January 17 - 27, 2026 Shop Wall Painted - Trip South - Roberts RV Park - Outlet Replaced - Happy Hour - Car to Shop - Specks - Podiatrist

My Blog Reflection

Everything you have in life is the product of someone else’s struggle. 

Josh Johnson

January 17, 2026:

Alexa is getting ready to paint her basement walls which have been neglected for many years. The prior owner walled off an area in the basement using 2 x 4s and wafer board. Alexa is using this area as a shop so that dust and debris from projects can be somewhat contained. The wafer board was unpainted and it will absorb a lot of paint.

I gave her some old latex paint I had to use for a base coat for the wafer board. She painted and it is now ready for a coat of paint on the entire basement in a color she picks out. I would go with white but she thinks that is too stark.

January 20, 2026:

I woke up this morning to find that our furnace is off and the thermostat is bright red with a notation that a service technician is needed. I changed the filter and punched around on the buttons. The furnace came on and then appeared to be operating correctly. I called for a service call just to check it out. I have medical appointments in St. Louis today and thereafter visiting my sister who is recovering from surgery, so I will just have to leave the door unlocked for the repairman. I know him so that is not a concern.

At my doctor visit the field study team wanted me back in St. Louis on March 14th for another full body bone scan and CT scan. Telling them of our desire to spend some time in Florida, they pushed it back until April 1st. I also have to be back at the oncologist on April 14th for an oncology visit and a Lupron shot. My liver enzymes were very high so in two weeks I have to have another blood draw in Florida. It's always something.

January 21, 2026:

Snow is predicted in Perryville and throughout the South this weekend. To get ahead of the weather we are heading to Florida tomorrow. Rather than driving through the Atlanta traffic nightmare we are going to go through Alabama. This route is an hour longer but with the long traffic delays around Atlanta it may be about the same time. 

Today is packing day. Since we plan on flying home we can't take more than we can bring back on the plane. We already have all the clothes we need in Florida. We will take a lot of food down that we have on hand so it doesn't go to waste.

January 22, 2026:

We left Perryville at 5:15 a.m. headed to Florida. While driving through Tennessee we saw highway trucks in a number of areas spreading brine to keep the roads from freezing. All through Alabama we drove in a light misty rain. The sky looked like something was coming all day.

We drove eleven hours and stopped for the night in Dothan, Alabama. Using the “Hoteltonight” app, which I highly recommend, we found a nice room at a Clarion Inn  for $69.00 including all taxes and fees. The hotel had a bar and grill so we ordered wings and fries for supper. We hadn’t eaten since breakfast so we were ready to chow down. Our room was very nice. We watched some news and checked all of our emails using the free wi-fi.

January 23, 2026:

The free breakfast at the the Clarion Inn didn’t materialize. We went down and all they had out were waffles and yogurt. We checked out and stopped down the road for a huge breakfast at Denny's. As the outside weather warmed up on the drive it was obvious the car A/C was not working. It was 80 degrees outside so a little A/C would have felt great.

We arrived at the house at 2:00 p.m. Everything seemed to be in order, more on that later. We unpacked the car, turned on the dehumidifier, and threw out the DampRid liquids. We then went to Spectrum to get TV and internet equipment. From there we headed to a local repair shop to see when they could check out the A/C. He scheduled it for first thing Monday morning. I could drop it off and walk the two miles home but my plantar fasciitis won’t allow that. My plan is to load my bike in the back of Bart and ride my bike back.

We decided to wait until tomorrow to hook up the internet because it never seems to go smoothly. I changed the furnace filter, which wasn’t bad for eight months. Of course the AC was set to run very little, just to get some humidity out. I also turned on the dehumidifier since it was 67 percent humidity. Humidity is a big issue in Florida. 

We decided to contact a podiatrist about my plantar fasciitis. We found one nearby who takes my insurance so I made an appointment online for Tuesday morning. It is MUCH easier to get into a specialist quickly down here than in Missouri.

January 24, 2026:

Of course I was up early. I had turned on the ice maker last night and it made one set of cubes and stopped. I thought there may be a little air in the water line due to the water having been turned off. I got online and learned that the freezer has to be 10 degrees or colder for the ice maker to work. The freezer was 10 degrees by my room thermometer so I turned the freezer down. Hopefully it will start working now.

I then uncovered the golf cart, hooked up the battery wires, checked all of the water levels in the batteries, and put it on the charger. This is the outlet I installed on the carport last year for charging the golf cart. For some reason this GFI outlet was dead. 

I ran an extension cord from another outlet on the side of the house and plugged in the charger. I’ll deal with the bad outlet later.

While the batteries were charging I sprayed the weeds growing in the gravel golf cart driveway. After they have died I’m going to pull all of the dead weeds, spray a bunch of weed killer, and pour mulch glue all over the rocks. Hopefully this will slow down weed growth and keep the gravel from washing out in hard rains.

The kitchen clock that came with the house had an off white ceramic ring around it. It was no surprise that the battery was dead. Kelly said she wanted to paint the decorative clock surround green to match the accent walls. I did that as well as putting in a new battery. Here is a picture. It does provide a nice additional accent for the wall.

We then tackled connecting the Spectrum equipment for internet and TV. I was following the written instructions and all was going pretty well but there was nothing at all in the instructions about the TV receiver they had given us. Not one word.

In the printed instructions there was a reference to their app for installation. I downloaded it and it visually walked me through every step of the installation indicating percent of each software download. It was a dream to use. The only issue now is that we don’t seem to have the TV and Spectrum TV synced. Moving from one to the other is convoluted. We will figure it out.

We drove to Home Depot and purchased a new carport electric outlet. Kelly wanted to drive through Roberts RV Park, where we stayed each winter for six years. We always had to reserve a year in advance to get a spot. The street we liked was “Audrey” and there was never an empty space. Here are two pictures of a part of Audrey Street now, just three years later, in the height of the season. It is less than half full. How things change in a short time.

Part of this vacancy is due to the hateful management, who ran off many multi-year winter residents like us. You may remember that three years ago he told me I couldn't come back because I posted on Facebook how many machines were not working in the laundry. It is also partly due to Trump pissing off the Canadians who haven’t come back. Florida has taken a major tourism hit, not just at the RV parks.

Back at the house I proceeded to install the new carport electric outlet. I had put in a GFI outlet last year, which for some reason quit working. GFI outlets are a pain like that. I realized that this outlet was downstream from a GFI outlet so I didn’t need this one to be a GFI. A new, regular outlet was installed and works fine.

It was now Happy Hour. At the RV park every evening that meant dozens of folks gathered around with a drink and visited until everyone went in for supper. We really miss that interaction and the great friends we made over the years. All activities in this park are organized. People stay inside most of the time. People don't mossie around and talk to people because people aren't sitting out.

We made a "new to us" adult beverage - Whiskey and Ginger Ale, known as a Whiskey Ginger. We enjoyed it while sitting on the front porch soaking up some sun. There was a record high temperature here today - 83 degrees - while much of the country was experiencing extreme cold. Here’s a picture of Kelly taking it all in around five in the evening.

Our across-the-street neighbor, John, came over and visited for about a half hour. A nice end to the day.

January 25, 2026:

My plan to get back home after dropping off the car for the AC repair was to throw my bike in the back of the HHR and ride it home. It is about two miles away. I aired up the tires for the trip but when I came back an hour later the front tire had lost most of its air. Apparently the forty year old inner tube had given up the ghost. I took the tube out, checked the tire closely for any possible puncture, and double checked the inner tube size. I then hopped on the golf cart and rode over to Walmart to purchase a new inner tube. Unfortunately, they did not have the size I needed. I came back home and ordered one from Amazon. Of course it will get here to late for me to use tomorrow. I called Celina and she was glad to give me a ride.

The rest of the day was spent watching the NFL playoffs. I hated that the Broncos lost but glad the Seahawks won.

January 26, 2026:

I dropped the HHR off at the shop at 8:00 a.m.  I laughed because I wanted to tell Celina the name of the repair shop so she could meet me there and realized I didn't know the name. I just knew where it was located. Luckily, Celina was familiar with the shop and gave me a ride home. I made a contact in my phone - Suncoast Auto and Tire - for any future issues.  At 9:10 a.m. the shop called and had already diagnosed the problem. The cooling fan was not working, which caused the AC system to build up pressure, which caused the pressure valve to blow off and release Freon. A new cooling fan, new Freon, and labor would be $679.00. I authorized them to fix it. This is the first repair on this car in about 8 years so I'm not complaining. Additionally, you need AC in a car in Florida.

While the house seemed to be in order when we first arrived, Kelly noticed some sawdust like specks on the window sills in the master bedroom and in the master bath. We had been told to watch for this because it is evidence of termites. Termites are a real issue down here. Here is a picture.

I got in touch with our bug guy who came over immediately. He verified that the specks are in fact evidence of termites and showed me at least one hole in the molding above where they came through. The house has to be tented and gassed  to get rid of them. The house was tented in 2018 so this is a constant problem. If we purchased his insurance for $190.00 per year, tenting would be free. If we did not he will give us a cut rate of $1,400.00 because we are current customers. I don't remember if we have been paying for the insurance. He will let me know. He said these termites are not fast acting so they will wait to tent the house when we leave. Alway something.

January 27, 2026:

I had an appointment today with a podiatrist to see if something could be done with my plantar fasciitis, which has been an issue since before Christmas. It is much easier to get in to see a specialist here than in Missouri. 

Upon feeling my foot he immediately noted that: I had a bone spur, the ligament on the top of my foot had stretched thus putting more strain on the bottom ligaments, and my foot moves too far in either direction, thus not providing needed support. 

He took an x-ray and I could clearly see the bone spur, which he said was of no significance. It was also easy to see that due to the stretched top ligament the bone joints in my foot were not "meshing" like they should. He said all of this has developed over a long period of time. Since I've had pain for six weeks he suggested an anti-inflammatory drug for thirty days. He said it had a 50/50 chance of eliminating the pain. He also suggested I roll my foot over a frozen water bottle for fifteen minutes every day. He then discussed various options if the medication didn't work. Unfortunately, due to my bone cancer, most of these options are not available to me. That being the case his next suggestion would be to have a custom shoe insert made, at what we both thought is an astronomical cost. The insert would help provide the support my foot needs and is not getting due to the stretched top ligament. He made an appointment to come back in two weeks to see if the medication worked. My medical problems never seem to have easy fixes. I am looking forward to some relief so I can get back to walking without a limp.

Early in the afternoon the moving van for our neighbors, Doug and Judy, was packed and they were heading to their new home in South Carolina. I got to hug them both and told them how much I enjoyed them as neighbors and appreciated their watching our place when we were not there. It is so sad to realize you will never see people you enjoy again.   

January 5 -16, 2026 Christmas Tree Down - Medical Visits - Dishwasher Install - Bedroom Light Repair - Kitchen P-trap Replaced

 My Blog Reflection

When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new.

Dalai Lama

January 4, 2026:

Since the day before Christmas I have been dealing with a case of plantar fasciitis in my left foot. I'm doing what I can to address the issue but the "cures" are all over the place. I’m trying to stay off of it as much as possible. I miss not being able to walk with the guys in the morning and hope to get back to that soon.

Once back home from our Lake Tahoe trip, it was time to take down the Christmas Tree, pack up all of the decorations, and store the trains and train board. Another Christmas season was under our belt. The train board is four foot by six foot and sits on six ten-inch long legs. My dad made it when I was about eight years old so it is close to seventy years old. The trains and train board have only been used at Christmas over these many years. I need to make new legs for it but I never think to work on it during the rest of the year. Legs with rollers would make sense as we need to move the board around to decorate the tree sitting on top. 

January 5, 2026:

Today Alexa bought a dishwasher from Marcuzzo Electric here in Perryville. It was the same price as one at Lowes and there was no delivery charge. Her house never had a dishwasher so the kitchen base cabinet has to be modified to accommodate it. We will also need to run electric to it from the electric panel and make a new water connection under the sink. 

January 6, 2026:

After a church meeting this afternoon I worked on the chain saw. When we last used it on the tree in Alexa’s back yard the chain oil passage became blocked. I took it apart today and cleaned everything out. As far as I can tell it is working properly now. We need to make the last two cuts of the trunk to finish that project.

The dishwasher was delivered late this afternoon so tomorrow we will start on cutting out the kitchen cabinet for an install.

January 7, 2026:

Here is a picture of the kitchen cabinets before we started on the modification for the dishwasher. The RED arrow points to where the dishwasher will be installed. The GREEN arrow points to a cutting board pull out at the other end of the cabinets. Alexa will never use this, so to compensate for the loss of two drawers for the dishwasher install, we plan on eliminating the pull out cutting board and make that spot into another drawer.

These cabinets are all homemade out of plywood and pine boards. The base cabinet had a middle shelf and a bottom shelf. Both had to be cut out, as well as the drawer facia. It took two different power saws, and a good amount of time, to make these cuts. Upon cutting out the bottom shelf we found that there was another layer of shelf under the first. Here are two pictures. 

This additional shelf layer was nailed to a box made of 2 x 4s attached to the floor. We could not imagine why this shelf was there. We speculated that at some point in the past the current base cabinet was built over the top of an old cabinet structure. It was a bit of a challenge to get it all sawn out. Here is a picture of the raw dishwasher opening after we thought everything in the way for the dishwasher install had been removed.

Next we cut two boards to enclose the dishwasher, which is not as wide or as tall as the old cabinet area. We had hoped to have enough space beside the dishwasher for a narrow cookie pan cabinet. While there is additional space to the right, most of the area is behind a cabinet setback which was made to clear the window sill nearby. Any cabinet door opening would be far too narrow for any practical use.

Here is a picture of the two boards, top and right that we installed to enclose the dishwasher. The gaps in the wood have been filled with wood filler and they will all be sanded and painted white.

We are going to fill the cavity to the right of the dishwasher with some insulation I had on hand to help with any noise produced.

With all of the shelving out the dishwasher STILL would not slide totally back into the cabinet. What could possible be the problem? The first thing I noticed was a piece of the old baseboard and quarter round sticking out in the corner from a prior cabinet remodel. Here is Alexa cutting it out with the oscillating saw. A slow process.

With the baseboard cut out the dishwasher STILL would not slide all the way in. I looked all around in the cabinet opening for any obstruction. Then it hit me. The six inch board holding up the back of the countertop was hitting the top of the dishwasher. Here is a picture with an arrow pointing to the board. It took forever to cut this board out from one end to the other with the oscillating saw, which is the only saw that would work in there.

At last the dishwasher finally slid back into place as far as it was going to go with the depth of these homemade cabinets, which are a little narrower than modern cabinets. 

At this point we had been hard at it for eight hours and we had had no lunch. We quit for the day. Here is a picture of the wood that we took out of the cabinet. Quite a pile.

Every project needs a supervisor and we had ours. This is Frankie inspecting our work after we quit for the day and got out of the way.

January 8, 2026:

There was no work on the dishwasher project today. I had been notified on Tuesday that I was scheduled for a full body bone scan and a CT scan this morning at 8:00 a.m. in St Louis. Tomorrow afternoon I have to go back to St. Louis for a final visit with the radiology oncology department. This visit will conclude my six-month field study treatment program. It has not been bad but it has not been fun either. The treatment limited my daily activities and delayed winter time spent in Florida this year by at least a month.

January 9, 2026:

We got busy in the morning and ran a new electric line from the subpanel to the dishwasher. We weren't able to finish the electric install because I had my final visit with the radiology department in St. Louis in the early afternoon. The visit yielded great news. The scans taken the day before indicated that there has been no new growth in any of my tumors. This was the best result that could have been expected. A very good day.

January 10, 2026:

Several of us worked at the Hill of Peace Lutheran Church to get the huge cedar Christmas Tree out.  The tree, cut about a month ago, shedded many clumps of Cedar needles on the way out. Getting them all out of the carpet took a while.  

Work on Alexa's dishwasher install will resume on Monday since she is working this weekend.

January 11, 2026:

Alexa worked all weekend so I mostly watched the football playoffs. I did take the face off the cutting board drawer to convert it into a face for a new drawer. I filled the cutting board slot with a board on hand and filled the cracks with wood putty for sanding. 

Getting the cutting board out of the cabinet won’t be as easy as I anticipated. I thought there would be some release of the stop that keeps it from pulling out but if there was I couldn’t find it. We will unscrew everything we can find and hope the cutting board and frame comes out. We will use the wood from the two drawers that were eliminated to make a new drawer.

January 12, 2026:

I planned on continuing with the dishwasher install but Kelly and Alexa went antiquing in Ste. Genevieve instead. I can work on it by myself but Alexa wants to help and learn to do all this. In my shop I worked some more on the new drawer face that would replace the cutting board face.

January 13, 2026:

In the morning we started back on the dishwasher project. I thought the six inch cavity to the left of the dishwasher may amplify the sound the dishwasher makes when running so I had Alexa fill the area with some old fiberglass batts I had in the shop. They were held in place by bowing wooden sticks I had cut and gluing the ends in place.

We then installed a ground fault outlet under the sink. I wanted it under the sink rather than behind the dishwasher so that it would be easily accessible in the future. There wasn't any room for it behind the dishwasher anyway. 

Once the outlet was installed we connected the drain hose to the garbage disposal. All that was left was connecting the hot water line. I disconnected the faucet fitting so I could take this picture to the hardware store to show them the type of "T" fitting I needed to connect the dishwasher.

When working on old plumbing it is rare that I purchase the right plumbing connection my first trip. With the help of the "Ace Hardware Man" I purchased the correct fitting. 

Once everything was connected there were no water leaks. Alexa ran a test load as spelled out in the instructions. Still no leaks under the sink nor under the dishwasher. Alexa then installed the bottom insulation and the kick plate. With that the install was complete. (Mostly). Here is what the dishwasher looks like installed. It sticks out more than it should but that is because these homemade cabinets are not as deep as newer cabinets. 

I was going to lunch with Gary and had a little time before leaving so Alexa and I tore into removing the cutting board and the mechanism supporting it. We found out it was built to withstand an earthquake. In frustration I finally just yanked it out. Once it was out it was clear that much of the space for the new drawer I envisioned was filled solid with wood. Apparently there had been a different cabinet configuration at one time and they just built a newer one over it. The end result is that the new drawer will only be about and inch and a half high. It will be good enough for her knives I guess. Pictures will follow when we get back to that project. 

I went to lunch with Gary eating at "The Pub" in Altenburg. They had an excellent half-pound burger. After enjoying it we took advantage of the beautiful day and drove around for an hour in the Eastern end of the County. Gary showed me the farms of some of his relatives and his Granddad's Farm where he worked each summer as a kid. It was great to learn about all of this history.

While riding around and telling Gary about the protracted dishwasher installation, he advised that under the electrical code we did not need a GFI for the dishwasher outlet under the sink. We have a future project that entails putting in an outlet above the countertop on the left end of the cabinet. When the time comes I will move the GFI to that location so we don't have to buy another. 

After Gary dropped me off back at her house, Alexa advised that the back bedroom light would not work, even with new bulbs installed. The bedroom has two doors (I don't know why) and a switch by each door, ie. two three-way switches. I thought maybe one or both of the switches were bad. I checked them as best I could with my voltmeter and they seemed to be operating correctly. I could not get power at either switch nor at the light. I had exhausted my limited knowledge. I messaged Gary who said he would be over the next morning at 8:00 a.m. to see what he could figure out.

January 15, 2026:

Gary arrived right on time and began diagnosing the problem. The bedroom light and switches were all wired with the old "knob and tube" wiring from when the house was originally built. Most of the house had been rewired but apparently this ceiling light had not. 

Gary found that no power was getting to the first switch, which fed the other switch as well as the light. I thought we would need to pull up the floorboards in the attic to look for electrical connections up there. Before doing that Gary suggested we look downstairs for any wiring issues because power had to originate from down there. Gary quickly spotted two "knob and tube" wires which came down through the wall where one light switch was located. The old wires had pieces cut out of them. Gary was pretty sure this was our problem. When someone eliminated the bulk of the old "knob and tube" wiring to upgrade the house wiring, these wires coming down from the bedroom light switch had been cut when they were still needed for the ceiling light to work. 

Unfortunately they cut the wires off very short where they came down out of the wall. Gary was able to crimp new wires on and connect new wires back to the cut ends about two feet away.  WE HAD LIGHT! Here is a picture of the repair. You can see the blue crimp connectors on both ends of the patch wire.

When the subpanel was installed I tried to label every circuit but one I could not. Once the back bedroom light worked we found that it was on the circuit breaker I couldn't trace earlier. We also found that the back bedroom light, the attic light, the bathroom light, and the front bedroom light were all wired to that circuit breaker. The circuit breaker mystery was solved. It and the new dishwasher circuit were appropriately labeled. 

It was very generous of Gary to devote his time and expertise to this project for Alexa.  In looking at the dishwasher installation he suggested we place a piece of small trim around the three sides of the dishwasher to hide the black gasket so the installation would look more finished. Great idea. We will do that.

January 16, 2026:

The last project for a while was replacing the trap under the kitchen sink which leaks. The 1/ 1/2 inch trap pipe seemed to be cracked because it constantly slowly dripped. I hadn't thought about it but Gary pointed out by the trap dripping it no longer acts as a trap for sewer smell. The metal tailpiece was rusting through so it needed to be replaced as well.

A quick trip to Ace Hardware and we had the new trap and tailpiece we needed. It was an easy install only taking about fifteen minutes. 

Unfortunately, after about an hour water was barely accumulating above the threads where the old black plastic elbow connected to the new p-trap. 

Upon taking the trap back out and looking at the old fitting I noticed that the interior flange was a little rough in one spot. Since the black fitting was glued on, and will be a pain to cut off and replace. I sanded the rough edge smooth and wound Teflon tape around the threads before reconnecting the new p-trap. This should easily stop the very minor leak. If it does not we will another project in the future of cutting the black elbow out and replacing it with a new one. A much bigger project than we had today.

We purchased a piece of trim for around the dishwasher and Alexa painted it. Monday and Tuesday are both doctor appointment days so getting the trim installed may be delayed until Wednesday.

 

  

 

 

December 23, 2025 - January 2, 2026 - Kelly's Birthday - Christmas Day - Trip to Lake Tahoe for Family Gathering

My Blog Reflection

Remember, no man is a failure who has friends.

Clarence Odbody in "It's a Wonderful Life"

December 23, 2025:

The above reflection is a quote from my favorite movie of all time, "It's a Wonderful Life." To this day my daughters bemoan the fact that I made them watch it every Christmas season. 

Today was Kelly's birthday. Bob and Ronnie invited us over for "Pennsylvania Dutch Waffles and Chicken with Gravy". We had never had it before and really enjoyed it. Bob is a great cook and enjoyed sharing this dish with us. For dessert Bob had Alexa help him make Fruit Pies. These were enjoyed as well. They were nothing at all like those grease wraps they serve at the fast food joints.

In the evening we had a Birthday Party with cake and presents. Alexa found two candles - one for the double digits and one for the single digits. LOL

Alexa bought Kelly rechargeable hand warmers. These will come in handy this week in Lake Tahoe so they immediately went on the charger.  It is nice feature that both plug into one USB port.

We have crows in the backyard on a regular basis, which delights Alexa for some reason. She gave Kelly a "Crow Caller". I'm not crazy about having the crows around so I hope Kelly doesn't become proficient at calling them. LOL

My gift was a rock polishing kit. Kelly had one when we were first married and loved it. Recently she has talked about polishing rocks again so I got online and found a nice kit.

Kelly's birthday is close to Christmas. She doesn't like her "birthday" present wrapped in Christmas paper. We had no birthday paper so I used the only thing we had left - a plastic graduation table cloth. It wasn't birthday paper but she let me slide.

The rock polisher turns 24/7 and makes a lot of noise as the rocks tumble. When Kelly got the rock polishing kit when we were first married, we lived in a shotgun three-room apartment. We put it in our bedroom closet to try and muffle the noise. It was still loud. At this house we have a lot of places to set up the tumbler far away from our sleeping area. 

The tumbler kit came with three polishing grits, two tubs of rocks to get started, and lots of directions for successfully polishing.  Upon unboxing it Kelly was anxious to get started but she can't do that until we get back from California because it has to be attended to on a regular basis.

You all may be getting polished rocks in the coming months.

December 24, 2025:

We did little other than pack for our trip to Lake Tahoe on December 26th. Two of our daughters and all of our grandkids live in California. Some like to ski so Annie and Adam rented a house that is large enough for all ten of us. We will leave St. Louis on the 26th and be back on January 2nd. Our only time being near Lake Tahoe was when we were on an RV trip to California to see our new granddaughter, Violet. Snowfall on the Donner Pass caused us to have to spend four days in a Reno RV park waiting for the highway department to take the chains requirement off all vehicles going over the pass. When we were able to cross it was beautiful seeing all the snow on the trees and in the ski resorts. We ended up getting a closer look of the area because there was a mudslide which closed I-80. We were diverted to a highway that ran on the edge of Lake Tahoe. Spending some quality time there will be nice.

December 25, 2025:

Kelly, Alexa, and I had a nice, relaxed Christmas watching Christmas movies and videoing with the grandkids to see what all they got for Christmas.

December 26, 2025:

At 7:00 a.m. the three of us headed to the St. Louis airport.  We flew into Reno, Nevada, with no issues. The two California families were driving in, one from Mountain View, California, and one from Tracy, California. The plan was for Adam to pick us up at the airport but things didn’t go as planned.

As we arrived it was predicted that Tahoe would get up to six feet of snow and it started coming down as predicted. The snow was great for the ski resorts but not so much for our traveling. Adam and Annie were stuck in major traffic with the snow and could not pick us up at the airport. At the Reno airport Alexa called for an Uber. It was about an hour drive to the rented house. The first driver said he wouldn’t go because he didn’t have tire chains. The next driver said he would take us. He arrived with a small Honda SUV. The three of us and our three large suitcases barely fit. We were on our way.

Driving was fine until we got close to our I-80 exit on to California 267. In the higher elevation it was now dark and had obviously been snowing heavily for some time. The roads had been plowed but were basically ice-packed, traffic was moving slowly. Driving was extremely hazardous.

Once we turned off I-80 we hadn’t gone far on California 267 when there was a checkpoint. I assumed this was to check for chains or studded snow tires. Our driver had no chains nor studded snow tires. I thought we would surely get turned back. We approached the highway crewman and after pointing his flashlight at our tires waived us on. Whew! We continued on the ice-packed highway to our subdivision turnoff. Our driver had just moved to Nevada from LA and had never driven in snow. He clearly didn’t know what he was in for.

The road through the subdivision was plowed but curvy and ice-packed. Our driver got us to the address and dropped us and our luggage off in the icy street. It was dark and cold. Annie had messaged Alexa the house number and the code to get inside. Alexa walked up the icy driveway to the house and the code worked so she motioned for Kelly to get inside.

We had to drag our suitcases across the icy street and up the icy driveway.

With the winter weather forecast Erin had decided to wait until the next day to head to Tahoe from Tracy, California, particularly since she only has a two wheel drive vehicle. This ended up being a very wise decision.

We were in phone contact with Adam and Anne. They had been on I-80 for hours with horrific traffic and snow. It was now about 8:00 p.m. They were only about twenty miles from the Tahoe exit when the highway department shut down the highway. They had to turn around on the overpass and head back to search for a motel. Annie and a friend both immediately got online to find a motel. Annie found a room, which was twenty miles off of I-80, but she snatched it up because all closer places had already filled up. They arrived at the motel and were safe for the night. We relaxed, they crashed. Their six hour trip had turned into eleven hours and they weren't even in Tahoe yet.

The rental house was close to Donner Ski Ranch, which got 57 inches of snow, other places got more. We were at a lower elevation and there was a lot of snow at the house but it was quickly plowed and piled up everywhere.

December 27, 2025:

The three of us were the only ones at the house and we had no food and no vehicle to go purchase anything. I did find a box of "Malt-O-Meal" someone had left behind and made us each a bowl. Kelly and I hadn't eaten Malt-O-Meal since we were kids. We hadn't eaten anything since noon the day before so it tasted great.

 

The Wiseman family got up early, left their motel room, and headed to the house. By morning the roads had been cleared considerably. They arrived at the house about noon and stressed about the trip. We were so glad to see them arrive safely.

Erin and the boys left Tracy early in the morning. Due to heavy traffic they didn't arrive until about 2:00 p.m. Once they were at the house everyone was accounted for ane we could all relax.

After chilling for a while the kids went outside and played in the snow, first in the driveway, then in the backyard. They had a great time with the saucers they brought. I don't think Free had ever been in the snow before.

The metal box in the pictures is the bear-proof trash bin. Every house has one and all trash must be put in it. You can't even leave trash in your garage or you face a large fine. The trash is placed in barrels inside the box and locked with a key that hangs on the side. It is heavy duty.

I asked the folks across the street how collection worked and she said a guy walks along, unlocks the box at each residence, and dumps the barrels inside into a dumpster on the back of a pickup truck. It has to take forever to collect the trash this way. Obviously it is a necessary procedure due to the bear population all around.

The rental house was great but the first two days the Great Room was cold. The thermostat was cranked up but the heat just wasn’t getting up there. I looked around the Great Room and found a heat vent under a cabinet in the dining area and another behind the TV. The vent behind the TV was totally blocked with cables, drapes, the TV cabinet, and the TV. I pulled the cabinet out about three inches to allow for more air flow. I pulled back the drapes and rested them on the window sills. Here I am try to get the heat vent cleared.

It helped some but we still had to bundle up to sit around or watch TV for the first two days.

December 28, 2025:

This was Christmas morning for the family. The little ones waited patiently for the presents to be passed out.

I volunteered to be Santa and passed out the presents. At times I wasn't fast enough for the four and five year olds. LOL

Kellen got all money. Just what an eighteen year wants. LOL

After all the gifts were all opened we cooked a big breakfast of eggs, bacon, and bagels. Freedom and Wren wanted to help with the eggs, some boiled and some scrambled eggs.

About noon we drove down to see Lake Tahoe, which was only about two miles away.  Lake Tahoe is a natural Alpine lake. It is 1645 feet deep. The second deepest lake in the U.S. behind Crader Lake. For perspective, the Empire State Building, with its spire, is 1454 tall. The lake has an average depth of 1,000 feet and it is twenty-two miles long. The water is so clear you can see down seventy feet. Crazy cool.  

We were staying at the Northern end of the lake and took a driving tour along the lake in that area. We drove in one direction and after a couple of miles we were in Nevada. We turned around and headed to Tahoe City, California, about fifteen miles away. There we wanted to see the "Penny Bear".

Parking is always an issue because there is just a single highway running through the commercial area and there are no back streets in this mountainous area. We had to park behind some shops and walk from there. The sidewalks had been cleared with a snow blower on tracks. It came by us at one point making a second pass. While it cleared the snow, it left an icy walking surface. Walking was slow.

Once at Penny Bear Park we found lots of snow everywhere. It was not cleared. The bear is a large momma bear and her cub all made out of pennies. Free was into throwing snowballs the entire time. Great fun for a four year old.

As you can see the bear is pretty large. Our heavy winter coats and boots were just the thing for this excursion.

Here are a couple of shots of Lake Tahoe from Penny Bear Park.

From there we walked to a Thrift Shop Kelly had spied nearby. There was nothing of interest to us so back to the car. Here are a couple of pictures of the lake taken as we drove along. Mountains surround the entire lake.

Once back at the house the kids all suited up to play in the snow. After playing in the snow for a while they headed for the hot tub. They were busy little bees.

Where you got out of the hot tub there was a giant electric heater hanging from the porch ceiling. It helped when you got out but you didn't hang around long in the area with your wet swimming suits.

For supper Adam made a delicious pot of pea soup which we enjoyed with French bread and butter. A couple of store bought pizzas were cooked in case the kids didn’t like the soup. Surprisingly Free and Wren loved the soup. As I said, it was delicious. Adam loves to cook and is quite good at it.

After supper we watched football as the kids ran around the house playing with their presents.

December 29, 2025:

This was a lazy day. After a big breakfast of eggs, fried potatoes, and bacon, we played games and enjoyed family time. A relaxing time for everyone.

December 30, 2025:

This was another relaxing day. The kids played in the snow with Alexa and Annie supervising. The rest of us stayed inside where it was warm. We went to supper at a local Italian restaurant and it was a hit. Free was really into his spaghetti and Kellen into his pizza. I had a house salad and two giant meatballs. They were delicious, just like mom used to make. I hadn't had meatballs in ages, we just have meat sauce with our spaghetti.

Adam took a great picture all of us enjoying the meal. Look at that food! Nobody went home hungry.

December 31, 2025:

Today was skiing day. Adam and Annie had never been to these particular slopes. They didn't know if there was a lodge where Kelly and I could sit to watch the kids and grandkids ski. That being the case we opted to stay home. As it turned out this was a good decision. There were only a few tables available and they didn't provide good viewing. The grownups took some pictures for us.

Kellen took a snowboarding lesson and here he is headed for the slopes. He is always so SERIOUS!

The two little ones took a skiing lesson and immediately enjoyed the bunny slope.

Here is a picture of Violet starting her run. She is quite good for a nine year old.

Annie and Violet headed down the main slope together. 

After a few runs Annie twisted her knee and was out of the running. 

Once they were all tired out they turned in their gear and found a nice place for lunch before heading back to the house. Nothing else was planned for the day. Later in the day I bought Annie a brace for her knee until she could get home and get it looked at. 

All the grownups stayed up to watch the ball drop in New York. It was 9:00 p.m. in California but that was late enough for me. LOL

January 1, 2026:

Living 2,000 miles apart, as you can imagine, it is hard to get all of us together much less get nice family pictures. Erin had planned to have Adam take a lot of "posed" family pictures this week. She had all the guys purchase black shirts and black plaid pajamas, the girls red shirts and black pajamas, and the three little ones green Christmas pajamas.

Adam ended up taking 180 pictures inside the house, on the hot tub deck, and on the deck off the master bedroom. The little ones were to be commended for their patience in this hour-long endeavor.  Here are a few of the pictures.   

Kelly and I and the grandkids.

Kelly and I, our girls, and the grandkids.

This is of everyone, including Adam, who used the camera timer to get in the picture. Pretty cool. He does a great job positioning everyone.

My girls wanted some outside pictures to capture a little of the winter ambiance we were experiencing. 

The first is of us, our kids, and our grandkids.

Annie, Kelly, Erin, Alexa, and Mike - the Bullerdiecks.

Kelly and Mike, the ones who started this amazing clan.

Freedom, Kellen, and Erin - the Tracy, California, family.

The grandsons - Kellen and Freedom.

The Mountain View, California, granddaughters, Violet and Wren.

Adam and Annie, who had the idea and put this enjoyable time together.

The Wiseman Family - Annie, Adam, Wren, and Violet.

The four grandkids - Violet, Kellen, Wren, and Freedom. We so enjoyed being with them this week. They were such a joy to be around.

The Bullerdieck girls who kept us busy all week with activities.

The other three boys in our family.

It was great fun taking all of the photographs and a great way to end our time together. 

After picture taking Adam, Annie, Alexa, Kelly, and I, went for a ride to Palisades, formerly called "Squaw Valley", where the 1960 Winter Olympics were held. Here is a picture of the entrance where the Olympic Torch has been burning continuously since 1960. It is a busy intersection and with all of the snow piled up everywhere there was no getting out to get a better picture. You can barely see the flame just to the right of the sign poles and even with bottom row of signs.

As you drive toward the ski area there are hundreds of apartments and housing units which were built for the competitors, news media, spectators, etc. Here are a couple of pictures of the ski runs behind Olympic Village. It was raining a little and quite cloudy so the pictures aren't that great but great fun to see.

The residential and support buildings throughout the area have all been sold off to companies and individuals. It struck me as that process eliminates the possibility of ever having another Olympic games here. Too bad.

January 2, 2026:

We reserved an Uber for 6:20 a.m. to get us to the Reno Airport. The entire family got up to see us off, which was wonderful and much appreciated. The driver was right on time, the roads were clear, thus making it a less stressful trip than getting here. The sun coming up over the mountains as we drove into Reno was beautiful. I couldn't get any pictures. I was on the wrong side of the back seat. We arrived at the airport in plenty of time to catch our first flight. The entire trip back to Perryville went like clockwork. We arrived home about 8:30 p.m. After about an hour we headed to bed. It had been a long day.

After we left the rental house the California crew cleaned up and then all headed home. No travel issues this trip. 

This was such a memorable time with family. Hope you enjoy this glimpse of it.