Head East

Whether by car, or by plane, it takes the better part of a day to travel from Lubbock to...just about anywhere.

We made it to Fort Lauderdale this evening after brief visits through three other airports. The kids don't fly often, so I thought I'd take advantage of the opportunity and teach them how to navigate their way through an airport on their own (check departures, find the right gate, baggage claim, etc.). After a couple pep talks in the preceding days, I gave them their final marching orders while riding the shuttle bus from the parking lot to the airport. I also gave them their boarding passes (only for the Lubbock to Houston leg). We checked out bags, made it through security (1st try for everyone), and the kids led us to the video monitor and were able to correctly identify the right gate. So far, so good.

Right after clearing security, I told the girl to fold her boarding pass and to put it in her front pocket. She gave me the standard tween 'I know better' look and decided that she'd keep up with it in her own way. After finding out gate at the video terminal, we decided to look for Mad Libs in the airport newsstand. As soon as we emerged from the newsstand (sans Mad Libs, sadly), the girl had a look of terror on her face as she announced that she'd somehow misplaced her boarding pass (in a span of 50 feet). While we retraced our footsteps, she imagined the worst: was her vacation already over? Was she going to be denied entry onto the plane? What would she have to do while we frolicked on the beach? This was the perfect opportunity to (gently) re-emphasize that it's best to do what dad says, when he says it. Lesson learned, right?

The girl was able to reprint her boarding pass and make the flight to Houston (via DAL). We had a 3+ hour layover in Houston. After dining and window shopping (and coffee), the children led us back to the gate we were to depart from. With about 45 minutes 'til our scheduled departure, I passed out the boarding passes for the final leg of our flight. I instructed the children to fold their boarding passes and to put them in their front pockets (instant compliance, imagine).

The boy urgently announced his need to acquaint himself with the airport facilities. Since I was on laptop, the missus agreed to escort the boy as far as the door to the men's room. After awhile, the boy re-emerged and within a few minutes announced that he'd misplaced his boarding pass - at which point the missus wondered aloud, "I wonder who this lesson is for?" to which she immediately answered: "maybe you shouldn't give the kids their boarding passes 'til we're ready to board the plane." Got it...I'll remember that for the return trip.

We made it safely to Ft. Lauderdale and arrived at our hotel just after 11. We're looking forward to the morning and seeing what palm trees look like in the daytime.

Thanks for reading.

A New Adventure

The house is clean, our bags are packed, boarding passes are printed, and preparations have been made. All we have to do now is sleep.

After a few errands in the morning, we'll head to the airport. The 2010 version of the Ware Family Vacation includes air travel (and there was much rejoicing)! Those that know me, know that I travel a fair amount for work. Facing the prospect of (many) expiring Southwest Rapid Reward Awards, we decided the best use of them would be to make good on a promise we made to our daughter last summer.

You see, last year the four of us piled into the Mazda 626 and made a 6100+ mile pilgrimage to the Pacific NW and many of the national parks of the American West. When we finally made it to the beautiful beaches of the NW we were able to look, but not to swim. The girl was incredulous (what good is a beach if you can't swim?!). So we promised her that even if we had to go to the gulf (yikes) that we'd get her to a beach where she could swim and bask in the sun. Fort Lauderdale should fit the bill.

This will be the first trip to Ft. Lauderdale for 75% of our clan. I made my initial visits here while sailing on big gray ships. I told the missus that I'll take her to many of the wonderful places I saw in my time of service. This is just the first of many to come.

Thanks for reading.

A Second-Hand Update

The kids and I just returned from Albuquerque. The McCay's received as good a prognosis as they could have hoped for yesterday. It was a blessing to see them enter and exit the meeting with the team of doctors with smiles (and relief) on their faces. I'll do my best to relay the information I received from them (please bear with them and the slow updates as they don't have a laptop with them at the hospital...that, and they kind of have their hands full with other things).

The type of cancer Noah has (Burkitt's lymphoma) grows very fast, but is very treatable. The primary danger in the short term is treating the cancer too quickly. As the cancer is treated, his body will will expel the tumors - and his body can only process so much at a time without unduly taxing his kidneys and liver. I heard Brent explain the prognosis 3 or 4 times to visitors, and each time it made me think of this (my own interpretation, not from the medical team): Noah's cancer is like a weed on miracle-grow...it appeared quickly, but will be easy to treat with a little roundup. After the roundup withers the weed in due time, they'll pour on the napalm to wipe it out completely (again, my own interpretation).

Noah's is stage 3 - and the doctor said it's typical not to experience any symptoms before it advances that far. He'd actually never seen a case that was only at stage 1. Noah has already begun chemo and his entire treatment plan will likely only last 6 months. The doctor indicated that more patients suffer complications from infections rather than from the cancer itself. The McCay's will have their hands full with sterilizing their car, house, and little brother :) In all seriousness, they'll have to send anyone with a cold (mom, dad, brother, sister) to stay with the grandparents when they have as much as a sniffle.

Noah's going to be spending lots of time indoors - so it's a good thing the boy likes to read (and play video games). The news it good and outlook is bright, but the family still covets prayers and support. Let us not tire of either. Once their computer situation is worked out, you can expect to see more updates here: http://noahmc.blogspot.com/

My Friend Noah

This blog has been idle for some time, but for those of you who still keep an ear out - please join with me in praying for my friend Noah. You can get the latest details on what's happening with him on his new blog: http://noahmc.blogspot.com.

Thanks