We’re trying to decide what we should do regarding our return trip to Florida.

For the past half dozen years, we’ve gone back and forth between Michigan and Florida multiple times each year. Most years we arrived in Florida in mid-September, but we’ve always returned to Michigan from November until about mid-December so we could lead our club in a lot of Christmas performances around the Saginaw area beginning in mid-November and usually wrapping up the week before Christmas. We also able to attend the Skaryd Christmas dinner.

We genuinely care about our club members and it has seemed important to be in Michigan for them. Two years ago we had about about a half dozen holiday performances for the club and two or three for John and me (by ourselves). Last year we had half that number. At this point we’ve made ONE playing promise in Michigan and the November event has been cancelled. We may have only the one. (Who knows, with the economy?!!)

Until last year, we also made a trip back from Florida in January so we could put on “Snowfest” in Frankenmuth, MI (sometimes only staying a week or two). That’s one event we’ve passed on but prior to giving up that date, we had to make yet another trip back in January!

Last year John was ill so we didn’t make the fall trip to Florida, and instead went down about a week before Christmas and stayed until mid-April.

Currently our plans are to return to Florida, leaving Michigan on September 12th. We’ll come back north (for a month) on November 15th until December 17th. We’ll stay in Florida until mid-April.

We’ve been thinking about changing our plans. Instead of two round trips, we might be wiser to stay in Michigan until early October and then go down to Florida and stay put until mid-April. It would be a cost savings of close to $500 for the extra round trip, not to mention that we’d avoid the risk of being on the highways all those extra miles (especially if we travel in December when the weather can be bad).

Changing our plans requires more than just motel revisions. We will have multiple changes in doctor, dental and beauty shop appointments. And we have already made one performance commitment in Saginaw for our dulcimer club on the 12th of December. The Skaryd family Christmas dinner would definitely be missed. We will need to make a decision soon.

Wish we could be two places.