This May, Disney On Ice is coming back to Tampa. And would you believe, after all my years as a parent living within an hour-ish drive of Disney itself, I have never taken my family to see Disney On Ice?
Well that’s about to change. My family was just offered free tickets to see Disney On Ice this year. As you can imagine, I am thrilled and all kinds of crazy excited for it. It features all of my kids’ favorite characters from a variety of Disney movies. I can’t wait to see their faces when they find out they’re going, I know they will be fired up for some on ice Disney Magic. They will be because they don’t know yet. Why? Disney On Ice will be coming to Tampa May 20th – 23rd and, as luck would have it, their birthdays happen to be coming up at the end of May and early June. So it will be a birthday surprise. And how perfect is that since this year’s Disney On Ice is titled “Let’s Celebrate!”
(Picture me doing the giddy mommy running man. And now the cabbage patch. So what if my dance moves were only kind of relevant twenty years ago, I’m totally fired up.)
But here’s the really REALLY good news. You all get to go too! Well, some of you do anyway. I have two stashes of complimentary passes to give away here.One set of two tickets and one set of four tickets. They are valid for any of the St. Pete Times Forum show times. Disney on Ice will be here in Tampa on Thursday, May 20th 2010 through Sunday, May23rd 2010. I am also going to end this giveaway with plenty of time to spare because these complimentary passes can only be redeemed for tickets at the St. Pete Times Forum box office (which is open Monday – Friday, 10am – 6pm). And in order to get decent seats, you need to get your tickets early. (Please note you can purchase extra tickets to go along with these at the box office also.)
However, I want to make this give away count for something. So I’ve added a twist. It’s a good one, I promise.
As you know, I am walking for the March of Dimes in the Tampa Friends of Maddie group. I would like entrants for this give-away to help promote the March of Dimes in some way. So here is how you can enter.
How to Enter
You may enter as many times as you would like, just be sure to include your email address. Each entrance will be counted as long as at least one of the following is completed on or before May 2nd :
1) Tweet about the March of Dimes or the Tampa Friends of Maddie Group. Be sure to comment back here so I know you tweeted. Your tweet could be as simple as this: “Please support your local March of Dimes group here: http://tiny.cc/6gjsl so that I can go to Tampa’s Disney on Ice! (Via @morningsidemom)”.
2) Tweet about and link to this contest. Be sure to comment back here and link @morningsidemom so I know you tweeted.
3) Write a post about the March of Dimes or the Tampa Friends of Maddie Group. Be sure to leave a comment with the link here.
4) Comment here how you support the March of Dimes in any way. (That could be as simple as telling me you will be walking for the March of Dimes or that you donated a few dollars at Publix to the March of Dimes. Because, yes, Publix is accepting donations right now for the March of Dimes. Go now, and donate.)
(While you are at it, I would be most grateful if you considered donating to the Friends of Maddie – see the link to the right. I don’t want to count this as an entrance since these passes can not be sold in any way. But please consider donating anyway just because you are a really really nice person.)
The contest closes on May 2nd at midnight. Each time you enter will be counted separetely and two winners will be picked at random. I will email the winners and then announce them here.
Good luck and thank you for supporting the March of Dimes!
UPDATE:
The winners have been announced! Check here. If you didn’t win, that’s ok because I’ve also posted a promo code for discounted tickets so go check it out.
Disclaimer: My family has received four tickets to attend Disney On Ice. I have not been paid to promote Disney On Ice.
A year ago today my world was rocked by news about a little girl I had never met. If you’ve been reading my blog for awhile you probably remember that time well. On the other side of the country, another blogger’s daughter – a little girl named Maddie – had passed away. However, in the wake of her death, her community reacted. And this enormous outpouring of love and connection created something bigger than any of us ever expected.
If you are only now being introduced to Maddie, I suggest you jump over here and learn more about her. This child’s story has touched thousands and thousands of people. She put a beautiful face on an important cause and moved bloggers and families everywhere to act immediately. And we did.
Last year, Maddie’s team raised more money for the March of Dimes than any other family team. I was proud to be part of that team - my family walked with other bloggers here in Tampa. Shoot, little ol’ me raised almost $600 for the March of Dimes. Maddie made me do it, I swear.
Today, Heather Spohr is mourning the loss of her daughter one year ago. One year. Without her sweet baby girl. My heart is with her, my heart is with her, my heart is with her.
This spring here in Florida, we’ve had a crazy outbreak of purple wild flowers. Everywhere. I’ve lived in Florida for over 6 years and I don’t remember seeing these flowers before. For days, I’ve been passing fields of these flowers. Of course, the small patch that popped up in my back yard inpired me to snap a few pics. They are tiny, they are many, they are gorgeous. And do you know what all that purple has been reminding me to do?
Remember Maddie.
She loved purple. And purple stands for the March of Dimes. And I had better not forget that.
So I’m here to share these flowers here so that you won’t forget either. And perhaps you might consider donating to Maddie’s team this year. I’m walking with somefabulouswomen. And we’ll even be wearing tu-tus (here’s why). Come on, don’t you want to be a part of that? How about this. If I raise a lot of money, I’ll post pics of me leaping through the streets of Tampa, rocking that purple tu-tu with pride and passion.
(Come on, who are we kidding? I’ll post pics of me doing that anyway.)
So donate. Anything. Coins under couch cushions are accepted.
And please remember Maddie today and all that she stands for. Thank you.
Jumping right out of bed at 5:45am with verve and vigor is usually not my thing. But I did this morning. Blurry eyed but fired up, I went straight to my closet and pulled out my purple. Today was the Tampa March for Babies walk. I had been looking forward to this for a long time. Go wake up the kids, we’ve got some walking to do.
We arrived early and made our way through the already gathering crowd. As we passed the registration desk, I saw two women sitting nearby with T-shirts that simply read “Friends of Maddie“. Ok. Here we are.
Our group gathered, bloggers chatted, kids played with freebie bubbles, babies nursed and the sun began to peek up over the buildings. Anissa Mayhew, our fearless team leader, and I chatted. How was Maddie’s funeral? How is Heather? How is she handling all of this new found (er, not sure what else to call it but) fame? Is she finding privacy to grieve? But our kids distracted us often, climbing up onto the wall, jumping off tree limbs, giggling and carrying on.
I was taken by a pic I snapped of Anissa’s Peyton and my five year old. Both had survived time in children’s hospitals. Peyton may be the more decorated veteran of the two – but both were there today: climbing, laughing, alive and wonderful.
And while watching the mothers around us, many had taped signs to their strollers for children who were not there but tucked carefully away in varying NICUs, fighting. Of course, I thought back to my own child’s limited time in the NICU. The hissing and lights, the various beeping counting off seconds, minutes and hours, the days that melted into one another. I remember the mothers in my NICU rocking their babies with cupped hands. Their baby’s chests raising up for air, their mothers whispering encouragement, their futures entirely unknown. Their hours entirely unknown. I remember. My heart knows. And this was a world I only shared for 11 days. Nothing, comparatively.
So there we were. My family: healthy and ready to go. For me, today was as much about celebrating life as it was remembering life lost. Time to breathe air and walk forward for all of those children who never could or – with help from the March of Dimes and fantastic NICU staffs – finally did.
Before the walk began, we took a quick group picture. Here we are. Bloggers and friends alike. All there in Maddie’s honor. In a mere 17 months, Maddie has reached thousands of people and has made an enormous impact on the March of Dimes. I wonder if I could ever do half of what she’s done in my entire lifetime.
And so we got underway. The sun warmed up the day, the palm trees swayed, the traffic was stopped for us and we mosied along, chatting, connecting and enjoying.
Before we knew it, the walk was over. We arrived back at the University of Tampa to James Brown’s “I Feel Good”, free meals from the Olive Garden, Popsicles from Blue Bonnet, a bounce house and people everywhere. A positive, good moment. There is life even after death. Parents march on. Hope continues. The sun shines down on all of it. What a privilege to participate in this moment.
And with that, we got into the car and went to find breakfast. After all, it was still only the beginning of our day.
A Big Unintentionally Forgotten P.S.:
I was a little caught up in the emotion of that day while writing this post that I forgot to actually mention and link up to the fabulous bloggers I walked with. (I know… doh!) I was thrilled to share this day with:
Somehow, in the midst of a time when people can barely scrape together enough for their mortgage payments, I raised money for the March of Dimes. When I set up my account (being the optimist that I am), I got a little nutty and aimed for a $1000. Hey, why not? But I really only expected about $100. But reality and the pure goodness of people have met me right in the middle.
As of today, I have raised $430$5o5$515 $565.
To me? That’s a LOT.
And who do I have to thank for this? Blogging friends, Twitter friends, online friends (some whom I’ve never meet “in real life”), then “in real life” friends (some whom I haven’t seen in years) and family (some whom I haven’t seen in years).
Also, after a round of “shot in the dark” emails to companies I shop at in my neighborhood to see if they would sponsor me, I heard back from one company right away. Who was it? Stride Rite. They said they would donate a pair of Robeez to a donor if I wanted to set up a contest. So I did on Twitter that very day. Whoever made the first donation, got a pair of Robeez. Within a half hour, I had a couple donors and the first donor won the pair. The Stride Rite representative was surprised by the quick response. But I wasn’t. Maddie’s story and this March of Dimes walk had the ear of mothers all over the Internet. But still, how appropriate that Stride Rite “stepped up” to help donate to a walk for the March of Dimes? Thanks to Stride Rite for caring about this cause.
So, I am gearing up for Saturday. I am hauling the whole Morningside family along. We will be there to meet up with the rest of the “Friends of Maddie” donning what purple I can scrape up for the boys (jeez, do I even have any purple for my boys?) and hoping that the combined 80+lbs of my kids on our stroller won’t be the end of my husband and I after 5 miles.
But while I gripe about pushing all that boy through the streets of Tampa, I have to remember that I have big, healthy, strong boys. When I was lifting my monster sized 40 lb two year old the other day, this thought crossed my mind: “Maddie never even had the chance to get this big.” So. 80lbs on stroller? I’ll relish it. I’ll push them (and all of their guaranteed fussing about “when is this gonna be over?”) and I will do it proudly. I honestly can’t wait.
So thank you to all of my donors. From the bottom of my heart.
(Oh, and it isn’t too late to donate. Just click on the banner above. I’m just saying…)
On April 25th, I will join local Tampa area bloggers and friends of the Spohrs to walk in the memory of their daughter Maddie. Maddie passed away unexpectedly on April 7th after a miraculous life with her family.
If you’ve been reading along in these parts recently, you’ll know that Maddie’s passing this week has moved me deeply. Her death rang through the entire parent blogging community, in fact. Every parent who knew her story and then heard about her passing seemed to stop, mourn and then react. At this point, over $25,000 has been raised in Maddie’s honor for the March of Dimes. And currently, a fund is being put together to help sponsor the funeral expenses which are expected to cost over $7,000. (Donations for funeral expenses can be sent to a paypal account at formaddie@hotmomreviews.com)
Money raised for the March of Dimes will help:
support all-important research offering preventions and solutions for babies born too soon or with birth defects
educate women on things they can do to increase their chances of having a healthy baby
provide comfort and information to families with a newborn in intensive care
push for newborn screening and health insurance for all pregnant women and children
If you would like to learn more about Maddie, I would encourage you to visit the March for Maddie website. And please view the slide show below. Thanks to the March of Dimes, Maddie was a bright and shining light in her parents’ lives for 17 months. What a very special gift she was.
Finally, please consider passing on my post to others (tweeting, stumbling, sharing on facebook, however you feel comfortable spreading the word) and encourage your friends to sponsor our walk for Maddie on April 25th. Every little bit helps. Imagine if every person who viewed this post donated even just one dollar? What a fabulous start to this walk we would have.
Thanks so much for your consideration. And here’s Maddie…
This May, Disney On Ice is coming back to Tampa. And would you believe, after all my years as a parent living within an hour-ish drive of Disney itself, I have never taken my family to see Disney On Ice?
Jumping right out of bed at 5:45am with verve and vigor is usually not my thing. But I did this morning. Blurry eyed but fired up, I went straight to my closet and pulled out my purple. Today was the Tampa March for Babies walk. I had been looking forward to this for a long time. Go wake up the kids, we’ve got some walking to do.
Before the walk began, we took a quick group picture. Here we are. Bloggers and friends alike. All there in Maddie’s honor. In a mere 17 months, Maddie has reached thousands of people and has made an enormous impact on the March of Dimes. I wonder if I could ever do half of what she’s done in my entire lifetime.
Also, after a round of “shot in the dark” emails to companies I shop at in my neighborhood to see if they would sponsor me, I heard back from one company right away. Who was it? 
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