A children’s hospital is usually not a destination location for a day trip. But recently, Christine Lester’s family visited the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) just for the fun of it. In today’s guest post, Christine describes the fun they had sight seeing at CHOP.
Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia: Hope Lives Here
It’s not often you get to see a familiar place with new eyes. Yet, two weeks ago I did. Our family’s destination was a hospital, of all places. Now you should know that my husband and I have made the drive to Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia more times that I can count.
Emotions on the Highway
Our trips started when we were newly married and expecting nine years ago. Since then, we’ve felt every emotion on the highway heading into the big city. Every emotion EXCEPT pure elation. This trip was the first time there was audible excitement during this drive. In the backseat sat our children laughing and snapping pictures.
My oldest one was about to have yet another afternoon procedure crossed off his medical to do list. My son and I usually go to all appointments and test without my youngest, Alyssa. She hasn’t attended even hospitalizations and surgeries for a myriad of reasons. But she was always begging to go, so today we were making it a family affair. The last time she’d come, she was a toddler.
Like me, Alyssa needed a visual of this place she hears so much about. A place we spend so much time at. The place that fixes her big brother and makes him all better. She hears how magical it can be, yet she is not old enough to know that it can also be such a scary place too.
Billy, the Tour Guide
Upon entering the hospital she was in complete awe. She marveled at the shapes in the ceilings of the elevators, the colored glass on the building outside. She thought the atrium was simply divine and whimsical. Billy took over as tour guide and lead us through the hospital. He pointed at windows where he had been admitted and had Alyssa’s undivided attention. He pointed at where the NICU use to be, and where the radio station is being built. The surgical wing. Where the chapel was, the cafeteria, the gift shop, and even the McDonald’s! He directed us right to his appointment.
When the MRI scans were done Billy once again led us back to the other wing of the hospital. It was quite an accomplishment for an 8-year-old to have an hour long MRI without sedation. So we enter the cafeteria in search of ice cream as a reward.
You could tell Alyssa was making mental notes of everything. The doctors in white coats. Nurses in scrubs, one of which remembered us and said hi to Billy. She studied the children and their tubes, IV’s and hospital issued PJ’s.
A Luxury Vacation
Even seeing the balloons still set up from the CHOP prom had her interest. What a magical place that they even have Prom! As her eyes darted around she begged to stay at CHOP like it was some luxury vacation. As we ate ice cream she softly read the words on my bag holding my son’s medical binder. I smiled and got goosebumps as I saw her tiny pink nails trace the words that read “CHOP~Hope lives Here.”
Indeed it does!
Have You Ever Visited the Hospital Just for Fun?
If you’ve taken your kids to the hospital just for fun, tell us about the experience. How did the visit impact them and you? What do your kids think of a hospital now? To read more of Christine’s guest posts, just type her name in the search box. You can also learn more about Christine at the guest blogger page.
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That is hilarious, Nancy. And what a blessing that your kids like visiting the hospital since you have to visit it often.
Jolene
My kids think eating “out” at our local children’s hospital is great. They know where the best fish tanks, and marble sculptures are at both hospitals. The oldest has seen a new train display and can’t wait to share it with his younger brother. This week we had a doctor appointment that almost required a hospital visit, and the others were disappointed when we went home instead! We are very blessed to have CHOA in the metro Atlanta area.
Thanks for the clarification, Christine. When our son was 12, we took the fam to the University of Omaha NICU where he’d stayed for 2 1/2 weeks. His primary nurse was still there and tickled to see him. Allen’s younger sister enjoyed seeing the hospital she’d heard about so often. After that we went to the Omaha Zoo. Great trip!
Jolene
Thanks, I’m honored too! I think there is a bit of confusion. We reason we went was for a MRI not as a day trip. Yet we took Alyssa with us as it would be any easy day for little man. No doctors, nothing invasive. We made another tedious event into an outing.
So we went early to look around, then just did some sight seeing after his hour and 15 minute long MRI. This MRI was suppose to have sedation but due to some complications I fought with the doc’s and they actually agreed to try it without sedation which was a HUGE deal.Usually they will not attempt until a child is 11 or 12. So afterwards we stayed a bit longer and enjoyed some ice cream and took in all CHOP had to offer. 🙂 It’s nice to see both sides of a place too. All the fun stuff they have, so we don’t get caught up in all the ‘hard things’. This is especially important for a child with aniexty about a place or PTSD. BUT I assure you… Gas is WAY to expensive to drive all the way to Philly for just ice cream! LOL 🙂
Christine, that was an awesome story. I never thought of just going to CHOP to see it all lit up and going only for the pure enjoyment of an ice cream cone. As you know my Bella (Billy’s NICU girlfriend) is an only child.. It’s still a great idea.. Thank you for always sharing your insight.. As always, I’m so incredibly honored to be your friend <3 <3
What a great story, Becca. Thanks for leaving your comment. FYI readers, if you haven’t visited Becca’s blog, take a look. She provides a different point of view about chronic illness in kids.
Jolene
I like these trips. When nothing scary is going to happen. Just some “pictures” and you go home. These are the day’s we savor the hospital. We make a trip for fire grilled pizza or an ice cream cone. I think easy day’s at the hospital like this are great to bring a sibling if you have another adult with you. One to go in with the other child for test etc. Most of the time its just not feasible. Yet I can’t tell you how much this one trip helped! We prepare our ‘ill’ child for test, surgeries,and appointments. But we normally prepare the other little one’s in our household differently. I sent pictures of him in the hospital so she could see with her own eye’s he was safe, when able they talked everyday on the phone. Yet to go and see it with her own eyes gave her a sense of calmness. It was her Ah-ha moment. She of course thought it was amazing but it was also reassuring for her to see other kids like her big brother. Not necessarily with his birthdefect but with NG tubes, oxygen, IV’s and they seemed okay here. They got pizza and ice cream or Balloons from the gift shop. They wandered with a parent or a nurse and all seemed okay.She thought it was cool you could go to McDonalds in PJ’s and they would just bring your IV’s with you. She even noted that a baby looked like Billy with the same tubes (mom was taking newborn on a walk). In our little communities our children may be the only one’s who have health challenges its HEALTHY for our other children to see that they are not so different. Plus, what other place is geared toward stimulating a child other than a Children’s hospital or Children’s museum? Here they have things that inspire creativity, get kids to forget about their troubles and illness. Flutes and harps in waiting rooms to calm children before test, Therapy dogs to make hospital life fun if even for a few minutes. The aquariums!!!! So calming. Every piece of lighting is geared for the children. It’s worth a day trip…or like us to cross one more item off your medical to do list :)Plus here the fish are all yours! NO line of kids pushing you to move on.
Hope does indeed live here…and it lives in these children.
Having a chronic and terminal illness, visiting the hospital usually doesn’t classify as a fun or laid back trip. But this summer I went up to Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital for the prom that the school inside the hospital puts on for all the patients and their families. Being eighteen I have gone to two of my own school proms and I must say, the hospital school does an AMAZING job! This year the theme was ‘Trip Around the World.’ All the volunteers wore either pilot outfits or traditional wear from different countries. The dedicated teachers decorated the hospital cafeteria with some of the world’s biggest monuments. Whether or not you were in a wheelchair, had an IV in your arm or looked perfectly “normal” everyone was treated with the same kindness, love, acceptance and understanding. Prom at Lucille Packard let families and patients for three hours out of the night forget that they were in the hospital or even sick at all. Prom was simply an amazing prom.
Becca A.
TOF, PA and PH
http://www.lifeasachronicallyillteen.blogspot.com
Aw so glad Alyssa wanted to go, a little piece of Billy’s world introduced to her! Sometimes we take unplanned trips to Children’s to show Brandon, that outside of the endless appointments there are other things to see at the hospital too. His highlite, the fish tanks! You would think we were going to the aquarium.
And yes indeed, hope does live there!