Daisy's Wild Ride

My family doesn't drive me as much as they used to because I started to get older and they got a younger car. So I spend a lot of my time sitting and resting in the garage. Cocoa is the name of the younger car. She is a pretty brown color and that is how she got her name. Cocoa is nice and she keeps me company with stories about all the things she sees when she's out driving around. My most favorite time of the day is the early morning. After Cocoa leaves to take Amanda to work, Torey and Julia and Finn come out in the garage and climb in so that I can drive them to daycare. Oh, how I love having the kids ride around in me! In the winter I protect them from the cold air. Even though it's only a drive of a few blocks, it keeps me happy all day.

A few weeks ago, Torey took me out for a different drive. At first I was excited but then I got scared when we went to the car doctor, the mechanic. I was very nervous, but afterward I felt very good! They changed my oil, gave me a new headlight, gave me a new battery, checked my brakes, and checked all my belts. It was very refreshing! Torey explained that they needed to do that because Julia has been sick and if she needed to go to the doctor and Cocoa was gone, then I would have to be feeling well enough to handle the job. I felt a little bit excited but I didn't really think I would get to drive anywhere exciting.

Yesterday started off pretty normal. Finn hopped in and waited for Torey to buckle him. I was a little confused as to why Julia to didn't get in and Finn must have been too.

"Daddah, Julia not coming?"
"No, bud," Torey said, "Julia has a fever so we're going to keep her home today."

On the way to daycare, Torey asked the same question he asks the kids everyday, but this time, just to Finn.

"What kind of day are you going to have today, Finn?"
"A great day!" Finn exclaimed.
"What kind of day am I going to have today?"
"A great day!" both my riders said in unison.

After we got home, Torey went in the house and I settled in for a day of resting quietly. Then, a little while later, all of a sudden, Torey burst back out the door from the house with a bag in his hand. After he put the bag in the trunk, he went back in and brought Julia out. The two climbed in and as Torey started me up, he explained to Julia that we were going to take her to Children's in Minneapolis because her fever was too high, 101.5. And that temp is the somehow-determined magic number that means she needs to go the hospital. Julia seemed to understand and she wasn't upset at all.

As for me, I could hardly believe it! I was on! It was my turn to shine! My family needed me and it was up to me to get them to the hospital safely to make sure Julia was ok! I was ready! And...I was scared.

After a few blocks, Torey patted my steering wheel and said, "Daisy, you got this." That made me feel better.

I recognized the things around me for the first part of the trip while we were still in River Falls and I kind of remembered some thing from River Falls to Hudson, but after that, it all seemed new to me.

There was quite a bit of traffic and so we had to slow down and change lanes a lot. The rush hour traffic made for some slow going, but I maneuvered as if I drove the route daily and we made it safely. Julia was great the whole time - she was just looking out the window at the sights.

After sitting in the parking garage, I had more excitement when Amanda came out and drove me back home. She explained to me that Julia had to stay over night in the hospital because of her fever and low blood counts.

Then this morning, Thursday, Amanda dropped Finn off at a friend's house for the day and I drove her back up to Children's Hospital. It wasn't scary anymore because after doing it once, I knew I could do it again.

After spending the day parked again, Torey came out and we drove to get Finn and go home. Even though I'm just a car, Torey explained to me that the doctors want to keep Julia in the hospital until her fever is gone for 24 hours and her blood counts are a bit higher. So her ETA for coming home is unknown but we're hoping for Saturday. Torey also explained how Amanda and he talked to a gastroenterologist about the pros and cons of getting a G-tube put in order to be able to get nutrition and medicine directly into her stomach. If they're able to move forward with that, it would happen within the next few weeks.

Anyway, for a car who sits in the garage most of the time, I had a wild few days!