We’re back! Autumn’s Magic Moments trip to Disney was October 9-15. I’m going to try to write about all that we did each day. So, today, I’ll start with Day 1.
We’ve been on “free” trips before that ended up costing us a lot of money – but not this trip. Magic Moments & Give Kids the World Village provided everything. They flew us to Orlando, got us a rental van, gave us a place to stay (that provided free meals), gave us money to pay for meals while we were in the parks, gave us tickets to several parks, and even gave Autumn spending money. And we had such an amazing time!
The graduate class I’d been taking was scheduled to be completed the Friday while we were gone, so I worked non-stop the week before we left to finish the work for the class. It was such a relief when I finally finished and began packing for the trip. We checked three bags, and carried several more. I had to carry some of the kids’ food with us, and I could not risk it getting lost or smooshed in the checked luggage. (Our luggage never tends to fair well on airplanes.) I also had to keep the medicines, etc. in a safe place.
This was the kids’ first time to fly, and it was so much fun! I sat with Silas and Nana (my mom) on the way down. Criss sat with Autumn and Papa (my dad). Just as I thought, Silas loved looking out the window as we flew. When we landed in Orlando, everyone chuckled as he called out, “We’re here!”
Once we exited the plane, someone from Give Kids the World was there to greet us, help us find our luggage, and take us to the rental van. There was a whole row of vans, and we got to pick the one we wanted. Autumn chose blue. That ended up being a good thing. It was much easier to find in all of the large parking lots throughout the week.
We navigated our way to the Village where we were greeted, given some introductory information, and taken to our villa - #290. They gave Autumn a stuffed Mickey Mouse and Silas a Shamu. When we arrived at our villa, the kitchen table was filled with even more gifts for the kids. (They tell you to bring an extra – empty – bag with you so you’ll have room to take all of the toys home with you. They were not exaggerating!)
We mostly hung around the Village for a while so I could attend the Orientation meeting where they give you all of your tickets for the week and go over everything you need to know. There’s SO much to do in the village itself. They have several places to eat, an ice cream parlor, a train, a golf course, their own carousel, and more.
The kids “made” pillows at the Pillow Tree in The Castle of Miracles. Then, Autumn gave her star to the Star Fairy to place in the castle with the other stars from all of the wish recipients who have stayed in the Village.
Another neat thing is that the Village has video cameras that they will let you use for the week. You just give it back to them before you leave, and they give you a disc with your videos from the week. (So nice!) Since we don’t have a video camera at home, it was the perfect opportunity to get the kids on tape.
That night, we took the kids to Old Town Park (a permanent outdoor fair near the Village) to let them play for a while before calling it a day.
Janel
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