March 2026

We were lucky enough to go to Dreams Playa Mujeres resort for a week for spring break.  Our direct flight went well and we arrived by 11AM on Saturday the 21st.  There were 4 other families from our school that were also at the resort, that that gave the girls plenty of options of kids to hang out with and they also enjoyed taking part in all of the daily activities.  Each day was similar, with time by the pool during the day, cocktails before dinner and we would eat together and then the kids would go find the evening show.  The weather was fantastic, the food was good and everyone had a great time.  We did run into a few issues with the normal stomach issues that can happen in Mexico, but we didn’t let that dampen our experience as we brought several options to help us with that.  Within a few minutes of arriving, both girls decided that they didn’t want to ever go on a hike or see a national park; and all of our vacations should be to all-inclusive resorts. 

 

            Earlier in the month, both girls had tournaments out of town.  Sarah and I went to Columbus, IN for a few nights.  Her team played 4 games over the weekend and went 2-2.  Pretty sure Sarah’s favorite part of the weekend was socializing with her teammates at the restaurants and hotel.  With several families being catholic, we found a small church to go to mass on Saturday evening and even got a picture with the priest.  Debbie and Allison were in Cincinnati and while Allison’s team struggled, they had fun spending time together.  Her team didn’t all stay at the same hotel, so it wasn’t as chaotic. 

 

            Sarah’s basketball team made it to the championship game and unfortunately, lost by 2.  She had a fun season and improved her shooting.  She found herself guarding girls bigger than her, so she had to learn about just being tougher and getting lower to hold her ground. 

           

 

Sarah’s Things of the Month

            As her basketball season ended, her school softball team started practicing after spring break.  She is playing softball 5-6 days a week as March ended.  The biggest thing I’ve noticed this year is that she is swinging at good pitches and avoiding bad ones.  That is a big improvement, because last fall she wouldn’t swing much and wait for a walk or strike out.  She has also attended a few basketball practices at Chatard for the incoming freshmen, as they also invited the 7th graders. 

 

Allison’s Thing of the Month

             Allison continued her volleyball season and done some weight-lifting at Chatard.  Her “limited contact” basketball starts back up in April.  She seems to have social plans most Fridays after school, where they will walk to Glendale and eat at Culvers, have coffee at Starbucks or walk around Target.  She and Debbie also went to an Indy Ignite volleyball game with her team. 

 

A few more items from this month:

• I met my 6th grade basketball coach, Ken Manuel, for coffee.  It has been a few years since we caught up, but we fall back into conversation very easily.  He is a big part of what I am at this point in my life…which I thank him for. 
• I organized a long over-due evening with beers for several guys who had been to the Davis ski house and invited Randy.  Randy, Ben, Tom, Brandon, Ferrand and Jeremy all met out at The District Tap and everyone had fun catching up. 
• We had Randy and Anna over for dinner on his birthday in March.  We grilled out, had a few beers and had some cake. 
• I met up with John Oblazney for breakfast.  He has been a key leader for me over my career and also a sounding board for the last few years as I was working at Dealers Wholesale.  It was great to catch up with him.

February 2026

            We continued the kid’s sports seasons in February with plenty of basketball, volleyball and softball.  Sarah’s basketball season continued and they have won all their games except for 1 in February.  She comes off the bench and does what needs to be done, playing good defense, not turning the ball over and shooting when she is open.  Her “Midtown Machine” team continued to practice throughout the month gearing up for their season to start in March.  Even though Allison’s JV season ended, her team continued to practice with the varsity into sectionals.  She went right into volleyball with her CROI team.  She is on the 15U team and having fun meeting girls from different high schools. 

 

            Debbie and I had a few nights out over the month.  We went to the CKS Kings Gala (which is a fundraiser for the school). It was at the K of C and had a casino theme.  It was a lot of fun, and the casino was run by all veterans, which I thought was awesome.  On Valentine’s Day, we went downtown to see Nate Bargatze with Mike and Laura.  We went out to dinner at Weber Grill beforehand and then stopped at Binkley’s on the way home.  The show was hilarious and we had a great time. 

 

Sarah’s Things of the Month

            This month was our first chance to see Sarah play a sport after participating at the Genesis gym.  She does look stronger and faster after going to that gym for the last 4 months.   

 

Allison’s Thing of the Month

             Allison is appreciating a lighter schedule after going from last summer, into volleyball and straight to basketball.  She has more social things on her calendar and that does require a lot more driving without much planning.   

 

A few more items from this month:

• Aunt Linda gave us Purdue tickets vs. Michigan, and we had a great time.  Purdue lost the game, but the environment was exciting and the girls enjoyed cheering along with the student section.
• I made a trip to Wisconsin on my own to help with a few small financial projects. 
• My mom came to town in late February to celebrate Erin’s birthday and check out some volleyball for Allison and basketball for Sarah. 

January 2026

We had a lot of basketball in January with the end of Allison’s JV season and the start of Sarah’s Cadet season.  Allison’s team continued to have a few regular season games during the month, but the highlight was their city tournament.  They won 3 games in 4 nights to be city champs and celebrated a 35-32 win over Heritage Christian.  Allison contributed by scoring 8 points, several assists and even had a chance to play point guard for part of the game.  Their season ended during an invitational held at Chatard on January 31st. Sarah’s team won both of their games in January and Sarah has hit a few 3 pointers in those games.  She plays good team defense and does her best to provide help-side defense when needed. 

 

            As I mentioned last month, the company I work for was sold to a new partner in mid-December and after the holidays, there has been a lot of things going on.  We enjoyed a nice “closing” dinner in Carmel with our previous owners and board of directors to celebrate a job well-done.  The bank we worked with since I’ve been in my role took us out to dinner and a Pacers game.  Finally, we got to meet up with LDI (new partners) and discuss 2026 plans and meetings.  After those meetings, a few of us when to Wisconsin and Illinois to have a planning session with our divisions to do some strategy planning for this year. 

 

Sarah’s Things of the Month

            Sarah has continued going to Genesis to work on strength, speed and agility.  She has also continued her 2-3 softball practices per week with her “Midtown Machine” team that should be fun to watch this spring. 

 

Allison’s Thing of the Month

             Allison has started a few practices and 2 tournaments for her CROI volleyball team.  This team includes 2 other girls form Chatard and her participation has increased in February with basketball being over. 

 

A few more items from this month:

• We had a new garage floor installed in early January.  It looks very nice and was an improvement to the cracks and holes that we had before. 
• We had a large snowstorm in late January which shut down schools and much of the city for a few days.  After the storm, it was very cold, so the snow has stuck around for a long time. 

December 2025

 

            We kicked off our holiday celebrations by heading to Columbus, OH to meet up with Laura’s family and mom at a hotel for a quick one-day trip.  We arrived a few minutes after the Dodsons and we found ourselves in the hotel lobby eating pizza, exchanging presents, and watching football.  There was a conference room where the kids all went to play a few games together, which was fun to listen to them laugh and have fun given their age differences.  The next morning, everyone enjoyed breakfast before leaving. 

 

            Our church offered a 4PM mass, so we all went to that which allowed for us to hang out a little more that evening.  In what has evolved into a tradition, Deb organized an appetizer menu and the Dodsons, Cyphers and Mark were able to come.  The next morning, Anna and Randy came by to celebrate Christmas around the tree and open gifts.  Sarah got a new softball bat and Allison got new headphones.  We also surprised them with tickets to see Morgan Wallen this May.  Allison started feeling a little sick earlier in the week, so we watched some sports on TV and had a ham dinner with Randy and Anna that evening. 

 

            Julie & Kyle came to Indy a few days after Christmas and stayed with Randy & Anna.  We went to church on Saturday and then came back to our house for some chicken noodle soup and opened presents.  Julie, Kyle, Debbie, and I went to the gym the following morning and we had dinner at the Cyphers house.  Allison stayed home on the couch as she continued to not feel well and ended up being sick for about a week. 

 

Sarah’s Things of the Month

            Sarah had a good time going to a birthday party at the K of C for one of her classmates.  She left there to meet up with her softball team for a holiday party which was challenging to get to due to a snow storm.   She has started practice for her CKS basketball team and is enjoying someone else coaching her other than me!  She continues to have softball practices and going to a strength and conditioning gym nearby 2 times a week. 

 

Allison’s Thing of the Month

             Allison has her first set of high school “finals” and did well.  She had a study schedule and handled it well.  She has continued her basketball season on the JV team and although she missed a few practices due to being ill over the holidays, continues to start most of the time and enjoys being part of the team and learning from the coaches.   She will be doing some volleyball this spring and has had a few practices with that team, but that will likely pick up in February after basketball is done. 

 

A few more items from this month:

• After a 9-month process, the ownership group at my work transitioned from Firefly to LDI.  While my day-to-day job does not change too much, I have learned a lot during the last year. 
• We had a holiday dinner at Cobblestone in Zionsville with the leadership team from my work.  It was a fun evening and good to see everyone out of the office. 
• I was invited for one of the department outings in December where we took our remote workers go-karting at K1 Speed.  It was a lot of fun and good to see the competitive spirit among our team. 
• We stopped by the Campbell’s house for a holiday open house.  The girls in 7th grade enjoyed laughing and carrying on while the adults saw the new renovation in their kitchen. 
• Allison and I went to the Colts game on Monday, Dec 22nd.  The Colts did not do too well and we left in the 3rd quarter. 
• I was able to get 4 tickets to the Pacers game on NYE.  It was at 3PM and we enjoyed the game and then stopped at Binkley’s after for dinner on our way home.