One week ago my mom came to live with us. My husband and I flew to California on a Friday, spent Saturday packing up the rest of her belongings (those that she wanted to take with her) and bright and early Sunday morning we left for the airport. And, with her little Lhasa Apso we made the 3-hour drive to San Fransisco.
I'm not going to lie. I was worried. I kept thinking--if we can just drop off her dog at cargo, and get her seated on the plane--all will be well. Honestly, I was sweating bullets. I was secretly worried about every single aspect of our trip. In fact, I was not sure which area to worry over most, her or her dog. You see, he's a grumpy old man kind of dog. He growls and snaps and is a little bit scary. He's untrained and rules the roost. He's got my mom wrapped around his little paw and she knows it. And she doesn't care!
In order to fly that little dog though, she did have to comply with airline rules, and in spite of everything, she crate trained her dog (ok, she bribed him) and he did end up traveling quite well to the airport. Once we dropped him at the cargo center I will admit, I breathed a huge sigh of relief.
And, now I just had to get my mom on the plane. What was going to be so hard about that, one might ask? Well, for starters, panic attacks, vertigo, heart palpitations, etc. And that was just on my part. Once I pulled myself together, ordered up the wheelchair, wrestled my mom over who got to ride in said wheelchair, off we went. I would like to take a minute right here and now to say that United Airlines gets some huge kudos for their awesome treatment of my mom during our airport to airplane experience. First off the employee who wheeled us luckily-split through the airport was awesome! We flew through security, everyone was exceptionally nice and then, we even had some time to spend in the United Club Lounge. My mom was able to kick back, relax and be treated like a queen before we boarded our 5-hour flight to Cleveland, Ohio.
Secondly, the experience on the plane actually brought tears to my eyes several times. It was interesting for me to watch my mom. She hadn't flown in years and never cross country. Her excitement was catching. She loved the flight. And our flight attendants? Well, they were pretty special. My mom had requested to sit as close to the restrooms as possible, so we did that for her. Which meant we were right by the galley. When the attendants heard her story, they couldn't do enough for her--or us. Free snack boxes and mixed drinks and sentiments like--we wish we could do more. They were thrilled for her--that she was moving to Ohio to live with us, that she was going to see her grandsons for the first time in 12 years, and that she was meeting 5 of her great grandchildren for the first time! Too much to take in--they were choked up too. I had the feeling that they really wanted to give my mom a hug goodbye as she left the plane.
It was late when we landed in Ohio. We were all exhausted. Jet lag set in, and for the first few days, it was a little stressful at our house. There were and still are some adjustments to be made. And that's OK.
It's going to take time. Time for her dog to settle into a routine, to eat normal dog food (and not people food) to share toys and chewies with my dog. It's going to take time for my mom to adjust to the weather here. Oh yes, that's going to be a barrel of fun. With heaters, down blankets, and even some warm jammies. It's going to take time to adjust to no more fast food, frozen food and glazed donuts for breakfast. It's going to take time. Getting used to living together, eating healthy foods, learning boundaries. As we settle in and learn the rhythm to this new life of ours, it's going to take time And that's OK.
So far, I think we've done remarkably well. Much better than I expected, and I have high hopes for the future. Already, her dog is settling in. Already, my mom is getting used to home cooked meals. Already, my mom is adjusting to a normal daily routine, where we get up and get ready and go have fun, even if it's just running errands or going for a joy ride in the convertible--life is good here in Ohio.
She's lonely though without my dad. She's lost her other half, her best friend. She doesn't look forward to the future, she'd rather it be over. However, I don't see it that way. Or else, it would be over. God would have taken her home too. He didn't though. And He has put me in charge of teaching her that. Teaching her that her life still has value. That we still want her here and that as long as she's alive, I'm going to do my best to make each and every day the most fun day ever. That's my job now. Living with mom.
Pray for us, our new roles, our new lives, and most of all pray for my mom. That in some small way, God heals her broken heart and that the remainder of her time here on this earth is happy--full of love, life, memories and most of all fun.
Monday, October 17, 2016
Friday, October 7, 2016
Swiss Time
It was supposed to be a means of transportation, just that. However, it was so much more. Our little Swiss rail passes ended up making this particular vacation one for the books. It will be remembered as one of the best trips we've gone on. All because of that little pass, it paved the way to 2 weeks of excursions and more. All the trains, busses, trams, and metros we could possibly ride were free, or I should say, were included in our rail pass. Talk about fun! Who knew! No high car rental fees, no parking issues, no traffic! Just sit back, enjoy the scenery and relax.
We started in Zurich and stayed for 4 days. We walked approximately 8-10 miles per day during the entirety of our trip, so that along with rail travel shows just how busy we really were. I must admit that for the first 2-3 days in Zurich I was pretty jet lagged. There are parts of that portion of our trip that are very foggy in my brain. Which is why I am very glad that I took so many pictures. As I look through them my memories slowly are returning. I liked our hotel, however, even though I tried hard to get close to the train stations, sometimes we were a little further than we thought. Hauling big 50 lb rolling duffles across old paving stones isn't my idea of fun. Especially after being up for 24 hours and trying hard not to snarl and snap at anyone who got in my way!
We finally rolled in though, checked into our hotel, unpacked and took showers. We then set off on foot and hit the old city. My favorite part. Anything old with great architecture is my idea of a wonderful adventure. Switzerland is abundant when it comes to beautiful buildings, castles, and churches. One of the things I love most while traveling is finding flea markets or even farmers markets. I love walking through the stalls, looking at homemade jams, honey, fruit, and vegetables. It's even better when there are antiques and vintage items. As we were walking to our first boat ride on Lake Zurich we found a great farmers market right on the lake and met some really nice people. One vendor gave me a tote bag--he explained that his son-in-law was American and he wanted me to have the bag. We stood and talked for awhile and then headed off to the boat dock. We took hundreds of pictures, as we both took our big SLRs. The words "breathtaking" comes to mind. Sailing in front of village after village, castle after castle. One thing I loved was that the boats and trains were clean. They had snack bars and bathrooms too! What a concept. Yes, Zurich was great. From the great shopping to the sights! Now on the next city.
I was much more awake for Lucerne, and actually, it ended up being my favorite city on our trip. I had been once before years ago and couldn't wait to show my husband the famous Chapel bridge. It's a photographers dream. The shopping and food were really good in Lucerne. It has a beautiful old city. One exciting thing we did from Lucern was to take the boat ride to Mt. Pilatus and take a cog train the top of the mountain. I have a huge fear of heights so this was a very big deal for me. Would I would do it again, yes, it was worth the sweaty palms. The views were amazing and there was a gift shop at the top! Fun! And a couple of restaurants. We made a day of it and had a blast.
As it turned out, the first week of our trip was actually much warmer than anticipated, so I spent some time shopping for cooler clothes. I wasn't too happy with the weather those first few days, I was looking forward to a cooler climate and hadn't packed appropriately. One thing I'll mention right now about Switzerland that is different from other European countries that I've been to is that it is extremely expensive. Everything from clothing to jewelry, to restaurants (and coffee) was 2-3 times what we pay in the US for the same exact item. I was shocked and therefore had to readjust my budget.
We decided to add Bern to our itinerary, being that it is the capital and we had never been. In retrospect, I probably wouldn't do it again, but it was interesting. I noticed that each city we visited had it's very own unique personality. Bern was no exception. It had an old city, but also a "new" old city. Which looked just as old to me. But, what do I know! Anyway, our hotel in Bern was a bust. I hated it. So, it probably dampened my view a bit. We did tour a castle. However, overall, I wouldn't visit Bern again, once was enough for me.
On to Lausanne--the French speaking part of the country. On to not hearing German! My husband is the German translator of our family and I am the French. Neither of us is very good at our jobs though, but we get by. I felt much more comfortable once I was hearing French over the speakers on the trains and trams. Lausanne is beautiful. Just walking through the streets was enough for me. The food was better, the street names were easier to pronounce. You get the picture, it was French! We did several side trips from Lausanne, we took a boat to Vevey, which was a beautiful little village on the lake. It happened to be raining, but it sure didn't ruin the day. It's such a quaint place, and with crepes for lunch and macaroons for dessert, what's not to like. During those few days there we also took the train to Geneva. What an interesting city. Very modern, upscale and busy. However, I am glad that we just did a day trip and did not book a hotel. It was too big and contemporary for me. I was into the village life by then and didn't want to change.
There is so much more that I could write about. This vacation was amazing. 2 weeks in Switzerland, planes, trains, and boats. Old world vs new world. Lakes and mountains. Castles and tiny villages. Cows and mountain goats. We saw it all and then some. Go to Europe. I'm still dreaming about our trip. And with hundreds of pictures, I'll be able to relive it for years to come!
This trip will be our last for awhile. We are going through a big life change. My mom is coming to live with us. In fact, in just a few minutes we are leaving for the airport and on to California to pick her up. She will be with us for the rest of her life. And, I don't want to leave her and go on a vacation. That's not why I'm bringing her here. We'll have years of travel time later. After.
And that's OK. We have our memories, our pictures, and our stories. We are so very thankful for our trips abroad and are already planning more to come in the future. Right now though, we are shifting focus. Pray for us. Pray for my mom. What a life change for her. Pray for her health also.
God had been good to us. We are thankful. We have been abundantly blessed.
We started in Zurich and stayed for 4 days. We walked approximately 8-10 miles per day during the entirety of our trip, so that along with rail travel shows just how busy we really were. I must admit that for the first 2-3 days in Zurich I was pretty jet lagged. There are parts of that portion of our trip that are very foggy in my brain. Which is why I am very glad that I took so many pictures. As I look through them my memories slowly are returning. I liked our hotel, however, even though I tried hard to get close to the train stations, sometimes we were a little further than we thought. Hauling big 50 lb rolling duffles across old paving stones isn't my idea of fun. Especially after being up for 24 hours and trying hard not to snarl and snap at anyone who got in my way!
We finally rolled in though, checked into our hotel, unpacked and took showers. We then set off on foot and hit the old city. My favorite part. Anything old with great architecture is my idea of a wonderful adventure. Switzerland is abundant when it comes to beautiful buildings, castles, and churches. One of the things I love most while traveling is finding flea markets or even farmers markets. I love walking through the stalls, looking at homemade jams, honey, fruit, and vegetables. It's even better when there are antiques and vintage items. As we were walking to our first boat ride on Lake Zurich we found a great farmers market right on the lake and met some really nice people. One vendor gave me a tote bag--he explained that his son-in-law was American and he wanted me to have the bag. We stood and talked for awhile and then headed off to the boat dock. We took hundreds of pictures, as we both took our big SLRs. The words "breathtaking" comes to mind. Sailing in front of village after village, castle after castle. One thing I loved was that the boats and trains were clean. They had snack bars and bathrooms too! What a concept. Yes, Zurich was great. From the great shopping to the sights! Now on the next city.
I was much more awake for Lucerne, and actually, it ended up being my favorite city on our trip. I had been once before years ago and couldn't wait to show my husband the famous Chapel bridge. It's a photographers dream. The shopping and food were really good in Lucerne. It has a beautiful old city. One exciting thing we did from Lucern was to take the boat ride to Mt. Pilatus and take a cog train the top of the mountain. I have a huge fear of heights so this was a very big deal for me. Would I would do it again, yes, it was worth the sweaty palms. The views were amazing and there was a gift shop at the top! Fun! And a couple of restaurants. We made a day of it and had a blast.
As it turned out, the first week of our trip was actually much warmer than anticipated, so I spent some time shopping for cooler clothes. I wasn't too happy with the weather those first few days, I was looking forward to a cooler climate and hadn't packed appropriately. One thing I'll mention right now about Switzerland that is different from other European countries that I've been to is that it is extremely expensive. Everything from clothing to jewelry, to restaurants (and coffee) was 2-3 times what we pay in the US for the same exact item. I was shocked and therefore had to readjust my budget.
We decided to add Bern to our itinerary, being that it is the capital and we had never been. In retrospect, I probably wouldn't do it again, but it was interesting. I noticed that each city we visited had it's very own unique personality. Bern was no exception. It had an old city, but also a "new" old city. Which looked just as old to me. But, what do I know! Anyway, our hotel in Bern was a bust. I hated it. So, it probably dampened my view a bit. We did tour a castle. However, overall, I wouldn't visit Bern again, once was enough for me.
On to Lausanne--the French speaking part of the country. On to not hearing German! My husband is the German translator of our family and I am the French. Neither of us is very good at our jobs though, but we get by. I felt much more comfortable once I was hearing French over the speakers on the trains and trams. Lausanne is beautiful. Just walking through the streets was enough for me. The food was better, the street names were easier to pronounce. You get the picture, it was French! We did several side trips from Lausanne, we took a boat to Vevey, which was a beautiful little village on the lake. It happened to be raining, but it sure didn't ruin the day. It's such a quaint place, and with crepes for lunch and macaroons for dessert, what's not to like. During those few days there we also took the train to Geneva. What an interesting city. Very modern, upscale and busy. However, I am glad that we just did a day trip and did not book a hotel. It was too big and contemporary for me. I was into the village life by then and didn't want to change.
There is so much more that I could write about. This vacation was amazing. 2 weeks in Switzerland, planes, trains, and boats. Old world vs new world. Lakes and mountains. Castles and tiny villages. Cows and mountain goats. We saw it all and then some. Go to Europe. I'm still dreaming about our trip. And with hundreds of pictures, I'll be able to relive it for years to come!
This trip will be our last for awhile. We are going through a big life change. My mom is coming to live with us. In fact, in just a few minutes we are leaving for the airport and on to California to pick her up. She will be with us for the rest of her life. And, I don't want to leave her and go on a vacation. That's not why I'm bringing her here. We'll have years of travel time later. After.
And that's OK. We have our memories, our pictures, and our stories. We are so very thankful for our trips abroad and are already planning more to come in the future. Right now though, we are shifting focus. Pray for us. Pray for my mom. What a life change for her. Pray for her health also.
God had been good to us. We are thankful. We have been abundantly blessed.
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