Everyone loves a parade!

I took Mom to the Hi-Yu Seafair parade in West Seattle today. It took some doing, as her apartment is in the blocked off area. I managed to find a place in a lot two blocks away. I took her chair and set out to pick her up. Once she put on her shoes and hat she was ready to go. I got her back to the car and helped her slowly transfer from the chair to the front seat of the car.

I drove the back streets to find a place that would be relatively close to the parade route and to the spot that Pamela and Haven were waiting for our arrival. It took some doubling back and around, but I finally found a shady parking place. Again, I helped Mom transfer from the car to the chair. We were off! The problem I noticed right away was the absence of handicapped curbs on the corners. I had to lift the chair and then slowly steady it as I put Mom down on the street. We covered six blocks this way and finally found Pamela and Haven.

We all watched the clowns and the marching bands and those silly Seafair Pirates and Clowns. There were politicians marching, drill teams and floats drifting by. Mom seemed to have a good time just being out and seeing some new sights. Haven did great will the load explosions from the Seafair Pirates and generally seemed to enjoy her first parade. At the end of the parade, Pamela and Haven took off for the house. Mom and I headed back to the car but decided to stop at Mcdonalds for some lunch. We got back to the car and did the slow transfer again.

Getting Mom back to her apartment was again a bit of a challenge. I found one side street nearby where I could legally park. The big barrier was the large rocks that made up the parking strip. Mom was worried and not sure she could navigate them. I held her hands and told her that she could do it. She finally made it to the level sidewalk and sat down in her transport chair. I rolled her up the street and got her safely to her building, into the elevator and back to her apartment. Whew....quite the adventure!