Saturday, July 1 – Wednesday, July 26

It seems like the month of July is going by in a haze.  On Tuesday, July 4^th, Emma and I watched the golf cart parade that went down the street right in front of her part of the house.

By 4 p.m., it was 99 degrees and felt like 109 degrees.  Needless to say, I am staying inside most of the time, but still planning to have one of the most often served 4^th of July meals including hotdogs and baked beans.

On Friday, the 7^th, I went to the eye specialist for a re-check.  He said that there was a slight improvement and he wanted me to discuss my condition with my primary care physician as it relates to my blood pressure.  I told him that I have an appointment scheduled the first week of next month.  He will see me again in September.

Palm View First Baptist Church started their week of Vacation Bible School on Monday, July 10^th.  Emma attended all week, and I volunteered in the kitchen.  We found out Monday morning that we needed to input counts for breakfast and lunch every day on an application that the school board had loaded onto a tablet for our use.  While this is the fourth year I have been assigned to work in the kitchen, this is the first time that we had to keep the records.  So that became my job along with kitchen duties in between breakfast and lunch and cleanup duties after lunch.  Thank goodness the school board sent a supervisor the first morning to help me learn to use the program.  On Monday night, a thunderstorm went through the area and knocked out the church’s internet.  Thankfully, we got it running again before the next morning was over and I was able to input our numbers.  Also on Tuesday, Emma left at lunchtime to go to the orthodontist to have her braces removed.  Unfortunately, on Wednesday the internet was out in the building where we were working all day, so I had to complete a paper form for both breakfast and lunch.  All went well, as far as the internet, for the rest of the week, but Thursday – just after all the children had left the building – one of the adults smelled gas and we were evacuated before we could finish cleaning up.  We were told we could return about 2:30 (nothing wrong) and still had chores after the children had been picked up for the day.  Friday went pretty smoothly.  The school board supervisor returned for a second visit.  She was impressed with the instructions I had typed with the steps for using the application and asked if I would send it to her and if she could share it with others.  Of course, I said yes and explained that writing instructions on how to use a computer application had been one of my responsibilities when I worked in the Information Services Department of Manatee County Government.  When Vacation Bible School ended at 3:30 that afternoon, Emma and I went over to the Ministry Building to work until 6 p.m. at the Food Bank.  Between being on my feet more than I’m used to and the heat, I spent most of the next week trying to recuperate.

On Sunday, July 14^th many of the children returned to the sanctuary to perform several of the songs with hand motions and sign language.  I took lots of pictures and JP videotaped all of it, but I will not show any of the children’s faces on the internet.

Emma was excited on Tuesday, July 18^th morning because she was going back to the orthodontist to get her retainer before going to her second day of Jiu-jitsu training with “Coach Kate.”  At 1:30 p.m., the temperature was 94 degrees and felt like 117 due to such high humidity.  It has been this way most of the month.  The area is in a severe drought, but we have some showers predicted for the next few days.

On Thursday, the 20^th about a dozen of us attended the monthly Senior Saints meeting to see a movie. Unfortunately, there were technical difficulties, so we just visited with each other and learned a little bit more about Pastor George Heiland, our Senior Adult pastor who is celebrating his 87^th birthday on Saturday the 22^nd.

I volunteered at the church’s food bank as usual on another very hot Friday afternoon.

Our church has discovered the need for some major repairs to our buildings, so there was a lengthy business meeting after our service Sunday the 23^rd  trying to come to a decision as to how to pay for them.

Emma and I visited Dad and ran errands on Monday the 24^th,  including going by the cemetery to put new flowers at Rick’s memorial stone.

On Tuesday the 25^th,  after a blood draw, I took Jackie’s to the Sage Biscuit in downtown Bradenton for her birthday brunch.

I spent Wednesday, 7/26 preparing to travel.  The family leaves early tomorrow morning to begin our trip to Compass Cay, Exumas, Bahamas.

Week 1 – Thursday, June 1 thru Saturday, June 3

Thursday, June 1^st, was my 71^st birthday.  JP and Emma took me out for a pizza lunch.  Later we had a birthday cookout (at my request) after Kellie got home from work.

On Friday, I volunteered at Palm View First Baptist’s drive-thru food bank.

Late Saturday evening, we learned that lightning had knocked the air conditioning out in the church sanctuary, so our services will be held in the Fellowship Hall until it is fixed.

Week 2 – Sunday, June 4 thru Saturday, June 10

With our regular coffee setup folks out for a couple of weeks, Emma and Brooke helped me move everything from the sanctuary to set it up in the Fellowship Hall to have between Sunday school and the church service. We also stayed after the service to clean up before going up to visit Dad.  Emma started an Art Club for the week on Monday.  I volunteered in church office and had lunch with Jackie on Tuesday.  On Thursday, I attended an emergency meeting for members of the church finance and house and grounds committees as well as the deacons.  The lightning strike discovered last Saturday which caused the loss of A/C in the sanctuary has now been investigated and we need approximately $32,000 to replace multiple air conditioners and parts.  Pastor thinks we must get it done by July 10^th when Vacation Bible School starts as we already have over 100 children signed up to attend.

Week 3 – Sunday, June 11 thru Saturday, June 17

The Sunday Service was again held in the Fellowship Hall and I took care of the coffee and snacks duty with Emma’s help.  My friend, Jane, has been having some health issues – mostly migraine headaches.  Her doctor doesn’t want her driving, so Emma and I picked her up for church and took her home afterwards, before going to visit Dad.  It was great to have her there to play the piano since our temporary sound system isn’t working very well.

On Monday, Emma started School Sports Camp in the morning which will last through Thursday.  Jackie is now volunteering at Manatee Baptist Church’s food bank with extended family members.  We ate a late lunch on Tuesday at Jaxx in Palmetto before I drove to Sun City Center to attend a monthly Family Council Meeting at Dad’s memory care center.  I picked Emma up from her school sports camp at noon on Wednesday while her Dad (my son, JP) went to a doctor’s appointment.  We went to lunch at Chick-fil-a in Bradenton before shopping at Michaels Arts and Crafts Store; Bed, Bath & Beyond (closing in 9 days); 5 Below; and, Walmart for multiple items including a couple of Fathers’ Day gifts.

On Thursday, I had a dentist appointment in the morning and attended the monthly Senior Saints meeting at church in the evening.  Emma joined me volunteering on Friday at the Food Bank at our church, serving those in need from 4 pm to 6 pm, then going out to eat with some afterward at Hickory Hollow on US 301 between Palmetto and Ellenton.  Emma usually takes bread and cereal out to each car while I am entering information into a computer program to help us keep track of how much food we are distributing.

Week 4 – Sunday, June 18 thru Saturday, June 24

Sunday, June 18^th was a special Father’s Day because Emma and I went up to Sun City Center to pick Dad up and bring him to Palmetto to attend Sunday school and church for the first time since he moved to the memory center last September.  After church, we all went out to lunch at Denny’s and then returned him back home.

Emma is not attending a camp this week, so I watched her on Monday afternoon while JP and a friend helped a third friend move.  On Tuesday I met Jackie for lunch at Gecko’s on SR 64 East.  In the afternoon, we learned that my niece in Nebraska, Christina Cambre DeBoeck, (who was due the first week of July) had an 8 lbs 1 oz.  20 ¾ ” baby boy, named Flynn Gerard DeBoeck.  Congratulations to Christina, Wim and Elodie as well as the new grandparents, my brother Bill and his wife Mary.

Wednesday, about 4 a.m., a powerful thunderstorm moved through our area.  Our power went out for a short while and I lit candles in the living area, my bedroom and my bathroom.  By 4:30, I realized that the power had returned to my main living area but was still out in both my bedrooms and baths.  I assume that a switch in the electrical panel (in JP’s garage) needed to be turned back on.  Emma came over around 6:30 using the flashlight on her phone to see her way.  When we realized that my power was not coming back on, she went back home to see if her mother’s alarm had awakened her to get ready to go to work.  Emma discovered that half of her house had no electricity while the other half did, but her mother was awake, so Emma came back over here to keep me company.  I went over around 9:30 in the morning and found about half of the circuit breakers tripped.  Thankfully, a flip of the switches got our homes back to normal.  It rained off and on for most of the day.  With no rain expected on Thursday, JP took Emma to a local water park for the day where they met friends who came down from the St. Pete area to join them.  I attended a monthly board meeting at the North River Care Pregnancy Center in the evening.  Friday afternoon I was at the Food Bank volunteering with Emma.  After the food bank closed, a group of us went to Applebee’s for supper.  Our group included three grandmothers with three granddaughters and one of the other volunteers who is expecting to be a new grandmother in a few months.

Week  – Sunday, June 25 thru Friday, June 30

When the Covid pandemic struck in 2020, so few members felt safe attending services that we stopped having regular Sunday school classes and all adults met together.  Today, Sunday, June 25, 2023, marked the return of our adult ladies’ class led by Kathi Durrance and we were very excited to be rejoined with those we know the best.  I have been a member of Palm View First Baptist Church for more than 30 years and have known many of these ladies for that whole time.  We also returned to the sanctuary for our church service.  As usual, Emma and I went out to eat and then to visit Dad after church.  I asked Emma to try to find an opportunity to check on Dad’s shoe size while we were there so we can try to find him some new slippers for his birthday.  And, she took on her spy mission as a challenge which she completed successfully.  On Monday, Emma and I shopped for Dad’s birthday and for gifts for her new cousin, Flynn and his big sister Elodie to mail to Nebraska.  While we were busy shopping, Emma’s Dad, J.P., took the opportunity to get in a round of golf with one of his friends.  Jackie Sosville joined Emma and me at a water park for the day on Wednesday in nearby Wimauma.  Southshore Bay in Wimauma, Florida | MetroLagoons opens at 10:00 a.m. and we arrived shortly after that time.  We left just before 4 p.m.  when we started hearing some afternoon thunder and they called everyone out of the water.  We all really enjoyed the day, but I stayed inside on Thursday because I didn’t use enough sun screen the day before.

Dad celebrated his 93rd birthday on Friday, June 30^th at his memory center in Sun City Center.  The center provided cake and ice cream along with live county music (Dad’s favorite.)

In addition to the residents, he was joined by two of his three children; 3 of his 10 grandchildren (including their spouses); and one of his nine great-grandchildren (including spouses). I have cropped our youngest attendee out of the picture.

When the party was over, the family went to his room to open the presents they brought for him, before saying goodbye.  Then, my brother, Rick, his daughter Melissa; my son JP, his wife, Kellie, and their daughter, Emma and I went to the Sunset Grill at Little Harbor sunsetgrillfl.com   for an early supper and a much needed “catch-up”.