Thank you Disney and a special friend who made our weekend possible. Yes, I toured the park in my wheelchair, and once again Disney’s service to myself and my family was second to none.
It remains on my bucket list to be in full remission and to take a DisneyWorld trip sans wheelchair, however if you are disabled, these are the parks for you. The staff is knowledgable on those who can transfer out of their wheelchair to walk a short distance and those who must stay in, or those who can not transfer from their chairs at all. You can also stop in at City Hall on Main Street USA and request special instructions for those with disabilities and even special passes for those with children with autism, Tourette’s, OCD, etc who may have a hard time waiting in long lines. Come with a note from your doctor, just in case, or your handicap info.
But on to the good stuff!!! Some highlights for you:
Count Waffles was THE HIT of Halloweentime – everyone stopped him to take photos with him. He was BEAMING with all the attention the clearly awesome costume brought. He couldn’t believe tourists wanted their photos with HIM. But look at this guy…who wouldn’t?
His sister, on the other hand, was pouting slightly that her ladybug costume (planned to go with his venus fly trap) wasn’t garnering tourist photos…but the bags of chocolate made up for it.
Then there was MY favorite part of the trip…the new Carsland at Disney’s California Adventure. Can I just say OMG?!!!!!! I can’t even put into words how awesome of a job they did. Ok, maybe I am biased because this was the first movie we ever took our kids to…on Father’s Day. At the El Capitan in Hollywood. But, if you ever wanted to stroll down the street with the rest of the Cars in Radiator Springs, you can REALLY DO IT AT Carsland.
With Carsland conquered (we all won the Piston Cup, btw) and my body having had enough- It was time to do what I do best at Disney…soak in the fun with my family and just watch them do things that make them grin from ear to ear.
There are these moments that just don’t come all the time, especially when your husband is always upset by traffic and his commute, the kids are always busy with homework and now sports schedules. and getting healthy for me has become a full time job…with nothing but treatment and doctor appointment after doctor appointment. always seem to make me smile, no matter how horrible I might be feeling.
…and the perfect night lights to make sure you sleep well. Afterall, a dream IS a wish your heart makes…and boy, do I have some dreams right now.
*disclosure, we were given media passes to attend the events at Disneyland and comp’d a hotel room for one night. Disney has given us Halloween media tickets for many, many years running and we haven’t missed one yet. I would BUY these tickets on my own to attend, we genuinely love it that much. In other words, all opinions are here are true.
Just a quick clarification: Tourette Syndrome does not cause difficulty waiting in lines. Some of the more common comorbidities do (anxiety, OCD, being a kid, hahaha), but TS itself does not. Most kids with TS are really very much exactly like every other child in every way except for their tics.
Still some have comorbidities that come into play. My son does. But to eliminate stigmas against those with TS, I am very careful with the language. Sorry!
That said, I am with you a kablillion percent about Disney. We go annually to the Magic Kingdom, because wow are they exceptional at hospitality. I’m jealous of your proximity to Disneyland and impressed at your restraint in not going daily. 🙂
Actually it can depend on what type of tic your child may be going through at the time. Currently my son is going through a tic where he can’t touch much (rails included) and everything must be done in 3’s. So I was very concerned he’d not be able to use his ‘tools’ to control himself when there were more than 3 people (or not a number divided by 3) in front of us, etc. He can also have a HUGE melt down in line if something in front of him doesn’t conform to one of his current tics. Had his current tic been more severe this trip, I absolutely would have requested a doctor’s note. Tourette also comes, many times, with other issues like OCD. So when you combine my son’s Tourette’s with OCD, something like waiting in line at Disney can be a nightmare if he’s on a upswing and things are severe. Right now just waiting in line at school is an issue for my son due to his current tic, so I had no idea how it would play out in a large line at Disney. Since his anxiety over the trip was low, and we discussed it, I opted to go with the flow…but like I said, had he shown signs that his tic was more severe, I would not have hesitated to make sure we didn’t have that tic flare up and a horrible experience while there.
I get the meltdown thing. It’s incredibly painful to watch your child struggle. Awful. And it looks like a behavior issue to people who don’t know, so there’s that level of stress, at least for me, built in, feeling like people are watching and judging. Ugh.
But because I am very concerned with making sure Tourette’s is not misunderstood, I really want to clarify. What you are describing are compulsions. Strong compulsions, yes. Unavoidable without melting compulsions, absolutely. But they come from the co-morbidities, not from Tourette’s like the tics.
The tics are more like the throat clearings, the coughs, flaps, twists, and that gallop — my son has that one, too.
The TSA website has a very clear explanation, good for those of us who haven’t been to medical school (though you practically have, I bet, by now).
The reason this is important is that all children with Tourette have tics but not all have compulsions. Especially for those who just beginning this journey and/or are developing IEPs, it is very important to clarify which are which.
And because YOU, awesome mother, have a huge, adoring audience, I hope you will continue to show how fabulous and fun and normal life is even in the face of multiple diagnoses.
I know I don’t know you, but I have to tell you I am screamingly proud of you and all the experiences you have. I especially thrill when you write about your kids. Politics, too (I’m Democrat #6 of 7 in my county, I think, alas), but your children more; your pride and love for them is palpable. You have my admiration.