Lori and I had planned a trip to Winona with her grand-daughters for Thanksgiving weekend to have lunch with Dad and Candy at the home Thanksgiving Day and spend the night. We arrived in Winona around 11 a.m. and picked Candy up at the house. When we arrived at the nursing home they had a table set up for us in the activity room where Dad already was, and he was pretty much in a deep sleep. We were able to wake him up to eat lunch with us and the food was very good as usual. After eating we visited for a while there and in Dad’s room before leaving around 4. I brought along some leftover home-made chili for dinner that evening at the house with Candy, and she made home-made cheddar biscuits. We visited with her for a while after eating dinner and then departed for our hotel. After arriving at our hotel we went down to the hot tub, pool and sauna to cap off the day.
The next morning Lori and I went to see Dad, but he was in a deep sleep, so then we stopped by the house to see Candy; however, she was not awake yet. So we went back to the hotel and woke the girls up to get ready to check out. After that we stopped by Dad one more time and when we arrived he was awake and trying to get up. The aides got him up and brought him to us in the lounge before lunch. We took him to the dining area before heading back home and he was in good spirits… no crying! It’s always easier to leave when he’s in a good mood.
On the way home we made a stop to visit Vanessa’s grandma Yvonne in Omro. It was a somewhat short visit, but very nice to see her!
On Saturday Lori and the girls came back to Fondy to take me out to Salty’s for my birthday dinner (the big 5-0). Salty’s was my first employer right after I turned 16 and I worked there for 9 years, including Lori bartended there during that time for a while. The food and service were excellent, as always!
Sunday evening Kevin took me out for a birthday dinner at Blancks’ on the Lake. Little known fact: our grandma Ditter was a Blanck. It was pretty good, but not nearly as good as Salty’s. It was the thought that really counted though and we had a nice dinner and visit.
Monday evening Linda and Ray took me out to eat at Friar’s for my birthday. Another old employer of mine for one summer. We had a very nice visit and as usual, the food and service were great as well.
Back on November 20th I hosted Bunko here with thoughts of celebrating my 50th with the gals. I asked them to wear black and told them they would find out why after arriving, and that it wasn’t anything sad or bad. We only ended up playing 2 out of the 3 rounds and they gave me the kitty money ($66) for my birthday. In the giving spirit, the next week I took the money and donated it to the Salvation Army.
Hard to believe I am 50. I would say that I don’t feel like I’m 50, but my tendinitis tells me otherwise. It was a very nice birthday and although I didn’t get to spend it with everyone I wanted to, it turned out great and the last photo sums up how happy it made me feel.
