We have a new grandson--the saddest happy day

We had originally planned our route through this northwest corner of Arkansas to do some leaf-peeping. This would give us time to quarantine away from everyone in anticipation of the birth of our grandson. But we were exposed to this dreaded virus on our last weekend before our quarantine. Then an early induced labor was scheduled a week before the due date. So instead of being healthy and quarantined so we could enjoy the birth, we are in the middle of COVID symptoms and far away from the excitement. It was the saddest happy day! Mark was still feeling very tired, and running a high fever today. Denisa was fever-free, but her heart was breaking. She kept crying at the thought of not being there to welcome this little boy into the family. We had looked forward to this day for so long! Denisa kept texting for updates, and we eventually got the news at 4:34 p.m. that baby Eli had been born. We were glad to get the first pictures that evening, of our happy son and daughter-in-law and their new baby boy.

Mark celebrated the birth of a new grandson by his fever spiking up to 102.8 this evening. While we thought he should be getting better by now, some of his symptoms are getting worse. We had planned to be on stand-by to take care of our granddaughter while her Mom and Dad were at the hospital. Instead, we were the ones needing medical care during this saddest happy day. We're still in our campground in Arkansas, while we really want to be with them in Kansas.

The next morning, we got more pictures. We are proud to announce the newest member of the Engelman family, weighing in at a whopping six pounds, 12 ounces.

Day #8 of COVID - Denisa is feeling good enough to be bored. Now that Eli has arrived, she needs to finish a baby present. About ten years ago, she made a queen-sized quilt using three-inch triangles cut from her large stash of scrap material. She also pieced a blue baby-sized quilt top, in hopes that she would one day have a grandson. Ten years ago, neither of our sons were even married. As she hand-quilted and then bound the quilt now, she can't wait to give it to Eli.

Mark is still sleeping a lot, and we noted that his cough is worse today. But Denisa continues to keep a record of both of our temperatures and symptoms. She penciled in that Mark is feeling better today. Maybe having a grandson will be just what he needs to get well! After seven days in this campground, today we ventured out for a drive around the area. Besides our drive into Rogers for COVID testing, and then another drive to pick up our shopping from Walmart.com, we haven't been out of the campground this week. It feels good to explore a little of this beautiful corner of Arkansas.

We went for a road trip down Scenic Highway 12, that snakes through Hobbs State Park. It looks like the trees are about at peak for our drive.

We only drove 12 miles down the road, but it felt good to be out in the fresh air and seeing new places. It's sad to realize that we won't get to kayak on this beautifully clear Beaver Lake. We'll have to come back on another trip when we can enjoy this area without the complication of COVID!

Even though we have appreciated our nice Corp of Engineers campground at Prairie Creek, Denisa is quite bored. She's never spent so much time inside our motor home's 35-foot walls!

She is well enough to take short walks around our park now, taking a few pictures. Her stamina is greatly reduced, so she has to make sure she has enough energy to get back home in this hilly campground. During these rainy week days, the park is almost deserted. So it's a great place to recover.

We would definitely rather be taking pictures of our new grandson, rather than our campground. We are sad to be still struggling with COVID on what should be a very happy week.