restart in Willow 2019...

 thankfully, Prov ER wasn't too busy so they let me leave at about 4:30 am...that allowed me to get nearly 4 hours sleep...then KR was kind enough to let me hitch a ride with her and KH.

 a few from the walk the day before...which happened after the ceremonial start festivities were complete since i worked the night before. 

 the teams had traveled through before we got to the dog park.  these trails connect to the dog park so i took the pups there...gives them a chance to smell loads of dogs all at once.

 we had some cloud cover off and on out at Willow, even sun beating down on us as snow fell....it wasn't windy or crowded really so it was another fine day in Willow to watch the dog teams

 only 52 teams took off for Nome this year.  the Iditarod folks have had a few bad years. those that run it seem to have ticked off some folks.  i think there are some changes in the offices maybe.  we shall see.

 I'm prepping for my trip much like i always prepped to write papers in my college days..i tend to put off everything til the last minute.  i gathered what i needed but it still needed to be crunch time before i got down to getting everything done.  slowly some things have been getting done, but very slowly. 

 still need to do some prep work for the pet sitter. 

 usually once i get on the plane, it's all out of my control so i relax about the dogs.  before that I'm anxious about leaving them.  it's just how it is i guess. 

 hoping to get to see a few relatives before/after the cruise.  shopped today for some goodies for the grand nephew/nieces i will see.

 the trail to Nome is marked by these small stakes..in windy conditions some of these will blow over.  they are continuously watching the trail and now the teams have gps on their sleds.

 i was sleepy yesterday but really happy that i was able to get out there and watch the dogs.  just felt strange not to be headed to willow or watching the ceremonial start on Saturday.  so i do feel more settled.  not sure how much access we will have for monitoring the race while on the cruise.

 it was just the three of us out there this year.  most years there has been a fairly good sized gathering of Prov folks and friends.  seems like everyone had other plans this year.  we ate our snacks and snapped pictures...something we do all love doing.  i sat and never moved really til it was over.  i was still fairly sleepy from working three nights.

 this week, ICU, IMCU and then the ER.  had a triple of house convenience patients in ICU, then i had turnover in IMCU...so a total of 5 different patients through the night...so kept me busy.

 ER steady....hate when patients look at you with vague cardiac complaints...gets you wondering if they are going to code.  often they do...did avoid that and got the patient safely transferred up to the floor.  whew!

 Petit is in the lead at this moment.  things are pretty fluid until after everyone does their mandatory 8 and 24 hour rests. Joar, who won last years Iditarod, was in second position.

 was looking up information on our ship, Vision of the Sea.  it's the same ship i sailed on over 20 years ago..i think it was over 20 years.  will be interesting to see if it's been updated and what is new...hopefully it will be warm enough to play in the pools on board. when i was on this ship we were in the Alaska.

 i guess a dog that was running around near a checkpoint, decided to make the run with a few of the teams...that dog ran 30 miles with them to Rainy Pass i think it was.  those folks who felt it was cruel to make dogs run are looking pretty silly right now. 

 don't have my name list up here with me. 

 went to bed early last night because of lack of sleep.  dogs were anxious to hit the trails today after not getting a walk yesterday.  felt bad leaving them behind, but happy i went.  guilt...it's a thing even with dogs.

 i woke up early and ended up going through my Iditarod restart photo's before taking an early morning nap.  when i woke up to get ready for the Monday walk, Tusker had worked his way under the covers and was happily sleeping with his head on my pillow.  it was pretty adorable. 

 they kind of got stuck running errands with me all over the place, then waiting while i met a friend for dinner

 love watching the action of all these dogs. they are pretty pumped up to get on the trail. 

 i love the rear view, though i did have a few shots where the rear view was a bit graphic...haha.  at one point as well, i thought one dog was trapped in it's lines, but when i reviewed photo's i took, well that dog was just taking a poop.  who knew.

 running and pooping sounds messy and complicated.

 tough to stop for each dogs bowel needs though i guess. 

 teams are starting with 14 dogs as opposed to the old rule of 16 dogs max. they must have 5 in harness when they cross over in Nome.

 these side shots are much harder to get for me.  i still think they look cool when it works.  when it doesn't...all you have is blurry dog shots.

 some rookies return, some teams make a life of dog mushing.  some just go until they complete one, others only hit this trail once. this is a returning rookie from last year...rookie no more.

 maybe I'll try and get a few things done before i head off to walk the dogs tomorrow.  really need to stop being a procrastinator and get on it all.  get ready for a fun trip.  should be cool.  hope we have sun and not tornado's or hurricanes...a horrible one just hit Alabama i guess.

 good night...back to work for two then i won't be able to procrastinate any more.  still not sure how I'm getting to /from the airport.  LS return if she's awake...maybe just do the cab to get to the airport.

thankful for: A.  dogs B. traditions that are super fun  C.  sleep...i do need some