A Disney Wish List...

OK raise your hand! How many of you have some sort of Disney/Vacation Wish List?


I do!

Even w/ money being tight for us and most of the country...it's always wonderful to dream and wish right? and what better place to dream and wish about than Walt Disney World!

As a child, some of my fondest memories are Family Vacations. Every year my parents would take us on some sort of trip, some were small just driving a few hours North into Wisconsin to visit my Dad's Sister and family who loved on a lake and some were large like our only plane trip to WDW and Orlando attractions.

I consider myself quite lucky that my parents invested their time and money into making wonderful family trips a reality for my 2 siblings and I. My sister who is married and has a son, feels the same way as me about vacations, big or small it is such a joy to plan and pick a place to get away from the usual hum drums and stresses of daily life and enjoy some real family time! Now her and I are not alike at all in our planning styles...I am crazily organized down to a T and she is the more plan only what you have to and the rest is going by the seat of your pants...to each their own huh? We giggle at each other and luckily my parents appreciate each of our styles since they frequently now travel w/ us and our children.

One of the reasons I do plan so meticulously is that my son Michael lives w/ HFA Aspergers Disorder. He thrives on structure and routine, and knowing what is next. Even though he is a typical Sensory Avoider, trips to the beach or up to his Grandparents' Lake house in Michigan are not as relaxing as they sound. It is too open-ended for him and can become more of an anxiety than relief. At home he has his own space and expectations of what he can and likes to do, but outside this normal comfort zone can be quite daunting. A trip that is full of stuff to do to a point w/ things to do that are scheduled that can help keep him focused on each new thing is actually the vacation he thrives in and luckily we have found this outlet in WDW! I'm not sure how this Magic works, but it does! and it helps that we all love Disney!

Michael and his twin sister have recently been working on homework assignments of a poster board outlining the Cultural Universals of our Family...and they both included Disney...hehehe

so back to this Disney/Vacation Wish List....what is on ours? Here is a little peek:

2010: WDW November to celebrate Mae and Margaret's birthdays plus Thanksgiving

2011: WDW May to celebrate my husband Matt and I 15 yr Wedding Anniversary

2012: Washington DC Summer and WDW ?? a solo trip for me

2013: WDW ?? the next Family Trip

2015: WDW May to celebrate the twins' (Michael and Aldine) 16th birthdays

Julie