I had an appointment at the doctor today, just for a normal exam and a follow-up on my high blood pressure. (Who knew I would be the type of person to have high blood pressure, right?) I was not very excited about this appointment due to the blood pressure thing and the getting weighed thing and the probably waiting on the doctor thing. I had no idea. I got there at 10:50 for an 11:00 appointment and checked in. It did not get past me that there were six women already seated in the waiting room, and they had ALL checked off my doctor’s name on the sign-in sheet. I…
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So Random.
I’m feeling scattered today so I thought I’d spill what’s in my head here, for your enjoyment (hopefully). 1. I still have not developed our waterproof cameras from the cruise in January. This bothers me and I need to rectify that situation as soon as possible because hey, I may have taken some AWESOME pictures while snorkeling! 2. The weather is beautiful here in Chicagoland this week. It’s really interfering with my work, for two reasons: because I get easily distracted looking out the window and because Roxie stares at me constantly, willing me to take her out on a nice, long walk. She will stare at me for hours…
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McDonald’s “Happy Meal Chefs” Contest + #GNO Twitter Party
It was last August at the BlogHer conference in San Diego when I first heard about how McDonald’s was updating the contents of the popular Happy Meal: instead of an order of small fries, they were substituting a smaller, kids’ sized fry along with apple slices. Although my kids are years beyond Happy Meals, I completely appreciated the efforts of McDonald’s to listen to their customers’ requests for healthier options. The “new” Happy Meals are being rolled out nationally now, and to celebrate this new development the company is having a great contest that I totally wish my family could enter. (We’re all too old!) The Happy Meal Chefs Contest…
- Confessions, Do I Really Want My Readers To Know This?, Queen of Denial, Something That Could Change Your Life
The Haircut (Alternate Title: “I Guess It Just Wasn’t Meant To Be.”)
My hair has never been long, thick, and glorious. It’s been long. That’s it. One out of three? Not so great. I have always wanted to have bouncin’ and behavin’ hair that has just the right amount of curl and looks just as full at the end of the day as it does in the morning. I have always wanted to put my hair up in a messy-on-purpose-but-still-looks-cute ponytail, or a casual bun with pretty tendrils gracefully hanging down on each side of my face. I have always wanted to have hair that allowed barrettes and other accessories to cling to it rather than sliding off almost immediately as if…
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Sometimes The Actual Surprise Is A Surprise
Eleven years ago, Jim came home from work with the news that he was headed to Orlando, Florida for a conference. We decided that it would be fun if the boys and I tagged along and took advantage of the fact that his company was providing a stipend for Jim’s accommodations and flight: the trip as a whole would be less expensive for us personally. The plan was that I would take the boys to the Disney parks during the day and Jim would join us there in the late afternoons when his sessions were complete. We decided to surprise the boys and not tell them about the trip until…
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On Longing To Reconnect
We joined our temple back in 1996, when D was nearly four and ready for preschool. J was one. Jumping right into the Jewish community here, our family joined five other families (all with a kid in the temple preschool program) to form a havurah, and we celebrated most of the Jewish holidays together for years. Back in the day, I served for a couple of years on the Early Learning Committee, I was a substitute preschool teacher, and I taught Sunday School at the same time. I served on the Membership Committee for a while, and was a part of the committee that found and recommended our current rabbi.…
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It’s A Baby Shower For Operation Precious CARgo!
I have signed on to do yet another thing. I know what you’re thinking: “Is she NUTS?” “She’s so busy!” “She is DEFINITELY NUTS.” This is really really cool, though. (And it’s short-term, which is a bonus.) I have been asked by the lovely people of Chevrolet to captain a team for Operation Precious CARgo. The mission is to collect registry items for a deserving, expectant military mom. So…cool, right? Basically my “team” (and that includes my Social RevUp partners MJ and Dwana who are unofficially co-captaining) is made up of all of my local family and friends. Do you know me? Live in the Chicago area? You’re on my…
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Inside The Life Of A Teenager
We don’t see a whole lot of J these days. Like many teenagers, his waking hours are full of commitments that keep him out of the house (and when he’s home, out of the family room), starting very early in the morning. On weekdays, he gets up around 5:30 a.m. to shower. He’s outside starting his car by 6:30. He picks up his best friend on his way to school. High school begins at 7:20. High school ends at 2:25. He drops his best friend off at home before heading straight for work. He works from about 3:00 until 5:30 each weekday (except for what he calls “No Work Wednesdays!”).…
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Mix It Up
This morning, I got up at an ungodly hour (3:00 a.m.) to drive Jim to the airport because he’s off to Arizona for a week-long bicycling camp. This week he’ll be riding around fifty miles each day, in the mountains and through the desert. The last time he attended Desert Camp was about four years ago, and he’s been chomping at the bit to get out there again so he’s pretty excited. I’ll miss having him around (I kinda love him, you know?) but I’m thrilled for him because he works really hard and this getaway was just what he needed in this frigid, depressing, blizzard-filled, miserable, okay, rather spring-like…
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I Have An Announcement.
It has been quite the week around here. On Sunday, Tracey and I held auditions for the Listen To Your Mother Chicago show (with some invaluable help from my City Half, Margaret). It was a long day, but it was a fun day. On Monday evening we auditioned a few more on Google+ Hangout, my new favorite technological wonder. We loved everybody’s pieces. We had some tough decisions to make. When Tracey and I tossed our hats into the ring and applied to bring LTYM to Chicago, we really wanted it. We had a few pretty good reasons why we wanted to do it, all of which were outlined in…