August 1, 2019 - Thursday evening

76 degrees/clear skies/calm winds

Stratham, New Hampshire

We had a wonderful day and will soon be heading to bed, so I've got a billion pictures, but little time to write. The grandbabies, Grandma Sargie, and I, have all had a great time playing and doing whatever it is that grandparents and grandbabies do.

Rather than do a lot of writing, I'll let you fill in the blanks via the following pictures. We played all day and later, went to the farmer's market in Exeter, New Hampshire. To say it was humbling to walk where the very soldiers of this country's founding fought would be an understatement. Many of the buildings are from the late 1600's and though it's a bustling community, it's still historic and beautiful.

At any rate, we'll be out of here early in the morning on our way to New London, Connecticut. It'll be a long and busy day filled with celebrating Josh's retirement and birthday.

Hope you enjoy the pictures:

 

 

 

So are the tales from Pentoga Road by way of Stratham, Connecticut....

August 1, 2019 - Thursday morning

77 degrees/clear skies/breezy

Statham, New Hampshire

We made it, but not after hours of weather delays and just a bit of silent frustration. That's one thing I learned about having flown extensively in Alaska; that when it comes to air travel, never expect to be anywhere on time.

I took Sargie to work Wednesday morning then returned home to clean the house, button things up in preparation for our absence, and relocate the pump to higher ground.

Adding the length of pipe was a fairly simple task that didn't take too long. It will be sitting in two to three feet of water once the base is finished.

Water was run for an hour and the pond continues to fill up. I'm hoping the forecast rain will fall on Friday and add to the water level.

Our flight left Iron Mountain on time. The flight was flawless and short. Piece of cake.

We knew before we left Iron Mountain that our connecting flight to Boston was running late due to bad storms on the East Coast. What we didn't know was that it would be delayed into the early morning hours of Thursday.

The underground tunnel connecting the concourses in Detroit reminds me of Fremont Street in Las Vegas.

Sargie and I walked for hours, ate, then walked some more. With all the delays along the East Coast, the airport was full to overflowing with stranded passengers.

Matt was at the airport to pick us up, but our journey was only half over. Due to lack of gates, we sat on the tarmac for an hour, then when Matt left the cell parking lot, it took him almost that long to drive the quarter mile to reach us. Again, with the delays, there were thousands of people who were experiencing the same problems.

We finally arrived at Matt and Jessica's around 3:30 this morning. Sargie slept in a bit. I'm hanging out with Bennet while Matt is at a meeting and Jessica and Emerson are at the dentist. 

We did have a great breakfast together earlier.

Wes and Jess

Ben and Em

Matt

Today looks to be a laid back affair with no real plans other than some welcome rest and playtime with the grandbabies. The kids have anxiously been waiting for Grandma Sargie, so it looks to be an action packed time.

We'll leave early Friday morning for New London, Connecticut, picking up Andy from his hotel in Boston along the way, and attending Josh's retirement ceremony at the US Coast Guard Academy. Andy's flying in from Louisiana late this evening. The entire family will be at the ceremony and I can hardly wait to see everyone. We'll stay Friday night in New London, then come back to Matt's on Saturday, and finally, fly home early Sunday morning. Our ETA in Iron Mountain is 10 AM.

Bennet's been patiently waiting for me to finish writing so we can play Mermaid Island, every Grandpa's dream come true.



After all, a man's work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road... via Stratham, New Hampshire...