Reinforcements Arrive: Family and Fresh Air

When Tracy and Rich found out that we weren't going to be making it back to Omaha for the Memorial Day weekend, they packed up the car and drove to Rochester to be with us. What a difference it makes to have reinforcements and support from Tracy and Rich, and of course the energy of four kids under 7 on their first big vacation since Disneyland back in January 2008.

The Towneplace Suites turned out to be a fantastic hotel for the kids with what may be the best hotel pool EVER. Water slides, hot tub, kid pool (with slide and water toys), have occupied three of the four from early mornings until late evening. All three left the pool tonight basically asking for bedtime. We were able to secure the room right across from us for the Huffs, and that has been nice to be so close.

We had a good day today. It was beautiful weather, and we found a state park and had ourselves a good old fashioned picnic. Emily even raced around in the field for wildflowers to adorn the table while we ate. Fresh air did us all good - and we pretty much spent the entire afternoon and early evening outside. Dad seems a bit better today and a bit more stable on his feet (could be due to the increased steroids kicking in, but I think it's largely in part to the grandkids hanging around and a solid dose of fresh air and sunshine). Dad and I made a quick detour to St. Mary's Hospital for a quick visit with the chaplain, and apparently we made an impression on the Irish priest, as the chaplain on duty said, "You're the ones that met Father Byrne earlier, right?" I think we've now met most of the chaplains on duty here in Rochester in the Mayo Clinic system. All very nice folks, as you might imagine.

We will all be sorry to see the Huffs leave Tuesday morning, although appointments kick back in Tuesday and surgery is Wednesday. We still have a full day tomorrow to enjoy, however. It is supposed to be nice weather again, so we'll likely find another park with picnic tables, wildflowers for picking, and playground equipment for the kids. And I'm positive there will be more time in the hotel pool. The three older kids absolutely adore the water, and little Sam (who is 2 1/2) loves to just kick back and relax and kick while he has his life jacket on. And then goes down the big slide with Rich waiting to catch him. Emily had us laughing with a story from breakfast. She saw a man with a bandana on his head sitting at a table across the way. Without missing a beat, she pointed a bit and said, "Arghhhh! Pirate." One never knows what might be said from that little girl. Big laughs on that one from everyone today, including Dad.

A good old fashioned family gathering with focus on just spending time together. Nothing fancy, but it's all we needed. While being at the Mayo Clinic is absolutely the place we want to be, it is difficult to be away from family and friends in Omaha. We hope to be back there early next week after Dad recovers from surgery.

Happy Memorial Day to everyone, and next post will likely be Tuesday after our appointment with the neurosurgeon to talk about more details about the procedure on Wednesday.