The group is on bear watch again. Greg first saw a bear meandering down the steep driveway earlier this week. Yesterday Mike saw a bear while he was in the hot tub on the lower patio. Mike reached over to grab his beer and saw the bear about 5 feet away walking to the path which goes up the driveway. It was kind of scary keeping an eye our for the bear, but I'm pretty sure the bear prefers the garbage rather than us. No photo of the bear was taken, so we are going on the word of Mike and Greg. Our family started these reunions in 1986! We get together every two years at some random spot that one of us finds. We were explaining to the younger generation that we used to use maps to loc

Our golfing adventure at Lodestone Golf Course was very scenic. Brother Doug, brother-in-law Mike, Chris and I were the foursome for the day. The first nine holes were challenging due to the mist and golf cart only rule. Chris was busy managing his own game and also helping me with getting golf clubs and raking the bunkers that I hit out of. We saw a lot of deer on the course and had to make sure they weren't on the fairway while we were hitting. Chris also spotted the turkey vultures in the trees. The sun came out on the back nine, and made the event more enjoyable. In addition, I gave up for the day and allowed Chris to play his game without also being my caddie. My challenges were

Today is our day to cook. What that means is Chris and I make the daily run to the grocery store and cook for the day. We typically make spaghetti and the matching sides. Our trip to the next town, Oakland, MD was very scenic. While we didn't find the store that I was looking for, especially since Google gave me a store that was in McHenry, Ill, we did locate a local store. The store employees were trying to be helpful during the downpour as we were leaving the store by offering the pink umbrella to Chris, but we decided to wait out the storm since the downpours are short frequent bursts. Not surprisingly, we overbought and overmade, but that's OK since Friday night's dinner is leftovers

The rental property includes a fire pit that is halfway down the path to the lake. We enjoy S'mores most days, but we started breakfast with these taste treats. The stairs down to the fire pit were a challenge for me. There are different surfaces, stone and wood, that were also wet. Since I always use the handrail, my process was normal. A unique challenge was the large size of the stone slabs. Because it has been raining a lot, I didn't need to use the stairs that often. With rain in the forecast, we decided to hang around the house and play some board games.

Monday brought the excitement of golf for everyone! Chris headed out with Papa, Mike and Doug for regular golf while most of us ventured to the mini golf course. Fun was had by all. Parkinson's impacted my balance on the uneven surfaces. so I used my golf club as a balance stick or cane. Ben and his girlfriend, Sidney, were joined by her son and our little buddy, Brigham. It was his first time using a golf club and he managed quite well. Brigham wanted to cheer for every hole in one and kept the experience fun. We had to prepare Brigham for the 18th hole when all golf balls are confiscated, and he did fine. We finished just as one of the frequent rain storms came through.

Our family reunion in McHenry, MD started with everyone's arrival on Saturday, June 16th with our 10 hour drive. The Uzelac parents and siblings, Lynn, Steve, Sharon, Greg and Doug all arrived safely with families in tow. A regular event is Sunday's dinner of crab legs that Lynn and Mike supply. There are varied extracted experts in the family, so they assist with the rest of us with the crab legs. Brother Doug and his wife, Nan chose the location for this year's gathering. McHenry is a beautiful area with lush mountains and clear lakes. The house has numerous bedrooms in two buildings. We all gather for breakfast and dinner. The rest of the day is open for different activities and fu

The reunion fun continues although the weather is guiding our plans. On Sunday a group of us ventured out to a Frisbee golf course down the road. None of us have played Frisbee golf, so we struggled with form and brother Doug offered to throw my drives so I would be able to score in single digits! The golfers included Sidney, Doug, Hayden, Greg, Sharon and photographer Ben. We signed up to play 18 holes with the second nine at the top of the ski lift. We started the front nine and quickly became annoyed with the very hot temperatures, clomping through the weeds to find the Frisbees and the lack of water. While we were on the chairlift to start the second nine holes, we all agreed that w

The annual Imagine More dinner is the largest fundraiser for neuroscience research at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Dr. Mike Lawlor was our speaker who specializes in finding a cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The energy that Dr. Lawlor brought to the event was exciting. Each year I am honored to have my family and friends join me in the celebration of hope to find cures for neurological disorders. My high school friends, Suzy and Martha have been an on-going support and great cheerleaders. My work team attended with their usual enthusiasm and generosity. Our dear friends Scott, Diane and Michael added to the support of Chris, Gabby and Dan. Sammy and Connor supported me from

My colleagues Kylie and Jill were the driving force behind implementing Project Search at West Bend Mutual Insurance. Governor Walker strongly supports the program and joined us for our first graduation with nine students. With the collaboration of The Threshold and their job coaches, the program is an excellent example of how local businesses can support our special learners. The unexpected positive consequence for the employees at West Bend Mutual were evident with the joy that they expressed about the work ethic and determination that our students demonstrated.