When I began this blog, I thought I would have the time and follow-through to post once a week. However, after my trip to Portugal and Spain, I spent one week at home and then flew to Nashville to help my son celebrate his 40th birthday. Home for another 10 days or so I left for Gainesville, Florida as my two stepsons lost their mom. The younger of the two lives in Portland and it made sense for me to fly with him to Florida to help him through this difficult time. That included a stay over Thanksgiving which in itself was a nice change.  We were able to celebrate in warm weather however, I traveled to Florida with the beginning of a cold, which is never good.

While in Florida the cold took ahold of me and did not let go. Returning to Portland 2 weeks later, the last descent of the flight nearly took my breath away from the congestion and pain. I ended up with a double ear infection! Feeling quite miserable I was still hoping for a weekend away with my husband, Rick, but his work prevented him from coming home and we ended up not seeing each other for nearly 6 weeks. That is not happening again!

Giving myself another few days to heal and taking penicillin, I flew to Benicia, CA to take care of my two California grandkids. I had offered to take them while my daughter and husband celebrated with a 9th wedding anniversary trip. If I had not been sick, it would have been a lot more fun. However, I do love being with the kids. They are adorable, even when they are sick, which they were for 2 days on my watch.  Its just the sick season – embrace it, get as much sleep as you possibly can – and keep moving forward!

I am finally home again as of the 20th of December. It has taken me a few days to wake up in the morning and know where I am! Not to mention how to prepare for Christmas, remember what its like to cook again and to be happy at home.  I got up this morning and made cream of green bean soup. It feels like I’m finally back to “normal”. I am so excited, and the soup was delicious!

I have a lot of things on my to do list this winter. I started yesterday by rewriting my “Live Life List”. Its not in a final format (will it ever be?) but… I have been doing some research, quizzed Rick about his travel desires, and when my bestie comes to Portland tomorrow evening, we will spend some time going over our similar travel desires. I’m not getting any younger and it is definitely time to begin planning for a yearly big trip, with as many small ones stuffed between.  This should be fun!