The rainy day box

Rainy days can get hard- as Timmy gets annoyed w/ not being able to go and play outside. So- I created a rainy day box- full of different craft things and activities. So on this rainy day- Timmy got to play w/ playdough which was fun. And we made kites to hang on our front door... which he loved decorating.

Our visit to Irish Fest

Every Memorial Day weekend- Gaelic Park has the Chicago Irish Fest (Gaelic Park is located right here in Oak Forest- near Tim's parents house). It is one of the largest Irish Fests in the country. Chicago area- specifically the southside- has a huge Irish population- over 660,000. So this is a huge ordeal. The fest brings in some of the best traditional Irish and Contemporary Irish musicians. The music is CRAZY GOOD!

Due to not camping this weekend- we went there as a family on Saturday. This was Tim's first time since he was a kid and I only went once in 2003 (Tim was camping that weekend and I stood up in a wedding so stuck around town). The cost of the ticket includes unlimited midway rides- which Timmy took full advantage of and loved every minute! There was also pony rides and a petting zoo which he loved.

We had such a good time during the day- we went home, at dinner and let Timmy nap only to return and have more fun. If the no camping thing should have to happen again in the future- at least we know of something to do!

Our Summer Home

After our last trip to Ocracroke Island last summer- we realied that we did not have a very storm friendy tent. So- with our big trip out West coming up we got a new one. This time we did our homework on what we were getting. We already have an Eureka screen tent (that we LOVE) and we ended up buying another Eureka tent- it has a room divider in it- and the poles are heavy & sturdy!

Since we didn't camp this weekend (the Tim's are getting over a virus and didn't want to make it worse w/ the cold weather) we put up the tent to make sure there wasn't any leaks. This thing is HUGE!

Timmy gave the official thumbs up!

Closer than I thought

Two nights in row- Timmy woke up during the night because Lucky Dog decided he wanted to sleep in the middle of the bed. Being that he is a near 100lb dog- that didn't leave much room for Timmy (especially since Timmy tosses and turns a lot). So last night- Lucky Dog didn't get to go to bed w/ Timmy (because I wanted to sleep thru the entire night for once!!)

So, last night at about 11pm, Timmy woke up crying real hard. By the time I got into his room- he was standing in the corner by his dresser and closet looking freaked out. When I picked up up, Timmy calmed down and said "dog." I asked him if he wanted Lucky Dog in bed w/ him and he shook his head yes. So we walked out and got Lucky Dog. As soon as Lucky was in bed- Timmy fell fast asleep (until 8am... YAHOO!)

I guess they are closer than I realized!!

What a goof ball!

Yesterday afternoon, Timmy walked out of his bedroom carrying his last year's halloween costume (which was a giraffe). He handed it to me, sat done and then stuck his legs up in the air- hinting that I needed to put it on. He kept the thing on for a good hour- he LOVED it.

You just never know what he's going to do next :)

Sherry's playground design is a hot seller!!

Here's a picture of the recent playground that I sold and was recently installed up in Wheaton, IL (for a large apartment complex). The cool thing (other than selling it and making some money for the family!) is that I designed this play structure!! I designed it last year and this is already the second one I've sold (of that same design!). And... it looks like I'll be selling another one of these in the weeks to come (have verbal agreement- just waiting on a signed contract before celebration begins).

A few years ago when Tim first started selling and installing (and then later consulting) for Kidstuff- all he did was look at playgrounds and critique them. It drove me nuts! Now... I'm the one doing it!! It's been such a blessing having this side business to make some extra money. Good thing I got my dad's selling genes in me! :)

How Lucky & Timmy became friends

It's not that Lucky Dog didn't like Timmy- it's more that he just didn't know what use there was for him. Lucky went from being top notch and numero uno in the house (much to the cat's dismay) to number two. If Timmy came into the room- Lucky went into another room. Lucky did everything he could to avoid Timmy at times. Can't really blame him- on many occassions Timmy would "drive" his big dump truck right into Lucky as the poor dog was sleeping. So when you add that on top of the additional attention Timmy gets from us- it's a rough life for Lucky Dog (not).

Well, we have figured out how to get number two (Lucky) to be friends w/ number one (Timmy). Now that Timmy is sleeping on the big boy bed- we let Lucky sleep on the bed with him (which is a major step up from the cold floor in the living room!- Heck, it even beats the couch he would sneak up on in the middle of th night).

Additionally- we had Timmy start to give Lucky his treats. And any hesitation that was left in Lucky was resolved. I wouldn't call it love yet- but definately friends w/ a lot of tolerance :)

Movement in Hydrocephalus Awarenss

New Studies have shown that one out of 500 babies are born w/ hydroceaphlus. This means the number is on the rise- five years ago it was 1-2 out of every 1,o00 babies were born with it. Additionally, there are nearly 400,000 elderly men and woman who are misdiagnosed w/ alzheimers who actually have hydrocephalus (and would receive immediate relief from symptoms w/ a shunt).
I'm part of the Hydocephalus Association's Advisory Committee and advancing advocacy for proper attention from both the media as well as the medical/health industry has been a focus. In today's conference call, a co-advisor, Michael Illinos, shared the link to his recent interview w/ Comcast News. Hopefully it's the first of many opprotunites for us to get the word out. See the interview on youtube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJ9NqGGiszE

Oak Lawn Moms Meet up

You'll notice that I frequently mention in the blogs the playgroup that Timmy & I go to. This group has been a lifesaver for me- and Timmy (I think he was getting sick of seeing just my face all day every day). We go to at least one playdate a week and he recognizes some of his little friends now.

A couple of times a month we have "moms night out", such as last Friday about 17 of us met up at TGI Fridays. Or sometimes we meet up at someone's house- it's so great to get out. I only have a couple of friends in the Chicago area and none of them live anywhere near me. This group has helped out so much (and I don't think about being back in Oshkosh as often now!).

Anyway- I thought I would attach a picture of a playgroup we had at a local childrens museum last week... just so you know who we are talking about :)

Reising Weekend Hike

Being that we are so lucky to have so many great Forest Preserves around us, we try to make it a habit to take a family hike whenever the weather is nice. Saturday was a great day for such a thing (and I remembered to bring my camera). It was a little muddy but not bad- and it felt good to get out and about- especially considering how icky the weather got on Sunday!

We let Timmy walk for the first 20 minutes or so but then in an effort to get some good exercise in- we put him in the backpack. He hates it at first but then loves it. And Tim's back muscles are getting stronger all the time!

Sure do wish Spring would stick around for real though!!

Miss Nicole- our new friend!

Well, Timmy started Speech therapy today (Thursday). Miss Nicole is the therapist (turns out I've met her before at a scrapbooking party- she is the sis-n-law of one of my friends from the playgroup!!). The first session went really well and it's more than likely going to get better the more Timmy gets to know Miss Nicole. Turns out Timmy is probably saying all sorts of words but because he doesn't say the M, P or B sounds we don't recoginize them. So- that is what we are working on. Also continuing to work on building the muscles in his jaw (blowing bubbles, using a straw... things like that).

The best part of Miss Nicole's visit was that Timmy got to play w/ playdough- which was the best!! Stimulating other senses help with developing his speech- so w/some of his bday money we went out and bought some playdough of our own... w/ some fun gadgets to it.

We are excited to see what will happen and how Timmy will come along!!!

A GREAT DAY FOR THE ZOO!!

On Tuesday, Timmy & I met my friend Beki and her son Luke at the zoo. Ellie, the little girl Beki watches, also came with. Luke & Ellie were born on the same day about 2 hours apart (they were neighbors in the hospital and in their homes!). The weather was perfect and we had a great time. We heard the tiger "roar" and got to see a bear playing in the water.

Timmy hates being in his stroller but he was walking really, really slow. So, the three kids held hands with Beki and they thought that was the coolest thing. Timmy looked like such a big boy walking hand in hand with Luke & Beki! (I almost started crying).

Yahoo... I won!

I'm the first to say that my luck isn't usually the best of luck. Well, when I came home from my trip to Oshkosh, I had a v/m on my home machine. A rep. from University of Phoenix online stating that I had won a prize! They were at my school promoting their bachelor degrees and I put my name in the box for all these different prizes. I ended up winning a Nintendo DS Lite and it included 2 games and a "starter kit" (carrying case, headphones & car charger).

Now I have another way to occupy my time during our upcoming road trip to UT!

Springtime

Nice weather has finally returned- and we can't keep Timmy inside (which is a good thing). We've been lucky and have gotten tons of free stuff... a 2 seated Step Two wagon, a Cozy Coupe car, a sand/water table, and on. He loves riding his coupe and his inch worm!!