Home from Scotland

The flowers in George Square, Glasgow were beautiful as they were everywhere in Scotland.

Wow! what a trip. We had a great time and really hated to come home so soon, Three weeks is a long time, though, but we enjoyed every minute. the first twelve days we were on a bus tour with 21 other travelers, 19 Americans and 2 Canadians. Our tour guide and bus driver was very good and very knowledgeable of the local history and geology. The final ten days we spent driving around Scotland. A challenge but I was not doing to bad driving on the left after the first couple of days.

Jana in George Square, Glasgow

Scotland and the people were everything were expected and more. We both fell in love with the country and already thinking about our next trip. We covered over 1000 miles on the bus tour and 1200 miles on our self driving tour. We traveled to the farthest point north on the main island and to the Orkney Islands, to the southern most point at Port Logan and Galloway light house, west coast to the east coast and even spent half a day in England. We saw a great deal but not everything so we must go back.

The Millinium Hotel in Glasgow where we stayed on our first night on tour.

Almost time

It is Sunday August 9 and we are starting the countdown. Have are bags nearly packed, passports ready, travelers checks and British pounds. Registered all of our electronics so we do not have to pay duty on them when we return. The flight leaves Albuquerque on Friday around 7AM and we arrive in Glasgow Saturday at 10AM. We will send complete itineraries to family before we leave. I am also taking my computer so hopefully will be able to upload a few photos as we travel.

New Humming Bird Feeder

We bought new humming bird feeders and has it ever been exciting. We have two feeders and there are 6 to 8 humming birds almost all of the time. Four varieties as best we can tell. The photo is taken with my new camera and telephoto lens I purchased for our upcoming trip to Scotland. the lens is a 75- 300mm zoom lens with auto focus and anti-shake. The new camera is a Canon D50. I plan to take a lot of photos.

We are really getting excited about our trip. Less than three weeks and we leave. I'll send itineraries this next week to all so you can contact us if you need. I will have my cell phone but I do not know how good the coverage will be on the north leg of our tour.

The yard has been beautiful this year and we have had a lot of nice comments from golfers. The fence and patio and plantings have all been enjoyable to look at and use. We have especially gotten a lot of use out of the new patio.

Time to eat so will close.

We had a nice rain yesterday. It is supposed to be beautiful today. Hope to start/finish planting flowers and probably pick a few weeds. Will let Sharon, our house keeper/gardener do the bulk.

This is Port William, Scotland, one of the places we hope to visit. One of my classmates lives in Port William. We can hardly wait. Now wish we had booked sooner. Something to plan for and dream about. We are working on the itinerary so that we can send contact information. We should still be available on our cell phone, hopefully with the same number. We'll let you know.

Talked with Amy earlier in the week. The Gray's had all been down with the flu. Hope you are all feeling better now. They were planting their garden a few weeks ago, So Mary Mary......How does you garden grow?

We haven't talked to Charlie and Cat. Need to give them a call today. I did talk to Steve, Connie was in Texas visiting her mother due to return this week. I also talked to Judie. She and Floyd doing fine and getting ready to make their move from Mesa to Lost Trail for the summer.

After all of my travelling last year it has slowed down enough that I am starting to look at what it will take for me to retire. Not yet, but at least starting to think along those lines.

Time to fix breakfast and get ready for church.

Pre-summer

No pictures this post. Just a note to let people know how we are doing. It is that time of year to start planting the garden. We moved plants that had wintered in the house outside over the weekend. We need to pick up some bedding plants, annuals and perennials, and fix the drip system and we should be set for the summer.

I had a nice visit with both my sister and brother. Both are doing fine. Steve's better was in Texas visiting her mother and will be back Thursday. Judie and Floyd finishing up doctors appointments and getting ready to head for Colorado for the summer. Judie may stop by Albuquerque to pick up Katrina when she flies in for the summer visit. We will try to get up to Lost Trail sometime during the summer.

We would like to go to Delta and pick up Jana's mother and aunt and bring them down to Albuquerque for a short visit and to see our church. We still need to start the process to encourage them to visit.

About all for now will add more the next blog.

Planning a trip

We are very excited here in the Crawford household. We are going to Scotland. We signed up for a tour and will travel to Scotland leaving Albuquerque Aug 14, 2009 and will return Sept 04, 2009. The tour is for 12 days and starts in Glasgow and goes to the nethermost island and back to Edinburgh viewing castles old towns, gardens, lochs and a distillery along the way. We will then pick up a car and drive back to Glasgow where we will stay at the Glasgow Grosvenor Hotel for nine days. we will use the hotel as a base for day trips to places not on the tour or that we want to visit on our own.

On the home side, we had a wonderful Easter Season in our new church. All of the services were wonderful and the altar beautiful.

The Nambe candlesticks and the processional cross and flower vas were all gifts given to the church by and really made a nice setting. Our church family has been truly blessed.

Not much else to report now. we will update family on travel details and i have registered the trip with the state department so that we can be reached in an emergency.

Back in Albuquerque

Hi all,

We are back in Albuquerque for the past week from a two week stay in Virginia. I went out for two weeks work. We used some of my frequent flyer miles on southwest to bring Jana out the second week and then we flew home together. Work was work, I walked my legs off so if I look shorter you will understand why! Jana and I had a great time when I wasn't working.

I picked Jana up at the airport in Baltimore on Friday of my first week there. Saturday we got on the metro and rode into Washington DC and toured the space museum and the new American Indian museum. I had never been to the latter so a great new experience. The outside perimeter of the American Indian museum is this fountain and reflecting pools that run the entire length of the building. This gave Jana the courage to ride the metro when I was at work so she was able to see some of the other memorials that are located on the mall.

We were to early for the cherry blossoms. but the gardens are beautiful and a few of the trees starting to bloom. These pictures are of a garden in front of the castle at the Smithsonian. The pink trees are the magnolias. Very beautiful and very fragrant.

Probably the greatest news we have from out trip is that Southwest has started flying into Minneapolis through Chicago.

Speaking of Chicago, Denver just traded their quarterback to Chicago. I was not overly enthralled with Cutler but I wish him luck with his new team. It will be interesting to see what Denver does with a new coach and a new quarterback.