Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 11, 2023

Quick Trip with the Parents to Pembina Gorge

When my dad told me he'd like to see Pembina Gorge sometime, I told him I had never heard of it. (I don't feel bad as I know many other North Dakotans who hadn't heard of it either!) In order to help make his dream a reality, I tried to schedule a weekend that my caregivers could come here to look after Faith. We settled on the first weekend in October. My mom decided to come as well. She said it would be the only nonmedical trip the three of us had taken together! We all hoped the fall foliage would be out in full force that weekend! 

In preparing to go, I had typed up 3 pages of instructions for Faith's caregivers, one of whom was a loyal respite care provider who has been with us for over 3 years and also my sister. Both of them are very experienced and resourceful, but I printed out the instructions, nonetheless. Faith has been trying a new kind of food so that was a bit of an adjustment for them. 

After dropping Faith off at her day program in the middle of a wind advisory, I met my parents in the parking lot, and we set off for our little trip. 

The first stop was Jamestown, where we felt like we had entered the Twighlight Zone. Mom and Dad's phones were acting up, plus I had never experienced placing my order on the big screen inside a McD's before, so that was new. We noticed a lot of the elderly people needed help with the digital menu, but it was a breeze for the youngsters. 

My Dad and I at McD's in Jamestown aka the Twilight Zone!
None of us had really ever been to the little towns in the Northeast part of the state before, so it was fun to see some of the towns, realizing that the Watford City Wolves had played many of their teams in football and basketball. I got a kick out of Hoople - Tater Town, USA! 

In Larimore, we saw some huge, very bizarre buildings with no signs or windows, just one large overhead door and an American flag out front. Dad figured they were storage shops for potato equipment. (If anyone knows, please let us know!)  

Then as we attempted to find a gas station in Finley, I realized I had missed a call from my sister. I quickly called her back and she said the key fob I had given her for the van was not working. It seemed the batteries had died. She needed to go to Mandan to pick Faith up from her day program. She almost panicked but then realized the fob had to have a key in it somewhere, which she managed to find, and all was well. She just wouldn't be able to use the fob to open the doors or let down the ramp. Thankfully, she could still use the buttons inside the van for all that. 

After finding a gas station, we headed to Cavalier where we would be staying the night. On our way to the hotel, I spotted what looked like Jason from Halloween and ET riding a bicycle in front of a haybale. Rather odd, I thought. But as we found our way to the only open restaurant in town, we saw many more decorated hay bales. Maybe it was some sort of fall contest or something for homecoming? 

Strange sighting near our motel in Cavalier. 
After a great meal in a wonderful small-town restaurant called Thompson's Cafe, we headed back to our motel. I did a video chat with Faith, who was doing great with Auntie Dawn. They even went to the library together (which is something Faith and I normally do every Friday). I was super proud of her for being willing to change up her routine and having Dawn take her to the library instead of me. Now all Dawn had to do was get through the entire page of Faith's good night routine! As for me, I was super excited to be able to go to bed at 10:30! 

The next morning, Dad and I had the continental breakfast of cereal, toast, and coffee. When we went to get Mom (who doesn't eat breakfast) she informed us of the heartbreaking news that Israel was under attack. It was unbelievable, however the first words out of my mouth were, "The Rapture is going to happen soon!" As awful as the situation is, God's plan will come to fruition for Israel and all of humanity! 

It didn't talk long to reach the small but beautiful town of Walhalla, which happens to be the "Moose Capital of North Dakota." Without even knowing that, Dad was so sure we were going to see a moose! After not being really sure of where to go, we finally headed in the right direction toward Pembina Gorge. For miles, all we had seen was flat farmland, so it was a bit awe-inspiring to suddenly come upon the stark contrast of the Pembina Gorge. It was a beautiful sight, but we were a little disappointed to miss the peak fall foliage. A lot of the leaves had blown off as it had been very windy in the days leading up to our trip. We did notice, however, that North Dakota was unusually green for this time of year! 

Horseback riders on the flat land behind us. 

Hills and trees for miles in front of us.
Dad and I convinced Mom to take a road and drive down into the gorge. We found out there were several trails that people could walk on, as well as explore by horse or ATV. We also found out that it was much too cold for that. I think it was just over 40 degrees, cloudy, and windy when we were there. Thank goodness I had brought my winter coat! 

After exploring for a bit, we went on a little dirt road alongside some tall-standing corn where a white-tail deer came briefly out of hiding. It was the only wildlife we had seen up to that point. We eventually found our way to an incredible view called Tetrault Overlook. It was even more spectacular than the gorge, as we could also see the Pembina River. 

Heading down into Pembina Gorge. 

Dad looking for moose! 

Tetrault Overlook and the Pembina River
We then decided to backtrack a bit and head to Icelandic State Park. We didn't have a lot of time, so we didn't drive through the park, but we did check out the Pioneer Heritage Center, where we learned about the homesteading history of that part of the state. 

None of us had known that Pembina was home to the state's first General Land Office, which was established in 1870. We had also never heard of the Timber Culture Act, which encouraged homesteaders to plant trees. As you can imagine, it was hard to do in North Dakota! Despite their best efforts, North Dakota remains the state with the least number of tees! 

Icelandic State Park - we were very close to Canada!

Homesteaders Poem 
Finally, we ventured to Langdon, where we stopped at the Dairy Queen for lunch. As we headed south on Highway 1 toward the Interstate, our adventures included almost hitting a big deer that decided to sprint across the road to join his friends and sighting a strange pyramid-shaped building near Nekoma. Turns out the Great Pyramid was built in the 1960s to follow missiles from Russia and then shot down over Canada! Crazy, right? North Dakota certainly is full of history, mystery, and beauty! 

We ended up making it home just as the sun was starting to set. When we pulled into the parking lot, I saw Faith sitting in front of the window. When she saw me get out of the vehicle, she got so excited that I heard her from outside! It was a fun-filled tip and lots of memories were made but it was good to be home. Oh, and Dad never did see his moose! 

Tuesday, August 1, 2023

A Wonderful Weekend Getaway

This past weekend, Faith and I both got to experience the Medora Musical together - for the first time ever! We went with my dad and sister. The singing and dancing definitely met our expectations. After the National Anthem, some of the first songs they sang included, "Let's Hear it for the Boy" and "Dancing on the Ceiling." Both songs were a great and energetic way to start the show. 

Faith was super excited, nearly dancing out of her chair! One reason she could hardly contain her excitement was that a few of the performers (Adam and Taylor) go to our church! The storytelling in between the musical numbers described how the little "cow town" of Medora came to be, as well as the influence that Theodore Roosevelt had in North Dakota. 

View from our seats!

Close up of the performers. 

Auntie Dawn and Grandpa

During the song, "Paint Your Dreams Across the Sky" by Dolly Parton, the cast invited the children to join them onstage. I wasn't expecting one of the cast members to come up and stand by Faith to sing. It was super sweet, but unfortunately, I didn't get a picture. They also sang "His Eye Is on the Sparrow," along with a medley of gospel songs. 

There were country songs and funny songs, too, that got the crowd laughing and clapping along. One that I remember was "40 Cups of Coffee." The entertainment also included a trick roping cowboy and another one yodeling.  

We were thoroughly enjoying the show when I noticed a shift in the weather. It had been bright and sunny upon arrival, but it had changed to cloudy and windy. Just as they were about to get into the Paul Bunyan Lumberjack Show, one of the ushers came over to us and said they were going to call the show in five minutes if we wanted to get ahead of the crowd to the elevators. I thought it was very kind of him to give us a heads up, but I was also very disappointed. 

Sadly, we didn't get to see much of the lumberjack show.

When we got up to the parking lot, my sister Dawn pushed Faith as fast as she could to the van and just as they got there, it began to rain. Just after the four of us piled inside the van, it began to downpour. 

Since we were just sitting there, I got a feeding going for Faith. After the traffic cleared, we sadly made our way to Dickinson. All was not lost, though, as there were some gorgeous rainbows in the sky. I have never seen so many of them in such a short time span! 

Bad weather heading straight for us.

The rain was coming down hard!

Videos by Michael Lawlar

Beautiful double rainbow heading from Medora to Dickinson (photo by Dawn Lawlar)

After getting to Dickinson, we found a place to eat. It was called "Sanford's" and when we pulled into the parking lot, Dawn and I realized it was the same restaurant we had eaten at when we had traveled to Watford City about 3 years ago. 

After supper, we made our way back to the hotel and started Faith's evening routine. It had been quite a day. I was so proud of Faith for how she was handling the traveling and the disappointment with the musical ending early. 

Waiting patiently for her chocolate milkshake!

Being udderly silly!
The next day after checking out, we set out for our next adventure: a visit to the Dickinson Museum Center where they had the Badlands Dinosaur Museum. Faith loves dinosaurs and she couldn't wait to get a new shirt for T-Rex Thursday at her day program. It was fun to look at the bones and try to imagine what it was like when dinosaurs roamed the earth. There were also numerous displays of minerals from all over the world, some of which were fluorescent. 

We also explored the Joachim Regional History Museum and Dad even asked if they could open up the Pioneer Machinery Hall, which they sometimes don't do on Sundays depending on how busy it is. Faith was a little bored with some of the history stuff, so she and Dawn ventured to the gift shop where she helped her auntie pick out stuffed dinosaur toys for her grandkids. After all that, we hit up the A&W/KFC and made our way back to Bismarck. 

Dinosaurs and fossils galore!

Faith didn't look too scared!

Faith checking out the cool fluorescent fossils. 

Inside the machinery hall. I told Faith this is what Laura from Little House travelled in. 

Grandpa was super impressed with this old tractor. 

Getting Faith to the Medora Musical was something I have been wanting to do for a long time and with the improved accessibility at the venue, along with help from my sister, we were able to make it happen! I was also very thankful that Faith's grandpa could accompany us. I was so happy to be driving to western North Dakota, as that will always be home to me. 

The end of July was a great time to head west as golden round bales dotted the landscape and the corn, sunflower, and wheat crops were flourishing. The Badlands looked so beautiful, and we even passed by a large herd of bison. It truly was a wonderful weekend getaway! 

The beauty of the Badlands 


Thursday, June 30, 2022

One Year Ago: My Trip to Mayo

Today I thought it was quite fitting that on my one year anniversary of my new pacemaker, I was wearing a 24-hour Holter monitor! It's not because I'm having any issues with my pacemaker. Instead, I'm just preparing for my upcoming cardiology appointment next month. 

Thankfully, my cardiologist from Mayo comes here to Bismarck, so I don't have to make the 1,000-mile round trip again! By the way, isn't amazing how small these Holter monitors are nowadays? I remember having to wear much larger ones that could not be hidden very easily, plus it was hard to sleep being attached to a big clunky machine. Last night, I hardly even knew this little one was there!

I got my original pacemaker in August of 1999 but because the lead was getting old, my cardiology team wanted me to get a new one. It was last year on this day that I was recovering from the procedure. It still bends my mind how God took care of every single detail and that I had found enough people to look after Faith for the five days (and four nights) that I was gone.

I am still incredibly grateful for all those who stepped up to look after her. I'm also thankful my sister was able to take me there. Faith still talks about it like it just recently happened. She often mentions that her aunt and little cousin stayed with her a couple of nights and how patient she had to be. 

She also talks about how our friend Mandi looked after her, and she even had her kids and husband come over to visit. I don't know what I would have done without her as she came every morning to relieve the overnight staff and get Faith out of bed. She even sent me a picture of Faith every day!

Faith had loads of fun while I was gone!

Faith told me when Grandma and Grandpa were here, Grandpa did his crossword puzzle and then took a nap. (It's just funny which details she remembers!) There was also the respite care staff who stayed over a couple of nights and also a few other friends who helped out. She will truly never forget it. Most of all though, I think she is proud of herself for getting through that time and being so mature. It helped that I got to talk to Faith every day and even did a couple of video chats with her, which she loved.

Even though it was for a medical procedure, my sister and I made the best of it and had plenty of laughs along the way. Especially when on the way home our sister was heading back from a work trip and we managed to catch up to her on the Interstate, which you can see in the video below!

The double rainbow we spotted just as we crossed into Minnesota

After driving in the dark (and rain) through the Cities, we were very thankful to reach our comfy hotel room.

Our hotel was conveniently located just across the street from where I would be having my procedure. This is also where I had my last open heart surgery in 1999 and my original pacemaker implantation.

Taking the shuttle from our hotel to the downtown campus for a day of medical tests.

Hanging around waiting for the last appointment of the day.

My sister even was able to get some work done!

After a long day, we were able to eat at our favorite restaurant in Rochester!

Me after my procedure...I was just a tad groggy!

Grateful that things went so well!

After a night in the hospital and an extra day recovering, we were ready to hit the road again!











Who is that ahead of us on the Interstate? Let's find out!     


Tired but happy sisters reunited in Bismarck!

Grandma is there too, and Faith is super excited to have us all there!

Hopefully it will be awhile before I need to go to Mayo again for a medical procedure. If I do though, I know God will provide and Faith will be well looked after!

Wednesday, April 13, 2022

Our First-Ever Sister Weekend Getaway!

Just recently I was able to go away for the weekend - for fun! For the first time in 18 years, I was able to travel to another city, stay overnight, and not have any doctors appointments or procedures. And what made it even better was going with my sisters! 

Faith was well-looked after by respite care. She even had a friend come over to visit and her grandparents, too! Of course getting away did not come without a challenge or two. 

The day before leaving, as I was cleaning the entire apartment and getting ready to pack, a staff member at Faith's day program told me her feeding pump was not working. I only had an hour before I had to pick her up so I cruised down to our DME provider and asked if I could get a loaner pump since hers was not working. 

Unfortunately, they no longer carry the type of feeding pump she uses, so I needed to get a whole new system. This required me to learn how to use it and then make sure Faith's respite staff and her day program staff was going to know how to use it. I wrote down lots of instructions, took photos, and made a video. This took up a lot of time, and needless to say I didn't get to bed until well after midnight, without even packing.

Thankfully everything went smoothly the next morning and I was able to pack and get ready to go. Faith's first caregiver arrived and my sister, Dawn came to pick me up. I jumped into her pickup and we went barreling down the Interstate rockin' out to the Bon Jovi station on Pandora. 

We arrived in St. Paul that evening and met up with our sister, Tesa who had flown in from Nebraska. Since Dawn's birthday was right around the corner, we let her choose the restaurant. That evening we took an Uber (my first ever!) who drove us to Hell's Kitchen (Chef Gordon Ramsey's restaurant) in Minneapolis. I must say the fish tacos I had were some of the best I have ever eaten.

Since we were there for Dawn's birthday they said she would get a free brownie dessert. When the waiter brought out the tiny brownie topped with whip cream and 3 plates and spoons, we about lost it. How in the world was the waiter not embarrassed to serve such a piddly little brownie to three people? 

After getting back to the hotel Tesa and I talked Dawn into watching "Top Gun" since she had never seen that movie before. Wouldn't you know that both of them conked out on me while watching! Unfortunately that night I did not sleep the best. I was really missing Faith, although I knew she was just fine with her overnight respite staff. I have also discovered in recent years that firm mattresses at hotels are not good for my back. Needless to say, I was tired when I woke up but excited for our day. 

We started it off by Dawn being brave and doing the driving. After finding Caribou Coffee, we hit the biggest shoe store I have ever seen in my life (DSW). I found a great deal on a comfy pair of tennis shoes. I do plan to start walking when the weather gets nice. (If that ever happens, as right now much of North Dakota is getting slammed by a major blizzard). 

After shoe shopping, we hit Dawn's favorite store, Maurices and then ventured into other stores Roseville. We found a Chili's and had lunch there. We made one more shopping stop (where I did a video chat with Faith and my parents because Mom had texted me saying the TV wasn't working) and then headed back to the hotel to get ready for the main event. 

 


It was cold in rainy in southeastern Minnesota, and even though the Xcel Energy Center was about half a mile from the hotel, we decided to take a shuttle van. My most anxious moment was using the digital tickets from my phone. It was so weird not being able to hand them paper tickets. I guess it's been a long time since I've gone to a concert! Also, the last time I went to a concert with my sisters was New Kids on the Block in 1990. That concert was also in St. Paul but at Harriet Island Regional Park.

Thankfully, the digital tickets went very smoothly and before we knew it we were sitting in our seats in Section 106 Row 12 listening to the opening band. Bon Jovi usually has local bands open up for the shows, but I do not know the name of the band performing. Bon Jovi hit the stage around 8:30 p.m. singing "Limitless." You can read my concert review on my HubPage


 
 

We were surprised upon leaving the concert venue that the rain from earlier had turned to heavy, thick snow. After walking a few blocks, we ducked into Tom Reids Hockey Pub to warm up and grab something to eat. The waitress was super nice and filled us in on the socioeconomic status of downtown St. Paul. To us, it seemed an interesting blend of the rich and poor. 

However, neighborhood businesses were not happy about a recent homeless shelter established in the area as it was attracting drugs and prostitution to this part of town. The waitress said she no longer felt safe walking to her car after work and often used an escort. It's sad because we saw a homeless guy making a fire in a barrel just trying to keep warm. What are they supposed to do and where are they supposed to go?  After a very late supper, we walked the remaining few blocks in the snow to our hotel.


Sorry Minnesota!!

The next day, it was time to rise and shine and get back home. We hugged Tesa goodby at the hotel just before her Uber driver picked her up. About six hours later, Dawn and I arrived back home. It was perfect timing because we rolled into the parking lot just as one of Faith's respite staff was bringing her home from her Day Program, where she happily spent the entire day. 

Needless to say, she was very excited to see me! We spent the rest of the evening filling each other in on our time apart and with me promising it would be a while before I went away again.  But all in all, our first-ever sister getaway was a great success and I look forward to the day we can do it again!