CHOC walk in the park

    Today was our 5K walk through the Disneyland resort to raise money for the Children's hospital of Orange County. We're so happy that so far (you can still donate online at www.chocwalk.net) we have raised $450 dollars! Thank you to all our family and friends who helped donate to such a good cause in such a short amount of time.
    Heading in to today we were all excited and a bit emotional. It was only a few minutes after we parked that I got teary eyed. I noticed a large group gathering to walk. They were all wearing bright red shirts for their team. They held two banners. One read, "cancer sucks" and the other said they were walking in memory of their family member. Ugh, I can't tell you how painful it was to see them there. My heart ached for that group of family and friends who had lost a child. I can't imagine their pain, or the struggles they've been through. I was grateful for Amaya's health. Regardless of all the pain she's gone through this year and all the surgeries and therapies she's endured we're so fortunate to not be battling a life threatening illness. We have so much to be thankful for.
   As we walked into the park I composed myself, but struggled through tears again as I read the signs that the family lined up in front of us were wearing. They were marching in memory of their daughter who passed away at seven months old. Again, my heart ached for this family. I was moved by their strength, courage and kindness. I caught myself glancing in the mother's direction several times; wondering how she's doing, how she's survived such a tragedy, sending her love and empathy, and admiring her strength. Their generosity and thoughtfulness helped raise money for other families who will seek treatment at CHOC.
     Throughout the walk I saw people walking for friends and family members. Some were thankful for the treatment they had received at CHOC, some in memory of a child who did not survive and some just out of the goodness in their hearts. It was a magical day and I was so fortunate to be a part of it.
   Below are some pictures from the day.

Waiting for the walk to start. The sun wasn't even up yet. 

Lidie riding on Josh's shoulders getting excited for the walk to begin.

Josh put Amaya up on his shoulders so she could see the stage. I noticed so many looks as people saw her fixator. Their were a couple stares, but mostly looks of empathy, and compassion.  

All smiles waiting for the walk to begin. It was cold, and Amaya's leg was stiff and sore so she didn't actually walk in the walk but rode in her wheelchair instead. 

The crowd ready to start. There were 15,000 walkers today and 1.8 million dollars was raised for CHOC! 

Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy and Goofy were there at the start to send us off.

Here's the crowd walking through Cars Land. You can see some of the family members in front of us walking with the signs on their back for their baby that had passed away.

Amaya and Duffy the bear. 

When we passed by Jessie and Woody both girls wanted to give them high five's. Jessie and Woody were kind, and sweet. They made it a point to hug, kiss and give a high five to both girls. And then Woody gave me the most empathetic hug I've ever received from a stranger. Seriously, I started to tear up, because I could feel the love that his hug sent me. 

The girls riding through California Adventure. 

Another shot from California Adventure.

Lidie was so happy to take a picture with Cinderella.   

This is how Lidie "walked" for part of the 5K.  

Me and the girls with the castle in the background.

When Amaya walked up to the toy army men to pose for a picture. The one on the left looked at her leg, then at her and very sweetly said, "don't you worry miss. You're going to be just fine. You'll get throughout this." I appreciated his kindness and encouragement.

We reached the finish! It felt so great to be a part of the CHOC walk in the park. We're planning to do it again next year. So if you want to be a part of Team Amaya in 2013, let us know. Amaya said this was the best day she's ever spent at Disneyland.  

After the walk we made a quick stop by the beach for some fresh air. I love this picture of Josh and Amaya. Enjoying the last Sunday with the fixator on. 

     It worked out nicely that the walk landed on the weekend before Amaya's surgery to have her fixator removed. Not only did it give us a nice distraction, but a big boost. We got to help another children's hospital help other kids and their families. There was so much positive energy during the walk. The bands played, cheerleaders cheered us on, rows of people gave us high five's and the characters gave the girls hugs and kisses. We are thankful that we got to be a part of the walk. Thank you for being a part of our journey.