Vince's Journey

Sorry its been a few weeks since my last post. No, I wasn't in mourning over the loss of the Buckeyes in Glendale (although I will say that was a pretty tough game to sit through). There just hasn't been much to report on. There's just not as much going on during the winter and I won't have another doctor's appointment until early March.

The kids are all pretty busy with school and other activities. Judd has been accepted to Dayton, Xavier, Louisville, Valpo and Pitt-Bradford; he also is applying to a couple art schools. Now we have to wait and see if he'll get a tuition exchange spot. His top choice is Dayton but we won't hear from them until mid-February. On Friday he's getting his wisdom teeth removed so he'll probably be out of it over the weekend. He also has a severe case of Senior-itis which is reflected in his most recent grades.

Aaron got his drivers license yesterday so look out for him! He's working at Outback Steakhouse and getting ready for the upcoming lacrosse season. Unlike Judd, Aaron has been on the first honors list the first two semesters this year. I think he sees how we hound Judd and figures he doesn't want any part of that. So we're pretty happy with Aaron's efforts so far this year.

Abbey got braces yesterday - she'll have them for 6 months. Last week we registered her for high school - she'll be attending Mount Notre Dame. She's also been first honors at school this year and doing very well. She's on the 'A' volleyball team but playing time has been a little sparse. You know how it is in the competitive world of 8th grade volleyball...if you're a coach you better win or you're going to lose your job! So what if its the last year most of these girls will ever play volleyball and it would be nice for all of them to go out with a great experience - there's something to be said about kids learning how to handle disappointment! (I say this with tongue planted firmly in cheek!)

Jules is keeping very busy. Last week she went to Colorado with Abbey, along with her sisters and their daughters to go skiing with Aunt Sharon. They had a great time but now she's trying to get caught up on missing a few days.

Finally, it looks like I'm retiring the 'POPHOP' mobile today. After nearly 8 years and 143,000+ miles its time to put it out to pasture. The gas mileage has gotten progressively worse and its had a leaky water pump for the past 3 weeks. We're at a point where something seems to be wrong with every other month so we've decided to bite the bullet and get something new. I'll be heading out to the Toyota dealer later today to pick up the new car.

Health wise, I'm still achy and getting a little tired of it. I have been runnig a little more since the new year so maybe that's a contributing factor. Hopefully the aches will ease in the near future.

Hope all is well with you and the new year is off to a great start! I'll be sure to keep posting!

All the best!

Vince