Skip to main content

A Good Vacation Gone Bad





We received some bad news during our family vacation in San Diego last week that put a damper on our fun.

It started out great when my husband picked me up from the office Wednesday night and we made great time on the road despite the rush-hour traffic.  Just out of Phoenix, we stopped for a long, relaxing dinner and our fun ended.  We weren’t half way to our Yuma hotel room when my cell began spitting out urgent texts to call my brother Eddie in Chicago.  I learned from him that our brother, Denny, was celebrating his anniversary in Vegas with his wife, Bonnie, when she had a brain aneurysm and was rushed to surgery.  The next day God answered our prayers and Bonnie survived!  My cell continued to ring throughout the trip with relatives giving us updates.  Bonnie was always close in our thoughts no matter what we did.

Our family was able to enjoy some nice meals together and go to the beach and play in the sand with Susanna! It was fun to watch Susanna on the carousal at Mission Beach as well as watch my daughter and her dad screaming on the roller coaster ride.    I can’t even begin to describe how comforting it was to be with my family during this time.  Praying for Bonnie in agreement with them was powerful.

 






 A special family meal together at the Cheesecake Factory.



 The last photo I took of Denny and Bonnie in Chicago last January.


To date, I have learned that Bonnie’s CAT Scan result was normal.  An angiogram showed today that Bonnie’s Vasospasm condition could lead to stroke or neurological damage, or just run its course with minimal effects.  We are praying for a miracle.  Denny is so faithful at her side and their son and daughter flew in to be with him.  Friends, I would love it if you can help me pray for Bonnie, too.

This post links to Tell Me A Story.

Comments

  1. a joyful noiseJune 11, 2012 at 10:27 PM

    Thank you for sharing your sad and also happy story at Tell me a Story. Praise God she survived, and God is able to heal completely.
    Our cell phones do help us keep in touch when something is going on in the family. God is so good.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Diane RonzinoJune 12, 2012 at 4:54 AM

    Oh, absolutely, I'll be praying. Pam, over at Writing...Apples of Gold http://wordglow.wordpress.com) is taking prayer requests today. She is an unbelievable prayer warrior. You may just want to connect with her.

    I'm so moved by your praying family! AWESOME!

    ReplyDelete
  3. RCUBEsJune 12, 2012 at 6:45 AM

    Praying with you sister Mary. But I'm also glad that you were able to spend a wonderful time with your family. What joy it must be to always be with your adorable granddaughter! God bless and take care!

    ReplyDelete
  4. momto8June 12, 2012 at 8:06 AM

    oh dear....I will pray for the whole family.

    ReplyDelete
  5. SharonJune 12, 2012 at 11:37 AM

    Praising God that she lived. Hoping and praying that God will continue to work His miracle in this situation. Other than that, it looks like you had a fun vacation. Your granddaughter is a total delight!!

    GOD BLESS!

    ReplyDelete
  6. http://bitsandpieces-sonja.blogspot.com/June 12, 2012 at 11:45 AM

    Absolutely! I am praying for Bonnie right now, that god would heal her completely, and spread His peace all around in the process.

    Thanks for sharing this Mary. It is always such a joy to life up those that we love and hear about.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Debbie PetrasJune 12, 2012 at 11:53 AM

    Oh my, praying for Bonnie now. It's so hard to receive news like this when you are excited about a fun vacation. So glad you were able to have this time with Susanna at the beach.

    Blessings and love,
    Debbie

    ReplyDelete
  8. DeniseJune 12, 2012 at 5:54 PM

    Bless your dear heart. Praying for a miracle for Bonnie, love you.

    ReplyDelete
  9. FloydJune 12, 2012 at 8:12 PM

    My heart breaks for your sister in law and brother. Why is it that those things always seem to happen when we're going on vacation?

    I'm praying for your sister in law tonight. I'm glad you had a good time with your family, we have to enjoy it while we can. That's what I'm taking from the lesson in your life. God bless my fellow Arizonian.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Kathleen June 12, 2012 at 8:38 PM

    What a rugged situation. I'm glad you were able to have some fun in spite of the burden.

    Also, I cannot believe how big Susannah is getting to be. Adorable!

    ReplyDelete
  11. RCUBEsJune 14, 2012 at 3:05 PM

    Of all things I love hearing are answered prayers. That was awesome sister Mary that your SIL has been responding to commands. I continue to pray for her healing & that there would be no damage from the aneurysm. God is awesome. Through difficulties He always make His presence known. God bless you all at this difficult time, may the Lord's love & grace comfort everyone. Love to you sister.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Crown of BeautyJune 15, 2012 at 1:31 AM

    Mary, I am praying for Bonnie, that her body will heal normally, and that she will enjoy many more years with her husband and family!

    Glad your vacation turned out well after all...

    Blessings
    Lidia

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Memorial Day Reflection

  Memorial Day is always noteworthy for me and my girls.  Next Thursday marks the third year of missing their father, my husband. So many thoughts  run through my mind.  The journey of loss takes on various emotions.  The strongest feeling, at first, was emptiness.  In a split second, I would forget he departed forever.  I imagined things I needed to talk to him about when he got back home.  My mind is realistic now.  He's not coming back.  There will be no more times of sitting on the porch swing together on the front deck staring at the moon and the stars.  He would tell me all he knew about the majestic night sky. I have so much I wish I could tell him, like the excitement of seeing our oldest grandchild make a decision to follow Jesus and get baptized on Mother's Day!  And our little Amy, 11 years old, I wish he could have seen her on stage receiving her induction to the National Honor Society. Our daughters have their own ...
23 comments
Read more

A Surprise at the Mall

I lost touch with a writer friend.  I missed her and her cheerful blog posts.  We met up in a most unusual way!  I’m still in awe of how it happened. I finished my shopping at the mall and took a short cut to get to the parking lot.  The path led me through the food court.  The smell of Chicken Fajitas stopped me in my tracks.  I planned lunch elsewhere, but now I followed my nose. I chewed my first bite of chicken taco salad when, out of nowhere, a loud redhead moved rapidly past the tables and into the booth with me.  “I know you !”  She shouted.  I pondered if I knew this crazy lady.  Did she mistake me for someone else?  She shouted louder and stuck her finger in my face:  “ You’re Mary; you have a blog called Pile of Smiles and you live in the Verde Valley .”   It took me a second to compose myself.  I stopped chewing my food.  I know I stared too long at her face and then she said:...
48 comments
Read more

Changing it a Bit

I learned years ago in Marriage Encounter that I need to find creative ways to keep love alive.  Avoid the boring status quo and experiment with new ways of doing things.  The principle of changing it a bit can be applied to any relationship, really.  Healthy friendship is a gift but doesn’t just fall in my lap.   I have to work at that too and think of ways to enjoy life together with those special friends. I’ve changed some things around the house recently to spice up things.  When I took down Christmas decorations, I placed my plants in different rooms and rearranged the bookcase to give the living room a different look. I drank my coffee black.  Ugh, that did not work! I knew months ago the “read through Bible” plan I especially like and have used off and on through the years would not suffice this year and found a new way to pray and study in the morning.  How refreshing to wake up to a new way of saying hello to God!...
37 comments
Read more