Snippets of Day 3- Chicago style

One of my favorite and least favorite parts of Chicago was the El Train. I do not like ridding backwards or standing up, which in a crowded train sometimes becomes your only option. I also did not care for the fabric on the seats, which in my mind only masked the possibility that the previous occupant of said seat may have had bladder control problems. Other than that our outings on the El were quite entertaining. We almost always started our trips at the Lake street stop, which was nicely lit and had the better entertainers. I regret the fact that I did not get a picture of our favorite guy. He sang a hilarious song about the love affair of his stuffed Tiger and Beyonce'. That was one time I wouldn't have minded waiting a little while longer for the train to arrive.

On this day we headed to the Shedd Aquarium. I'm sure that most people would really enjoy visiting here, but since we live so close to the Henry Doorly Zoo we are a little spoiled by the awesome aquarium there. We both agreed that the time and money spent here could have easily been better spent somewhere else (the same goes for the Field Museum which we visited the next day).
The skyline taken from the patio of the aquarium.

Yes, we found Nemo!!

A little more blue sky, teasing us, making us think that maybe the game wouldn't be wet after all! Images of the big game up next!

Happy Birthday Poppy

Today's my dad's birthday, sorry I'm a very bad daughter and I really don't know how old he is, or else I would post it here! I also notice that I need to convince him to let me take more images of him, since this is the only one I could find on my hard drives and it is almost 4 years old.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Portillo's

On the recommendation of our tour guide we ate at Portillo's, which turned out to be the best meal we had in Chicago. We wanted to go back again but didn't make it. If we had stayed at the original hotel we would have been just blocks away, which I think is the only thing we have found that would have made staying there worth it.

I loved walking around with all the traffic and people. Bryan was a little nervous being out and about after dark, but I could totally see myself as a big city girl!
Bryan ordered a couple Chicago dogs, which smelled as bad as they look! He would have stopped at every vendor, restaurant, cafe, or deli that served these if I would have let him. He has since bought all the fixin's and is waiting on Miss Fun to come home so that he can make them, since
no one else in our house is crazy enough to eat them.

Passing Notes

Little Buddy loves to write me little notes, as I am at my desk working he will drop one off and then run back into the front room to color some more. I occasionally ask him what these notes say and the dictations are quite funny.

The red one reads "You didn't get me some popcorn chicken and it made me sad,

so I started to cry."

The blue one" I love you because I give you hugs and kisses"

"Dear Mom,

I wanted to have a birthday when its hot. I want a train that is lightning."

When he gives me particularly cute ones I write his dictations down on the back and tuck them away. It will be interesting to give these to him when he is older.

News from the Neurosurgeon

I searched the web to find an image that is similar to my MRI and this is as close as I could get. The bulge on my vertebrae is a little more severe, the black area being the bulge and the white the spinal cord/nerves, I had a very small amount of white showing.

I had a steroid epidural/nerve root block done about 4 weeks ago and although I have had a huge amount of relief I am still experiences some pain and numbness. I went through 2 weeks of Physical Therapy/traction, with very little real improvement. I have not been back to the pool, but am buying a new swimsuit today so hopefully that will help.

I had a follow up appointment with the neurosurgeon yesterday and the news was not what I wanted to hear. He is giving me the option of having another steroid injection or surgery. I am not wanting to do either one so we decided to give it a few more weeks to see where I stand. Hopefully I will still be standing!

Wrigley Field

Our fist outing in Chicago was a tour of Wrigley Field. This was Bryan's idea and I have to give the guy credit it was a very good choice!

Here's one of the only available images of blue sky from our whole trip, so enjoy it while you can!

We were able to go inside the locker room, which leaves alot to be desired. It is a tiny little space, but the area our group was allowed to be in was even smaller. Talking about herding cattle, this is when we got friendly with everyone in our group! My favorite player was Matt Murton, but unfortunately the Cubs traded him last year, although I did get the chance to see him play for the Iowa Cubs. With Murton gone my next favorite is Fukudome, I think it his name, I love to hear Little Buddy saying it in his little 3 year old voice!

Here's my bench warmer thinking about all the butts who have graced that seat. Ok maybe that was me thinking of all those famous butts! Sorry I just can't help it.

I handed off my camera to the tour guide for a shot of the two of us because...

we discovered I'm not the best with self-portraits! You try holding up that behemoth camera and balancing it with one hand!!

Chi-town Day 1

Here's the view from our hotel room!!

I made the "mistake" of calling our hotel a few days before our trip to confirm the reservations, ask about the breakfast and request a room with a view. Well somewhere along the way, probably after the 3 or 4 person including the manager became very rude, I became very annoyed with the customer service of this hotel (Hotel Felix) and cancelled our reservation. I quickly called a friend who has been to Chicago quite a few times asking about recommendations for hotels, thanks Mike and Kari!! Our new hotel The Chicago Hyatt Regency was wonderful. I loved the view even if I spent most of the trip worrying Bryan would trip and break the window, falling the 23 stories to his death!! If you know Bryan you know this could possibly happen!
Here is the other view!!

The Navy Pier, Lake Michigan, and the Chicago River
Here we have Bryan pointing out some of the things we would be doing-
Double Decker bus tour

and a boat ride, although we stayed out on Lake Michigan

Here is the Chicago Theater in the theater district, where The Chatterbox will be seen performing in a few years!!

The gorgeous sunset that greeted us that first evening!
I don't know how many ways I can tell you about our great hotel, the beds were oh so comfy, the view was gorgeous, the breakfast was filling and when we got back from our first outing they had brought in a bucket of ice cold root beer and Garret popcorn. This Nebraska girl thought this was worthy of 5 stars for sure!!
Everyone was so nice, the homeless offer to give you directions and even the light poles were beckoning us to stay!!
Here's Bryan reading up on the next days plans.
We were even presented with fireworks out the hotel windows!!

With shaky hands and tears in my eyes

Badger Boy has been playing ball all this month, while he is at his dad's house. It has been fun watching him play. He really seems to be enjoying himself, but up until this past Saturday he had only hit a few foul balls. I decided I better get my camera out and actually take some shots this time around, he was the last player in the line up and this would be his only at bat this game.

He has already been hit a couple times this year by pitches, being a lefty, so it makes me nervous watching him get up to bat.

The sun was sure shining down on him....

and with shaky hands and tears in my eyes I was able to capture his first hit...

a double!!

The Rainy (Windy) City

Bryan and I had a great time in Chicago, despite the cold, rain, the fever Bryan ran on my birthday, and the aching feet, legs, and back!! We will definitely go back again, there is so much to see and do we didn't even scratch the surface.

The Cubs game was rained out in the 6th inning, so we didn't get to hear the famous 7th inning stretch. They also called the game, Cubs won 6-1, but we didn't get to hear the Go Cubs Go song. Unless you count the drunk fans that were singing it!!
One of the only things I wanted to do was take the Double Decker bus tour. Wouldn't you know it, it rained pretty much the whole tour (which was suppose to be 2 hours, but turned out to be almost 4). I didn't get to many chances to take the camera out, so here's one of Bryan taken while we were under a bridge.
Don't let this image or the first one fool you! The ground looks pretty dry at the moment, but soon after it rained !!

My post may sound a little depressing but I can assure you that we didn't let anything ruin our time alone. Whenever Bryan and I go on vacation we have a great time, this one was a smidge better without the kids in tow. I felt extremely guilty during some parts of the trip because I knew the kids would have loved quite a few of the activities we did, maybe next year! I have plenty more images to share of all the non-wet activities when I could get my camera out!

Back in the Saddle

I was finally able to get out and take some pictures, since it had been over a month I felt a little rusty. Bryan, Little Buddy and I went to Lincoln to get a few items for Bryan and my upcoming "honeymoon" trip and I needed to scope out a new location for an upcoming shoot. Little Buddy actually wanted to pose for a few so I took advantage of that offer!!

The flowers were also looking very tempting so I got a few shots of them as well!

I have seriously been a horrible slacking MWAC (mom with a camera), I missed The Chatterbox's zoo field trip & class party, Miss Brainy's 14 birthday came and went without 1 single image being shot, The Boss actually wanted me to take her out for a session and I couldn't find the creativity and energy to get out the camera. I am hoping that once I start to feel back to normal I can really dust off the camera and actually get some shots of my own kids.

MIA

I apologize for the lack of posting these last 2 months, life got busy, my back decided to go out on me, and life got busy! Business had just started to get back into the swing of things and I had just gotten into a workout schedule when my back decided to play a dirty trick on me. I have been spending most of my time laying around, not much is getting done on the home front. I have had an MRI and seen a neurosurgeon, who ordered a steroid epidural and physical therapy. I had the epidural done last Friday and I am now waiting to see if it is going to work. I am having much less pain but the numbness and weakness seem to persist.

The kids seem as busy as ever especially in these last few weeks of school. Unfortunately I have had to miss many of these events with my back problems. I actually missed the kids baptism, hence why there are no pictures. But thanks to Bryan's dad I do have it on video tape! Mackenzie was confirmed a couple weeks ago and I was able to attend but in no shape to get any pictures. I am hoping I can get some from one of the other parents. My lack of attendance and involvement has left me feeling like a terrible parent!

Little Buddy has been playing soccer on the YMCA Mighty Kickers spring league. He plays for the Rapids and is learning the rules and concept of the game. He seems to be having more fun as the weeks go on, but is still too hesitant to get in there and kick the ball. He does a great job following it and will kick it when no one is around, but his shyness keeps him from getting in there too much! This week is his last game and I will get some pictures to share, I promise!!

Badger Boy is playing his first year of baseball this summer. He is playing in Humboldt and his Aunt Teri is the coach. They have already started practices which he goes to on the weekends and the games start later this month. He has asked to play catcher, pitcher, and outfield and Teri says he is doing pretty good for his first year of real ball, but will be starting in the outfield. Teri is an awesome coach and will be working with him in the other positions. She also has her son and a couple of Badger Boy's cousins on the team so it will be very interesting to watch the games. He says that he is having fun and that is all that matters!

The Chatterbox is finishing up her last year of grade school and will be heading to Middle School this fall. For some reason I am feeling very hesitant to see her move on to that next stage, more so than with the older girls. She has plans to go out for the chilrens theater production of James and the Giant Peach this summer. She loves acting and will dive right in.

Miss Brainy is leaving middle school and will be a freshman next year. She has a full summer planned with the church mission trip, summer band, and lazy days spent with friends at the pool!

The Boss will be spending her summer babysitting her 4 boy cousins, ages 11, 9, 7, & 2. this will be her first job and a big responsibility. I have really been on the fence about this since she will be in Humboldt and not only have the boys to take care but also herself. Hopefully this will be a big step in the right direction!

Bryan and I are planning on taking our 4 year past due honeymoon trip in a couple weeks. We will be traveling to Chicago, to take in a Cubs game, tour Wrigley Field, and do some typical site seeing. We are both hoping that my back pain will be resolved by then, otherwise it may be a very interested trip!

Not much work has happened on the remodel. Bryan installed a new faucet and we will be installing new windows in a couple weeks, but the remainder of the work has been put on hold until I am on the mend. I am starting to be more like my husband than I like with at least 3 projects left unfinished! I couldn't wait to get outside, get my garden in shape and install the picket fence, but here it is middle of May and I haven't really done anything. The day my back started hurting I had planted and hung new hanging baskets and baskets on the front porch rails, but these flowers nearly died while I was on bed rest. They are slowly perking up and hopefully I will be too!

It's beginning to look a lot like

Spring!!

The weather has been beautiful, so I opened up the house today, my mood has been lifted just by the warm fresh air and the sound of the birds chirping. I have also been very productive today, painted the laundry room shelves and cabinetry, hope to get the walls primed tonight!

The shirt says it all

I have mentioned before that my youngest, Little Buddy, is allergic to peanuts. He had is first allergic reaction, which was very severe, the first time he ate a peanut butter sandwich. After that visit to the emergency room we took him to a allergist where they tested him, finding out that he was indeed allergic to peanuts and to cats. We currently carry an EpiPen Jr. and Benadryl for him, as well as have them available at Bryan's parents and at preschool. So far he has only once came in contact with something that resulted in a minor reaction, hives and minor rash, which was cleared up with a dose of Benadryl. We have been very lucky, but we are also very diligent in watching what he eats. We carry snacks for him in his bag so that he always has a substitute if he is offered a snack that we know he can't have or is questionable. The other kids even know to check before giving him anything to eat. We try to keep our home peanut free, but with snacks and treats coming home from school or parties it is hard to do. We are lucky that he has not had to go to daycare, Bryan's mom or sister watch him and they both are great about watching what he eats and they know how to administer the Benadryl and EpiPen. His preschool has done everything possible to keep him safe. They have me check every package of snacks they plan on serving the kids and have made their school as peanut free as possible. I sent half dozen cupcakes at the beginning of the year, Miss Carolyn has them at her home in the freezer, whenever one of his classmates bring birthday treats she goes home and gets one of his special cupcakes. That is what I would call going above and beyond!!

I found a link to these cool shirts- http://jeeto.com/allergycollection.html

I plan on getting him this one so that if he ever has a playdate or goes to Sunday school I can dress him in this so that there will be less of a chance for the adult to accidentally allow him to have peanuts.

Barn Star

I have a little bit of an addiction to these tin barn stars, I would have some in every room if I could. I bought this one at a local antique store for $11. It was just a simple tin star. I wanted to dress it up for the new Laundry/Bathroom so I gave it a couple coats of cream paint. Then I pulled out my huge stack of scrapbook paper and chose some that had both yellow and blues. I used Modge Podge to adhere the paper to the star. All that is needed is a clear coat of lacquer, but I will wait until it is warm outside so that I can use a spray can.

I can't wait to see this hanging in the laundry room!

Would you happen to have?

For the last week I have been working on the downstairs bathroom/laundry room. I needed to finish the drywall that Bryan had started, scrape the popcorn ceiling, paint the cabinet and window trim, fix the hardwood floor, paint the ceiling and walls, add some shelving and trim, add new lighting fixtures, and then the fun will begin-DECORATING!! So far I have the drywall almost complete, the ceiling has been scraped, and the window and cabinet has been painted.

I need to get things going because I bet Bryan that I would have my project finished before he could finish any of his half-done projects.

On to the reason behind the post, I am looking for a few items and I am unfortunately coming up empty handed. I would like to have 4-5 of these old Pool Baskets to hold some of the household supplies. I have tried ebay but I keep getting outbid in the last few minutes.

I am also looking for this cool Metal Laundry Soap Box, I have seen these online but only on Australian Stores websites. Someone posted online that they found one at T.J. Maxx, but I didn't have any luck in Lincoln, I went to a couple different houseware stores. If you have any of these items and wouldn't mind parting with them or know where I can buy them please please let me know!!