Mary's Visit

I waited a couple of days to post, so Mary could be the one to tell the stories. But I have to chime in now. David and I went to pick Mary  up on Thursday after work.  Her plane was coming in at 5:30. Jeanne came by my desk and asked me when I was leaving and gasped when I said 5:00.  "You'll never make it! Traffic that way is TERRIBLE! You better leave now."  So, I packed up my things and headed  out the door about 4:20 in a panic. I rushed to get David, scared to death that Mary would be sitting in the scary, dingy BDL AA terminal waiting on me. Whatta way to be welcomed to CT!  When David got in the car, I was a nervous wreck. "We're going to be LATE!”  (he drove)  It's been a few days, but I think we arrived at the airport by 4:55. Unnecessary panic 4,265,684 in my life - ugh. So, we walked the airport terminal (not much to see - one small nick-knack store with your typical assortment of "everything lobster" from pjs to  candle holders) and then we sat and waited. We made a few phone calls, some small talk, a few plans for  the weekend and a couple  jokes and before you know it, Mary was off the plane! It was so nice to see a  face from home. A relative. A favorite relative!

We took Mary to Glastonbury to check-in to the hotel.  She was staying at the Hilton Garden Inn. She walked in and in her cheery Mary way charmed the front desk so much so that she got an uprade to a suite. She had a giant room with a shower and tub, a large bar area  with a fridge and microwave and a fairly decent view. We had dinner that night at j gilbert's (one of David's favorite places).  David and  Mary took a stroll through the parking lot to Barnes and Noble and I drove 'round. We bought some books for the trip and dropped  Mary off at the hotel.

Friday it was pouring and grey and dreary and just all around AWFUL! I picked Mary up and we went back to my town, Amston. She  got the full tour of town (That takes all of about a minute. If you look down for something in your purse, you'll miss it!) She saw Donato's  Restaurant, Ted's Grocery and my little gas station. We took a quick tour of David's place and my apartment. (Ask Mary about the "coat story" if she hasn't already told you - unnecessary panic 4,265,685.) Then we were off to pick up David and head to New Hampshire by  way of First and Last Bakery for the ultimate chicken salad sandwich. We stopped at the grocery store in Brattleboro, VT and grabbed some milk, half and half and Cool Whip (of course!) for the fruit salad.   I got a chicken from the deli, some steamed microwave veggies and a  box of rice for dinner.  We pulled into the lake house close to 4:00  or so.  By 4:30 I was bored, well not bored, restless, is more the word.  Those of you that know me, know I don't do "hanging out" all that well.  I do "activity" well.  When I looked at Mary and  David at 5:00 and said "What are we going to do next?" and saw the looks on their faces, I knew I was going to have to entertain myself.  I took a shower, fixed dinner, ate dinner, paced around a little, turned on the tv......all trying to let them enjoy their relaxing peace without having to  partake in it myself.  

After dinner I introduced Mary and David to one of my new favorite shows "What Not To Wear" on TLC.  If you haven't seen it and care anything at all about fashion, check it out.  It's that happy blend of entertaining and educational. We tried to watch the debates, but they were on late and we ended up going to bed.  Red heels and the correct jean fit beat the war on terror and declining economy when on vacation everytime! It's like the choice between reading Thomas Friedman or Nicholas Sparks when you are in New England sitting by the romantic lakeshore in the fall.  It's CLEARLY not a time for reality.

Oh, let me backtrack, I forgot a key moment in the day Friday. When we walked into the lake house on the kitchen ledge there they were  - in all their saran wrap glory - the magic bars!  The perfect combination of coconut, chocolate and delicious goodness in about three bites! Nancy makes the BEST cookie bars...so good in fact, they may have brought a tear to my eye the first time I had them.  They ALWAYS  bring a giant grin! 

Saturday morning after breakfast and magic bars, we read and played cards and had a leisurely, relaxing time. I was working on the whole "hangin' out" thing, but was secretly thrilled to hop in the car and head out to Keene, NH for lunch. We drove past the college  that David attended and went straight to The Colony Mill for lunch and shopping.  They were having an Oktoberfest with everything from the beer balloons to the Ump-Pah  Band in full costume.  We talked about ordering the antelope sausage, but no one ended up being a taker. We took a stroll through the kitchen store and a toy store. Then back home by way of the convenience store.

Powerball was up to $200 million and we had to get our tickets. While the highlight of Friday was the magic bars, the highlight of Saturday for me was watching Gerry, the station clerk, and Mary banter back and  forth over the Powerball tickets. Mary bought two with her OWN numbers, not the computer picks (with the exception of #22 - Gerry's  pick), I bought four and David bought five (we went for the computer's choice).  We just knew we were gonna win!

We went home and changed clothes and headed to the farm house to meet Nancy and George - my unnecessary panic 4,265,686.  I'll admit (not that I could hide it from Mary and David) I was a  little nervous about dinner on the ride over. I have no idea why. I just wanted everyone to like everyone. That's all.  Of course when we got there and Nancy and George greeted us all, I felt much better. What was I so worried about?  The house smelled like fresh baked apple pie, and everything was  lovely and perfect as always. Nancy gave Mary a tour and we visited in the living room before dinner. I think I made everyone nuts taking  photos, but what good is a blog and all this rambling if there's not fun photos to look at. So, I did it anyway. I got "the look" from David and proceeded to put the camera back in my bag to stay for the rest of the evening. George and Nancy treated us to a lovely dinner at The Chesterfield Inn.  I absolutely LOVE this  place! The food is SO GOOD and the atmosphere is so quaint.  It's just a  lovely place to eat.  It was such a nice visit.  I am glad that Mary got to meet The Oakes and can go back and tell everyone just how wonderful they are. They were truly so generous and gracious and charming and wonderful to us this weekend.  Thank you, for allowing us to use your lake house and for the wonderful dinner and for the great conversation. Thank you so much for all your hospitality.  It was such a great trip with much thanks to you.

Sunday, Mary slept in and David and I had a rummy re-match. After breakfast, Nancy and George came over to help with the boat.  Again, thrilled to have an activity, I jumped at the chance to take a walk with Nancy.  The leaves were beautiful, but the air was hot and humid.  We were both overdressed and really hot. At 1:30 Richard and Beverly Wolf brought over their boat to drag David's boat to the marina. So, we joined them for a boat ride and tour of the lake.  We were all really hot, but the wind cooled us down right away!  I was glad that Mary got to see the homes and the lake from the water. It was such a nice ride. I forgot the camera though, so no photos.   

After a lunch and quick visit, we were packed and off to the airport. It was such a nice weekend.  Thank you Mary for being up for the adventure and making the trip out. It was so nice to see you.  I hope  you have good photos and stories and memories of your first visit to my little world here in CT and NH. I hope you'll come out again  soon.  And thank you David and Nancy and George for going above and beyond to make Mary feel welcome and comfortable.  It was a  weekend I could have never had with Mary without your kindness and generosity.