Happy New Year's Eve

Today was the end of 2021 and it was a quiet one in the Heinisch home.  Cal was in Chicago celebrating with friends.  Brett had to work and then made plans to spend the evening at Andrew's in Bedford.  Cameron was invited to Avery's for a gathering of family and friends which left Doug and I at home alone for the night.  It had been years since we had gone anywhere to celebrate the holiday, so we didn't mind. We had a puzzle to finish, football to watch and a Twilight Zone marathon on SyFy to keep us entertained.  Normally, we would have invited Grandma and Grandpa up for a night of cards, but knowing that Cameron would be gone tonight, we had our annual Oh Hell game last night instead.  Much to everyone's surprise, Doug even made it up to watch the ball drop.

As typical as our New Year's Eve was, Meg's holiday definitely differed from her annual celebration at Gabrielle's.  Instead she arrived at the Phoenix airport early this afternoon for their 3:10 p.m. flight only to find out that it had been cancelled due to the storms in the west.  They were originally scheduled to come home tomorrow, but had already changed their flight once to avoid the predicted storms in Chicago over the weekend.  They found out from Southwest that all flights to Midway were cancelled today and tomorrow the only one available left at 5:00 a.m.  The early time did not bother Nick's family, but the thought that that flight could end up being cancelled as well left them worried about how they would get home.  They quickly began looking for alternative flights that would put them within driving distance of Chicago.  The one into Indianapolis did not have enough seats for the six of them nor did the one to Nashville.  Louisville had flights for them, but no rental cars available.  

In the end they decided to fly into Memphis and drive to Midway from there.  Doug and I were both relieved when they actually got out of Phoenix as their flight kept getting delayed.  Meg didn't get to sit with Nick on the way to Tennessee, but she didn't mind.  She got an aisle seat and a nice elderly couple to sit beside.  She watched Mary Poppins and was extremely thankful to be on the way home.  I texted her just before I went to bed at 2 a.m.  They were in their rental car, well on the way through Illinois to Midway.  The only issue that she had to report was that Nick had gotten a beef stick and chocolate milk as his travel snack and that they couldn't find the gas cap release on the car.  Other than that, the trip was going well and they were on route to get to Midway well ahead of the storm and a couple of hours before the 5 a.m. flight out of Phoenix arrived. 

Fort Lauderdale

Cal told us over Thanksgiving break that he was planning to vacation in Fort Lauderdale the week between Christmas and New Year.  We thought that was a great idea as we knew that the three months after New Year's weekend would be extremely busy for him with six day work weeks and close to ten hour work days.  We hoped for warm weather for him, but realized that he would have fun with his friends no matter the temperature.  The Airbnb that they booked was a great price.  The only downside to the trip was the plane ticket price.  Cal talked about flying Spirit, but I showed him how to use his travel funds with Southwest and he decided that that was the best option.  Not only were they a more reliable airline, they also allowed two bags of luggage to fly free.

Over Christmas break, Cal's decision to fly Southwest became an even better one as more and more airlines had to cancel due to covid concerns and pilot shortages.  Both David and Jayce had to switch to the Southwest flight at the last minute due to the cancellations.  Cal also saved money as his flight became cheaper the closer it got to December 26th.  Once I showed him how to book and rebook the same flight, he ended up earning $124 in flight credits for future use.  As fun as it was to save money, we were just extremely pleased that his flight left on schedule and that they all made it to Fort Lauderdale on Sunday in time for lunch on the beach.

We heard from Cal several times throughout the week.  His house was within walking distance to the beach and they loved the warm weather with temperatures in the mid to upper 80s all week.  Cal was happy that he did not get a sunburn on the first day and found a really fun tiki bar to hang out with when he wasn't soaking up the Florida sunshine.  My favorite text from him was when he let me know that they had just saw a giant iguana in the CVS parking lot on their way to the beach.  That had to be shocking.  Most of all, I was happy that they had a lot of fun and hoped that Cal would get his wish one day to move to the sunshine state.  It definitely would be a lot warmer than the winter weather that he returned to this afternoon.  

"Even Though I Hate Christmas"

Cameron decided a few weeks ago that he was going to end every sentence with "even though I hate Christmas."  It was pretty funny the way he said it.  "I'm going to watch the Lions play, even though I hate Christmas" or "I'm going to read my book, even though I hate Christmas."  I realized that Cameron didn't really hate Christmas, but more the long Christmas break.  Two weeks was a lot for him to be home, especially with three of his friends on trips with their families.   

Thankfully, Richard was available this evening which gave Cameron a much needed break from Doug and I.   They didn't have any elaborate plans, just hanging out at our house, playing pool and going to Pizza King for dinner.  Even though it was only for a few hours,  I was glad that Cameron had something to do tonight.  

Yesterday, he went to the vet's office to watch a few surgeries in the morning.  After listening to him talk about the different procedures, I wasn't sure that I would have been able to handle it.  I was glad, however, that Cameron enjoyed observing the veterinarian's work as getting out of the house for that and having Richard over this evening definitely broke up his week.  He must have been happy about that as well, because tonight when he headed upstairs, I didn't even hear,  "I'm going to bed, even though I hate Christmas."

Euchre

Today's afternoon was spent playing Euchre with Cameron, Grandma and Grandpa.  It was the second time that I had played Euchre this week and the result was the same for me as I was the big loser both times.  After today's outcome, I could totally understand why Euchre had never been one of Doug's favorite card games.  It wasn't because he grew up in Illinois where Spades and Hearts were more popular than the Indiana card game.  It was because he felt that it was a game of luck.  

This week totally proved Doug's opinion, at least to me.  No matter who my partner was in the games that I played on Christmas night with Cal, Doug and Cameron or from those today, my cards never matched their hands.  I would have a loner in black and hearts would be called trump.  During rounds when my partners would make trump, I would only have a nine or ten to lead.  Another problem that I had was knowing what to lead or play as each partner that I was paired with had different expectations for me.  One time I led trump after Cal made it hearts.  He was instantly annoyed as he wanted me to lead any off suit card.  Grandpa would have completely disagreed with that if he was playing as he would have wanted me to lead trump if I didn't have an off suit ace.  I tried my best, but in the end it really didn't matter if I won any games this week.  I still preferred Euchre to any other card game and most importantly I just really enjoyed spending time with everyone.  

Lunch & Shopping

I woke Cameron up this morning and suggested that we get out of the house today.  He was ready for that as we both had been home since last Thursday.  I had a few suggestions of what we could do, one of which included him playing golf.  The weather was supposed to be warm enough to play, but we couldn't find anywhere open.  That ended up working out well as it ended up raining all afternoon.  It also gave us more time to shop and pick a lunch spot.  

Our first stop was Kohls in Warsaw as I had a return to make.  I thought that it would be very busy, but there were very few people in the store.  We were in and out of the store quickly and proud to have found a toaster for "free" with our Kohls cash.  Cameron asked if we could stop at Walmart next.  He wanted to buy some more coffee for his iced coffee maker.  I had no problem with that as I wanted to pick up a few items as well.  

Cameron then chose Panda Express for lunch.  I was happy with that as I have always enjoyed their meals.  We got our food to go as we had one more stop to make.  The Leesburg gas station had the lowest prices per gallon out of any that we had seen and we decided to fill up before the rate went up again.  Once we got home, I talked Cameron into watching Match Game with my while we ate lunch.  It was a lot of fun getting out of the house for awhile.  I was definitely glad that Cameron agreed to an afternoon adventure.  

And Just Like That, Christmas is Over

Meg left early this afternoon for Midway airport.  Her flight to Phoenix wasn't until  7 p.m. Indiana time, but she and Nick wanted to be there early.  Cal had been at the same airport about six hours before Meg for his early morning flight to Fort Lauderdale.  They were both excited for their trips.  With Cal and Meg  busy, Brett back in Bloomington and Cameron working on his Great Gatsby novel for Michael's class, it was definitely a quiet day planned for Doug and I.  

Once Doug realized that we had nothing on the agenda today,  he offered to spend it helping put away all of the Christmas decorations.  Normally, I would have said that I could do it when Cameron went back to school, but once I realized that we had a lot going on these next few weeks I knew that it would be a lot easier to get it done today.  It definitely was a lot of work, but by the end of the day the house was clean and all of the Christmas inside and out was in tubs.  I was thankful for Doug's help and glad that we still got to spend time with Cameron watching football while we were "undecorating.  This was definitely the earliest that we had taken the Christmas down, but overall I was incredibly happy to be done for the holiday season.

Merry Christmas

It was a wonderful Christmas in the Heinisch home.  We started the morning opening our Christmas gifts.  Everyone seemed very happy with what they received.  Cal got a new "Cal" shirt to replace his missing one from high school and a Bulls sweatshirt.  Brett was more than pleased with his pocket watch and watermelon whiskey.  Cameron loved all of his gifts, but found the Florida Gators football and new golf balls to be high on his favorite lists.  Meg couldn't believe all that she received as I had told her time and time again that Christmas would be a little lighter this year.  Therefore, the pajama pants and Disney castle Lego were wonderful surprises.  Santa also chipped in some money this year which Meg and Cal planned on using on their upcoming trips.  Cameron was happy to have some extra cash for his stock investment plans and Brett talked about the new clothes that he was going to buy with his.  Doug loved the snacks from the C store that Meg got for him as well as the various reading material and whiskey.  I was surprised with two vinyls - Tom Petty's Greatest Hits and the Soundtrack to Moana as well as some new clothes.  

Grandma and Grandpa arrived for our second celebration a little before 1 p.m.  Nick joined us as well before his family's early evening celebration.  Doug had lunch ready when they arrived, but we decided to open more gifts first.  Everyone enjoyed their stockings full of snacks, lottery tickets, gloves and hidden cash that they got from Grandma and Grandpa.  Grandma received an air fryer and Grandpa got a much needed cordless screwdriver from the Heinisch family.  They were pleased with both.  Nick was happy to have some Christmas cash and a Disney gift card.  The meal was delicious complete with ham, scalloped potatoes, green bean casserole, and homemade bread.  Grandma Jane added deviled eggs with cookies and fudge for dessert.

The afternoon was spent playing pool, cards and Doug's new Ticket to Ride game.  Cal was the first one to leave as he had to get back to Chicago for his early morning flight tomorrow.  He also wanted to stop at Cameron Adams' on the way home to give him his Christmas gift.  Brett stayed until 5:15 or so.  He had to work tomorrow morning and needed to get back at a decent time.  Grandma and Grandpa headed home once he left.  Doug, Meg and I decided to watch "White Christmas" after everyone left and Cameron went upstairs to play NBA 2K22.  As much as I loved watching "Meet Me in Saint Louis" yesterday with Meg, White Christmas was still my all time favorite Christmas movie.  Watching it was the perfect way to end a wonderful Christmas day.  

Christmas Eve in the Heinisch Home

I was extremely excited that all of the Heinisch children made it a priority to be home on Christmas Eve this year.  I have always enjoyed Christmas morning with our family, but the traditions that we started on Christmas Eve long ago have always been my favorite.  It must have meant something to them as well as they let me  know at Thanksgiving that they would all definitely be here.  

The morning started with the completion of the advent calendar and making cookies with Doug where Brett impressed Doug with his dough rolling skills. Meg and Cameron stuck with the measuring and stirring duties while Cal supervised.  Next on the agenda was A Year Without a Santa Claus and Garfield's Christmas.  The movies led to a debate about our favorite animated Christmas show with the Grinch being added to the top of some of our lists.  We decided to forego our tradition of attending Christmas Eve's children's mass.  The threat of the new Omicron virus and the lack of masks worn at our church were a little too much for us this year.  We spent the extra time playing games instead and finishing the Charlie Brown Christmas puzzle.  

Our evening began with the opening of Godparent gifts.  Not all of the Heinisch children received them this year, but thankfully, we found some fun gifts for them instead and they all had Grandpa Heinisch's to open as well.  Afterward Doug made appetizers for dinner including a new family favorite, buffalo chicken dip.  We ended the night with a viewing of "It's a Wonderful Life" complete with the SNL alternate ending afterward.  All in all it was truly was a wonderful day.  

Boosted

 Cal was up early for his booster appointment at Walmart today.  Doug and I rode along so that we could pick up groceries for the Christmas holiday celebrations.  I walked over to the pharmacy with Cal and was surprised to see the difference between his appointment today and Cameron's last week.  When Cameron and I showed up on the 15th, the line to register was at least twenty deep.  Today, Cal had only one person in front of him.  Needless to say, he was happy to be through the process and back in the grocery aisles with us in less than ten minutes.  

I was happy too and incredibly proud of the fact that all of my family had now been "boosted."  What a difference it will make to our family gatherings.  We can now safely get together for the holidays and shouldn't have to worry about the impending doom that has been all over the media about the Omicron variant.  It amazes me how much has changed since March 2020.  The fear of the unknown at that time was incredibly.  We have all learned so much about coronavirus since then and thankfully, have remained healthy so far.  I know that that could change at any moment, but for now I will breathe a little easier knowing that all of us have received our Covid booster.  

A Nice End to a Rough Start

Today didn't start out that well.  For several reasons, the early part of the morning just wasn't the best.  Thankfully, a rough start did not sabotage the rest of our day.  Meg, Cameron and I were still able to go on our shopping trip and had a lot of fun looking for last minute Christmas gifts.  We also made time to go to a vintage vinyl store that Meg had been talking about since she got home last weekend.  Cameron wasn't as excited about it as I was, but in the end enjoyed finding some new album covers that would make great posters.  He and Meg decided not to purchase anything today, but I did as I found a few albums in the dollar section to bring home.  Afterward we stopped at Hacienda on the way home to pick up lunch and even made it back in time to watch Match Game.  

Cal didn't join us on our shopping adventure.  He had made plans to go see the new Spiderman movie this afternoon.  He wasn't the only one that decided to spend an evening away from the Heinisch home.  Once we got back, Cameron made plans with Avery and Richard to go to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner.  Meg followed suit, by heading over to Gabrielle's for the evening.  We missed having all of the activity in the house tonight, but Doug and I made the best of it with a night of Ticket to Ride and the movie a Christmas Carol.  It was a lot of fun, but most of all I was just happy that everyone had a wonderful afternoon and evening, especially after the rough start to the day.

First Impressions

Tonight Brett went to Scottsburg to meet his new friend from Christian Mingle.  We were all nervous for him, as meeting someone for the first time can be pretty overwhelming.  Brett had a lot of support, however, which made it a little easier.  Meg helped him pick out an outfit and I was on hand to answer the phone if he needed any last minute help.  Thankfully, the only hiccup in his plan was when he arrived in the little southern Indiana town an hour away from Bloomington and realized that he had forgotten the gifts that he had purchased for the night.  Thankfully, I was available to help pick out something new and he made it to his dinner date on time.

Brett called on the way home to let us know that everything had gone well.  The restaurant was the perfect location for their first meeting as it had fish on the menu and plenty of open seating.  Brett enjoyed their conversation and had a lot of fun.  They made plans to meet again after the holidays and scheduled a time to talk again soon.  I was happy to hear that all had gone well and was proud of him for taking a chance on meeting someone new.  

Best Part of Christmas Break - Hanging Out with Friends

The best part of Christmas break besides the holiday has always been hanging out with friends.  It's a lot of fun at the high school age, especially with licensed drivers.  Cameron took full advantage of that freedom to go shopping in Fort Wayne with Avery this afternoon.  They had a lot of fun at the mall, found a new game to purchase, bought some clothes and had dinner at Portillo's.  It was a great way to enjoy their holiday vacation from school and to celebrate the success that they both had achieved this semester.  

As much fun as it is hanging out with friends over break in high school.  It's even more enjoyable for those home from college.  Meg took full advantage of her free time to make plans with several friends over break, including Rachel, Philip, Gabrielle and Sara.  She was happy that she would get to see all of them.  I believe, however, she most excited about the plans that she made tonight.  Meg and Aaron scheduled a date night for this evening, just as they had in high school, complete with dressing up and dinner at Olive Garden.  I was glad that they were able to work out the details as they hadn't seen each other in two years.  I thought it was great that they also decided to surprise Grandma Jane with an unannounced visit before they left for Fort Wayne.  It was a fun night for them and Grandma thoroughly enjoyed seeing them before they left.  

Lincoln Park Zoo Lights

 Last year we were not able to attend the Christmas light display at the Lincoln Park zoo due to the coronavirus.  We were disappointed as we had been enjoying the yearly event ever since our first visit in 2016.  Even though positivity rates for Covid had increased greatly over the past few weeks, we decided that we would renew the Heinisch tradition this December.  

In order to limit the amount of guests coming into the zoo at one time, the event required tickets this year.  By the time we were able to confirm that we were going all of the early tickets were taken.  None of us minded going a little later in the afternoon as it allowed us to sleep in this morning.  Our first stop in Chicago was Giordano's for a late lunch.  Cal took the train and met us there.  We arrived just as he put our name in for a table.  There was a thirty minute wait, but we didn't mind.  They let us order our pizza ahead of time and we enjoyed catching up with Cal while we waited for our name to be called.  The pizza was really good and I was glad that we ordered larges as it gave us leftovers to bring home.  The only downside to lunch was the spacing of the tables.  It really wasn't crowded, but they placed us a little too close to the table besides us.  I wasn't too worried, but didn't feel completely comfortable.  It could have also been because the table was full of Trump supporters.  Either way we did really enjoy it.

After we ate we walked over to Michigan Avenue.  Unfortunately, the Disney Store was no longer there.  We were disappointed, but decided to see where else we could shop.  We were surprised to see that the Disney Store wasn't the only store that had closed on Michigan Avenue.  Several of our other favorites were gone including Dylan's candy shop.  We did find one store that had gifts from Mexico that we really liked, but other than that there wasn't much for us.  We decided that the best idea was to head to the Water Tower Place.  It wasn't as crowded as I thought it would be.  We checked out a few stores.  Cameron and Meg each bought several some clothes at Ragstock.  We all liked that store. 

Doug wanted to get to the zoo early and we were very glad that he made that decision.  We arrived close to 5:15 for our 6 p.m. entry and there was nowhere to park.  We got stuck in a traffic jam trying to get around the zoo and then ended up having to drive several miles out of our way to get back across the Lincoln Park area just to find a spot on the street.  We had to walk to the zoo, but we didn't mind.  We were just glad to make it by 5:45.  We also appreciated that they let us in early.  

The zoo was just as wonderful as in years past.  I felt that this was the best year for lights and really enjoyed our walk through the park.  We ordered hot chocolate to keep us warm, but overall the weather really wasn't very cold.  In years past we had arrived closer to 4 p.m.  Meg and I liked the later entry time as it was a lot darker than our trips previously.  Maybe that's why I enjoyed the light displays even more.  Overall, it was a wonderful day in Chicago and I appreciated getting back to our Heinisch tradition very much.

Some Scary News

We found out this weekend that Doug's dad would need to have quadruple bypass surgery as soon as possible.  The news was surprising to him and completely caught us off guard.  Carl had been tired lately and his legs had been hurting for quite some time, but until he saw the doctor in Florida he really didn't know why.  Thankfully, they insisted on testing and that found the cause immediately.  He was then taken by ambulance to the hospital in Winter Haven for more testing and to await the results of the additional tests.  

Today, Doug and I were both able to talk with Carl and review the diagnosis.  We found out that the cause of the issue was the calcium build up in his aorta and that was the area where the bypass surgery would be needed.  Thankfully, his heart was in very good condition.  The surgery was scheduled for Monday morning at 10 a.m.  Marina and Aunt Marg would be there while the operation took place.  Doug was relieved to hear that as he would have had a hard time getting to Florida this week with his work schedule and Christmas just around the corner.  Doug did spend some time on the phone with his dad later in the day going through the financial ends of the surgery and what to do just in case the surgery wasn't a success.  It was definitely a stressful afternoon, but by the end of the night, we were all feeling a lot better about the situation.

She's Home

Meg arrived this late this afternoon, happy to have finished her fall junior semester at IU.  She had three projects due this week and three finals.  Needless to say, she was more than ready for a break.  She had enjoyed her last evening in Bloomington of the year, hanging out with friends, shopping and exchanging Christmas gifts.  It was a nice way for her to unwind.

Cameron, Doug and I were happy to spend the evening with Meg.  It's rare that we get time together, just the four of us without any commitments.  It almost felt like a return to the spring of 2020.  We played games on the Wii losing to the computer once again, ordered Chinese for dinner and afterward tried a new board game called, Trial By Trolly, which we thoroughly enjoyed.  We even found time to debate the life expectancy of Rizzo, a favorite topic of ours for the past year and a half.  Nick did stop by for a little while, but was busy with his friends for most of the night.  For old time sakes I nagged Meg about leaving her stuff all over the house and Doug fell asleep on the couch.  In all honesty, it was a wonderful evening at home and I am extremely glad that Meg and Cameron are officially on Christmas break now.

Game Show Network

 We were very happy when we switched from DirectTV to YouTubeTV several years ago.  The savings was immense and the ability to add shows and movies to our virtual library was fantastic.  We could also share the service with the Heinisch children, even those that weren't living in our home.  Overall it was a great choice, but there was one disappointment.  YouTubeTV had a multitude of channels, but the one that was missing was my absolute favorite.  The GameShow Network was nowhere to be found on the new streaming service.  I was bummed, but knew that I would much rather save a $100 a month than watch game shows.

Over the past two years, I had checked other ways to get the GameShow Network, but I wasn't able to find anything affordable or easy to use.  Therefore, this week when I saw that it was added to our YouTubeTV channel list, I was thrilled.  I turned it on immediately and watched two episodes of "America Says", a newer game show that we all really enjoyed when it first came out.  I found it really funny the next day when I turned it back on to see that the lineup from two years ago hadn't really changed very much.  I was very happy with that as it meant that my all time favorite game show, The Match Game, was still on in the afternoons.  I have now scheduled my lunch around the show, making sure that I am ready everyday at 1 p.m. to enjoy the show along with my eggs and tuna.  

With all of the excitement of gaining a new channel, however, I am concerned about an email that I received from YouTubeTV recently.  They said that they were in negotiations with Disney, but might have to drop their channels from their streaming service.  The Disney part didn't really concern me as we had Disney +, but since Disney also owns ESPN, I became extremely worried about how the guys would still be able to watch their favorite sports.  Cal and Doug felt that it would be worked out by the December 17th deadline.  I wasn't as sure, so I started looking for ways to watch ESPN without dropping YouTubeTV.  Now that I have the GameShow Network back, I definitely do not want to give it up again.

A Night To Celebrate

Doug called while Cameron and I were on our way to Walmart after school.  He was excited to announce that he had finished his board meeting and that it had gone very well.  I was very glad to hear that as Doug had worked very hard on his presentation.  In fact his hours recently had rivaled those of his auditing days at Crowe Chizek.  Doug decided to celebrate this evening by ordering Sleepy Owl pizza for all of us.  That sounded great to Cameron and I as neither of us were interested in chicken and cauliflower for dinner.  

The three of us had other reasons to celebrate tonight.  On our Walmart trip Cameron was able to get his Pfizer booster vaccine this evening.  The shot hurt a little bit, but he didn't mind as he knew that it was the best way to avoid Covid this winter.  I was happy to hear that several of his friends had gotten theirs as well.  Earlier, I had offered to buy him Subway to celebrate the night, but once Cameron heard Sleepy Owl, he passed on a sub.  Instead he decided the best way to celebrate was to buy some Airhead bites and try a new drink.  We had plenty of time to look through the juice and pop aisle as we had to wait fifteen minutes after his booster shot to leave the store, just in case he had a reaction.  After looking through all of the choices, Cameron picked Minute Maid watermelon juice.  I wasn't too sure about the taste, but he was happy to report later that it was really good.  Between the new juice, the pizza and the chocolate covered Oreos that Doug received from work, it was a wonderful evening of celebrating.  

Christmas Blues

The holidays can be a rough time for anyone, especially for moms that are trying to stay on top of it all.  There are so many expectations that come with the season that it can get overwhelming.  From finding the perfect gift to planning the most delicious meal, it can be tough.  I think that social media has made the Christmas holiday even more challenging.  There are so many posts of decorated houses and family celebrations that seem over the top.  One of my friends from my teacher days posted this meme over the weekend and I thought that it was a wonderful way to remind myself that it's not about having the perfect holiday.  As Christmas draws nearer and the stress increases, I will have to keep rereading this so that I can remember that there is no right way to enjoy the season.  Just being with family will be enough.  

A Day Out of the House

It's rare that I spend an entire day outside of the Heinisch home, but that was the case today.  The first errand on my agenda was to drop Cameron's jacket off at Teresa's.  He had received a chevron for tennis at the fall awards program and wanted to add it to his sleeve.  It was a challenge for her to attach it, especially with the thick leather on the arms, but she was able to do it.  It looked great and gave me a chance to catch up with her as well.  We hadn't seen Teresa or the Fitzgerald family since Meg graduated from high school and it was nice to hear that she was doing well after her bout with breast cancer.  

While I was in Warsaw, I decided to do some shopping as well.  I stopped at Aldi, Menards and Walmart for groceries and other household items.  I was happy to find the correct filters for our humidifier as the last ones I bought were a little big and hard to trim.  Since it was such a beautiful day and a car wash was right beside Aldi, I decided to run the Pilot through it.  I wasn't the only one with that idea as there were close to twenty cars ahead of me.  Thankfully, it moved quickly and I soon had a clean car.  My last shopping stop was Rocket Fizz.  I wanted to pick up some fun gifts for the Heinisch family Christmas and it was the perfect place for it.  

My busy day wasn't quite done once I arrived home.  Doug called as soon as I walked in the door.  He needed me to do a few things on the computer for him.  It took a little while, but I finally finished it.  I waited to put the groceries away until I ate lunch.  It was close to 4 p.m. and I was more than ready for some eggs and tuna.  The last item on my agenda was putting away Cameron's laundry.  He arrived shortly after I finished and gave me the details on his day.  He still wasn't feeling the greatest, but didn't have as much homework tonight.  Thus, he could spend some time resting.  

I got in a short walk before Doug called to say he was leaving work.  I was completely worn out by the time he arrived.  I still had a few items that I wanted to finish including writing in several Christmas cards and ironing Cameron's shirt.  I decided to call it a day and wait to work on those tomorrow as I was just too tired for another project.  In the end it was the perfect night to relax in front of the television.  While I was looking for something for us to watch, I discovered that YouTubeTV had added the Game Show Network to their lineup.  I couldn't believe it as it was the one channel that I had really missed when we gave up DirectTV.  I spent an hour watching "America Says" while Doug was busy working on the computer.  I did tear myself away from my all time favorite channel to find a movie for us once he finished.  We scored big when I found "Driving Miss Daisy."  We hadn't seen it in years and it was the perfect way to end a very busy day. 

Calm Before the Storm

Doug, Meg and Cameron spent their weekend preparing for their tough week ahead.  Doug was focused on a meeting that he will have on Wednesday.  He has been working on the slides and presentation for it for several weeks and has had to change them multiple times.  He was able to finalize them this weekend and practice his speech multiple times.  I knew that he would be extremely busy working.  Thus, I really appreciated that he was able to take Friday and Saturday night off so that we could play games and watch movies together.  I tried to be supportive the rest of the time, staying out of his way, not adding anymore to his agenda and helping rake leaves when he decided to take a break today.

I wasn't really able to help Meg very much except to listen when she called to complain about finals week.  I could completely sympathize with her as no one enjoys taking tests and working on papers for the end of the semester especially in December.  All Meg wanted to do was to finish up and come home.  She has a lot of fun planned for her time off and couldn't wait for it to begin.  I was happy to hear that she finished two of her classes today and found time to hang out with a friend as well.

Cameron had quite a bit of homework to do this weekend as well.  Most of his classes had tests or papers due this week and his Monday and Tuesday looked extremely busy.  He also wanted to rewrite a paper in English that he didn't score as well as he wanted.  Added to the stress of school work, Cameron woke up with a low grade fever today.  I wasn't surprised as he had been extremely congested this week and had constantly been blowing his nose.  I had worried that it was something more than a head cold.  Although we were positive that it was probably sinus related, we decided that it was best to get tested for Covid.  Unfortunately, it was hard to find a rapid testing site on a Sunday.  I finally got him an appointment at the MedStat in Warsaw.  Cameron didn't enjoy the swab in his nose and I got frustrated with their reporting issues, but thankfully by 3:30 we were happy to hear that he had tested negative.  

Covid Woes

Last night I received a text from my mom to let me know that my Aunt Vicky was in the hospital with Covid pneumonia. She had been really sick and we all had been worried that it was the dreaded virus.  I messaged Jess right away to see if she knew anything else.  She let me know that her mom was going to be admitted to the hospital and that she was very sick.  She was obviously very upset.  I couldn't blame her as it would be scary, especially since Aunt Vicky had not been vaccinated and also had several health issues that could complicate a bout with the coronavirus.  I texted the Heinisch children right away and asked them for prayers for "Aunt Bebe."

Today we did get some good news as Aunt Bebe was doing a little bit better.  She was on oxygen and several different medications, but had seen some improvement.  We were all glad to hear that and could finally relax enough to laugh at what happened after I sent out the prayer request to our children.  Shortly after I sent something out, Brett responded with this meme:

When I first saw it, I was confused.  I was afraid that he was making fun of the situation.  That wouldn't make sense coming from Brett, but didn't know how to respond.  I decided to call Meg to see what she thought.  She hadn't seen the meme yet as she was on the phone with Nick, but once she looked at it, she said to me, "What the F*#@ is that?"  I started laughing right away and so did she.  We decided that Brett probably hadn't read my message as it just didn't make sense.  Brett called after I talked to Meg and was able to confirm that he hadn't read my message and was actually trying to send the meme to his friend Alex.  He got a good laugh out of it as he agreed that even for him it didn't make sense.  Cameron got home around the time that Brett called and enjoyed the humor of it all as well.

I was a little surprised that I never heard from Cal yesterday at all about Aunt Bebe.  I knew that he would be worried about her and thought he'd check in at some point.  I finally found out the reason today when he called.  He said that he was used to getting interesting memes form Brett and didn't want to rip on him, but just couldn't figure out what he meant with the wine drinking meme in response to my request for prayers.  Fortunately, I could alleviate his fears on both parts.  Aunt Bebe was getting better and Brett wasn't crazy.  He was glad to hear that and decided that all texts about family members being gravely ill had to be sent with this meme included in the message.  When I hung up the phone, I realized that I was never more thankful for our family than this weekend and appreciated the fact that in this scary time we could at least find some humor in it all.  

A Wonderful Night at Home

I was incredibly happy to spend an evening at home with Doug.  Even though I had been in Florida with him last weekend, it felt like he had been gone for longer than that.  We first watched Cameron's Christmas program at Bethany.  We had talked about going to see their first all school Christmas event aptly titled "Unwrap the Nativity" in person, but Cameron thought it was best if we watched it online instead.  We enjoyed it very much and appreciated being able to avoid the large crowds.  

Once the program was over,  Doug and I played several games of Ticket to Ride where I actually won a few games.  We then worked on our castle puzzle.  It has definitely been challenging, but we made pretty good progress tonight.  Doug picked Toy Story to watch while we were working on it.  It had been awhile since I had seen it and I enjoyed it very much.  Meg suggested Toy Story 2 next as that's her favorite.  Unfortunately, we couldn't make it up that long.  We were awake when Cameron arrived home at 10:30.  He had gone to Culver's after the performance and had fun with a large group of his friends.  We were glad to hear that he had enjoyed his evening as well.  

Road Trip

One negative about Doug and I both traveling to Florida last week was that I would have to pick him up at the airport today.  Normally, I don't mind the trip, but this time his flight didn't get in until 10:05 tonight.  I was worried that it would be delayed and make for a complicated drive home.  Fortunately, that didn't happen and I was able to meet him at the arrival gate at 10:15 p.m.  I was tired, but thankful for the time with him in the Pilot on the way home.  He had been extremely busy this week and I hadn't talked to him very much.

Besides seeing Doug another huge positive of picking him up in Indianapolis today was that I got to spend the afternoon and early evening in Bloomington.  While there I got to take a long walk with Meg to her first class of the day, rearrange some of the items that we had stored at Brett's, help him sort his laundry, go to the Union for pizza with Meg, watch an episode of Saved By the Bell at her apartment, and see Brett for about an hour before I left for the airport.  It made for a very exhausting day, but one that I enjoyed very much.  

Single Parent

With Doug traveling so much these past nine months, I have gotten a small taste of what it would be like to be a single parent.  It has to be extremely stressful to be the only one responsible for every parenting decision or to be the sole person in charge of all of the parenting duties such as homework check, laundry issues, lunch making and more.  Thankfully, we are well past most of that in the Heinisch home.  Cameron's very good at making sure that all of his homework is done and that his grades are acceptable to both he and I.  He also is very good at letting me know where he is and who he is with after school and on the weekends.  Thus, my parenting role has really revolved more around meals for lunches, keeping up on laundry and making sure that Cameron is up on time in the morning.  I helped with all of those tasks before Doug started traveling, so not too much has changed in that regard.

What has really been different with Doug gone, is just how quiet the nights have become when Cameron isn't home.  I am glad that he keeps himself busy and always enjoy listening to him talk about all of his activities.  This past week highlights included dancing at the semi-formal, attending a birthday party, spending the night at Avery's (twice), shopping with Samuel, volunteering at the veterinarian clinic and keeping stats for the girls basketball team.   With Cameron busy and Doug traveling, it did make for some long evenings at home.  That was when I could really sympathize with the single parents of the world.  Fortunately, Doug will be soon  and it won't be quite so quiet around here anymore.

Christmas Season

Getting ready for Christmas always feels so time consuming.  I think it's because everything takes longer than I plan.  Decorating is a two to three day project.  Buying gifts takes at least a day even when most of the purchases are online.  Today, I was very happy that I had completed both of those projects before I left for Florida.  That gave me extra time today and tomorrow to work on Christmas cards and wrapping gifts.

I decided to start with Christmas cards first.  My goal was to finish them all tonight and then wrap gifts tomorrow.  I spent a couple of hours addressing and writing on our custom made card and wasn't even a third of the way done.  I started to panic about it until I realized that it was only December 7th and I still had plenty of time to finish everything.  A huge benefit of addressing cards was that it gave me some time  to watch Christmas movies.  Tonight I chose Disney + to keep me company and enjoyed their original movie "Godmothered."  I had watched it last year, but forgot how much I liked it.  Thankfully, I don't have much else on my agenda tomorrow, so I should be able to wrap gifts, write Christmas cards and watch more holiday movies.  If I only had some egg nog to go along with it, my day would be perfect.  Maybe that will be this weekend's enjoyment.  

From the Sunshine to the Wind and Cold

Yesterday, it was 80 and sunny in Orlando, making it the perfect weather to spend outside at Disney Springs.  Doug and I enjoyed the sunshine while walking from store to store.  We didn't buy a lot, but I did find some great gifts for the Heinisch children and even a holiday sweater for myself with Slinky Dog on it.  We got very lucky in the food department as we got last minute lunch reservations at Wine Bar George where we enjoyed a hummus platter, hash, and macaroni & cheese bites.  It was delicious.  For dessert we picked up cookies from Gideon's Bakery.  The virtual queue was four hours long when we arrived, but thankfully, they called us an hour early.  While we were there, we picked up two Christmas cookies for Cameron as well.

This morning when I got up to leave for the airport in Tampa, it was still nice.  When I arrived in Indianapolis, the reality of winter hit me as the temperature was 34 degrees with 30 mph winds.  Fortunately, I dressed for the change in weather from Florida to Indiana.  The drive home was definitely cold and I saw several large trucks weaving on the road.  Even the airplane had struggled to stop swaying when we landed due to the high winds.

I did make it home safely and arrived just before Cameron.  I was very happy to see him.  He filled me in on his day and the fun he had this weekend.  He showed me the blood on his tie from the nosebleed at the semi formal.  We agreed that a good dry cleaning would help.  He had a project for English to finish.  While he was busy, I caught up with Meg and Brett on their weekend as well.  Cal had called last night, so I was able to talk to him then and was happy to hear that tonight he had tickets for the Bulls game.  Once Cameron was finished with his assignments, he and I watched a few Seinfeld episodes.  We had decided to start at the beginning and watch them in order.  We enjoyed the first few of season one.  I called Doug just before bed.  He had a busy, but productive day at work.  I missed him, but was thankful for the days that we had together in Florida.  

Semi Formal

 Last night was the annual Christmas semi formal for the high school students at Bethany.  When Doug and I made plans to go to Florida this weekend, we didn't realize that we would be missing it until we already booked out flights.  Cameron said that he was ok with us being gone as he knew that we had a few items to take care of in Ocala that were important to our family.  I did help him order his purple dress shirt and lavender tie for the event.  I also cleaned his shoes and ironed his outfit before I left.  Thankfully, Grandma Jane was able to take pictures before the left and Cameron had plenty of photos on his camera roll from the dance for us to see.  It almost felt like we were there.

I talked to Cameron today and he said that he had had a great time.  Since he was part of SGA he had arrived early to help set up.  An unfortunate timing incident with masking tape led to a bloody nose, but other than that he had a great time.  Cameron hung out with a lot of different groups last night and had tons of fun dancing and socializing.  I was really glad that Bethany was able to host this event as I realize that an important part of the high school experiences is the social events.  

EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays

 Doug and I checked out of our hotel this morning in Ocala for a day in Orlando.  We had tickets for the EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays.  We hoped to be there by the 10 a.m. opening time and got there well before that.  Once we made it through the turn style, we headed straight for Test Track.  There was already a long line from those staying in the Disney hotels, so we decided to try the single rider line.  I had never done that before and was pleasantly surprised by how quick it was.  We were in and out of the ride in less than 15 minutes which was well below the 50 minute standby line.  As an extra positive, the woman that I sat beside was a lot of fun.

Our next stop was Meg's favorite ride, Gran Fiesta Tour.  We thought it was really funny that she texted us while we were on the boat to let us know that she would be "really mad if we skipped The Three Caballeros."  It was as cute as always and Doug was able to get his favorite margarita next door as soon as we got off the ride.  We spent the next several hours walking around the countries trying the festival food booths.  There were less than at the Food & Wine Festival that we attended with Brett and Cameron in October, but still plenty of food for us to try.  Some of the highlights were an eggnog donut, beef and mashed potatoes, and pastrami on rye.  Doug's favorite was the salmon latke and mine was the chocolate peppermint ice cream.

We did take a break from the food to catch more rides including Soarin', Living with the Land and Spaceship Earth.  We had tried several times to ride Frozen, but the line was well over an hour long each times.  Somehow we got lucky on our last try as it was only a 30 minute wait.  I was glad to have gotten on the ride and even happier to have a dry seat in the end.  I also did some window shopping as well while Doug was waiting in line for food and drinks.  I didn't buy anything, but they did have a lot of really cute holiday items.  We did not stay until the park closed at ten because we were both tired and we had already seen the new fireworks show, but we were there long enough to see the Christmas decorations lit up.  There weren't as many as I thought that there would be, but they were still nice.  I really enjoyed looking for the hidden Olafs throughout the countries as well.  I wished that Cameron could have been there to help me find them all.

We got to our hotel at Flamingo Crossing around 8 p.m.  Doug wanted to watch the Iowa vs. Michigan Big Ten Football Championship.  We found a small outside bar at the hotel that had it on and we enjoyed watching the Wolverines take control of the game early.  It was nice to sit down and relax for awhile as we had taken over 20,000 steps in today - exhausting, but fun.