Surprise Trip!

For the past couple of years we have taken a trip in the spring to Florida and this year, not having the foresight to know that Joey would be the easiest baby on the planet, we opted not to take a "spring break" trip. This has caused all of us in our householdto be very stir crazy and eager to get the heck out of Indy. Ben has been asking to go to a hotel and go swimming and since his wish is our command...we scheduled a surprise trip.

Ben went to school like normal this past Wednesday, but was surprised to be picked up at 2:30 by daddy and even more surprised to find mommy, Joey, and a car full of luggage in the parking lot! We told him that we were taking him on a surprise vacation. Ben was absolutely thrilled and shouted "are we going to Disney World?!" Not quite. How about Cincinnati?

We stayed at the Great Wolf Lodge (Ben calls it the great big bear wolf hotel) and have nothing but wonderful things to say about it. If anyone in the midwest is looking for a great destination for their family, this is an awesome option. We stayed in a kid kabin suite and Ben literally had his own little cabin within our hotel room with bunk beds and his own tv. He thought this was awesome! Being the pack rat that he is, he emptied his suitcase and put all of his belongings, including all of the little shampoo and soap bottles that were in the room, in "his room."

The hotel features an indoor water park and Ben and Joey were mesmerized by all their was to see. I was really surprised how much Ben enjoyed the waterslides. I knew he would enjoy the pools, but by the end of the first night he was going down the waterslides all by himself! He also enjoyed the wave pool, lazy river, and water forts throughout the park. Joey loved looking around and watching all of the kids play. He was a trooper as always. He did dip his toes in the water and seemed to enjoy that...the experience elicited an immediate "blow out" of his diaper so I am guessing that is how he shows his pleasure at this point?!

We ordered pizza and had a picnic in our hotel room the first night and our entire family was in bed by 8:30 p.m. We are a wild and crazy bunch!

The next morning started off kind of shaky. Ben woke up and said his "toe was asleep." It quickly became apparant that he literally could not put any weight on his left foot. He would fall to the ground upon trying. I know it sounds like he was being dramatic, but it was actually pretty scary. He was in no pain and we couldn't see any bumps or bruises on his foot, but everytime he tried to stand with both feet on the floor he would fall down. After about an hour of this, Dean took Ben to the Immediate Care Center. After negative x-rays and examinations, it was determined that Ben was suffering from partial peroneal nerve palsy. There was a rail on the bunk bed and Ben slept with his left leg thrown over the top of the rail. The doctor surmised that this position must have compressed the peroneal nerve running along the back of the knee, causing temporary paralysis of his foot. The funniest thing is that this type of condition is often seen in drunk people because they pass out and don't feel the tingly sensation that accompanies the onset of this palsy...perhaps there was more than just gatorade in Ben's sippy cup last night?!

We were relieved that nothing was broken, but were still pretty concerned about poor Benny. After a couple of hours he was able to walk , but dragged his left foot and could not feel it at all. It was pretty pitiful. I told my dad that it is really remarkable how quickly you can begin to appreciate something you have taken for granted for so long. Ben is a very athletic kid and I was heartbroken at the notion that he may have serious damage to his foot....I'll skip forward in the story to let you know that he is totally fine now. He was unable to walk normally all day Thursday, but awoke Friday 100% normal, as though nothing had ever been wrong.

Back to Thursday, we went to a Cincinnati Reds baseball game and Ben and daddy sat behind home plate and had several foul balls come their way (it was "so cool" according to Ben). Joey and I went for a walk. It was an absolutely beautiful day, but a little too sunny in the seats for Mr. Joe Joe. He was the hit of the ballpark, however, and we made lots of friends on our walk, including the Reds mascot (Ben was kind of jealous).

After the game, we headed back to the hotel for more swimming fun, dinner, and another early bedtime, though I think we at least made it past 9 that night!

Friday we swam in the morning and then headed home. It was a great trip and a much needed get away. Both boys were really well behaved and Ben is eager to return. It was a very successful surprise trip!