I had worried (surprised?) about sleeping through my 3:15 alarm yesterday, but woke on my own at 3.  As requested Alex called at 3:15 (because I'd also worried about him sleeping through his alarm), and we left right on schedule at 3:45.  With no traffic snafus (though I was amazed at the traffic at that hour of the 'morning') we arrived at the airport at 4:15.  I checked in curbside via my smartphone (of course had printed a paper backup 'just in case'), there wasn't much of a wait at security so that was easy, and I arrived at the gate shortly before the 4:45 boarding.  With my boarding spot of A41 I had no difficulty snagging my preferred seat in the back, and then ate, played games on my iPad, and 'read' my way through an uneventful flight. (The airline no longer provides any magazines, so there was no crossword puzzle to do.)  

There was a LONG wait for luggage at the carousel (not enough airport help?) but Andy waited for me. In the very short time that it took him to get to the curb from the cellphone lot once I eventually had my bag and called, a Chevy Equinox with "Andy" driving pulled up. I was stunned that he could drive a 'regular' car, and almost got in! 

There was a yummy lunch awaiting me at the house (the eating has started!) along with a very excited welcome from Pippa. 

The rest of the afternoon was nice and relaxing; expecting to be a 'little' tired later, I unpacked when Andy and Sandy took Pippa for a walk.  I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the wide assortment the birds at the various feeders, the squirrel antics, and even spotted 'their' fox slinking through the trees in the woods out back.  There were lots of bluebirds, chickadees, woodpeckers, etc. to keep me entertained, and photos 'may' appear in later posts.  In the meantime, I'll post a few of yesterday's less-than-perfect photos.

 Sadly I missed the money shot of this squirrel hanging upside down on the feeder just a few seconds earlier - but it's 'likely' <g> that there will be ample opportunities to snag that photo in coming days. 

After a yummy dinner we laughed our way through the evening, remembering funny family stories. I also heard (for the first time!) the story of their first date, and wonder how I'd never heard that one before. (They definitely need to watch Turner and Hooch.) 

I was tired during the afternoon and evening, but my goal was to make it until 9:00 last night, which I managed admirably.  At that point I considered it a win and went downstairs to get ready for bed.  As expected Pippa spent the night down there with me - though once Marilyn arrives I will become chopped liver.  (Since eating chopped liver may not be appreciated by everyone, the Jewish English expression "What am I, chopped liver?" signifies frustration or anger at being ignored on a social level.)

 

Once I got into bed I started a new book (finished listening to One Man yesterday), having set the sleep timer for 15 minutes and assuming I'd fall right asleep.  When I was still awake at 10:00 (having reset the timer at least once) I ended up taking a zolpidem.

 

I feel reasonably rested after a good night's sleep.  There isn't much on today's agenda (except a shower at some point) until late afternoon, when Marilyn arrives. Maybe I'll get some better bird pix today.