It’s hard to believe, but another week has already sped past us since we last touched base. Luke enjoyed his second week of Spring Break, spending it away from Ann & I by house-sitting for friends. He only returned when he needed something, which gave us a glimpse of what it could be like next year, depending on what the kids end up doing. He had another track meet, where he upped his personal best twice…but would it be enough? He attended a couple track practices, worked out at the YMCA daily and enjoyed spending time with his friends most days. Abby continued to keep her nose to the grindstone, working hard in her classes and trying to get on the Dean’s List in her final semester. Graduation is slowly creeping up on her! It was good to see her come home for a little while this weekend. She picked up a several things to take with her next weekend, when she heads south to Florida for Spring Break! Matt had a full week of work in Carmel and is excited to be very near his first house closing (and commission!). He told some good stories about his wrestling year-end banquet up in Zionsville…but the big news of the week was that we were celebrating his 26th trip around the sun. It’s hard to believe our first baby is twenty-six! Damn, we’re old… Ann had a busy week at work, thanks to the full moon that lasted several days. I enjoyed the good weather we had this week by logging over sixteen miles of exercise. It was the first time in a while that I met or exceeded my walking goal! I had hoped to spend time with friends this week, but it never panned out. Instead, I enjoyed playing 45 holes of frisbee golf this week as well as adding a new batch of Hot Wheels to my database that I received over the last couple weeks. It was great to have all the kids back under our roof. It’s been a while since we all sat down at the kitchen table and enjoyed one of Ann’s home-cooked meals. For a couple hours today, all was right in the world. It does our soul good to be with the kiddos… Hello again and welcome to the latest edition of the Scheu Family Blog.
What a difference a day makes. Sure, it was great with it still being light after 8 pm last night. But instead of waking to a lovely sunrise on Monday morning, we got ready and headed into work while it was completely dark. It was definitely warmer – above freezing that morning. Luke was still spending the night at the Bests, housesitting for them. This must be what it’s going to be like when we have an empty nest? With Luke off for Spring Break – week 2 – it was just Ann & I who were up early and headed back to work to start the week. Matt put together a group on the ESPN website for the family and friends to have a friendly wager on the Big Dance tourney, so Justin & I took a few minutes during lunch to fill out our brackets that day. Ann & I had both had fast days. She had to work up front most of the day, which always speeds up her day. I didn’t get to any reports that day, but I knocked out a bunch of stuff that’s due this week so I’m in a good space to get a lot accomplished this week now. I got out of work on time and was glad to find it was a lovely afternoon in the 60s, with lots of sunshine but a cool breeze. I walked three miles and found the rest of the frisbee golf holes. They haven’t done anything else with the course other than the stakes, so I’m still not sure if it was just something someone did for fun or if it will actually become a project that the city see through to fruition. I guess time will tell… When we got back to town, I dropped Annie at home and then went out to the park to play a round of frisbee golf. It was gorgeous outside but man was it windy! It messed with game the whole time and was the main reason why I threw a 26 – six strokes higher than the last time I played. I ran to the store afterward then came home to grab some grub. Ann was on the phone with Matt, who was planning another trip with Taylor. Luke said he spoke with his coach and after this past weekend, he’s still ranked #19, which makes him eligible for the state finals at the end of the month. There’s still a couple tournaments yet, so there’s a chance he could get bumped-out. Because of that, he said Coach Jackson registered him in throw in another qualifier at U of I this week. He was home that night just long enough to get a couple things down before he headed out to Oakley’s house. I was so tired that day – probably from the time change, I assume? Ann said she was pretty tired as well. I culled pictures and videos for this week’s blog entry as we watched a couple DVR’d shows. I didn’t last long. After equaling my exercise total from last week that day, I took some Advil and went to bed. I was so sad to learn that my second mother of my childhood, Ma Stoewer (Sheila). She was one of my best friend’s mom (and next door neighbor) in LaPorte. She is the 3rd person in our family / friend group to pass away in the last few weeks. She was such a sweet person and really had an impact on my life when we moved to LaPorte in the 5th grade. She was married to Mike’s dad (Dave) for over 50 years… Here are random pictures from our recent adventures.
Tuesday morning was just as hard to get out of bed. Although I hate what it does to my body, I love having the extra daylight at night to get in my frisbee golf game. ???? It was another fast day at work for Ann & I. I had another orientation class, first thing that morning. Afterward, I facilitated our annual tornado drill. It was already our second emergency drill of the young year, which satisfies our requirements for the Joint Commission (and CMS) for 2022 – yay! I did some purchasing & IT stuff in the afternoon before heading out to walk that afternoon. It was another pretty day in the 60s. There was a slight breeze as I logged another 5K before heading home with Annie. We ran a couple errands when we got back to town. I dropped her off so she could do a few things around the house and then begin binge-watching Chicago Fire again. I went out to the park and played a round of frisbee golf. There was still a slight breeze that mostly impacted only the first three holes. After that, I settled into a nice game and finished with a respectable 22, throwing from the front tees. I have decided to continue at the front tees through this month before moving to the back ones, in hopes of saving my elbow from becoming mash again this summer. We had a find-your-own dinner and watched a few DVR’d shows after she finished with her Chicago Fire marathon that night. I got all of this week’s pictures edited. There’s a few good ones in the Waybac section this week. We both woke up from a nap at one point and decided to just hit the hay. This time change is for the birds! I didn’t hear from any of the kids that day. Ann said that Luke went to track practice and a doctor appointment in the morning. I assume he worked out once or twice that day before heading out to house-sit the Bests house that night. We never even saw him that day. We got Abby’s Commencement Day schedule from FC. I’m so excited for her, but they’ve limited tickets so we’re not yet sure how we’re going to get everyone in to see Abby’s big moment… Matt had a life lesson that day, regarding the importance of opening your mail and not throwing things away that you suspect are just junk mail…oops…
Wednesday morning brought us clear skies and a lovely sunrise greeted us as we headed back to Columbus to start our workday. Ann had Julie come over that morning to clean the house. She’s been such a blessing for us. The house hasn’t looked this good in a long time! It was another fast day at work for Ann & I. Ann & I dealt with the “full moon fever??? at work. The worst part is that the full moon is just waxing. We still have another day or so of this stuff to deal with before it finally wanes. I did a few finance things then worked on projects the rest of the day. We are finally replacing our worn-out copiers and upgrading our aging IT infrastructure that has been there nearly as long as I have! Vic & I took Justin out to lunch for his 37th birthday. We then ran to the outlet mall so I could buy a new pair of shorts…since I split the ones I wore to work in the crotch. The hole was about the size of my hand. There was not coming back from that! After work, I walked three miles on a gorgeous day in the 70s. Ann & I left work a little early to head up to the U Indy campus. We hadn’t been up there in a few years. This time, it wasn’t for Matthew but rather Luke. No, he wasn’t on a college visit but rather a track meet. It was another qualifier for the Indoor State Finals. He entered the day ranted 22nd and when he left, he was ranked 19th. There are still three more qualifier meets, so we’ll see if he is able to hang on and make the cut. They take the top 24 or 25 to the big meet in Bloomington in a couple weeks. He had a personal best (PB) twice as he had throws of 42’ 3???, 44’ 1.5???, 43’ 7??? & 43’ 9.5??? that evening. His teammate had a great throw that moved him from the mid-twenties to 8th place! Afterward, we talked with Coach Jackson (who gave him a ride up to the meet) and then took Luke out to eat dinner at Cracker Barrel. I love their spicy grilled catfish. ???? We dropped Luke off at school and said good night as he drove back out to house / dog-sit at the Bests again that night. We were worried what we might find when we got home, after the poor dogs were couped up for 15 hours…but were pleasantly surprised to see that they had not made messes! WOW! We stayed up later than we wanted to allow the dogs to go in and out several times before finally having to call it a night – probably before they were ready – and put our weary butts to bed… We have lots of social media pictures to share this week.
We enjoyed another beautiful day on Thursday. Ann & I both had fast, busy days as the full moon was at its peak. That meant staff at both offices had their hands full with their patients. A huge, orange moon greeted us as we drove into work that morning and was still around that night, viewable out our front window. Justin left work early to pickup his new motorcycle. He was so excited. That allowed me to focus on getting reports done…well that and work with Victor to get the sprinkler system up and running again. That took up most of our day, obviously. I did manage to get everything done except my big monthly report…but I can work on that from home. I got out on a warm afternoon in the 70s and walked a 5K. Obviously, the college kids are on Spring Break because the parking lots were all empty around campus. Ann and I had a good drive home, catching up on each other’s day. I dropped her off at home, where she did a few things around the house and then started binge-watching Chicago Fire. Meanwhile, I went out to the park and played a round of frisbee golf, shooting a 24 from the front tees. I was sore again that night as we grabbed leftovers and watched some DVR’d shows and basketball games. We were both pretty tired and wound up in bed fairly early again that night. Luke continued to house- and dog-sit for the Bests again that day and night. He did go work out at track practice and the YMCA that day but otherwise just took it easy and hung out with a couple friends.
Ann had the day off on Friday due to having to rearrange schedules of a couple of her providers. I worked from home that morning, getting an early start on things in the family room. The dogs and I enjoyed a quiet morning that allowed me to focus on my Safety Committee report and knocked it out before noon. I followed up on some emails and did a little purchasing before calling it a day around noon. I paid the bills and balanced the checkbook before heading over to Mom & Sandy’s where I met up with Jamie, Matt & Mom to watch some March Madness basketball. Sandy & Deanna joined us after they finished up at the radio station that day. We warmed up with a couple games before the main event took center stage as Purdue played in its first game against Yale. Although it was close early, they began to pull away a little by halftime. In the second half, they blew it wide open, going up by 30 and won going away. They even had the chance to get the third team kids in there that only played in like four games all season, for a little garbage time. ???? We enjoyed some pizzas and cocktails for a couple hours then went our separate ways. Matt headed back up to Carmel for a night of romance with Taylor while I headed out to the frisbee golf course at the park. Although it had rained while we were at Mom’s house, the course wasn’t too bad. It was a little damp, sure; but I did pretty well. I threw from the front tees again and threw a 25 despite a stiff breeze and the disc being a little slippery at times. Meanwhile, Ann enjoyed napping with the dogs that afternoon. She made us a simple pasta dish that evening that really hit the spot. Luke came over with his buddy Blane after they finished working out at the Y for a few hours. They chatted with us for a while then headed back out to housesit for the night. As we watched the Law & Orders from the other night, we paused for while to flip over to watch the weather because there was some nasty stuff brewing to the south of us. As it began raining again, we hoped for the best and thankfully, it was just noisy and not dangerous for us. Here are pictures of recent additions to my Hot Wheels collection.
We enjoyed sleeping in on a rainy Saturday morning. The wind was blowing the blind back and forth through the open window in our bedroom, otherwise I might have slept even later. I got up and did a few chores around the house and when Annie got up, we got cleaned-up and drove out to St. Paul to see Lori at Wild Flour Bakery and pickup a small batch of goodies. We ran a couple errands when we got back into town before coming home to enjoy our pastries. We enjoyed a slow, quiet day, hanging out in the living room with the dogs and keeping warm under our blankets. We flipped between college basketball games and DVR’d shows all day. While Ann read, I checked in a big batch of recently acquired Hot Wheels. I really enjoyed this day because I know that very soon my Saturdays will be really busy again. Luke came over briefly with Blane. They were only here a few minutes before heading back out to the Bests to do some cleaning before they arrived home. The boys were excited to be heading over to Cincinnati that evening to an under-21 club. We were hoping that either Matt & Taylor or Abby & Will might come down early and stay the night with us, but instead we spend the evening with the dogs. Ann made dinner again (two nights in a row!). It was her delicious Korean Bulgogi dish that we like so much. This version was no different and only a little bit of it was left afterwards. We wrapped up the evening with more March Madness until we began nodding off.
We enjoyed sleeping in on a sunny Sunday morning. When I got up, the house was much too cold to have family over to celebrate Matt’s big day, so I quickly turned the heat back on so that it would be comfortable for everyone and not have to wear their coats indoors! I enjoyed some DVR’d shows while writing out this week’s html code and editing this week’s video. Once Annie got up, I did some weekly household chores until the kids began showing up. The first ones home were Abby & Will. We caught up with them while she did her laundry and I serviced her laptop, including updating it to Win11. I wish my laptop was capable, but it keeps saying it doesn’t meet the minimum requirements. Luke came home from Oak’s house. I guess they didn’t get back from the club in Cincy until almost dawn! Aah, to be an 18-year-old on Spring Break again… ???? The man of the hour finally arrived home but without Ms. Taylor, who was home sick. They have a new kitty now. I think it was the first time he’d been home since Christmas! He chose to have Ann make us her yummy chicken fettuccini alfredo, which was fine with us. Abby & Will joined me on the porch for a beer as I cooked chicken on the grill. It was during lunch when someone finally asked the question of Lucas…did he make state next weekend?? He very non-chalantly said that he had, indeed, made the cut and was ranked 21st! We were all very excited for him and Matt said he would join us in Bloomington to root him on. Way to, little buddy!! Besides Abby making it to Nationals in dance, this is the first time that we’ve had a state qualifier in anything! After lunch, we got the house cleaned up and ready for the rest of the fam to come over for cake & ice cream. Mary had her husband deliver the cake that day. In fact, he wound up having to make it as well as Mary broke her collarbone! The cake was still very good. Mom, Sandy & Pickles came over as well as Dee & Jamie (Gracie had to work at CVS, unfortunately). We sang a lovely version of the Birthday Song (Will wasn’t sure what to think! – LOL) and enjoyed some cake & ice cream. We watched basketball most of the day and after everyone left, Matt opened up his presents. Luke went to workout and then went on to Columbus with his buddies. Ann took Abby grocery shopping while Will studied and Matt & I played a round of frisbee golf. It was a perfect afternoon for a round of disc golf – it was probably in the 60s, but the sun was warm and there was just a slight breeze. Matt did decent for his first time out this year, throwing a one-over, 28. I also threw from the front tees and did pretty good with a 4-under, 23. We made a pact to do this again next year as well as play on Father’s Day also. We said goodbye to Abs & Willy and watched another game with Matt. It was Duke vs. Michigan St. and Coach K vs. Coach Izzo. It was close to the end but Duke delivered Coach K’s 1200th victory – including his 99th in the Big Dance! Wow! At the start of the day, there were like 5 or 6 Big Ten teams still in it, but only Michigan wound up winning by the time Purdue came on that night. After Matt headed back up Carmel and the house was quiet again, Ann made cheesy Fireworks popcorn for dinner. Watching the Boilermakers fight for a chance to make it to the Sweet Sixteen vs. Texas was a great way to wind down a fantastic day and a relaxing way to wrap up a great week…Boiler Up!
Next up is our Waybac segment, which continues to feature six decades of pictures of the Scheu family from Aunt Sue. We lead off this week in the 1940s: Aunt Sue’s baptism in ’42 and Uncle Chuck in ’46; in the 1950s we have: Tom, John & Sally in April ’56 and again together for John’s First Communion on May 12 of ’57 as well as John & Mary in ’58 and Dad & Mary in ’59; in the 1960s we have an unknown pair of men in December ’61, Granny with Vicki in February ’62 (along with Granny’s mom and Uncle Hank), a rare picture with Cathy, Judy, Vicki and Granny on December 12 of ’64 and then two great pictures of the Funkhouser kids in August ’65; in the 1970s: Kimmy’s 4th birthday in March ’77 and Uncle Chuck from the late seventies; the 1980s have a couple pictures of Granny’s birthday – 1st with Chris, Jason & Sue and then Jackie, Granny and a friend; and finally in the 1990s: a couple pix of the fam during Thanksgiving Day at Sally’s house in ’92; Jason & Erica at Christmas Eve ’93 and Thanksgiving with the Scheu fam at the Parkside – a great pic of John & June, Kimmy and Haley and a 2 month old Zak in ‘94.
Next up is our video segment, which features one short home movie this week as well as several from around the world.
And that does it for this week’s edition of the Scheu Family Blog. Thanks for keeping up with us this time out and we’ll catch up with you again next time. Until then, have a good one and stay safe out there. We sure miss ya, Momma…
Later, Scheu