Vacation

For the last three weeks, I have been on vacation. I now have two married kids in the Midwest - a son in Green Bay, Wisconsin and a daughter in Coal City, Illinois (just south of Chicago). Since my daughter in Illinois just gave birth to my 25th grandchild - a beautiful and precious little boy named Greyson - I decided I needed to go back there.

I had the most wonderful time! First came the plane ride. I must confess that the last time I was on a plane, I couldn't even buckle the seat belt around me. Having the armrests down on both sides was extremely uncomfortable, because I was squished between them. When I lowered the tray table, it wouldn't lay flat, but would rest against my enourmous belly. Anyone who had to sit next to me would get this "Oh no, a fat person" look when they first realized our seats were together. I really love to fly, but the "sitting on the plane" experience has not been pleasant for a long time. This time, so much was different! I sat down in my seat next to the window and giggled because I had space inside my own seat on both sides of me, even with both arm rests down. I buckled my seat belt and pulled it snug, leaving an 8 to 10-inch tail! The person who came to sit beside me actually smiled and looked relieved when he saw me and sat down. When the plane was fully airborne, I lowered my tray table and giggled again. There was a 6 to 8-inch gap between the table and my body! The person in front of me even put her seat back a couple of inches, and there was still space. Picture me smiling!

While we were there, I thoroughly enjoyed loving up my grandchildren. I snuggled that new baby close and danced and played with almost-two-year-old Ellie. Almost every day I was in Illinois I put Ellie in her stroller and walked with her for two or three miles. We saw leaves changing colors and squirrels gathering nuts and fields of dried cornstalks and flowers and birds and even baby bunnies! I am going to miss those walks with Ellie. In Wisconsin, I went to the botanical gardens and the wildlife sanctuary and walked and walked and saw more glorious things in nature with four-year-old Tabby. I talked and got better acquainted with my teenage grandsons Ben and Sam and Jack, and was even able to help celebrate Jack's 18th birthday. One interesting experience happened when Grandpa took everyone for ice cream in Green Bay. I was sitting and talking at the table with the family while they were all enjoying their ice cream, when Tabby suddenly said, "Grandma, why aren't you eating any ice cream?" So I told her that I can't eat any because ice cream will make me sick now. Later that evening, she was sitting on her daddy's lap and saying that she was feeling sick. I put two and two together, and realized I needed to explain why. So I told her that I had been in the hospital and the doctor had fixed my tummy to help me feel good, but now that my tummy was fixed, eating things like ice cream and candy would make me feel a bit sick. She decided then that she was really okay.

Too soon, it was time to come home. The plane ride home was even more fun than the plane ride out, because Jack was with me and watching the differences. Our last connection home, the plane was just over half full. I was able to curl up on two seats with my head in Jack's lap, and was quite comfortable! And, when I got up this morning and stepped on the scale, I found that I had lost six more pounds during my three weeks of vacation! How about that?