic of her.



becca

 

[Queenie122]

Way off topic but I had to share:

Daughter Ciara and grandson Marek. Karen

Awww, a future doctor!

Queenie,
His eyes are blue but they change colors sometimes.

I'm glad that you got to meet your team. I hope y'all can go sooner than later. We still don't have our dates yet.

My daughter's eyes are like that too - blue but sometimes they look gray.

We had to have our doctor fill out the permission to travel waiver. Supposedly after they get that the trip will be planned. It's still driving me crazy to not know if we're going in 6 weeks or 6 months!

 

[bex271]

we still don't have our dates yet but i'm trying to do a little planning. I've looked at the gktw website and all over the dis and all ears. My question is what is the one the must do thing while at disney world the do not miss wish i could do that again and again thing. I've been talking to jonah about going and i'm not sure if he really understands where he's going, but we already have a page programed on his dynavox that says i'm going to disney world and i'm meeting mickey mouse his therapist have gotten a kick out of that. I just would like everyones opinion. I don't want him to miss anything that he would enjoy.

I loves lights and bright colors and sounds. He loves for people to pay attention to him. He likes to feel things but won't hold on to anything but hair i'm surprised i have any left.

becca

 

[alizesmom]

If he likes touching things, I would definitely go to Sea World and let him touch the dolphins and the sting-rays. Alize just loved that. Karen

 

[LindaBabe]

Oh, and the touch boxes in Animal kingdom where they put their hands in the box or the hollow log and try to figure out what it is in there. There's some going to conservation station and some on the way to Camp Minnie Mickey. Too bad Wonders of Life in EPCOT is closed, there were great touch things in there.

He'll probably love to touch the furry characters.

 

[Queenie122]

I loves lights and bright colors and sounds. He loves for people to pay attention to him. He likes to feel things but won't hold on to anything but hair i'm surprised i have any left.

becca

The Lion King show at Animal Kingdom has lots of bright colors and sounds. I bet they would pay great attention to him too.. seat right up front and close to the action. It's a nice break from all the running around of the parks.

 

[patticake3]

Hi everyone! We're leaving for Disney tomorrow on my son's wish trip! Time flies! We had our itinerary with confirmation numbers and spending money fedexed to us today, so it is really happening! There are still a few unanswered questions, but I guess we'll be in the know tomorrow when we arrive!

I was searching through this thread because I vaguely remember a post about the Wish lounges in the various parks. I couldn't find anything - does anyone have that info? Thanks in advance!

Thanks to everyone here for all their posts. It's been so helpful to me as I've navigated through the process!

Hope you are all doing well!

 

[Camster0307]

Hi everyone! We're leaving for Disney tomorrow on my son's wish trip! Time flies! We had our itinerary with confirmation numbers and spending money fedexed to us today, so it is really happening! There are still a few unanswered questions, but I guess we'll be in the know tomorrow when we arrive!

I was searching through this thread because I vaguely remember a post about the Wish lounges in the various parks. I couldn't find anything - does anyone have that info? Thanks in advance!

Thanks to everyone here for all their posts. It's been so helpful to me as I've navigated through the process!

Hope you are all doing well!

patticake3 - Can't believe your trip is here! Have a wonderfully, magical time!

As for the wish lounges, I never used them, but if I remember correctly, the one in MK is by the first aid and baby stations - right next to the Crystal Palace.

Take lots of pix!