AMELIA Bamford had a huge smile on her face as she threw snowballs at her dad in Lapland's Enchanted Forest.
But just 24 hours earlier, the four-year-old was in hospital having treatment for leukaemia – a battle which Amelia has been fighting for 18 months.
Yesterday, she was taken to Lapland for the day with When You Wish Upon a Star, a charity which grants wishes for poorly children.
Despite a 4am start at East Midlands Airport, Amelia could not stop smiling as she played in the snow.
Her dad, Anthony, who joined Amelia on the trip, said: "Amelia was absolutely over the moon when we told her she was going to Lapland.
"We told her a month ago and she has been excited ever since. Whenever we mentioned it to her, her face just lit up.
"It was such an early start to the day but just seeing the look on Amelia's face in Lapland was amazing.
"The last 18 months have not been easy on her because she can't do everything that a normal four-year-old can do, so it was nice for her to do this."
Amelia, who lives in Willington with her family, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in April 2013.
"We thought she had a cold with a runny nose," said Anthony, who works at Alpha Construction in Hilton. "But then we noticed that there were tiny specks of blood when she blew her nose. We also noticed small but unexplained bruises.
"They became more apparent on one particular day, and my wife Yvette thought, 'I don't like this', so she phoned our GP, Dr Farrow, who was brilliant and saw Amelia within 20 minutes.
"Within less than an hour we were at the Royal Derby Hospital – another hour after that we got blood results back and we were told it was not looking good. By the end of the day we found out she had leukaemia.
"We woke up one morning and everything was normal – but by the evening we found out our daughter was seriously ill. The symptoms were so tiny and we need to make people more aware.
"The only way I can describe it is intense sadness. It is such a heavy sadness and not anything you could ever imagine. We've tried to be positive for the children though. The best thing was the GP getting us seen at the hospital so quickly, that was fantastic."
Amelia, a reception pupil at Willington Primary School, immediately began treatment, which included chemotherapy and a course of steroids. She also began a two-year clinical trial of a drug called methotrexate.
In six months' time, the family will know whether Amelia has beaten the cancer.
"With the sort of leukaemia she has, once it goes then it's gone, it won't come back," said Anthony 35. "If she is diagnosed with it again then it will be a new one, not a reoccurrence."
Anthony and his wife remained positive for Amelia and her brother and sister, Jasmine, seven, and Thomas, two – who was only three months old when the family received the devastating diagnosis.
On Wednesday, Amelia went into Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham for her treatment, which she has every four weeks. But at 4am yesterday she was at East Midlands Airport raring to go to Lapland, in Finland – the "real" home of Santa Claus.
"It was her last treatment before Christmas," said Anthony. "She lost all her hair but it has come back now. She's really outgoing, if she likes something then she'll get stuck right into it, and she's really confident. There are odd times when the treatment gets the better of her – you can tell. That's when you get the real contrast between her usual self.
"Amelia is a typical girl – she likes Disney, she likes school and she goes to keyboard lessons, which she enjoys."
Yesterday in Lapland, Amelia enjoyed snowball fights with her dad, tobogganing and a reindeer ride before the highlight of the day – meeting Santa Claus. As he reflected on the day, Mr Bamford said: "It's been a memorable experience for Amelia, she's really enjoyed it. The excitement of it has shone through - it's nice to do something different. "And, of course, the highlight for Amelia was meeting Santa - because it was the real Santa."
Amelia was among 100 children from the East Midlands who were taken to Lapland on a specially chartered flight.
Liz Credgington, fund-raiser from When You Wish Upon a Star, said: "It was such an amazing day. Most of the children are going through a tough time so it's really special for them to come to Lapland and meet Santa – it's given them something to look forward to. A lot come straight from hospital or they are having treatment over Christmas so to give them this memory is amazing.
"A trip like this costs £90,000 to organise. It is one of the biggest things that we fund-raise for and it is the highlight of our year. For a lot of young children, it is their dream to meet Santa and going to Lapland is such a big adventure for them.
"It's a really long day but the kids power through it. When you are in the Enchanted Forest and you hear the children screaming with excitement, it is just lovely."
YOUNG TEARS OF JOY REDUCED ME TO TEARS TOO
IT is very humbling seeing the children having the time of their lives in Lapland, writes Rachel Butler.
You would not think that they are poorly at all. It's a long day – from 4am to 10pm – but the children power through it and don't stop enjoying themselves.
There was so much screaming from the children when they entered the Enchanted Forest, where they met elves and went on reindeer and husky rides, and then later on when Santa Claus entered the room.
This trip costs When You Wish Upon a Star £90,000 a year to organise, but experiencing the excitement from the children makes you realise it is worth every penny.
For some children who went on the trip, they will not live for a long time – so to see them sharing special memories with their parents is priceless. It's a moment the parents will remember forever.
When You Wish Upon a Star is a very worthy charity and this their annual Lapland trip is the highlight of their year., Yesterday, when I joined them on it, I understood why. I felt honoured to be invited and to witness the hard work the charity puts in to making the trip extra special.
As Santa entered the room, I looked at the children's faces and had to wipe a tear away. All the children on the trip, including Amelia, are very, very brave. When You Wish Upon a Star had made their day.
To donate, ring 0115 979 1720.
