Sunday, December 16, 2018

Sunday, December 16, 2018

Tonight's picture was taken in December of 2008. Mattie wasn't feeling well. He was in pain and running a fever. We were in the clinic and waiting to be admitted to the hospital. While waiting, Santa came in to visit Mattie. Mattie wanted to lift his head up to greet Santa, but it took great effort. 

Quote of the day: Unless we make Christmas an occasion to share our blessings, all the snow in Alaska won't make it 'white.' ~ Bing Crosby

Peter and I started our day at 5am. In order to catch two flights to get to Florida. I prefer non-stop flights, but American canceled our flight and reassigned us to Florida through Charlotte, NC. Which made a three hour flight, into a full day affair. 

I happen to love the Charlotte airport. They have this beautiful light filled atrium that is decorated in a very festive way. 

The atrium is lined with white rockers. It is a very inviting space, and you have to keep in mind that I don't like flying or airports. 

I think flying through Charlotte was actually good for us because we had a lay over that allowed us to sit down and have lunch and try to decompress from the hectic pace we keep in Washington, DC.

This is what the atrium looks like and the rockers line the entire space on the right by the windows.

The view flying into Fort Lauderdale. I can't tell you how happy we were to see the sunshine and experience 70 degrees. 

The airport was an absolute ZOO. Having 7 cruise ships in port helps to explain this, as each ship has about 3,000 passengers. Doing the math... that is 21,000 people coming off these ships and another 21,000 embarking onto the ships in the same day. 

We are spending the night at a local Marriott. When I looked out the window, I could see a cruise ship leaving the port and heading out to sea. 

This is Fort Lauderdale at dusk. Do you see the lights that are arching from the tall building in blue to the other building in blue on the right? This arch is a drawbridge. I can't look at any drawbridge without thinking of Mattie. He loved Fort Lauderdale and was in awe of the bridges going up on the half hour. When we visited this area with Mattie, we would always walk up to a drawbridge to watch the cars stop, so the bridge could go up and boats could pass underneath. 

My mom and me with Patrician (pianist/singer).

Tonight's we went to Serafina. It is an Italian restaurant with a charming waterfront view. It is a neighbor secret and gem! Each Sunday, the restaurant features Patrician. She is an incredible pianist, singer, and performer. She grew up performing with her dad. There is no song that she doesn't know and she can play for hours. Diners love her, as she takes special requests too.