MRI Results...official!

Well although everyone may know from my prior posts that Taylor's last MRI was clear, however their official meeting was today. Basically what they told them (Mindy and Landon) was that they see NOTHING in this scan...no flags, etc. Everything was perfect, not even a smudge on the MRI! Hurray. Speech Pathologist thinks she is doing great and the Neuro-Psychologist was amazed at how "grown-up" she is. Of course everyone was in love with her and sung her praises....but she is pretty darn awesome.

So I have not had a chance to ask Mindy fifty thousand questions...I will though and hopefully update you. I still want to find out about their action plan on MRI's...will they be extended to 6 months, or do they still have to be done every 3 months? I also wanted to know what they thought about taking her to either St.Jude's in the USA or to Toronto where there are some "expert" on her form of cancer (it is still not big where knowledge is concerned, but maybe they would have some insight?) I also worry about any signs that may signal growth, etc. Taylor now getting a tad older, at her whopping 2 years of age, is a bit easier to read some signals in behaviour in relation to "normal". I think there are always questions.

I am just so thankful. Taylor has gotten to go on her wish vacation, she has pretty much completed her wish list, thanks to all her supporters, angels here on earth. I get to babysit this Saturday...apparently she can be a tyrant, so I may relive my babysitting her when she was 6 months old playing strange...LMAO.

They are home!

Well yesterday Mindy, Landon and Taylor all returned from their journey. It was a long trip home, layovers, etc. Mindy was back at work today. Hopefully I will get some news or more stories to share when I see her this weekend.

Thanks to the tremendous support of everyone who made Taylor's wish come true! It is so phenomenal that everyone has reached out and helped touch Taylor's life!

Last Day in SanDiego

Well, we had a pretty uneventful day yesterday, we have been so tired and Taylor has been a bit of a tyrant as well...so we have been kind of looking forward to coming home.

We found a new suitcase to bring home all of our goodies, checked out a marshall's and a Target and ended up finding a little shop that sells bags and purses and luggage for SUPER cheap! Went shopping at fashion valley mall...a bit out of our price range...all designer stores with a few others like gap, banana republic, etc thrown in the mix. Landon wouldn't let me go to Macy's or blooming dales for fear of what I might find! There were lots of shops I could have shopped in if I was rich...but alas...that isn't in my cards!

So we decided to just watch toy story 2 and ordered a pizza...it was a very lazy day!

So today we made sure to get up a bit earlier, had our breakfast and headed down to the beach to put our toes in the ocean and play in the sand, it was a great start to the day! Taylor was scared of the water every time it would come up she would cry or run away if she could...it was too funny! The water was absolutely freezing!!!

So after the beach we took some showers and headed out on an adventure to the safari park! We kept getting lost as the signage was terrible and there were too many paths, but we eventually found our way to the safari tour of Africa! It was totally worth the trip...a 30 minute tour through the open park setting...it was pretty cool!

So we headed home and Taylor had a great nap, we decided to lay low for the night...massages are tonight and then maybe a soak in the pool and packing up for our journey home tomorrow!

Looking forward to sleeping in my own bed! Landon will pick up our dog Ruby from our friends Brenda and Faye on Thursday, and my birthday is on Friday!

See you all soon!!! This will be our last post for a while!

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

Xoxoxo

Day 7 SanDiego

So this morning we did our continental breakfast at the hotel and then headed out for the day's adventure...Sea world!

It was a quiet day there thank goodness, and we got around fairly quickly, although the show times were quite spread out over the day...if we missed an early show, the others weren't until the end of the day...we thought we could make it...but Taylor was grumpy and we were exhausted by about 3:30.

We watched the shamu show which was fantastic...brought back all my memories as a child and sitting in the splash zone and getting soaked! We decided to play it safe and sit up in the higher stands...a very good choice considering the cooler weather.

We also got to play with some dolphins, pet some star fish and sea urchins, fed and pet some manta reys which was super cool! We fed some sea lions, and Landon got swindled by a pelican...those guys are aggressive around the sea lions feeding area...they kept swooping around us trying to steal our fishes for the sea lions!!!!

We did a few more tours and had lunch, but packed it in and came back to the hotel for a nap. Our room was being cleaned, so we decided to take a walk out on the sea wall, and we booked ourselves some massages for Tuesday evening! Landon has never had a massage before...and his back is killing him from carrying taylor on his shoulders all the time and carrying all our stuff!

So we had a nap and set out on an adventure to find supper...the place we wanted to go to turned out to be more of a pub, so we tried to find another place...found one...it was okay, nothing fabulous...but whatever!

So we moseyed back to the hotel and decided to go swimming. It was nice and sheltered, and Taylor had so much fun jumping off the edge of the pool into our arms, we finished things off with the hot tub and showers for the family and bed time.

Taylor is flopping around in her bed talking to herself as we watch a movie on the tv...planning on going to the safari park tomorrow and maybe hitting the beach for a bit!

Love you all, see you in a few days!

Mindy,Landon & Taylor

Xoxoxo

San Diego Day 6

Well, today was pretty casual...we crawled out of bed and went for breakfast...conveniently located right next-door to our room! Then we decided to go for a dip in the pool and sent Taylor for a nap.

Landon sent me to the front desk to find out how much it would be for a rental cab, or how much it would be to get to the various sites we want to visit...and I ended up signing us up For a rental car for 4 days! Lmao

So Landon went with the agent from enterprise to fill out the paperwork and I figured out where we were going to spend the rest of the day!

So...Landon came back, we decide to head to Las America's outlet centre at the Mexico border...literally we could have thrown rocks over the 30 foot High barb wire fences and huge metal gates! LMFAO Landon was wondering what I had gotten us into!!! We were clearly not from around there...population of Latin/Mexican/Spanish type folks was considerably higher than any other nationalities...the people at mcdonalds barely spoke English :). It was fun though and everyone was friendly! There was actually staff in the stores and they were working and friendly and helpful...weird! Like the good old days!

So we headed home after what seemed like the longest day of shopping ever! We didn't even hit half of the stores I am sure...but we spent enough money and were tired!

Stopped at the cvs pharmacy again...Landon needed some icy hot back cream and we needed to grab some Taylor snacks...Landon had a good chat with a homeless man while waiting in the car with Taylor as she napped in the back...he was telling landon how nice canadians are, and that the women are amazing and nice...not like the glorified prostitutes down here lmfao...and that the cops are CRAZY...he he...anyway, landon told me to jump in the car and locked the doors x

So anyway, Landon told me to hurry and get in the car and he locked the doors and we drove away...like two seconds to the gas station...lol. It was very dramatic lol

So...there are some very strange people around here...lots of people that look nuts!

We ended up just ordering pizza in our room instead of going out for supper...too tired! I totally forgot to ask for plates or napkins...and we have NOTHING but Kleenex in our room lol...so that was interesting...

Anyway, can you put some feelers out to see if anyone knows how we should send stuff home...we clearly don't have enough room in our suitcases...

Love you lots, tomorrow I think will be sea world or the zoo...not sure yet!

San Diego Day 5

Well today was alright...felt rushed and a bit off for whatever reason...

We started off with a quick breakfast at the hotel and then jumped in a cab to the train station.

Okay, so the train station was icky to say the least...somewhat greyhound downtown station comparable. We had to move stuff around in our suitcases as there was a 50 lb limit per bag and we had so much crap from all the shopping, so that was fun!!! Opening out bags on the floor to pack stuff in lighter bags and the stroller bag...we were those people! LMAO

So we set off on the train...kind of like an airplane style seating with more leg room, but smelled funky and had no air circulation. Taylor was due for a nap, but wouldn't sit still and turned into tantrum Taylor...not listening, running around, crying and having hissy fits...to say the least, it was the longest 2 plus hours of our lives! There was also a group of moms with toddlers going to a petting zoo and they were extremely annoying to listen to...omg thought we would strangle them if they didn't get off the train when they did!

So we got to San Diego around 12:30 pm and grabbed a cab to our hotel. The hotel is amazing!!! Very classy! Our hotel room is on the main floor with our patio doors leading out to the pool and the gates to the sea wall paths. We can see the ocean from our room and just a few steps away there is a lookout point and stairs down to the water and beach...Landon is sending pictures!

So we decided it was time for Taylor to have a nap...she was sooooo overtired and cranky...and didn't go down for a nap without a fight! We were all exhausted and grumpy, so the nap was much needed!

Once we woke up and got ourselves together, we got some restaurant advice from the front desk, and headed out for the night! We had a lovely meal at "world famous" a restaurant with an ocean view...although it was pretty chilly out, so we stayed inside.

Hit a Starbucks and a cvs pharmacy/liquor store for some snacks on the way home...had to laugh, as we walked in the door to cvs and among the snacks and cleaning products...think shoppers drug Mart...there are displays of liquor throughout the place...so weird! Anyway...it finally made sense to us why there were so many rowdy people out and about some sketchy people...it was Friday night in a "white ave" type area of San Diego...

So we came back to our room to get settled for the night and to plan the rest of our stay here - looks like some places are too far to cab to, so we may have to skip legoland and the wild animal park...need a car to go to those places!

So, we are enjoying the coziness of our room and watching our big screen tv while eating snacks and relaxing...something we haven't really done in a few days, so it is much needed!

We have the zoo and seaworld and maybe some shopping if I can find a cheap suitcase to take stuff back in...and I am thinking the hotel spa services might be required...lol

Have a great weekend everyone, will update you all tomorrow on our next adventure!

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

Xoxoxo

Day 4 Disneyland

Alas, our last day has come and gone...

We started today by sleeping in and ordering room service for breakfast! It was Landon's first time! LOL

Once we were ready, we hit the streets and got some of our final shopping completed (or at least we thought we did until this evening as we were running through a list...darn it) might have to hit the hotel gift shop in the morning!

So today was dedicated to rides! We hit the finding nemo submarine ride first...so much fun! Then we wandered over to the tea cups, the carousel...Taylor's official favorite ride...and then the dumbo ride! Unfortunately right before our turn on the dumbo ride, that section of the park lost their sound/power...so we had to leave...

We wandered around without a map...thinking we could remember where things were...but nope! Decided to get lunch...I tried a corn dog...gross! And we had a fennel cake...it was okay, but a total tummy ache waiting to happen with brownies, whipped cream, sprinkles and syrup...on a deep fried fennel cake...

We happened to pass by the dumbo ride just as the power came back...and we got on the ride without having to wait! Yahoo! Taylor actually had fun...no tears or crying a we had expected...but she was asking to go on it, so we figured what the heck! We did the carousel a few more times and continued on our way.

We returned to the hotel for a late nap as Taylor was beginning to get crazy...and we had a special dinner reservation at goofy's kitchen at 6:00

Nap was a success...although by the time we had her convinced to have a nap, it was too short and she woke up grumpy anyway! We headed to dinner and enjoyed our dinner with the characters - Alice from wonderland, the rabbit as well, captain hook, goofy, Minnie mouse, princess jasmine, and Pluto! Taylor enjoyed the dance sessions with goofy, and entertained as usual!

We headed downtown for some more dancing as there are numerous merchants that play live music and sell their cd's and such...she loves to dance as we walk by usually, so we thought we would just wander around and dance! We watched the fire works from there too...never seemed to get there on time for fireworks at the castle...but it would have been quite loud for her anyway.

We are now packing up our bags and getting things ready for our next part of our journey...SANDIEGO!!!

Super excited to take the surfliner train to our beachside hotel with an ocean view! A day for seaworld with shamu, a day at the famous SanDiego zoo, and a few days to tour around and maybe go swimming!

Love you all, hope you are enjoying the sampling of photos we can send...there are so many more that we can share when we get back!

Lots of love!

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

Xoxoxo

Day 3 Disneyland

So today was an early start...wake up call for 6:40 and breakfast at 7:40...I think I was still half asleep at breakfast!

We went to our hotel's Mickey and friends breakfast buffet again since Taylor had so much fun the first time...and she danced the morning away with all of the characters and we remembered the autograph book!

We had a quick outfit change in our room so we could head over to the bippity boppity boutique for Taylor's princess makeover...she really didn't want to wear her dress...but with a little distraction and persuasion, we manages to keep it on her!

So the princess makeover was spectacular to say the least...a special stylist that does her hair, nails, makeup, including a sash and a pretty ring and crown...she didn't like the cape or the sitting and waiting in the chair, but we managed to keep her distracted for long enough to get her beautiful hair extensions put in with a crown while I painted her toes and fingernails...she was all for the makeup part!

So we left the princess makeover and realized that we had forgotten her special princess shoes in the hotel room "bad mommy" so we had to head back for a pit stop! Taylor rode on Landon's shoulders there, so we didn't notice!

Once we had the shoes, we headed over to California adventure park to attend Taylor's special princess lunch at ariel's grotto on the water...it was a truly fabulous experience to meet all the beautiful princesses, I felt the little girl inside of me shivering with excitement every time they came to our table! Taylor stuffed so many grapes in her mouth during lunch that she started to choke and almost threw up at our table...it was a super classy moment...lol

After lunch we decided to head back to the hotel for a much needed nap...we slept for over 3 hours!!! Then we headed back to the park to hit the rides and see the world of color water show!

The rides were a little disappointing on this side, as Taylor is too small, or much too scared to ride them, and the roller coaster zooming around by the water stopped her in her tracks each time it passed! She barely lasted on the ferris wheel...but we managed without any tears! Yahoo!

We couldn't get great spots to watch the water show as we didn't know there was a process to get in...oh well...we watch it every night from our room...just not the same as being right there with the music and the show, but we watched a few minutes of it before Taylor had enough...

Did a little shopping and had some ice cream then headed back to our hotel...Taylor asked to go night night as soon as we got in the door...she was crawling into bed with her shoes and clothes and jacket on...so as you can imagine, she was out cold in less than 5 minutes!

It was a great day...a little slower paced than the last two, but the princess activities more than made up for the lack of rides and adventure of the day.

We are going to sleep in tomorrow, eat breakfast on the run, and spend the day in disneyland enjoying the rides and taking our time to see all the little things we may have missed the first two days!

Thank you all once again for getting us here!!! We are having the trip of a lifetime and making so many memories!

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor

Xoxoxo

Disneyland Day 2

Okay, so today was action packed!

We started our day at our hotel's restaurant...character dining with Mickey and friends, Taylor was a little unsure at first, but was soon high fiving the characters, dancing with them, and having a blast! We forgot her autograph book in the room, so we figured we would come back again since we had so much fun! It totally made our morning, and set the tone for our day!

After breakfast we came back for a room visit to change out of our syrup splattered clothing and get ready for our day at the park!

We seen many exciting characters today, and got some autographs in Taylor's book! We seen a song and dance routine by Mary poppins and her crew, and smiled so hard our cheeks hurt!

Took Taylor on her first ride - pirates of the carribean...lmao...big mistake! She screamed and cried hysterically for most of the 20 minute ride - it was pitch black on the water in boats with lots of explosions and gun shots and scary pirates and skeletons and such...we so should have known better...

So the next ride was about an hour later...Winnie the pooh...more her pace, again with the exception of the ephalumps and woozles part that she was scared of...but much better than the last one!

Next, we hit mickeys toon town...she had lots of fun in here even though we didn't do any rides or wait in the 30 minute plus line ups to get pictures with the Mickey, Minnie, and goofy...we figured we would catch them again at breakfast!

So we had some lunch and then found the tea cups!!! She loved them thank goodness...weren't sure if we had scarred her for life with the pirate ride experience...but yay, she had fun on a ride!

We wandered around the park for a while getting our bearings and trying to see if Taylor would nap...no such luck!

We did some shopping and decided to get front row seats for the parade, so we hung out curbside for an hour and twenty minutes again trying to get Taylor to nap...at least she sat in her stroller and rested for a bit.

Okay...so the parade. Let me tell you how awesome the parade was...it was all Christmas themed, the whole place is decorated with Christmas everything as well, so it was truly magical! Taylor was vibrating in anticipation as she seen the floats coming around the corner where we were sitting near the beginning of the parade route. She danced and laughed and oohed and Ahhed at everything...she was jumping up and down and going bananas...completely over tired and goofy she entertained the folks around us and made my heart sing...it is truly amazing to see how happy a child can get! We shopped a little and heard a commotion on main street and happened to get out there just before another special treat...they made it snow after playing a scene from a Christmas movie...can't remember which one...something about if your really believe...anything can happen...it was truly magical!

So we went for supper at a new Orleans style place...so yummy! It's so funny that they have those outdoor propane heaters everywhere...I find it way too warm with them but people complain that they are freezing...crazy americans! They would die in an albertan winter I am sure!

We watched the fireworks, missed the first part as they started an hour earlier than everyone told us they started...oh well, we have two more nights!

We hit a few more shops on the way back to the hotel, and wrapped up day two of our adventure! Taylor hit the pillow and fell asleep pretty well instantly!

Tomorrow we are having breakfast in the hotel again with Mickey and friends...and then off to bippity boppity boutique for Taylor's princess makeover and to ariel's grotto for lunch...should be an exciting day...we plan on spending the day in California adventure park since we haven't been to that side yet, and they have an amazing water show that we have watched each night from our room...but would love to see it from close up :)

Off to dream some magical dreams...check in with you all tomorrow!

Love,

Mindy, Landon & Taylor