Planning for Mexico

Earlier today I realized that, in one week, I'll be packing up for my trip to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for Erica's wedding!! Then I thought, what the hell am I going to pack??

The wedding stuff is easy enough... but I've never been to an all inclusive resort. From what I'm been reading, it seems to be much like a cruise, in the fact that your supposed to dress a little more than casual for dinner and such. So I need to work on a few of those outfits. Then there's the fact that it's Mexico... which means pretty warm still this time of year. In reviewing the forecast, it's looking like mid-90's in the day and upper-70's at night. So the next question is what, besides the wedding, do we plan to do??? Eric and I have discussed a bit... there are things we know we want to do, but we're hesitant to book too much because we don't want to overbook ourselves, nor do we want to have the weather turn on us. But we'd like to do a guided hike or two, maybe some snorkeling, definitely check out the town one day...

I suppose I could go shopping to find things to wear... but I know I have anything I might need in my closet. Maybe. I think I might actually have to do something I despise doing... make a list! I hate lists... it's so... planned!! I'd much rather be spontaneous. But we are there for 5 days... there's a lot we could do in 5 days. Can't wait!

The Effects of Music... Time Warp!

It never fails. I go to my computer to do something (in this case, sync my iPhone), and I start messing with my music collection (well over 1000 completely random songs). Next thing I know, I've lost HOURS!!

In this case, I finally decided to put a select few songs on my iPhone. In order to do that, I have to go through my song list. When I do that, I start playing random songs that strike a memory chord or just a song I can't even remember (and wonder if it's worthy of being on my iPhone). I end up playing bits and pieces of many songs. I laugh, I reminisce, I get into a dancing mood, I start singing along... then I come to one that makes me thing of someone from my past and the good times we had listening to that song, and I stop for a moment...

Tonight I lost nearly 3 hours. I put less than 200 songs on my iPhone. But it's more than I had before and hopefully it'll keep me off of iTunes. I don't need anymore songs right now...

A Whole Lot of...

Nothing? Rain? Drama?

Really, you could fill in the blank there - they all work. Might even be able to make up something that works. The main reason you haven't heard from me in over a week is because not much has been going on. And it did rain and/or was very dreary all last week. Which made for a depressing week. It even effected my training runs. Well... maybe I just used the weather as an excuse there. (I'm back on schedule, now) Regardless... last week was one of those weeks that is quickly forgotten because there's nothing memorable about it. But I made it through, and that's what counts!

One 'out of the ordinary' thing that did happen was a new sports league that started up with some friends. What is it, you ask? Dodgeball. Yes, dodgeball. We had our first game/set/match (whatever they're called) last Friday. It was very interesting... a bunch of 20 and 30-somethings throwing a foam ball at each other. That is probably the biggest difference from the days of elementary dodgeball (at least from my elementary days)... the ball is no longer that hard rubber ball that also doubled as a kickball on the days when the weather was nice enough to be outside. It's foam, now. It can still sting when some of those guys throw it, but it most likely won't break your nose or leave a massive welt on you.

Maybe the week to come will give me more to write about. We'll see soon enough!

An Array of Random Stuff

So there have been a bunch of random things lately that I thought would be slightly blog worthy, but not enough for an entire blog, by itself. So I thought I’d throw all of these random thoughts and occurrences together in one blog and call it good. Be warned… it is random…

The first thing… I am in mourning. My TV died. Not my main TV, but my little TV in my bedroom… that I’ve had since I was a kid. So yes, it was like 20-something years old. But it was there for me when I was mad at my parents in high school, and it went off to college with me, and even survived my first cable install after college, when the cable guy made fun of it (because I didn’t have my bigger TV yet). It’s been a fixture in my bedroom for years, falling asleep to it at nights, and turning it on while I get ready in the morning. So when I heard it *pop* and saw it go black in the middle of the Auburn game last weekend, it was like a little piece of my heart breaking. I know… it’s sad to have any sort of attachment to a 13” TV. But you gotta admit, when anything dies on you that’s been with you for 2/3 of your life, you’re going to feel something!

Corn on the cob butter spreaders, AKA, Corn Cob Butterers. I know – you’re wondering what the heck I’m talking about. Growing up, my mom had these stainless steel ‘slotted spoon’ type things to use to spread/melt butter on corn of the cob. They were awesome. I thought they were an everyday kitchen accessory. I thought wrong. I’ve been trying to find them for awhile now – I do live in corn country, after all. The only butter spreader I’ve seen is this plastic tube you put a whole stick of butter in. Not the same and probably just as messy and trying to butter it with a knife, anyway. But I want the metal one. No luck. Until recently.

I Googled “corn cob butter spreader”, once again, only this time I saw them! They were slightly different than the ones Mom had, but it was the same concept. Then I realized why they were so hard to find – the concept was patented back in the 60’s! Being that they are stainless steel, and everything nowadays is just made of plastic, they probably aren’t even made anymore! But I found a box of 4, in their original box, for sale from a ‘vintage’ online store called Ruby Lane. The likely hood that they even had more than one set of these is minute! But they’re mine now – life is good and corn will be buttered!

Finally, I got a flu shot yesterday. My company does this for its employees every year. I didn’t get one last year. I hate needles. So I was going back and forth about getting one, and even toyed with the idea of getting the mist, instead. But I think I hate things going up my nose worse that shots – I always get a gag reflex since whatever goes up my nose ends up running down the back of my throat. So the time came, and I snuck over to see how big the needle actually was. Right when I was thinking it wasn’t too bad, I saw it get plunged into someone’s arm. This made me cringe and sent chills up my spine. So I had to turn around and go back to by desk and rethink things. In the end, I did the shot in the arm. The nurse was actually very gentle, though, and it didn’t really hurt at all. I think I just expect all needles to feel like the ones they stick in you when you give blood. I guess if I can handle that every few months, a simple vaccine should be cake for me. Oh well. It’s done. I’ve never gotten a flu shot before, so I’ll be curious to see if it really works. I always seem to catch the flu or really nasty sinus cold sometime around my visit home to FL for the holidays, and then I’m miserably sick for half of my vacation (or more!). Guess we’ll find out.

Well, that’s my random blog for now. I tried to warn you... you just never know what’s going through my head and what I might blog about next.

The Rest of a Great Weekend

Let's see... Where did I leave off in the last blog? Ah, yes! Post Cubs Game Trip! So much more has happened during this long weekend of mine (which officially ended tonight).

Saturday was the ‘calmest’ day of my weekends, though it was in no way dull (or calm, really!). Eric and I didn’t end up going to Penrod – I just had too much to do! I had two showers to go to (among other errands I had)!! The first shower was a bridal shower for Erica. It was relatively calm (compared to the combined bridal shower bachelorette party we had for her a few weeks back). I can’t believe her wedding is less than a month away!! Mexico, here I come! Later in the afternoon, I had a baby shower for Karen (and Baby G!). It was at an old friend’s house, who I haven’t seen in years. So it was nice to catch up with her a bit. Plus, I hadn’t seen Karen in a few months, so it was crazy to see how big she really has gotten! She has less than two weeks to go!

After the two showers, I had to go home and pack up for the rest of my long weekend. That took longer than expected, as I had a bunch of little things to do around the house, too. But I finally got it all done and headed downtown to Eric’s – I had a long day ahead of me on Sunday!

Sunday morning… I was exhausted from the weekend I had thus far… so I slept in a little. But I still got up and ran (eventually). So yes… for anyone keeping track, I’m still on track with my training! After a quick lunch, Eric and I headed to Lucas Oil Stadium for the opener – my Jaguars at the Colts!! The Jags looked better than I expected through the first half (we only stayed for the first half – that’s explained shortly). They held the Colts to a single touchdown in the first half, and even got an interception in there… IN THE ENDZONE! Unfortunately, my Jags ended up losing, 14-12. I was very bummed about that. Still am.

As I stated earlier, we had to leave at the half. Why? Because we had to drive to Chicago (yes, this is my 2nd trip to Chicago this weekend). Why? Because we were going to the U2 concert!! We got up there and checked into the Hilton Chicago just in time to walk over to Soldier Field to catch the opening act, Snow Patrol. Our seats were near the tunnel entrance, barely behind the stage, 11 rows up. Normally, this would be a bad thing. But for this show, since it’s their 360 tour and is aimed to give 360 degrees of entertainment (which it did), they weren’t bad seats. It was an awesome show!! U2 really does know how to entertain a large crowd, especially Bono! It felt surreal to me, being there… I almost felt like I was just watching a video of the show. Amazing! If you ever have a chance to see U2 live, DO IT!

After the concert, we just crashed. We were both just worn out from the day. I was worn out from the whole weekend – I was going non-stop till this point! I knew this was going to be a busy weekend, though… I did it to myself.

So this morning, we slept in (relatively) and took our time getting ready. We headed up to Wrigleyville (2nd time for me) to hit a couple of the shops – I was looking for a baby outfit for Karen and Eric was looking for something for his grandfather. This was no problem in Wrigleyville. From there, we headed over the New Buffalo, MI! It was time for some Redamak’s, one last time before they close for the season next month. That cheeseburger was so good!! I wish I could just stock up on them for the winter! We’ll be back next year!

The night was capped off by some work, unfortunately. I had to go to a board meeting in Monticello on the way home. But it was short and Eric was able to open his laptop and get some things done for his job, as well. It still made for a long drive home, though… and a late night!! But what a weekend!! Not sure if you can top a weekend like this… Cubs Game, Jaguars Game, U2, time with Eric, and time with friends. Granted, I had to take two day off to get all this in… but it was worth it!

Go, Cubs, Go!

Today was the first day of a very long and crazy (but fun!) weekend!!

Wendy and I took our annual trip to Chicago for a Cubs game (in the bleachers, of course). We left, bright and early at 8am... at least we intended to, until I got stuck in traffic even getting to Wendy's! But regardless, we still made excellent time getting up to Wrigley Field, even with stopping for breakfast in Merrilville!!

After we found some excellent parking on Clark, we walked to the stadium and right into the bleachers, getting some seats against the back railing. We had nearly two hours till game time, so we killed time eating some hot dogs and taking some pictures of the teams warming up. The ceremonial stuff starts right about 1pm, though, so the 'down time' went by pretty fast. But it was HOT! Not by FL standards, mind you, but when you're out on metal bleachers with no shade (and not even a cloud in the sky!) and 80 degree temperatures, it warms up quick! There was a nice breeze, though, and that's where it pays off to be in the top row against the railing.

The game was a good one, as they always are. There were a few times I thought the Reds were going to make the Cubbies look bad,

but in the end, the Cubs won, 6-4!! YAY! Though I know Wendy's always torn for this match-up... I got her going to Wrigley not too long before Chris starting getting her into the Reds. Well, he has a little more pull with her baseball loyalties as her fiancee now, but I know, at a minimum, Wrigley Field will always be in her heart.

Now comes the crazy part of our trip (there's always something when Wendy and I do this annual trip!)... after circling the stadium and checking out the vendors a bit, we start to head back up Clark to the car. We get to an intersection where we have to wait for the traffic and a couple walks up behind us. No sooner do Wendy and I realize they are behind us, the guy says, "Excuse me, is your name Kara... Kara (he tried to pronounce my last name here - insert whatever crazy pronunciation you can fathom with my name)?" As soon as I turn and look at him, I ask, "Jeramy??" Now, to an outsider reading this, this may not seem all that odd. But the kicker is, we've never actually met in person!

Jeramy and I met though MySpace about 3 years ago when we found a connection through PBHS. He went to University of South Florida and was from FL, like me, living in Indy. So we bonded through those aspects, emailing and even talking on the phone a few times. But we were never actually able to meet. Wendy and I thought we saw him once or twice playing softball, but I never went and verified it was him. So aside from that, we only ever saw pictures of each other on MySpace. We haven't emailed or talked in well over a year, probably closer to two, actually. So what are the odds of us finally meeting in person, walking back to our car, after a Cubs game in Chicago!! We parked, like, two blocks from each other!

Anyway... we chatted for a few blocks and I know the girl he was with had no idea what was going on. Wendy initially got into defensive mode... until I told her who he was. Then she was just as blown away as I was. It was completely out there as far as 'small worlds' go... which seems to get smaller every day!

It was a long drive back, starting with Chicago rush hour traffic on Lakeshore Drive. So by the time we stopped and ate and finally got back to Indy, it was way later than I anticipated!! I'm beat!

Tomorrow my weekend continues with two showers to attend... the first is a bridal shower for Erica, and then a baby shower for Karen. I'd like to go to the Penrod Art Fair in the morning... but I'm not sure I'm going to make it. We'll see.

Good night for now!

Controversy?? Really??

Today, the President of Our United States prepared and presented a speech to the school kids of our Country. For some reason, this caused great controversy. Parents kept kids home from school so they would not see this speech. Some school systems just chose not to show it all together due to demand of so many parents. Why? What in this speech (see below) is so controversial??

Bush Sr. spoke to the school kids, as did Reagan. Did they get this much flack about it??? No!!! So why does Obama get so much grief? Because he's a democrat? Because he's going against the grain on so many political ideals and straying away from the politics of our last President?

Regardless, there's no reason. There were no politics involved in his speech. Just telling the kids what their parents should have already taught them. Reinforcing morals that should have already been learned at home. This is bad why?? If this had come from some movie or pop star, it would have been embraced. But it came from a politician, so it was bad?? And from our President, of all people...

Wake up people!!! Like it or not, we finally have someone in the White House with an agenda that benefits more than himself and his hunting buddies. Like it or not, we have a leader who actually leads and does not act as a puppet. Like it or not, we have a President that cares about this County's future.

The prepared text of President Barack Obama's back-to-school address scheduled for Tuesdays, as released by the White House, is below. Please tell me where the contoversy was worthwhile...

"Hello, everyone -- how's everybody doing today? I'm here with students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia. And we've got students tuning in from all across America, kindergarten through 12th grade. I'm glad you all could join us today.

I know that for many of you, today is the first day of school. And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it's your first day in a new school, so it's understandable if you're a little nervous. I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now, with just one more year to go. And no matter what grade you're in, some of you are probably wishing it were still summer, and you could've stayed in bed just a little longer this morning.

I know that feeling. When I was young, my family lived in Indonesia for a few years, and my mother didn't have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school. So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday -- at 4:30 in the morning.

Now I wasn't too happy about getting up that early. A lot of times, I'd fall asleep right there at the kitchen table. But whenever I'd complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and say, "This is no picnic for me either, buster."

So I know some of you are still adjusting to being back at school. But I'm here today because I have something important to discuss with you. I'm here because I want to talk with you about your education and what's expected of all of you in this new school year.

Now I've given a lot of speeches about education. And I've talked a lot about responsibility.

I've talked about your teachers' responsibility for inspiring you, and pushing you to learn.

I've talked about your parents' responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and get your homework done, and don't spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with that Xbox.

I've talked a lot about your government's responsibility for setting high standards, supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren't working where students aren't getting the opportunities they deserve.

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.

And that's what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education. I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.

Every single one of you has something you're good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That's the opportunity an education can provide.

Maybe you could be a good writer -- maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper -- but you might not know it until you write a paper for your English class. Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor -- maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or a new medicine or vaccine -- but you might not know it until you do a project for your science class. Maybe you could be a mayor or a senator or a Supreme Court justice, but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.

And no matter what you want to do with your life -- I guarantee that you'll need an education to do it. You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You're going to need a good education for every single one of those careers. You can't drop out of school and just drop into a good job. You've got to work for it and train for it and learn for it.

And this isn't just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country. What you're learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.

You'll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment. You'll need the insights and critical thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free. You'll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.

We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don't do that -- if you quit on school -- you're not just quitting on yourself, you're quitting on your country.

Now I know it's not always easy to do well in school. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.

I get it. I know what that's like. My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mother who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn't always able to give us things the other kids had. There were times when I missed having a father in my life. There were times when I was lonely and felt like I didn't fit in.

So I wasn't always as focused as I should have been. I did some things I'm not proud of, and got in more trouble than I should have. And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.

But I was fortunate. I got a lot of second chances and had the opportunity to go to college, and law school, and follow my dreams. My wife, our first lady Michelle Obama, has a similar story. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn't have much. But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.

Some of you might not have those advantages. Maybe you don't have adults in your life who give you the support that you need. Maybe someone in your family has lost their job, and there's not enough money to go around. Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don't feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren't right.

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life -- what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you've got going on at home -- that's no excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude. That's no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school. That's no excuse for not trying.

Where you are right now doesn't have to determine where you'll end up. No one's written your destiny for you. Here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future.

That's what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.

Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas. Jazmin didn't speak English when she first started school. Hardly anyone in her hometown went to college, and neither of her parents had gone either. But she worked hard, earned good grades, got a scholarship to Brown University, and is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to being Dr. Jazmin Perez.

I'm thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who's fought brain cancer since he was three. He's endured all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer -- hundreds of extra hours -- to do his schoolwork. But he never fell behind, and he's headed to college this fall.

And then there's Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Even when bouncing from foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods, she managed to get a job at a local health center; start a program to keep young people out of gangs; and she's on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.

Jazmin, Andoni and Shantell aren't any different from any of you. They faced challenges in their lives just like you do. But they refused to give up. They chose to take responsibility for their education and set goals for themselves. And I expect all of you to do the same. That's why today, I'm calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education -- and to do everything you can to meet them. Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying attention in class, or spending time each day reading a book. Maybe you'll decide to get involved in an extracurricular activity, or volunteer in your community. Maybe you'll decide to stand up for kids who are being teased or bullied because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all kids deserve a safe environment to study and learn. Maybe you'll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn. And along those lines, I hope you'll all wash your hands a lot, and stay home from school when you don't feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.

Whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it. I want you to really work at it.

I know that sometimes, you get the sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work -- that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star, when chances are, you're not going to be any of those things.

But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won't love every subject you study. You won't click with every teacher. Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right this minute. And you won't necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.

That's OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who've had the most failures. J.K. Rowling's first Harry Potter book was rejected twelve times before it was finally published. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career. But he once said, "I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

These people succeeded because they understand that you can't let your failures define you -- you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time. If you get in trouble, that doesn't mean you're a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to behave. If you get a bad grade, that doesn't mean you're stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying.

No one's born being good at things, you become good at things through hard work. You're not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport. You don't hit every note the first time you sing a song. You've got to practice. It's the same with your schoolwork. You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right, or read something a few times before you understand it, or do a few drafts of a paper before it's good enough to hand in.

Don't be afraid to ask questions. Don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn't a sign of weakness, it's a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit when you don't know something, and to learn something new. So find an adult you trust -- a parent, grandparent or teacher; a coach or counselor -- and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals.

And even when you're struggling, even when you're discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you -- don't ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.

The story of America isn't about people who quit when things got tough. It's about people who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best. It's the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and found this nation. Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war; who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon. Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google, Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.

So today, I want to ask you, what's your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a president who comes here in twenty or fifty or one hundred years say about what all of you did for this country?

Your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the education you need to answer these questions. I'm working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books, equipment and computers you need to learn. But you've got to do your part too. So I expect you to get serious this year. I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do. I expect great things from each of you. So don't let us down -- don't let your family or your country or yourself down. Make us all proud. I know you can do it.

Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America."

Labor Day Weekend

What a weekend! Though this weekend wasn't even half as busy as next weekend will be... this one still kept me going, though, for the most part.

Friday evening, Eric and I kept things low key and just had a nice dinner at a local Greek place, Santorini's. Very yummy! I kind of got some stuff dumped on me at the last minute at work on Friday, so I needed a quiet evening to unwind. Worked out well.

Saturday, we woke up and did a run - end of week one in our first 9 week training program! So after a late brunch, I headed home to do some things around my house (and leave Eric to do the same). I only ended up mowing my grass, though, because I fell asleep on the couch for a bit. I was beat for some reason! Then I met up with Eric to watch the Auburn game with the Indy Auburn Club on the northwest side of Indy. We won!!! And I am SO glad college football is back on TV!! YAY, FOOTBALL!! It may be a rough road ahead, though, for my Tigers... new coach, young team, and not at all favored to do well by analysts. But they've been wrong before and we always seem to do better as an underdog. So time will tell!

Sunday I woke up after a great sleep and slowly made my way into the kitchen to make an apple pie. I used six different varieties of apples from our apple picking adventure last weekend. I made my crust, "just like Mom used to make" from scratch, sliced the apples up so that there was a mountain of them packed into the crust, and let the smells waft through my house for the afternoon. It smelled SO good! It was all in preparation for our very NON-traditional Labor Day meal of Corned Beef and Cabbage. We got the cabbage from Eric's garden. That's actually the inspiration for the meal. So the main course was awesome! Eric has a knack for cooking up family meals really well. I think he enjoys it, too. Then came the pie... OMG... it was the best apple pie I've ever had!! The variety of apples is the way to go!! Everyone was raving about it!! And I've had a lot of apple pies in my time and if this one wasn't up there as the best, believe me, I'd say so. I'm not afraid to knock my own cooking - I AM my own worst critic! Needless to say, I was thrilled with how it turned out!!

After the nice, calm meal, everyone was content. Eric's sister and bro-in-law had just left with the kids, and we turned to go back into the house. Eric had just gone in before the rest of us, only to come back out to tell us there was a bat in the house!! Yes... you read that right... there was a bat it the house!! It got in through one of the windows Eric is currently rebuilding. This lead to a story from his Mom (while Eric and his Dad tried to chase it down) about when they had a bat in their house in Laporte and it landed on the pillow next to her head in her bed!! That made me a little more freaked out!! About 10 minutes later, Eric and his Dad come back into the kitchen (they were shutting off rooms as they searched them) to say they think he flew out the front door. They weren't sure, but they didn't think it was still in the house after they checked everywhere. His parents headed home after this, and I was still a little uneasy about the bat thing. Eric tried to reassure me it was gone, but I just didn't feel right.

We started opening up the rooms again, and I just had this feeling. We were in the doorway of the TV room when I looked up in his built in bookcase. On the top shelf, there were some dark colored baskets... and what looked like a little bat head sticking over the edge of one of them. I pointed to it and asked, "Eric, is that the bat???" Sure enough, it was. So we proceeded to close up the TV room again and he went in to try to catch it. I stood outside of the room, just listening to the commotion. Finally, he caught it in a blanket and threw it outside. I felt better now. I knew it was gone, now.

Sunday evening led to the earning of a good 'sleep-in' this morning. I was actually up before Eric, which is rare. After the first run of our second week of training, we headed out to do some errands and grab some lunch. Amongst the errands was a stop at one of my Make-A-Wish Wish Children's homes to deliver their itinerary for their trip to Disneyland in CA next week. That's always a fun thing to do. Then we grabbed a little lunch and headed back downtown. Next thing I knew, it was 5pm... time to head back home to do some of the things I needed to do around the house, yet. These long weekends are never long enough.