For 11-year-old Emily, life has been a series of challenges.

Born premature, she spent months in the hospital before ever going home with her family. Emily also endured a kidney transplant when she was just 4 years old.

But today, Emily remembers her fourth year not because of her medical woes – she remembers it because it was the year her wish came true. When volunteers from the Make-A-Wish Foundation paid her a visit, she had one thing on her mind: a visit with Fozzie Bear, the relentlessly cheerful aspiring comedian from The Muppets.

Her love for Fozzie is the result of a shared family affection for the long-running show created by Jim Henson. Her parents were already fans before having children, and they continued watching it with Emily and her three siblings.

“It was not that much of a challenge to figure out what she wanted,” said Carolyn, Emily’s mother.

The family traveled from San Diego to Vancouver, the set of It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie. There, all of the most famous Muppets were waiting to greet Emily: Kermit, Miss Piggy, Beaker, Scooter and Animal among them. But she only had eyes for Fozzie. He greeted her with his signature line: “Wocka wocka wocka!”

“He’s just funny,” Emily said. “He always tries to tell a joke, but it doesn’t turn out.”

The entire family was delighted to watch the crew – and to sit in the balcony beneath Waldorf and Statler, the Muppets who constantly heckle the hapless Fozzie. Though the puppeteers were hard at work in front of them, they didn’t even notice because their attention was so fixed on the characters. Only later, while watching their videos at home, did they notice that Brian Henson –the son of Muppets creator Jim Henson and an Academy Award-winning puppeteer – was the puppeteer controlling Scooter.

They also received an incredible tour of the set.

“I got to sit in the director’s chair, and my sister got to sit in the assistant director’s chair,” Emily said. “That was cool!”

Carolyn was thrilled about the wish not just as a fellow Muppets fan, but as a mom. She knew it’s rare for a kid to see such a lofty wish come true. She was amazed at the care shown by the Muppets crew who welcomed Emily onto the set.

“They treated her like she was the princess for a day,” Carolyn said.