So our power was out for another day to start off the week. I took my shower at the YMCA in the morning before heading to work Monday. Scott was off to school-they had power at the High School. Allison was back at Salisbury for class-she never lost her power.  Tom was off to work-Northrop had power. We had the generator running all day to keep the fridges going at home. Power was restored after 6pm Monday night. Yeah!  Scott went to work after school-they had power too.  But the county continued to work in the neighborhood-cutting up trees and running power lines as well as restoring telephone poles. We had been without power for 4 days, but other parts of our neighborhood were still out.

Allison stayed at school at the end of the week. She was supposed to participate in a frisbee tournament in Virginia Beach over the weekend, but it was cancelled. She was actually pretty happy with the news. She had caught a cold in New Jersey the weekend before. Must have been all the sneezing and coughing from girls in the hotel room with her along with running around outside in freezing temperatures. And while she was fighting a cold, she was also studying for her upcoming finals. She had 2 finals and 1 midterm presentation. She was a bit worried about her Finance final exam. During midterms the prof allowed the students to utilize the Excel computer program to solve problems, which Allison was comfortable with and did well on the exam.  However, now the prof decided some of the students were not comfortable with Excel and he wanted the final to be completed with a Finance calculator. Allison did not know how to use one nor did she own one! So Tom sent her a Finance calculator and she oriented herself to it with online videos and support from fellow students and the prof. She was quite comfortable with her Midterm Marketing presentation which was a power point with 4 other group members. The group had been struggling the whole semester though. A few of the students did not speak clear english which made it difficult to write a group paper. And she was a bit concerned about the final in her 3rd class, Info Systems. But she was getting lots of study time. This has been her hardest term. Wish her luck!

Tom  also had to FedEx her passport during the week as Northrop asked her to complete her fingerprinting background check. She had already had the drug testing done, and Tom has been helping her fill out all the background check online(lots of names, addresses and dates). So we had to get her passport to her overnight. She went to the Salisbury U police station for fingerprinting, but did not have the Northrop form. The HR people were all in a meeting and did not get back to her in time. So she sent in the only basic form they had at the station and it turned out to be fine. Now she just has to wait several months while they process all her info for top secret level! I also sent her a St Paddy's Day goodie box to help her get through Finals week. Scott and I picked up some items while shopping at Target over the weekend when the power was out. We got her a stress relieving pillow, some St Patrick Day decorations and lots of healthy snacks to keep her going.

When Friday rolled around I had to take Cookie back to the vet. Naturally she got an ear infection(she had to wait two weeks after her last check up so I could spend more money on a vet visit!). I also had another Assisted Living Facility visit scheduled for the afternoon. Tom decided to come with me on this visit. We had been to Harmony Hall for an Estate planning presentation last year at this facility which is just across the street from Mom's current apartment building. We thought it was a bit too big at the time, but it has a built in alarm system-wanderguard system-which consists of a bracelet you wear that sets off an alarm and locks the elevators and outside doors/front door if someone tries to access it. We are hoping Mom could move to this facility which would hopefully allow her more freedom with the safety of keeping her from leaving. So far I have not yet found any other facility in the area that offers this program. Just locked units. So we met with the marketing team and went on a tour and put down a deposit. Now Mom's doctor has to fill out paperwork and the facility nurse has to assess mom and we should be able to move in!

Wouldn't you know someone backed into my van when Tom and I were leaving Burger King right before our appointment. We stopped in for a quick fish sandwich and someone just happened to back into my van. We exchanged info, but to Tom's surprise, there was not even a scratch on my van. Much to the relief of the guy that backed into me. And we were still on time for our appointment. After our appointment,  I dropped Tom back at home and went to have fish dinner with my mom on her floor.  I also stopped into her apartment to pack up a few more items. And I chatted with the marketing rep at Sunrise on our moving plans. Of course they are very interested in having mom's apartment to rent out to new residents. I don't blame them-it was a very nice and large apartment in a great location on the 2nd floor. They can move in two residents and make more money. I hope we can find something as nice for mom at the new facility. I also got the name of a moving company, so we should be set when the paperwork is all completed! Meanwhile, they have been telling mom that her old apartment needed some work done. I don't think she notices. She is very adaptable-except when it comes to wanting to go back to Michigan!

I could not stay too long with mom after dinner. I had to get back to attend Scott's Film Presentation ceremony at our library.  Scott and his classmates produced a short Drama film through his Television class and submitted it to the Howard County Film Festival. Their high school teacher encouraged the boys to submit their work and he also attended the ceremony. It was held at our local library after hours. There were a few other groups from his school as well that participated, however, much to our surprise, the boys film won a Judge's Choice award(Top 5 out of 30 submissions)! They each won an awesome trophy and 1 tshirt to share amongst each other!  Very cool. Their story was based on a robbery and a faulty Alexa computer system. We got to see a quick clip of all the student's videos, and then they played the full videos of the top 5. The big winner was an anime cartoon-no words, just black and white chalk drawings. Seems to be the up and coming thing.

It seemed to be the Weekend of Scott! He also received a scholarship from Western for the Manufacturing Engineering program! Way to Go Scott! He was feeling a bit disappointed since Allison had earned several scholarships after high school graduation and he had not been as successful. But now he has a scholarship from Western! And we are still working on a few more from high school. He was asked to submit a resume for a Senior scholarship from the school's Booster club. It doesn't hurt to fill out the paperwork! He did skip his Robotics team's first tournament. They traveled to Alexandria, VA for the day. A very long day. The bus left the school parking lot at 7am and returned at 9pm. Scott would have gone if he could have driven himself(and left early), but we did not want him to tackle the DC beltway on his own just yet(new driver and all). The Robotics team was back at it on Sunday, but it sounds like their robot had some issues. They will have another local tournament in 2 weeks. Scott is hoping they do enough to head to the State Tournament at Uof Md. He really enjoys that event since they have lots of computer vendors in attendance. He really does not get to do much during the tournaments since he really only helped design and build the robot, not program or operate. And even then, the coach brought back his sons from college to help out and Scott felt that they did not get to do as much as the guys took over the design plans.

When the weekend rolled around, Tom asked if we could drive up to the Towson mall to pick up an item for our neighbors. Our good friend Dan Z lost his Dad the weekend before. He was 93 and living at home with his wife, Dan's mom, in Ohio. His Dad had been struggling the last few years of his life with medical problems, macular degeneration(limited vision) and loss of hearing which made it impossible for him to manage by himself even though he was very alert. Dan had been out to visit the week before he passed. Tom was looking for a special gift to send them and I recommended he purchase an item from Things Remembered. I had sent a picture frame to my friend Beth for her mother's memorial, and Tom found a beautiful whiskey decanter and had his Dad's name engraved on the outside. It was ready for pick up at the store, so Tom, Scott and I headed over to pick it up. We decided to stop in and have an early dinner at World of Beer and catch a movie(we tried to see Black Panther-again sold out!). And Scott had seen it, so we opted for Death Wish. Tom was not too excited since it was a remake of the Charles Bronson movie with a twist. Bruce Willis plays a surgeon who attempts to avenge the death of his wife and his daughter's assault by going after criminals. Scott and I enjoyed the remake and the popcorn. I did not however enjoy Spring Ahead. I could have used an extra hour of sleep!

On Sunday we tried to have Dan and Gloria over for dinner and to pick up their gift. Gloria was fighting a cold, so Dan opted to drop by for drinks and dessert in the evening. I picked up my mom for a steak dinner at our house before Dan stopped over. Turns out it became a guys night as another neighbor just happened to stop by while walking his dog. I decided to turn in early with The Walking Dead. Another very long and busy week! At least we finally got our power back on!