February 20th 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good Morning! Funny story – as you know, Paulie, Dani & I are going up to Vermont this weekend to celebrate Lys’ birthday a week late. We are leaving before daybreak tomorrow and coming home Sunday night, so obviously, we need a place to stay Saturday night. So on Monday, I logged on to the Marriott website, selected the Burlington-Williston Fairfield Inn, where we usually stay, and booked our room. However, just as I finished the reservation, something wiggy happened with the computer.

When the confirmation of my reservation still had not arrived by yesterday, I called the hotel directly to confirm. Susan, the hotel’s manager picked up the phone. She laughed when she heard it was me, and said she saw on my Facebook page that I was coming up for the weekend. She was probably wondering why I hadn’t made my reservation yet, but I had, or at least I thought I had. It didn’t matter, Susan got everything straightened out, as she always does.

When we brought Lys up to school in January, there weren’t any rooms available at the Fairfield Inn, so I had to book at another Marriott up the road. It was nice, the people were nice, but it just wasn’t the same. I LOVE the staff at the Fairfield Inn. They make it feel like my home away from home. I’ve stayed there so much over the past two years, most of the staff knows me by name, and I theirs. Other than my issue with room keys (which happens everywhere I go), there are rarely any problems, and if by some freak chance there is a problem, they are on top of it like white on rice.

So, if you are ever up in the Burlington Vermont area, and find yourself in need of a hotel, I highly recommend the Fairfield Inn Burlington-Williston at 2844 St. George Road in Williston. It’s about fifteen minutes from Burlington. It’s right off of Route 89, and there are a ton of shops and restaurants all up and down Route 2A (St. George Road). The rooms are clean, the staff is amazing, there’s a pool (if you happen to be there during the tiny window when you can swim in VT), and they serve breakfast.

I told you I would tell you about yesterday’s photo challenge. My daughter, Dani Rose, took that photograph, and believe it or not, that’s her eye. I guess you could call it a self-portrait. Those eyelashes are real – they are so long you could practically braid them, and even though you cannot tell by the photo, her eyes are such a dark brown, they are almost black – a far cry from the light grey eyes she was born with (which lasted all of two weeks).

Initially I thought she would have blue eyes like her brother. PJ is the only one who has blue eyes, and I’m still a little baffled by that. My eyes are blue and Paulie’s eyes are hazel (½ blue, ½ brown). By my calculations, the gene pool for eyes should have been ¾ blue, ¼ brown, so how did only 1/3 of our children end up with blue eyes? I realize brown is more dominate, but still…

All three kids have different eye colors, each beautiful in their own right. PJ’s are that rich azure you can only compare to an August sky. Lys’ are a warm brandy with gold facets that have you picturing sitting by a roaring fire in a mountain cabin; and Dani’s are like a finely polished chestnut wood, deep, rich, mysterious.

Okay, enough of that. Today I have to get over to Costco to pick up Lys’ cake. When I’m finished, I’m hoping the temperature will have climbed to at least double digits, because I have to clean out the car. At the moment, it’s 3° and that’s without the wind chill. If it doesn’t warm up some, the heck with it, we’ll be driving in a messy car. It’s just too dang cold to be out there for any length of time.

Just so you know, we are leaving around 5:30 tomorrow morning, so there is very little chance I will be able to get a blog post done before I leave. However, I may be bringing my computer with me up to Vermont. I haven’t decided yet.

Alrighty, let me boogie. I hope you have fabulous day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

Who turned off the heat?

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

January 12th 2015

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good Morning! I’m SO happy I don’t have to go anywhere today. It’s cold, there’s a wintry mix falling from the sky and wreaking havoc on the ground, and I’m wiped from driving to Vermont and back (plus playing pack mule while I was there).

We made one pit stop on our way up to Burlington. We brought lunch to a 95 year old relative, “Uncle Rudy”. (I think he’s actually my husband’s third or fourth cousin, but I was not going to allow my kids to call him by his first name.) He is a fascinating and brilliant man, even still at 95, and a lot of fun to be around. Even though you don’t know “Uncle Rudy” personally, I can just about guarantee you own something he invented and probably use almost every day… your microwave. Pretty cool, huh? Unfortunately, like many inventors, he made his while working for a large company, who, in turn, took all the credit for his work. If you were in the military, you can also thank Rudy for his work with sonar and radar. See, I told you he was an amazing guy.

Lys was funny on Saturday. She was fairly quiet the entire way up Route 87. Then when we got off the exit which would lead us to the Essex/Burlington Ferry, she removed her head phones and sat up straight. By the time the first glimpse of Lake Champlain came into view, she was practically vibrating in her seat, with a huge grin on her face. I know she was chomping at the bit to get back on campus, and I’m sure it was disappointing to be so close, but have to wait until the morning.

We stayed at a different Marriott than we usually do. I decided to use my Marriott points to pay for the room, and for some strange reason, the more expensive ($$ wise) hotel was less points. It was nice and all, but I think we’ll be going back to our regular Marriott next time. The people were very nice, but it just didn’t feel the same.

We did meet a nice family while we were eating in the hotel. After driving for six hours, I just didn’t feel like getting behind the wheel again, and Lys wasn’t even hungry, so Paulie and I decided to eat at the hotel. We bellied up to the bar and that’s where we met Valerie, Dustin and their son Mason. Mason is a junior at UVM, the college across the street from Lys’ college. We chatted while we were eating and watching the playoff game. I thoroughly enjoy meeting nice people.

Yesterday, we got Lys moved into her new dorm…not without issues, of course. LOL. Her key card worked for her room, but not for the front door of the dorm. She was not the only kid this was happening to either. So, until the locksmith can get there today and fix it, she and the others will have to rely on the RA and other residents whose keys work. Her new room is TINY, and in the basement. The one saving grace for us was there was an elevator in the building, so we didn’t have to lug all her stuff up and down stairs; and for her is it looks like she will be the room’s only occupant. There’s still a second set of everything in there, bed, desk, dresser, but she’s making due.

Okay, I’m sorry. I tried, but I’m so tired right now, I can’t concentrate on writing anything more, let alone coming up with a writing challenge. I’ll babble at you later in the week.

I hope you have a great day, and happy writing!