THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER: VOLUME 140 MAY 2021
Dear Readers,
On April 1st I flew out of Kansas City to Orlando to celebrate Ray's 5th birthday and Easter. Josh very kindly offered to drop me off and pick me up at the airport so I could avoid the hassle of economy parking and shuttle busing into and out of the terminal. We drove to the airport with plenty of time to spare – we all know how anxious I get about unexpected happenstances that lead to the possibility of missing my flight- so I was relieved that Josh was at the wheel, not me, when we were preparing to leave I635 for the ramp onto I29 which takes us to the airport. The ramp was barricaded and a detour sign posted. If I had been driving I would probably have lost control of my bowels immediately. Josh stayed calm and followed the signs – which seemed to be few and a great distance from one another – why they do not post signs every hundred yards to let you know that you are on the right detour road to the airport as a public service is a mystery to me! After what seemed a very long time and a considerable distance out of our way( to me – not Josh) we finally connected to I29 and I was very relieved to be on a familiar road!
Once in the airport I dashed in to the restroom and prepared myself for a long security line which turned out to be totally unnecessary as I was second in line and through the security check in record time. I was pleased to see that everyone was masked but social distancing was not possible as all the gate areas were full. I found a seat and plopped down. Pulled out my phone and let the Remsbergs know that my plane was on time. I was contemplating the best time to make a potty run before boarding when I heard that our gate number was changing so along with a lot of other travelers I picked up my stuff and moved. Once again I was settled in when it was announced that we were changing gates yet again. Since it was quite a walk to our next gate I decided to use the bathroom enroute and barely made it to the gate before boarding began! I always try to avoid using the bathroom on board the plane. It was a crowded flight out – once again no social distancing but I only pulled up my mask enough to slip a peanut in!
Leslee-Ann and Ray picked me up at the Orlando airport and soon we arrived in Oakland to see Craig and Callie! Seeing your grandchildren on Zoom and Facetime is just not the same as being physically there with them. Covid 19 had kept me away from them for over a year and I definitely missed out on Callie's baby hood. She is such a happy, easy going toddler and loves to be with Ray! I was amazed by her ability to swim under water, and come up for air and dive down again. Craig and Leslee-Ann are teaching her to swim to the sides of the pool or steps so she can be as safe as possible in the water.
On Friday it was decided to celebrate Ray's fifth birthday a couple of days early since it actually fell on Easter Sunday and Leslee-Ann and Craig thought two celebrations in one day involving a lot of sweet treats might be better with a break in between. Craig's dad, Roger, came over that afternoon to join in the party, unfortunately Judy is having memory issues that require her to live in an assisted living facility but she did get to host a birthday celebration there for Ray. The Logues had sent some Star Wars light lasers which Ray and Callie both enjoyed – especially when attacking Roger and me with them! Pretty easy to play dead at our age!
On Saturday morning we headed out bright and early (especially for me) to a nearby farm to pick blueberries and I was very pleased to see almost everyone wearing a mask! The kids were very into picking blueberries and of course eating them! Callie seems to need something in her mouth most of the time! I also noticed that she is a real daddy's girl – poor Craig has to pick her up and carry her when ever her arms go up and she grabs her shoes when she wants him to take her on a walk -which seems to happen several times a day! I almost dropped her the first time I picked her up as I was unprepared for her heft – you definitely need to bend your knees and take a deep breath to hoist her up!
Sunday morning the children were running around the house excitedly searching for their Easter Baskets ! After breakfast, finding their gift baskets and getting dressed we headed outside to hunt for Easter Eggs that Leslee had hidden all over the front yard! There must have been a hundred of them. A little girl who lives a couple of doors down came over to join in the fun and another set of neighbors who have grown very close to the Remsburgs came out to watch the kids running around and filling their baskets!
Roger came over for our Easter Feast and we had fun sorting through the contents of the kids eggs and baskets. The next day I headed back to Kansas City to take on my garden chores and the piecing together of the baby quilt I was making for Kay and Richard's June baby.
Fortunately I finished my rag quilt in time for Kay's baby shower on April 17th, which was hosted by her friend Misty who is wonderfully organized and a lovely person. It was a virtual and in person event. Friends from afar and those who were not vaccinated zoomed in whilst those of us two weeks out from our last Covid 19 shots were allowed to attend in person and how wonderful it was to finally be able to mingle in public again! Kay had so many cute and practical gifts that I think she and Richard would be very challenged to find anything to buy for the baby themselves!
We have had a very rainy and windy April but also enjoyed some very warm and sunny days – in fact it was actually warmer here in Kansas City then it was in Orlando during my visit! I have already had to mow three times!
Sarah and Sean decided to combine my birthday celebration with Liam's this year as mine is on the 11th and his is the 13th. Many of my children seem to have colluded on their garden gifts to me this year as I received a very large gray snail ornament with an oversized evil looking mouth which I have strategically placed in a bed of similar colored Lamb's Ears where hopefully it will not be too noticeable when my neighbors invite themselves over for a garden tour. My still desperately needing to be power washed and repainted deck is now adorned with a solar lit color changing cat with a head that continually bobs up and down and an owl, bird, and frog that sport car headlights for eyes. My grandchildren adore them all of course!
On April 30th I was driving across Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and part of Indiana to be able to hug Lori, Ming-Lee and Claudia for the first time in over a year! Thank goodness for the Covid 19 vaccinations that made it possible to for us all to be together. Ming-Lee's spirit is as bright as ever despite the physical limitations that his illness and treatments are causing his mind and body. He is having problems with short term memory loss, loss of vision and a marked weakness on his left side making his arm and leg difficult to move. Lori is a master of organizational skills as she keeps track of all his daily medications, doctor and treatment appointments, and does her utmost to keep his calorie intake up with healthy meals and protein shakes with every healthful ingredient she can pack into them. Fortunately Claudia loves to cook and helps out as much as she can.
On Saturday I spent some time with Ming-Lee while Lori went with Claudia who was getting her very long hair cut off to donate to a charity that will use it to make wigs for children with hair loss. Ming and I decided to take a short walk around the neighborhood with Ming-Lee using a walking stick to help balance himself. Because of his vision issues he has a very limited ability to see – even large cars if they are in a blind spot for him and I had to shuttle him out of the way of cars a few times and we had one one rather scary instance when an older lady was reversing down her steep driveway , backing way out into the street without even seeing us - within touching distance of her car at one point. I waved my hand and Ming his walking stick but even that failed to get her attention. Getting home proved a bit of a challenge as I am not familiar with their neighborhood and Ming-Lee became a bit confused about which way we needed to turn to go back but was able to figure it out after a couple of wrong moves. I was getting ready to pull up google maps on my phone when we finally found the street!
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| Ming-Lee and I enjoying time together after more than a year apart due to Covid |
It was such a beautiful, sunny day that we decided to eat lunch out on the patio and enjoy the hawks circling overhead. I was grateful to share some special moments with Ming as we waited for Lori and Claudia to return home for the big reveal of the new hair cut! As soon as Claudia stepped out onto the patio to join us we loved her new look! The new bob cut frames her face beautifully!
On Sunday I drove home making a couple of quick stops for gas. I have spent the bulk of my time since my return out in the garden, pulling endless weeds, digging out border edges, planting Canna bulbs and putting together container plants.
This past weekend we celebrated Mother's Day. Kay and Richard invited me over for a delicious lunch – salmon on the grill- on Saturday and on Sunday Coryn hosted brunch with a wonderful selection of cheeses, quiche, muffins, a variety of waffles, sausages and bacon all washed down with Mojito's decorated with mint leaves and raspberries! She also had beautiful table settings and a gorgeous table- scape that she had created. I wish that I had thought of taking a picture but with four grand-babies there I was much too distracted! Josh spent the weekend in Indy stopping by my house that Sunday evening to deliver a card from Ming and Lori – he must have left his card for me somewhere !
The Indy Lowes – minus Blake - are planning to drive over to Kansas City for a few days in early June to see more family member's. They are staying in my house as I have a bedroom and walk in shower on the main floor to make things easier for Ming-Lee but we do have three other homes with spare bedrooms to offer the rest of you! Bryn is planning to come home for a few days around the same time so we can have something of a family reunion. Blake has been offered a summer internship in Santa Monica and so will be out in LA with Uncle Marc! I hope Blake enjoys cleaning! Marc's condo looks more like a student's pad than Blake's college dorm room probably does! In all seriousness though it is so wonderful to have such a big family willing to work together to take care of each other!
Love from your green thumbed, withering on the vine but always in bloom Mother - when in the presence of family and friends!
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