Celebration of life

I normally wouldn’t post something this this but…I know someone here has been in this situation and can offer some advice.

We are scheduled to leave for our next trip on Wednesday morning. We’ve had this trip planned for 6 months or more. My mother died very unexpectedly on Tuesday. Her services are tomorrow. We initially thought we would cancel our trip, but then decided we needed it more than ever. I told the kids we would find a way to celebrate their grandma while we are there. She never had the opportunity to travel to Disney with us, but always wanted to so I told them this time would be special because she would be watching over us and with us in spirit.

I’m looking for some suggestions on how to celebrate my mom while we are there. Just some small ways to bring her memory with us. Any ideas?

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So sorry for your loss. and glad you are taking this trip. Can’t think of anything off the top of my head.

So sorry for your loss.

Somehow the Tangled lantern photopass photo comes to mind. Share with the photographer and ask to lift it high, releasing her spirit.

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We lost my mother-in-law and my father this past year. So I booked a trip for January so that we can start next year at the happiest place in earth. Both of them loved WDW and neither got to go with their grandkids, so we, too, are looking for ways to honor them.

I will likely buy a souvenir for each of my kids (DD4 and DS1) that they would’ve gotten from their grandparents. I will likely let them eat an extra snack or two that their grandparents would’ve indulged them in. I will tell them while they get these things they are because it’s what their Gramma and Papa Joe would’ve wanted. I will tell them stories about the times they were at WDW and what rides and shows they liked. To me, just acknowledging their ongoing presence in our lives in ways like this is very powerful.

But - unsure of how old your kids are and/or if you wanted to do something more ceremony-like, I would probably plan to find a nice spot in the parks - somewhere your mom would’ve enjoyed - and then maybe read some lines from Moana (when Gramma Tala comes back to her as a spirit) - reminder them that their grandmother is carried with them in their hearts always. (Honestly, this concept has helped our daughter tremendously and she’s only three right now.) Or maybe if you have a nice TS dinner planned somewhere, you can ask them to set out an extra plate for her. (We do this every Christmas.) And I haven’t been to the Mexico pavilion since Coco came out, but I suspect there are some cool things there - I know they had alebrijes years ago - you could talk about what your mother’s spirit guide probably is and maybe purchase a nice one for your home.

Let me know what you wind up doing. I think it’s great you’re still going. So sorry for your loss - it really really sucks.

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These are great ideas. Thank you :pray:

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I’m so sorry for your loss. To say it sucks is definitely an understatement.

It was suggested to me when I was wondering the same thing earlier that you carry around a photo of them and have your picture taken with their photo. That sounded nice. I ended up not doing it because I didn’t get any pictures of myself on the trip except the one, and it wasn’t really the time to pull out the photo.

Myself, I would suggest riding their favorite ride, last one of the day if you can. Go to their favorite restaurant and/or have their favorite type of meal(if she was a big fan of steak…steaks it is!). Stupid small stuff like that.

Something else to do is just take a ton of photos of each other. Photos of yourselves enjoying something or watching something. Make the camera “her eye.” Sounds stupid, I know, but I kept thinking/treating the photos as a gift I would give her when I see her again. ;

In the end, I hope you have a great time.

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So sorry for your loss.

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right in the feels…

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This is beautiful.

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That is an amazing idea.

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Could you do a few random acts of kindness in the parks? For example, get some $5 Disney gift cards, write a little message about your mom on them (“Share some kindness in memory of (mom’s name)”), then pass them out randomly when you are at the parks for people to get a snack and ask them to pass along an act of kindness for her. It would be extra nice to give them to grandparents visiting with their families!

I am very sorry for your loss and hope the trip provides some healing for your family.

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Condolences. My kids were toddlers or babies when their grandparents died. They never got to know them. We tell them stories about our lives with their grandparents. Pictures of the family with clothes or things grandma gave each person would be meaningful to celebrate her presence.

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Also, how about going on Grandma’s favorite ride together?

So sorry for your loss.

What about visiting the wishing well and just having a little time together. Maybe say a prayer if you are religious, or read a special poem that your mother liked.

Or any other quiet place. The gardens at the Canada pavilion or even the grounds at one of the resorts. Somewhere that you think she may have liked.

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I am so sorry for your loss. It definitely depends on the personality of the person who passed. For my mother, we would attend a show every day because she doesn’t like rides, but loved shows. I would do a random subtle act of kindness like helping someone with a stroller, because her style is helping people without flash. For my father it would be thrill rides and striking up a conversation with someone new.

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Even though she never went to a Disney park, think of something she enjoyed. Maybe she liked a particular country that you can visit at EP. Or if she liked a particular food, celebrate that. Or a particular flower or drink. My mom passed away in 2018 and last oct.,I raised a mint julip in New Orleans Square at DL because I remembered how much she loved that area.

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My heart wishes you warm memories of your mother, and I am so sorry for your family’s loss.

All of these ideas are lovely. I thought what I would do if my littles were still little, and I thought I might buy each of them a Disney small journal there and have them note their thoughts and wishes for her at moments they were thinking of her during your visit so that they would have that always, and their thoughts and love would be part of who your family is.

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I love this idea!

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Im so sorry for your loss. My grandfather, like a father though, passed away a day before out beach trip. It was expected but it didnt hurt any less. We brought some of his “beachy” belongings and did a memorial on the beach at sunset. We cut our trip short to help take care of things and attend the service. This helped our kids keep their mind off things.
May I also suggest giving each child a disposable camera, if they are old enough, and let them take pictures of what gradma would have loved about Disney, for a memorial book.

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My condolences to you and your family. I have no suggestions, but I’m sure she would enjoy seeing her family have a great time. Have the best trip ever and know that she loved you all and you loved her.

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