TeamReedBlog.2020

 As many of you know, Team Reed Indy took a trip out west to  Sequoia National Park , Kings Canyon and Death Valley National Park with a couple days in Las Vegas tacked on at the end. The parks were amazing. It's very hard to describe just how majestic and huge the sequoias are and how desolate but beautiful Death Valley is. Among the things we learned and repeatedly taught each other along the way: "It’s hot in the desert." -- Alison "There is nothing alive here." -- Cheryl "That is a big tree." -- Jeff "We are going to die out here." -- all of us at one point or another. Our biggest victory and proud parent moment was sending our ivory-skinned redhead into the barren wasteland and having her end the trip with only the slightest of pinkish skin. Thank you to SPF 50+  sunblock and a huge hat that she initially balked out but came to love so much, she wore it home. Oh! And while we were at the most arid place in the U.S., it rained. More spri

For the past 17 years or so, Alison Reed has woken up to her birthday with a bed full of presents and cards to start the day off with a celebration. On the weekends, said celebration was longer, but we did it even on school days. Thanks to COVID, we had her here for her 19th birthday. But this year, she was still at Purdue and woke up to her 20th birthday in her dorm room. It was finals week, and she had already informed us that she wouldn't even be thinking about her birthday until all her exams were over.  I sent her early birthday/finals week treats and an early birthday text, but we haven't really celebrated yet. Jeff remarked that it was kind of silly to make a point of bringing up her birthday this year. I, of course, disagreed.   The night before the 5th, out of respect for her nerdy plans to study, I sent her a note asking when would be a good time for us to call her the next day. We try to have a family phone call on Sundays, but we don't limit ourselves to that an