Sunday, March 27, 2011

Give Kids the World

While in Orlando, the Make-a-Wish families stay at Give Kids the World village.  I did not know much about the village before our arrival.

I cannot say enough good stuff about Give Kids the World.  The moment we arrived, we knew that we were taken care of.  Brayden was given a Mickey Mouse, Carter and Luke were given a little Shamu from Sea World.  We had a volunteer take us to our villa, a cute little villa.  Brayden's medical supplies had been delivered and were waiting for us inside.  The refrigerator had cold drinks ready for us.

The gift fairy had already arrived and left gifts for the boys...the gift fairy arrived everyday leaving things on our kitchen table like movies, backpacks, toys, Candyland the Give Kids the World edition...Carter and Luke were thrilled with this.  One morning I found them at the kitchen table writing notes for the gift fairy.
After we unloaded all of our gear we began to explore and continued to explore throughout the week.

Every part of Give Kids the World had a touch of something special.  The village was filled with things to do at any part of the day.  Putt-putt golf with dinosaurs, a carousel that Brayden could go on in his wheelchair, a train ride, water park and pool, video games, movies, an ice cream parlor that was open from early in the morning to late at night...every building looked magical and contained something fun to do.

Even a Spa, where little girls could get a mani-pedi or little boys could get face painting and tattoos.  Brayden got a turtle tattoo.


Dining was an experience.  We could grab a quick bite at Katie's Kitchen with food from Boston Market or have pizza delivered to our villa.  Breakfast, lunch or dinner could be at the Gingerbread House, buffets filled with delicious food (we justified all of the eating with all of the walking in the parks).

Every day, Give Kids the World had activities.  In the morning characters from Disney or Universal would come to meet the families and take pictures.  Here is one of Brayden...the photographer was delighted he was posing like Dora...in reality Brayden was having a seizure.  I didn't have the heart to tell the photographer.

At night, Give Kids the World would have some fabulous event.  The boys attended several, the first night they participated in a giant game of Candyland, later they attended the Pirates and Princesses Party...the boys became pirates, with swords and treasures.



Every event and moment was given something tangible, whether it be a photo, certificate or gift.  The village was designed around the concept of Candyland, everything filled with treats.  We had to purchase a bag to get all of our swag home.

Of our entire trip, Give Kids the World had the biggest impact on us...more on that later.

4 comments:

kirstenpetree said...

so awesome!

Wherever HE Leads We'll Go said...

Love the pics! The notes from the boys are so sweet. This sounds like a magical place!

Andy Hoffman said...

GKTW is so great! I wrote an article about it here: http://www.squidoo.com/give-kids-the-world

I hope it has done it justice!

Sheran said...

Some people need help. We call them disabled but they are really awesome can lead life meaningfully. Wheelchair is enough to make their life smooth and easy. Other disability aids are also available to give them proper support.