Doubt It!

I didn’t bother squirting anymore Sinex up my nose before bed, and I am happy to report that I slept decent without it. I rolled out of bed near 540am and promptly peed, brushed my teeth, gathered my running clothes then headed downstairs. No reason to check the coffee maker, I could smell freshly brewed coffee. Yum!

Sluggishly, I began calisthenics. Felt decent once all were behind me. Coffee and internet were next. Enjoyed about 20 minutes before heading upstairs to wake Mindy. She thanked me for the coffee and asked that I crank up the heat. Downstairs, I enjoyed a little more coffee before moving on to meditation and stretching around 630am. It was something like 15 degrees outside. Dressed accordingly for a run. Headed out the door at 642am.

It was daylight from jump. Took notice because next week at this time that’s how 740am will look. Ran the full 4.1 miles. Felt good throughout. I knew it was trash day. I placed our can at the curb the night before. But somewhere near the 3 mile mark of my run I noticed the recycling truck picking up too. They’re only scheduled to pick-up every other week. Found it odd that they were back after only one week.

As soon as I got back home I noticed several nearby neighbors having set out their recycling again this week. Not wanting to be missed - though our can only half full - I rolled ours to the curb, too. In addition, I carried out the large cardboard box that’s been in our garage since Xmas. The truck in the neighborhood was a manual recycling truck with two guys.

Mindy was still at home. It was still early – about 720am. I shared the recycling conundrum. She was thinking like me. Asked that I drag out the large cardboard box. Already on it, dear! Before leashing up the pug, I quickly pulled up the Columbus recycling website and learned that for one reason or another they were moving our recycling day to this week but moving forward will return to every other week. The reason being to sync it with the yard waste recycling endeavor/schedule.

After walking the dog and while finishing my breakfast, I heard the recycling truck pull up. Emptied our can and took the box. Sweet! Bella asked if I planned to shower before she caught the bus. She asked again not five minutes later. I asked if she was eager to have me get in the shower. Yes. Likes knowing that I trust her. How cute!

As she and I discussed, I headed off to the shower once breakfast done and cleaned up. Bella was on her own to see her way out. Actually, I was out of the shower even before the bus pulled up. I resisted the urge to say goodbye so not to burst her bubble. I let her see her own way out.

Downstairs to finish packing my lunch and warm the accord by 810am. Had to scrape Sunday’s snowfall off the car. Left the house near 825am. Easy drive into the office. Sunny, cold, but pleasant. Arrived near 850am. Greeted my boss and peers. Quickly settled. When perusing email, I saw that I missed a lengthy thread that started over the weekend late Saturday afternoon. Felt kind of bad. I did check my work email Saturday morning but not again until right then. Oops!

Because it was the first of the month, I spent the majority of the morning pulling data for my monthly report. Stayed busy with it all morning long. Come 1pm, I left for lunch with planned stops at Target and Home Depot and/or Lowes. At Target I picked up a handful of birthday cards and a couple more gifts for Landon. I am pretty sure I saw Herb K., a former director/VP. I didn't say anything. He didn't either. Looks much older. I think he's since retired.

Leaving Target, I headed right next door to Home Depot. Still hoping to find an electric fireplaces for the basement. They sell them but apparently only online. Have yet to find them in the store. No such luck. It almost spring and they've already got their patio sets, grills, and lawn care stuff out and prominently displayed.

All wasn't lost. I took the opportunity to browse almost aimlessly. Sometimes it's good just to get away from the office, in a setting that steers my thoughts away from work. Gone about 45-50 minutes in total, I got back to the office around 2pm. I grabbed my packed lunch from the fridge and snacked while getting back to work. Joined a team call at 3pm that lasted almost a full hour, during which, I was multitasking and still working on my monthly report. Stayed busy with all of that until 5pm or so. Called Mindy just before leaving the office. Shared that my plan was to be out of there by 515pm.

The sun was still fairly high in the sky as I left the office for home. Always a welcome sight. And next week it'll be an hour higher. Spring is in the air! However, for our family at least, there's still one more winter ski vacation in the offing. Once April arrives, I think we'll all be ready.

Talked with Mindy during my drive home. She asked for my help cooking steaks. It was only in the teens, I confirmed that she expected them cooked indoors. Yes, she did. I thought I might grill pan fry them instead of tossing them under the broiler. Said she sauteed fresh spinach in garlic and balsamic vinegar. Yum! She also had Jacob put potatoes in the oven for baking when he arrived home from school.

Got home near 540pm. Despite winter's firm grip on the midwest weather, that wasn't stopping our kids from having spring-like outdoor fun. They were outside playing kick ball in the snow with all the island kids. Hilarious! Once I was settled in the door, I got busy cooking three ribeyes using the stove top and grill pan. The pan was a tad crowded end to end, which I guessed would negatively impact the cooking, but hey. Fried each side for about 8 minutes. Because the pan is wider/bigger than the burner, I had to rearrange the meat for a more even cook, but all in all not too bad. Perhaps just a tad over cooked but still pink inside and definitely juicy.

Bella complained almost from jump. Wanted to know why the steak wasn't as dark as normal. She's used to the grill effect. Also complained about the amount of fat in her cut. Most other times, Mindy cuts her steak before serving thus removing any bit of fat. Both our kids frown on fat in their meat. Mindy and I, almost at the same time, reminded the kids that fat is what gives steak its yummy flavor.

During dinner Mindy suggested we make it family night, something we haven't done for a month or more. Just the suggestion seemed to put Bella's mood in a tail spin. No doubt, she had 'Makayla time' on her agenda. That didn't stop Mindy from pressing onward, which I give her loads of credit for - sticking to her guns when she knows it's the right thing to do. Bella protested and questioned the idea multiple times. Still, we remained undaunted in our determination to hang out as a family. No matter what we suggested Bella wasn't amused. OK then, what do you propose we do? She had nothing. Suggested we skip it. :) Board game, card game, Wii? Nope, no, and no!

Once kitchen clean-up was complete Bella asked if we could hurry so she could still squeeze in some Makayla time. Heck no! For once, Jacob was all in. I think the fact that Bella was so outspokenly against it, only added to Jacob buying in. Funny how siblings operate.

Must've been around 7-730pm when we gathered on the livingroom floor to play spoons. We found playing at the kitchen a bit of a disadvantage given the rectangular shape. Don't know that I've ever lost a game of spoons, and what's more, I can't ever recall NOT getting a spoon. Not even once - ever! Bella's frown soon was turned upside down. She was giggling with excitement at her own demise. Jacob's only downfall is his inability to shuffle cards. Not even close. I'll need to work on that with him. Rather than try and learn, he was more than willing to pass on his deal each time. We played maybe 8-10 rounds of which Bella, I think, lost each one. Still, she was having fun. The kids suggested we do something else. Mindy pushed hard for I Doubt It, or maybe more popularly known as Bullshit!

We played that next. I won that game as well Didn't matter if anyone doubted my cards as I was perfectly set-up to rid my cards with every fourth one until the game was over. With me out early, Mindy and the kids played on for a while until it seemed like it would never end. After hour or so of family time we bagged it. By then it was nearing 830pm. I spent the rest of my evening reading from a living room recliner.

Mindy headed to bed around 915pm. Shortly thereafter, I enjoyed a bowl of Chocolate Cheerios then joined Mindy in bed near 10pm.