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Borrego Springs, CA

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Made it to Dyer, IN, in one day

My trip here yesterday was long, 515 miles, but I made it in one day.  I know I would have never done that if I had been driving the rig.  The roads in places were less than wonderful, and the wind would have been a factor in a high profile vehicle.  I had a couple of offers of places to stay for the night along the road, but once I had John Denver and Peter, Paul, and Mary belting out their tunes, I sang my way through the last 250 miles.  I truly appreciated the offers, but wasn’t ready to stop at two in the afternoon.

Shortly after 5:00, I found myself in Robyn’s driveway.  I think just about any meal I don’t have to prepare myself is delicious, so it was a treat to sit down to a meal brought in by Dennis’ mother.  A dip in their pool with the grandgirls in the early evening went a long way to relax the stiff joints from the long drive.

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First thing this morning, grandgirls Avery and Phoebe pointed out the mama and papa geese across the road and all their babies.  When they were all lined up in the water, I counted seven little ones. 

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In the late morning, I accompanied Robyn on one of her work trips to provide a patient with needed medical equipment.   We were stuck in traffic for quite a while as we passed this famous skyline on the back side of the Loop in Chicago.  It’s hard to mistake what I will always refer to as the ‘John Hancock Building’.  I think it’s now called the Morris Tower/Building.  It certainly is a behemoth.67 On the way to NC 201245After a time consuming drive, we arrived at the West Suburban Medical Center.  While she went inside to work with the patient, I got in my exercise for the day.

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I did walking laps around the top level of the parking garage.  My back and hip seemed to be better today, so I was able to get in some good walking finally.  Even though we were over six miles due west, ‘Big John’ was still a part of the landscape.  In the four years Robyn has been doing this job, she’s been to about 75 different  facilities in Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa.  She does an awful lot of driving, and is very comfortable zipping around the Chicago metropolitan area.  I prefer to be the passenger these days.  There seems to be a lot more people on the roads than when I was first learning to drive and the Kennedy, Dan Ryan, and Eisenhower Expressways were pretty new.  It took us about five hours to get to this one fitting and back home again.  Smile with tongue out

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After supper, Avery and Phoebe demonstrated their bicycle riding skills around the swimming pool.  Rain showers moved through this afternoon lowering the temperatures, so we passed up taking a dip this evening. 

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Little Phoebe is a year older than when I saw her last year, and has grown out of the lopsided gait of a toddler.  She fairly flies around now that she’s almost three.  Her language skills have improved as well, so I’m no longer just ‘Belt’, I’m now Gramma Belt.  Guess that means I’ll have to stop calling her ‘Buckle’.Sad smile

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

21 comments:

  1. Looks like you're really enjoying your visit!

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  2. I think Buckle is a cute nickname..I would stick with it, Gramma Belt!

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  3. Cute granddaughters. It must be nice to relax for a bit after that long drive and have the occasional dip in the pool too.

    I always thought the Sears Tower was the biggie in Chicago or am I thinking of another city?

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  4. I think she should always remain Buckle. I've always been Nan to my family, my sister called me that and it really is a special memory to know I have a family nickname. I wouldn't be doing the drive around there either.

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  5. The girls are precious. I agree with others...the nickname Buckle will be a great childhood memory to share as stories pass around the family gatherings. Glad you made the trip safely

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  6. Having time to spend with your grandaugther is priceless. Looks like you are having a great time. Enjoy your time together. Good choice of tunes while traveling too!

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  7. Love Chicago, enjoy your time with your grandchildren :)

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  8. That's a lot of miles in one day. Makes my butt hurt just thinking about it. The girls have grown up a lot, but are as cute as ever.

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  9. I too, vote for Buckle! Having a special name from g'ma will be a sweet memory the rest of her life. Glad you make it to Dyer safely. See ya on the return "flight".

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  10. Those little girls are just darling. Precious memories with Gramma.

    I salute you for 500 miles in a day. For several years I used to do 400 going between Charlottesville Virginia and Chautauqua New York each summer. The last two hours were the killers and I used the sing along approach too and often with John Denver. We might make good driving comnpanions! :-)

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  11. We used a John Denver song for our first dance as married people. Ah, the Seventies.
    Too bad he had to go and accidentally kill his foolish self. Those girls are almost as adorable as beagles...almost.
    Have a wonderful visit.

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  12. The girls have really grown this year! They are so cute! I'm sure you're all going to have a lot of fun in the next few days.

    p.s. slight correction on your tall black Chicago skyscraper names--- John Hancock is the one with the straight angled sides; Sears Tower (now officially called "Willis" tower, but no one remembers to call it that) is the Lego-block-looking black skyscraper in your pics. It used to be the world's tallest for a few decades until some of the newer skyscrapers in Asia were built. If you're not afraid of heights-- it might be worth a visit one day if you have time. They have a new glass "deck" thing that juts out from one of the top floors that allows tourists to walk out and look straight down thru the glass floor at the street 100 stories below...YIKES!

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  13. That was a long haul you made. Grand daughters are so beautiful.

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  14. That was quite a trip, but the joy of being with those lovely granddaughters was worth every mile. Have a ball, Gramma Belt!

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  15. I remember driving around Chicago AND New York City when I was young. And even Washington DC in the 1990's. I don't think I could do any of it today and like you, prefer to be the passenger.

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  16. Wow yhat was quite a drive, good thing you had John and Peter, Paul and Mary along for the ride. The grandgirls are just adorable, I bet you could just smother them with hugs and kisses.

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  17. Boy, 500 miles is a long day..even when I'm a passenger!...Those grandbabies are gorgeousz!! I did send the book to Robyn's...hope it makes it before you leave,...No matter when you get it , it's a really great read!!..and it's yours to keep, or ..pass it on... Have fun with the family!!

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  18. Three weeks from today we will be back in MD for a fly-in visit with our granddaughters. Your's are precious! Enjoy them friend.

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  19. You're g-girls are so cute. Keep the Belt and Buckle. I'm with you, if I'm ever I'm CHI town I hope I'm the passenger too!

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