Home Again

We took a quick trip to southern Maryland last Thursday to visit my sister and her husband. Two of her kids had moved back near them lately (both lived in Georgia) and just bought new homes within the past three months so we were dying to see them all again. One nephew is still in Florida but hopefully we'll see them soon also.

The trip down was long and tedious as there was extensive road construction in central Pennsylvania on Rt 81 and a sudden downpour at about 10:30 pm just before we hit the PA/MD border on Rt 83. Other than than the trip down was uneventful.

My big sis (she is 8 days less than a year older than me) and her family are doing fine. My nephew has a great job with a major aircraft manufacturer and was transferred to MD to take charge of a new Navy project. My BIL also is busy for a contractor who is also working on a new Navy project.

My niece bought a 1,200 sq ft condo and it is beautiful. Two bedrooms and only a fifteen minute drive from the school where she is a teacher. She also has a very nicely developed talent for home decorating and has done an incredible job with very little money.

My nephew bought a home that is almost palatial. I have never been inside a house like this. Their master bedroom suite bathroom is bigger than my bedroom. Two stories, 4,200 sq ft. Kowabunga. This Friday their kids just got their instruments (viola and alto sax) for elementary school band and are all excited about their first music lessons this week.

Saturday we had a delicious seafood luncheon at Stoney's Restaurant on Solomon Island. Solomon is a little place on the Patuxent River just across from the Patuxent NAS. This area is famous for its local crab industry and just a small sandwich is incredibily filling. The meat is very sweet.

My sister was treated for breast cancer this year and is doing very well. She has no trace of cancer cells and the disease is not expected to return. Because of her digestive problems and her cancer, she has been involved in nutrition for quite some time. She has finally convinced me to start making our own bread. She grinds her own wheat and bakes fresh bread several times a week, among other things.

She also uses something called Juice Plus which our family has decided to try. After four days I already feel like I have a lot more energy. This has been a problem for me the past few years and my physical activity levels have suffered as a result. I come home from work and feel like I want to go straight to bed. I am anxious to see how this works out and will talk about it more in the future.

All told it was a great visit. For the ride home I decided not to revisit the construction sites on Rtes 81 and 83 and took 95 N to 476, PA Tpke. No delays at all and we were home in record time, only a little more than 6.5 hrs driving as opposed to over 8 hrs on the way down.