AFV FAQ

We have had a very exciting last couple of days! I want to say "thank you" again to every single person who has contacted us about the show, whether it was in person, by text, call, or email. Everyone has been so kind. Those who had something negative to say have kept it to themselves, so I thank them for that as well! I also want to say "hello" to everyone who is reading my blog for the first time. There was a huge increase in page views after the show aired, which was very exciting. I hope you all find something you can identify with or laugh at among my posts. My six year old said she doesn't like for people to laugh at us. I told her she was out of luck. Besides, I assured her that they were laughing at me and not her! Maybe that will work for awhile.
I wanted to address a couple of questions about the show. First, you can watch the episode at www.abc.go.com. If you click on "watch episodes" and then AFV, you will see it. When the show accepted our submission, we signed a form agreeing not to re-post our video on any website with public settings. As it turns out, they gave us $110,000 for our video, so I have no problem not posting it anywhere ever again!
Second, yes, they actually do send people the money that they win on the show! We met a woman in the airport who asked us if they really gave people that money. They do - in  the form of a check. My daughter was really disappointed the first time around that our $10,000 didn't come in a bag with a dollar sign on the outside like in the cartoons!
Third, yes, we have to pay taxes on the money. The state of California gets theirs before we ever get ours! We also got a federal tax form. So yes, we have to pay taxes, and no, I don't particularly care. Anything that we have left is more than we had to start with, not to mention the fact that our family has enjoyed two wonderful, paid for trips to California. I just can't find much to complain about.
Fourth, they don't hand you the money right then. It comes after the show airs. They do, however pay all travel expenses and give you a food allowance per day. The show pays for accommodations and transportation to and from the airport. All in all, we had a fantastic, once-in-a-lifetime experience that we will never, ever forget!