Grandkids are the best.............

It was a rainy morning when we made the trek from West to East.     The aspen really haven't turned in our part of the world but we did see some color around Vail.    Uneventful drive altho the backs do not appreciate that many hours in the Jeep.  

    

Nicholas and Kelsey came home for a few days from Oklahoma.    How good to see them and hear  of their busy lives.    Becca and Alex were home as well......we missed Lizzie and even tho she's nearby at UNC, her schedule was too busy to join us.   The memories are so fresh of their younger days and even their births....where does the time go ???

We hoped a plane the next day and got reintroduced to NYC traffic.   Jon picked us up at LGA and the usual  75 min drive took 3 hours !    

On Sunday we headed south through  the boroughs of NYC, across the George Washington bridge, down the NJ Turnpike, past Wilmington and Baltimore and into Washington DC.  

  We came to say a formal good by to our friend and Paul's colleague  Dean.   Air Force, Eastern and North American pilots were well represented on a beautiful fall morning at Arlington National Cemetery.    It's hard to describe the majesty of this hallowed ground.    If you haven't been there, please go and take in the reverence and solemnity and beauty. 

And then we headed north once again and managed to avoid the dreaded rush hour traffic.   

Andy, at 14, is now a member of the Newtown HS Marching Band.   It is an award-winning group with a long history of success.    He plays the trumpet.    On Saturday night, they hosted a competition of area bands.    How impressive and complex the routines have become.   I do not understand how they manage to play and maneuver the intricate patterns.    Andy said that the first year they don't have to play unless they are comfortable but should  concentrate on their feet first.   

I was in band, oh so many years ago, but still remember just trying to march in a parade and on the football field......nothing like what these talented kids do.     This weekend he goes on a 3 day trip to NJ and Philadelphia for competition.

New England in the fall is stunning but we are too early.      Wandering the back country scenic roads in NW Connecticut was still a trip down memory lane.    The colonial homes and estates are kept quite pristine and the history of Colonial days is everywhere.    We stopped at Kent Falls to climb the trail to the top.    Now there are granite stairs where there used to be just a steep path.    And signs warn of no climbing on the rocks or swimming in the pools.....that was always the fun part.    Water levels were pretty low and in two weeks, the leaves should be brilliant.