Wishes And Pixie Dust

Follow the journey of a Wisconsin family of 4 who relocated to the Walt Disney World area in July 2011


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Approaching the End

Last week we received a call from our landlord, stating he was going to send us a checklist of things we need to complete if we want to receive our security deposit back.  He called this morning to check to see if we received it, and as of yet, we haven’t.  He then stated he would get it to us soon, but we’re not overly concerned with what’s on it.  This will be the fifth time we’ve moved in thirteen years, and we know what needs to be done, and are working on completing it.  It’s exhausting to say the least, but we are thankful the end is in sight.

Today we pulled all items off Craigslist, except for the lawnmower, and will donate them to Goodwill.  The kids’ mattresses were picked up today, and the television armoire was also picked up today.  Yeah!   Our garbage can and recycle bin are overflowing, as we tried to dispose of as much as we possibly could, so as not to leave the cans full when we leave.  (Pick up is Wednesday morning)

Today was Ben’s last day with Ray* (*name changed to protect privacy).  Ray has been Ben’s therapist since Kindergarten, and he has really helped Ben to grow and mature, and understand his autism.  We have had several therapists come and go in our household, but Ray has always been there for Ben; he has been his steady rock in a world that seemed always changing and unfamiliar at times.  Ben knew that no matter what happened; Ray would always be there for him. Over the years Ray went from being a therapist to one of the family, and really provided that Grandfather presence that Ben lacks.  We are so appreciative of Ray’s devotion to our son; there is no way we could ever express how much it means to us.   And so today, we said good-bye to Ray; there were tears, but Ben handled it really well.  God bless you, Ray, for making a difference in the life of our child.  ♥

 


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Planning For The Last Week

 

 

We went to Fleet Farm today to pick up a couple of items to get the house ready for the next set of renters, and as we pulled in to the parking lot, we saw this vehicle.  We immediately thought of Fillmore, from Cars:

 

                   “I’m tellin’ you, man, every third blink is slower”

We have yet to see Cars 2 in the theatre; we may take it in this week once everything slows down a little… but perhaps we’re misguided thinking things will slow down!  🙂 We’re finished packing in the kitchen except for a few last minute items.   An unexpected expense we hadn’t considered is the meals out we’ll be eating this week; plus the purchase of the disposable plates and bowls, which granted, isn’t a huge expense but it’s still one, nonetheless.  Wednesday we plan to eat at Tucker’s, a family and local favorite:

They have the absolute best popcorn, second only to Walt Disney World, of course.

Thursday we plan to eat at Pizza Ranch, one last time with Nick; he called it a last meal, but that just sounds so final, as we know we’ll be back to visit:

In our opinion they have the absolute best fried chicken that you can find.   The pizza is good, too, but definitely go for the chicken.

Friday, of course, is our departure date, and we plan to have our dinner in the hotel room. For road trips we always pack ham sandwiches from Festival Foods, and other assorted goodies for a picnic lunch; so we plan to do this again.  It’s tradition, and you don’t mess with tradition.  LOL

Right now our plan is to leave here by 3:15pm on Friday.  We anticipate that the movers will be done by noon, and our landlord comes at 3:00 to check us out.  We hope to be in Pleasant Prairie by 6:00, which will allow us to eat and perhaps check out the outlet mall as well.  We will have internet access all the way down, thanks to the hotspot activation on the cell phone, so we will be able to post blogs nightly and keep you updated.  We will also be posting updates using Twitter and Facebook along the way.

Enjoy your Sunday  ♥


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Thoughts.

I am excited for what the future will bring.  It continues to amaze me that one man’s vision could possibly impact so many people in the world.  Thank you, Walt Disney!  As you know our son Ben is autistic, but he has possibly the greatest imagination of any child or adult I know.  He is constantly designing concepts for new worlds, new cities and infrastructures and it makes me wonder: what if he had the foresight to create Ben Vitek World?  What would it be like?  Ben is our “imagineer” and absolutely loves to draw.  I can’t even begin to count how many reams of paper we have gone through over the years, but art has given him the ability to understand and make sense of his world through his drawings.

Confession time.  We have never been to The Magic of Disney Animation at the Studios.  It didn’t make our list during any of the three trips, and I think back as to why, and I’m sure time was the primary reason.  When you vacation, you are limited in what you can experience, and unfortunately some attractions never made the cut.  However, as interested as Ben is in drawing, you would think it would have entered our minds at one point!  One of the joys of living so close to Walt Disney World is we will have the opportunity to do all the things we never had time for before.  Ben is so looking forward to participating in this at the Studios.

It makes me think of all the different career opportunities that will be available to the kids in Florida that are simply not an option in Wisconsin.  Walt Disney World in itself offers a multitude of employment opportunities, but even if you look beyond the world of the mouse,  careers in zoology or marine biology are a feasible option for Catie to pursue, as she is quite the animal lover.  For sixth grade Catie attended a virtual school, and I could only help but think how much more varied and enriched the experience would have been if we had lived in Florida, and had the opportunity to experience more science field trips and hands-on learning.

We are fortunate and blessed to have the children attending a public school that is A rated; moving into a city and neighborhood we don’t know is always a gamble, but we feel secure in the path we have chosen for this year.  Catie will be in high school next year, and the particular high school  she is on track to attend doesn’t rate as high, so we will need to examine the best option for her.

Both kids are really excited about the move next week, and we are so thankful for that as well.  If we had to do it over, we would choose to move earlier in the summer, as they will have less than a month of summer vacation left once we arrive; school starts August 22. It’s wild to believe it’s already mid-July; school supplies are out in full force here and it’s a little odd not to be buying them or even thinking about what might be needed.

As I close my thoughts, it is my hope and prayer that friends in our Disney community recognize that we are not infringing on other blogs, and that our content is unique to our family.  We believe this is in the spirit of what Walt Disney would want.  We intend to keep this blog active, but it will remain a blog dedicated to the ins and outs of moving to a new city, and the challenges and joys we face there.

Sending pixie dust to all our readers,

Jen


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Moo-ving along!

 We’re from Wisconsin–we had to include a pic of a cow somehow! 😉

We have reached a point in our move where we need to examine what we will need for the next few days, and pack the rest away.  It’s very refreshing not to be hassled at the last minute, as we have been on all our other moves. Instead of being in major packing mode, these past days have, for the most part, been pretty routine.  Catie’s room is done, except for the last minute necessities that need to be packed up, and the kitchen is slowly getting packed away, as we decide on whether to keep certain items or give them to Nick.

On Monday we received 25 boxes from a fellow Freecycler, sturdy boxes from a moving company, and we were so grateful to get them!  We are currently trying to dispose of the rest of our furniture, and will have to decide soon when the break point is when we pull everything off Craigslist and donate it to Goodwill.   We also have a lawnmower, which is less than a year old, and a weed whacker, which is less than a month old; if these do not sell before next Friday, then we will give these items to Nick to try to sell for us.

We’ve finalized the payment for Mayflower, and are really excited to see that part of our journey unfold, as we’ve never used professional movers before.  We’ve learned so much about the “right” way to pack, which is really a consideration if you are moving such a long distance.  Please see our earlier post ‘Packing Those Boxes’, published in March, if you are looking for more detailed information.

Thank you for following us along on our journey!