It’s been way too long since i’ve added a new blog post, but we just got back from Tanner’s Make A Wish trip to Disney World and I had to post so that I could share our experience and some photos!!
We took off Friday morning, April 9th and we landed in hot, sunny, BEAUTIFUL orlando florida a few hours later. Our hotel, the Polynesian, was incredible and resembled Hawaii. We didn’t have luggage right away, so we spent the day in our hotel rooms, and later by the pool. All of Sunday was a relaxed hotel & pool day to avoid traffic at the parks and just have some down time. We went in the pool with the kids, and Tanner seemed happy relaxing and seeing his Florida family, the Skalings.
Monday was spent in the Magic Kingdom, kicked off with a Pooh & Friends character breakfast at the Crystal Palace. It was fun and most definitely magical. Tanner enjoyed seeing the characters, and even little brother Chase was loving Tigger and Pooh…this is where we discovered his appetite for large, fake noses. After breakfast, we made our way over to It’s A Small World, followed by a ride on the park train. After that, we checked-out the Flying Carpet ride, to find that it was in face handicap accessible. Melissa and I went on with Tanner, and he LOVED it!! He kept smiling and laughing, pointing at the sky and saying he was flying. It was my personal favorite moment of the entire trip. Later we went back to the hotel for a dip in the pool. Later, Melissa & Andrew stayed behind at the hotel with the kids, and Steve, Cyndi, our parents, and I headed back to the Magic Kingdom to enjoy some of the more adult rides, including Space Mountain (WOOOO!)
The next day was started off with another character breakfast with Hawaiian Mickey & friends at our hotel. Once again, the kids LOVED the characters…and the food was delicious; the chef even made an extra special meal for Steve and me – a tofu stir fry that was absolutely delicious!! From there, we took a bus over to the Animal Kingdom where we saw the Lion King show, which Tanner LOVED (especially the acrobatic monkeys!!). We went on another super fun roller coaster, and a few of us went on the safari. Later, we did some more glorious relaxing in and out of the pool.
Wednesday was the last day for Steve and me, and we went to another breakfast with Chef Mickey! The characters were all dressed up as chefs, and this time we got to see the real original Disney crew; Mickey, Minnie Goofy, Donald, Daisy…they were all there and we got great pictures and had a fun time. From there, we went to downtown Disney and visited the shops, picking up souveneirs and soaking up as much time with the kids and family as we could. From there we said our goodbyes and Steve and I headed to the airport.
On Thursday, the kids had the last character breakfast of the trip, this time with Tanner’s FAVORITE guys, Handy Manny and Agent Oso!! We weren’t there, but seeing the pictures I can tell what a fun time Tanner had and it’s almost as good as having been there with them.
As sad as we are that the trip is over, words can’t express how happy I am to have been able to be on this trip with Tanner and our family. I have amazing, magical memories that I will carry with me for the rest of my life…I am so lucky to be Tanner’s aunt & godmother, and simply to have him in my life. The entire Eichele family are the greatest people I could’ve ever asked for as my in-laws…I feel very lucky every day to be part of their family. And thank goodness for Make A Wish. Such an amazing organization, sending Tanner, Chase, Andrew, and Melissa on a trip like this. I am so grateful to that group and to Steve’s parents for making this entire trip possible for all of us.
Hope you enjoy these pictures of our trip!!
