Cyber Monday

 For the past several years I have done the majority of my Christmas shopping on "Cyber Monday."  It has served me well as I have not only got some of the best deals of the season, but I have also been able to avoid the large crowds on Black Friday.  This year it was even more advantageous to shop online with record number positive coronavirus cases and hospitalizations in our area.  

Normally, I start shopping as soon as I get back from dropping Cameron off at school.  Since he had a virtual learning day I actually started Christmas shopping at midnight this year instead.  Meg was still up as well and helped me quite a bit.  We started with the Kohls app as I had $75 in Kohls cash to spend.  Once we filled up a cart there, we moved to Amazon next.  By 1 a.m. we had accomplished quite a bit and decided to call it a night.

This afternoon Meg and I were able to finish our cyber shopping trip by placing orders at Walmart, Target and White Mountain Puzzle as well.  By the time Doug got home I was exhausted.  It felt like I had been actually out shopping all day.  There was so much to keep track of and to think about, but at the end of the day we had made a good dent in our Christmas list.  

Sad to See the Holiday Weekend End

 We had such a wonderful five days that it was sad to have it come to an end.  We didn't leave the house, but we enjoyed our Thanksgiving break just the same with endless games of Ticket to Ride, Christmas decorating completed, movies watched, an IU football victory, several rounds of Swap Meet and Mario Kart, wonderful delicious homemade meals eaten, a Renior puzzle closer to being completed and a general feeling of relaxation and fun.  

Doug has told me several times that he gets frustrated with those who complain about the year 2020.  Staying at home more often and wearing a mask when going out has been a minor inconvience compared to true tragedies.  Remembering what it felt like to grow up without a beloved brother, I couldn't agree more.  In fact, except for the increased concern that COVID has added to our year, 2020 has been positive in so many ways.  Brett's new job, Cal's graduation from IU, Meg's return to an independent life and Cam's success in tennis were just a few of this year's highlights.  We definitely had a lot to be thankful for this holiday season.  

Decorating for Christmas

As the weather was beautiful for late November today and yesterday Doug decided to get the outside Christmas decorations up.  Once he got started Meg and I followed suit by getting out the rest of the decorations.  It always takes longer than I expect it to, but we made a lot of progress these past two days and only have the North Pole village to set up tomorrow.  It really helps that we have developed a routine for decorating these past several years.  All of the santas have a shelf, the stockings are always hung by the fireplace, the advent calendar has its own place and the Peanuts gang has made its home on the piano.  

Meg was a huge help to me this year and was even able to solicit Cam's participation in decorating the tree at least until the football game started.  Meg laughed as she thought of all of the households listening to Christmas music or watching Christmas movies while putting up their Christmas tree.  In the Heinisch home it was IU football on the big screen while we decorated.  Overall, I was extremely pleased with how well decorating went this year and how wonderful the house looked when we finished.  

The Big Comfy Chair

 Brett recently sent me a video about the 1990s children's television show "The Big Comfy Couch."  Although it was interesting, what really got my attention was the title.  Replace the word couch with chair and it described exactly how I felt about my new recliner.  I had thought about buying one for the past several years and had hoped that it would be what I needed to help me sleep.  The pain in my arms and legs were making it difficult for me to lie in bed for more than five to six hours at at time.  The first time I woke up in the middle of the night after I received the chair I decided to move over to the recliner and give it a try.  I didn't know what to expect, but within five minutes I was sound asleep.  I woke up an hour and a half later with no pain in my hips, legs, or shoulders.  I couldn't believe it.  Thinking it might just be a one time occurrence I decided to try it again the next night and lo and behold it worked again.  By the end of the week my pattern of going to bed, waking up at 6:30, and moving to my chair stacked with pillows and blankets had become routine.  I went from sleeping 5 to six hours a night to getting over 7 hours of sleep daily.  I felt better and was incredibly thankful that the "big comfy chair" that we ordered had been everything that I wanted it to be.

Happy Thanksgiving & Happy Birthday Grandma Jane

There have been several times over the years that I could remember celebrating both Thanksgiving and Grandma Jane's birthday together.  Although they fell on the same day once again this year we weren't able to get together as in year's past due to COVID restraints.  Instead we held separate events throughout the week to honor the two holidays.  First we had our traditional family Thanksgiving on Sunday with just the six of us and a big turkey dinner.  Then Brett celebrated Grandma Jane's birthday on Monday with lunch and an IU grandma sweatshirt.  Cal stopped by yesterday to eat dinner with his grandparents and to enjoy the pecan clusters that he gave her for her birthday.  

Today, Doug made a lasagna for those at home to enjoy.  It wasn't the first time that he had baked pasta for Thanksgiving dinner, and it was appreciated by all of the non turkey eaters in the Heinisch family.  Brett wasn't able to join us but did enjoy working at Bell Trace this afternoon celebrating the holiday with the residents there.  Cal spent his Thanksgiving with the Lamles.  They had shorten their guest list as well and we were glad that he was able to spend the day with them.  Nick joined our family this afternoon as the Yoders scheduled a "Zoom" Thanksgiving with their extended family this evening.  Cam and I stopped by my parents to wish Grandma Jane a Happy Birthday.  He shared some Sleepy Time tea and peppermint candy canes with her to honor the occasion.  Nick and Meg visited later for a small dinner in their garage.  Meg had chosen a yellow IU sweathsirt for Grandma's gift.  All in all everyone in the Heinisch family thoroughly enjoyed their Thanksgiving day celebrations even though masks and social distancing were involved.  We had a lot to be thankful for this year and it was nice to remember that today.  

And Just Like That IU Basketball Returns

 Although it had been eight months, it really seemed like yesterday that we were watching IU play in the first round of the Big Ten tourney.  COVID had just become a widespread reality for the nation and all of us sat in amazement as the Nebraska coach looked half dead on the sidelines.  Neither team shook hands as they walked off the court and the Huskers remained isolated in the locker room until it was confirmed that Fred Hoiberg only had influenza.  Shortly afterward, the Big Ten cancelled the tournament and the NCAA followed suit by ending March Madness.  We were definitely disappointed as IU had a legitimate chance of making the tournament after a four year drought.

Fast forward to today and the time between games just doesn't seem that long.  IU had new players on their roster, but the look and the feel of those on the court was the same.  It was strange to watch them play to an empty stadium, but overall nothing was too different.  IU came out slow, missed a lot of shots, hurt in the guard position, but eventually turned it on and defeated a no name team easily.  Regardless of the score, we were all just happy to see a return to Big Ten basketball.  It provided twelve hours of games for Cameron to watch today and something to talk about besides the coronavirus.  It also reminded me that soon this would all be a memory and something to tell our grandchildren about in years to come.  

A Good Day for All

 Brett was up, packed and ready to head home by 11 a.m. this morning.  He had enjoyed his visit with us, spent time with his grandparents, played a few of his favorite games, and copied the piano music he wanted before he left.  He had plans to meet with friends before he had to work tomorrow and to Facetime with Rachael as well.  Grandma had loaded him up with groceries so he was able to forgo a shopping trip before he left.  It was great to see him and hopefully our plans to meet again on the 28th of December will work out for everyone.

Cal texted us this morning to let us know that he had earned an 83 on the second portion of his CPA exam.  We were extremely glad to hear that.  He has worked hard on the test.  Passing two sections before his job started in January was always the goal and he had met that already.  When Doug and Meg told me that the CPA was harder than the bar exam, I was even more impressed.

Meg has enjoyed a quiet couple of days at home so far.  She has done yoga, ate some of her favorite foods, hung out with Rizzo and taken daily walks with me.  Nick has visited several times and she let me know today that she would probably just stick with seeing him over break as COVID outbreaks seem to be rampant among her friend groups right now.  

Cam finished classes at 3:30 and was ready for a five day break from school.  He was looking forward to playing Madden, watching the start of the basketball season and hanging out with Bailee one of the days over break.  She turned sixteen today and he already had her gift ready.

Doug has become extremely busy at work which has been happy about.  He had several meetings yesterday and a lot to focus on today.  He took tomorrow off, but will still work at home over part of the Thanksgiving holiday.  I was glad for him as it had been pretty slow from April to August. 

I have enjoyed having everyone around this week even if we have to wear masks in the house.  We weren't sure a month ago if we were even going to have a Thanksgiving break with everyone.  It has given us time to relax and visit with one another.  Thankful that we still have five more days left to enjoy.