Victoria, maybe better

Mama and I dropped Victoria off at the airport this morning. Her flight was set to board in Dallas at 6:45 so we got her to the check in kiosks at 5:15. That means that we had to leave the farm at 4:15. Victoria was having some stomach troubles last night into this morning, so I had to stop once on the way to the airport, but we still got there in plenty of time. She has done this so many times that the check in process took her about ten minutes to complete. I do not know how long it took to get through security, but the lines looked short. Mama and I headed home as soon as we saw her bags checked so I could clock in on time.

She should be arriving in San Pedro Sula a little before 2 pm. These early flights are both good and bad. Good in that traffic is minimal at that hour of the day and the security lines are not long yet. An early departure generally means an early arrival which affords the time to enjoy an afternoon at her destination on the first day.  The early morning flights are bad only in that we have to be up so early to make the flight. The tradeoffs make it worth the short night before the initial trip.

Mama’s night was very short. She was up and ready when I got up just before the alarm was to go off at 4 am. She had been awake since 12:30. We had gone to bed early the night before; about 9:30. So, she got only about three hours sleep all night. That is a very short night. Victoria did somewhat better, but not by much. Hopefully both of them will get to catch up on missed sleep over the next couple days and nights. Cori has not put much on the docket for this visit – other than Savanna’s birthday, which was the occasion for the visit. We are hoping this is a nice break for Victoria who has gone out of her way to accommodate Grandma for the past several weeks. Mama and I will not get a break until perhaps February, when we plan to visit Honduras. It is still disappointing that we had to give up our plans to be with Zoe and Sophia for their birthday, but that could not be avoided.

Although the physical therapist came by to work with Grandpa this afternoon the day has been pretty quiet. Mama has taken a couple opportunities when Grandma and Grandpa rested or napped to lay down as well. We all need days like that. I will get rested back up over the next several days since I am working from home, and I do not have as much sleep to catch up on as Mama does.

I am feeling much better but I still have bouts of coughing. The cough is a productive cough versus the dry cough I often get so I am at the point of weening myself from the over-the-counter meds I have been taking to make the cough productive. Each time I treat such a cough, I end up overusing the expectorants which can prolong the cough if I am not careful. I am not feeling better enough to go out and work in the heat each evening. That will come later. Besides, we have VBS this week and I am pushing myself to get to some of the evenings at church to enjoy those services. If I can manage this cough.

Last night, I dropped Mama off at VBS for a short spell. She had someone to meet and introduce around and I had to buy some fasteners to keep working on the duck pen. Mama was feeling a little sick to her stomach last night. I think it was because they ate at Jason’s Deli for lunch after Grandpa’s appointment. I always get a little nausea after eating there if I am not very careful what I eat. Anyway, Mama was better today so whatever she had suffered from was a passing discomfort.

I think many of Mama’s issues come from eating too much sugar. Although Grandma was fired up to get that addictive substance out of her life (for a few hours), that determination faded as quickly as it originated. When someone made a casual comment about it, Grandma’s response was one I have heard many times over in my life, “Well, we just need to take small steps to change out diet rather than try and get rid of everything at once.” We’ll keep working on it, I am told. Meanwhile we have loaded up on double stuffed and mega stuffed Oreos, pop tarts and toaster strudels, Sam’s Cola’s, and half gallons of Blue Bell ice cream – all of which were on sale. Not to mention the salvaging of cookies bought for VBS that were clearly not needed to be used there. “They had so many cookies there.” I am told.

We do also have pears, cantaloupe, and watermelon in the fridges. We have apples and bananas for the eating as well. I will wait to see what of those commodities gets eaten first. In my experience, it is rarely the fruit that is consumed quickly, but I could be wrong.

We have gotten word that Victoria is safely received in Honduras. Praise the Lord!