Betcha thought I was on permanent leave...or sumpthin

Sorry - I'm back. Had my life and my hands full for about a week. Here's the latest...

Dad is doing great! As you might know, Quint and I flew to CA to be with him prior to surgery. The hardest day was Sunday evening. We sat around soberly realizing that this might be our last few moments together as a family with Dad. He tried to keep our spirits up - but it was really no use. For all of our positive words, behind the pats on the back and the hugs were real fears that Dad would slip away from us the next morning during surgery. To make it worse, he brought in his longtime friend to make funeral arrangements with. Nothing like over-hearing that conversation to send your mood plummeting. I do, however, applaud my Dad for being willing to face what the doctors were telling him - didn't look good. But he rallied! He pulled through the surgery smoothly - no complications. He was extubated almost immediately afterward - thank God! By the evening of his surgery, he was looking much better. By Wednesday, he looked wonderful - although he was in quite a bit of pain. I spoke to him yesterday, and he had been moved to a regular room - and told he could go home tomorrow (Monday) if he continued to do so well. I must thank all of you who prayed for him - we believe wholeheartedly that your prayers made a tremendous impact on his recovery and healing. Thank you!!!

Had a great visit with my siblings, grandparents, aunt and uncle - and of course, my Mom and Dad. Quint took to everyone without hesitation. It was a joy to see him warm up to my family so nicely. Not to mention making his Grandpa laugh - worth every minute!

The trip was painfully short and I did not get to see really anyone outside of family. I was able to connect with one dear friend - and she did most of the work - coming to me and sitting the waiting room with me for a couple hours. For those of you in CA that I missed - know that it was not intentional - but rather a whirlwind trip riddled with very little sleep, too many tears, and not enough hours in the day. Didn't help that my Dad was at a hospital almost 40 minutes from where they live and where Quint and I were staying. We did the best we could with naps, travel time, meals, me working part-time, and spending as much time as we could with Dad. Not to mention, no babies in Trauma ICU. Ugh. We snuck him in twice anyway - once before and once after surgery. And only because the nurse at that time allowed us to. This meant a lot of time in the waiting room - hoping for an opportunity. Also, no more than two in at a time - and that meant lots of round robin - you're next, then her, then him...whew.

All that matters is that he's ok - we got to be with him, and he was so happy and surprised to see us.

Now for the rest...

• Quint is not a traveler. First cue should have been when he lost his mind on a recent car trip that lasted 8 hours. Getting on a plane with a 17-month old, who is going to sit in your lap for 3 1/2 hours in a tiny seat...can I just tell you; SKIP IT. The flight to Cali was riddled with squirming, crying, sobbing, and kicking. And that was just me! (I make funny...but seriously...) I was eating some serious humble pie. I was that lady who used to mutter under my breath "control your child" to the poor sap fighting with their toddler in the airplane seat. This time...I was that poor sap.
• Loved seeing one of my oldest friends Renee and meeting her daughter Catie for the first time. It was soooo good for my heart to see them and just spend some time connecting. Seeing her is like going home for me. (Picture at right shows me wrangling the two babies in the hospital waiting room...just getting practice!)
• Flight on the way home proved that it can indeed get "any worse". Oh yes. It can. I made more personal apologies to my fellow travelers and flight crew and gave more pathetic muffled cries, more shrugged shoulders, more excuses, and shielded more flailing arms and legs than I care to mention. Next time - he gets his own seat, or he doesn't go. End of story.
  
• Benadryl doesn't work. Ahem.
• We flew home late Thursday and I came off the plane looking like a nightmare. So many thanks to my dear Erin for picking us up and transporting us home, and for listening, or rather pretending not to listen, to Quint cry all the way home. Love you! (Now you have to update your blog - because I just linked to you!! Ha!)
• I lost my dear friend. My camera. My really, really wonderful Canon Powershot. I want to cry just typing it. Boooooo! Thank you Mom, for giving me your camera - and for knowing that it's like losing an appendage when you have a 1 year old to photograph daily...sob. Pray someone would turn it in - we've left messages with every place I could have left it. Sniffle.
  
• Friday, my sister in law, brother in law, and their two kids came to see us for the weekend. We had a great time - and it's always good to see them. Quint absolutely loved playing with his cousins, and I loved watching him interact with them. Made for a very, very tired baby and mommy, though. I could have slept for days after my trip...
  
• Anton finished his final play for this school year - Schoolhouse Rock!. Tons of fun - a very cute show and Friday was the closing night. Whew! Now we get Daddy back in the evenings.
  
• Is summer here? Is it time for flip-flops and pool time and corn on the cob? I'm so ready for it...anyone else?
  
• We don't think we'll be getting our referral until October or November. Not sad about it - God has a plan. Excited to travel to China in winter!
• Did I mention we're tired? Baby has been sleeping up a storm and so have I. I slept most of my day today. I couldn't help myself. Thank God AB was here to wake me up to eat and see my son. Sleep is amazing, isn't it?
• On top of all of this - last night my Internet crapped out and went bonkers on my laptop. Don't know whatchoo got til' it's gone... I was shaky in my withdrawal. I practically crawled to AB on hands and knees to beg for his computer savvy. Help! Fix it! I frantically pointed towards my "connection to the world". He did his best - and spent the better part of his only day off trying to restore what had mysteriously disappeared. To no avail. Called in the reinforcements at Dell, AT&T - nada. I slept through most of this, so I only know it was hours of phone time wasted. Finally, AB called on a dear friend who handles this type of situation for a living. He swung by and had it running in 45 minutes. (slept through this part also...sigh) Turns out a driver was to blame, and just like that I had lost all my Internet function. Felt like a drug addict whose dope dealer had cut them off cold turkey with no warning. I wanted to yell and scream, but I was in too much withdrawal to do more than shake and rock back and forth. How can I check my lifeblood - my e-mail, my bloglines, my newsreels, my woot? As God as my witness...I'll never lose Internet again!! (Shakes fist in air!)
  

And that my friends, is the latest...

Back for more maybe tomorrow!