Emergency!

It has been a week that, if not necessarily physically busy, was very mentally and emotionally so. First, the house has officially been listed. Woo! Keeping this place show-ready will prove to be a challenge when I live amongst the universe's biggest slobs and I'm not such a neat-freak, myself. (Let's not sugar coat it...the level of slobbiness around here is off the charts. I [usually] love them all despite the mountains of mess they leave behind.)

Okay, but the less happy news was that I received a text while at work on Thursday that my dad was headed to the ER because of chest pain. No bueno. Somehow, my mom, my brother and me were all able to meet him there within an hour. The four of us from the core family get together almost never. There's nothing quite like an emergency to get us all in the same room at the last minute!

I was off work 15 minutes after receiving the text, and I was able to get ahold of Dylan to ask him to kindly cut out of work early and grab the boys for me so that I could go to the hospital. By the time I got there, they were just finishing up with my dad in the ER, and they rolled him right on up to the cardiac cath lab in record time. The procedure took quite a while, but the good news was they found the blockage and were able to place a stent while they were in there snooping around in his arteries. No further surgery required. Dad came out feeling almost totally fine. Heart attacks are super scary but a good dose of reality check.

To put it into perspective, let's talk about how much worse things could have been. Dad began having chest pain that morning, while on a houseboat on Lake Powell with his buddies. They were due to come back home that day, and his pals did most of the packing up so he could rest. Then, he felt better. When they made it back to town, they dropped off a buddy in far north Scottsdale, and then he felt sick again. So, he asked his other buddy to take over driving. Then he felt worse, so together my dad and his friend, both MDs, decided the Thompson Peak ER should be the next stop, with boat in tow and everything. His buddy has been an ER doc in Scottsdale for probably 35 years, so he knows some people, and Dad got right on in. (In truth, anyone with chest pain is never asked to wait.)

If this had happened at any time earlier in the week, things could have been much worse. I'm not sure the quality of the medical facilities in Page, but I'm guessing they're not awesome. And even still, it takes a few hours to get off Lake Powell, even in the speed boat. (Fun fact: my dad had chest pain and what turned out to be a mild heart attack on Lake Powell when I was a teenager. The lake seems to be the common denominator when it comes to my dad and trouble with blocked arteries...) While my dad was on Powell, my mom was with her friend in Nashville. She had flown in a few hours earlier. When my dad was resting in his room after the procedure, another friend who was on the trip, also an MD, called him to tell him to please be sure to get in to see the cardiologist tomorrow. My dad told him the situation was taken care of...he was sitting in the hospital with a fresh stent in his artery. His friend was a little blown away, but relieved, I'm sure. There's just so much about the timing of events that makes my whole family feel very grateful that today my dad is home and feeling well.

You know what else came of this? A random Friday night road trip for D and me. My parents had tickets to see Darius Rucker at the Cliff Castle Casino in Camp Verde, but after the turn of events, that wasn't going to happen for them. My mom insisted that we use the tickets and that she take the boys. Trust me, I wouldn't want someone else's two small children in my home on the day I was released from the hospital, one day post-heart attack. But, over and over, my dad said he felt fine and that they really wanted the kids, and that they really, really wanted us to use the tickets. So, OK! We headed north on Friday afternoon and stopped in Anthem to pick up some summer duds at Banana Republic factory store. Then, we were off to Cordes Jct to have drinks and dinner at my brother's bar and restaurant. (Did you know my brother has a bar and restaurant? It shouldn't surprise you...his ambitions and business ventures are varied and far-reaching.)

Going to a concert at a casino pavilion was an experience. We don't go to many concerts as it is, but this setting was a first for us. It was nice being outdoors, and it wasn't too big. The opening band was fun, but Darius Rucker took FOREVER to come on because his lead guitarist had fallen down (or something?) and had to go to the hospital. So, we stayed for 5 or 6 of his songs, and then it was wayyyy past my bedtime and we were far from home, so we called it a night. Going to a concert at a casino two hours away is not an opportunity we would seek out on our own, but since it presented itself to us, we thought it would be a random and fun way to spend an evening. We weren't wrong! As usual, the best part of sending the kids to spend the night with my parents is the next morning. So, we are enjoying an uninterrupted cup of coffee and some peace and quiet right now, and it is nicer than nice.

And what would a blog post be without a few photos of my children?

In an instant, Gavin has become obsessed with Duplo Legos.

We took advantage of a few days of cooler weather to go on one last neighborhood walk before it's too hot to even look outside.

Sunscreen nose! And look! He's actually wearing pants.

Ok, onward with the weekend. Let's hope things calm down and just stay normal. Unless it's a good kind of abnormal...