Monday, February 05, 2007

Mickey says hello!



Wow - what a trip! It was by far the least relaxing trip I've been on, but we did have fun! Busy...busy... busy....





We stayed at one of the Disney Resorts (Port Orleans, Riverside) and I'm so glad we did. Easy access to all the parks by bus and we could easily come back for a rest if we needed to. We also did the meal plan and enjoyed some great meals (that were worth far more than what we paid in the meal plan!). And boy, did we eat! I think we're all going through ice cream and dessert withdrawal today.










Ryan getting a hug from Woody. The cast was sooooo good to Ryan. In this case, Ryan was crying because he saw Woody go by, but he didn't get a chance to say hello. One of the dancers asked me why Ryan was crying, so I told him. He then went up to Woody and asked him to come by and say hello. And Woody did... not once, but twice! Ryan was the only child Woody talked to and Ryan was soooo thrilled! He really really enjoyed meeting all the characters. Kurtis is a bit too old for that as he knows they're not real, but to Ryan, it's magic meeting all the characters!

















And Ryan with Winnie-the-Pooh and my niece, Sara.





















Ryan and I at Blizzard Beach. The rest of the gang was heading down the incredible water slides!

















Kurtis and I enjoying one of our many meals.



















Ryan, Sara and my nephew Connor, meeting Pluto. Did I mention that my sister, her husband and her two kids came along? It was so great to have Lisa there to help with Ryan (he was a bit of a handful... so much excitement and so many things to see and do).


















My Dad with the kids. I was so thrilled that my Dad was able to come along too. He did a lot of very patient waiting as the gang went on the rides (I did a lot of waiting with him as I really wasn't able to ride the roller coasters and other rides like that).


















The warm weather must have been good to me as I had a lot of energy - I only went back to the hotel to rest on two days (and that was mostly because we were going out at night and both Ryan and I needed to rest). We did use the wheelchair a few days, but for the most part, I was able to walk and keep up. One of the nicest things about the trip was that I didn't think about cancer or chemo. Normally it seems it's ALWAYS on my mind - and I realized that once I got back home and I started thinking about my chemo treatment tomorrow. But while we were in Disney, we were so busy and there was so much to take in, it very rarely crossed my mind. What a treat!

12 comments:

Cynthia said...

Looks like yall had a wonderful time! I stop by your blog once a week.. and see how things are going! You are a strong women. Want you to know we are rooting for you!

Jan Steck Huffman said...

What a great time! We too have stayed at New Orleans-Riverside. Loved Loved the pool there and the slide, and we would like to return this year.

You look great my dear, and have a good treatment and get ready for your Indianapolis visit and SigningTime! Ryan, you are going to be SIX!

Pray that the subzero temps here are gone by then, and prayers continue for you too that this treatment goes well....

I want the name of that new study too!

Clare said...

Hi Annette. I'm so glad you had a good time. What a wonderful idea to take a trip with your dad, sister and all the family. I'll be thinking of you through your next treatment -- hang in there.

Anonymous said...

hello to all!!! so good to read you all had a great time!!!we were thinking of you often, while we were camping so close to Disney. We are now stuck in Cincinati ( in a Hotel) caught in a snow storm on our way home from Florida, but we are not complaining, we have been blessed with great weather there.
Glad to hear you were able to enjoy the food Annette, keep eating girl to keep you strong, our prayers are with you, loved the pictures. love Peter & Susan Nauta

Anonymous said...

Hi Annette, Thanks for posting some wonderful pictures. I'm so glad you were able to take a break in every way. Glad to hear you are home. I saw some bad weather in Florida on the news and wondered if it had affected you at all. Doesn't look like it.
Alice, Marc, Anneke & Tommy
(Bert is in India)

The Mom said...

Annette - what fun!!! I love all the pics and it looks like you had a BLAST!!! I'm interested to hear about the meal plan - what is that? We want to take the kids to Disneyworld one of these days, but it is sooo expensive - especially the food, so I'm interested to hear what that is :)

You look wonderful and I'm praying that this latest chemo treatment goes well!

Thinking of you and keeping you in our prayers!

Unknown said...

Christie... the meal plan can be added on if you stay at one of the Disney resorts. It cost about $35 perday for adults, $11 for kids. Our plan included one counter service meal (drink, meal, dessert), one table service meal (drink, appetizer, main course dessert) and one snack (ice cream, chips, drink). We booked reservations at GOOD restaurants and our meals would have cost significantly more than the plan. It was a fantastic deal for us... and for most of the people I know who've done it. I would also highly recommend staying at a Disney hotel... VERY easy with the shuttles, no parking issues, can come and go as you please - generally makes life much easier and it really wasn't that much more expensive than a hotel outside of Disney.

Anonymous said...

Hi Annette,
We're so glad you and your family had such a wonderful time at Disney, it's looks like you were all being kids again. Good food, sunshine, laughter it's medicine for the soul. We hope this chemo is easier for you and we pray that good things come from it. Hope to see you at Chicopee some time soon.
Jennifer and Alan

Anonymous said...

That's so great to read that you had some fun and got it all off your mind for a few days :)

Good luck with this course of chemo.

All 4 My Gals said...

Hey you, I wondered where you were! :) I'm so glad you had fun, now you need another vacation to relax. LOL Are you still thinking of coming to Indy? I'd love to see you. Love you!

Anonymous said...

Annette - I love those pictures!!!! Of course, being a Floridian trapped in MI, I was just dreaming of being in that warm Florida sun!!!!

I just wanted you to know that I loved those photos of your family! And how awesome that your dad and sister came along as well! And Ryan is getting so big!!!! He is so handsome!

Although I have not posted much - I have been keeping you in my prayers and thoughts!!! I am so excited to finally meet you and the whole get together for the SD event!

Hugs!

Lisa

Unknown said...

Oh Annette, it looks like a wonderful [but busy] time. I'm so glad you all got to go.