Make a Wish Day 1 and 2 Disney

 Wow to say this trip was magical would be an understatement!  We had such a wonderful time.  We got back on Tuesday evening and I still feel like we are recovering!  You don't know how needed a trip is until you are actually on it.  Getting ready for it, and packing is always stressful, but once we were on our way I knew it was going to be awesome! 

First Stop the College Station Airport

When they were figuring out our trip for us they asked us if we would rather leave from College Station or out of Houston.....as much as we enjoy and have the drive to Houston memorized, we were excited to take a 5 min drive to the airport to leave. 

The kids were confused when we had to walk out to get on the plane!  College Station is a small airport...therefore a small plane!

 It sure does make for great travel pictures though!

Notice Faye and her purse?  A Rubber Chicken purse none the less!  We got many smiles and comments about this little purse! 

 Once we landed we were greeted by Jill who works with the "Give Kids the World Village"  She was there to help us get our bags and our car and send us on our way!  It was a wonderful welcome to Florida, she was wonderful!  She took Faye and let her pick which car she wanted!

 (This picture was taken at the end of the trip, but this is the sign Jill was holding waiting for us!)

Faye picked a silver van...one week was not enough time to have this van, because they were still fighting as to who was going to push the buttons to open and close the van doors!

Here is the Entrance to the village!  The whole village was like a life sized Candy land!  They had a Castle, Gingerbread House, Ice Cream Shop!  It was amazing how much it was catered to the kids that get to visit there!

 First Stop the Lobby to get the rundown of how everything works, and get our Villa keys!

 A Giant Chocolate covered Strawberry...yes please!

They Gave Faye her very own Star! 

 Faye was to write her name on her star and then the Star Fairy takes it and places it on the ceiling in the Castle!  All these stars are of kids that have visited the Village, each one holds a special place forever for these kids that have or are battling something!

 They recently had to add the addition of the turret to include more Stars, because there are so many!  In here is where Faye's Star will stay forever!

 To get the picture I had to take drastic measures.......

So Nick had to keep the memory forever!

Nothing like riding in style for a tour around the village!

Also in the Castle this little cave with a slide!  Of course it was Fayes first stop!

 Then right after she headed over to the Salon to get her nails done!  Cant start a trip without a fresh manicure!

And then ended the night with a trip to the Ice Cream Shop!  Probably a family favorite of the trip!  This Shop opened at 7:30 every morning and closed at 9:30 every night!  You were welcome to go in there and get whatever you wanted all day long! 

Our mornings usually went something like this:  Eat some breakfast, then head to the Ice Cream shop to grab a treat before heading off to the parks!  Nick would get a Carmel Shake every morning Faye would get Strawberry Ice cream, take about 2 bites and then take over Nicks Shake!  Same routine every morning, we tried to tell her she would want a Carmel shake, but with no fail would always get Strawberry Ice Cream...and then take Dads!  I personally was a fan of the Banana Splits...Don't worry though, I was informed that calories don't exist in the village!

Here's Our Villa!

What other place can you go stay and they have it decorated for Christmas for you? 

 A local elementary made these decorations for the villas!

When we first got to the Village they gave Faye her very own Mickey! 

And the next morning Mickey and Minnie came to the Village to visit, and took pictures and signed the feet of Faye's Mickey!

 Belle also stopped by!

 And so did Goofy and Pluto...we found them playing some basketball!

Headed to Disney World!  We could not believe how big this place was it was spread out everywhere!  We were amazed!

 Our first stop into Disney World!  To see Rapunzel! We brought the kids Halloween costumes, because Faye wanted everyone dressed up to see her!  We got the pictures of the kids with her, and then quickly changed their clothes into their normal clothes! 

 Nick and I were both tearing up seeing Faye with Rapunzel!  She played a huge part in our hospital visit!  I remember numerous nights being awake at 2:00 in the morning because Faye couldn't sleep whether it be because we were getting used to people always coming into the room, because of all the fluids being pumped into her she wet the bed, or throwing up, or when she had that bout with that nasty fever!  We would sit up in the middle of the night and Rapunzel usually was our go to movie!  And when Faye lost her hair she would tell us "When my hair grows back it is going to be magic like Ruptunzels" 

Rapunzel even gave Faye a kiss! 

I don't know why this picture will only post sideways!  But this little pass was AMAZING!  They gave Faye a button with her name on it to wear, and they gave Nick and I this pass!  The line for Tangled was like a 45 minute wait, but someone saw Faye's button and our pass then they would got us right to the front, we didn't even have to wait at all! 

The first ride the kids went on was Aladdin's Flying Carpets!  They had to go on it twice...they loved it so much! 

 Meeting Ariel!

Meeting Tinkerbell was a whole different story!  Faye wanted nothing to do with her!  Allthough Faye loves Tinkerbell...seeing a little Fairy lifesized was just too much for Faye I guess!  Faye told us that she only liked seeing Tinkerbell small, and on TV!

 Getting Ready to Ride Pirates...here is the boys best pirate pose!

 After the ride Mitchell says "That ride was awesome"  Faye replies with "That was not Awesome for me"

Faye and I took a ride on Splash Mountain...its one of my favorites...sure not such a fan of getting wet, but I love the inside of the ride so much it is all worth it!  It was Faye's first try at a big ride, we were a little nervous about how she would do, but she did awesome!  She loved it!

 All Smiles after the big Hill!

Of course we had to ride the carousel! 

 Some of my Favorite moments from the first day at Disney:

While I went to feed Nixon Nick took Faye to see the other princesses...Aurora, Belle, and Cinderella!  The Disney people took pictures, but we don't have any on our camera, because we were not prepared and the battery was dying, luckily while I was feeding Nixon they had a plug for us to get it charged again, so we could get pictures of the rest of the day!  But when Nick came back he told me, he couldn't go see her with Princesses anymore...too emotional! They were the only characters she would actually go up to, and take pictures with without being shy....it was wonderful to see her so happy meeting the people she went there to meet, and seeing her eyes light up with how wonderful they were to her!  Nick said they probably took 20 mins with her, and made her feel so special! 

When we rode Peter Pan....It was Nixon, Faye and I in one of the boats together, and soon as we sat down Faye put her arm around Nixon, held him tight, and was telling him all about the ride and what we were seeing!  She also kept giving him little kisses on the head as the ride kept going! 

 Seeing the excitement of these three as they would go from ride to ride!  Faye loves her Dad, she wanted to ride most of the rides with him!

I would say one successful day at Disney! 

Tomorrow Universal......

Princess Updates

Saturday we had the opportunity to attend Songfest. This is a show the Chi O sorority puts on to raise money for the Still Creek Girls Ranch, and the Make a Wish Foundation.  Faye was to be their guest of honor.  We were all excited to go.  We made sure to make Mitchell and Faye take naps that day, because we heard that it was going to be a late night.  Before the "Fest" they invited us to a dinner they were having with the Judges for the show.  Mitchell was all excited, because we also found out that Clayton Kershaw was going to be one of the judges.  (Yeah I didn't know who he was either)  But he plays for the LA Dodgers as a pitcher, and won the Cy Young award this year (an honor given annually in baseball to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball).  Mitchell has been on the Dodgers twice now in T-ball.  So he was able to take one of his hats and have Clayton sign it for him.  Clayton's wife was the Songfest chair two years ago, so she was also a judge. 
We were a little nervous the kids wouldn't want to sit through this whole thing,  but from the moment it started Faye could not get enough!  She was always so excited to see which act was coming up next, and loved it when the girls would do flips, or be thrown in the air.  Mitchell liked it also...but towards the end he was getting a little sleepy (if you know Mitchell you know he is not a night person)  The event went til 10:00.  Basically the whole thing was full of singing, dancing, and skits.  Put on by other Sororities and Fraternities. Each fraternity and sorority that participates gets money to give to their charities.   The top acts at the end of the night were awarded prize money to donate to their specific charities.
Right after intermission they had a video of each Fraternity and Sorority telling what their money was going for, then after that the Chi O girls talked about Make a Wish, and talked about Faye.  They had pictures of her up on the screen as they talked about her.  When they were done talking about her they raised the house lights and had our family stand up.  Just typing that gets me all emotional.  It was such an overwhelming feeling, something I cannot even describe.  When we stood the whole auditorium cheered for us (it holds about 2500 people)  I couldn't stand very long because I started to cry, and wanted to sit down before anyone noticed. 
I am amazed at what these girls were able to put together, I thought the event seemed like a huge success, and we were grateful to be able to be a part of it!  And are incredibly grateful for the generosity of these girls to do this for Faye!
I am mad at myself I didn't take pictures of Mitchell with Clayton, or a picture of Faye with the committee girls for Songfest...I am here to promise I will make myself be better on our trip to Disney World!
We take off tomorrow on Faye's Make a Wish Trip, and we could all not be more excited!  Its going to be so fun, and amazing, and emotional, and much needed!  We can't wait to share with all of you our wonderful experience, and the pictures and stories of Faye meeting Princesses for the first time!  But for now I leave with you Faye's Princess story.  She made this up all on her own, and has shared it with very few people. Usually we have to trick her into telling it by saying something like "don't you dare tell anyone your princess story while I am gone"  that usually works if she thinks she is pulling one over on us.

Once upon a time there was a princess named Mommy, and a Prince named Daddy.  They Danced and Kissed a lot, then they got married.  They had Three kids Mitchell, Faye and Nixon.  One day Faye got sick and was in the hospital for a long time, then she got better.  The End