The Chicago Trip

So this weekend was our big trip to Chicago for the Get Your Rear In Gear 5K walk/run for the colon cancer coalition. So we decided to make a little mini-vacation out it while we were up there. Our flight left KCI on Thursday evening around 6:20ish with no problems and we arrived at the O'Hare Airport and caught the shuttle to the Hertz rental car place and got our car with no problems. We were STARVING as it was 8pm by the time we got the car but the restaurant we wanted to go to (Burt's Place) closed at 9pm and we arrived at 8:46pm and they were not making any more food for the evening...they are strict about how you order! OY!

Friday morning we woke up and headed to downtown Chicago for an exciting day of sightseeing and museum walking...hmmm...well after we parked in a lot (that cost $18!!!) we decided we might not see as much of Chicago as we would hope to, not at those prices as nothing is close enough to walk to several things...you have to get a cab or catch a train or trolley or move your car to another $20 lot!! OUCH! So we only went to the Museum of Science & Industry and we didn't find out until after we already paid our money that it was geared more towards kiddos and not adults, although it did have some adult moments, it still wasn't necessarily worth the tour. Thanks goodness I had a coupon for buy one admission get one free! :-)

After that, we headed to the outskirts of downtown and tried to eat at a Gino's Pizza joint only to find out it was closed! So we went to a little restaraunt next door that was a little hole in the wall Italian joint! The food was delicious and it was worth the mistake!

Then it was back to downtown to pay for more parking and up to the Sears Tower Skydeck. They were only open to the 99th floor that day for whatever reason so we didn't ACTUALLY get to the top but whatever. It was still cool and I'm glad we went, it was a nice 360 degree view of the city!

After that we decided to call it a day for the downtown area and headed back up to our hotel and called in a reservation at Burt's Place for their "famous" deep dish pizza. I found this joint from a TV show I like to watch called Anthony Bourdain, No Reservations...too bad we actually had to make a reservation...heh heh! Anyway we ended up sitting at the exact same booth as Anthony and I got my picture taken with the owners wife and we enjoyed our meal! It was TRULY delicious! Mmmmmm!!!

Saturday we got up early and headed down to pre-register for the 5K run/walk. We got our bag of goodies and put them in our car that was parked across the street in a $25/day lot...sigh...and then waited for the walk to begin. It rained a little on us before the walk started but let up and didn't do it again until WAY later on in the afternoon! So the walk was fun and we had a beautiful view of Lake Michigan and other random sights along the way! When we were done with the walk we decided to walk to the Hitchcock building and purchase the recommended trolley/double decker tour of the city...this was fun! We rode it to the theatre district where we got off and found a cute little greek diner where we ate lunch then hopped back on the bus and went to Shedd Aquarium...we were planning on this being our museum of the day but when we got there, there was a line so long we said forget it and went to The Field Museum next door instead. Well worth it! It was only sad b/c we had to rush through in order to see everything and to catch the trolley back to "near" our car!

Got back on the double decker bus and DOWN POUR of rain came BLOWIN' in!! They gave us a poncho and we were the only two who braved the storm on top exposed to the elements. It was cold, rainy, and windy! AWESOME! We were forced to the lower level once lightening started to strike! YIKES! So, soaked and cold we departed the trolley for our 1 1/2 mile trek back to our car! We had to stop at a Barnes & Noble to get coffee and a snack and to warm up before braving the winds again. But we made it and it was a good day!

When we got back to the hotel, we dried off and decided to ask the locals where to go for dinner...so we hit up a hole in the wall Mexican joint with authentic Mexican food...we ordered the Flautas de Pollo and they were DELICIOUS! I was only sad that I didn't read the menu more carefully as they had Brain Tacos and Cow Head Tacos that I totally would have ordered just to say I had eaten it!!! Oh yeah! I like to live on the edge! Bummer!

We went back to the hotel and played some Wii (the hotel had one in their lobby, of which we played every night we were there!) and then crashed at 9:45pm! We were exhausted.

Sunday we decided was going to be our sleep in day and not worry about touring day...so we took our time then headed to a nearby strip mall to go see a movie, 17 Again, pretty funny! Then we ate lunch next door at Shaw's Crab House and it was DELICIOUS!

Then we decided we better head back to the Hertz rental to drop off the car and get checked in for our flight...they told us to allow 2 hours for this process...we allowed 3! Apparently that didn't matter!! We were scheduled to leave at 5:22pm but our flight was delayed initially b/c the plane was late getting to Chicago. Then when it did arrive they discovered a mechanical error and pushed us to an adjoining gate which pushed out the departure even later. Then we think they were just making stuff up because we didn't start boarding until 7:45pm!!! Then, because they overbooked the flight (awesome) they had to make sure we made the weight limit and they put in the maximum amount of gas b/c they anticipated having to fly in a holding pattern due to weather. Unfortunately they put TOO much gas in it so we had to sit on the runway for half an hour just burning fuel to get to the legal limit to take off!!! We finally took off around 8:45pm to head for KC.

We get above Kirksville, MO and are put in a holding pattern. We are in this holding pattern for just over an hour. During which we hit a random patch of what we all thought was turbulence only to hear the captain on the radio tell us, that it wasn't turbulence but that another plane is in the same holding pattern and he thought he better get out of their way?!?!?!?! WHAT?!?!?! Ok, we didn't need to hear that, whatever! So then the captain gets on the intercom and tells us that we are starting to deplete our fuel and they are thinking about sending us back to the Chicago! OMG! They nix this idea and land us in St. Louis to refuel. We are not allowed to leave the plane and on short flights like this they don't provide snacks so if you didn't have dinner beforehand you were screwed! Luckily we brought some snacks on board. We finally take off from St. Louis around 11:45pm and head back to KC for attempt #2...they had to fly us south of KC under the storm and so we finally landed around 1am! That's right...1am! So by the time we got our bags and caught the tram back to our car in extended parking it was 2am! Then we were starving so we found a 24/hour McDonalds and grabbed something to eat and then headed to Bob's parents house where we arrived at 3am! We were EXHAUSTED and just glad to be near a bed! So we got up this morning and headed back to Burlington after lunch and I couldn't be happier to be home.

Chicago was fun, it had its high points and its low points but I am not sure we will be rushing back to get there again any time soon! haha! I hope the Get Your Rear In Gear group does a Kansas City function soon! :-)

Last chance-------------->>>>>>>

Last chance to donate to the Colon Cancer Coalition...Bob and I leave Thursday for Chicago for the 5K on Saturday! The link is to the right of the screen. Thank you so much for your donations! It really means a lot!

For those of you not familiar with my family, that is my cousin Michelle who has been battling colon cancer since December of 2004...she is a fighter and her faith is unreal and for that I admire her. I love you Mic!

Not much...

Nothing real exciting has been going on since Easter. My in-laws celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary on the 13th with my father-in-law being sick so we ended up not going out. :-( We did go over to my sister-in-law Tabitha's house though and ordered pizza and visited. It was fun. Our niece, Abby, is so close to walking it's not even funny! She is one smiley baby and I just love her to pieces!

Went to Emporia on Friday and delivered my lasagna to one of Bob's co-workers whose wife just had twins. Then we decided since it was so nice out to visit the Emporia Zoo. Although VERY small, it is free and worth it for toddlers...quick walk (they don't need a stroller it is so short) and they have SOME interesting animals to look at. Ha! Decovin was scared that all the animals were going to get him, we had to keep reassuring him that they were behind a cage and could not get out. Not sure where he developed this fear.

Then Saturday I went to Paola to see my grandma in her new assisted living home. It is very nice and I was glad I went. She was just as excited to see me I think! LOL! I helped organize a few of her dresser drawers and label them so she can remember where things are and then I went across the street to the hair salon to see some dear friends whose daughter was getting her hair done for prom! I got her some flowers for her hair and she used them, it was REALLY REALLY cute! :-) Then I headed to LaCygne for a sleepover at Christy's with MEAGAAAAAAANNNN!!! We attended the Prom Walk-In at Prairie View then we went back to Christy's house and watched a couple of movies and ate a TON of food! It was fun! Stayed up WAY too late and woke up WAY too early but it was a blast! Then Sunday I came home and hung out with the fam for the rest of the day and here I am today...typing away my weekend stories for you all! ha!

Oh! Side Note: When we went to Emporia we stopped at Walmart to pick up a few things and a friend of mine suggested we let Decovin pick out his own underwear so he could feel like he was a part of the process. He picked out Thomas the Train ones and was SOOOO excited...so we let him wear them and he wet the first two but he TOLD us so that is a start, although he did poop in a different pair and didn't tell us...so that is going to be a whole other battle...then the next day he stayed dry ALL day! And as of 11:30am this morning he has been dry all day too! Waiting for the poop though as he didn't poop yesterday...we are bribing him with "coins" if he goes poop in the toilet. We keep telling him that Thomas doesn't want to get wet or dirty so we have to keep him clean by using the toilet instead of our pants...*shrug*...we'll see. The saga continues...

Easter Weekend Fun

Well Easter has come and gone with a blink of an eye! I can't believe it is already over! We colored eggs, hunted eggs, played with new friends and cousins, ate LOTS of food, and all in a 2 1/2 day period! I'm exhausted!

Friday was coloring egg fun with Aunt Christy, Meagan and her niece Gracie. Saturday was spent traveling up to my brother's home and letting the kids play together and then Sunday was FOOD, FOOD, FOOD! It was a fun weekend but I'm glad to be home. Just sad Bob had to work all weekend and missed out on all the fun. :-)

Decovin & Aunt Christy coloring some eggs! He LOVED it!

Gracie and her Aunt Meagan colored some too!:

Us Girls after the coloring was all over!:The Kiddos playing in the JumpHouse. They all had a blast together!!

Well, that's that...

I cancelled my subscription to Weight Watchers online today. I met my goal back in October and have maintained it since...so I figure I can keep it up on my own. Was meaning to cancel it months ago but just got scared that when I did, the weight would just come back on...stupid superstition, but I think I believe in myself enough to know it's going to be just fine now! Wish me luck!

Another ear infection plagues this house!

Poor Camden, he just can't win for losin'! He, along with Bob & Decovin have been coughing for over a week now. Other than the cough and slight runny nose, there was NOTHING to indicate doctor attention until yesterday when Camden cried/screamed for 3 hours straight!!! I tried EVERYTHING in the book. Diaper change, food, drink (even juice), orajel, tylenol, vicks rub, warm bath with vapor bath stuff, laying him down for a rest...NOTHING worked!! GAH!

So I called Bob at work and instructed him to go buy some motrin on his way home just to try something else and by the time he got home we gave it to him and within 30minutes he was fine. Random??? We put him to bed at 8:20 and he didn't get up until 7:20 the next morning and acted fine all morning...so then I was stuck with the dilema of: Do I call the doctor or not? I finally decided to make an appointment and good thing I did b/c he has a flaming red ear and the doctor is referring us to see and E.N.T. to talk about getting tubes put in...yippee! So he is on antibiotics again and hopefully it will clear up fast. He has been happy as a lark today though...so I have NO idea what will be next for that little boy! LOL!

I wish I could post: APRIL FOOL'S at the end of this but alas, it is true. *sigh*

I'm Bored

So I was expecting to wake up to a SNOW covered ground and all we have is some freezing rain. It's not even sticking to the roads?!?! Weatherman said 100% chance for snow yesterday...WRONG! Whatever! I'm sure it will snow some but I'm doubting 10 inches will be fallin...I guess I should bite my tongue.

Anyway...I've been cooped up in this house for a week now due to my boys being sick. I did manage a grocery store run yesterday but I don't really count that as "getting out!" More like a necessary evil. Was supposed to go to my cousin Wendy's wedding but had to cancel those plans b/c I didn't want my sister-in-law driving down here (to watch the boys) in this supposed bad weather and on top of that Bob and the boys are SICK! So, I stay home for yet another day in this house. I guess I should clean or something but I just don't have the will or energy to do such things. Excuses, I know.

I was lucky enough, knock on wood, to not get whatever gunk the boys got, but am not ruling it out b/c the moment I do, BAM...I'll be sick! It is no fun to be a sick stay-at-home mom...there is no rest for mom when you're sick.

Bob is sleeping right now as he just got off of nights this morning...but since he is sick himself, I'm doubting he is going to be much fun to hang out with...ha! Oh well...I guess I will have to find something to entertain myself...was crocheting something special but ran out of yarn...ordered some but have to wait for delivery...

Any suggestions???

New Ride...

Well, we bought a new (well, new to us) vehicle yesterday. But not without some drama along the way...

We have been searching for a Jeep Grand Cherokee for a couple of months now so that we have the capability to pull a boat (eventually) and to be able to haul things, etc. So we started our search on CraigsList.com but with little luck. A new jeep would post and we would call first thing and it was either sold or listed incorrectly or there was something wrong with it or it didn't have the tow package, etc...SOOOoooooo...finally we looked on AutoTrader.com and found one located in Wichita that was perfect! We called the guy up and he still had it and everything was what we wanted, so we hop in the car to head that direction...

We stop half way in Emporia to snag lunch and we waited to start giving the boys their food until we got on the turnpike. Decovin then says he doesn't want any and that his belly hurts. I didn't think anything of it, b/c lately his new thing is to say his belly hurts and that he needs to go to the doctor and then seconds later will ask for food...so when he said it this time, I wasn't thinking it was a big deal. Well, minutes later hot shot throws up everywhere!! Wonderful. No place to pull over or turn around as we are on the turnpike so I pull off the road and Bob starts cleaning him up and this required stripping the boys clothes off b/c they were not salvagable for wear at this point in time. Now keep in mind yesterday was WINDY and GUSTY and just plain horrible for driving conditions so we think that he had a case of car sickness (granted he has been coughing a lot lately and has a runny nose so not to entirely rule out just plain being sick). After that little fiasco he asked for his french fries and ate happily while watching Wall-E on DVD and so we proceeded to Wichita. When we got there the first stop was Walmart to get him some clothes to wear! So I grabbed a few outfits (just in case it happened again) and then off to the dealership.

The purchase was smooth and the Jeep is AWESOME! We love it! We lucked out too b/c while we were there someone from Oklahoma called in and said he would take the Jeep...luckily we were already purchasing it! Phew! Almost lost another one!

Decovin was fine the rest of the day and slept REALLY well last night and the only thing he has is a runny nose (or as he likes to call it: A boogah nose) and a cough. So maybe it was just the wind causing the car to jerk around enough to make him car sick? You never know with kiddos...so of course when we got home I stripped the car seats down and washed them and I cleaned the seat in the back of the car and the seat belt, although I can't quite get rid of the smell on the seat belt...lovely!

So that was our Monday...how was yours?

March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month

March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month! Have you been screened lately? Think about!

Bob & I have officially registered for the 5k Run/Walk in Chicago, IL with the non-for-profit colon cancer coalition. I just love their campain slogan: "Get Your Rear In Gear"! (http://www.getyourrearingear.com/) Such good advise! So with that said, get yourself screened even if you think you are too young to worry about it! It can hit ya at any age!

If you would like to help raise awareness along with us, visit our donations page at: http://www.active.com/donate/gyrigchicago09/JenandBob

Your help is greatly appreciated! Love you all!

Trip to Michelle's

Christy & I had us a short vacation to Wildwood, MO. We went to see our cousin Michelle. It was a lot of fun and we had some really good laughs! It was so good to see Michelle and she was the perfect host! We watched more YouTube videos in that short weekend than I have ever watched in my whole life in one setting! LOL! Michelle's little guy, Ben, wanted to see videos of Decovin & Camden so I let them watch a bunch of those and for the adults we watched a lot of old SNL skits and other comedians that crack us up. It was good times!

I also got to see an old college roommate who happens to live 5 miles from Michelle. It was awesome to see her and her husband (he went to college there too)! They have a little boy that is only a couple of weeks older than Camden so I got to play with little Will while I was there also. They took me out to lunch and we got to catch up a little.

On our way home, Christy & I stopped in Hermann, MO to pick up some wine and cheese and whatever else we could find! It was really fun but I am EXHAUSTED! It is always good to be home but I miss Michelle already! If you are reading this Michelle, I hope you are feeling better and LAUGHING at something! ;-) Love you!

Misc

So Monday night I decided to take Decovin to a "trial" gymnastics class. Basically they let you take them to one class for free to see if they are suited to take the class yet. They have to listen and be able to follow simple directions, etc. Well, at first Decovin didn't want to do it but once he got going he had a blast! Especially when he got to jump on the BIG trampoline! So we are going to enroll him and he starts full time in two weeks. And by full time I mean once a week for half an hour. Haha! They figure that is about all that is necessary for tots! Right-O!

Last night was Bunco and I didn't win a darn thing...oh well, it was still fun. Christy was the host and it was "80's Night"...so we got to listen to 80's music and movies while we played...it was fun! I brought a macaroni & cheese bake and it was ever so popular, so I thought I would share the recipe in case you were interested...

INGREDIENTS
1 (16 ounce) package elbow macaroni
1/2 cup evaporated milk
2 eggs
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1 teaspoon seasoning salt (I didn't have seasoning salt so I just used some salt, garlic powder & onion salt)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon butter

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain and rinse with cold water.
In a bowl mix milk, eggs, sour cream, seasoning salt, and pepper. Layer macaroni, cheddar cheese, and milk mixture until pan is full. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese and pour melted butter on top.
Bake in a preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes or until milk mixture is done

St. Patty's Day fun!

We had a blast! We were going to go bowling but it took us about an hour just to get seated and so we decided to just stay at the restaurant and drink a couple of margaritas instead. Yum! Oh and the table next to us was quite entertaining to say the least...so we had fun!! LOTS of fun! Thanks for going out again ladies!

Don't it always seem to go???

I am scheduled to get my hair cut and colored this afternoon and this morning I went into the local coffee shop and the lady working is also our P.A.T. lady and she says to me: "Did you just get your hair cut? It's really really cute!"...DOH! Then I follow up my coffee visit to the doctor's office for my "yearly exam" (fun) and my doctor says the SAME THING!!! Don't it always seem to go that the day you plan to change something b/c you are tired of it, everyone else starts to notice your hair to then make you not want to change that something! LOL! Oh well. Still gonna do it...this will be the first time I have colored my hair in over a year! The last time was when all of us gals went right after Camden was born last year! We should do that again...I have another fun salon full of fun gals!

A fun visit!

My friend Lynn Gonzalez, whom I originally met in San Diego (we worked together at UOP), came to visit me this weekend! Her and her hubby now live in Texas and she was in Tulsa on buisness so she decided to rent a car and drive up to see us! It was so good to see her! I practically LIVED at their home(s) in San Diego when we lived there! We had some good times. We didn't do anything exciting, just hung out at home here mostly. I took her around town, which only took 5 minutes...ha! I cooked a lot and we chatted a TON! It was so fun and I was sad to see her go this morning! She did get to see the awesome Kansas weather in action though. When she arrived on Thursday morning it reached almost 70 degrees and when she left this morning it was snowing...OY! She loved it though, since she has only see it snow maybe one other time in her entire life! LOL! Anyway, that is all that is going on for now.

Camden's eye still looks gross but it is healing just fine. He is walking SOOOO good now too! It won't be long before he will be standing up on his own in the middle of the room without the assistance of a couch or table or chair!

Oh and Wednesday night I tried to slice off part of my thumb with the mandolin slicer...that was painful and altogether awful! It still hurts and looks disgusting but it is healing now too! That's all that's new for now.

Eye Doctor

So Decovin had his first eye doctor visit today. He was a very big boy and did everything the doctor asked and didn't complain at all! It was AWESOME! Totally unexpected. I forgot my camera but took a few with my cell phone...

The doctor said that he is a wee bit farsighted right now but that usually most kids are up until the age of 5 and then it evens out. He also said that if one parent is near sighted (me) then there is a 5 out of 10 chance our kids will be too! Oh well. There could be worse things.

I took another pic of Camden's eye today...day 3 after the incident and it now has that awesome "jaundice" yellow look to it. haha!

Right in the kisser!

Yesterday I went to my in-laws for my sister-in-laws bday dinner my M-I-L was making. Camden decided to trip over his own two feet and smacked RIGHT into their coffee table...his eye turned purple IMMEDIATELY and then it started swelling w/in a minute after that...it was pretty traumatic but he got some tylenol and some ice and he was fine. Left a nice little reminder though! YEEEEEOUCH!

Dentist

Well, Decovin & I went to the dentist this morning...this was supposed to be Decovin's first teeth cleaning but he didn't want to have anything to do with that...so he sat in the chair and let the hygenist look in his mouth and he used the "spit sucker" once (this really freaked him out before I showed him it was ok) and then he was virtually done. The dentist came in and looked in his mouth and said it looked ok and that they will try again in 6 months to do a cleaning. He suggested that anytime we are walking by to bring him into the office and let him cruise around the office so he gets used to the atmosphere...I thought that was nice of them. The dentist was super nice and VERY good with Decovin. He came out and showed him where the coloring book and colors were and put on a video for him, etc...chatted with him...it was real sweet. He was just scared of all the hoses and instruments I think...understandable...he doesn't eve like the vacuum cleaner! LOL! So we will try again in August. But I was able to sneak in a few pics....

Any ideas...

So according to my mother I am apparently not raising my children right because they refuse to eat vegetables. Sorry mom, didn't mean to throw you under the bus but that one cut below the belt a bit...ouch! Still recovering.

Camden will dabble but Decovin refuses. So, besides my current attempts of re-introducing the vegetables in different form, with butter, without butter, with brown sugar, without brown sugar, with salt & pepper, without salt & pepper, sometimes I will mash them up and put them in the foods but if Decovin even so much as sees a green spec of anything he refuses to eat it???? I'll take suggestions, willingly...shoot:

Oh, and my last pediatrician suggested I give them V8 Splash in the meantime...but that has a lot of sugar, etc...so i don't know what to do...

Squeaky clean house is no more...sad.

So the boys were gone with Amanda last weekend and we cleaned our house from top to bottom...it was SQUEAKY clean. They return home and that was done within the first 24 hours! Haha! Oh well, it was nice while it lasted! I think Amanda had fun too, but I think she was also ready for her free time again! LOL! Here are some pics she sent me while she had them in her custody...hehe!

They made Heart shaped cookies:

Decovin is all about cookies!!They went to the mall to play:
Apparently these kids wanted to play with Camden:
Breakfast of champions:

Huh?:

****************************************************************************

For Valentine's Day, Bob came home from work at 7:30am (cuz he was on night shift) and brought me these with a funny card. I had hid a card in his lunch box the night before...;-)

So other than that, not much has been shakin'! Love reading all your new updates! Keep 'em coming!

Camden Walked!!