Hotmamac aka Misty

YAY!! :banana: :banana: :banana: Can't wait for more!!

I also wish I could have been there but I can't wait to hear about the fun!!

The next morning we were off to ride the horses...except these ones weren't attached to sticks in WL. On certain mornings, GKTW brings horses into their corral, Keaton's Corral, for the kids to ride. After they get to ride around, they get a cowboy hat and a certificate for riding. My kids couldn't wait!! Then we made a pitstop at the GKTW carousel Next stop Disney Hollywood Studios!!

Finally it was time to eat! We were seated pretty quickly but not before the kids got to play a little bit... Apparently those are the only photos we took at Whispering Canyon. I guess we were all too hungry to care about pics. And while I don't remember much about the food, I remember that we LOVED Whispering Canyon. This place is right up my alley. I'm that goofy person that always tries to start the wave, I'm the loudest respondent during anything that involves audience participation! Basically I have no problem making an ass out of myself...in fact, I rather enjoy it. I will be (and alre

Thank you Judy. I'm really glad that I went back and did this...I almost forgot how much pixie dust there was. It's good to stop and remember! HAHAHA! There's nothing better than ice cream for breakfast! We still do it sometimes. GKTW even has a campaign that they run to raise awareness and funds based on the ice cream for breakfast. Here's the link http://icecreamforbreakfast.org/

The Crank-0-meter went thru the roof!! We put our name in for whatever time it was that they would be open again and decided to just explore the resort for a while. I have always loved WL and would love to stay there someday. This was my first time actually setting foot in the lodge and although my stomach was sucking up against my spine, I was excited to be here. Happily, one of the first things we stumbled upon was Roaring Forks the quick service eatery at WL! Oh happy day!! We got some snacky food...all I really remember is someone got carrots because Ali proceeded to try to feed everyon

After ice cream and characters, we headed off to Epcot to meet up with mom and Casey. Right at the entrance, we nabbed a Photopass photographer (I had prepurchased the cd before we left) and tried to get some family photos, but Miss Ali was having none of it. You’ll notice in this picture, we’re all smiling and Ali has her head on my shoulder. No amount of saying “poopy sh*t” would get her to cooperate. She did decide to smile when it was a picture of just the two of us. And she lightened up when it was Aunt KK taking the picture. We decided we needed something a tad more substantial than

LOL!! You've seen the line for Toy Story Mania...I'll flash whatever I have to to get thru that line quicker! :dropjaw: :bugeyes: :rofl3: :rofl3: :rofl3:

Ed,I think you and my DD would get along wonderfully! It really is wonderful. Later in the week we had Belle too. All those resorts, but especially Disney really go out of their way to make a truly beyond magical experience for the Wish families.

Thanks Kim! Glad to have a mom along who understands. LOL I was slightly nervous at first about using the button, but by the second day, I was fine with it! LOL And especially by the time we got to Toy Story Mania, I couldn't flash that thing fast enough! :rofl2:

The family and I were up bright and early the next morning for ICE CREAM FOR BREAKFAST!! That's right, because the Ice Cream Palace is open almost all the time, a lot of families enjoy ice cream for breakfast. On certain mornings at GKTW there are characters from the different parks (Disney, Universal, SeaWorld) that visit to take pictures with the families. GKTW has their own sort of Photopass...free of course...where they take pictures for you and at the end of your stay the give you a cd with all your pics on it. On our next morning, Mickey and Minnie were visiting in the theater and Mar

After a full day at MK, we headed over to the Grand Floridian for dinner with Cinderella and her crew! Ali, unfortunately, by this time was not feeling well. At this point in her life, she was still getting used to the medication she was on and it sometimes cause her to get constipated which made her miserable (as you can imagine). And of course, one of those times happened to be this night. We tried not to let it interfere with all of us having a good time, but the poor little thing kept wanting to go to the bathroom. So we had a kind of up and down night. We were seated in a nice area...so

Up first was Haunted Mansion! I apparently didn't take any pictures over there. But this was DS's pick for the first ride. After that, it's a bit of a blur. I know we did all the major rides/attractions...just don't remember in which order. We went on the Jungle Cruise and the we got to sit right up front. Our tour guide was actually from PA and was really sweet to the kids. We rode POTC and saw the new Jack Sparrow parts. And who doesn't love Dumbo? We got to meet Buzz Lightyear!! Here's the one we used for our Chirstmas card that year. If you notice, I'm holding Ali's hands down cause

Awww...thanks! I get slightly choked up reliving it all, but in a good way. But hang in there...there's more magic on the way. :dance: Thank you!! So glad you are along for the ride! Thanks! And thanks for joining me. :rofl2: You know I have to make a shirt now that says that!?!

What a lovely TR!!! I always credit all the camping we did when I was growing up for making my family as close as we were/are. Those who don't camp are missing out BIG TIME!!!

Today is Magic Kingdom day...and to finish it off, dinner with Cinderella at the Grand Floridian!! My mom and sister made it to the MK before us...which isn't surprising cause we're always late for everything. It's not that we don't try to be on time, it just seems we're always about 20 minutes behind. Anywho...we took some pics on the wall at the entrance. A million years ago, my sister and I had our pics taken in the same spot. I've been searching my mom's house to find the album from that trip (there's pics of River Country in there too) but I haven't been able to locate it. So you'll have

Another awesome aspect of GKTW is there is free ice cream almost 24 hours a day!!! Everything's better with ice cream! After checking things out, we headed over to the Ice Cream Palace to grab some goodies. With full tummies and happy kids, we headed back to our villa. DH headed out to make a Walmart run and take my mom and sister back to their resort. GKTW stocks the fridges in the villas with water and other yummy things, but we needed just a few more things to round it out. The kids and I settled in and waited for DH to get back. Tomorrow...MAGIC KINGDOM!!!

Thanks! I'm so glad you are enjoying it! Hey, I do what I can...lol. Being at GKTW is an utterly humbling experience. We are SO lucky.

After DTD, mom and Casey came back to GKTW with us. Each night at GKTW is a different celebration. Our first night happened to be the birthday bash for Mayor Clayton. Mayor Clayton is the bunny mascot for GKTW. He parties with the kids and will even stop by your villa and do a special tuck in service. We did that later in the week. So while DH, kids, mom and sis went to get their wiggle on, I attended an orientation. At orientation, the present each family with their passes for the week...3 day park hopper passes to Disney World, 2 day park hopper passes (or whatever they call them) to Univ

You can definitely feel the Disney influence at GKTW. To me, it was even MORE magical...if that's possible. When we were checking out they gave us a list of all the other corporate sponsors...there are quite a few. Big ones too. But it's a shame that more people don't know about it. If I ever hit the lottery, it's the first place I would donate to. OMG Ed! You made me spit out my Mt. Dew!! LOL Thank you for reading along. It feels really good to finally put it all down. ;D Thanks! High praise coming from you. After I found out that Lou was a volunteer, I went back and tried to see if

Hahahaha! That's one way to do it!! It really is the most amazing place. There's such a sense of peace and happiness and understanding. What always struck me too was the mix of folks who volunteer there...we had high school students, college students and retired folks...all these different groups of people that might not normally work together, all doing it to make a very special time for very special kids. It's beautiful.

We ventured around Downtown Disney for a while. Wil, doing his impression of Brickley. This was Ali's "princess face". We didn't buy that hat. I wish we would have. Wil couldn't wait to make a Jedi Lightsaber! He and DH had some difficulties figuring it out until a CM who was strong with the force showed them how it's done. And of course, using the force... We poked around and bought some things to take home. The Christmas store was so crowded, there was a line just to get in. Ali and I sat that one out while the rest of the family went in and got some new baubles for the tree. Both

What a fun TR!! Hearing about the Chef at the WL brought a tear to my eye. What an extra special treat!!

Once we landed my mom and sis went to catch the Magic Express to Port Orleans to check in. DH, kids and I headed to find our GKTW greeter. We found her standing near baggage with a cart and a sign that said: How exciting!! Our greeter was another wonderful lady, whose name I cannot remember. That's what I get for waiting so long to do this. Anyway, she helped us get our luggage, took us to get our van...MAW had rented a van for us, complete with booster seats...and she gave us a map and directions to GKTW. We were finally on our way!! Thank goodness DH has exceptional directional skills, cau

So, early the next morning, DH, the kids and I loaded up into our van and headed to Pittsburgh International Airport. We parked at an off site long term parking facility and a shuttle took us to the airport. It was still dark outside. We arrived at the airport and found my mom and sister. They were heading down on a different flight, on a different airline, but it was leaving at roughly the same time. We also met our “Wish Greeters”…a lovely older woman and her granddaughter. At the moment, their names escape me completely, but it was almost three years ago so I’m gonna cut myself some slack.