June 28: With the Collums to Heidelberg

We fixed up packages to mail and got our business taken care of. Charlie had taken the afternoon off and we drove around to Heidelberg and various places. They got some groceries and various items for us at the PX and Commissary.

We barbequed chicken for dinner and made a freezer of ice cream afterward.

The visit with Charlie and Debbie was just what the doctor ordered after our long days on the road. We just relaxed and talked and read and weren't rushed to get anywhere or do anything. This was the first time since May 29 that we had slept on a bed.

Debbie had the baby on June 3 at the Army Hospital in Heidelberg. Mark Travis weighed 7lb 7oz - length 21 inches. He had gained to 8lb 5oz when we saw him. I thought he looked a lot like Charlie, and Charlie was thrilled by the comment - he is a ver proud Papa. Debbie was a typical "new mommie" and also pleased with her little son. I did my share of oo-ing and ah-ing and cooing during the visit and probably helped with the spoiling process. Debbie, of course gave me all the details of the labor and delivery. The Army Hospital has an unusual post partum with mothers up and about - they go to a large dining room for meals, make their own beds, fill own water pitchers, etc. The babies are kept by the mother's bedside after 24 hours and they bathe and attend their own babies.

Mark was a very good baby - sweet and cute as pie. June 28, 1967