Let’s start off just before Christmas. Carson was home and the girls were visiting so we walked down Water Street in Excelsior to get some hot chocolate for them. It was a peaceful, beautiful night.
Christmas Eve, we went to the Vikings-Lions game. Super fun and extra festive to be there on Christmas Eve, even though the Vikings lost.
And we went to Christmas Eve services. That was Carson's idea. We were pretty tired after the Vikings game but he wanted to go and I'm glad we did.
Christmas Day! I gave Ava this ukulele and she really liked it! She's been watching me play mine her whole life so I hope she takes to playing!
I got Susan this "Suits" shirt. If you know, you know.
And I got this game Tacos vs Burritos. Kind of fun but still figuring it out.
Susan has been crocheting lately and she made me this! I absolutely love Snoopy! I have since I was a kid. I even had a poster of him in my bedroom.
This is a totally obvious quest for compliments. I've been lifting weights with a trainer 2 times a week since May and it kinda shows! Okay, enough of that!
The day after Christmas I got some horrible news. My good friend and former show member Pat Ebertz passed away. There was no one like Pat. Kindest, warmest person ever and so funny. He built the show with me from scratch in 1993 and was here until 2002. Later he was very successful in radio sales. I'll miss you, my friend.
I have to share this story. When Pat passed away, Fox 9 asked if I'd mind if they sent a photographer over so I could talk about him. This is Willow, the photographer. We started talking and she said she worked in Albuquerque. I said which station and she said KOB, the same one my son Chase worked at. I said, "Do you know Chase Golightly?" "Yes", she said. "That's my son!" Small world and a little something that gave me a much-needed smile.
Allison moved out ten years ago but she kept this shelf of little trinkets in her bedroom. I didn't mind at all. It was fun to see them once in awhile and remember when she was a little girl and treasured all of these little statues and pictures. But she was ready to take them to her house, so I packed them up for her. Made me sad, but its what's supposed to happen, right?
And while we're on kids moving out, this is where Carson's drums sat since he was a little kid. We finally shipped them all to him in LA...
...this is what I put there now. I guess is what happens when kids move out for good. I'm not sure if I like it.
Friday I went flying because it was warm and beautiful.
This is the plane I usually fly BUT it's probably never going to fly again because it hit a deer! Yep, a deer ran out onto the runway in Glencoe and there was nothing pilot could do. Fortunately, everyone was okay. Well, I haven't heard anything about the deer!
My son Chase is a reporter at KPNX in Phoenix and for the very first time there, he anchored the news on Friday night! That's a huge deal! Congratulations, Chase! I'm so proud of you! (and all my kids for that matter!)
Saturday night Susan and I went to Fire Lake Grill House at MOA. It was so good! She had prime rib and I had the fish and chips. Great fish and chips are impossible to find because most of the time, all the breading comes off with the first bite, but these were smaller pieces, almost bite-sized, so you got breading and fish! BTW, this is not an ad! I paid full price and it was totally worth it!
I refused to spend another New Years Eve watching Seacrest. I told Susan "I don't want to sit on the couch watching other people have fun." So we spent NYE at Treasure Island!
We had a great dinner and saw "Midtown Men" who were in the original "Jersey Boys" cast. They were amazing and we had a great time at TI!
And finally, I have a goal this year to climb Pikes Peak. It's 14,115 feet, 13 miles, and a lot of that is above timberline, meaning there's not even enough oxygen for trees to grow. I started officially training on New Years Day. I did 1000 vertical feet with this 15 pound ruck pack. It wasn't hard, so I will need to step it up a bit!