A Day in the Life of the Lancasters

Wednesday night, we went to St Louis and Pricelined a hotel room because we had to be at St. Louis Children's hospital by 8:30 am Thursday.  With all these trips to St Louis, I've become quite a Priceline junkie.  We typically like to stay at hotels we are familiar with - so Priceline definately takes us out of our comfort zone and each trip is a little adventure.

Now, most kids who live near St. L grow up with grand childhood memories of visiting the zoo, Six Flags, the Magic House - with the addition of Lori - I think our kids are going to treasure memories of St L  Children's Hospital.  It's such a neat place and they have gone above and beyond to make it family friendly.    While Lori was evaluated by members of the Cochlear Implant team (looks like her surgery will be mid-August if all goes well) - the other kiddos played in the Rooftop Garden and the ever-popular Sibling Playroom.  They also marveled at the Saltwater aquariums (who wouldn't!) that dot the landscape.  Eye Candy is everywhere!  Even the Parking Garage contains hidden treasures.

After we left the hospital, we needed a little pick-me-up and decided to search for a Starbucks.  Thanks to our handy-dandy GPS app - we discovered one super close.  Problem is - it's not such a great idea to manuver a Suburban through the swanky little area near the  hospital.  So, we circled the same block at least 4-5 times to find a parking spot big enough.  Brought flashbacks of the classic European Vacation movie where Chevy Chase gets stuck in the London round a bout and repeatedly points out  - "There's Big Ben, Kids, and Parliament".  Finally Jay just pulled up and I jumped out to go in.  He circled yet again to pick me up.

Our adventure continued as we searched out the local Social Security Office.  Our insurance had insisted that we submit Lori's social security number by close of day on June 23.  Guess what - it's June 23 and her number was applied for on June 22.  Not our fault - by the way.  That's just the way it happened.  To get her SS number, she had to have a birth cert.  To get a birth cert - we had to process the adoption through the Missouri court system.  To do that - we had to have a court date.  To get a court date - we had to have  a lawyer draw up the papers.  Etc.  You get the picture - there were quite a few hoops to jump through and even after overnighting some necessary paperwork - here we were on the very last day.  

As we neared the SS office - the neighbor hood "changed".  One of those "lock the doors" moments.   However, Jay jumped out and got the number without any issues - although he did have to check his trusty pocket knife at the door.   As we were leaving, we spotted a Hair shop - you know the ones with bars on the windows and grafitti on the wall that sells hair extensions, fake nails, and cheap jewelry.  I wanted to stop in and see if they had any toupee tape.  Lori's hearing aids don't fit well - and we use toupee tape to stick them behind her ears.  Jay pulled in and I jumped out.  I walked in to find the store owners were Asian.  I explained what I needed and through broken English and hand gestures - they figured out that they did indeed have the tape.  I struck up a conversation with the lady checking me out and asked if they were by any chance from China.  Now, pay attention, this was some interesting info she gave me....

She said they were from Korea - and that most Koreans operate Hair stores, then she broke it down even further.  According to her - Koreans sell hair products, Vietnamese do nails, Chinese open restaurants, and immigrants from India have gas stations and Dunkin' Donuts. 

So, there you have it.  A day in the life of the Lancasters.