So, my grandfather (father's father) died a year ago. My mother went to Puerto Rico (my island home) in July, to settle his estate for my sister and me. She is going back next week to settle the sale of his house for my sister and me.

arra and I wanted to go down to PR for the house closing, but, frankly, I didn't fly well before the stroke. NOw, the logistics of the idea seemed just too overwhelming, especially on short notice, and Larra just couldn't get the time off of work. But we both really wanted to see our family in person.

So, Larra comes up with an idea. She proposes we, my parents, Larra & her husband, & Sam & I go down for Thanksgiving. Granted, most of the family has left the island for the mainland, but my uncle and one of my aunts are still there. Larra thought it would be nice to start meeting the family there. Well, it quickly exploded into a whole lot more.

Little did we know that my cousin is christening her youngest child that weekend. A good part of the family was planning to be in attendance. Once they found out we were planning to be there for the holiday, well, pretty much everyone but my cousin who is active duty army is now booking flights and hotels. It's turned into an Acevedo family reunion, christening and Thanksgiving celebration.

I'm feeling very excited about the trip, very anxious about having to fly, & a little overwhelmed, thinking about all of the people who will be there. My family is big and loud, typically Puerto Rican, mneaning that we live by our emotions, and love to party, with or without a reason. The holiday, christening and reunion have just made the party even bigger.

We fly down on the 23rd and return on the 28th. So it will be a week of get togethers, parties, church celebrations, and making up for about 30 years of lost time.

Now, when my mother went down to settle my grandfather's estate, she told the family about my stroke, and Larra is spending some time with the cousins in Houston, so she will be able to explain my "stroke thing" about crowds and things. So, hopefully, no one will be offended when I bow out for a couple of hours. I'll also have Sam, my own personal medical professional, who was protective of me before the stroke, and even more so now. He'll field questions and comments. I'm just a little nervous about it.

Maybe I'm overanalizing it. That is something I do. Maybe I just need to relax and trust that everything will be ok. I'll have my mom and dad, Larra and Sam. They will take care of me. This is just the first time I'll have left Tampa since the stroke. It's a big milestone.