So glad I found this thread! The stories are wonderful and have me crying
My story: My DD is now 11
and the joy of my life. She was diagnosed with autism at 17 months (very young but she is pretty severe....still non-verbal but communicates with a computer device) We take her to Disney often because it really is an amazing place , not just for the great rides and shows but the CM's are simply awesome with our DD. She used to be VERY afraid of the characters so we used to avoid them until my DH said let's just try and see what happens. I was waiting to find a character with a small line and small crowd (YEAH RIGHT
!) All of a sudden we spotted Daisy Duck standing ALL ALONE next to Town Hall at MK
. We approached her, me scared that DD would melt down and cry, but Daisy could see right away that DD was special and she was so gentle in her approach. DD actually touched her duck bill and just looked at her with a smile. No running away, no crying just curious and HAPPY. She spent so much time with us and gave us the thumbs up as if to say DD is doing good, as if she knew my fears! Daisy was our highlight that day (even better then seeing Wishes!) She still has some apprehension when approaching the characters but she does it now!!!! I hope these CM's realize they are making wonderful memories for so many people
!!!