Steamboat Springs Colorado!!!

Mom was in our driveway promptly at 8:05 Thursday morning! We had asked her to be there between 8 and 8:15! What a champ! She and Dad were all smiles!!! Since Jean was so wonderful and had gone Wednesday to take Dad to therapy and help Mom with the last-minute packing and other details, Mom seemed so unstressed and ready to go!!! Dad was all thumbs up!!! We headed immediately to the airport in Austin to get checked in, eat breakfast and relax until our flight left at 11:26. I won't get on my soap box, but there is nothing that infuriates me more than to have the security guards pull my Mom and Dad out of line and body search them...my sweet Daddy because he is in a wheelchair and adorable Mom because she has had both knees replaced. I know, I know, they're just "doing their job," but it still makes me crazy!!! Okay, enough of that!!! All six of us, Lisa, Danny, Mom, Dad, Ollie and I were able to board. How about that, one advantage of a wheelchair-bound person! Dad's wheelchair wasn't able to fit down the aisle of the plane, of course, and they didn't have one of those skinny chairs nearby. we asked Dad if he thought he could walk onto the plane, and HE DID!!! Danny supported him and Dad walked from the door of the plane to his aisle seat! No problemo!!! The flight was non-eventful, Mom and Dad napped off and on, and we were in Denver in a couple of hours! The pictures are backwards, but I couldn't figure out how to switch them! One is of Mom, Dad and Danny on the tram from the Denver terminal to the baggage pick-up and car rental! Aren't they looking great?!

Lisa had rented us a wonderful van with 4 rows of seat! Dad gets to ride "shotgun"!!! The drive from Denver to our cousins Fran and Jimmy Callahan's lodge north of Steamboat Springs took us about 3.5 hours. The scenery kept everyone captivated, so it was a pleasant drive! We arrived at Fran and Jimmy's about 3:30 or so and, boy, did we receive a grand welcoming! Everyone was so incredibly happy that Mom and Dad were able to be there! Blessings abound!!! One little issue that we were all anticipating was getting Dad up into the house! The other picture is of Danny, Bobby Sonnen and Ollie literally carrying Dad and his wheelchair up the stairs! Hmm...let's just say that Dad sure must trust those guys!!!!! He seemed to get a big kick out of making them work so hard!!! After that, the guys got a little smarter and figured out they could push the wheelchair up the hill, around to the back of the house and take Dad in the back door, which was a lot safer!!!

It was such an honor to see this great group of people who absolutely adore our parents, and visa versa! Cousin Jimmy Callahan is Mom's first cousin...his Mom, Lucy, was my Mom's aunt...Grandma Grohman's youngest sister. He and Fran are the ultimate hosts! The six of us stayed at the lodge with Fran and Jimmy and the other guests stayed in cottages down the road. I think there were about 24 people there, or something like that. Jimmy hosted golf for the linksters on Friday and Saturday at two different coursesOlie said he got to play a lot of golf for the money!!! The rest of us either relaxed or went to Steamboat and shopped. Mom was so thrilled to spend Saturday at the lodge all by herself! I was trying to decide if I should stay there with her and she wholeheartedly encouraged me to go if I wanted to because she was looking forward to having the house to herself!!! She stayed in her robe most of the morning, worked her crossword puzzles, napped, showered and got dressed, all without interruption! Boy did she deserve that!!!

The whole weekend was very low-keyed and full of love and friendship! Jimmy fed us his famous fried chicken out on the deck Friday night and Saturday night was steak-night! Fran did all the delicious side-fixin's and everyone pitched in! Saturday night Jimmy got us all quieted down (a major feat in itself!) and had many of us in tears talking about how they all feel about Mom and Dad and how blessed we were to have them there! His prayer is that they will be there next year and that Dad will be able to speak to the group! That would be awesome! "May (his) tongue sing of Your word!"Amen!

Many times throughout the weekend, someone would go give Dad a hard time about something or tell him something funny and Dad would laugh his big ol' hearty laugh out-loud! It was music to our ears!!!

We were on the road Sunday by 9:15, headed back to Denver for our 3:10 flight home. We really didn't have a minute to spare once we had dealt with the traffic, stopped for a potty-break, unloaded at the airport, returned the van, eaten lunch and gone through security. In fact, we were some of the last ones on the plane! Got back into Austin and away from the airport at 7 p.m. Next on our agenda was some dinner! Danny and Lisa were in their own vehicle and went right on home. So, Mom, Dad, Ollie and I had dinner at the Frisco in Austin, where Mom and Dad used to take us when we were kids! Their vinegar cabbage slaw is wonderful! Mom and Dad headed home right at 8:00, had a good night's rest in their own bed and were doing great this morning! Mom said Dad slept until almost 11:00! I know the trip was exhausting for him, but he was such a trooper and it was priceless having him and Mom there!

I will go spend the day with Mom and Dad Wednesday and take Dad to therapy and acupuncture! So, until then, God's blessings!!! Love, Sandi