Ice Cream for Breakfast - your personal invitation!

Here's your own personal invitation to Cicily's Ice Cream for Breakfast!  Email us if you want to come and need Grandma and Grandpa's address.  (email is on the sidebar)  We're getting excited to see lots of friends and eat ice cream with everyone!!!

Thank you to our talented friend Shanell for making this adorable invite!  She designs cards and invitations if you ever need one: shanellgambell at yahoo dot com

GKTW Global Ice Cream for Breakfast

 GIVE KIDS THE WORLD

As you've seen from Cicily's Make-A-Wish trip posts, our family LOVED our time at Give Kids the World in Florida.  It was a truly unforgettable and priceless memory for our family.  GKTW seriously comes up in at least one conversation every day in our family! 
We've decided to serve up a little scoop of the magic to our family and friends as part of GKTW's Global Ice Cream for Breakfast campaign.  We're excited to support this amazing place and have some fun with our friends at the same time!

New chair - it's a WHEELchair

You can see how happy this girl is about her new wheelchair.  Which is good because it makes her mommy happy about her new wheelchair.  You see, this girl was never supposed to be in a wheelchair.  She was supposed to not be able to eat, breath, or hear on her own during her childhood; but still be able to fill that childhood up with running, soccer, and dance lessons.  The first chair she got when she was 3 we called her bus chair.  It was only supposed to be helpful until she learned to walk.  Now it's obvious that won't happen in this life, and she needed more support, so we accepted that she needed a real genuine WHEELchair. 

First day going to school in her new wheelchair.  This is how it looked before it got Cicily-ized with purple polka-dots.

After the initial fitting appointment for the new chair, I drove home a bit too fast (that's one way I cope- driving, sometimes quickly).  When we went to pick it up, I brought reinforcements- Dad came along and joked so much it made it a little better still. 

Then Cicily came home and sat in her new wheelchair and could open cabinets in the kitchen, and could be tall enough to see the counters.  She was LOVING it!  When pajama time came, she refused to get out of her new chair!  That made it almost all the way better. 

Then I called a good friend Staci and asked her about getting vinyl polka-dots to put all over Cicily's new chair.  She did much more than I expected and worked it all out and brought the polka-dots over within days.  Cicily's happiness in her new pokda-dot wheelchair made the need for a WHEELchair all the way better!

 

And if you're curious, this baby cost more than either of our cars.

Easter

"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live" - John 11:25

Easter has always been a favorite holiday.  I love thinking about Jesus' triumph over death.  And now it has an even greater significance for me. 

Here is some of our Easter fun.

 We decorated our very own chicken's eggs this year!!!  This is one Cicily made.

 Easter egg hunt with the Watkins Fam.  Cis found a purple (her favorite color) egg hiding up high at the park. 

 Sophie discovering CANDY inside the eggs and Cicily enjoying watching her little sister learn new things.

The Friday before Easter we took the girls to pick out some new chicks.  Cicily's school nurse Tami said Cis was telling everyone -even the principal - about how she was going to pick out new chicks later that day.  As you can see, she LOVES them!!!

Spring Break

Some pictures from the girls' week off school this year. 

Maya read books to Sophie and Cicily before Soph's nap.

"Tea time"  outside in the backyard. 

A real picnic out in the yard for dinner.

 Craft time.  One afternoon while Sophie was napping we made bookmarks, bubble pictures, and crayon art.

It's always nice to have Maya and Cicily having fun together. 

Letter to Disney World

Dear,

My daughter Cicily was recently granted a wish from the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Arizona.  Our whole family was able to join her in a lovely week at Give Kids the World. 

We wanted to write and let you know how much the tickets from Disney World and the kindness we received at your parks enhanced Cicily's wish trip. 

Cicily's wish was to go to Disney World to ride Small World and see Minnie Mouse.  We thank you for your integral role in making Cicily's wish come true!  Cicily loved Small World and the kind ride operators even let us ride 3 times in a row on the last night of our trip.  Cicily was so excited to wear her polka-dotted dress to show Minnie when she came to Give Kids the World.  Minnie and Mickey were both so kind and patient with Cicily.  Cicily lit up when Minnie noticed her dress was polka-dotted just like hers!! 

As you can imagine, having a child with medical needs requires some extra attention and time outs from fun.  With the kind attention we received from your staff and being able to see characters and visit attractions in a timely manner, our family was able to pack a lot of fun into Cicily's trip. 

We want to express our gratitude to Walt Disney World for giving us tickets to your parks and taking such great care of our family.  Cicily's wish trip gave Cicily even more reasons to smile and our family some wonderful memories we'll always cherish. 

                                                                                                With Gratitude,

                                                                                                Chris & Janalyn
                                                                                                Maya, Cicily, & Sophie

Letter to Universal Orlando

Dear          ,

My daughter Cicily was recently granted a wish from the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Arizona.  Our whole family was able to join her in a lovely week at Give Kids the World. 

We wanted to write and let you know how much the tickets from Universal Orlando and the kindness we received there enhanced Cicily's wish trip. 

Cicily's big sister Maya is a true Harry Potter fan and got Cicily so excited to spend time at the Wizarding World!  We all loved it!  The authenticity was remarkable, but what made our visit truly memorable was the treatment we received from the workers.  We were invited to the front of lines at rides and shows.  Mr. Olivander even chose Maya to be the wizard for the wand show, which made her whole week! 

Cicily is also a huge fan of Dr. Seuss books and she loved Seuss Landing!

As you can imagine, having a child with medical needs requires some extra attention and time outs from fun.  With the kind attention we received from your staff, our family was able to pack a lot of fun into Cicily's trip.  Universal really added a large amount of joy and happy memories for our family. 

We thank you very much for the tickets you gave our family and the kind attention we received at your park. 

                                                                                                With Gratitude,

                                                                                                Chris & Janalyn

                                                                                                Maya, Cicily, and Sophie
                                                                                                     

P.S.  We can't wait until the Wizarding World opens in Hollywood!!