8/22/09 A Wonderful Week

It has been an interesting week and everything is looking better each day now that my pain has subsided to a 2-3 on a scale of 10.

We had a leisurely Sunday morning at Elizabeth Gamble gardens on 2.5 acres – very accessible for me. We then visited the Artist Guild Village run by Stanford Packard Children’s Hospital and had a simple lunch there.

Monday is now clinic day and catch up day for us (laundry, grocery shopping, etc.).

Tuesday and Wednesday we decided to try camping in our motor home at our Thousand Trails Morgan Hill campground, only one hour from here. We were surprised how quiet and relaxing it was. It was wonderful to be outdoors just enjoying the nice weather and nature. We took a few walks, read, Pete biked and swam, cooked and BBQed. It’s nice to have a king size bed in the motor home so we slept very well after all that fresh air.

It was nice to come back to the Marriott, our home away from home and dinner was served by the inn. We’ve gotten to know the staff, the general manager and the owner of this inn. The maid brought me a bouquet of flowers from her garden, the boss asked if I needed cranberry juice or anything special his staff can do for us. We’re getting spoiled and pampered.

Today, George Janeway, our good friend and dentist came to ride his bike with Pete. They rode to Stanford from here and he also treated us to Thai food for lunch. We’re so blessed with good friends and so thankful that we always find people we enjoy getting to know, especially the couple from Green Lake, Wisconsin who have been here the whole time we are here (The husband came for radiation treatment for some rare and unusual lymphoma.) They’re glad they can go home tomorrow. We’re hoping that we can go home in about two weeks if all goes well.

One of the activities we’ve enjoyed when we need a quiet activity is watching some old movies through our Netflix subscription. This week we saw “Bridges of Madison County” and “Steel Magnolias.” I remember seeing “Steel Magnolias” when it first came out in 1989 – other than the sad ending, I didn’t relate to it at the same level as I did this time. What I’ve personally experienced recently with my transplant and at this stage in our lives now that we have a granddaughter really put a different meaning to this movie.

Thanks again for the emails and cards that continue to arrive. We really enjoy hearing from all of you. Don’t forget to stop and “smell the roses" while you’re enjoying your summer. We’re going to miss this wonderful weather when we leave this area. We’re taking full advantage of what we find here that’s different from home. Now I realize how much Pete and I missed in the past three years since we had cut down on our travels. I can’t wait until we can resume our travelling again.

We will remain in touch until we get home or whenever we see you again. God speed! Addie