{"id":145,"date":"2008-11-09T11:18:39","date_gmt":"2008-11-09T15:18:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/scheumann.us\/blog\/?p=145"},"modified":"2009-05-31T15:01:46","modified_gmt":"2009-05-31T19:01:46","slug":"leaves-are-falling-all-around","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/?p=145","title":{"rendered":"Leaves are Falling all Around"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\"><font size=3><span>&nbsp;&nbsp; <\/span>Things were especially crazy for us this past week.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>On Sunday morning, we turned the clocks back and boy what a difference it has made in our days this week.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>It is already dusk now by the time we get home!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>It has a big impact on our evening routine, including no time to go out and play \/ exercise at night?which means an increase in fights between children?and headaches for the parents!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>On Monday, Luke and I rode bikes in the dark, as Abby attended tap dance class and Matt had basketball practice until 7:30.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Tuesday, we got up early in anticipation of an historic day.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>What an incredibly exciting crescendo to the election process!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>I think either man would have made a fine president.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>We have always had a split home in terms of elections and this one was no different, raising tensions in anticipation of the outcome that night.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>I am very proud to say we were alive to see something like this happen.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>I have heard from others that the sixties were exciting times, but I truly had butterflies watching the returns that night.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Seeing all of those people gathered in Grant Park was amazing to witness.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>?and to see all of this incredibly world-altering change happen in a peaceful, non-violent manner gave me hope (and a few tears)?something that (for me) has been in short supply in recent months?<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\"><font size=3><span>&nbsp; <\/span>Again, the highlight of the local election was our trip to take Gigi her soda and snack while she covered the election for WTRE.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>So, a little after 6, we grabbed a polar pop, Gigi?s favorite Chex mix and headed downtown to the courthouse.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Up to now, Matt had always had the honor to bring her the prized soda.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Seeing that he was still at practice, the baton was passed to Abby &#8211; who was quick to point out this accomplishment to anyone who would listen.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>When we arrived, Gigi was in full swing &#8211; already doing interviews and following the returns.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Abby spoke on the air with her, relating how the elementary students had run their own elections?of which Obama also won.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Unfortunately, Luke quickly got restless so we weren?t able to stay long!<span>&nbsp; <\/span><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Elected1 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Elected1.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Elected2 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Elected2.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font size=3><font face=\"Times New Roman\"><span>&nbsp; <\/span>Abby had a dental appointment earlier in the day and had to have her first cavity filled. <\/font><span style=\"FONT-FAMILY: Wingdings\"><span>L<\/span><\/span><font face=\"Times New Roman\"> <span>&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span>Wednesday night, Matt had his awards banquet for 7<sup>th<\/sup> grade football.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>He earned his 3<sup>rd<\/sup> letter and a certificate of recognition.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Thursday was Grandparents day at pre-school for Lukey.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>He is such a funny kid.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>When he was asked to introduce his visitor (Grandma Owens) he stated, ?This is my grandma, Sandy.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>We play bingo together????<span>&nbsp; <\/span>It was all very cute; except her name is MaryAnn and they?ve never played bingo!!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>When we asked the little stinker why he did it, he stated he was tricking his classmates.<span>&nbsp; <\/span><\/font><span style=\"FONT-FAMILY: Wingdings\"><span>J<\/span><\/span><font face=\"Times New Roman\"><span>&nbsp; <\/span>Friday night was equally active.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Matt had basketball practice from 5:30 to 7:30 and then had a dance afterwards until 10:00.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>He had a blast and even danced with an 8<sup>th<\/sup> grader!<span>&nbsp; <\/span><\/font><span style=\"FONT-FAMILY: Wingdings\"><span>J<\/span><\/span><font face=\"Times New Roman\"><span>&nbsp; <\/span>Just as we were getting ready to play Uno and watch a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, I was called in to work to review tapes due to two kids eloping from the facility.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Luke was so far up my crack, I couldn?t separate him from my leg and so he joined me.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>He was very in to it and asked lots of questions.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>The police found them about a half mile away and brought them back.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Luke was impressed with the bad guys getting caught and said he wanted to watch himself on <\/font><\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cops.com\/\"><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Cops<\/font><\/a><font size=3><font face=\"Times New Roman\">!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>?I love the way his little mind works?<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Today, all he has talked about is how he and Daddy went on a secret mission to get the bad guys!<span>&nbsp; <\/span><\/font><span style=\"FONT-FAMILY: Wingdings\"><span>J<\/span><\/span><\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=FballAwards src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/FballAwards1.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=FballAwards2 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/FballAwards2.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=FballAwards3 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/FballAwards3.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=FballAwards4 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/FballAwards4.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=FballAwards5 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/FballAwards5.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font size=3><font face=\"Times New Roman\"><span>&nbsp; <\/span>Saturday, we did a little home improvement.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>We started out re-installing a water line to the fridge.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>It had split and soaked the floor a couple years ago, so we just turned it off.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Let me tell you how much you miss an ice maker when you don?t have one!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Luke again accompanied me to the hardware store after dropping off Matt at b-ball practice.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>He talked the guy in to making us some fresh popcorn which was really good, but we forgot to bring a bag home for Ann &amp; Abby ? which put us in the dog house again&#8230;<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Luke and I managed to turn a half hour job in to three hours?nothing is ever easy with us!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>In an attempt to get ourselves out of the dog house, Luke and I repaired one of Ann?s kitchen drawers (it has been broken since Sandy &amp; MaryAnn lived here, so you can imagine how many times she?s asked me to fix it!) before heading out to rake up the leaves.<span>&nbsp; <\/span><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font size=3><font face=\"Times New Roman\"><span>&nbsp; <\/span>I?ve never seen a lazier bunch of kids want to work so hard in all my life!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Usually, it?s like pulling teeth to get them to help out around the house (well, except for Luke?); but not today.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>In fact, they?ve been bugging me about it for a little over a week now.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Of course, leave it to me to wait until the coldest day in two weeks to go outside and do yard work!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>However, they did great; getting a fairly large amount of leaves out to the front street.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Of course, the whole point (in their eyes) is so they can jump, dive and ride in to the pile and generally roll around in the detritus!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Even poor Abby got out there, even though she wasn?t feeling good.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>The kids played outside for close to 2 hours and even played a game of rake hockey before the dog got loose and we had to chase her through the neighborhood!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>That put an end to the fun times and we had to pick up all the leaves.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Curiously though, Matt &amp; Bu disappeared before my very and eyes and I was left with only Lukey again to do the work (typical!)?<span>&nbsp; <\/span>It was great to get outside and play for awhile; however, I think the favorite part of the whole day was the piping-hot cup of hot cocoa inside the warm house afterward!!<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Leaves1 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves1.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Leaves2 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves2.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Leaves3 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves3.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves4 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves4.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Leaves5 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves5.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves6 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves6.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves7 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves7.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves8 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves8.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Leaves9 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves9.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves10 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves10.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Leaves11 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves11.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Leaves12 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves12.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves13 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves13.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves14 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves14.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Leaves15 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves15.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves16 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves16.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves17 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves17.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves18 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves18.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=Leaves19 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves19.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=Leaves20 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/Leaves20.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=LolaRunaway src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/LolaRunaway.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font size=3><font face=\"Times New Roman\"><span>&nbsp; <\/span>Enough with the current affairs, let?s switch on the Way Back Machine&#8230;<span>&nbsp; <\/span>First up, we have a great picture from Christmas 2004 at Grandmaw &amp; Grandpaw?s house.<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine002 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine002.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Next, we have a picture of some wedding back in ?95.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>What in the world is Keith looking at?<\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine013 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine013.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Here are a couple pix from our 2004 Disney trip.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>The 1<sup>st<\/sup> one is Ann showing off her sunburn after our first day in Magic Kingdom, back in our room at the Contemporary and a couple days later when we caught up with Keith Rosie &amp; Megan.<\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=WayBackMachine032 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine032.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=WayBackMachine042 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine042.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Here?s Gigi in the spring of 2005 at a local traveling circus, held at the Decatur County Fairgrounds, where she was the honorary ringmaster. <\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine036 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine036.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Here?s Lukey in June of 2005 enjoying his own cake at his 1<sup>st<\/sup> birthday party, here in the Ryle addition.<\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=WayBackMachine037 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine037.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Here is Ann with her eldest son in 2001.<\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=WayBackMachine077 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine077.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Here?s Grandpaw Bryan with his baby in the spring of 2003.<\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine081 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine081.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Next up are a couple of ?twin pix.???<span>&nbsp; <\/span>The first one is of me with my cousin Barney.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>We used to tell others we were twin brothers when we were young.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>This was taken in the basement of Uncle John &amp; Aunt June?s house on Lingle Ave in 1999.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>The second is Bu on Christmas morning with her ?<\/font><a href=\"http:\/\/www.mytwinn.com\/\"><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>My Twinn<\/font><\/a><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>??? doll in 2002-ish.<\/font><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine087 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine087.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=WayBackMachine233 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WaybackMachine233.JPG\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font size=3><font face=\"Times New Roman\">The next couple pictures feature a couple of my best friends.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>The first one is the <em>long-hair<\/em> picture from our F?T spring social function 1989, featuring one of my best friends, Paul.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>I have no idea where that party even took place?come to think of it, I really don?t remember much from that night period?<span>&nbsp;&nbsp; <\/span>The second picture is from a party in the summer of 2000 in LaPorte.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>This was taken at Mom &amp; Dad Stoewer?s house off Johnson Rd. and features another one of my best friends, Mike.<span>&nbsp; <\/span><\/font><\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine096 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine096.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine184 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine184.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Next we have an old picture of a growing family.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>This represents the Owens branch of our family tree.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>It appears that this picture is from Christmas in 1996.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Mom &amp; Gigi would have just recently moved in to their new home in the Ryle addition.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>?and of course, Keith has his eyes closed?<\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine113 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine113.jpg\" width=500 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>The next pic is from about 1970 or so, at the Olan Mills studio in Lafayette.<\/font><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=WayBackMachine151 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine151.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Here?s Ann from about 7<sup>th<\/sup> grade or so, putting this in the neighborhood of 1983.<\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=400 alt=WayBackMachine195 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine195.jpg\" width=300 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>We end this entry with another segment from Aunt Sharon?s stash!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>First up, we have all the boys from the Bryan branch of our family tree&#8230;at least the ones back in 1983.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Sharon reports that the boys were 4, 8 and 15.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>The final two come from 1980.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>All were taken at the Smith abode on S Waugh St. in Kokomo.<span>&nbsp; <\/span>Thanks again for all the pix, Aunt Shar!!<\/font><\/p>\n<p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine249.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine249 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine250.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <img decoding=\"async\" height=300 alt=WayBackMachine251 src=\"http:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/BlogPhotos\/WayBackMachine251.jpg\" width=400 border=0 alt=\"Image\" \/> <\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3><\/font>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><font face=\"Times New Roman\" size=3>Well, that?s it for this week?so until next time ? have a good one!<span>&nbsp; <\/span>&#8230;Later?<\/font><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;&nbsp; Things were especially crazy for us this past week.&nbsp; On Sunday morning, we turned the clocks back and boy what a difference it has made in our days this week.&nbsp; It is already dusk now by the time we get home!&nbsp; It has a big impact on our evening routine, including no time to go out and play \/ exercise at night?which means an increase in fights between children?and headaches for the parents!&nbsp; On Monday, Luke and I rode bikes in the dark, as Abby attended tap dance class and Matt had basketball practice until 7:30.&nbsp; Tuesday, we got up early in anticipation of an historic day.&nbsp; What an incredibly exciting crescendo to the election process!&nbsp; I think either man would have made a fine president.&nbsp; We have always had a split home in terms of elections and this one was no different, raising tensions in anticipation of the outcome that night.&nbsp; I am very proud to say we were alive to see something like this happen.&nbsp; I have heard from others that the sixties were exciting times, but I truly had butterflies watching the returns that night.&nbsp; Seeing all of those people gathered in Grant Park was amazing to witness.&nbsp; ?and to see all of this incredibly world-altering change happen in a peaceful, non-violent manner gave me hope (and a few tears)?something that (for me) has been in short supply in recent months?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp; Again, the highlight of the local election was our trip to take Gigi her soda and snack while she covered the election for WTRE.&nbsp; So, a little after 6, we grabbed a polar pop, Gigi?s favorite Chex mix and headed downtown to the courthouse.&nbsp; Up to now, Matt had always had the honor to bring her the prized soda.&nbsp; Seeing that he was still at practice, the baton was passed to Abby &#8211; who was quick to point out this accomplishment to anyone who would listen.&nbsp; When we arrived, Gigi was in full swing &#8211; already doing interviews and following the returns.&nbsp; Abby spoke on the air with her, relating how the elementary students had run their own elections?of which Obama also won.&nbsp; Unfortunately, Luke quickly got restless so we weren?t able to stay long!&nbsp; <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp; Abby had a dental appointment earlier in the day and had to have her first cavity filled. L &nbsp;&nbsp;Wednesday night, Matt had his awards banquet for 7th grade football.&nbsp; He earned his 3rd letter and a certificate of recognition.&nbsp; Thursday was Grandparents day at pre-school for Lukey.&nbsp; He is such a funny kid.&nbsp; When he was asked to introduce his visitor (Grandma Owens) he stated, ?This is my grandma, Sandy.&nbsp; We play bingo together????&nbsp; It was all very cute; except her name is MaryAnn and they?ve never played bingo!!&nbsp; When we asked the little stinker why he did it, he stated he was tricking his classmates.&nbsp; J&nbsp; Friday night was equally active.&nbsp; Matt had basketball practice from 5:30 to 7:30 and then had a dance afterwards until 10:00.&nbsp; He had a blast and even danced with an 8th grader!&nbsp; J&nbsp; Just as we were getting ready to play Uno and watch a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, I was called in to work to review tapes due to two kids eloping from the facility.&nbsp; Luke was so far up my crack, I couldn?t separate him from my leg and so he joined me.&nbsp; He was very in to it and asked lots of questions.&nbsp; The police found them about a half mile away and brought them back.&nbsp; Luke was impressed with the bad guys getting caught and said he wanted to watch himself on Cops!&nbsp; ?I love the way his little mind works?&nbsp; Today, all he has talked about is how he and Daddy went on a secret mission to get the bad guys!&nbsp; J<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp; Saturday, we did a little home improvement.&nbsp; We started out re-installing a water line to the fridge.&nbsp; It had split and soaked the floor a couple years ago, so we just turned it off.&nbsp; Let me tell you how much you miss an ice maker when you don?t have one!&nbsp; Luke again accompanied me to the hardware store after dropping off Matt at b-ball practice.&nbsp; He talked the guy in to making us some fresh popcorn which was really good, but we forgot to bring a bag home for Ann &amp; Abby ? which put us in the dog house again&#8230;&nbsp; Luke and I managed to turn a half hour job in to three hours?nothing is ever easy with us!&nbsp; In an attempt to get ourselves out of the dog house, Luke and I repaired one of Ann?s kitchen drawers (it has been broken since Sandy &amp; MaryAnn lived here, so you can imagine how many times she?s asked me to fix it!) before heading out to rake up the leaves.&nbsp; <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp; I?ve never seen a lazier bunch of kids want to work so hard in all my life!&nbsp; Usually, it?s like pulling teeth to get them to help out around the house (well, except for Luke?); but not today.&nbsp; In fact, they?ve been bugging me about it for a little over a week now.&nbsp; Of course, leave it to me to wait until the coldest day in two weeks to go outside and do yard work!&nbsp; However, they did great; getting a fairly large amount of leaves out to the front street.&nbsp; Of course, the whole point (in their eyes) is so they can jump, dive and ride in to the pile and generally roll around in the detritus!&nbsp; Even poor Abby got out there, even though she wasn?t feeling good.&nbsp; The kids played outside for close to 2 hours and even played a game of rake hockey before the dog got loose and we had to chase her through the neighborhood!&nbsp; That put an end to the fun times and we had to pick up all the leaves.&nbsp; Curiously though, Matt &amp; Bu disappeared before my very and eyes and I was left with only Lukey again to do the work (typical!)?&nbsp; It was great to get outside and play for awhile; however, I think the favorite part of the whole day was the piping-hot cup of hot cocoa inside the warm house afterward!!<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp; Enough with the current affairs, let?s switch on the Way Back Machine&#8230;&nbsp; First up, we have a great picture from Christmas 2004 at Grandmaw &amp; Grandpaw?s house.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Next, we have a picture of some wedding back in ?95.&nbsp; What in the world is Keith looking at?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Here are a couple pix from our 2004 Disney trip.&nbsp; The 1st one is Ann showing off her sunburn after our first day in Magic Kingdom, back in our room at the Contemporary and a couple days later when we caught up with Keith Rosie &amp; Megan.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Here?s Gigi in the spring of 2005 at a local traveling circus, held at the Decatur County Fairgrounds, where she was the honorary ringmaster. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Here?s Lukey in June of 2005 enjoying his own cake at his 1st birthday party, here in the Ryle addition.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Here is Ann with her eldest son in 2001.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Here?s Grandpaw Bryan with his baby in the spring of 2003.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Next up are a couple of ?twin pix.???&nbsp; The first one is of me with my cousin Barney.&nbsp; We used to tell others we were twin brothers when we were young.&nbsp; This was taken in the basement of Uncle John &amp; Aunt June?s house on Lingle Ave in 1999.&nbsp; The second is Bu on Christmas morning with her ?My Twinn??? doll in 2002-ish.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>The next couple pictures feature a couple of my best friends.&nbsp; The first one is the long-hair picture from our F?T spring social function 1989, featuring one of my best friends, Paul.&nbsp; I have no idea where that party even took place?come to think of it, I really don?t remember much from that night period?&nbsp;&nbsp; The second picture is from a party in the summer of 2000 in LaPorte.&nbsp; This was taken at Mom &amp; Dad Stoewer?s house off Johnson Rd. and features another one of my best friends, Mike.&nbsp; <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Next we have an old picture of a growing family.&nbsp; This represents the Owens branch of our family tree.&nbsp; It appears that this picture is from Christmas in 1996.&nbsp; Mom &amp; Gigi would have just recently moved in to their new home in the Ryle addition.&nbsp; ?and of course, Keith has his eyes closed?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>The next pic is from about 1970 or so, at the Olan Mills studio in Lafayette.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Here?s Ann from about 7th grade or so, putting this in the neighborhood of 1983.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>We end this entry with another segment from Aunt Sharon?s stash!&nbsp; First up, we have all the boys from the Bryan branch of our family tree&#8230;at least the ones back in 1983.&nbsp; Sharon reports that the boys were 4, 8 and 15.&nbsp; The final two come from 1980.&nbsp; All were taken at the Smith abode on S Waugh St. in Kokomo.&nbsp; Thanks again for all the pix, Aunt Shar!!<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Well, that?s it for this week?so until next time ? have a good one!&nbsp; &#8230;Later?<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9vDKm-2l","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/145"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=145"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/145\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=145"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=145"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scheumann.us\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}