George H.W. Bush will spend Christmas in the hospital for shortness of breath

Patriarch: George H.W. Bush's son George W. Bush served two terms as president. His son Jeb is currently considering a run for the White House

George H.W. Bush must spend at least some of Christmas in the hospital after doctors ordered him to remain under observation for a second night following his admission for shortness of breath. 

The 90-year-old former president will stay at Houston's Methodist Hospital on Wednesday night 'as a precaution until doctors can evaluate whether he is healthy enough to return home. 

He was rushed to the hospital on Tuesday night with shortness of breath as wife Barbara read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas to children with NFL star JJ Watt at a public event.  

Family spokesman Jim McGrath said Bush - who is the oldest living president - had a 'good day' and his prognosis 'remains positive.' 

Mrs Bush and Watt were the special guests for the Radio City Christmas Spectacular in Houston

Methodist Hospital in Houston is the top-rated hospital in Texas and is nationally ranked, as well

Bush served two terms as Ronald Reagan's vice president before being elected the nation's 41st president in 1988. After one term, highlighted by the success of the 1991 Gulf War in Kuwait, he lost to Democrat Bill Clinton amid voters' concerns about the economy.

The elder Bush has skydived on at least three of his birthdays since leaving the White House. In June, he celebrated his 90th birthday by making a tandem parachute jump near his summer home in Kennebunkport, Maine. During the winter, Bush and his wife, Barbara, live in Houston.

Bush, also a former U.S. ambassador to China and CIA director, suffers from a form of Parkinson's disease that has forced him in recent years to use a motorized scooter or wheelchair for mobility. 

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Bush's wife, Barbara Bush, made a surprise visit with Houston Texans' JJ Watt at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts in Houston on Tuesday evening to perform 'Twas the Night Before Christmas.'

It's not clear whether she was with the 41st U.S. president when he experienced his shortness of breath 

Methodist Hospital is rated as the top hospital in Texas by US News & World Report. It is ranked nationally, as well. 

Source: the Mail