We Turned Her Into A Disney Lovin', Character Huggin', Thrill Ridin' Girl! COMPLETED 7/11 About This Page:

[alexsmommy0412]

Great pictures of your room. Looks like a nice resort! Sounds like a great end to a great day.

[Tabitha34]

Originally Posted by Cam22

Your room looks terrific! I love exploring our resort and it sounds like you all had a good time wandering around, too.

We loved the room and have definitely been spoiled by staying on property. We loved wandering around and wished we had more time to do more of that.

Originally Posted by shnewell

Your room looks great! I'm glad you got to see Yee Haw Bob -- I haven't had an opportunity to go see him yet, but I hear great things.

Isn't it great traveling with a grandparent? We have always brought along grandparents when we've gone to Disney World with our kids. The extra help really does help make things more enjoyable!

Asher sounds like he's having the time of his life!

Yee Haw Bob was great! We only got to see a few minutes of him and would love to spend more time there in the future.

It is great traveling with a grandparent. We knew that if we ever got to go back again we would have to take someone with us to help with Selah.

Asher was having an awesome time and it was so fun seeing him have so much fun. He has been several times but this time was so different than the other times because he is 4 years older than he was the last time we were there. It just made for a really different experience.

Originally Posted by JKnott17

Your room looks great! I love the backdrop on the Murphy bed, were there any other Princess and the Frog touches in the room? My DDs are going to love that!

I'm hoping to get to see Yee Ha Bob in November, I've heard good things about his show!

The only other Princess and the Frog thing I remember seeing in the room was the throw pillows on the queen beds had the alligator on them too.

Yee Haw Bob was great!

Originally Posted by cindybelle

Enjoying yor story. More, please!

Thanks! More coming up soon!

Originally Posted by clio

T-Rex looks nice. I haven't eaten there yet. Your room looks very nice. We like to walk around our resort at night exploring. Glad your first day went well.
Liz

We love T-Rex! Our room was great! Would not hesitate to stay there again!

Originally Posted by CatNipRules

I'm loving your trip reports so far. I always love reading about the magical times that kids and their families have.

On a side note, my best friends son has seizures like Selah. He's 2 and is having surgery to remove part of his brain also. As a parent, it's so scary watching them go through that.

I've always tried telling them that they were given him for a reason. They are special people and have an amazing and special little boy.

Thank you for sharing your story and your trip report. Can't wait to read more!!

Thanks for following along!

I am so sorry that your friend is going through that! The seizures are a scary thing to have to go through but then add brain surgery to it... Feel free to direct them to Selah's blog. Reading other peoples stories has always helped me. Just knowing that we are not the only ones to ever go through something like this.

You are right that they were given him for a reason. I know that God chose us for Selah and I am so thankful he did! We learn from her everday.

Originally Posted by KMB733

Great room pictures!!

Thanks!

Originally Posted by lauriep

The room looks great. They need more rooms with murphy or trundle beds for families of 5. Vacation is off to a great start! Can't wait for the park touring to begin.

I agree! More rooms with Murphy beds would be great! Asher loved the bed! He said it was fun and comfortable. It was plenty big for him too.
Park touring coming up next!

Originally Posted by chezp

The room looks great!

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Love the room!

Thanks!!

Originally Posted by disneyfreeeak

I just found your trip report. Sounds like you guys had a fabulous time!! Your kids are very sweet. How cool that you got to meet Julie Andrews daughter can't wait to read more!

Thanks for following along! Don't let their sweet little faces fool you.
It was very to meet her daughter! She was so sweet to Selah!

Originally Posted by alexsmommy0412

Great pictures of your room. Looks like a nice resort! Sounds like a great end to a great day.

Thanks! It was a great day!

[Tabitha34]

Day 1 Magic Kingdom. Will Selah like rides and characters? 1/29

This is a long post! Sorry it's so long! I called this Day 1 because I was counting park days. Just to clarify.

My alarm goes off at 6:30. Time to get up and get myself ready. We are wanting to leave our room by 8 so in the shower I go. You are probably seeing a pattern here. I get up, I shower and dress, I wake everyone else up. This is every morning, not just on vacation. We are all dressed and walking out the door by 8. Yay! So far so good. We had decided that we were going to go over to POFQ for breakfast. We had heard so much about Beignets that we definitely wanted to try them. We were driving so in the car we go. We get to POFQ and it is a beautiful resort but we really liked POR better. We get to Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory and surgery the menus and surroundings. Asher wants eggs and bacon for breakfast but the rest of us decided we all want Beignets. Asher has sensory issues and he does not like trying new things. Jamie gets in line for Ashers food. Selah and I get in line for Beignets and Wanda goes to fill mugs and find a table. We were using snack credits for the Beignets and we saw that 1 snack credit got us 3 Beignets. We did not know how big they were and did not see any until we had ordered ours. Jamie told me to order 3 orders. That's 9 beignets. Well, when we got them and saw how big they were we figured 2 orders would have been plenty especially since Wanda does not eat much. I don't remember if I mentioned this but when Asher was a baby she had gastric bypass so she eats very little. We all sit down and dig in. The Beignets were so YUMMY! (yummy) Asher ate his breakfast which was a kids breakfast platter and really didn't fill him up. He saw those Beignets though and decided he wanted to give them a try. He loved them! Selah loved them too and I really wasn't sure if she would even eat. So we did not have any leftovers even though we thought for sure that we would. We finished eating and headed to Magic Kingdom.

We get to Magic Kingdom and park in handicap with Wandas parking pass. This turned out to be so wonderful to have this week. It made things so much easier with Selah. Selah can walk and she can run. She can also get away from us very quickly. We had a backpack leash for her which she did fine with but if she decides she doesn't want to walk she will lay down on the ground and not move. When she does this it is very hard to move her. She is an average size 5 year old but try to pick one up off the ground when they are flopping down. Not easy. Having the parking pass meant we did not have to worry with getting on the trams and having to fold and unfold the stroller with Selah flopping down on the ground.

We get on the monorail and all enjoy the ride to the Magic Kingdom. Asher loves to go through the Contemporary and has always wanted to eat at Chef Mickeys. He shows Mimi (Wanda) the restaurant as we go through. We pull in to the Magic Kingdom and off we go. There are a lot of people there in the lines for the bag check but we get through fairly quickly. We have 2 bags plus Selah's booster seat under the stroller but the bag check CM's were doing a great job thoroughly checking yet moving people through. We head on in to MK and Wanda grabs a map. We get just inside and realize Wanda has a map in French . She goes back and graps one in English. The map was only for her benefit. We know MK, no need for a map. I tell Jamie I am going to get the GAC for Selah and we all head in that direction and then Jamie and Asher spot Daisy. They get in line for her while Selah and I go to get her GAC and stroller tag. I was happy to find no line in Guest Relations! We had no problems getting the GAC. Selah made sure of that with her sound effects, spitting (because she thinks its fun) and a really loud squeal/scream to top it off. We got the GAC and headed over to the line with Jamie and Asher. We waited about 5 minutes and the whole time I wondered, "what will Selah do?" I kept trying to point out Daisy to her but she didn't seem to notice her. It's our turn and Jamie has the Pillowcases ready (we did pillowcase for the autographs, thought this would be a fun keepsake for the kids), I get Selah out of the stroller and Wanda is ready with our camera. PP photographer is given our PP. Asher enjoys talking to Daisy and giving her hugs and Selah doesn't even seem to notice her. It's ok though, I would rather her not notice than to be scared and not want to get near them. At least this way we have pictures of her with the characters (or at least in the same vicinity).




We head down Main Street to baby care to change Selahs diaper before heading to rides. We have been in this baby care center many times and have always found it to be a great place to get away from the crowds. After a quick diaper change we head to Adventure Land to ride Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride. This will be Selah's first ride that she will remember. Remember she has been to WDW but not in over 4 years. As we are coming into Adventure Land Asher mentions wanting to go in Swiss Family Treehouse. He doesn't really remember anything about this so he wanted to check it out. Wanda and Selah stayed on the ground for this one. Next we head straight to Aladdin. We only waited a few minutes before we were on the ride. I sat with Selah, Jamie with Asher and Wanda had a carpet all to herself. Selah was a little fussy while we were waiting for the ride to start and I was getting a little concerned that she was not going to do well on rides. This had been my concern the whole time planning the trip. All she wanted to do was touch the water under the carpets (really she wanted to get in the water). Finally the ride started and she settled down. We took our carpet up and the smiles and squeals started. She loved it! We all had a great first ride! We knew now that if she didn't like anything else that she loved Aladdin and she would love Triceratop spin (too bad Dumbo wasn't open).

Next we checked out the Tiki room. This has always been a favorite of ours but this time, not so much. We did not enjoy it without Iago and Zazu. From there we headed to Pirates and again didn't have to wait too long. Selah loved the part in the ride with the little slide and the other the part with the cannons being shot and we got a little wet. Asher loved this ride too. Last time we went he was not a fan but he would tolerate it. He did not like the "slide" part. He was definitely not a thrill ride kinda guy. This time he loved it. After we got off of this ride we picked up penny books and for both the kids and Wanda got one too then we got some pennies pressed. Next up we went to Splash Mountain. On the way Jamie and I discussed whether or not we were taking Selah on this ride. She is plenty big but we just didn't know if we should or not. It's not like we can ask her and we just really didn't know how she would do and I was a little concerned with how long of a ride it is and not being able to have Jamie sitting with me to help with her. She is strong so if she tried to stand it was going to be difficult for me. I could have let Jamie ride with her but Asher wanted to ride with Daddy because he was a little nervous about the ride. By the time we got to the ride he was trying to talk us out of it. He said he thought it was a bad idea to take Selah and he would be willing to sit with Selah and Mimi to help with Selah . We said no that we were all riding. We got in line and basically went right on the ride with no wait. This is only because of the GAC and stroller as wheelchair tag. There were lines while we were there but there is no way Selah would have tolerated waiting in them… after this ride. We thought she loved Aladdin… she LOVED Splash Mountain! It started out a little rough at first because it was slow and nothing exciting but after the first little drop inside she settle right down for the rest of the ride. She squealed and giggled and did not want to get off. We did not get too wet either… this time.

After SM we headed to the Haunted Mansion. Jamie, Asher and I LOVE this ride. I wasn't sure what Wanda or Selah would think of it. On the way though we spotted Donald. We got in line to see him and again Selah had the same reaction of not noticing him. When we left him we saw a street show outside of the Country Bear Jamboree so we stayed to watch the end of that. While we were watching they invited all the kids watching to come out and dance. Asher just wanted to watch since Selah could not go out there. Then a CM came over and started talking to Selah and she quickly realized that she had special needs and she took Selahs hands and "danced" with Selah while Selah stayed in her stroller. This was such an awesome experience for all of us! Asher was invited out to dance by another CM but he didn't want to miss what was happening with his sister. We were all so involved in what we were seeing, the CM engaging Selah in what was happening, that not one of us took a picture! I also did not get her name. From there we went on to HM. We got in line and soon realized we went the wrong way. We were headed through the cemetery. This was our first experience with the interactive queue. It was pretty cool but a longer wait than Selah wanted. She was ready to ride again. We went through a lot of stickers while in this line and got several looks from people when Selah would get loud. We decided no more cemetery for us after that. By the time we got to the ride Selah was not in a great mood so she really did not enjoy this ride except for the part where we go backwards. She liked that pretty good. Asher rode with Mimi and they both loved it especially the new ending.

After HM it was time for lunch. After some discussion we decided on Cosmic Rays. We cut through by the castle to avoid those Fantasy Land crowds and over to tomorrow land for lunch. Cosmic Rays was pretty busy so Selah and I looked for a table while Jamie, Asher and Wanda got some food. The lines moved fairly quickly and then we enjoyed a nice lunch. After lunch we hopped on the teacups. We were all pretty sure this would be a winner with Selah and Asher loves them. Jamie and I like them and Wanda was so busy taking pictures I'm not sure she even noticed the ride. Selah giggled the whole time.
Next we got in line for Winnie the Pooh and discovered the ride was shut down at that time so we headed to Snow Whites Scary Adventure. Again there was no wait for us and Selah loved the ride. She was all smiles.
Next was the Carousel and I thought this would be another winner for her because she loves to ride her hobby horse at home. Wanda decided to sit this one out so she could relax and take some pictures. We were able to get on the ride pretty quickly and Selah and I got a horse together while Jamie and Asher each had their own. This is such a simple ride but we have always loved it. Selah loved it just as much as the rest of us.
Next was Mickey's Philharmagic. This is one of Ashers favorites and we knew that Wanda would love it too. I wasn't so sure about Selah though. The only thing she watches on TV is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and she doesn't watch movies. I knew she would not wear the glasses so I went in prepared with her stickers, iPad and a snack. She really didn't pay a whole lot of attention to this but she would occasionally smile at me and point at the screen before looking back at her iPad. Next we went to Peter Pan and she loved it then to It's a Small World. This she did not love at all. We went through a lot of stickers on this ride. After seeing the things she liked I had a feeling that was going to be the case but we wouldn't know for sure without taking her on it. Asher likes that ride even more so since he has been reading the Kingdom Keepers series. He had a lot of fun talking about the dolls coming to life and swimming after our boat. He is so silly.

We finished Fantasy Land in record time and it was time to go get a spot for the parade. We found a spot around the hub and settled in. We were very quickly crowded in on by some very rude people. They had no problem sitting on our feet, leaning on the stroller and putting their cameras in our faces to get their pictures. It was very annoying and I wish we would have looked for the handicap viewing area. I don't think we would have been crowded on as much. While watching the parade Selah didn't pay a whole lot of attention until characters kept coming up to her. Then she was a little more interested. Asher loves parades so he was very happy watching it. The rest of us were ready for it to be over so we could get away from the rude people.

After the parade we headed over to Tomorrow Land to ride Buzz. This is a favorite of ours and we hoped Selah would like it too. She loved it when it was spinning. Wanda wanted to take pictures and then realized she was losing. LOL. I won, Jamie came in second, which annoyed him , Asher came in third and Wanda forth. We (Jamie) decided we needed another ride on Buzz so back in line we went. This time Jamie won so he was satisfied and ready to move on . After a picture with Emperor Zurg we got on People mover. We love this ride. When Asher was little he always said it was like a roller coaster because when it turned corners it went fast LOL. We all enjoyed the ride and "paging Mr. Morrow, Mr. Tom Morrow." That was Asher's favorite part of the ride this time. He no longer thinks it's like a roller coaster. Next was the Tomorrowland Indy Speedway. Asher was tall enough to drive himself but he wanted Jamie to ride with him. Selah was with me in a car and Wanda found a spot to take some pictures.




When we got off of the Speedway Wanda was ready for some shopping and so were Jamie and I. The kids tolerated it. We headed to Main Street and walked through the stores. Then everyone was getting hungry again so we decided to go see if we could get into Tony's Town Square earlier than our ADR. We had the ADR for 7:30 and it was 6:30 at this time. We went and checked in and they said it would be about 30 minutes. Well, were not going to get in much earlier but that was ok because right next door Mickey and Minnie were doing a Meet and Greet and the wait was only 5 minutes! Jamie checked with Tony's to make sure that if we went in there they wouldn't give our table away and then we got in line. The Princess were there also and their line was only 10 minutes. 5 minutes later we were with Mickey and Minnie! When we got in the room there was a divider up to make the meet and greet a little private for each family. We really liked this. Selah could not see what we were in line for and she was doing stickers. The other people in line figured out in just a few minutes that Selah had special needs. So when we got up there and it was our turn. I took Selah out of her stroller and as soon as the family in front of us was done I put her down and said, "look Selah! It's Mickey and Minnie!" She turned around and her eyes lit up and she started squealing! She had this look like, "You're real!! You're really real!!" Then she went to them and hugged them, kissed them and held Minnie's hands and jumped up and down! She was so excited! We were so excited we forgot to give the Photographer our PP and we didn't video it either! Ugh! It was such a magical moment and we were so caught up in it that we didn't think about those things. We were not the only ones caught up in it though. The people in line who have a dividing wall up in front of them had all shifted over so they could see and they had big smiles on their faces too. It was a moment we will never forget! In that moment Selah was like every other 5 year old meeting their favorite character for the first time. She was so excited and we were so happy we were able to give that to her. Asher was enjoying Mickey and Minnie too. He thought it was really funny when Minnie kissed him on the cheek and Selah WIPED it off! When we were leaving Selah signed, "thank you" to Mickey and Minnie and the CM asked how they should tell her, "your welcome". We hadn't learned the sign for that yet so we just told them to just say it. She understands a lot more than we realize. They signed, "thank you" back to her. We all left there with huge smiles on our faces.



We decided to go to see the Princess and see how she reacted to them. Then wait was not quite 10 minutes and we saw, Cinderella, Belle and Aurora. The Princesses were very sweet to her even when she laid down on the floor and started rolling around. She liked them but was not as excited about them as she was Mickey and Minnie.

When we got done it was almost time for our ADR. They called our name about 10 minutes later. The CM that came out to get us asked that we park the stroller. Then he saw the wheelchair tag on the stroller and said we could bring it in to get her situated if we wanted. I said she would walk in herself and Jamie went to park the stroller. The CM wanted to help and he took her other hand while I held one and he walked us in to our table. He then asked what she needed for a seat and I told him that we had a booster in the stroller that Jamie was bringing in. He waited there with us and kept Selah entertained while we waited for Jamie to come in with her seat. This was so nice of him to do and completely unexpected. Again, I DID NOT get his name! I was just really too preoccupied with Selah to think to do that. Jamie got her chair strapped in and we checked out the menu. I got the Chicken Parmesan, Jamie the NY Strip, Wanda the Lasagna, Asher and Selah the Kids Meal Steak Skewer. We liked the food fine but it was nothing spectacular. It didn't come close to comparing to T-Rex. The service was also very slow. The goos things about this restaurant was the service we received when being seated and where we were seated was great. We were right by the fountain of lady and the Tramp. This is not one that we will probably go again anytime soon. It wasn't bad but we would rather go to some other places. For dessert I got the Cheesecake, Jamie the Chocolate hazelnut Cake, Wanda the Creme Brulee, Asher the Ice cream (plain vanilla) and Selah got fruit. Selah and Ashers were brought right out and Selah didn't want hers. She was getting tired of being in ther so I told Jamie to get mine to go. I was too full anyway. I took Selah out and we went walking down Main Street. We saw the end of the the fireworks and this made her very happy. She was so excited every time they were really loud so I knew then that she was going to love fireworks. Jamie, Wanda and Asher came out shortly after and Wanda said she was ready to go back to the resort. She was taking Selah with her and Asher, Jamie and I were staying for extra magic hours. We told her to take the car back. We figured that would be easier than her trying to get on the bus with Selah, her stroller, her bag and her booster seat. We told her what signs to follow to get back to the resort. Gave her very specific directions. Finding our way around WDW has never been difficult for us. I have no idea where she went wrong but she definitely went wrong some where. She did finally find her way to the resort but it took her about 30 minutes. She never called us. I don't know why but we called her when we didn't hear anything from her and found out she was just getting to the resort and that she had gotten lost. That was the last time she drove anywhere. All was fine though.

After Wanda and Selah left Jamie, Asher and I found a spot to watch the Magic, Memories and You show on the castle. It was awesome! We knew it was a must do for our second MK night and we would get Wanda and Selah to stay for that. Then we were off for some more rides. First up was the Monster's Inc Laugh Floor. Asher had been wanting to do this all day but we told him we would wait until EMH when Selah was with Mimi at the resort. He loved it! Then we went over to Stitch. This was his first time for this. I really didn't think he was going to like it at all but it was his idea. We told him what it was like and he still wanted to go. So we went in to see Stitch. He wasn't in love with this but he didn't hate it. That was a plus. He is very timid about things like that. We were very proud of him! Next up was Buzz again. There was really no wait so we were pretty happy about that. A whole day of no waiting other than HM and that was only because we went the wrong way. It was another great ride on Buzz. Then we headed over to HM. Jamie and I were really wanting to do this again because the first time we were very preoccupied with Selah. Just trying to keep her seated and happy. Plus we didn't get to see Ashers reaction to this. Yes, he has been on it before but it is a little different and he is a lot different. We had a great time and the ghosts at the end were awesome. Then Asher wanted to go on Peter Pan again. This is a favorite for all of us so we said we would check the wait but Jamie and I were not holding our breath. With Selah we could get on everything quickly. Without Selah we were in the standby line. When we went by it was a 40 minute wait. We told him we would try a little later and we headed over to Splash. I wanted to ride with Asher this time since Jamie had the first time. This trip was the first time Asher was tall enough to ride the "big" rides and I wanted to see his reactions. When we got over there the wait was only 10 minutes. We got in line and walked right on! Of course, we ended up on the first row! Jamie sat behind us on the second row. I have NEVER gotten so wet on the ride before! It was like a giant wall of water just came down on us. We were all laughing so hard. Jamie said, "what in the world!" We were soaked and our ride picture was hilarious. We didn't buy it. Here is a pic of it.
Jamie is posing behind us.

We then headed back over to Peter Pan to try to get on. We decided this was our last ride of the night so we would wait even if it was 40 minutes. We got there and only had a 15 minute wait! We had another great ride on Peter Pan and then we headed out of the park. We went to the buses and had our first experience riding a WDW bus. It was very crowded. We were all standing and Asher was having a hard time staying up. He just hugged on to Jamie for the ride. We got back to our resort and crashed.

It was an awesome day! We couldn't have asked for a better day! We were so excited with how well Selah did with everything. Yes, she had her moments but what kid doesn't. We all went to sleep happy and dreaming of day 2.

Up Next: Day 2 Hollywood Studios. A Character Breakfast and A Battle?

[clio]

I'm glad Selah liked the rides. Tony's isn't one of my favorite places to eat either. They do have a good lemon cake there, though. Selah looks like she's having a great time. it's nice the you got to spent time with just Asher during EMHs.
Liz

[Colexis Mom]

What a great day in MK that you had! Love the pictures! Glad Selah enjoyed all the rides!

[DawnK]

What an awesome day that was. I can't wait to hear more. I am so glad that Selah did so well on the rides and that Asher is having a great time. You have great kids!!!

[cindybelle]

I am loving your Trip Report. So many magical moments, especially the Mickey-Minnie encounter. A photo wouldn't describe it as beautifully as you have. Great story, and none of you will ever forget it.

[dutchdisneyfamily]

I am loving your TR. Her moment with Minnie and Mickey brought tears to my eyes. That is Disney Magic right there.

[Cam22]

What a magical first day! I teared up reading about the CM interacting with Selah and at her reaction to meeting Mickey and Minnie. So sweet and special. Glad Asher and the rest of you truly enjoyed the beignets. I them! How neat that Asher got some time with you two during EMH! Can't wait for Day 2.

[CatNipRules]

Wow!! What a magical day. This is why I love Disney. So many magical moments happen all the time.

So sorry for the rude people at the parade. I hate it when people do that.

[shnewell]

What a magical first day in the parks! Once I read that Asher was willing to try the beignets, I had a feeling we were in for a great day! I'm so happy that Selah enjoyed so many of the rides and meeting the characters. I had a big on my face reading about her interaction with Mickey and Minnie.

It's great that you got some "alone" time with Asher during EMH. I've don't think I've ever seen a 15 minute wait for Peter Pan -- that sure worked out great for you!

[bsblady01]

thanks for the update can't wait to hear more about your trip

[lauriep]

What a magical day! So glad Selah loved the rides and her interaction with Mickey and Minnie and the CMs-- it's what Disney is all about. Too bad you don't have video, but much better to be completely in the moment and have those amazing memories.

[ilovedisney247]

Great day at MK

[queen2]

What a wonderful Magical day you had. Had goose bumps reading about the CM with Selah