After a very BUSY and hectic week of preparation, we began our journey to the States for our home-leave visit. I had developed a sinus infection but thanks to an after-hours clinic doctor who gave me a very effective decongestant and even more effective pain killer, I was optimistic about our trip. Things went smoothly to begin -- RW even went to sleep around the time I hoped he would -- but five hours into the flight, CW woke suddenly to throw-up. And he continued to throw up another 8 or 9 times (I lost exact count after 6) over the next 4 hours, and had a high fever. Between the fever and the energy expended on throwing up, the poor guy was so weak and MISERABLE. When we stopped for the mandatory security check and re-fuel in Dakar, Senegal I wonedered if we needed to have a doctor check CW, but Joe pointed out that we were already halfway done with the 19 hour flight, and it would be far better for a doctor to check him in Washington, DC than in Northern Africa. I agreed, so we just did what we could to help CW be comfortable - which on an airplane, over the Atlantic Ocean, isn't much! About 3 hours from landing, CW was finally able to sip on Ginger Ale without heaving it up again, but was enduring a lot of ear pain. I cannot tell you what I would have traded to have my boy safely down on the ground and in the care of a doctor at that point!!!! I was so worried about him, but also so impressed by how well he was handling it all. Many an adult would have been in tears through the whole experience, but he braved it out with just an occasional tear and a weak "I just want to be in my own bed, mom." (To make the long story at least a little shorter, we were able to get CW checked a couple of hours after landing in Washington, DC, and found that he had a "severe" ear infection in both ears!!! Poor boy!! Luckily we had already planned to stay in DC for a few days, so it gave him a chance to start feeling better before we headed on to Colorado.)
Fortunately, RW faired the journey much better than I had feared, and EW was a STAR traveler, so despite CW's misery, the overall trip actually could have been much worse.
We spent a few days in DC, not seeing enough, but enjoying the company of my sister's family, and JW's cousin. (I'll maybe post some pictures of our visit there, soon.)
And then, it was back onto the airplane to complete our journey to Colorado. However, after a 19 hour flight, everything else seems like cake, and even the 4 hour flight from DC to Denver was a BREEZE! Of course, it did help that RW slept for a good bit and NO ONE was throwing up or feverish.
RW sleeping the time away
EW sleeping the time away
CW playing the time away on his new DS
(As you can guess, the photos were all taken on the DC to Denver portion of our journey. I really should have taken some photos of the bedraggled group from the first bit of travels, but they all looked SO pathetic, that I didn't have the heart to photograph them.)
And now (FINALLY), we're here in Colorado and SO happy to have made it!!