Checking Tasks Off - One By One

Today was an extremely busy day for me both inside and out of the home.  I spent the majority of the morning helping Doug with a project that included conference calls and research on the computer.  Fortunately, I could be home to work on that, so I catch up on laundry as well.  I did also find some time to squeeze in a Body Project workout before leaving the house.

I spent this afternoon in Goshen running errands.  My first stop was Dr. Freeze's office for my second shingles vaccine.  It took a little longer than I planned, but now I should be done with immunizations for awhile.  Next, I went grocery shopping at Walmart.  It was quicker than normal as I didn't need a lot, mostly snacks and food for Cameron.  The last stop was the most frustrating.  I had to pick up a package at Kohl's.  Their curbside pickup was closed and there was a long line inside.  It took twenty minutes, but at least I got what I needed.  County Road 29 was closed, so I had to take a longer route than normal.  Thankfully, I still made it home before Cameron and in time to get my boarding pass for tomorrow's trip.

Tonight wasn't quite as busy as today.  I unloaded the groceries, finished the laundry and packed for our time in Florida.  Cameron was busy helping Jacob Leininger with a project, but was able to be home for the second half of the IU vs. Syracuse game.  The Hoosiers looked good and it was a fun way to spend the rest of our evening.

Back in Bloomington, Reluctantly

Meg left yesterday afternoon for Bloomington.  She really did not want to leave.  She had had a lot of fun over Thanksgiving break and was dreading the next three weeks.  She would have a lot of work to do for her upcoming finals and she just wasn't ready for that to start.  We could completely sympathize with her, but knew the best thing that she could do was to take it day by day.  

Thus, the first goal was to get to Bloomington.  The trip went pretty well for her until she got to Martinsville.  She waited over twenty minutes in stopped traffic there, but otherwise did alright.  Brett helped her unload her car and she even had time to finish her new series on Peacock + before heading to bed.  Meg's next goal was to meet with the IU Health center about the residual effects of her sinus infection.  She took care of that Monday morning and still made it to class on time.  She felt good about that and even had a successful day at work.  By the time I talked to her tonight, she felt a lot better about the semester.  She had received several grades back that she was worried about that turned out higher than she expected.  She had a plan to deal with the stress of finals and was looking forward to finishing the semester.  I was glad to hear that.  

College Football

One thing that made Christmas decorating yesterday a little more fun was watching college football with Cameron and Doug while we were doing it.  Rivalry weekend has always been one of our favorite times and yesterday's games were really exciting.  We watched Michigan shock Ohio State with an upset, followed by a disappointing quadruple overtime win by Alabama over Auburn.  Cameron then kept us up- to-date on the score of the Oklahoma vs Oklahoma State game.  It was also a close one with OK St. holding on to win in the end.  Those along with a close Florida vs. Florida State game made for an exciting day of football.  The only game that wasn't fun to watch was the IU vs. Purdue game.  The Hoosiers looked terrible once again and were completely blown off the field.  For the first time in years, we really didn't care that much about the Old Oaken Bucket game.  All of the other ones made up for it.  Cameron said it was his favorite day of college football all year.  We were glad to hear that as Doug and I both thoroughly enjoyed watching it with him.

Christmas Decorating

Yesterday, Doug pulled all of the Christmas out of the storage room.  When I first saw the eleven tubs, the entire set of North Pole Villages, the three boxes of light up Christmas animals and the Christmas tree, I almost cried.  I love our Christmas decorations and traditions, but the reality definitely became apparent to me this year that we have too much.  Doug was already on that page, but now that we have talked more of moving and downsizing, we have to start the process now.

I felt a lot better about the Christmas after today.  Doug was able to hang up all of the outside decorations, put up the Christmas tree, fix the non-working strings of lights and set out the North Pole Village by this afternoon.  With all that he got done, I was able to focus on the tubs and decorate the tree.  Once I finished going through all of the ornaments and unpacking everything in the tubs, Meg was able to look through it all and decide what she wanted to take to Bloomington with her.  She ended up with two tubs to add to her collection. Next, I FaceTimed Brett so that he could also look through all that I was ready to part with this Christmas.  He ended up with a tub full as well.  

Cal left for Chicago at noon today.   He let me know before he headed out that he really didn't need any Christmas decorations.  I wasn't too shocked by that.  The last person to go through the "goodbye" pile was Cameron.  I wasn't sure how much he would want to keep as he usually holds on to more than the other three.  I was actually surprised by how much he parted with this time.  Meg and Brett were both relieved, however, that he said he wanted to keep the "Saxophone Playing Santa."  We had had it for years and they didn't want to insist that I keep it, but were glad that he did.  Doug did not share their sentiment, but overall was thrilled to find out that in the end we had downsized at least five tubs of Christmas decorations.  I was happy about that and was also pleased that I found the missing piece to Grandma Guard's vintage toy stove top.  I had lost it several years ago and found it tonight in the bottom of the last Christmas tub that I cleaned out.  Overall, it was a great day.  We got a lot accomplished, decorated the house, downsized quite a bit and even had some decorations for Grandma Jane to use at the cemetery.  

Grandma Jane's Birthday & Black Friday

Since we were all together yesterday for Thanksgiving we celebrated Grandma Jane's birthday before she left for home.  Brett, Cam and Meg had all picked out some fun gifts for her including earrings, a sweater and big box of Russell Stover's.  Cal decided that he would wait until her actual birthday to shower her with gifts.  It also gave him a chance to eat lunch with her as well.  Whether it was today or yesterday, I was just very happy that all of the Heinisch children were able to spend time with her to celebrate.  I was also glad that I found this picture of her recently.  It was a great one to post in honor of her day.

Nick, Meg and Cameron left for Fort Wayne this morning to participate in Black Friday shopping.  It was definitely a little more low key this year as most stores remained closed on Thursday and didn't open until this morning.  That worked out perfectly for our shoppers as they had some Christmas gifts to buy.  They also found some good discounts on clothing for themselves.  They stopped at Portillo's again for lunch.  Meg said it was extremely crowded, so they decided to wear masks while they waited thirty minutes to order.  They were home by 3 p.m.  Meg and Nick left shortly afterward for Goshen.  Cameron stayed home a little longer, but by 5:30 was out the door for Goshen as well.  He, Sam, Jordan and Richard hung out at Klopfenstein's for the evening with Cameron ending up spending the night there.

Cal hung out with us last night.  He had really been wanting to watch the 1980's version of The Thing.  The original had been mentioned several times in the movie Halloween and it was remade by the Halloween director in 1982.  I hadn't seen it in years and Doug, Cameron, Cal and I all really enjoyed it.  It was a lot like the movie Alien, only set in Antarctica.  Tonight Cal decided to see a movie in the theater instead.  He and HM went to a late afternoon viewing of The Gucci Murder.  He really liked it.  

With Brett back in Bloomington and the rest of the Heinisch family busy, Doug and I had a quiet evening at home.  We spent it making Chex Mix, playing Ticket to Ride and working on the Neuschwanstein Castle puzzle.  It was nice to spend time with Doug as it had been a very busy week both at home and at his work.  Meg and Nick made it home tonight in time to watch The Fox & The Hound with us.  Although the movie was really sad, it was a nice way to end our evening.  

Happy Thanksgiving

 It was a wonderful Thanksgiving day for all of us.  Last year we had a small group for dinner due to the pandemic, but this November not only were the six of us here, but Nick, Grandma and Grandpa, and Paula and Gabrielle were able to join us as well.  It was so much fun.  We started the meal with Paula's new brie and cranberry appetizer, then enjoyed Doug's traditional dishes as well as Grandma's desserts.  There was plenty for everyone and the guys were able to watch the Lions vs. Bears game while we were eating.

After lunch, we split up for games with some of us playing pool, others Euchre and a group with Apples to Apples.  I joined the last table and was glad that I did.  I hadn't played Apples to Apples in a long time and forgot how much fun it was.  Nick was the only one who left early as he needed to join his family's Thanksgiving as well.  He made it back before everyone else left.  After a quiet Thanksgiving last year, I was incredibly thankful for all of the activity today.  It also gave us a chance to get a much needed family photo, one that we hadn't taken since Christmas of 2020.  Paula did a great job with the pictures and we even got one with Grandma and Grandpa in it as well.  What a wonderful way to commemorate the day.

Family, Fun and Games

It was a fun day for everyone here in the Heinisch home.  Brett had lunch with a friend of his from the Kosciusko County Political Party and then had dinner with a friend from high school.  Cal spent the evening with his friends as well.  First, they all hung out here for awhile and then they headed to the Frog for the rest of the night.  Doug and I were glad that we also got to see Jayce and Kyle for a little while before they left.  The guys had been hoping to play basketball with the teachers while they were home, but unfortunately that was cancelled due to virtual learning.  Meg had been catching up with her friends this week as well meeting Rachael, Sarah and Gabrielle all at various times.  Therefore, she decided to spend a good portion of today with Nick either in Goshen or at our home.  Cameron had a full evening yesterday as he had three basketball games at Bethany and dinner at Culver's afterward.  He most looked forward to catching up on his sleep today.  He did make it up in time for Doug's homemade lasagna.  

Even with everyone coming and going today, we did find time to play games as well.  Racko, Disney Geek Out, Sorry Revenge, endless games of pool and even an after midnight round of Swap Meet were all a lot of fun.  Grandma and Grandpa joined us for part of the evening.  I was definitely exhausted by the time we headed to bed, but I didn't mind.  I had thoroughly enjoyed the day with the Heinisch family and appreciated that everyone still made time for us even with their busy schedules.

  

They're All Home

 Brett arrived this afternoon, and for the first time since last Christmas all four of the Heinisch children were home at the same time.  Doug and I were happy to have him here, and Meg and Cal both had a chance to see Brett before they left for the night.  Since Cameron was at the Bethany basketball games, it was only Doug, Brett and I for dinner.  We enjoyed catching up with Brett, hearing about his week at work, his friends and his thoughts on Christian Mingle.  Brett appreciated the conversation and Doug's fried potatoes.  He hadn't had them before tonight.

Once Grandpa got home from his rescheduled town council meeting he and Grandma came up for an evening of Oh Hell.  We were excited to see that Grandma was able to fix the Sorry Revenge game.  Meg really wanted to play it over break and we thought it was dead for good.  We spent the rest of the evening playing cards.  It also gave me a chance to catch up on Brett's laundry as well.  Everyone else was home by 11 p.m.  It was wonderful to have all six of us under the same roof tonight before we headed to bed.  

Oncology Appointment

When Jeanette was first diagnosed with peritoneal cancer in 2011 she underwent a lot of testing.  One of the biggest issues to solve was the origination of the cancer.  We quickly learned that it was ovarian cancer that had attached itself to the lining of her stomach.  As Jeanette had already successfully fought metastatic breast cancer years earlier, her oncologist decided to also do genetic testing.  It was at that time that she let the family know that she was a carrier of the BRCA 1 gene which had increased her risk of both breast and ovarian cancer.  Because she was a carrier, Phil, Dan and Doug all had a 50% chance of being one as well.  At the time her doctor offered genetic testing for the boys, but only Phil was interested.  His bloodwork returned positive for the cancer gene as well.  We were a little surprised by that as we always thought that he looked the most like the Heinisch side of the family and the least like Jeanette's.  The other piece of advice that we received from all of the testing was for Meg to start having mammograms at the age of 19 because of the Brucker family history of cancer.

None of us had really done much with the information that we received a decade ago relating to Jeanette's BRCA 1 diagnosis until this past summer.  Doug had a colonoscopy and Meg and I met with Dr. Freeze to discuss setting up a mammogram for Meg.  Dr. Freeze had a different suggestion then we had previously heard.  She wanted Meg to meet with a breast oncologist from Goshen and discuss genetic testing.  At first Meg and I were reluctant as she really didn't want to know if she had the BRCA 1 gene.  She didn't want a mammogram either, but at least that sounded better to her than finding out that she was at high risk of ovarian and breast cancer.  In the end we went with the oncologist idea, however, and set up an appointment for Thanksgiving break.

This morning Meg and I headed to the Goshen's Women's Retreat Center to meet Dr. Fiona Denham.  We were extremely impressed with her.  She was even younger than Dr. Freeze and was extremely informative.  She thoroughly explored Meg's family history of cancer, giving her thoughts on genetic vs. environmental risks.  Due to Jeanette's diagnosis, Dr. Denham highly recommended genetic testing, but respected that Meg wasn't ready for that.  She was prepared for that answer and gave Meg screening choices instead, most of which would start at age 25.  It was a lot of information for Meg and I to absorb, but she and I felt really good about the appointment when we walked out an hour and a half later.  I also appreciate that I had quite a bit of information to pass on to Doug as well.  

He's Home

Cal arrived home this afternoon in time to catch the second half of the Bears game.  Doug and I were thrilled to have him here for the week.  We were in the middle of finishing a project on the computer when he walked in, so we were also thankful to have someone here to keep us up-to-date on the score.  Unfortunately, the Bears quarterback was injured late in the game and their defense let the Ravens walk into the end zone in the fourth quarter.  After that no one was interested in watching the Bears lose one more game this season.

Cal decided to walk down to Grandma and Grandpa's once the game was over.  He enjoyed visiting with them and talking football.  Doug's macaroni and cheese was ready when he arrived back home and we enjoyed eating dinner with him, catching up on his week at work and watching the Chiefs game.  IU basketball had a game tonight, but Cal wasn't interested in watching them play.  Cameron had Samuel, Jordan and Richard over after the Bethany play tonight, so he didn't have plans to watch it either.  Thus, Cal picked Halloween 2 for our viewing pleasure this evening.  As far as horror movie sequels go, it's not too bad.  Cal had never seen it before and felt it was worthing watching as well.  

Meg arrived home from her night out with Sarah just as we finished the movie.  She was glad for an evening with friends after spending most of the weekend writing a twelve page paper for an ethics class.  Doug and I really appreciated all of the activity in the house today.  Only two more days and everyone will be on Thanksgiving break.  Can't wait! 

Zillow

Lately, Zillow has been all over the web for some poor home buying decisions.  Cal was fortunate to have sold his stock shortly before the news broke.  I was a little surprised to hear about the issues, but that hasn't change my opinion of the real estate app.  Meg and I have actually been using Zillow quite a bit lately and their financial problems hasn't slowed us down at all.  We find it a lot of fun "window shopping" for houses in other locations or finding out how much the homes in our area are worth.  Most of the time we love what we see, but every once in awhile we find one that's just unbelievable, either in price or in decor.

Last week, I sent a couple homes to Meg to compare.  We both liked one a lot and would have totally been sold on the second until we came across the photo of the pink kitchen complete with pink cabinets and pink countertops.  The next one I sent Meg was one of our favorites, not to buy, but for the "what were they thinking aspect."  It was so good that I had to show Cameron and Doug as well.  Cameron found it to be as hideous as we did, but Doug actually kind of liked it.  He was sure that the kitchen could be updated and if not, would make a good golf course bar.  He agreed, however, that the bathroom was a complete deal breaker as there was no help for that.  Even though we don't have plans to move until Cameron graduates, it has been fun to think about it, especially now while the market is so hot. 

She's Home!

Meg arrived this afternoon, happy to be home.  She still had a twelve page paper to write this weekend, but for the most part she would have time to relax and recover from a bad sinus infection.  She and I spent an hour or so catching up on our week and listening to my new vinyls.  She had quite a bit of laundry to bring in, but other than that there wasn't a lot of unpacking to do.  

Meg and Cameron had decided to go to dinner at Portillo's and to do some shopping this evening.  Cameron had a haircut right after school.  We thought that the best plan was for me to drive Meg to Amanda's in North Webster, so they could leave from there.  We only had to wait a few minutes before we got a look at Cameron's new haircut.  Meg and I both liked it.  They then took off for Fort Wayne while I headed home.  

Meg called a few times while they were out shopping.  She wanted to check on any deals that I had at Kohl's and also to ask me what I wanted from Yankee Candle.  They arrived home around 9 p.m. with packages in tow.  Cameron had a new flannel jacket and Meg had new earrings to show us.  They were both nice and I appreciate the shopping they did for me as well.  Overall, I was just glad that they had a good time.  They both like to shop and eat at Portillo's, so it was the perfect activity for them to do together.  It was also a great way for Meg to kick off her Thanksgiving break at home.

Getting Ready

I spent today getting ready for our first visitor of the Thanksgiving holiday as Meg will arrive tomorrow.  Since Doug has been using her room while she's in college, I had some rearranging and cleaning to do before she gets here.  Classes were finished for her yesterday at 4:00, but she wanted to stop in West LaFayette last night before traveling home.  Purdue still has classes on Monday and Tuesday, so Nick won't be home until those are over.  

I talked to all of the Heinisch children about their plans while they are home.  Doug and I are super excited to see them, but realize that they have others that they want to visit as well and some Christmas shopping that they wanted to do during Thanksgiving vacation.  Brett had made plans with a few of his friends from the Kosciusko County Republican party.  He also wanted to catch up on a couple of his video games that are still at our house.  His requests from us were to have a traditional turkey dinner for the holiday and to play Ticket to Ride England at some time while he's home.  Cal said that he didn't have any specific plans with his friends yet and still wasn't sure if he'd be off Monday and Tuesday.  He had a few movie requests for us when he did return Meg had a list of friends to get together with over Thanksgiving break.  She and Cameron are going to go shopping tomorrow night in Fort Wayne and to eat dinner at Portillo's.  Cameron's official break won't start until Wednesday, but he already had plans Saturday and Sunday of this weekend.  I know that we won't be able to spend every minute with the Heinisch children when they are home, but we will enjoy having them here and are thankful that they still love to come home.  

Christmas Cards

Lately, I have found making our yearly Christmas card a little stressful.  When the Heinisch children were little, I always had plenty of pictures of the four of them to chose from on my camera roll.  I would pick out a fun one and Doug would come up with a caption for it.  We had a lot of really cute ones including one in front of the liberty bell where Brett said, "Don't blame me!  Cal cracked it!"  Another one had the picture of the older three peering through a cabin window with the caption "On the lookout for Heinisch number four."  I loved that a few years later we took the same photo, but with Cameron in the picture as well.  

As our children got older, we stopped having just the one photo of the four of them and went to a picture collage on the front of the Christmas card and a written update of our family's year on the back.  I always still included a photo of the four of them or even the six of us in some years, but there were also ones of Meg playing soccer, Brett in the play, Cal on the basketball court or Cameron at the golf course.  Those collages were easy to make as I had a ton of pictures of everyone as they were all involved in so many activities and they were all at home.

Last year I still had quite a few pictures as we had taken a trip together to Disney before the pandemic hit and I also got a really good one of the four of them on the back deck at Thanksgiving.  What made the 2020 Christmas card stressful was the shipping problems last December.  Thousands of items got lost in the mail and it seemed that every package was delayed.  The worst for us was Carl and Marina's gift, which took over three weeks to arrive to their home in Florida due to a detour in North Dakota.  Our Christmas cards fell victim to the USPS delays last year as well, but thankfully arrived by December 17th giving me time to mail them before the holiday began.

Because the issues of 2020 haven't gotten much better this year, Doug and I decided that we would pay for expedited shipping on any holiday packages that we ordered or sent in 2021.  We also decided to order our Christmas cards before Thanksgiving with the hope of getting them out a little earlier this holiday season.  I started working on the card yesterday and quickly became frustrated.  I realized that we hadn't all been together much this year.  We had seen the Heinisch children a lot, but whole family activities had definitely declined.  Once I realized that I wouldn't have a photo of the six of us or even the four Heinisch children, I had to come up with a different plan.  I could either find individual pictures of each, take a group photo at Thanksgiving or find pictures of the Heinisch children in pairs.  I knew I didn't want to wait for a Thanksgiving photo.  Cal and Cameron were participating in "No Shave November" and it wasn't quite the look I was going for this holiday season.  I also didn't have a lot of individual photos to chose from either.  I did joke about using a picture of Cameron with each of us in the collage as I had plenty of those, but in the end went with the pair idea and it looked perfect..  I made two cards and had everyone preview them.  It took a little bit of editing, but in the end we found something that we were all happy with for this year's Christmas card.  Now the only stressful part will be waiting for them to arrive.

Leaf Raking Season

As soon as we unloaded the car and ate lunch on Sunday, Doug was outside raking leaves in the backyard.  I had to unpack and get the laundry started for the week ahead, but once I finished, I spent some time in the yard as well.  It was cold and the leaves were heavy from the morning snow, but we were still able to finish in the back before sundown.  

This afternoon Doug made plans to come home early to work on the front yard.  I was glad that Amanda was able to change my hair appointment from 5:30 to 3 p.m., so that I could help him.  The weather was a lot warmer today, which I really appreciated.  The leaves had also dried out considerably making the task a little easier.  We were able to finish the front yard and driveway before dinner.  It definitely looked a lot better.  I know that we'll still have some yard work to do this weekend, but overall it was nice to make a big dent in the project these past few days.  As much as I love our yard, I will not miss leaf raking season when we leave this area.

Happy Birthday to Me

I had an enjoyable day celebrating my 53rd birthday.  I received birthday greetings from all of my children.  I read multiple posts on Facebook wishing me well and enjoyed the pictures that my mom posted in honor of the day.  I had several text messages from my good friends and I listened to my new vinyls all morning.   Doug invited me to lunch at 5-2-3.  The food was delicious and the company was perfect for my birthday lunch.  I got to see Doug's new office, complete with a tour of the famous "storage closet," and he even surprised me with flowers when he arrived back home.

The celebration continued in the evening as my parents brought up an Angle Food cake for dessert, a twelve pack of Fresca as a birthday gift and even stayed for a game of Oh Hell.  I really appreciated that Cameron was home to join us as well.  He had been busy with his friends and after school activities this past month, so we hadn't gotten a chance to play cards in quite some time.  All in all it was a low key birthday for me and a wonderful way to celebrate my 53rd year of "traveling around the sun."

Busiest Week of the Year

Saturday November 6th - Drive to Chicago, Fly to Tampa, Drive to Ocala

Sunday November 7th - Thoroughly explore Ocala

Monday November 8th - Drive to Gainesville, Visit University of Florida, Pick Up Doug in Ocala,  Drive                                           to Tampa

Tuesday November 9th - Fly to Chicago, Drive to Bethany, Unpack to Repack

Wednesday November 10th - Drive to Bloomington, Clean and Organize Brett's Apartment, Watch                                                              Anastasia

Thursday November 11th - Get Meg's Apartment Ready for the Carpet Cleaners, Drive Home, Attend                                                    Cameron's Band Concert

Friday November 12th - Unpack to Repack, Fit Dining Room Table in Pilot, Pick Up Cameron After                                                Bethany Girls' Game, Drive to Bloomington

Saturday November 13th - Tailgate, IU Football Game, Celebrate Birthday

Sunday November 14th - Drive Home, Rake Leaves 

This past week has been the craziest week of the year.  With all of the family time together, however, I wouldn't change a thing.

A Chilly Day for Football

 Doug and Cameron were out the door by 8:40 this morning to set up for the IU vs. Rutgers tailgate.  It was definitely a lot different than the Ohio State game.  By 8:30 that weekend almost all of the grass lots were filled.  Today, the lots never even reached capacity.  Doug and Cameron had fun nonetheless and soon had the tent and food ready for a Heinisch family tailgate.  

Meg, Nick and I were the next to arrive.  We walked over from the Wright parking lot and were there by 10 a.m.  Doug had made brats and Nick vowed to eat at least four this morning.  Shortly after we arrived, Pam called.  She was having a hard time finding the "C" lot, but soon joined our group as well.  Cal was the last one to find us.  He had been at Kilroy's breakfast club before arriving.  We all had fun catching up with one another and enjoyed Doug's food.  It was definitely chillier than our previous tailgates, but we were able to keep warm.

Doug, Cameron and I were the only ones interested in going to the game today.  Pam needed to leave so that she could see her sister before she flew home.  Cal had plans with HM at another tailgate.  Nick and Meg decided to warm up back at her apartment and watch a movie.  The first half of the game was a lot of fun.  Rutgers quickly scored, but IU still looked pretty good.  The game was freezing cold, but we had brought plenty of blankets.  Cameron and I also bought hot chocolate at the beginning of the second quarter which helped warm us up.  The guys in front of us were entertaining to listen to as they tried to encourage the football team.  The best part of the first half was the group of male IU students who united together in a top section of the stadium to cheer on the Hoosiers, shirtless.  The rest of us enjoyed their enthusiasm and cheered loudly for them when they finally made it on to the big screen.  Much like most of the student section, however, they left at halftime.  We stayed until the end of the third quarter, but once IU looked like they had totally given up, we figured that we might as well too.  

We spent the rest of the afternoon watching football at Brett's.  Nick joined us for awhile hoping Purdue would upset Ohio State, but it wasn't mean to be.  Once Meg and Brett got off of work tonight we celebrated my birthday with dinner at Bucceto's and opening of gifts afterward.  I really enjoyed the celebration as well as my presents.  Brett found a Jungle Boat candle for me that smelled like the Jungle Cruise ride.  Doug bought me a new pair of winter pajamas and two vinyl albums that Meg helped pick out - The Jagged Little Pill and Queen's Greatest Hits.  Cameron and Meg got me a new case for my Air Pods and a Guns N Roses shirt.  I absolutely loved all of my gifts, especially the throw back to the musical tastes of my younger years.  We ended the evening with a game of Germany Ticket to Ride.  It was a very fun evening (and a lot warmer than the football game!) 

A November Concert

I left Bloomington early yesterday afternoon in order to make it home to Cameron's band concert.  Originally, I was going to stay in Bloomington and pick Doug up at the airport, but once the date of the concert was changed we made different plans.  Brett offered to pick up Doug and I said that I would videotape the concert for him.  It was a lot of driving in a short period of time, but thankfully, all went well.

This was the first time that Bethany had held a concert in November for its high school music programs.  It made sense as they had changed the format of the December program, cutting the band performance down to one song.  The only issue was that the set had already been built for the fall play, so the chapel at school was not available.  Thankfully, the chapel at the Mennonite Church of Goshen College was available.  Grandpa, Grandma and I arrived early and we all enjoyed the music.  The concert band was obviously our favorite and we all left singing "America" from West Side Story in the end.

I spent today getting ready for our trip back to Bloomington for another IU football weekend.  I was very glad that I didn't have too much on my agenda as I was able to rest this morning.  I had been on the go since last Saturday and it felt good to get some extra sleep.  I picked Cameron up after the girls basketball game tonight.  My mom rode along so that we could leave as soon as it was over.  Fortunately, the game was a quick one and Cameron and I were on the road by 7:20 p.m.  The trip down was an easy one as there wasn't a lot of traffic on the road.  It did snow at first, but ended soon after we left.  We arrived at Brett's at 10:40.  Doug was impressed that I had gotten the dining room table into the Pilot.  I was too and appreciated my parents' help with that as well.  It fit perfectly in Brett's apartment and looked great on his new laminate flooring.  We were all exhausted by the time we got it set up, but we did make time to enjoy some breadsticks before turning in for the night.  

Remodel & Reorganizing

Last winter Brett found out that his apartment was to be remodeled.  I thought that the news sounded great as he would get an updated kitchen, bathroom and flooring.  Brett was concerned about the extra $100 in rent that he would be required to pay.  I knew that he could afford that.  I was more worried about all that he would have to do to get ready for the remodel to happen.

Woodbridge had originally said that his apartment would be done by July of 2021.  With Meg living there in May, we had talked about what would happen if she was there when the remodel occurred.  Fortunately, that never happened.  Next, Brett and I were worried that the remodel would happen during our Disney trip.  With all that he had to move in his apartment, we knew that would be challenging.  We were thankful to hear that the actual date of his remodel would be November 9th.  In the end that was the perfect date as I would be there on the 10th to help him get everything cleaned up and back in order.

Last week Brett had to empty out his kitchen and bathroom plus move everything from the floors of three closets, his dining room, the windows and the area in front of his fireplace for the remodel to occur.  He found the process stressful, but in the end it was well worth it.  I arrived yesterday and was completely impressed with all that had been changed.  There was new laminate flooring in the entryway, hallway, dining room and kitchen.  There were new cabinets in the kitchen and bathroom plus new granite countertops.  The sinks had been replaced and there were new stainless steel appliances.  

Brett had started cleaning Tuesday night.  He was amazed at all of the dust that the remodel kicked up.  He had also put everything back in the kitchen cabinets before I arrived.  We decided that the best use of my time on Wednesday afternoon was to first go with Brett to Walmart.  When they remodeled the bathroom they exchanged the medicine cabinet for a mirror.  As there were no other cabinet space in the tiny bathroom besides under the sink, we decided that an above the toilet rack would be perfect.  We found one at Walmart and I was impressed that we were able to get it together relatively easily.  It fit in the bathroom perfectly.  While we were shopping, Brett also purchased a new microwave.  He was still using one from the early 2000s.  It took forever to heat anything up and was hard to clean.  He was pleased with what he found.  The last few items that he got for the apartment were new pots and pans and a shower rack.  All were items that he needed.

Brett and I only had time to go shopping, set up the new rack, dust, vacuum, move the tv stand, dining room table and desk before we left for Anastasia last night.  The desk was by far the hardest to maneuver as the base kept coming apart, but we got it.  We were both too tired after the musical to do anything but eat breadsticks and watch an episode of The Love Boat.  Once Brett left for work and Meg went to class, I returned to his apartment to help out a little bit more before I had to leave for home.  I was able to finish organizing the bathroom, linen closet and desk before my 1 p.m end goal.  All that was left on Brett's to-do list was cleaning his bedroom and vacuuming it along with the guest room.  Overall I was extremely impressed with his new apartment.  It was a whirlwind of activity, but it looked so much better.

Anastasia

For Christmas of 2019 I had bought Brett and Meg tickets to see Anastasia.  Both had said that it was the Broadway musical that they most wanted to see and I was happy to have been able to find tickets for  a May 2020 performance in Indianapolis.  I had purchased pairs of tickets for both and said that I would definitely go with them if their friends were unavailable.

Unfortunately, due to the pandemic all Broadway performances were cancelled in the spring of 2020.  Brett and Meg were disappointed, but were hopeful that they would still be able to see it one day.  None of us realized at the time that Broadway shows would be put on hold for over a year.  Thankfully, when musicals resumed, IU Auditorium announced that Anastasia would be part of their line up for the 2021-2022 season.  As a priority member I was able to buy tickets last summer and today Brett and Meg were finally able to see one of their favorite animated movies come to life on the stage.  As an added bonus Meg's friend, Carson, and I were able to join them.

The four of us arrived well before the 7:30 p.m. start time tonight as I was concerned about parking and getting to the auditorium on time.  Fortunately, there were no issues and we were in the balcony area before the doors even opened.  Meg had remembered that I picked four seats together in a row by itself directly in the middle of the auditorium.  They were perfect for tonight's performance.

The first act of the musical was Brett, Meg and Carson's favorite part of the show.  It followed the movie almost exactly, thankfully leaving off our least favorite characters, Rasputin and his bat, Bartok.  The three of them knew the words to every song.  I even had to "remind" Brett with an elbow to the arm not to sing along.  We all got a laugh out of that.  The first half was also the most historically accurate which added to their enjoyment.  The second act was my favorite part as it was a little more lighthearted.  I had always found the story of the Romanov family depressing, so it was nice to have levity in a sad story.  Overall, the musical was exactly what we had hoped for and we were extremely glad to have finally gotten a chance to see it in person.   Brett had been to several shows this fall and Meg had attended a concert this summer, but for me it was the first live performance since we saw Book of Mormon in 2019.  It was a wonderful feeling to be back in the theater. 

Back in Indiana

After our visit to the University of Florida yesterday, Cameron and I did a little more exploring in Florida.  On the way back to Ocala we first drove by the Tom Petty home and then I talked him into stopping at the Florida Citrus Center.  We had seen several signs for the shop on I-75 and I thought it'd be fun to check it out.  Cameron was hesitant, especially when he saw that it was really just a BP gas station.  In the end, however, we had a lot of fun looking through all of the souvenirs including coconut head banks, alligator tooth necklaces and Florida t-shirts.  Although we didn't buy anything, we enjoyed listening to another customer talk about the $200 she was going to spend on wind chimes and other Florida nicknacks to decorate her home in Wisconsin.  We told Doug all about our adventures at U of F, in Gainesville and at the Welcome Center on our way to Tampa last night.  I had found a Mellow Mushroom Restaurant north of the city where we enjoyed pizza for dinner.  

Our hotel was right next to the airport which made for an easy trip in the morning.  No one enjoyed getting up at 4:00 a.m. but taking the first flight of the morning got us back to Chicago before 9 a.m. Indiana time.  Cameron was able to make it to school in time for AP English and to the band rehearsal at the Mennonite Church at Goshen College for Thursday night's concert.  

While Cameron was at school I spent the day unpacking and doing laundry.  I also had to repack for my trip to Bloomington tomorrow.  I was extremely tired, but made it up until Cameron got home from girls' basketball game at Jimtown.  I appreciated Grandma Jane meeting us at Bethany earlier in the day to drop off the van as I would have had a hard time driving back at night to get him.  I asked Cameron if he was as tired as I was.  He answered with a quick "No."  He was energized by a good day at school and the fact that he had won a two liter of A & W Creme Soda at the basketball game when he hit a three point shot at a halftime contest.  He was proud of that and glad to be back in his own home tonight.  

University of Florida College Visit

When I was in Gainesville this summer, I spent some time at the University of Florida.  It wasn't an official tour of the campus, but the parts that I did see were impressive.  I told Cameron about my experience and he decided to look more into the college.  The more he researched, the more he liked it, and decided that it would be worth an official visit.  

We started our visit today in the UF welcome center where we watched a slideshow of the university and listened to a presentation from the head of admissions.  The stats that were given were impressive.  The University of Florida was recently ranked #5 in public universities in the nation and 30th overall.  The time and money that they put toward research was incredible.  Gatorade had just donated $950,000 million toward that endeavor.  I was a little intimidated by the woman from the admission's department.  Until today I hadn't really thought about how hard it would be to get into the university.  They only except 36% of applicants which was half of IU's recent acceptance rate.  They were also extremely strict about deadlines which was really good for us to know this early.

Our walking tour was with a University of Florida senior.  We visited the library, chem building, and dorm on our tour.  The guide was knowledgeable about UF and gave us some unique information including the first Gatorade flavor developed in their research labs - coffee.  Cameron was impressed with the tour and the amount of students studying outside in the beautiful sunshine.  We both liked the common outdoor green space where students and faculty gathered throughout the day and food carts were brought in for lunch.  The official tour ended at "The Swamp", home to the Florida Gator football team.  The stadium was massive with 1/3 of it reserved for the student section during football games.  

After the official tour Cameron and I walked through campus for a little while longer, taking pictures and revisiting some of the highlights of the tour.  We also stopped at the campus bookstore for some Florida gator merchandise.  I found a top ten list of restaurants near campus.  Cameron read through them and picked "The Relish" for lunch.  It was directly across from the university and we both really enjoyed our burgers.  

On the way back to Ocala we drove past the Tom Petty childhood home.  I told Cameron that if he attended Florida that he would have to learn the words to "I Won't Back Down" as the students section sings the Tom Petty hit in between the third and fourth quarter of each home football game.  He said that wouldn't be a problem as he had heard it enough during his childhood.  Cameron definitely was impressed by his first college visit and could see himself becoming a member of the Gator nation.  He did have other schools in mind that he wanted to visit as well.  We made plans to see those soon.  What an exciting time in Cameron's life.  I was glad to be a part of it.

Exploring Ocala

This afternoon Doug and I toured the sites of Ocala with Cameron.  Several of them were new to Doug as well.  Our first stop was the World Equestrian Center with its impressive outdoor arena.  This time we were able to walk through the inside shops and practice area as well.  Doug had only seen it from afar and he and Cameron were both in awe of the size of it as was I the first time I saw it.  I kept hoping that there would be an equestrian event at the WEC while we were there, so we could have seen it in action.  

Next, we drove south to Sholom Park where we enjoyed a leisurely walk through both the wooded area of the park as well as the path by the fountain.  We found turtles, lizards and koi fish on our adventure.  We also met several friendly people along the trails.  The park was beautiful.  It was the perfect day for our walk as it was sunny and in the 60s.  After our walk, we introduced Cameron to Doug's favorite "Big Pop" stop in Ocala, The Wawa.  He definitely enjoyed it.

We drove across Ocala to our next adventure, Silver Springs State Park.  I had checked it out months ago and couldn't wait to take a trip on the glass bottom boats.  Thankfully, we arrived well before the last ride of the day and even had time to walk along the boardwalk and learn about the history of the park before boarding our boat.  The trip along the river was absolutely wonderful.  The water was completely clear due to the moving springs.  We were able to see fish, turtles, shale rock blowing, reeds, a Seminole canoe, a Spanish row boat, several statues and the area where the Creature of the Black Lagoon was filmed.  Our tour guide was fantastic.  He had been a captain since 1969 and knew the best areas to stop.  My parents had taken me on to the state park when I was younger.  I kept wondering if Charlie was our captain then as well now.

Dinner was next on our agenda.  Everyone in Ocala has been telling us to go to Harry's Seafood Bar & Grill on the downtown square.  We thought since we were going early that we'd be able to get in this time, but stuck out instead.  Just like the past three times that we tried, we decided to pass on the 45 minute wait and eat at Brick City Southern Kitchen & Whiskey Bar as they had tables open.  None of us were disappointed and Cameron enjoyed his beef brisket sandwich quite a bit.  It was a great way to end our tour of Ocala.

First Stop, Tampa

 Doug, Cameron and I flew into Tampa this afternoon.  Our original plan was to arrive in Florida for Cameron's tour of the University of Florida tomorrow.  We thought about going to the IU vs Michigan today.  In the end we were glad that we changed our minds.  It gave us some time to explore central Florida and to miss sitting through the Michigan victory this evening.

I hadn't been to Florida since I was a teenager and really didn't remember much about it.  Once our plane landed, we decided to head to Congo River mini-golf first.  We had to laugh when we arrived as the sign said that we could also "hold a gator for $9.99".  We decided against that, but did play a fun round of miniature golf.  We weren't able to find all of the hidden objects on the score card, but Cameron didn't mind since he beat us pretty easily in mini-golf.  Besides the win, the other highlight for Cameron was when a boy his age fell into the river trying to retrieve a golf ball.  Although Doug and I had a lot of fun playing miniature golf, our favorite part of going to Congo River mini-golf may have been the drive.  The route took us over on different ten mile bridges over the bay.  It was a beautiful view even though it was an overcast afternoon.   

Our next stop was downtown Tampa.  We parked close to the riverwalk, so that we could check out the town and eat dinner.  Cameron chose the Tampa Bay Pizza Company.  It was very good.  We walked by the fountains by the children's museum afterward.  The lights in the water were beautiful.  After dinner we drove through the University of South Florida.  Dan had mentioned that it was a top college in Florida.  It was on the north side of Tampa and nice, but probably not quite what Cameron was thinking of for his college years.

The last stop of the night was Springhill Suites in Ocala.  We spent the evening watching college football. The surprise of the day was Michigan State's loss to Purdue.  It was a nice relaxing way to end a busy day.