Time to Travel!

 Nothing like getting up early to head to the airport.  Actually it was not that bad.  Our flight was at 8:00 AM and our Uber pick-up was at 6:00.  We got up at 5:00 and had a pretty easy time of it getting to the airport.  Once there, check-in was fine.  The small hiccup was that the inbound flight was a bit late, so we had about a 20 minute delay in boarding.  

Now it's time for a break.  We had a good breakfast and are about to put our seats back and see if we can get some sleep!

and off we go!

and who can resist a Mai Tai at 8:30 AM?

The flight was smooth and about 11 hours total.  We got a 30 minute delay in taking off as the incoming flight was late.  We won't elaborate here, but the strangest part of the experience was a sad, but totally whacky lady that was sitting across from us in row 1.  It ended up that she had dementia........and was a total mess.  She was obviously uncomfortable with the travel and groaned, moaned and cried continuously during the flight.  She was traveling with her husband, who could not walk and seemed partially paralyzed, as well as a nurse.  The stress level was extraordinary.  She also was continuously trying to get out of her seat, being restrained by her nurse.  At one point her screaming got so bad that the nurse forced some type of liquid medication down her throat........and she slept for the last two hours of the flight.......only to awake as we were 5 minutes for landing and was screaming that she needed to go to the bathroom.  The flight attendants held her down as long as possible and then had to get themselves seated.  While she tried to get out of her seat during landing, she could not seem to undue her seatbelt.  Quite the experience

RITZ-CARLTON  AT TURTLE BAY - VIEW FROM OUR ROOM

THE ADULT HOT TUB IS THE "PLACE TO BE!"

THIS LOBBY BAR IS AMAZING!

The Day Before.......a bit hectic as usual!

 We made it through the weekend!  Fiske III went with friends to the Cabin for skiing at Sunapee and we were babysitting Molly for 4 days.  She was great, but always wanting to chase the squirrels at the bird feeders so we needed to be careful when we let her out.  Then we had a visit from a skunk, who brazenly walked back and forth on the back patio 'paths' for a couple of nights!  He then retreated to under the shed out back and my studio bore the brunt of the smell!  We needed to be really careful with Molly.

Saturday night we had our couples book group "ZOOM" call.  Our book choice, This Strange Eventful History, was less than a resounding favorite!  But it was nice to see everyone! Also, as this is school vacation week, everyone was on the move.  Aside from Fiske's trip to NH, Alex, Caroline and the kids (along with their cousin's families) all headed up for a ski trip to Mount Orford in Southern Quebec........and Chris, Courtney and the kids headed in for a few days at the Langham Hotel in Boston.  Everyone seems to be having a great time. 

That being said, Mount Orford got 24" of snow over the weekend and paired that with (this morning (-1 temp and -17 wind chill!).  Apparently it has been quite an adventure!  The other Crowell's seem to be enjoying the pool and spa at the Langham!

I headed in to the office (President's Day!) for a half day, and had breakfast with Rayford Law, one of my old KMW partners.......great to see him. 

Couldn't resist grabbing a shot of our 'horse installation' down the street!

and

We also seem to have developed a new 'pond' in our yard with this crazy weather!

And a serious afternoon and evening of packing.  It always takes longer than you expect!

The Beginning of Snow, Ice and Rain!

 The weather started to disintegrate as the week continued. Thursday, through the upcoming weekend, offered a nasty mix of snow turning to rain.......and freezing!  Not much to report here other than it was a nasty taste of winter!

A Day for Skiing

 If nothing else, this is a great contrast with where we are headed.  The snow over the weekend was absolutely perfect for cross-country.  I went into the office, but skipped out by noon! A late afternoon ski in the Drumlin fields with a beautiful sky!  This is a short post, but I could not resist showing the photos.

Not Long Now!

 We are approaching about a week 'out' for our departure.  The weather is reinforcing why it will be nice to head to warmer lands!  The cold and snow/ice are making their presence felt.  We are hunkered down today for the Super Bowl and a bit of shoveling. We went to a swim meet to see Addie, Grady and Boyden yesterday at the Town Pool......they are all doing a great job this season.  We are starting to get together our 'to do' list this week.  Waiting until the last minute is not a good strategy! and lists are great!