Pandas

Kimmie loves pandas. She has a nice little collection of stuffed ones, and she loves to wear her panda pajamas.

In 2000 we visited San Diego and went to the zoo. This was our first time to see real pandas. Kimmie was 8. She ran in a gift store and wrapped her arms around a stuffed panda that was almost as big as she was. Of course we hauled that panda home with us. It became her sister's carry-on when we boarded the plane. Her sister was 5 at the time and she carried it through the airports for us. We still have that panda.

In 2006 we visited San Diego a second time. The only animals Kimmie was interested in seeing at the zoo were the pandas. We pushed her wheelchair over to the rail where she could sit and watch the pandas. Actually, she didn't really watch them all that much. She was simply content just to "be" wth the pandas. Fortunately it was not busy and we were able to stay there for a while.

We visited the pandas twice that day so she could sit contentedly and "be" with her friends.

--Mom