Letter from GiGi's Mom

Just wanted to drop you a quick note and some photos to let you know what an AWESOME "wish week" we ALL, especially GiGI, had in Orlando, Florida, visiting the princesses! Thank you so much for getting to know our family and helping to organize the perfect princess wish for Gi! It was a vacation we will never likely forget nor ever be likely to replicate! You went over the top for all of us! You have our most sincere appreciation.

I thought you might enjoy hearing just a few little anecdotes that took place throughout the week, so . . . here goes!

The Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique was a hoot! We decided to go ahead and splurge a little more on the girls and gave them both the full package with hair, make-up, princess dresses, crowns, shoes, and a photo shoot! They LOVED it! We hadn't planned on visiting Disney World that day, but after they were all dressed to the 9's we couldn't think of any better place to be than at the park mingling with all the other princesses! She couldn't stop looking at her sparkly shoes and nails, and running her fingers through her new long hair! Both GiGi and Lily wore their dresses off and on for the rest of our stay (hair pieces and crown included)!

On our last night in the park, and our last night in Orlando, we were trying to get the kids back to all of the rides they had enjoyed and to get to some that we hadn't seen yet. We were walking around Fantasyland and I noticed "Scuttles" from The Little Mermaid perched on top of a large rock. When I saw him, I remembered that Lily and GiGi both had wanted to see Ariel's Grotto but we hadn't yet made it there (there were just so many other places they wanted to go and see). Anyway, I said "Hey guys follow me. I think I found Ariel's Grotto." We walked to the area and saw that there were just a few staff members still there and that the area had just recently closed down. I said to the kids, "Sorry guys, it looks like it just closed." No one was too disappointed and we were preparing to move along, when a manager of the Grotto stopped us and said, "For you, it is not closed. Come on in!" He had seen our Make-A-Wish badges and took us right back to meet Ariel! Again, AMAZING!! The kids are gonna be pretty surprised the next time we visit a theme park and have to stand in line!!

Now that we are back home, hardly a day goes by when someone doesn't ask when we can go back to Disney World! Although we would love to take them again, we could never match the trip that you set up for us! The limo ride, three "square" meals of ice-cream each day, pizza, pizza, pizza, swimming pools, special treatment at the theme parks . . . on and on and on!!

As a final closing anecdote, I want to let you know how emotionally moved I was by the trip as well! The first night we went to the Magic Kingdom, with the girls all decked out as princesses, we closed the park down! We joined all the thousands of people lining the sidewalks to watch the "Wishes" fireworks display! I stood next to the boys while the girls sat with Nana and Bill. All of the kid's faces were lit up with complete JOY! The boys mouths were opened in awe and their hands were fidgeting with excitement. I looked over at them, their smiles, their bright eyes, their amazement and thought about what a challenging year it had been for us all. We had started with the diagnosis of a brain tumor in January and were spending the end of the year together sharing GiGi's incredible wish! The fireworks began with Mickey talking about wishes, how they really can come true, and that it just starts with a wish. Then, out of the blue, from the tip of Cinderella's castle "pops" Tinkerbelle, flying overhead on a zip-line. At this point the tears began to flow! It was truly beautiful! What an awesome ending to both an incredible day of make-overs and year full of challenges! Now, you must know, we closed the park down every night we could . . . just to see Tink fly through the park! We even captured part of it on video, and as you might imagine, we've watched it again, and again, and again!

GiGi has also been asking if she can have another wish. I told her that she would only get one wish from Make-A-Wish, but I asked her if she could have another, what would it be?

Here's what she said, "I'd wish that everyone that has a tumor could have a wish too!" So . . . keep up the great work and please let me know if we can ever help to make GiGi's wish to grant someone else's wish come true!

GiGi's mom,

Amy

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