Monday, April 14, 2008

Meet Me In St. Louis...

We just got back from a wonderful trip to St. Louis! If you've never been, be sure and put it on your To-Do List. This city is full of history and aged beauty. We met Mark's parents there and visited the Arch (my kids are daredevils!) and the Science Museum (so many interactive things there!).
Our first night there, we ate at a little Mexican restaurant called Azalea's Mexicana. Mark thought he'd be adventurous and ordered the cactus. Cactus? Well, more power to him. As he was eating it, he told us we should all try some because it was really delicious! I tried a teeny tiny bite...it wasn't bad. Mother was more adventurous (which is where Mark gets it!) and tried a couple bites. Soon after we'd finished eating (well, you all know me...I was still finishing my plate when everyone else was done), Mark said he wasn't feeling right. He was very pale and said he thought he might pass out. I immediately dipped my napkin in my ice water and started mopping his neck and forehead (this seems a little silly now...but at the time, I really didn't know what else to do).
He and Father got up and walked around a bit and, after several minutes (15?), Mark said he was okay to drive to the hotel. I joked with him that it was the cactus. But we rationalized that Mother would've had a reaction too.
So, after we'd been back in the hotel about 10 minutes, Mother said she was feeling strange. She said there was no pain really, just a strange sensation in her left eye. Then, she said she was seeing a strange shape out of her left eye that wouldn't go away whether the eye was open or closed. She drew the strange shape for us and, wow, it was awfully scary!
We all went to bed wondering about the power of cactus.
The next day, mother suffered from a little headache but said her eye wasn't seeing shapes. Upon looking at her, however, she looked as if she'd had some crazy night...her eye was slightly blueish and swollen and she admitted that it did still feel quite strange. {We realized that this probably had nothing whatsoever to do with cactus and she is going to the doctor today!}
After a wonderful day about town (and a new experience with pizza...anyone ever eat at Imo's?), we again returned to the hotel. It was time to say goodbye to Mother and Father. They had thoroughly spoiled us all and it was so hard to see them leave. We comforted our sense of loss with reasoning that we would surely see them again soon.
Mark, Maggie and Phoenix went swimming while Luke and I rested. Mark had a Harding Lacrosse game to attend that night, so the kids and I settled in with Bravo's Top Chef, several books, and the length of our room as a racetrack.
We came home yesterday and were so glad to get back. It seems that no matter how wonderful a trip is, it's always nice to come home again.

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The Fabulous Five

The Fabulous Five
We strive to make memories that will always lead us into the Light