Cincinnati

We go to Cincinnati once a year or once every two years as needed.  Most of the times it's just C and I. When things are more serious, like when C was having major surgery in 2005, my husband comes, too. He may come with us, leave to go back to work then come back just to be there.  This year it was just the two of us again. My son is such a trooper I have to say.  He goes there all excited about getting on a plane, waits stoically to be seen by the doctors, goes through a bit of anxiety and manages to remain calm all the times in between. Sometimes, I wish he could tell me how he's feeling about all of this. He's been going since he was two and half. He was probably too young to remember what happened that far back, which is a good thing since the worst happened back then, but he went back when he was three, four, five and six years old. Right at six, they(the doctors) told us that we could wait two years before coming back and we did.  Luckily, nothing happened during that time to make us go earlier and so, this past Sunday, C and I boarded a plane and flew to Cincinnati to go see the doctors.  I don't like going to Cincinnati. I don't know anyone there. Well, I know some of the moms I met when C and I stayed at the Ronald McDonald's House for three months but we didn't keep in touch so bottom line: I don't know anyone there. When I go to Cincinnati, the hospital is the friendliest place I can find. There, they know my son is a patient.  They know what we go through, the anxiety of it all and they really try to help us out anyway they can.  There's a family resource room where I go sometimes just to kill time while waiting.  Sometimes I go there with C but there are times when I just to "breathe" and see other people, get on line or, just to be off the surgery or main floor. I didn't go this time around. I probably should have but I just didn't. Now, the hospital gift shop, I always visit. C loves it there. He always, always finds something he wants there and, though I say no to many of his requests, I usually end up buying him one thing. Why not? He's there by himself, away from home, away from his familiar environment so why not? And the other place we usually visit is the cafeteria. I like it there, too. Not so much because of their hot food, nothing spectacular there really but because of their soup, salad and cold product compartment. This time, I went for their pita chips and hummus but C could not eat most of the things there so he only had chocolate milk. Still, it's somewhere to go and just sit for a few minutes. The Guest Services Department is really good, too. They actually offer rides to the neighboring drugstores and the drivers do many runs throughout the day. I needed to go to a Walgreens or CVS this time around and they were able to arrange for one of their drivers to take me there, wait for me and bring me back to the hospital. They also offer discounted tickets to family attractions in the area but I've never used those. There's just no time for that when we go to Cincinnati. The only time we were in Cincinnati long enough for something like that to happen, C was hospitalized for two weeks straight then had to stay put at the Ronald McDonald House and go to the hospital for checkups.  I must say, the Ronald McDonald House is the best option by far for families with kids who have to be there for a long time.  They have two playrooms, a nice playground and provide many different kinds of activities for the kids themselves and for their families throughout the week.  I was able to stay there twice or was it three times out of all the times I had to bring C to Cincinnati. It also helps in the finance department since they use a sliding scale to charge for the room. I was very grateful for their hospitality while I was there and being just across the street from the hospital really helped, too. The only thing is that they have a looooong waiting list and families have no guarantee that they will get a room there. When you call to tell them that you will be in town on such and such date, they ask that you book a room at a hotel, ask for your phone number and contact you if, and only if a room frees up. I think they go by priority: The neediest families are always given priority based on their child's medical  condition and treatment needs. When C needed to stay in Cincinnati for those three months, they considered us a priority so we got a room pretty fast. The other two times, we were just lucky. And thankful.  I've been going to Cincinnati long enough to have stayed at a hotel that closed two years ago. It was a historical hotel and it had become our regular home away from home whenever we were in town and were not able to stay at the Ronald McDonald House.  Funny to think that it no longer exists... We've also stayed at a hotel that was located in the heart of downtown Cincinnati and, at another one that was right across the river in Kentucky.  That was the same one we stayed at this time.  Last time I was there, I guess that would be two years ago, C and I went to a really nice shopping mall in Covington, Kentucky. That was one of the nicest thing I ever did there. They have an aquarium, some shops, a movie theater and C and I had lunch at one of the restaurants located inside the mall.  It was pretty nice and, it provided a welcome distraction from the real reason we were there. That last time,  C's aunt also came to visit us with her family.  It was nice to see some familiar faces and we all sat together and had lunch at the hotels' restaurant. She didn't come this time around; she couldn't but it was just as well because we had no gap long enough in between our appointments that would have allowed us to spend more than one hour together. I didn't want her to drive two hours or more just to see us for one hour, especially since we just saw each other back home when she came to my house for C's First Communion. We're home now and assuming all goes well, we won't be going back to Cincinnati for another two years.