Okay, here's what happened this past week:

1. Edie went back to work and school after a week's vacation leaving me, once again, without a car most of the time.

2. Mom had knee replacement surgery on Monday.

3. My dad needed the help of others because Mom was away from home.

4. My dad's sister came up from Florida to be his personal assistant.

5. Mom's surgery went well, she's doing fine, she's out of the hospital and in a local rehabilitation center.

Okay, here's what I learned this week:

1. You DON'T have to get to an 11:00 AM appointment by 10:00 AM. (Especially if the patient isn't called until 12)

2. Surgery scheduled at 12:45 means that time spent in the hospital by family members will be an all-day event. (Arrival was 10AM, departure was 9:45PM.)

3. Parking closest to the door that is closest to the destination does not mean there isn't going to be marathon walking involved. (The same holds true for distances between different destination points.)

4. Communication between doctors, staff, patients, and those in waiting is not always efficient. (The communication we were told would take place between us and the doctor in the waiting room was waiting for us on the answering machine when we got home.)

5. Waiting rooms can be called multi-purpose rooms. (I finished one book, read half of another, and had time to glance through magazines, watch some TV, take a few walks and a couple of naps.)

6. It's impossible to tell if hospital cafeteria food is good for one's diet or not. (Selections included "rabbit food", ultra starchy dishes with gravies and sauces, burgers and dogs, muffins and pastries, and numerous beverages.)

5. Service elevators are not intended for visitors. (Although, we were instructed to use them. Crowding in with patients, supplies, and trash bins is not the best way to travel.)

6. Sleeping at Dad's one night on a recliner, followed by a full day at the hospital with Dad and his walker(sometimes wheelchair), picking up someone at the airport (first flight in), and missing two days worth of work and phone and email messages can make me very cranky. (Just ask Edie.)

7. It can take a week to make up for two days' worth of falling behind to reach the level of only being normally behind. (In other words, I haven't caught up yet.)

8. All of this and the more I didn't even mention was worth every bit of it and I'd be willing to go through it all again!