Florida State University

 

Trevor took Kaylee up to Tallahassee so she could see Florida State again. They both loved it, so much so that Kaylee decided to become a Nole. She's planning to major in Business with a minor in Spanish. She's going to do awesome!!! We're so excited for her. 

Anthony's Visit

 

Anthony came to visit us for a few days. We took him to the beach and out to dinner in West Palm. Trevor and he played some pickle ball and went to a Spring Training game. We always enjoy our visits with Anthony.

Olivet, Iowa and Family

We chose this weekend to celebrate Grandma's 100th birthday. We planned on renting a house in CR and having an open house for Grandma. Unfortunately, she didn't make it to her party. 

However, the girls and I still had our plane tickets and had scheduled two college visits around that trip. We flew into Chicago on Thursday, rented a car and drove to Bourbonnais, IL where we spent the night. On Friday, we toured Olivet Nazarene University, which I was excited to show them. I loved being back on campus. It had been 14 years since I had been there for my 10 year reunion and so much had changed.

There is an awesome new recreation center with an indoor track, olympic sized pool and a huge climbing wall. It was very impressive. Kianna was able to meet with a Criminal Justice professor which she loved. She learned about the different paths to get to her dream job of being a crime scene investigator. It was really good for both of us to hear. 

Kianna decided immediately that Olivet was not for her as it was too cold. Kaylee decided it wasn't for her due to sticker shock. Unfortunately, Olivet is 3x the cost it was when I went there. She decided that Southeastern University is similar enough to Olivet and much cheaper since she can still get her Bright Futures Scholarship. They both enjoyed seeing it and told me several times how old I am since I graduated from there 24 years ago. Yikes!

After touring Olivet, we drove to Cedar Rapids where we spent the rest of our time. Debi had flown in from Colorado, so we were able to spend several days with her. We were roommates and I especially enjoyed our late night talks. During the day we played lots of cards. My mom came over a couple times to play too. We spent Friday and Saturday night with my dad and Sue before transitioning over to Becki's house, Sunday and Monday nights. We enjoyed some good visits and meals with Sam, Bruxen and Becki. Unfortunately, Mike and Bryker were out of town for a soccer tournament, so we didn't get to see them.

On Monday, the girls and I toured The University of Iowa. I had never toured the east side of campus, so found that very interesting. I think Kaylee really liked Iowa's campus but again was discouraged by the out of state tuition. I think these tours made us all appreciate the value of staying in state, as out of state schools are crazy expensive. Oh and I was able to thoroughly embarrass the girls, which is always fun. I managed to sprain my ankle while on the campus walking tour. The girls said I screamed and was so embarrassing as I fell and landed on my back. Thankfully I was fine, but did come away with a sore neck and ankle. Regardless it was fun touring campus and spending time with our family. Now back to some warm weather!

Kianna Got her Braces Off

Kianna is so excited to have finally gotten her braces off today. This girl has had braces on forever. She actually still has a couple on in the back of her mouth so her molars grow in right. What a process this beautiful smile has been...

Trace's Broken Hand

We found out yesterday that Trace has a boxer's fracture of his right pinky knuckle. I had a bit of a mom and PT fail as it took us 9 days to realize it was broken. Let me go back in time a bit, so the weekend after Grandma's funeral Trace and Trevor flew back so Trace could play in his soccer tournament in Sarasota. They got back on Sunday right after Kaylee and I flew back from Iowa, so it was a bit hectic. I remember Trace showing me his hand and telling me it was swollen. I remember telling him to ice it and we should keep an eye on it. 

Well fast forward 9 days and that brings us to yesterday when I was taking him to goalie practice. On the way he says that he might need to sit out of practice again if his hand starts to hurt. I questioned him more and found out that it bothered him last week at goalie practice, which he hadn't told us. I asked him how he hurt his hand and he told me he punched the goal post when he was frustrated during his last game of the tournament. He then showed me his hand, which was obviously not in good alignment. At that point, we decided to skip practice and get an x-ray, which confirmed a boxer's fracture. 

Thankfully, we were able to get into a hand specialist today who said that surgery was not recommended and that he should regain full function of his hand after wearing a customized splint for a few weeks. So here is Trace with his new splint. Apparently he has a high pain tolerance since he kept silent for 9 days after the injury. He's happy that he can still play soccer in the field with his team, he just can't play goalie for at least three weeks. We told him next time not to be so tough...

Iowa

While in Iowa for Grandma's funeral, it was super cold and snowed a couple times. Kaylee and Trace built a snow man they named Fred. We stayed at my dad and Sue's house so got to spend quite a bit of time with them. They're always so sweet and let my mom come over and play games with us, which was great. We also had a family meal with Trevor's family before Trevor, Kianna and Trace flew back to Florida on Friday for a busy weekend of soccer and basketball.

Kaylee and I decided to spend the weekend in Iowa, so we had some extra time to see some friends. I had a girls night out with some of my girlfriends from church: Angela, Jackie and Tammi. We went out to dinner and then sat and talked for three hours. It was great. Kaylee went to Brittney's basketball game and then spent the night with her. Then on Saturday, we were able to watch the Iowa Women's Basketball team play Nebraska. It's always fun taking in a home game at Carver Arena. We were excited to see Caitlin Clark play in person. She had 33 points. She is quite the player! It was great being back in Iowa, despite the circumstances. 

Grandma Carie

Today we laid to rest my sweet Grandma Carie. Here is what I shared at her funeral:

"My Grandma was a wonderful lady. We made so many special memories together over the years. From childhood, I remember her and Grandpa coming to watch me play basketball. I remember visiting them in Arizona many times. Grandma told me one time I asked her if she was a midget because she was so short. She always got a kick out of that. I remember picking strawberries together and just visiting. She loved to visit. 

After Grandpa died I feel like that's when she and I got extra close. She taught me how to make her yummy strawberry rhubarb jelly. We took many trips to her doctors and shared many meals together with some of our favorite being in Kalona to see the amish. She loved to hand out candy on Halloween with our family. Oh and I can't forget our sister, Mom and Grandma weekends together. I think they began around her 95th birthday and continued every year since. We usually rented a house either in Galena or Lake Geneva and then spent the weekend eating, playing games and visiting. One year we even had a dance party and Mom tried to do a somersault. We laughed so hard! Our girls weekends together were extra special. 

The most recent memory was this past summer when she came to Florida and stayed with us for a week while my mom took a much needed vacation. Stacie and I took turns taking care of her and our week together was so special. She was full of gratitude and was always saying what good care we were giving her and that Mom always gives her. She thought the world of our mom.

In her later years, Grandma tended to repeat herself, whether it be asking "How do you like living in Florida" or "Do you consider Florida home". I would answer her questions in depth, only to have her repeat the question right after I finished. Naturally my answers got shorter and shorter. Grandma loved to visit.

While in Florida, she and I drove across the state to meet up with Mom and John. On the way, she kept commenting on how the clouds in Florida look so different than in Iowa. Over and over and over again. When I found out she passed, I looked up at the clouds and smiled thinking of her and our road trip.

I'm so thankful for all of the time we spent together. I have so many things around my house that remind me of her. Whether it be the Christmas stockings she knitted for each of us or the reindeer she painted. She was the best Grandma to me and I'm so thankful that she got to be Grandma GG to my kids. They too were blessed to know her and make their own memories. She was one special lady and will be missed dearly. I love you Grandma!!!"