Dear Joe and Kathy

Happy Thanksgiving!

We have been quite busy trying to get back to life here in Baltimore! Since COVID is still a thing, and there have still been a few cases at Mom's place, we have not quite back to our normal schedule. At this point we can visit at her facility, but only in her own apartment. We can also take her out, so I have had her back to our house a few times. And both Tom and I have been fully vaccinated, including booster as well as Mom. So has Allison, so I don't mind bringing her to our place. Mom celebrated her 86th birthday this September. I had to bring the party to her since Tom and I had to travel down to Venice, FL to attend his mother's funeral. Sadly we lost Bonnie to Alzheimers. Tom's Dad still has the place there in Venice, but is considering getting a condo in Indy near Tom's brother and sister in law's house and their kids and grandkids. He was thinking about traveling there during the summer since he used to have a house near Indy in Carmel. Since Tom's brother Mark is retired, the two have been finding projects and activities to keep them both busy. Tom's brother just hiked across the Grand Canyon in one day, from the North Rim to the South Rim in October. Tom's Dad did the drop off and pick up and Mark finished the trek in 8 hrs!

So I did a quick Bday celebration with Mom at her place in the evening. She's not moving as easily as before, so it takes a bit of coordinated effort (and extra time) for me to bring her to our house. She is having more trouble navigating the few steps in and through our house, and needs a bit more coaxing for following directions. I am sure being locked up for over a year with COVID did nothing to help out her situation. As it affected so many others. 

Exciting news for the Bozyk family-she became a Great Grandmother for the first time! Granddaughter Sarah (Bozyk) Hudson and her husband Patrick had a little girl on Oct 28. They recently built a new house near New Orleans and added Gracie Augrain Hudson. Sarah is the oldest granddaughter -daughter to Dave and Sandra. We attended the wedding with Mom 2 years ago at Christmas in New Orleans. 

I am still busy working at the nursing home. We still have to wear masks to work and face shields and get tested for COVID every week. We have only had a few cases pop up at a time among staff or patients. 

Looks like I only have about 3 weeks of work left this year as I am scheduled to get a hip replacement on Dec 30th. This line of work is hard on the body and I have worn myself out after 34 years as an OT. Looking forward to being able to move again without pain! I will be off for 3 months. Not sure if I will go back after that. I also won't be able to see much of mom for awhile. As it is I have working quite a bit lately, 5-6 days/wk so it is hard to get time to spend with her, but I try to set aside time to drop in and deliver supplies with a quick kiss or bring her home for several hours on a Sunday for dinner. 

I got the invite for Eric And Diana's wedding. Sounds beautiful. Not sure we'll be able to make it. Tom's work kinda frowns on him traveling to Columbia unfortunately. And I am not sure that I'll be finished rehabbing my hip by then. Feeling special to be invited! I will have to thank them both!

I also got the email from Francine. I believe we have all the paperwork we need sent to her. Guess we wait again and see what happens. I wonder who was not interested in the deal. Anyway, the saga continues. 

Sounds like you are all doing well getting back together as a family! Allison is busy working and loving her job at Northrop. She has been dating Gabe for a year and a half now. They make a very sweet couple. Scott is busy with his Senior year at Western. He is home for Thanksgiving break and won't be back again until Dec. He and Allison had a great quick trip to Disney World and Disney studios over his Fall break in October. They wanted to experience the 50th Anniversary, Halloween and Star Wars at Disney. They both flew down and only spent a few days but certainly crammed alot of fun activity into that short week!

Glad to hear from you! Thanks for staying in touch! Kathleen