Scattered Thoughts . . .

One of the days while Adam and Joi were visiting us was spent in the backyard just socializing.  Liza, Whitney and the grandkids were also there to spend some time with Adam and Joi.  Even Judy and her son, Jamie, surprised us by visiting after hearing that Adam was in town! We haven't spent any time with Judy since before the pandemic so it was nice to spend some time with her on this day.  She and Jamie stayed for dinner with all of us.  I always make more food than is necessary so last minute extra guests never cause a plating shortage.  We were very happy to have them share this day with us... As the sun set behind the trees and the sailboat, it started getting a little chilly in the autumn evening air so we built a small fire to keep everyone warm and cozy... The kids always gravitate toward the sailboat and the playhouse.  Actually, we now have a putting green that also captures Lukey's attention.  If I remember correctly, Lukey spent some time with Ace on the putting gre

W hile Adam and Joi were visiting us, we did quite a bit of sightseeing and eating out.  That was a really nice change after spending much of three years in the house during the worst periods of the pandemic.  Of course, we're all still vulnerable to the virus and we still develop the virus every now and then but, after being vaccinated and boosted many times, the severity of the virus seems to be far less than before we were vaccinated and boosted.  That has certainly been the case for us.   _________________________________________________________________ Ironically, as I write this blog entry, we have the virus running through the family yet again.  Whitney's household is testing positive which is very bad news since our granddaughter in that household has cystic fibrosis so is considered very high risk.  Today, Lukey (in Liza's household) tested positive and is feeling a bit lousy too.  We're hoping that everyone recovers quickly and unremarkably and, of course, we&

While Adam and Joi were visiting us the week before the holiday weekend, we headed up to Burlington for a very nice cruise on Lake Champlain.   We do one cruise every summer and had already done one cruise back in June with Lukey and Kenzie but this sightseeing cruise is always a nice time so doing a second cruise this summer received no objections from either one of us.   Actually, we jumped at the chance to do a cruise with Adam and Joi.   Adam hasn't been here for a visit in quite a few years and he is now married to Joi so it was nice to see both of them again.  We met Joi during our cross-country trip on Amtrak a few years ago.  That was a great trip and we enjoyed our time with the two of them while getting to know Joi a little better.  Now they were visiting Vermont...  just before a holiday weekend...  at the peak of foliage season...  which made for a very busy tourist season in our neck of the woods.  Every place we visited was very crowded with tourists.   Since it was a

I think I am feeling well enough to get a few blog posts published so I'll give it a shot.  My health is still rather poor and I'm still in recovery mode from a bout with the flu but I'm thinking more clearly than I have since returning home so I should be able to get a few blog entries published today.   The first group of photos that I needed to and wanted to get done were the photos from Adam and Joi's surprise engagement so that is what I tackled first. I was one of the few who knew that Adam was going to propose to Joi but, since we were traveling across the entire United States, I was very light on photography gear.  I would have preferred to have a few flashes, some umbrellas, and perhaps even a more appropriate portrait lens or two.  Everything had to fit in one small shoulder bag though so I had to sacrifice the lighting and heavier lenses for convenience and staying as lightweight as possible.   Since I knew the proposal was coming, I was constantly on t