Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Home again, home again

No matter how great a vacation has been--and ours was great--it's always good to be home again. When we drove to Breckenridge, we were in a hurry to get there because of a winter storm advisory; when we drove home today, we were in a hurry because of a winter storm advisory. It actually began to snow hard outside Wichita Falls, and Christian did a terrific job of guiding us through what was almost a whiteout. Two days in a car is grueling, almost all of it next to a three-year-old who was as good as you can expect a child that age to be in those circumstances. But still . . . at one point Jacob wailed, "I don't want to be a good boy!" I didn't blame him! I wanted to whine and cry too!
We didn't leave Breckenridge until almost noonMonday, which is 1:00 p.m.Texas. Big breakfast with most of the family at a terrific restaurant. It was good to visit, and as I fought the urge to say we should be on the road, I thought "What for?" If we get to Dumas at 6 p.m. what will we do then? So we lingered, visisted and had a good time. Findally got on the road, skirting Denver and going through the low mountain range to catch Highway 25 at Pueblo. But by the time we crossed the northwest corner of New Mexico and the towns in the Panhandle, we were tired and hungry. Jamie found a steakhouse in Dalhart (GPS systems are great) and we stopped and had a pretty good dinner, even though service was slow. Then on to Dumas, where we all went right to sleep in a really nice Comfort Inn.
Today we caravaned part way, then lost the Frisco Alters at a rest stop. We had Subway sandwiches in Vernon, feeling the pressure to get on home, and then inched along Hwy. 287, finally cutting through Saginaw to avoid the main north-south highway into Fort Worth, which was most likely clogged because of the snow. Arrived at my house about 4:30.
But there were good moments in that trip--last night at dinner I got to visit more with Jamie and 10-year-old Maddie than I had, and she was sweet at the motel, helping me find my room and insert the card to unlock it. Told her this morning I almost called her to ask how to operate the TV, coffee maker, and hair dryer. She's such a sophisticated traveler! And this morning, Jamie, Jordan and I had a good visit over breakfast and some honest talk--one result of which is my New Year resolution is to wear my hearing aids (first I have to unpack the suitcase and get them out, which I haven't done yet!). So it was like the entire vacation--a mixed bag with some really good high points.
I came home to lots of emails (couldn't get my cell phone to connect me for the last two days), lots of mail, and lots of chores--how does one retired person stay so busy? I have made headway tonight, but tomorrow I have a lunch appointment, a haircut, and a necessary grocery trip. Otherwise the day is mine,mine, mine!

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