Parkinson's Central - New Smart Phone App is an Electronic Advocate

Recently, I had to get a new cell phone as my phone company changed over from one something or other to a different something or other. The old phone wasn't smart enough for the new system. So now I have a newer old version of an Android phone. It's a little smarter.

This is good because there is a new Parkinson's Central smart phone app offered FREE by the National Parkinson's Foundation.  As soon as the LG P500 was up and working, I downloaded it and decided to check it out.

There is a lot on this app, from general information about Parkinson's disease and how it is diagnosed to treatment options, hints for making your doctor's visit more productive, news about current research, and a whole section about living well with PD.  There is a surprising amount of information there.  

Now, I will admit right away, I am not big on reading a lot of information on my cell phone. I'm over 50 and my eyes start to rebel.  If I am going to look for this type of information, I will look it up on the full screen computer.  Even there my eyes will tire quickly. However, I know for many people, cell phone apps are THE WAY to get their information. I highly recommend this app for those people with Parkinson's disease who use smart phones.

I didn't think I'd be using it, but then I saw...

There is a section on other health issues and PD (under Doctor Visits), specifically about dental visits. I didn't know levadopa and epinephrine together could cause an "exaggerated effect on blood pressure and heart rate".  Hmm, that could explain why I had such a violent reaction when the local anesthetic was accidentally injected into a vein in my mouth.  

I will cruise through more of the information on the app, even if it is on the phone. I suspect I'll find other gems of knowledge hidden in each section.  The nice part of having it on my phone is I can show it to my dentist or other health professional. It has more weight when it's coming from the National Parkinson's Foundation.

As patients, we have to learn how to stand up for ourselves. This can be challenging, especially when we are standing up to doctors and other health professionals. Our own doctors may understand us, but if other medical issues come up, it's much harder to explain. I know.  I tried this when I was in the hospital for a hysterectomy. No matter how much I tried to tell the nurse-in-charge that my sleep attack was not anything to worry about (I was in bed, not driving) and was, in fact, a side effect of my medication, she just pursed her lips and glared at me.  When my husband came, the nurse turned to him and said, "We had an incident this morning." I felt like a naughty child.

Now I have a helper right in my hand. The Parkinson's Central app is an electronic advocate.  Now they have to believe me.  See? It says so right on my phone.

So there.

Click on the photo to go to the National Parkinson's Foundation page about Parkinson's Central.

Eating well - finally

There wasn't much I could eat for dinner, so I had a spoonful of almond butter, a couple of carrots from our garden, half an avocado, and some salad without dressing. I glared at my family, graciously, as they ate their spaghetti, and lettuce dripping with raspberry vinaigrette.  I was coping quite well until my husband brought out the Moose Tracks ice cream.

It wasn't fair.

Three months ago I decided to watch my diet. What I saw was a lot of carbohydrates and sugary stuff. There was a decent amount of good food, too, but the carbs and sweets side of the scale was a wee bit out of balance.  And so was I.  I hadn't been feeling too good.

It seems eating sugar, lots of sugar, will release dopamine. Cool. Instead of upping my meds, I could just have some fudge or ice cream or a Snickers bar.  It worked quite well. My doctor hasn't insisted on an increase in my medication for the last several years. 

When others have suggested special diets to me, I only half listened. Like all helpful remedies and cure-alls, I know what works for one person won't work for everyone.  If standing on one leg for an hour a day makes you feel better, go for it.  I'll pass.  I've been told to drink wheat grass juice, go vegetarian, stay away from gluten and carbs, don't forget aerobic exercising, don't eat protein after 3 pm, and have I ever heard of the Paleo diet? 

Outside I may be smiling and nodding, but inside I'm saying, “I don't HEAR you.”

Until three months ago. Only, it wasn't anyone else telling me I had to change, it was my own body. Every time I said, “I don't hear you,” I would be knocked on the side of my head.  It was getting tiring and my head hurt.  Eventually, I was too tired to do much of anything. My blood pressure had gone up, my tummy ached, and my sinuses burned all the time.  The docs couldn't find anything really wrong, so they blamed my Parkinson's.  I get it. I do the same thing.

I was miserable enough to try anything.  Throwing all my diet and health suggestions into the air, I came up with the following:

No sugar

No gluten

No carbohydrates

No dairy

I would eat meat, lots of vegetables, some fruit, almonds, and walnuts. Actually, the choice was made consciously.  My symptoms started to sound more and more like systemic yeast issues.  It wouldn't hurt to try the yeast diet. I decided to try it for a few weeks then gradually add other foods back in.

Within 48 hrs, I felt good. The symptoms went away, I had energy, and my blood pressure was down to my normal.  I wasn't hungry and I didn't crave sugar.  COOL!  I can do this!

Then, of course, my dear husband brought home the Moose Tracks ice cream. 

I was not led into temptation, but held my ground and ate a few almonds.  It's been three months now and I still feel good.  I've lost 15 pounds, too.  I'm starting to add in a few foods and have, only on occasion, splurged with a small bowl of ice cream.  Granted, there was the day I ate a full bag of chocolate chips. Life can be stressful and chocolate helps.  I don't make it a habit.

This has been a good wake up call for me and I know I have to pay more attention to having a healthy diet. My body has shown me exactly how it will react when it is off balance. I've gotta listen to what it's telling me.

I'm not going to try and convince people with Parkinson's to change their diet. It's not a cure-all.  I still have Parkinson's.  In fact, some of my symptoms actually have gotten worse since I cut out all the sugar.  My body is missing the extra dopamine.

It's okay, though.  I'm feeling good.  If my PD symptoms get much worse, I suppose I could increase my medications.  Until then, I'm okay. 

After all, how normal do I have to be?

TravelScooting: the first adventure

July 18, 2013

It was the day.  After some busy weeks, I took a personal/mental health day and rode my new TravelScoot to the bus stop and took the bus downtown.  I planned on spending the entire day shopping, exploring, and generally having fun riding my new scooter.

A few weeks before, I had taken our daughter to a large shopping mall to look for a dress.  As this was in my pre-TravelScoot days, I was walking.  I'm afraid I didn't last long before informing our daughter of her choices:  either we go home or she had to give me a piggy back ride.  We went home.

This trip would be different.  I had a TravelScoot.  I had dreamed of owning one of these incredible machines.  It's like a sports car. Invented in Germany, it's the Porsche of mobility scooters.  It's built for durability, ease of use, and speed.  Okay, I added the last one.  I'm not sure speed was one of the goals; I just happen to enjoy it. 

There are a few things one must know about these scooters.  They're not for everyone.  You have to be able to walk somewhat and balance.  The simplicity of this machine appealed to me.   To go backwards, you have to push with your feet.  It has hand brakes.  If you don't remember to apply the brakes, you will coast.  To me, this means fewer things to go wrong.  This is one scooter where reading the instructions completely and following them religiously is essential. It's not difficult, but important.  Thank you to Tony at TravelScoot USA for all your help!

The first test was riding the bus.  With most scooters, trying to park in the space allowed is a little like trying to parallel park an SUV on a street crowded with other vehicles and pedestrians.  Everyone is waiting for you and watching you as you inch forward and get stuck in your attempt to hurry.  In comparison, the TravelScoot was like parking a child's tricycle in a large space.  I was able to put the bus seat up by myself, maneuver into position using my feet to help, and was ready before the driver had the lift back in place and the door closed.

Getting out at the 16th Street Mall, I had a wonderful sense of freedom!  I could go anywhere and do anything I wanted to do!  I zipped up and down the sidewalks.  Getting there early enough, there weren't many people about the mall, so I sailed around town.  I had tea, got a haircut, and went to a few stores.  The TravelScoot was able to maneuver through large stores as well as tiny gift shops.  Some of the older shops have a step at the front door. No problem!  It was easy to put my feet down and lift the front wheel up the step, push a little forward, and repeat for the back wheels. No way could I have done it with a heavier scooter.

After zipping around town, I went back to the bus stop to wait for the bus. It was getting very hot by that time and sitting in one place was not pleasant.  It took seconds for me to decide to try taking the TravelScoot home without the bus!  Turning aside, I found the pedestrian bridge over the highway.  Halfway over the bridge, I had the incredible urge to take off my hat, swing it around, and give a loud WHOOP for joy!  I was seeing all sorts of new places in town and having a wonderful time!

The entire journey, from downtown to our house in Wheat Ridge, would have been about 4 1/2 miles.  I went almost 3 miles of this on the TravelScoot, going through the shopping discricts of LoDo (lower downtown), LoHi (Lower Highlands), and Highlands before getting back on the bus for the last leg of my journey.  Tired, but happy, I came back home and rested for awhile.  I don't think I stopped smiling for hours.

Owning a TravelScoot would have remained a dream, but for the kindness and generosity of a dear cousin from Europe.  He decided it would be a good way for me to be more independent.  How does one repay a gift like this?  It's not possible.  I can only be grateful and try to show kindness and generosity to others whenever and however I am able. 

And have many more adventures! 

www.travelscoot.com

Pain Management without Pain Medication

"Are you sure you don't want me to prescribe some pain medication?” The emergency room doctor looked at me in disbelief. I doubt he often has people refuse this offer.

I was in the hospital last Friday afternoon with severe neck and face pain. It doesn't seem to be anything serious, more than likely a combination of my dystonia, being at the dentist for a check-up, and perhaps a type of migraine that hits in the area of the carotid artery, right behind the ear. There's nothing to do now, but wait to see if it goes away or gets worse, and manage the pain.

I'm a medication wimp. Side effects are me. It's not only medications, either. I envy people who can drink a couple glasses of wine without feeling ill or smoke a joint and get that nice, “ooh, life is good..” sort of feeling. I have a tiny bit of medical marijuana and I get that, “ooh, the room is spinning and I feel like throwing up..” sort of feeling. Prescription meds aren't much better. Past experience with pain meds have led me to expect one of three different responses:

1. I will puke my guts out until I am severely dehydrated and end up in the E.R., in much worse pain.

2. My pain will go away, but my breathing is depressed. I'll lie on the couch, not able to move or speak, or sleep, while my breathing becomes shallower and shallower till finally I stop breathing altogether for 30 seconds or so. That's when I suddenly gasp for air in a panic and the process starts all over again...over and over and over.

3. Once in awhile I get lucky and it works, without causing any puking or breathing problems. I will only try this if I'm at the hospital and being monitored. Otherwise, it's not worth the risk

This means I've had plenty of times when I've had to practice pain management without any medications at all. After this last episode, a friend asked if I would share some of the techniques which have worked for me. I don't guarantee they will work for anyone else. Everyone's systems are unique and there isn't an easy answer, but this is what I do:

For chronic pain and to prevent acute episodes:

1. Drink water. Unless I'm puking my guts out, I try and drink as much as I can. Being dehydrated makes pain worse.

2. Yoga. My dystonia can twist me into positions that are not normal for the human body. If I'm already twisting into weird positions consciously, my body doesn't rebel as much with the dystonia.

3. Exercise. Walking is difficult for me, but dancing is delightful. If I'm sitting and working on my computer, I get up and stretch often.

4. Laughter. For me, this means being with real people, family and friends, chatting, telling jokes, sharing funny stories, and laughing at my challenges. It also means writing funny stories and sharing them in this journal, and coercing family and friends into reading them.

5. Massage therapy. Whenever I can afford it. When I can't afford it, I hope to see the “free 5 minute chair massage” sign at the Farmer's market.

6. Balance. Get out of the house. Do housework. Rest. Don't plan more than I can comfortably do without becoming fatigued. Say no when I need to say no.

Okay, I'll admit it. The last one is impossible for me. I've tried. Well... okay...honestly? I haven't tried. My philosophy has been, “If I do this now, I'll be useless later, but if I don't do this now, I'll feel useless all day.” This attitude can be somewhat good for my soul, but the physical body eventually just has to rebel. When it does, I end up exhausted and with acute pain in some form or another. One challenge is, I don't know how much activity will cause me to become exhausted. It varies.

Techniques for managing acute pain:

1. Stay away from screens – TV, computer, cell phone, e-reader. When I am not feeling well, looking at screens will make me tense up. My neck and back will become stiff, my dystonia kicks in, and my vision gets blurry. No screens. (As I love to write, this is hard for me, too.)

2. Drink water and hot tea. Drinking hot liquids helps keep the digestion going. For me, that's essential to pain management.

3. No sweets and no heavy meals. I stay away from sugar and too many carbs. Overeating, if I have any pain at all, will make me feel very ill.

4. Hot baths. This is one of the most effective ways for me to relax.

5. Rest. Rest. Rest. Sleep if possible.

When the pain gets really bad:

1. Lightly stroking the skin. A massage therapist taught me this and it is how I got through a Cesearean birth without pain medications. Any place will work, it doesn't have to be done where the pain is located. It works better if you don't go in circles (don't ask me why) but just random designs. It also works if someone else does this for me. Some people cannot tolerate this gentle touch, but for most of us, it's a simple way of releasing endorphins to help with pain.

2. Focus. This is hard to explain and I couldn't find anything written about it. This is what I've developed for myself. More than likely, someone will write to tell me what it is called; I doubt I invented anything new. I'll try to explain...

Lying down, covered warmly, I start with breathing. In yoga, I learned how to breathe in deeply and breathe out, emptying my lungs as completely as I can. It helps to count. Whatever number you count to as you breathe in, add several more numbers to your outbreath, making sure your outbreath is longer than your inbreath. This helps to calm the nervous system. No, I don't have a scientific study to back this up, but I do have a wonky nervous system that agrees with it.

As I breathe, I start to calm myself. Now, where others might tell me to go to a happy place and not think about my pain, I do just the opposite. To do this effectively, I need to know where the pain is coming from. The more I know about the exact process that's going on, the better it works.

When I know where the pain is coming from, I focus on the pain as objectively as possible. I still feel the pain, but I don't feel the panic that often comes with pain and I don't feel the need to take it away. I just contain it. I mentally let it be in whatever part of my body is hurting, and I try to allow the rest of my body to feel okay, unaffected by the pain.

It doesn't work all the time. I toss and turn and try to get comfortable. Often, though, it is when the pain is at its worst that this technique works the best for me.

Make sure you talk to your doctors about any pain you are having. They can tell if the pain you are describing is something which needs to be checked out at the office or emergency room. Then, of course, if you're not as sensitive as I am, the doc may prescribe pain medication. Take it, zone out (at home), and file this list away for another time.

Ooh, life is good!

..nor disappearing bus stops, nor missing buses, nor missed flights...

Day 3 of the Tale of the Two Intrepid Travelers by Terri and Emma Reinhart

4/18/13

Terri: Up at 6 am to wash bedding and towels, eat breakfast, and check on bus service and flight status. All seems to be a go. From the window, I have already seen 3 buses go by Ronnie's House. The 308 is obviously running today. Should be no problem getting to the airport on time. We'll leave as early as possible, just in case.

Emma: Maybe we should call a cab.

Terri: The bus costs $4 and we still have the transit card. A cab would be $40. No brainer.

 Emma: Fair enough. And we have seen buses go by so all should be well.

9:15 am

Terri: We've been waiting for half an hour and have not seen the bus. So far, two bus stops have vanished, or at least have apparently ceased to be bus stops. After arriving at the first one, we were told (by other waiting passengers) the 308 would not stop there today. We were escorted to the proper bus stop by an older gentleman who offered to show us the short cut through Veterans Hospital. There we waited for 20 minutes before an official looking man came by to tell us the bus was not stopping at that particular stop today. Now we're being escorted to the real proper bus stop.

 Emma: Maybe we should call a cab?

9:45 am

Terri: I've called the bus company and they've assured me the bus will be arriving at 9:49 am. Four minutes. We should still be okay. It's a very short ride, 5 to 10 minutes, to the transit center, then we'll be on the train. That part is easy.

Emma: Ok! Good, the bus should be here any minute now. Annnnny minute at this immediate time it should be appearing. Please?

9:55 am

Terri: No bus. A nice man with a golf cart shuttle came by and told us he wasn't sure the bus would stop there today. He would take us to the stop by the front gate because the bus always comes there. It seems the bus route has changed due to some construction work. Also, it comes one way if the gates are open and another way if the gates are closed. How do we know if it's an open or closed gate time? No one could tell us.

Emma: I’m getting rather cold. Brrrr. It wasn’t this cold yesterday. It was raining heavily but not cold. I. Do. Not. Like. The. Cold.

10:15 am

Terri: Two 331 buses have come by, but no 308's. I finally spotted the 301 on Roosevelt Ave. We ran and the bus stopped and the driver let us on. I asked if he was going to the transit station. He laughed nervously and said, “We'll see.”

Emma: One of the worst feelings is running to catch a bus. But we made it! Mom had a long conversation and I caught my breath and watched as we went by the lake cemetery. The ride to the station was supposed to take 5 to at most 10 minutes. We made it there in 45 because of traffic due to flooding.  

11:00 am

Terri: After a delightful 45 minute ride on the bus, talking to a lovely lady named Harriet, we finally arrived at the transit center. It is normally a 5 minute ride, but many streets are still closed due to flooding.

Shook hands with Harriet and wished her luck on her test. She's another 50 something going back to university classes. If the ride had lasted another 10 minutes, we probably would have exchanged email addresses.

We will not make our flight.

11:15 am

Terri: We're on the train... and it finally started to move.

Emma: I rather enjoy the train. It doesn’t get caught in traffic.

Later

Terri: Changing to orange line... we had to exit the transit system to transfer to the Orange line. This means, of course, having to pay again. Didn't expect this. We have $2.50 on our transit card – not enough for both of us. We can put more money on the card, but the machine only takes cash and won't give change. I have a $20. Asked the attendant if there was anywhere to get change or use a debit card to pay for transit. Answer? “Not here.” He opened the gate for us and let us in free.

Another rule of traveling:

8. Never pass up an opportunity to ask for suggestions, directions, help.

Emma: Thank you wonderfully nice transit station attendant!

12:30 pm

 Terri: We arrived at Midway in time to see our plane taking off. We waved.

A nice attendant at the Frontier counter let us know we could catch the next flight – at 6:45 pm. We can either fly standby, which would be free but wouldn't guarantee our seats, or secure our seats by paying an additional $25.00/each. I paid. We want to go home.

Emma: So, would a cab have gotten us here any quicker?

Terri: I don’t think so, what with the floods, road closures, and lots of traffic. Then we would have paid a lot for the cab AND still had to change our flight. And I wouldn't have met Harriet.

Emma: True. Harriet was pretty cool.

Terri: We have another 6 hours to wait. No worries. There are still shops and we still have a credit card.

1:30 pm

Terri: Bought two slices of pizza and some water. Went down to concourse to find seats and some quiet. Ate pizza and rested.

Emma: Foood! Good food. I’m feeling slightly better. Now to wait…

3:00 pm

Terri: We started feeling just a little glum. This won't do. Went to shop. Bought a cherry coke, a Sudoku book, a neck pillow, and a travel blanket. On the whole, not bad, considering how much we could have bought.

Emma: The chair is getting hard, is the floor any softer? Not really, but it’s nice to be horizontal for a bit. “Cabin Pressure” Time!

7:09 pm Denver time – on the plane

Emma: I’d listened to enough “Cabin Pressure” now that I half expected after getting on the airplane to hear, “bing-bong. ‘Good evening ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking…’” I was a bit disappointed when this didn’t happen.

Terri: We're over Nebraska now, not Denver, but I'm already thinking in Denver time. Chris will meet us at the airport. We were going to take the Skyride again, but the timing would be tight. Timing has not been in our favor this trip. Feeling mildly guilty for my extravagant purchases.  Can't wait to be home.

Emma: Come flyyy with meee…

                   And let this adventure end.

...nor torrents, nor floods, nor lost cab drivers, nor fences...

Day 2 of the Tale of Two Intrepid Travelers by Terri and Emma Reinhart

April 18, 2013

Terri:  Emma's first appointment is for a CT scan at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). Being the amazing travelers we are and not wanting to shell out any more for cabs than absolutely necessary, we decided to take the bus and train to the appointment. Easy. The bus to the train station stops just a block from Ronnie's house and there's a stop for Illinois Medical District on the Blue Line.

It's raining outside...really raining. It's the kind of hard downpour that soaks you to the skin, even when you're wearing a raincoat and holding an umbrella. If it was raining like this in Colorado, we'd stay inside, but this is Chicago. It rains all the time in Chicago. This must be normal. We're not going to be wimps.

Emma:  Right, right. Goodness, it is really raining, isn’t it? Time to play, “dodge the worms on the sidewalk” or maybe a better name for it would be “worm hopscotch.” Eugh.

8:45

Terri:  We're still waiting for the bus. In the rain.

Emma:  And waiting… and waiting.

Terri:  I don't think the 308 is coming. Another person who is waiting suggested we walk to Roosevelt Ave and catch the 301 if we really needed to get somewhere, so we do that.

Still no bus. Finally, a car stops and a man rolls down the window to let us know the bus is not coming. Part of the road is closed and the bus can't get through. I must have looked panicked. He offered to drive us to the transit station. It's amazing to be on the receiving end of this kind of gift.

Emma:

It was really nice of that man to give us a lift. We’d probably have waited for that nonexistent bus for another hour before we realized that it really wasn’t coming. Thank goodness for nice people with cars.

We arrived at UIC an hour late. They were very understanding. Afterwards, while waiting for the cab, I found an article in a magazine about Audrey Hepburn, very cool. I didn’t have time to read all of it though, as the cab arrived quickly.

Terri:  Another rule for traveling:

7. Never pass up a chance to say thank you – to people, organizations, and life in general.

We didn't take any chances. We took a cab from UIC to Shriners. The cab driver was from “Al-bah-ni-a” as opposed to “Al-bā-ni-a”. Of this, he was most particular. I'm not sure how well he understood English. When the receptionist at Shriners asked what it was like outside, he answered, “Twenty-five dollars, please.”

Emma:  The Albanian cabbie was neat. He liked to talk, good thing for living in Chicago. His name was Berti.

​12:00 noon

Terri:  Exciting things to do in Chicago: Stand and wait for buses. Sit and wait for doctors. Try to use the bathroom and that's when the cab comes.

Emma:  The checkup went well. Few things to think about. Nothing major, thank the stars.

1:30 pm

Terri:  Back at Ronnie's house. I wasn't sure if we'd make it back.  This cab driver also got lost.  Thankfully, he admitted he was lost and assured me he would discount the fare.  We are HUNGRY!  Fortunately Ronnie's house is well supplied with good food. Pig out. Sleep.

Emma:  Sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeep.

6:00 pm

Terri:  Small dinner. We watched the news and learned we weren't the only ones with transportation challenges today. It seems this is not a usual Chicago rain. It is a torrential, build an ark kind of rain, and there is a lot of flooding. Roads are closed because they are two feet under water. Schools are closed. The Brookfield Zoo is closed for only the third time in its history. It's a wonder we made it anywhere today.

Emma:  It’s a bit strange, being this close to major flooding areas. Never happened to me before. It reminds me of that Doctor Who episode, “Waters of Mars” and now I have successfully been disconcerted by that thought I am off to bed.

Ok, not quite bedtime yet. Hungry.

9:00 pm

Terri:  Late night dessert

Emma:  I got mom to listen to the first “Cabin Pressure” finally!  

A quote of said radio comedy:  “I don't have an airline. I have one jet. You cannot put one jet in a line. If MJN is anything, it is an air dot.”

10:00 pm

Terri:  Listening to “Cabin Pressure” with Emma. She often suggests programs for me. This one's good! Her suggestions are always good.

Now to sleep – perchance to dream.

Neither snow, nor rain, nor dark of night - the tale of two intrepid travelers

by Terri and Emma Reinhart

April 17, 2013

Emma:  The three most important rules of traveling,

1. Never pass up a chance to use the bathroom.

2. Never pass up a chance to eat.

3. Never pass up the chance to sit down.

Terri:  One more rule:

4. Be pleasant.

My favorite part in the movie, “Harvey”, is when Elwood P. Dowd tells the doctor, “My father always told me that in this life you need to be either oh, so clever or oh, so pleasant. For most of my life I was clever. I prefer pleasant.”

Emma and I started out this trip to Chicago a little reluctantly. With the birth of our new grand daughter last weekend, it was difficult to think of leaving.

Emma:  I was also rather reluctant to travel since it meant leaving Lexus. Granted, I am a little grateful to not have to wake up at 7:30 for a few mornings or constantly go out with Lexus on the off chance that she needs to pee. Aside from the slightly more free time this allows, I am still a bit of a worried new momma but I know that she is with a very capable puppy sitter and is probably having a marvelous time with their dog.

Arrival at the airport

Terri:  We took the DIA Skyride from downtown Denver and arrived in plenty of time to catch our 2:50 pm flight. The boarding passes printed, we went through security and headed down to the gate. That's when Emma looked at her boarding pass and asked about the boarding time, which was listed as 6:05 pm. I assured her it was probably just a mistake. We looked at the departure times, just to make sure.

Emma:  I was sure there was a mistake. That was more than 5 hours away! Yet, sure enough we checked the departure schedule. Delayed. Scheduled to board at 6:05 and leave at 6:40! Ugh, what were we going to do?

Terri:  We made our phone calls, one home to update Chris, and one to Ronald McDonald House. Ronnie's house closes its doors at 8 pm. We won't land in Chicago till 10 or after, then there's the cab ride. They agreed to check with the house staff and see if someone would be willing to stay up late and let us in.

YEAH! They'll let us come!

Now, what to do for the afternoon? I called Chris and let him know we are fine. There are plenty of lovely shops and I have my credit card.

Another Rule for Traveling

5. Never pass up a chance to shop

Emma:  I approve of the new rule. As for the flight, we kept checking the departures to make sure the flight was not cancelled. I was a little worried. We overheard a man saying that he had been here since yesterday waiting for a flight. It was also snowing quite a bit now. So far so good though! There were a good number of people waiting around for delayed flights, I'm sure the shops were happy.

4:00 update:

Terri:  My energy gave out before we reached our credit limit. Time to rest. Pleasantly.

Emma:  Time to get out the music. And perhaps people watch. Always fun in an airport. I had put a bunch of audio episodes of “Cabin Pressure” on my MP3 player, I thought it was appropriate. If you're not familiar with it, “Cabin Pressure” is a British radio comedy about a crew of a small airplane that often get into all sorts of mix ups and on each others nerves. It is very funny.

Terri:  People watching is fun. Talking to people is fun, too, especially when it's crowded and everyone's been waiting a long time. I now have 35 more Facebook friends.

Emma:  You're exaggerating mom, it's more like 50 more Facebook friends.

5:00 update:

Terri:  Sitting right next to the gate doesn't make the plane come faster. If the alarm goes off suddenly, it may be because I've had a serious hot flash and have dashed out the emergency exit into the snow.

Emma:  I am wearing all the scarves because we are sitting by the gate and emergency exit. It was the tropics at the other seats, it is the Arctic here. But mom's happy.

I suddenly realized why it is not such a good idea to gulp down the last of the now lukewarm Izze drink. Hiccups are not very fun. We brought a couple snacks from home: grapes, strawberries, nuts. We also bought a bag of “Colorado Mountain Rocks, Collected Daily from the Rocky Mountains” They're tasty. I should specify that they are not actually made of various pebbles and minerals but something that is a little easier to chew and much tastier, chocolate.

Terri:  Another hour and we should be boarding. We have eaten. We have used the bathroom. We have shopped. We are sitting.

Emma:  We have cured my hiccups! And we are getting a little tired of this trip already. Maybe it will be better tomorrow, it's supposed to be much warmer in Chicago and I hear there is more to do then sitting and waiting, which will be nice. (Actually I know there is more to do, I've been there before. Lot's of attractions. And trains... And buses).

Terri:  And we're still pleasant... right?

Emma:  Bah humbug! I mean... Yes, of course. Bright eyed and smiling.

On the plane – update:

Terri: Boarded at 6:15, took off at 8:15. Will they still be gracious at Ronald McDonald House if we ring the bell at midnight?

Emma:  Yes, I'll have the turkey sandwich and the cheese and hummus platter. Yum. Ooh, goat cheese? And there's chips! If you've never had Pringles with goat cheese I... wouldn't really recommend it but it was not a half bad experience. I always forget how noisy the engines are so I don't think I'll listen to any music. Oh, well.

Terri: Pringles, ginger ale, and sleep.

In Chicago – 11:45 pm:

Terri:  Landed. Attempting to hurry across airport, call a cab, and get to Ronnie's house as soon as possible. Our attempts to hurry are thwarted by a reception for a group of WWII vets arriving in Chicago. From their gate to the outside door where they are loaded into a limo, their path is lined with soldiers in dress uniform, saluting for each of the older men as they are wheeled by in wheelchairs. A bagpipe band is at one end and a brass band at another. Beautiful, inspiring, wonderful, but it also makes it difficult to get from point A to point B.

Cab driver got lost going to Ronnie's house. Didn't know enough about cabs to argue the fare. Paid way too much. Got in at 12:45 am. Time to sleep.

Another rule for traveling:

6. Never pass up an opportunity to sleep.

Brunch for a Bunch or Growing up with the Reinhart's

A couple of girls in my high school class were arguing one day about who is included in one's immediate family. One insisted on only including your parents and siblings. The other just laughed. No, she said, your immediate family includes your grandparents, aunts, uncles, and all your cousins, and everyone comes to every family gathering.

My mother-in-law, Natalie, was even more inclusive. Family gatherings included all of the above plus a few neighbors, several of her teacher friends, friends of her children, and maybe a family or two from the school where she taught.

I think I fell in love with my in-laws as quickly as I fell in love with my husband. Chris was smart. He took me to meet his family very soon after we met. It was a Saturday or Sunday evening and everyone had come home for dinner. I learned, over the next few months, Chris and his 5 siblings were free to invite friends for dinner and they frequently did.

Natalie loved to cook. She had been a nutritionist in the army during WWII, stationed in England. She was used to cooking for hungry crowds. This was good, because during the next year, three of her children married, including Chris and I. As our families grew, the family gatherings grew, too. Before long, all of us were married and bringing our children along. You'd think with 6 children and their spouses and 18 grandchildren, this would be enough immediate family for anyone, but Natalie found people endlessly interesting and there would often be someone new to meet, in addition to a few old friends, colleagues, and neighbors. If anything, the gatherings became larger and included more people as the years went by.

Natalie passed away in November of 2006, five years after her husband, Paul. Chris and I visited her the day before she had the seizure from which she never awoke. She dozed on and off, but whenever she was awake, she asked about everyone in our family. Just before we left, she woke up to say goodbye. Looking up at us with bright eyes and an even brighter smile, she said, “It's been fun, hasn't it!” On the way home, Chris told me he felt she was speaking more of her life than of the moment.  It wasn't until later, we learned these had been her last words.

We still get together, but not as much. Natalie was the matriarch and truly, I believe people came together to be with her. She left us with memories of warm meals, large family gatherings which never felt crowded, and a gentle sense of humor which occasionally included novelty eyeglasses (with eyeballs on springs) and an umbrella hat.

She also left her recipes, organized in cardboard boxes, some typed, some handwritten, and some with the unmistakable purplish blue print of the school mimeograph machine. On the recipes, she kept a diary of sorts; notes on doubling the recipes and how much was left over, who came to each gathering, and how they set up the tables and chairs. Our son, John, took some of these recipes and created a lovely recipe book, which is available online.  Take a look!  He included copies of some of the original recipes, notes and all:

Easter Brunch and a Bunch More

Now, our own family is growing. Our third grandchild is due to arrive any day now. Just having our kids and grandkids together makes for a full house. Lately, however, both Chris and I have been missing the large Reinhart family gatherings and this year, we invited everyone we could think of to join us for Easter. It was wonderful!

We plan to continue this tradition, though I would never try to take Natalie's place. That would be silly. For one thing, those would be big googly-eyed glasses to fill.

​clicking on the photo will take you to the online store where one can purchase googly-eyed glasses & other novelties