But really, I should back up a bit and tell you the night before we left I got almost NO sleep. I went to bed early, but Timothy was up a half hour after I fell asleep tossing his cookies and was up about every hour after that. Sandor and I thought we'd have to fly out later but things subsided around 6 am and he began to perk up. We suspected the worst was over having seen this virus in Andrew only a few days earlier. So off we went. He was a champ and did great on the flight!
Upon arrival in Orlando an important piece of Sarah's stroller was missing and that created some challenges but we did what we needed to and headed off to catch the Magical Express bus to WDW (Walt Disney World) While we were waiting to board the piece was
found in the baggage compartment and rushed through the airport to us! What a relief!!
Our "home away from home" on this trip was Disney's Caribbean Beach. It was quite nice and the boys and Sarah enjoyed the pirate themed pool. We had two adjoining rooms which gave us enough space and a quiet place for Sarah to nap in the afternoon. We settled in, explored a bit and then headed off for our dinner at Chef Mickey's!
Late that night Jacob woke me that he wasn't feeling well and in no time at all was following in Timothy's footsteps. He needed to spend most of the following day in bed recovering but joined us in the evening. It was kind of sad to be out touring the Magic Kingdom while we knew he was in bed feeling yucky. An amazing thing, that day, we ran into one of Timothy's classmates from Michigan! See it IS a small world after all!!!
And then....it was Sandor's turn. He got hit in exactly the same way! And spent our second day at WDW in bed. He couldn't even join us for the evening. I was quite nervous about touring WDW on my own with four children however, kudos to my big guys who stepped up and helped out. I never felt like I was stressed or couldn't handle things. They were amazing!!! On our own we visited Hollywood Studios in the morning, swam in the afternoon, visited Disney Quest and then headed back to Hollywood Studios late for the Fantasmic light show.
Finally, on our third day at WDW we were able to get out as a family for some fun. We decided to spend the day at Typhoon Lagoon instead of touring the parks. It was a good choice. All of the kids enjoyed the water and the slides. The wave pool was also a big hit and Sarah really enjoyed herself. Her delightful squeals were amazing!
The rest of the trip was pretty low key. We toured the parks, played in the pool, enjoyed a boat ride on the lagoon at our hotel. Like I said there wasn't a lot of relaxing but there was plenty of fun. I am pretty sure we were all very ready to head home when Tuesday morning finally rolled around. Because, after all, there's no place like home. We wrapped up our last day with the Wishes fireworks show at Magic Kingdom and had everyone tucked into bed by 11pm.
Trip highlights? Well, they were different for everyone: Andrew LOVED the Star Tours ride and Hollywood Tower of Terror at Hollywood Studios, Sarah without a doubt loved any and everything Mickey and absolutely adored the Its a Small World ride and Goofy's Barnstormer. Jacob really liked Hollywood Tower of Terror and the Rock n' Rollercoaster. Timothy loved Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Mission Space, the Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin and Toy Story Mania. Sandor and I?? We just relished the happy times our kids were having and the few restful moments that were a part of it.
I thought often about what a challenge this was, traveling with a child with disabilities. Sarah had two seizures while we were away, had daily meds that needed to be administered, had to be watched closely for overheating (not easy to avoid in 90+ degree weather), got into everything in the hotel room. But I am pretty sure in spite of how challenging it was it was well worth it. Who ever said easy is best? She loved being with her family and Sandor and I marveled at how the constant interaction with all of us improved all of our skills in predicting, responding and understanding her needs and desires. It was a good thing. And of course those benefits could be accomplished on different types of trips or even just being together at home. But Sarah loves Mickey Mouse right now so this seemed like a good time to go...and we are glad we did. There were moments where I felt the eyes of the "world" on us....every time we boarded a bus and had to have her chair strapped down, when she grabbed a waiter's tray full of drinks and spilled 6 drinks on the table and ME! The plus side was the guest assistance pass that let us bypass some of the lines. The boys thought that was really cool! (Timothy called it a Fast pass) Bless his heart.
So we are home and settling quickly into our regular routines. Life seldom slows down in the Piszar house.
