Travels with Lucy

We just spent the past weekend in New Jersey, celebrating the 90th Birthday of Jake's Great Aunt Sis.  Happy Birthday, Aunt Sister (aka Rosaleen)!  Jake and I both have an Aunt Sis; his mom's father's sister Rosaleen has always been known as "Sister" or "Sis," (thus, Aunt Sis), and my dad's father's sister, Margaret, was also an Aunt Sis.  In fact, for many years, I didn't even know that my Aunt Sis had a name other than "Sis."  In truth, there were just too many Margarets in our family, so "Sis" made things a bit more clear.

Anyway, soon after we were married way back when, Jake and I received a package from a mail order company.  It was a nice little clock, with a card that indicated it was from "Aunt Sis."  But which one?  So I had a rather funny conversation then with a customer service agent at the company, explaining that we had two Aunt Sis's and that we needed to know which one to thank.  She had never heard of anyone having one Aunt Sis, let alone two.

But to return to our New Jersey escapade, which was for Jake's Aunt Sis: we, along with many others of our extended family, were booked into a block of rooms in one of the Hampton Inns in Parsippany.  (Thank you to Vonnie & Florrie for all the leg work on rooms and such!)  When we arrived at about 1:15, the clerk at the front desk informed us that no, we would not be able to check in, as none of the rooms were ready.  Oh.  Well, I guess we'll just go change in the bathroom by the pool and then sit here in the lobby for two hours until the party.  Sure.  No problem.  Two hours in the lobby.  I was cranky about this, as we had just driven for four an a half hours, and it appeared that the hotel was otherwise empty (no cars in the parking lot at least).  But Lucy was delighted, as the lobby was a large open space, and she had been cooped up in a car for a while.  She delightedly began marching around, back and forth in front of the front desk, singing gleefully at the top of her lungs: "We all live in a yellow submarine!  A yellow submarine!  A yellow submarine!"

She did not even finish the first verse before the clerk alerted us that yes, in fact, miraculously, a room was in fact available.

Score!

Thanks, Lucy!  Back in the day, I did occasionally wield a crying, screaming, inconsolable Lucy in order to get into a hotel a bit early.   It's nice to know that there are now other options.

More soon, including: Garden Update!  Backyard Improvements!  And Hey! Lookout for that swing....