We got back this afternoon from our holiday trip to Virginia. Sadly, it wasn’t the kind of break I was hoping for or needed.
We left on December 22, with Reggie, our yellow lab, in tow. The drive itself was uneventful, but the day after we arrived I started feeling chilled. My voice was going on the 24th, a fact that I noted while at church service (Don commented, though, that there wasn’t much to lose . . . .). By Christmas day, the cold was coming on full speed, as was the poor weather. I was amused with neither turn of events, as my daughter, her husband, and 2-month old baby were scheduled to come on the 26th. By late afternoon on the 25th, we’d made the command decision to postpone their trip for another day – which meant that her husband could no longer come. The 26th I awakened without a voice – literally. I had complete laryngitis, and could communicate only by whispering. We still convinced my daughter to come down on the 27th – which she did, along with her sister-in-law and mother-in-law, as well as (of course!) precious grandbaby. My voice was still gone.
Don & I went out to find drugs to help me breath better, cough and sneeze less, and hopefully help me to sleep. Nothing, though, that I could take made me comfortable in holding dear little Caspar. So the torture of having one’s grandchild in the same home, but not being able to touch him (or indeed come within a few feet of him) began. It was still better than not seeing him at all, so I’m delighted they decided to come (and it was delightful seeing Vanessa’s m-i-l & s-i-l). We still had a nice time, and a grand (albeit belated) Christmas dinner of ham, scalloped potatoes, 7-layer salad (which my daughter determined – only 34 years into her life – that she liked), and a fun, fattening dessert. Mom would have been proud.
Vanessa, Caspar, et al. left a couple of days later, and I spent an afternoon playing bridge. It seems that the rest of the holiday I spent blowing my nose, coughing, sneezing, or nursing a raw nose. Until today, that is. Par for the course – the holiday is over.
But I do think I’ll be taking a trip to Baltimore fairly soon to help make up for lost time . . . .