March 24, 2004

• Do You Know What You've Done?

  I am astonished. I'm humbled. I'm amazed. I don't really know what to say, but I want you to know what you've done.

  I found another option for getting home. With my Triple A discount, I can rent a car from Hertz for $145. Another $60 for gas and another $40 for feeding the kids on the road and I'm home. That means that for the same cost as bus tickets we can drive to Indiana in a third the time. You guys have donated more than that in PayPal cash. In addition to that, I've received a gift of a hotel room at the halfway point so the kids and I don't have to make the trip in one day. In addition to that, I received gifts with instructions to use those funds while we are in the DC area to make sure the kids still get the vacation I brought them here to have.

  I have talked to my insurance agent, and the only thing they will cover is the tow charge. But you know what, that's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. I have the receipt, when I get back to Indiana, my agent will write me a check for that amount.

  This morning, I took the kids to the Capitol Mall. They saw the Washington Monument and the Capitol building. We also saw a parade of people in wheelchairs asking for legislation to support assisted living (currently, many disabled people find themselves living in nursing homes which are expensive and rob them of their independence. Assisted living is their preffered choice, but it isn't covered by medicare even though it costs far less than nursing home care.) We talked about the issue, talked about how it is that we the people are able to do things like this in order to express our desire for changes in our laws. Michael thought if enough kids would get together and march on Washington, maybe we could get a law that would enable all kids everywhere to be allowed to drink Sprite instead of milk.

  We were able to visit two of the Smithsonian Buildings. We started in the museum of natural history where they were excited and impressed by the size of the triceratops skull. Seeing that brontosaurus skelton next to the T-Rex skeleton and realizing that the T-Rex could fit two brontosaurus heads in one bite was also impressive. True to his word before we came, Tucker was fascinated by the gemstone display as well. He REALLY wanted some of those diamonds. Well, I wouldn't turn one down either. LOL. I've never been a diamonds kind of girl. But the size of these and the way they throw light like fire is mesmerizing.

  The second stop we made was the Air and Space museum. The "hands on" exhibits for the kids to experiment with air pressure, thrust, wing design etc - were fabulous. I'm not sure how much the kids really understood about the point of the different experiments they were able to perform, but they did everything at least twice. Upstairs, we were able to see the Wright Flyer on display with a greal deal of Wilbur and Orville Wright artifacts. Michael ooohed and aaaahed over the Spirit of St. Louis as well. They just read the story of Charles Lindbergh in his third grade class. Mike was able to tell us that Lucky Lindy made it all the way across the ocean to Paris with a canteen of water and some chicken sandwiches.

  We are way luckier than Lindbergh. Thanks to you, our trip across country is going to be safer, more comfortable, and far less worry-filled than the trips he made.

  Thank you
  

  • 5:20 pm
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