Grandparent's Visit

My dad and Colleen came to town Thursday. They left yesterday. Of course, Dad probably packed more for Lubbock than he did for himself! Lubbock's such a lucky guy to have so many people that love him. As far as I'm concerned, there aren't enough people in the world to love him.

I had so much planned to do while they were here. There's a butterfly house near me ... its just a little greenhouse with lots of butterflies and I thought Lubbock would really enjoy it ... and it would be a great photography opportunity for me. But, when I looked up the hours of operation, they had just closed for the season. I guess I'll have to wait until next year.

I also planned to go on a river cruise on a paddle boat. I had told everyone we would go on Sunday and then on Sunday (I don't even remember why), I decided we could wait and do it on Monday. Guess what? They're only open on the weekends this time of year! I guess Kevin and I can check it out with Lubbock before it closes for the season, too.

We were able to go to Cabelas where Lubbock got an early Christmas gift ... his snow suit. He looks so cute in it. It's got orange accents (imagine that!), but is mostly brown and gray.

I know I'm not an amazing speller (although, I once broke up with a guy in college for not being able to spell ... a story for another time, perhaps) ... but I always thought gray was spelled grey ... maybe I'm thinking of the bus line because now it looks right!

Back to the visit ... then we did a driving tour of Chicago. Kevin and I had seen a restaurant on the Food Network called Smoque ... a barbecue restaurant that features regional favorites. Being big fans of barbecue (sorry, but there just isn't a great barbecue restaurant here except for a local place where the service is HORRIBLE) ... he had to try it out. So, we finally found it and it was great ... well worth the hour+ drive. We parked in the parking garage by the Hancock Tower and went up to the 95th floor so that Dad and Colleen could see the whole city. Of course, the best view is from the bathroom, so Colleen and I went in there and I pointed out Navy Pier and the Sears Tower. It really is amazing what a big city Chicago is.

We cooked fajitas one night and my dad and I got in some quality football watching time. That's always nice. We took Lubbock to the park and he got to show off his sliding abilities and made a girlfriend while he was there. I just don't know where he gets his flirtatiousness from.

Lubbock and I took them to the airport yesterday and he was really sad when they got out of the car ... he cried for a few minutes. I think he really got attached to my dad and Colleen. He even gave Colleen a kiss!


In other family news ... Kevin most likely has a torn ACL. His knee has been bothering him for a long time. Last November, he had the hardware taken out of his ankle that he had broken about eight years ago and his knee has bothered him ever since. I think it was probably just his ankle hurt worse than his knee, so he didn't notice the knee until the ankle was fixed. But, about two months ago, he slipped in the tub and hit his knee against the edge. It was really bruised up. Since then, it's hurt worse, so he finally went to the doctor. They're doing an MRI on Saturday to confirm what the doctor suspects. I feel bad for him because I know the recovery will be hard, but I also think he should have it repaired now, while Lubbock is still young.

Once Kevin started talking to me about his knee, I started having sympathy pain in my knee. Last night, I bent down and my knee popped and now I'm having knee pain, too. I don't know if it's mental (I freely admit to having hypochondriac tendencies) or real pain, but I think I'll give it a few days of rest before starting back to walking. Which, by the way, I went once while my dad was here. 42:20 (I think).

So, now I'm to today. I dropped Lubbock off for his day out program and have about an hour and a half of me time left. I haven't turned on the TV and really don't plan on doing much around the house. I have mopped about ten times this week and the ground outside is so muddy, every time the dang dog comes in ... it's another mess. So, dishes and laundry are about all that's on the agenda for today. I was going to do the grocery shopping, too ... but I can't find my wallet. It'll turn up.


On Thursday, Lauren and I are going downtown to go to the James concert. It was one of the only bands we could agree on when we were younger. I haven't actually listened to any of the new stuff (and by new, I mean since 1993 or so), so I hope I like it. It should be fun just to get out for a little bit. After Kevin and I go see Hayes Carll, we don't have any other concerts planned! I can't believe it. I guess I should wait to see how Kevin's knee turns out before bringing up any new events, though.