Yuck Alert: Don't read on if potty talk bothers you.

Remember how normal I was feeling on Monday?

I should learn by now that saying so dooms me to a different fate.

Oops!

Tuesday started out OK at first. The morning was great fun, and I was feeling so smugly normal, I rolled the dice at lunch and had something really French -- a chicken and cheese crepe. Even though I picked off a great deal of the cheese, it was still too rich for me. It sent me running to the toilette in the restaurant and then to take two antidiarrheal tablets.

Then, 15 minutes later, while walking through the flower market a few blocks away, fearing I wouldn't be able to hold it long enough to find a closer rest room nearer, I ran back to the restaurant for another go. Then, while touring the crypt outside of the Cathedral of Notre Dame, a sign warning "no toilettes" sent me into a panicking search for one. If I had been male =-- or at least been dressed like one, I'd have not wait to reach a toilet. But the women's queue was 15 - 20 minutes long. They are like that in lots of places here.

 

Note to self: French cheese and crepes are too rich for me. Don't eat them!

Feeling pretty dehydrated after that, I stayed on full, low-fat liquids until dinner the next night.

Later that evening while taking in the si†es where some beautiful, historic buildings adorn the streets, I tripped over a raised man hole (or whatever they call those here) and fell on my left wrist and hip. Fortunately (thank heaven, of course!) I didn't break anything, except my pride. I got a pretty bruise on my wrist that caught me, but it's already fading. I guess the dehydration that comes with the whole diarrhea attach thing repeated over and over through a day was too much to expect my to have sure footing as well while distracting my attention away from walking. tp look up at flower boxes on window sills and beautifully guilded balcony rails.

Dave and the kids were supportive and understanding, though. They made sure I got some juice right away, and made their own dinner when we returned to the apartment. I stayed on full liquids until dinner the next night, and did a lot better when I introduced table food at dinner the next night.

I am more grateful than ever for the wipes we brought with us and the washing machine in the apar†ment where we are staying. And for ShaNae sharing her panty shields with me.

Wednesday was amazing, too. And because of  getting stuck in such a long potty queue outside of Notre Dame, I was always on the lookout for a shorter line. Here's a secret if you go. The rest rooms that didn't have lines are in the Richard Reichart area near the scuplture gardens in the Louvre. Or, dress and and act like a man and march forward to the front of the non-existent line and do what you need to do. Your wife/girlfriend/daughter will still be awaiting her turn. Some of us revolted at Versailles today. With 15 or 20 women in line, we saw men, one at a time, without waiting, march into empty cubicles within plain site, come out, wash their hands and leave -- all before the women's line moved any closer to our goal. So some of us left the women's line and used the men's stalls. No harm done (but lots of relief received) as there were still no men waiting for a turn when we exited. They need a sticker they can put over the sign on the men's room to switch its gender when the women's room is overflowing.

Last night, I also introduced Canasa suppositories daily again. It's like Pentasa--another form of Mesalamine, that's supposed to quell the Crohn's inflammation in the small intestine. The suppository seems to also help the bowel control its contents until appropriate times).

 

Today I've been doing much better. The trick is to stay hydrated, which, of course, presents a problem where rest rooms are few and far between, and when they are so popular! The two restaurants where I didn't find lines was in the grove outside in the gardens. I only had to wait for one person. And the bathroom was relatively clean (with the exception of the toilet-paper-wasting project someone seemed to create in the corner of the cubicle (one of two) that I chose.

That's enough for now. Enjoy the photos. We are being truly blessed with comfort, good company, safety, and memories precious beyond description. What an amazing experience †o share with ShaNae, Zack & Clara!

I love them all so much! and thank Father in heaven for the time together. What a charmed, dream vacation! And, of course, it's perfect to distract me and Dave from these last few days of waiting for Samuel's release from his mission. We will pick him up on Tuesday morning! That doesn't seem any more real than any of the res† of i†. But it all is! Amazing!

Well, better sleep a while. The Prednisone is starting †ø give way †o †he melatonin and amytriptilline's sleepy effect. Being well-rested tomorrow will be a good thing!

Take care of yourself. And start learning French so you can teach it to me when I get back!

Au Revoir!

Beth