Lynn had a very busy week preparing to be away for eight days. Shortly after we boarded, she started feeling really bad. By the time we got to the hotel, she was down for the count. We got a covid test and, of course, it’s positive. The next two days she locked herself in the hotel room. I moved into Nathan’s room.

Day 1 – Lynn’s doctor ordered up some Paxlovid. While Lynn tried to recover, the guys went hiking in the local hills, got dinner together, and hung out a Matthew’s apartment.

Day 2 – She wasn’t better but rallied a bit as we drove to Yellowstone. That’s a long trip from Missoula. Four hours to get to the park; 90 minutes inside the part to arrive at the Yellowstone Lake Hotel.

Day 3 – Feeling a bit better, we took the Yellowstone South Loop drive. It’s amazing how big that park is. The South Loop is an easy two hour drive. Our stops included:

• West Thumb with many amazing hot springs. It’s so cool to see the water just boiling in the pools. The water is clear and deep but boiling like crazy. It’s not an illusion, if you touch it, it’s HOT.
• Old Faithful is definitely something to see. But it’s not the only geyser there. They all shoot very high in the air.
• Lots of other stops along the way too. So many geysers, falls and overlooks. We were on the road for most of the day.

Day 4 – Ready to vacation again, we headed for the North Loop and made lots of stops.

• We started at the “Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone”. This really felt like the Grand Canyon. The erosion from the river and falls were stunning.
• Our drive through Lamar Valley was to look for wildlife. We found it in Bison. There are SO many, it’s amazing. They’re HUGE and everywhere. But we didn’t see any bears.
• The valley follows the Lamar River, Lynn wanted to stop at a “Rivery River” stop. Nathan and Matthew were climbing on the big rocks/boulders. Nathan slipped and got to ride home in his “skivies”.
• Our stop at Mammoth Hot Springs was really cool. The Travistine (expelled Limestone) created a massive mountain over the springs.
• Norris Geyser is unique in that most of the other geysers are just hot water. Norris is sulfuric acid. You shouldn’t touch this water and it looks like your on another planet.

Day 5 – We returned to Missoula. Again the drive out of the park took two hours and then another four to get back to Missoula.

Day 6 – Nathan headed for home. Matthew and Lynn toured Missoula. I worked.

Day 7 – We flew home. Our best option was to leave afternoon and arrive home at 1:00am

The post First Visit to Matthew in Montana first appeared on LeRoy Family Blog.

On Friday, we went snowmobiling with White Mountain Tours.  Our ride started at noon and we each had a 2017 Polaris LXT 550; they rode like Cadillac’s.  Our guide took us across a 2,000 acres private property for two hours.  We started at 10,000 feet and climbed up to about 12,500 feet.  The groomed trails where easy for Lynn and Mary to manage until they had to stop for a bio-break.  Lynn sank in the snow up to her chest and that was kinda scary.

On Saturday, Paul and Bob went skiing at Beavercreek.  Mary and Lynn spent some time in the Beavercreek Spa. The weather was supposed to be 24 degrees but it felt like -10.  The snow was groomed corduroy and very fast.  The crowds were very small all day.

For dinner on Saturday, we went to the Ski Tip Lodge.  An awesome restaurant based out of a historic stage coach stop.  The rustic feel of the lodge was ideal for a five-star meal.

Great times with the family.

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Rather than go directly to Paris from Amsterdam, he flew to Geneva and took a car to Chamonix.  It’s about 75 minutes drive. The big difference from Colorado is how close you are the mountains.  Here, you’re very close to the highest points.  In Colorado, the mountains are bigger and spread further apart.  The highest points are far in the distance. The skiing was very nice.  The runs aren’t terribly steep or bumpy.  It made for a great casual day at the slopes.

The mountains surrounding Chamonix are stunning but the village is showing it’s age.  Most of the buildings are worn down.   At the end of the day, food was the number priority.  The first place that had “restaurant” in it’s name was nice but the waiter said “No Food”.  Ok, weird for a ski resort.

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On Friday, February 12th, we flew to Winter Haven to visit her parents. The weather was very nice in the low 70’s. It was a great visit

• Golf – Ray and I played a good round.
• Old Harry’s – We went to dinner at a local restaurant that was very good. The line to get a table was forever but the food great.
• Church – We all went to church together. It was a moving service.
• Computer – Of course, I got to spend a lot of time fixing computers while I was there. They needed a little new Thermal Compound and it’s fixed.

After a couple days near orlando, we drove down to Estero to see my parents. The weather was warm but very cloudy.

• Oncologist – The highlight of the trip was going to see Dad’s cancer doc. That was extremely informative. I have a much better appreciation for what he’s going through.
• Carin – We had dinner with Carin and Brian at Mom’s house. We had lots of good laughs and good food.
• Computer – Of course, I got to spend a lot of time fixing computers while I was there.

Our last stop was a flight to Charleston, South Carolina to visit Cliff and Nancy Hern’s Condo one Isle of Palms. It’s a very new facility (Ship Watch) with great views of the ocean.

• Fort Sumter – We took a tour of Fort Sumter for the civil war times.
• Carriage – After the tour, we had a small tour of the city by horse drawn carriage.
• Golf – Cliff and I played golf on Harbor Course, the narrowest golf course I’ve ever played. I lost more balls there than I’ve ever lost before.
• Game – We played two games
  1. Drinking – It’s primaries time and the candidates are in SC. So each of us got a nominee. When that candidates commercial came on TV, everyone else had to drink. You’d be shocked how well we know the commercials now. And, there are a lot of commercials.
  2. Farkle – Nancy introduced us to a new dice game. It was lots of fun for any number of people. Very cool.
• Bike rides – On our last day, we took a nice 10 mile bike ride around Isle of Palms. The weather was great for February.

It was a great week.

Oh, I went running on the beach too. That was very nice.

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The post Dublin first appeared on LeRoy Family Blog.

Old Stockholm – No time for a run but I did take a nice walk around the old city.
Amsterdam – I got in a couple runs. The community I ran through was not the best part of the city.
Dublin – This was short run before my flight home. I basically ran around the apartments of Tyrrelstown.
Noordwijk – It’s always a cold run along the north sea.  It’s flat but the dunes have some rolling hills.
Toulouse – It was a beautiful day for a run along the river.
Malmo – Cold day in early May but nice run through the dog park.
Seattle – I usually map my route before I leave the hotel.  But, it doesn’t show the topography.  Seattle is hilly.
Venice – It’s very flat except the stairs are everywhere.

The post Running on Trips first appeared on LeRoy Family Blog.

The company has me staying out near the office, south of downtown. Today, I went into the city to do laundry. After dropping off my clothes, I went to the Rijksmuseum. It’s super cool. They have some amazing pieces of art.

Walking around the city was nice too. The canals are everywhere with lots of flowers. I even stumbled upon a large market that sells every type of tulip bulb you can imagine.

Amsterdam is nice with lots of History. However, it’s not nearly a clean as Stockholm.

AND it’s no fun without Lynn.

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On my second day, we stayed in the Sogeti office in Solna all day except for lunch. We had chinese for lunch, Ha! After work, I went for a walk in “old” Stockholm. It’s the center of Stockholm on a little island where the grand palace sits and most of the government offices are around this too.

To get there, I had to take a short subway ride. What amazes me most is how clean the city is. Its very similar to other european cities Lynn and I have visited. On my walk, I only visited in a couple shops. I bought an ice cream and headed back. The visit was way too short but at least I got out for a couple hours.

Lynn and I have to come back here together.

The post Stockholm Sweden first appeared on LeRoy Family Blog.

The island is amazing. It measures about 600′ x 700′. They’ve owned it for 30 years. You can only get there by boat. There is one main house plus a “Granny House” plus several small, one room cabins that are just big enough for a double-bed, dresser and a closet. The main house has a “West Deck” that has a spectacular view of the bay. The Granny House is new for Lisa’s parents. It’s a larger, open air cabin with an open architecture for living room/bed room, a small kitchenette, and bathroom.

The weather was gorgeous in the mid-80’s with totally sunny skies, and at night, down to low 60s (perfect sleeping weather while you hear the lapping of the lake waves on the rocky shoreline). We spent a lot of time sitting on the “West Deck” watching sunsets, drinking cocktails, and enjoying the great company. Along with David’s “divine” homemade bread he would make each day, we shared cooking the dinners each night. That was great fun too! We never went back to the mainland until we left four-days later.

We mostly focused on watersports like wake boarding, kayaking, swimming and such. Nathan and Reese did some fishing but didn’t have much luck. Boat excursions to check-out the uninhabited islands was lots of fun—“Flat Rock”, “Spider Island”, and “Mushroom Island” to name a few. In the past when Nathan visited, him and Reese would campout on these islands all night. One highlight for me was climbing a 30 foot rock cliff to jump off; anything Nathan can do, I can do too.

Lynn and Lisa went kayaking one morning after breakfast. Many of the islands are private and the Allisons treat it like a neighborhood. This is the Jackson’s, that’s the Miller’s, here are the Jone’s. Lynn got everyone’s stories, and during their adventure, they stopped to visit her Uncle (her mom’s brother) on his own Island, along with her Aunt and a cousin from Germany. During the week, families stop by for cocktails, others would invite you to dinner. It was very warm and welcoming. Surprisingly, many owners are from Ohio and Indiana.
It was a great time. Here are some pictures.

And a timelapse sunset:

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