Hubby and I grew up with families who took yearly family vacations as well as other trips throughout the year. My family always took a trip with our four, plus Mom's two sisters & their families, their parents and Grandma's sister and brother~in~law. I was raised to love all generations, so it was nothing for me to include others in our vacations or day trips.
Our first granddaughter was born last year and we couldn't imagine leaving her behind. It started with local carnivals when she was one month old when we drove three hours each way to pick up her uncle Trevor and Aunt Ana from the airport when they flew in from California to be her godparents, then at two months, Randy and I took her to the local carnivals because her mother had to work.
Randy went all out for her first birthday and booked a week in Ontario, Canada. We had a hotel facing Niagara Falls, so she got to wake up seeing the Falls and go to sleep seeing the lights on the Falls. Incredible! She shopped til she dropped more than once. Her best stuffed friend was included in all the photos. For Mothers' Day, we drove up to Bloor Street in Toronto and I got my first Louis Vuitton purse. It was a trip to remember.
We headed to the West Coast later that summer and spent a week with our son. Universal Studios was nice, but I wouldn't do it again. There wasn't enough for a one-year old kid and I was in a wheelchair at the time. We loved our day trip to Tijuana and visiting friends there. Truly the kindest people around.
Our little one gave us no trouble on the planes, even when we were in our seats for hour at a time. We brought along her carseat and she mainly slept on the many flights and layovers. Once we hit San Diego, she headed straight for the ocean. Children are pretty flexible and I can't understand why people think international travel with babies or kids is a nightmare. How will your child ever learn if they don't travel?
Anyway, just random thoughts. Hope everyone has great trips planned!
Showing posts with label Travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Travel. Show all posts
Thursday, February 13, 2020
Big Apple Dreaming
I just booked a quick day trip to NYC for hubby and myself as a Valentine's present. We'll hop on a bus early this Saturday for way too many hours, have 6 hours in Times Square, then back on a bus and get home early Sunday.
Here's my question: What is the top can't miss things to do and the top don't even think about it list?
We've talked about going on a trip there for years and have our camera equipment, but have no idea where to start. We want to make the most of the time we have. I'm open to suggestions. Please help!
The biggest problem is I'm disabled and walking fast isn't possible. I'm not spending our first trip there in a wheelchair, so that's out, too.
Thanks all!
Here's my question: What is the top can't miss things to do and the top don't even think about it list?
We've talked about going on a trip there for years and have our camera equipment, but have no idea where to start. We want to make the most of the time we have. I'm open to suggestions. Please help!
The biggest problem is I'm disabled and walking fast isn't possible. I'm not spending our first trip there in a wheelchair, so that's out, too.
Thanks all!
Thursday, March 15, 2018
Searching for a 30th wedding anniversary trip to NYC
My husband and I have been together my entire adult life and in August, we'll celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary. Where did all the years go?
Our current dream trip is a weekend in NYC. We want to have a guided tour our first time, so I'll begin the research necessary to give the safety of a group, but enough flexability to see and do what we want ~ Statue of Liberty, Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square, riding a double decker tour bus and a Broadway show. Of course, souvenir shopping for my family is important as well.
I'm asking my readers for any ideas or suggestions on trips they've made. Is it safe to be out at night? Best hotels to use? Best tour companies. Any tip will be gratefully appreciated.
We have until August when our anniversary hits.
I'm ready to take a bite out of the Big Apple.
G
Our current dream trip is a weekend in NYC. We want to have a guided tour our first time, so I'll begin the research necessary to give the safety of a group, but enough flexability to see and do what we want ~ Statue of Liberty, Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square, riding a double decker tour bus and a Broadway show. Of course, souvenir shopping for my family is important as well.
I'm asking my readers for any ideas or suggestions on trips they've made. Is it safe to be out at night? Best hotels to use? Best tour companies. Any tip will be gratefully appreciated.
We have until August when our anniversary hits.
I'm ready to take a bite out of the Big Apple.
G
Saturday, June 13, 2015
Another hospital in another State
This week started out so well, I should have known what was coming. I was happy and having fun. I was acting like a real human again. Time for the smackdown to begin.
My son just recently graduated with distinction from Penn State and had job interviews in San Diego. He asked me to fly out with him, just because I have never been to CA and things were so hard for me. Of course, I threw things in a bag and off we went. First problem hit, my wallet with ID and credit cards wasn't in my purse! I had my passport, so I could fly, but couldn't rent a car or check into a hotel! My daughter found the wallet and overnighted it to me. At that point, it didn't matter anymore.
We landed and fought to get a car rented and to our hotel. The hotel we reserved and paid in advance wasn't a hotel, but a HOSTEL. The difference? NO PRIVATE bathrooms. We would share one bathroom with a floor of people. Not this girl. When the clerk said that, all I saw was National Lampoon's European Vacation where the mom is in the tub and "Hagrid" Robbie Coltrane walks in. If you've seen the movie, you know the scene I'm talking about. No Hagrid for me. By that time, my son was screaming outside. I just run. He's holding his chest & can't breathe. Where is a hospital. The clerk didn't even look up as I begged for the way to a hospital. He simply couldn't have cared less, unless my son bled on the floor. It's pitchblack, 9 or so at night and I don't speak Spanish. Finally, a taxi driver took pity on me and we followed him to the trauma hospital.
We should have been good, but remember, it's me. I'm 5'2" and my son is 6'3" and I'm trying to carry him in. Security wouldn't help, just said you have to go next door oh and move your car. Yeah, tow it, it's a rental. I manage to get to ER. Crying for someone to help my boy. They don't even blink when he's holding his chest and can't breathe. I tell them his lung collapsed. They don't care. Finally, I threaten to just take him and call 9-1-1. The snotty nurse tells me it's illegal and they would just send police to make me stop calling them. RIGHT! I happen to know a bit about the law after covering court for 20 years, but I let him think his smugness won. I was attracting enough attention by now that they take us back, but the doctor wouldn't even look at him until I PAID MY CO-PAY! My son can't breathe and they are hassling me for $25. I lost it then. After they had the cash, a nurse took his blood pressure and walked off. After 20 minutes of me crying and Trevor screaming in pain a doc sends him for a chest x-ray because I don't know what I'm talking about. How do I know his lung collapsed? This is his fourth collapse, I've been through this rodeo far too many times before. The x-ray shows a large collapse. Doc lets me see it and says I can take a photo of the x-ray. I bring out my pro camera (Nikon 5500) and she asks where is my camera phone. Please! I've written and taken photos my entire life. It's how I made a living. She's worried now about who I might be and calls in specialists because she just doesn't want to do it. I angered her by questioning her qualifications when she refused to listen to what my son and I were telling him was going on.
They arrive at 2 or 3 a.m. (remember, we got there at 10 p.m.) They see the x-ray and race him back to surgery. He's holding me, begging me not to leave him. What can I do? They won't let me go. I take the time to move the car and bring our gear. He's now on the trauma fl
oor. ER sends me to security. The same cop who saw me dragging my son in looks at me and says, "I won't tell you where your son is." WHAT? HELLO??? Remember me? Yes, did you move the car? Total ass. I'm hysterical, caring at least 150 pounds of junk and he wants to play. I tell them I KNOW the room he's in, I just don't know how to get there. He sighs and picks up the phone. Such hard work for such an easy job. The charge nurse tells him to send me right up. Finally, he tells me the elevators are at the end of the hall (about a football field away). Can you help me? NO!
Somehow I managed to get there and walk in the room. My boy is pale, with tubes and oxygen covering his body. I just broke down. Why him? Why again? He's here to get a job and start his life!
Several hours later, after the nurses ignored my questions on why so much blood from the tiny chest tube, the top cardiothoracic surgeon is in his room and says he has to go back to surgery right now. Why? He's bleeding into his chest and drowning. I could lose my baby! Of course, I agree to have it done. Then a nurse comes in, does he have a living will? I need to know what you want done if something goes wrong. He's only 20! This can't be happening, but it wasn't a nightmare, it was real. Of course, I told her to do everything possible to keep my boy alive, no matter what. Take my heart if he needs one, just save him.
His girlfriend Ana was there to hold me up or I literally would have curled up into a ball and just cried. I did lose it then, even with her there. I called my husband and said I need you now. He couldn't understand me because I was crying so hard. My mother and her sister drove him three hours to the nearest airport and he was on his way. It took many changes because of weather closing airports, but somehow, he managed to get here 24 hours after my hysterical call.
My son is getting better and should be getting the chest tubes out by tomorrow, then it'll be just slowly healing. This has taught me I'm stronger then I ever thought possible when all alone and push comes to shove. I need my husband and love him dearly, but I can survive.
If one person reads this and forgives a loved one, this pain is worth it. All we have are our family. Love them, no matter what. We can lose them far too soon and far too easily. My birthday is next week and we're making travel arrangements to get home. I hate the idea of doing that on my birthday, but then I realize what I could be making arrangements for instead and just say, "Thank You" for keeping my son alive.
My son just recently graduated with distinction from Penn State and had job interviews in San Diego. He asked me to fly out with him, just because I have never been to CA and things were so hard for me. Of course, I threw things in a bag and off we went. First problem hit, my wallet with ID and credit cards wasn't in my purse! I had my passport, so I could fly, but couldn't rent a car or check into a hotel! My daughter found the wallet and overnighted it to me. At that point, it didn't matter anymore.
We landed and fought to get a car rented and to our hotel. The hotel we reserved and paid in advance wasn't a hotel, but a HOSTEL. The difference? NO PRIVATE bathrooms. We would share one bathroom with a floor of people. Not this girl. When the clerk said that, all I saw was National Lampoon's European Vacation where the mom is in the tub and "Hagrid" Robbie Coltrane walks in. If you've seen the movie, you know the scene I'm talking about. No Hagrid for me. By that time, my son was screaming outside. I just run. He's holding his chest & can't breathe. Where is a hospital. The clerk didn't even look up as I begged for the way to a hospital. He simply couldn't have cared less, unless my son bled on the floor. It's pitchblack, 9 or so at night and I don't speak Spanish. Finally, a taxi driver took pity on me and we followed him to the trauma hospital.
We should have been good, but remember, it's me. I'm 5'2" and my son is 6'3" and I'm trying to carry him in. Security wouldn't help, just said you have to go next door oh and move your car. Yeah, tow it, it's a rental. I manage to get to ER. Crying for someone to help my boy. They don't even blink when he's holding his chest and can't breathe. I tell them his lung collapsed. They don't care. Finally, I threaten to just take him and call 9-1-1. The snotty nurse tells me it's illegal and they would just send police to make me stop calling them. RIGHT! I happen to know a bit about the law after covering court for 20 years, but I let him think his smugness won. I was attracting enough attention by now that they take us back, but the doctor wouldn't even look at him until I PAID MY CO-PAY! My son can't breathe and they are hassling me for $25. I lost it then. After they had the cash, a nurse took his blood pressure and walked off. After 20 minutes of me crying and Trevor screaming in pain a doc sends him for a chest x-ray because I don't know what I'm talking about. How do I know his lung collapsed? This is his fourth collapse, I've been through this rodeo far too many times before. The x-ray shows a large collapse. Doc lets me see it and says I can take a photo of the x-ray. I bring out my pro camera (Nikon 5500) and she asks where is my camera phone. Please! I've written and taken photos my entire life. It's how I made a living. She's worried now about who I might be and calls in specialists because she just doesn't want to do it. I angered her by questioning her qualifications when she refused to listen to what my son and I were telling him was going on. They arrive at 2 or 3 a.m. (remember, we got there at 10 p.m.) They see the x-ray and race him back to surgery. He's holding me, begging me not to leave him. What can I do? They won't let me go. I take the time to move the car and bring our gear. He's now on the trauma fl
oor. ER sends me to security. The same cop who saw me dragging my son in looks at me and says, "I won't tell you where your son is." WHAT? HELLO??? Remember me? Yes, did you move the car? Total ass. I'm hysterical, caring at least 150 pounds of junk and he wants to play. I tell them I KNOW the room he's in, I just don't know how to get there. He sighs and picks up the phone. Such hard work for such an easy job. The charge nurse tells him to send me right up. Finally, he tells me the elevators are at the end of the hall (about a football field away). Can you help me? NO!
Somehow I managed to get there and walk in the room. My boy is pale, with tubes and oxygen covering his body. I just broke down. Why him? Why again? He's here to get a job and start his life!
Several hours later, after the nurses ignored my questions on why so much blood from the tiny chest tube, the top cardiothoracic surgeon is in his room and says he has to go back to surgery right now. Why? He's bleeding into his chest and drowning. I could lose my baby! Of course, I agree to have it done. Then a nurse comes in, does he have a living will? I need to know what you want done if something goes wrong. He's only 20! This can't be happening, but it wasn't a nightmare, it was real. Of course, I told her to do everything possible to keep my boy alive, no matter what. Take my heart if he needs one, just save him.
His girlfriend Ana was there to hold me up or I literally would have curled up into a ball and just cried. I did lose it then, even with her there. I called my husband and said I need you now. He couldn't understand me because I was crying so hard. My mother and her sister drove him three hours to the nearest airport and he was on his way. It took many changes because of weather closing airports, but somehow, he managed to get here 24 hours after my hysterical call.
My son is getting better and should be getting the chest tubes out by tomorrow, then it'll be just slowly healing. This has taught me I'm stronger then I ever thought possible when all alone and push comes to shove. I need my husband and love him dearly, but I can survive.
If one person reads this and forgives a loved one, this pain is worth it. All we have are our family. Love them, no matter what. We can lose them far too soon and far too easily. My birthday is next week and we're making travel arrangements to get home. I hate the idea of doing that on my birthday, but then I realize what I could be making arrangements for instead and just say, "Thank You" for keeping my son alive.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Virginia vacation
We're beck from our week in VA & took my son's girlfriend/fianceeto the airport yesterday to fly beck to CA. She lives with her aunt & is in college there. We all love her & approve of his choice as long as they wait til they both finish college & have jobs before they get married & start a family.
He spent Easter in Mexico getting to know her family & getting their approval. They all love him, so they are all set. He gave her a promise ring when we flew out to AZ in November to celebrate his 18th birthday & visit the college he wants to attend.
While we were at Busch Gardens, a hurricane hit & the park was closed Friday. We drove around & found a Coach Outlet store. I was in Nirvona! Found a nice backpackers, Arielle got an Umbrella & I got Ana a wristlet. She cried because she said it was too much. Nothing is too much for the ones I love.The rain was flooding the area. We needed a break from all the walking, so a free day was nice. We went to a Greek festival, then to see the new Star Trek. It wasn't as good as the first. I didn't like the actor chosen to play Kahn.
Saturday, we rented a motorized wheelchair for me. I wasn't able to stand up for very long, let alone walk 10+ miles. I felt like a total failure. I'm afraid I'll end up in one permanently because my health is failing fast & I'm getting worse then before. :-(
When we had to leave her at the airport yesterday, it felt like I was sending one of my kids away. I already think of her as a daughter. She's sweet, polite, kind & easy to love. We're not sure when they'll get to see each other again. For sure, shes coming here for New Years. Shes never skied before, so we promised to take her. I don't think she's ever seen snow. Cant wait to see her reaction to several feet of snoe! When she arrived here 2 weeks ago, her first words were, "It's so green!." When they went canoeing, it was the first time she ever saw a river before. She wanted water & couldn't get over the fact we don't have boil water here, it's perfect the way it is. Seeing the stars was new because it never gets dark enough where she lives. We were blown away to learn she had never seen a deer!
We enjoyed Busch Gardens & drove through Washington DC to let her see the White H ouse. She's never been on this Coast before.
I'll post photos when I get on my laptop.
He spent Easter in Mexico getting to know her family & getting their approval. They all love him, so they are all set. He gave her a promise ring when we flew out to AZ in November to celebrate his 18th birthday & visit the college he wants to attend.
While we were at Busch Gardens, a hurricane hit & the park was closed Friday. We drove around & found a Coach Outlet store. I was in Nirvona! Found a nice backpackers, Arielle got an Umbrella & I got Ana a wristlet. She cried because she said it was too much. Nothing is too much for the ones I love.The rain was flooding the area. We needed a break from all the walking, so a free day was nice. We went to a Greek festival, then to see the new Star Trek. It wasn't as good as the first. I didn't like the actor chosen to play Kahn.
Saturday, we rented a motorized wheelchair for me. I wasn't able to stand up for very long, let alone walk 10+ miles. I felt like a total failure. I'm afraid I'll end up in one permanently because my health is failing fast & I'm getting worse then before. :-(
When we had to leave her at the airport yesterday, it felt like I was sending one of my kids away. I already think of her as a daughter. She's sweet, polite, kind & easy to love. We're not sure when they'll get to see each other again. For sure, shes coming here for New Years. Shes never skied before, so we promised to take her. I don't think she's ever seen snow. Cant wait to see her reaction to several feet of snoe! When she arrived here 2 weeks ago, her first words were, "It's so green!." When they went canoeing, it was the first time she ever saw a river before. She wanted water & couldn't get over the fact we don't have boil water here, it's perfect the way it is. Seeing the stars was new because it never gets dark enough where she lives. We were blown away to learn she had never seen a deer!
We enjoyed Busch Gardens & drove through Washington DC to let her see the White H ouse. She's never been on this Coast before.
I'll post photos when I get on my laptop.
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Trip to Phoenix
Hi All,
My son is a high school senior this year. He's working on the college search and our local school gives each senior 3 days to visit college. Son has decided he wants to go to a college in AZ (All across the country), so we're flying out there in early Nov. to check it out.
We're also thinking about hitting Mexico for the day.
My question is: What are some things out there that can't be missed? I know we're eating at Hardrock Cafe one of the nights. It's my favorite resteraunt and I'm addicted to their pins!
Anyone else go out there in the fall? I'd really appreciate some
suggestions on places to see and what kind of clothes we should need.
Also need advice on photographing in the desert. My son wants his senior photos taken out there and since that's my job, I'll be lugging 50 pounds of camera equipment onto the airplane.
Thanks!
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