No More Cast for Josh!

We went to the next Dr. appointment on Monday morning. Bone graft is looking great and no more cast for Josh! We were all very excited for this big day. He is walking around the house in regular shoes, though still a bit weak from atrophy.

His only restriction is open field (grass) sports to keep from hitting any unseen holes, etc. For all he went through, now he says he can hardly believe it all happened!

From Beautiful Downtown Buellton

Arriving on Wednesday, we left town way later than I wanted. It's kind of my way I guess. Say I want to leave by noon and not get out till 3:00. Anyway.....

Left me only an hour or so of light to set up camp. Most campers don't think much of us RV'ers, and are probably boo-hooing my "set up camp" comment, but while it is WAY easier than tent camping, there's still a bunch of work to it.

Here we are having just arrived and the kids setting up their tent. What were we thinking bringing FIVE BOYS with us? I don't know!

While we are not actually IN downtown Buellton (home of famed Andersen's Split Pea Soup), we're right by it, enjoying Flying Flags Campground. It's a family favorite, and we haven't been here for a couple years.

We're staying in the last section of the property that has not been improved. Most of the sites have been vastly improved in quality and beauty. I highly recommend Flying Flags for those looking for a great family camping spot.

All in all, we're having a great time relaxing and being with each other. Josh has been a little slow because of his cast, but even he is having a good time. We've had the pleasure of some friends coming through for various amounts of time. It's been great.

This is the first actual vacation we've taken as a family this year. Colleen and the boys were gone for a bit at the beginning of Summer in relation to Colleen's upcoming new job and then 4th of July with her family that I wasn't able to get to. In that regard, this has been very nice.

The first couple days were wide open here, but the weekend packs out. So, being Sunday noon as I write this, people are clearing out. Which is why I am really glad we are staying till tomorrow. We can end our time with some relative quiet and space and not fight today's traffic. The kids start school on Wednesday.

Ahhh, campfires, s'mores, gentle breezes, and a REAL bed!

So, from beautiful downtown Buellton.....over and out!

A Son's Answered Prayer

There's not much like your son's prayers actually being answered! I know, strange coming from a Pastor, huh?

We saw the Doctor on Monday morning for Josh's 2nd post-op x-ray and progress report. First since 3 weeks ago, and it's been 5 weeks now.

Remember, initially the Doc said he'd be in cast for 6 weeks, with a possible removable cast for last 1/2 of that time. Then, he said in cast for 8 weeks, mentioning he built the cast in surgery to last the entire 8 weeks.

At the first follow-up, he said he would most likely leave the whole cast on for the entire 8 weeks because they did 2 procedures .... fixed the fibroma with the bone graft AND drilled holes in the growth plate to arrest growth of that bone. He wanted to go slow with it.

Josh was bummed! His big deal was he didn't want to go to school with the cast or on crutches. Now (3 weeks ago), he was facing the first 2 weeks of school with cast AND crutches.

All through the last 3 weeks, preparing for this Doctor's appt, he's been asking God to let the cast come off. We began making plans to go camping this week. That ADDED to his desire for the cast to come off so he could at least get in the pool.

Being the great spiritual leader that I am, I was AFRAID his heart would be broken. So, I was TEMPERING his prayers with reality...."Josh, you know what the Doctor said, and we're gonna do whatever he says."

Few days before the appt, I say, "Josh, it never hurts to ask the Dr. After you greet him, ask him if the cast can come off and tell him that would be really cool. Just be ready in case he says no."

Monday comes, long wait in the waiting room, we finally go in, long wait in the cast room for the x-ray. When the Dr finally comes in with the x-rays, he declares everything is looking GREAT! Josh POPS the question! I was so proud of my kid!

The Doctor looks intently at Josh, at the cast, walks over to the x-rays, comes back to Josh, looks at us, and FINALLY says, "I think we can do that. We'll put him in a cam walker that will immobilize the foot. He can take it off in bed and for baths/showers and can get in a pool."

YYYAAAAHHHHHHOOOOOOO!

Here he is ......
He can walk on it more and more as he gets used to it, eventually leaving the crutches behind. He does have to leave this on for 6 weeks, rather than the 3, but he's OK with that since he can take it off and feel a bit more normal.

It was a HUGE day for him and for us. A huge day for me as a Dad too. My kid's prayer got answered. I am telling you, he prayed with focused intensity. Laser-like! And his prayer was answered! COOL!

A Long Summer's Night

It's almost the end of Summer, and I feel kinda tense about it. Not in a bad kinda way, but in a perplexing kinda way.

On one hand, it's been a really long Summer. An intense one with lots of crises to walk through with people. While it's tiring, when it comes down to it, I wouldn't have it any other way. I really do love the grind of day-to-day pastoring.

Personally, we had Josh's surgery and recovery. He's doing great by the way! His next check-up is Monday morning. It will be the 5 week point. They'll x-ray it to see how the bone graft is taking. The first appt 2 weeks ago went really well. Josh is tired of the cast and wishes it could come off, but all in all, he's handling it pretty well.

Church-wise, we've had a number of situations to work through, including two people who died (one expected, another unexpected). I've officiated three funerals in the last 6 weeks.

Then, Pastor Glen Jackson (see posts below) died last Friday night. His memorial service is Saturday at 2:00 pm. That will be THREE funerals THREE Saturdays in a row, all at 2:00.

On the upside, I launched my new blog, Pastor For Life, earlier this Summer, and it's been a hoot to see that grow, and to connect with other Pastors and Leaders around the country.

I've also been involved in the launch of the Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Church-wide Initiative Kit. As of today, we have 14 churches across the US and Canada who are piloting this new, groundbreaking material this Fall and Winter. Including total orders for the Kits, there is the potential of 36 churches beginning this journey toward Emotionally Healthy Spirituality, a lifestyle I very deeply believe in.

After Josh's appt on Monday, we plan to head to Buellton for about a week of camping. Looking forward to the down time and relaxation!

Josh's 1st Post-op Appointment

Took Josh to the Dr. today for his first post-op appointment. The x-ray shows that everything is healing normally. The Doc reports that the pain and even mild fever at times (none in last several days) sounds pretty normal.

Turns out the reason for the 8 weeks in cast (rather than hoped-for 6) is that TWO procedures were done and need to be considered. One was the fibroma removal and bone graft. Other was the holes drilled in growth plate to arrest the growth of the left leg. Gives the right leg a chance to catch up and even out the legs.

Since he had both done, Doc wants to go slow and give plenty of time for healing and such. Makes sense, but Josh is still bummed about going to school for a couple weeks in a cast. Pray for his little heart when you think about it, would you?

Roller Coaster

The last few days have been BOTH invigorating AND draining. How can that be?

It's been INVIGORATING to take a week off to be available for the needs of my family. Josh's surgery went well, and that's invigorating! Most of his recovery so far has gone well, and that's also invigorating to me. At times through the week, we've SLEPT a lot ..... you know it .... invigorating. And, just being together as family ..... in-stinkin--vigorating!

Then, church this morning was incredibly invigorating! "Interactive Worship Sunday" for the first time and Katie Miller and the team did an amazing job leading us to the throne of God, not just in "song worship", but in various forms of worship. It's downright good to regularly remind ourselves that worship is not about US, it's about GOD! It was Katie's awesome idea and one we will do again!

It's also been a DRAINING week. Taking care of each other is a LOT of work! 3 am pain med checks are no fun on the body! It's great when recovery is going well, but when it's not? DRAINING! I can NOT imagine what God the Father went through watching Jesus suffer. Seriously, NO comprehension here whatsoever.

I know it's true for any parent, but it HURTS when you watch your kid hurt! Today turned out to be Josh's worst day of pain so far. The anesthesia must have worn off overnight, because up until today we were thinking this was gonna be cake! Not to be, and that's draining. He and I took a nap this afternoon trying to calm some of his hardest pain. When I woke up less than two hours later, I seriously thought it had to be Monday morning. I guess that's how drained I was.

Anyway, it's been a roller coaster!

Joshua Recovery Update

Having been home almost 24 hours now, Josh seems to be doing well. Slept well (we were all pretty exhausted!), waking up only for the pain med rotation. His pain level has been pretty good today. Colleen has been working with his meds to curb some nausea and dizziness he's dealing with. We've kept it to rest and relaxation today, and that's actually been really nice!!

Latest on Josh's Surgery

Latest info on Josh's surgery ... we saw the doctor for the pre-op appointment last Monday. He took his own x-rays, which showed the fibroma to be the same size and location as already known.

Surgery is scheduled for Tuesday (July 15) at Northridge Hospital at 7:00 am. While it is still set for an outpatient procedure, the doctor said there is an 80% chance he will stay overnight. It all depends on how he does with pain management, using the crutches and the restroom on his own. If he does well with all three on Tuesday, he comes home that day. If there is any question, or he recovers slow, he stays overnight and comes home Wednesday.

An additional piece of information has Josh a bit bugged. In the first appointment a few weeks ago, the doc said he'd be in a cast and then a brace for a total of 6 weeks. The surgery is exactly six weeks before school starts. Josh was NOT wanting to go to school in a cast or brace.

Well, on Monday, the doctor said it would be 8 weeks. Josh is pretty bugged by that at this point.

Other than that, we are full steam ahead! I will post here after surgery, so feel free to check back Tuesday for updates.

Happy 4th of July!

Here's to a wonderful 4th of July to you and yours! I hope it rings something of freedom's reign in your heart that goes far beyond burgers, hot dogs, lots of goodies and pool parties! May the depth of what this day represents move strongly in your heart today and cause us all to stop for a few moments to give thanks to the Father for the gift that freedom is.

Colleen and the boys are up north this weekend, taking a last minute opportunity that arose to spend a few days with her parents and all siblings at her brother's "back 40" in Lincoln, CA. I stayed behind due to a few work things that needed tending over these days.


View Larger Map

It's not often that Colleen's siblings are all together at once in the same place. Doesn't happen much for mine either, but anyways, that's where they're hanging right now. Her borther literally has 40 acres up there that he is building a house on. The family has already been doing a bit of framing during their time there.

For us, the 4th of July is usually spent sleeping in and hanging at the BBQ and backyard with family and friends. Almost always culminates with the City Fireworks Extravaganza either from a nearby view at the Park, or seeing what we can from the roof of our house.

With Colleen and the boys gone, I am taking the first part of the day to relax and read. I am hoping to get a ride-along this afternoon and into the night, figuring this would be a good night to get out with a couple of Police Officers and see what's happening behind the fireworks in our City.

If anything exciting happens, I'll let you know!

Good Weekend

I really appreciated this weekend! Lots of BBQ'n, which I just love to do.

Friday night, I visited a man from church in the hospital. He survived a procedure this week that he wasn't sure he would make it through. We had the most amazing visit as he openly shared with me some pretty deep things he's been through and some of the stuff he's done. This is a man rescued by Jesus from the brink. He became for me a huge example of someone who is "poor in spirit", the very message I was working on for this weekend.

Saturday, I hit the day hard, churning out the majority of today's message. Started a new series that I've been thinking about for a while, but just decided to start in the last couple days of the week. "Becoming All That You Can Be" from Matthew 5:1-10, the Beatitudes. Challenging stuff, but good, deep.

Last night, q'd some really nice ribeyes and had my sister and her husband and kids over for her birthday. Colleen and the boys saw "Get Smart" late in the afternoon with a family friend, who also joined us for dinner on the spur of the moment. By the end of the evening, I was whipped. A good whipped, but really tired.

This morning, church went great at both services. The message was hard, but received well. Had visitors at church today that had been part of our church some time ago, so it was just heart-warming to see old friends and hear their remarks about how we're missed. Cool thing!

Then, this afternoon, I spent some time watching golf with Colleen, who is the greatest woman in all the world, in my book! Later in the afternoon, I headed to Fry's Electronics to see if they had a replacement power supply for the family desktop computer. They did, I put it in, and the computer works!

I love fix-it projects and all, but it seems lately that whenever I have a project to do, it's extremely frustrating and filled with multiple return trips to the store! This one worked, and that felt good! Q'd some beef ribs for dinner, but overdid them! Peanut butter and jelly for dinner as Colleen and a friend were canning plums for plum jam from our tree in the backyard. Just felt like the Walton's around here. It was cool!

As far as Josh's leg, it seems we'll call the doctor tomorrow and get the ball rolling to set up surgery. It's not that Josh is looking forward to it, but the way he put it is that he "wants to do whatever is best." And, he doesn't want to go to school with a cast. We'll keep you posted on the schedule.

'Nite for now.....

Josh's 2nd Opinion

Today, we saw another doctor for a second opinion on Joshua's Nonossifying Fibroma. He concurred with the diagnosis and the treatment, though he did place it with options.

One option is to let it be and monitor it. It is possible for it to resolve on its own, but there is no telling unless we chose this option of waiting and monitoring.

Another option is to repair it only if it breaks. Painful and more complicated, but an option. UPDATE: included in this option would be fixing it if it becomes painful for him even before any break.

Another option is to repair it now. One difference with this doctor is that he would NOT use Joshua's own bone to graft the void in his tibia. He would use bone from the bone bank instead. He prefers that because it avoids the patient having a second surgery site for donor bone. He also mentioned it would be an outpatient procedure, which seems to make this a more palatable option.

We are waiting through the weekend to give Joshua time to consider the options. The doctor was very good about cautioning me (Colleen was good with it!) to really get Josh's buy-in on the decision. Important especially if we choose to repair now, as the recovery period goes better if Josh knows this was something he decided to do as well. After the appt, Josh's position was to go ahead and repair it now. But we want to give him a couple of days to ponder it. If we go ahead with the repair, we'll call Monday morning and get the ball rolling.

We'll let you know what the decision is once we've made it. We appreciate your prayers for wisdom, discernment, peace and patience.

Trust Is A Curious Thing

I am trying hard to trust God today! Wait a minute....can you really try hard to trust God? Isn't that an oxymoron?

Honestly, I am not sure if it is or not, I'm just being open with you. I am trying hard to trust God today. There, I said it again!

I am finding myself anxious about my son's doctor's appointment tomorrow afternoon. I know a lot of people have deeper and more life-altering or threatening issues that you are dealing with, and I do respect that pretty deeply. Anyone who knows me would attest to that....I think.

I wouldn't say I am a man of GREAT ( meaning "BIG") faith, but at the same time, I don't find myself struggling like I have the last couple of days with the tension of this doctor's appointment. I know God is in control, and He knows what He is doing, and He won't give me anything I can't handle, etc., etc.

Can I just say, "I'm anxious; I appreciate your prayers for my son, Joshua, and his Mom and me"? Thanks!

Catch-up Quick List

CANNOT believe it's been two weeks since my last post. CANNOT believe I've been back from Texas for almost two weeks. CANNOT believe the school year is over. Let me catch you up on what the last two weeks (and then some) have held.

• Just before I left for Texas, Colleen landed a new job as a Teacher for the Certified Nurse Assistant class at our local Adult School. She starts in September. She's happy. That makes me happy!
• Also just before I left for Texas, someone in our church called me and said they had a car they were getting rid of and they felt they were supposed to give it to me .... turns out it's a 2001 Ford Crown Vic that used to be a Detective Car with the Beverly Hills PD! It's even black! Sweet ride, and a lot of fun to watch people react when you're driving near them! Really fun car for a Chaplain!
  
• Went fishing with my boys for the first time ever two weeks ago! We all caught a lot of perch and I caught my first bass! It was only about 6" long (or was it 12"? I can't remember now!) but it was a blast of a time.
• The last of 3 homes we lived in during my 4 Jr. High years in Texas was torn down last year. Made me sad.
• Every trip to see my family in Texas is like a pilgrimage to me now. It's where I gave my life to Jesus and was baptized in 1979.
• My 12 year old son read 3 books in 3 days while we were in Texas. Amazing!
  
• My wife and kids had their first Boots Burgers this time! If you're ever ANYWHERE NEAR Rockwall, Texas, EVER, you've got to get yourself one (or more!!). Just trust me. Watch out though, they're closed on Sundays & Mondays. The rest of the days, they're only open a couple of hours.
• I almost missed my flight home from Texas. TWO different GPS systems failed me a total of FOUR times with one battery failure, one freeway onramp that had been closed for YEARS and TWO onramps that were closed for construction. And here I thought technology was my friend! Silly me!
• My 13 year old son is facing significant surgery this Summer for a nonossifying fibroma in his lower left tibia. We're headed for a 2nd opinion appointment with the probable surgeon this Friday. We're very glad it is caught and not causing him pain right now. We are told emphatically by the first doctor that it is NOT cancer.
  
• Last Sunday, June 8, our church celebrated a friend's healing from Lung Cancer. Last Thursday, another lady in church went in for a SECOND operation in TWO weeks for breast cancer. This Wednesday, a man in our church will have a cancerous tumor removed from his lung. WHAT is UP??
  
• For the first time in .... well, EVER in my ministry .... our church will gather for July & August in one service on Sundays at 9:30 am starting July 6 as we prepare to become a CHURCH WITHOUT WALLS for 6 months. Weird thought.
• I preached a message this morning on "What My Dad Taught Me".
• I spent the Father's Day afternoon with my family at the BodyWorlds exhibit in Los Angeles. It was fascinating and I highly recommend it! Topped it off with Panda Express.
  

That's all for now.

Welcome Charlee Ann Kuzma!

My new niece, Charlee Ann Kuzma, was born this afternoon at 4:47 pm (CST) at 7 lbs, 6 oz. She is the first daughter of my brother, Steve, and his wife, Danielle.

Those who follow my blog know that I am in Houston, TX, 4 hours south of where my family is right now, celebrating Charlee's birth.

Soon after I got the news, our evening sessions began. I was celebrating Jesus with 3,000 others, and they sang a couple of my personal favorite worship songs. I think they did that in Charlee's honor.

I gotta say that worshipping God with 3,000 other people with a couple of your favorite worship songs right after the birth of a new family member deeply moved my heart! I just couldn't hardly hold back the tears.

Another Day at the '08 Convention

The third day of Convention has come and gone, in somewhat of a whirlwind it seems. For some reason, my eyes and body woke at 7:00 (5:00 am my time). It's unusual for me to wake up early and be cognizant of much.

After waiting a few minutes, it was clear sleep would not settle back in, so I got up and did a couple of things. It wasn't more than about five minutes when the reason my body awoke became apparent. My stomach did a couple of acrobatics, and before I knew it, nausea was in full force.

Making my way back to the bed to lay down and be still, the neighboring chills and sweats broke out while I hoped and prayed with all I had (which isn't much that early for me) that I wouldn't lose it. I HATE throwing up!

I just stayed as still and covered as I could. Next thing I knew, it was a couple hours later and I was fine, even feeling pretty rested. Thank you, Jesus! Have I mentioned that I HATE to throw up?

I made it to the Business Session, which was quite interesting. In a move to "save time" at Business Sessions, they are peppering the regular sessions with some of the business logistics. For instance, they took the vote on a number of Bylaw changes during tonight's meeting. So, the earlier Business Session mostly served the purpose of allowing for questions and discussion regarding those changes.

I won't bore you with details. Anyone interested can click here to go to the Foursquare Business website. It has our agendas and even the Bylaw changes in detail on it, though I have no idea how long they will leave it up.

After the Business Session, I connected with Mike Barker for lunch. We had a great time, and Mike always gets me laughing hard! He and Stacy are coming out to California for vacation in July, and we talked about having Mike come out and speak at NewHeart while he's there. We'll see.

The downside to the spreading out of business logistics into regular sessions is that they have added time to those sessions. Tonight's meeting was again 3 1/2 hours long! Just way too long in my opinion. Lots of departure throughout the latter part of each evening's session.

After tonight's meeting, I spent the rest of the evening catching up on some work, getting a little rest and tracking with Colleen and the boys. They flew out of Burbank this afternoon and landed in Dallas a couple of hours ago.

They have since stopped at the hospital to see my sister-in-law, Danielle. She and my brother, Steve, are expecting Charlee Ann Kuzma to be born at any time. Labor was induced this afternoon. If she doesn't deliver by tomorrow afternoon, they'll do a C-section.

These are exciting moments for our family, and I am so grateful to be able to be here on the first days of Charlee's life. I am so very proud of my brother, who has come a long, long way in his life over the last year or so.

Well, it's late, and tomorrow is the last day of Convention. I'll certainly post as soon as I can to announce Charlee's birth, should she be born before I post tomorrow night.

Bummer Weekend

The Kuzma home has been invaded! It's not alien, I don't think anyways. It is strange though!

Colleen was down all week with a nasty sinus infection. Thursday night, both boys complained of flu symptoms. Friday morning, I started the day with laryngitis, hopeful that's all it would be.

Friday afternoon, I took the boys to the doctor, right when my symptoms got worse. They had antibiotics, I didn't. So we've all been fighting fevers, chills, sweats, coughs, phlegm ... you name it.

Thanks to John Cox for preaching for me this weekend at a moment's notice!!! Called him on Friday afternoon and so glad he was available.

Let It Snow ...

We woke up to a fresh blanket of snow on the ground today. Beautiful sight!!

Started the day with a breakfast of egg nog pancakes and bacon while we watched the snow fall. However, I spent the rest of the morning in bed nursing a bit of nausea. It subsided around mid-afternoon, but was a bummer because I was hoping to hit the hills with the boys today. Oh well ... thankfully, we still have tomorrow!

The snow fell all day long. Late afternoon featured a long walk in the falling snow. It's amazing how quiet the snow makes the surroundings. It was good to get out of the house a bit.

Tonight we enjoyed Turkey Fiesta Soup and tamales. It's been a day of football movies. We watched "We Are Marshall" this afternoon and and now we're watching "The Gridiron Gang" together. Both good and very inspirational movies.

The snow is still falling, but is supposed to clear up sometime tomorrow afternoon. We'll have to dig out a bit, but it looks like my prayer for a snow-in isn't going to happen. Maybe another time.

Post-Christmas Reflections

I am in Homewood, California (west side of Lake Tahoe) with family. We are enjoying the afterglow of our first white Christmas. It's Thursday (Christmas was Tuesday, for those who lose track of time the week between Christmas & New Year's) and we are anticipating a good snowfall overnight.

The snow has been falling for the last few hours. It's supposed to really pick up overnight. It's currently 19 degrees, and supposed to get down to 5 degrees overnight! Then, after a break in the afternoon, we're supposed to get another storm for Friday night into Saturday. Friday afternoon sounds like a sled-fest to me! My boys are gonna love that, as I have been quite the couch potato the last few days just decompressing.

It usually takes a me 2-3 days to physically and mentally decompress when I go away, whether for vacation or one of my study breaks. We left Sunday afternoon, and it only took us 8-1/2 hours to get here (I was thinking about 10), including stops. We made great time.

After all the prep for Christmas, both the trip here and church stuff, I was pretty tired and ready for the break. Lots of resting, relaxing, reading, wonderfully rewarding time with family, both my own and my in-laws, has been the order of the week!

You're wondering..."Paul, you're on vacation. What are you doing blogging?" Well, the place we're staying at has wireless internet access and there are lots of good things that are accessible by internet for us and our kids, particularly informative stuff about the Tahoe area.

The kids have spent a good amount of time outside, but even they can only last so long in freezing temps! They've been enjoying plenty of movies and lots of Nintendo Wii time with their cousin. And, of course, we've all been enjoying the food that just tastes so much better when you're not in a hurry in any way.

We plan to head home Sunday, but we'll see what the weather holds!

Too Busy To Enjoy?

I love this article I found at PastorHacks! It's not just for Pastors, but for anyone caught in the "always available" trap.

Enjoy! .... REALLY!

What A Day!

Other than the actual day of Mom's surgery, Friday was my longest day. After about 7 hours on the road, I arrived in Benson, AZ around 3:30 pm, confirmed Aunt Margaret was at home and then drove the 30 miles or so south to Sierra Vista. The picture you see here is she and Uncle Dominic. They've been married 53 years!! Aunt Margaret looks very much like my Tante (German for "Aunt") Barbara, my dad's sister who passed away in Michigan almost 5 years ago.

In two very fast hours, I learned quite a bit about the Kuzma side of the family. I have yet to confirm, but so far, it sounds like my great-grandparents Kuzma were the ones who actually came to America from either Hungary or Austria. My grandfather's oldest three siblings were born in Austria.

Here are a few other tidbits I learned:

• My great-grandfather, Paul Kuzma, died at the young age of 59. He and my great-grandma were on the way home from a Jehovah's Witnesses Convention in Detroit when he had a heart attack and crashed the car, killing him instantly.
• Yes, you heard right. Apparently, my great-grandparents were avid Jehovah's Witnesses.
• All 3 Kuzma girls, including Aunt Margaret, were/are JW's.
• Interesting my great-grandfather died in a car accident, as his son and namesake (my grandfather), Paul, died in 1948 in a trucking accident.
• One of my great-uncles, Peter, also died in a truck driving accident.
• Seems a love of driving runs in the family. As I shared my love of driving with Aunt Margaret, she said, "me too!". She is 85 now ... only 5 years ago, she made a trip all by herself from Arizona to Florida and back!
• My Grandfather, Paul, was good friends with Aunt Margaret's first husband, Hank Borak. One day, Paul & Hank were chatting with a neighbor across a fence, joking about their own deaths. Within months, my grandfather accident occurred (July 20, 1948). Then, in October, Uncle Hank was killed in a hunting accident!
• Aunt Margaret was good friends with my grandmother, Mary. Both were widows within months of each other!

Aunt Margaret encouraged me to look up one of my dad's cousins, who lives in Montana. She claims he has the family history written down pretty well. We'll see how that search pans out.

I left their house about 6:00 pm for the 70 mile drive to Tucson. After answering some emails, I was hungry. I found the nearest Cracker Barrel (probably my favorite non-California restaurant) and had a working dinner, wrapping up Sunday's message as much as possible. Like I said, long day!

I am looking forward to my arrival home tomorrow, and trying to kick this head cold that seems to be trying to work its way into my chest. Hoping for a better night's sleep!