No Room at the Inn

Sorry for the biblical reference - but it is the line that has been running through my head all day and it doesn't allude to the baby Jesus. I will explain that in a moment.

First I have to say thank you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your good wishes, thoughts and prayers mean everything to me and have helped me through today. Seriously tadpoles. To click on my email throughout the day and see your comments and support buoyed my spirit while I waited on word from my sister and the hospital.

We are still in VA since I have discovered it is a pretty hard task to find someone to care for a 110 lb. lapdog. We cannot take him to SC and I wasn't about to try call around and see if I could find a place to board him. [Hence the title of the post] It IS Christmas - all the places in our area have been booked for months and I am not silly enough to call anyone and ask "Gee, you don't have ANY thing?" I know better and I am just not that person. Most of our friends that are comfortable around Scooby - although he is a big dog he is a sweetie, some people are still scared of him because of size - are out of town. So I am still looking.

I am also getting a hard time from my husband, my sister and my doctor about being 400 miles from home should I flare or have an episode. To be honest, they are all right - but I really, really want to see my Mom once more. But I have to take into account my family - Pooldad, my kids. I don't really know what the risks would be - oh the great unknown! - but after listening to all of them I don't consider it a chance I can take.

I really was having such a great time with Christmas this year. I was. And I still am going to, no worries there - they don't call me Skippy for nothing, right? But I am frustrated and sad because we won't be there and with Mom being in ICU there is no way to talk to her. Funny aside: Cellphones are verboten in the hospital right? My sister actually closed the door to my mother's room so I could say hi real quick without the nurses seeing my Mom on my sis's cellphone. So while she* was yelling at me to stay home I got to yell back that she shouldn't be using a cellphone in ICU. We're even. And laughing at each other. She promised not to do it again. I didn't promise not to drive down tho' ;) [*my sister, not my Mom]

So the story goes - I love my Mom. That goes without saying - and although I know that I need to keep the happy, happy going for the kids on Christmas - the thought of my sister and my Mom all alone in an ICU unit in SC is about breaking my heart. I know that sounds very pathetic and self-pitying and I don't mean it to be, but sometimes I wonder how my life plays out this way. It was only 3 short years ago that I received the phone call on Christmas Eve morning notifying me that Squirrel and Jr's Dad was dead.

I don't want that phone call tomorrow. Or Friday. Heck, I don't want that phone call at all, but it is inevitable and I know it.

I have to say again - You all have helped me more than you know and I thank you. I want to keep the Merry in the Christmas and although I am finding it hard your words make me smile and show me what a truly great group of friends I have.

Thank you.