The Thursday before Labor Day I loaded up the three younger girls and headed for Bloomington, Minnesota, home of the Berggrens. Our plan was to spend Friday with the Berggrens and Emma, and go to the state fair. Saturday I'd pick up Jane from her cousins' house and shoot over to Wisconsin Rapids to visit Grandma and Grandpa. We'd stay overnight then make the rest of the trip back to Chicago. As you'll see, it didn't quite turn out that way.
By the end of our time there, Morgan and her cousins were as comfortable together as sisters. She played like a Miller and processed life like a Miller and had a Miller-like sense of humor. The girls worked one afternoon on circus-type skills. Morgan had some really cool tricks to teach her cousins. They also loved playing games and laughing.
One of our goals was to attend the Minnesota State Fair, a yearly tradition of the Berggrens. It was a blast! I thought the highlight was watching first one calf, and then its twin, be born. The girls asked, "Mom, are you crying?" "It's so beautiful!" "It's so slimy!" Guess you need to be a mother to find the true wonder in it :) We also went on a few rides: the giant slide (seated on burlap sacks- a throwback to my childhood), the ski lift across the fairgrounds, a water ride. We visited the horse barn, the chicken barn, the barn with pictures made entirely of seeds and beans, the orchid display (with many photos to prove it). We watched a fascinating show by trampolinists (?) headed for the Olympic tryouts. We ate frozen grapes when we were parched. We watched a parade. The girls loved every minute of it. Perhaps it will become a Miller tradition as well.
On our way towards the exit Morgan said that her mom was feeling claustrophobic. Sharon was shaking and sweating. It reminded me of when Sofie has low blood sugar. We found a bench to sit on and I had the girls get Sharon a milkshake. After finishing the drink she still seemed shaky, but she insisted that we continue on to the car. We had parked in Jane's relatives' driveway so we had about 4 or 5 blocks to walk. Halfway to our van Sharon suddenly fell over backward in a seizure! She conked her head pretty hard on the sidewalk; there was blood all over. Bridget was trying to get out my phone so that we could call for help, though the thought that ran through my mind was, "I have no idea where we are!" A bystander said that he "had it" so I shifted my attention to Sharon. She seized for a couple of minutes, then tried to get up. She had no idea where she was or what had happened to her. A nurse had been working in her front yard across the street and came over as soon as she heard the commotion. She was calm and knew just what to do. She turned Sharon onto her side and kept reassuring me that all would be well. I just prayed over Sharon and kept telling her we loved her. A man brought us a wet cloth to cool her down with. There were several Good Samaritans that stepped out of their busy lives to offer help, comfort, and hugs. I don't remember their faces, but I remember their kindnesses to us.When Sharon first fell I told Bridget to take the girls away and pray. A lovely woman in a big old red car pulled over and herded the girls into her vehicle. She and a man and his son all kept up friendly conversations with the girls as a needed distraction. The paramedics soon arrived and then I lost it. (I tend to save the real crying for when the crisis is coming to an end!) The lovely red car lady, Theresa, drove us to our car and we got ready to meet Sharon's ambulance at the hospital. We had been using Jay's old cranky GPS which normally waits until the trip is half over to chime in with directions. I knew we needed quicker information than that. I set the GPS and simply started driving blindly. I realized that this wasn't going to work...so we laid hands on the GPS and prayed. The GPS sputtered to 100%, the purple line indicated that we should double back and the radio played the song, "Turn Around" ("you've got to turn around..") We got the message! Lowell met us at the hospital and that inaugurated our extended stay in the Twin Cities.
The next day we did the Mall of America. The girls talked me into going on a roller coaster that not only rolled, but spun at the same time. Fun! We had lunch at Chipotle and hung out at the game store for an hour. We window shopped and got a free mocha to split six ways.(I had ordered a chai tea and the server had made one too many mochas...mochas from heaven!) We had a blast! We heated up frozen pizzas and played Imagine If... so aside from worrying about Sharon, the day was a success.
The next day, after church and playing in the yard, we drove into Minneapolis proper. I wanted to see the house I'd spent my formative years in. (I lived in Minneapolis from ages 8-12). My grammar school, Julia Ward Howe, was shuttered and up for sale, My childhood home didn't look much better, but it was fun to reminisce.
Then I took the kids to Minnehaha Falls. I have fond memories of wading the creek with Sharon and David. The girls recreated those memories for me as they rolled their pant legs up and jumped from rock to rock and splashed in the water.
We played more games and watched more movies that night. Monday we absolutely needed to head home, though I was reluctant to do so. Bridget couldn't miss any more school and I still needed to get Jane back home.
Since all of this transpired two weeks ago I can let you know that Sharon recovered from the seizure and is doing much better. Thank the Lord for His mercies! I am so glad that I was with her when that happened; it was ordained by God.
