Jordyn's Journey to Disney World - Wish Trip - Most likely in September

[Jessicalynne]

I have a wonderful little family of 4. Daddy is Jacob, Mommy is Jessica, and our two little ones, Jordyn who is 4, and Jeremy her little brother who is 2.

We are probably getting started maybe a little too soon, but we are just sooo excited!

Jordyn is an amazing 4 year old. She has the sweetest soul and is very empathetic to others. She was diagnosed in June of 2012 with ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia) Pre-B cell. Our lives haven't been our own since that day, and I am not sure they ever will be. Jordyn is a super big helper at our house and always wanting to help out her mommy with anything she possibly can. She loves the color purple. Her favorite thing at the moment would be dressing up. Dressing up has been such a wonderful outlet for her since we have been stuck at home almost constantly since her diagnosis because her compromised immune system leaves her at a high risk for a life threatening infection. She loves princesses and Tinkerbell, and she is sooo excited to be able to meet (or if she gets the chance, to be) Ariel, Cinderella, or Rapunzel. She has not stopped talking about it since we learned she was going to get to make a wish. We are super excited to finally have something to look forward to other than hospital visits, chemo, and steroids...

This is a picture of her hospital stay last year. I think this was two days before she was officially diagnosed with cancer. Those first months were so hard... She felt so miserable and didn't even want to move because she hurt so badly.

Jordyn's blog with more of her story can be found here: www.triumphingoverall.blogspot.com

Here is her most recent picture:

Jordyn's little brother Jeremy has had a really hard time dealing with Jordyn having cancer as well. He lost his playmate and friend for a few months when she was super sick, and he ended up spending a lot of time away from us when we were staying at the hospital and going to appointments. He wasn't even two yet, so it was super confusing and scary for him to go through.

He is an amazing little guy. He loves his sister and really looks up to her and wants to be just like her. She is his best friend and I am so grateful they were able to share such a good friendship during the really hard time we are going through. He is a busy kid, and always trying to get into everything... He tries so hard to be helpful though, and listens and tries to help people when he sees a need before even being asked.

Here is a picture of Jacob:


And here is a picture of me:

We can't wait to get our dates for the trip and really get into planning for it! I just know it will be so good for our family and be good for us to get away. Jordyn could really use a boost of happiness too!

[Sorcerer Jody]

What a beautiful family and what a brave little girl! Best wishes for a wonderful time planning your special trip!

[JWCJ]

Great start to your PTR! Gorgeous family
Waiting for a trip to Disney has been a wonderful distraction for my ALL girl! The time has been flying by (although I suspect these last 2 weeks are going to draaaaaaaaaag)!

[Jessicalynne]

Thank you both! We are still at the beginning of the process, but I am sooo excited! I know it will be a wonderful thing for my kids to look forward to. None of us have ever been to Disney World, but I have always wanted to go. My hubby has been to Disney land when he was a kid.

[Jessicalynne]

JWCJ - I hope you guys have the best time on your trip! It must feel so surreal to have it actually be happening! Have fun!

[Jessicalynne]

Jordyn woke up with a fever this morning, so we spent most of the day at the oncology clinic getting iv antibiotics, and waiting for her blood results to come back. I am starting to think that every time I take her out, she ends up sick...

[Jessicalynne]

This is not Disney related, but it is Jordyn related. She was in the hospital last week for a fever and low counts for 3 days. Maintenance has been so much harder than I expected. She is finally off of antibiotics although her counts are still super low.

She has some good news, and that is that she has a dance recital this weekend. She did a private class for most of the year in an effort to keep her healthy. In December, we were lucky to have another little girl join our class. They were both trying to stay away from sick people because her little sister has cancer as well. We are so excited to see her dance on the big stage, and she is super excited as well. It will be a little nerve wracking having her around all those people especially since her counts have been so low, but she is so excited for it, so I am going to let her do it. She has earned it and worked hard for it, dancing even when she didn't feel well.

[suziedo]

What an adorable and strong little girl! I'm sorry you have had to go through so much but so happy she is getting a Wish! Also as a dancer I love that she has been able to do that and dance on the big stage. Ballet is such a powerful healer!

If you haven't yet I suggest you check out the Make a Wish board. Lots of good info and they'd love to hear from you!

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=47888607

[blessedmom4]

Hi Jessica! I just wanted to say what a BEAUTIFUL family you have!

[SnoWhiteRabbit]

You have a beautiful family.

Wishing you strength and pixie dust as you plan a special trip for your family!

[Jessicalynne]

Thank you everyone!

Jordyn's dance recital was a two day thing. I missed seeing her dance most of Friday because I was a stage mom helping her little class make sure they made it on stage at the right time, but I was able to watch the whole recital on Saturday, and she did awesome!

She definitely impresses me with wanting to continue to dance through her treatments. It was really hard on her sometimes, and often she had to take it easy. Once or twice she was too tired to dance, but she kept at it and I am so proud of her.

The Make a Wish process is going a little slower than expected because Utah Make a Wish has a few big events right around this time, so their building is booked solid. We should be going in for her to make her "official" wish on May 20th. We know it will be Disney World because she is always talking about it and even says on an almost daily basis that she is ready to go to Disney World. She even plays with her dolls and pretends they are going to Disney World.

[angel's momma]

Your family is beautiful So sorry that Jordyn has been through so much So happy that she is getting to make a wish

We know all about being stuck at home for so long. I love that she was able to take a private dance class. Sorry she was inpatient , I hope her counts are doing much better now. Yay for the recital! Totally understand how nerve wrecking it is to have her exposed to so many people though.

[Jessicalynne]

angel's momma- We are super excited about Jordyns wish! It will hopefully give us a break from all the craziness we are pretty much always dealing with.

was your trip stressful at all because there were so many people? Do you feel refreshed after it? I am just wondering... It sounds like tons of fun, but I am a little nervous for Jordyn's trip for those reasons. I hope you were able to relax a bit on the cruise!

Jordyn's dance teacher is an amazing person. She really took Jordyn under her wing and helped her keep dancing. She even did a fundraiser for Jordyn last year. I honestly don't know how we would have made it through last year, particularly the winter, without her weekly outing to dance class.

We should know her counts sometime later today. Jordyn had a rehearsal earlier in the week last week and I had my first official public meltdown... There were tons of people and I knew her counts were low and tons of things going on and I just lost it... It was just too much... Thankfully her recitals were a little less stressful.

[happybelle]

Joining in!

[Jessicalynne]

We finally have the date that Jordyn gets to declare her wish! May 20th is when she gets to go to the wishing place to really start this magical process! I am so excited to really start planning for it!