Vacation

This is for all you sandwich generation peeps out there. This is what vacation is like for us: part honey-do list, crafts, gardening, and taking parents, VoVo, to doctor/hospital visits and trying to squeeze a little road trip in there. We realize this isn't for every one but for us it is the only option for now. Today, we spent all day at the hospital. After VoVo, Joe had the worse of it. He took a 2 hour tour of Riverside with VoVo on the dial-a-ride trip home. It was not funny.

VoVo said I do not want to do this again. It's hard on her. The day started at 6 a.m. and she made it home at 7 p.m. The staff at Riverside Community Hospital is always professional and kind. But the pre-procedure communication isn't always the best. For example, I wish that a 8 a.m. check-in meant 8 a.m. (I actually pre-admitted her yesterday). We didn't make into the outpatient area until 10:30 a.m. and that only happened because we made a stink-squeaky wheel theory.

It's one thing for adults but children and the elderly should have priority. At no time did anyone say you will have to wait for over two hours to be seen or that she needed her blood typed (again) the day before...almost an impossibility. Also, I wish hospitals wouldn't overbook. The whole procedure started at about 11 a.m and ended at just after 3 p.m. but since we did not have a realistic pick up time, at least 24 hours in advance, we had to wait for our scheduled dial-a-ride pick up at 5 p.m.

It was exhausting for us but really hard on VoVo. The whole calamity was worth it though because you could see a positive change almost immediately. Don't get me wrong we are thankful for the people at Riverside Community Hospital and the public transit that assists us in getting where we need to be. Just a little more communication and coordination and it would have been a perfect experience.

In the last four years we have learned so much and hope that our experiences will help others. We have been blessed each and every step of the way.

Tomorrow is a new day and I can not wait to share the crafting that has been going on around here. Painting of our bathroom and accessories, spray paint on furniture, little garden turtles, a new tray.... and it doesn't stop there sweet things.