September 2008

September has flown by with lots of plans on the weekends and plenty of other things to keep us busy during the week! The first weekend in September we went to the regular season opener for the Colts vs. the Bears in the new Lucas Oil Stadium. We tailgated with several people (Beth, Tom, Tracy, Lawton, Sonja and Scott) and even though the Colts lost, it was a fun day and we enjoyed being there for the first regular season game in the new stadium!

The following weekend we went to southern Ohio for our 3rd annual “Carroll” camping trip. We enjoyed great weather for the 3rd straight year and the usual crowd was there (Beth, Pete, Laura, Claire, Jackie, Josh, Jackson, Mike and Anne). We played volleyball, Corn-hole, Catch-phrase and simply got a chance to enjoy the outdoors. One of the highlights included when Deb and I were on a hike with Mike and Anne and Deb just about stepped on a little snake! She jumped back several feet and ran by the snake quickly. She and Anne both seemed shaken up by the snake and didn’t want to go on another hike!

The 3rd weekend in September had us on the road again to WV for Nathan Walker’s wedding. We arrived in Charleston Friday night and enjoyed a nice Saturday of watching football and relaxing before heading off to the evening wedding. Deb and Anna went shopping for a little bit while Randy and I enjoyed watching several college football games! The weather couldn’t have worked out better for the outdoor ceremony at the Capital and the reception was at the Women’s Club of Charleston.

The last weekend in September had us relaxing at home. We had my parents over to watch the Purdue vs. ND game which was close at half-time but ended up being a 17-point ND win. We also went to an engagement party and a comedy club during that weekend. We spend a majority of the weekend quoting the comedian from the club! I kicked of another season of flag football on the last Sunday in September…who knows how much longer I will keep playing?!? (Deb isn’t playing because of the finger she broke a year ago).

Other than the weekends, we have been busy at work. Deb is studying for a sports specialty exam for physical therapists. This has created a 1-2 hour commitment from her each day and she has been doing very well on that schedule. I’ve moved jobs into the “Corporate Accounting Manager” position at Hurco. This is a small promotion that will create a lot of exposure to different things, allow me to train and manage my old position, and attempt to take on new responsibilities.
As mentioned in previous months, Dad was supposed to receive a bone morrow transplant this fall/winter and there is an update on that situation. He is not responding as well as the doctor hoped to his chemo so that transplant could be January, but more than likely late winter or spring of 2009. We continue to pray for the best and hope things continue to progress in a positive manner for him and our family. We are participating in a “Light the Night” fundraiser in October, and we should have pictures next month!

August 2008

We spent the first weekend of August up at Lake Wawasee in northern Indiana with some friends from our flag football league (Liz, Jeff, Diane, Brandon and Chris). The weather was perfect and we had a great time playing Jenga (when Keith had to jump off the pier at one point), playing Trivial Pursuit and Gender Wars (guys lost both times), and some late night euchre battles (when Brandon and Keith lost and had to do a bunch of funny things the next day, including getting the beer and the “truffle shuffle”).

We spent the next 2 weekends in Indy. We enjoyed the pool and tried to catch up from a busy summer. We were also preparing for some busy times coming up in late August and early September. We attended a few birthday parties for Meg Miles and the Nondorf boys, and took a tour of the new Lucas Oil Stadium (new home of the Colts).

Dad is doing well but seems more fatigued as more and more cycles go on. The news from the doctor is good as he seems to be doing well with the chemo and other medication he is on. In September, we should know when his bone morrow transplant will be (Nov, Dec or possibly Jan). Mom appears to be doing well, having the ability to make it to some chemo appointments and all doctor appointments.

We attended Tim Benck’s wedding in late August. Tim is a good friend of mine from my first day in college. We ended up in the same fraternity and have stayed in touch ever since. The wedding was in Chicago and we stayed at Joe and Ali Rago’s house on Friday night and the guys (Matt, Jason, Joe and I) stayed up until 3AM playing caps. The wedding was outside, which made it a little uncomfortable with a tuxedo on, but we were happy to get inside to the AC once the ceremony was over! Apparently, we were a little thirsty and instead of drinking water, we consumed some “adult beverages” and by the end of the night we were having a great time! Somehow, during the song “Shout!” (one of my favorites) I ended up on the ground being spun around by everyone!

For Labor Day weekend, we took off and headed to Davis, WV for Anna’s 60th Birthday party. It was a great weekend and the party never ended. We arrived on Thursday evening and by that time, several people have already arrived and the party had officially kicked off. Too many people were there to mention everyone, but it was great to see so many people that we had only seen a few times since the wedding. A huge “circus” like tent was put up in the backyard in Davis to help in case it rained and with all the decorations, it was really a great party. Deb and I broke away for a few hours to go on a mountain bike ride (a group went hiking and some others stayed at the house). Well, I decided I was ready for the X Games and tried to get over a big rock…and the rock decided that I didn’t need my back tire anymore (popped it!). We had to walk a few miles back to the town. The next day we went rafting and the water was low so we rafted on “duckies” (which are one-man kayaks, but look more like inflatable canoes). This made it a lot more fun, except for Deb fell out once and banged her knees on a rock. She was OK, but nevertheless, we were ready to go back to the Davis house by that point!

That’s all for this month…see you in September!