My Parents are finally home!

My parents left Orlando early Thursday morning. While going through West Virginia, they had problems with their transmission and couldn't steer. After having the car checked by a dealer and a transmission specialist for 5 hours, they were back on the road. Because of the unexpected detour, they didn't make it to Cat's place in Maryland to spend the night. (The fact that Cat and the kids were sick with Strep throat and a virus, rendering their house disease central, I'm sure had nothing to do with it...:o) Not knowing about the unexpected delay, I was expecting them on Friday night. I had dinner ready for them. John and I patiently waited, wondering where they could be. At 11:35pm I got a call from my mom letting me know that they were again forced to stop 50 miles south of Buffalo. The car steering was locked again and the battery seemed dead. They stopped at a Comfort inn. The next day, now Saturday, they went to get the car checked. The mechanic told them that they would need a new water pump and new transmission. They would have to stay until Wednesday waiting for the transmission to be ordered. They got a second opinion. The water pump would be fine until they got back to Toronto. The transmission was leaking fluid. A tube was leaking. They patched it up and got them back on the road. I was working until 7pm. I called home expecting them to get home during the day. I called the Comfort Inn to find out they had checked out at 12:30pm. John and I were getting worried. Their cell phone was off. Finally at 10:30pm my mom called to say they were on the DVP, almost home. After being stuck with an accident on the DVP, they finally got home at 11:10pm. They looked exhausted and glad to be home and out of the car. After 3 months in Orlando, they've realized how great it was to be a Snow bird but how they are now too old to drive down. We have 8 months to figure out what they'll do next winter. Since they love the convenience of having their own vehicle, I suspect I'll be the one driving.