AoM Takes on Chi-Town

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of making my first trip to Chi-Town. Here's a photo diary.

Looking up in downtown Chicago. I went for a volunteer event and took some time to site-see. Couldn't believe how big the downtown was.




I encountered my fear of heights by going out on the SkyDeck at Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower).



The view from the skyledge.

Me in front of one of the Milennium Park sculptures.

The same sculpture, bt with the skyline reflected in it. I think it's called the Cloud Gate or something like that. But, all the natives call it The Bean.

My wonderful hosts in the 'burbs of Chicago. They took me site-seeing and let me crash in their home office. And, they took me out for my first real Chicago deep-dish pizza at Giordano's.

This is my Chicago colleague, who took me to the Field Museum to see Sue the dinosaur. It was the first time we've met in person even though we've worked together since October 2009.

And real Chicago deli food downtown. I just liked this because Eppy was the original name of the UNT mascot (now known as Scrappy.)

Christmas Card Time!

It's that time of year again when we get ready to start sending out the holiday cards and the good folks at Shutterfly are so convinced that once you get your holiday cards from them, you'll never go anywhere else! So, they've asked me to offer readers a chance to get 25 free cards for your family (use them for birth announcements, birthday cards or, like me, for Christmas cards.)

Last year was my first year to use Shutterfly for my Christmas cards and I got so many compliments, I knew I had to create one of these cards again. The one you see here is our 2010 card.

I'm thinking, too, of creating some photo book gifts for the grandparents of this year in photos of the kids. They've all three grown so much and I do take a few pictures here and there ... You can also create your own personalized greeting cards, too, for special occasions (and when you don't want to run to the store!)

So, here's the challenge for you. I have special promo codes for 25 free cards for three readers. Tell me why I should give you the free cards ... what's your story? Because everyone has one ... hard luck, good deeds, or simply because you've got cute kids to show off ... let me know by emailing armyofmomblogger at yahoo dot com and I'll respond ...

Happy Early Thanksgiving!!!

Mostly All's Well

Things have been nutty and crazy (which is normal for me), but things are turning out ok. My old minivan finally had the last thing break and inspired me to trade her in. So, I got a new Mitsubishi Outlander on Monday. It's really cool, but lots smaller. So, I'm having to adjust to having space for lots of junk in my vehicle. That's probably good.

After almost two months of testing to find out why I have blood in my urine - the urologist concluded that it's just the way my body works. *sigh* Some people just have microscopic amounts of blood there and I appear to be one 'em.

I got to see the Rangers win the American League Championship Series Saturday night. it was one of the best nights of my entire life ... seriously!

Kidneys, ureters and bladders: Oh my!

*sigh*

Army of Dad likes to give me massive amounts of grief because he says I have an uusual hobby: an annual trip to the OR.

I really don't mean to and I actually missed a few years, thank you very much.

And, maybe I'll miss it again ... but I just don't know and it's making me crazier than usual. Went to the doctor because I was retaining water and my skin felt like a grape about to pop.

So, the dr wants to know what's causing the edema (the fancy word for swelling.) So, an EKG shows it isn't my ticker. A CBC just shows some elevated LDL levels, so bring down the cholesterol, he says. Then, there is the matter of tinkling into a cup. Not so lucky there. Showed blood in my urine without any signs of infection to be causing it.

So, off to the hospital I go (today) to have a renal ultrasound and an IVP (where they inject dye into veins and then check the kidneys, ureters and bladder). Yippee. Not. Some minor notes on the procedures:

The sono tech did her exam. I'm always asking questions about how these things work, so it's like a class for me. Of course, the techs can't tell you anything ... but as I'm leaving from the ultrasound, the tech says "So, you're not having any pain?" Which makes me wonder what she saw that should/might be causing me pain.

Then, the IVP tech is a cute young guy ... he's taking me back and stares at my chest and then says: "you're wearing a bra, right?" Um, yeah. Then, he looks at me again and says "If you just want to take off your bra, you can just wear your T-shirt and skip the gown." Hell yeah, that is definitely preferred. The yoga pants (thanks for the idea, Army of Dad) seemed to be a better choice than jeans for the day b/c I was able to keep them on the whole time.

So, I'm giggling at cute young boy asking me to remove my bra ... then, he's positioning me on the table and says "I'm going to feel you" as he's got his hands on both of my hips. Then, "perfect!" I did start giggling out loud then. The nurse in the room (who did the IV) laughed, too, when I said "A cute young boy just grabbed both my hips and said 'perfect.' My day is improving!"

So, we're taking different x-rays and I'm asking him questions about how they work, etc. And, I'm about to wet my britches and ask him if I can go to the restroom and he says to wait because they will do a "post-void" x-ray, too. So, hooray, peeing is part of the procedure. I can't wait! So, when we get to the point in the x-rays when I can go potty, he says "You ready to go to the restroom? I know you need to go." Yep, I replied, Could you read my expression that clearly? "Nope, I saw your bladder."

Hahahahahaha. I told him to stop making me laugh or I wouldn't make it to the bathroom. So, we go back to the xray room and he goes to show the radiologist the films and returns to tell me I can leave. So, I can go to the changing room to get my bra back on, I ask. "Unless you wanna go like that," he tells me. *giggling* I love cute boys with a sense of humor!

We did talk about our families and he and his wife are trying to have a baby right now. That's so sweet ... and, fun, too, I'm guessing. Ha!

So, now, the waiting is the hardest part. Xray tech said my doctor should have the results by the end of the day. Hopefully, he'll call today or tomorrow. (The doctor with the results, not the cute Xray tech.)

Heelys Go Back to School

For back to school this year, Little Bit got to sport to some brand new blinged out Heelys. And, the good folks at Heelys want us to share the love with our readers, too. She has really enjoyed them. Not only are they really fancy (which is her style), but she likes the skating aspect of them. She practiced for a day or two and finally got it down.

Heelys has a Labor Day Sale that they've asked me to share with you: Buy One Pair of Heelys, Get the Second Pair for $30 (plus, you can get free shipping with a code here)

To help get kids into new pairs of Heelys, or to replace Heelys worn out from constant summer use, Heelys is having a Labor Day sale: buy one pair of Heelys from the Heelys shop, http://shop.heelys.com, and get a second pair for $30. The least expensive pair of Heelys in the shopping cart will be discounted. This offer is good for U.S. customers only.

WHEN: 12:00 AM (CDT) Friday, September 2, 2011, through 11:59 PM (CDT) Monday, September 5, 2011.

WHERE: Heelys Shop - http://shop.heelys.com/

After you've selected your two pair of Heelys, view your cart. At the top of the cart is a place to enter a Discount Code: HeelysLovesBloggers.

PRODUCT INFORMATION:
HEELYS: MSRP: $47 and up

Heelys wheeled footwear allows the user to seamlessly transition from walking or running to rolling by simply shifting weight to the heel. Users can also transform Heelys wheeled footwear into street shoes by removing the wheel and replacing the heel cavities (adaptors) with heel plugs. Heelys wheeled footwear provides users with a unique combination of fun and style that differentiates it from other footwear and wheeled sports products. Heelys are sold in sporting goods and specialty stores nationwide and in more than 70 countries around the world. An instructional video on how to get started can be found at www.Heelys.com.

Log on to http://www.Heelys.com for products, videos and how-to guides. Follow Heelys on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/Heelys, Twitter - http://twitter.com/Heelysworldwide and YouTube - http://www.youtube.com/Heelysworldwide.

Genie in a Bottle

Our sweet girl had her dance recital today to the Arabian music from The Nutcracker. But, Little Bit kept saying she was a Genie in a Bottle, so I keep humming that song now. She was a beauty and I was so proud of her for keeping the smile going for the whole dance. She doesn't like being short, except when it comes to performing - because she can always be in the front.

Stimulating the economy

The boy needed new shorts for school, baseball socks, baseball cleats and football cleats. We dropped big bucks at Academy (because I'm avoiding the tax-free weekend crowds) ... then I get home and realize the boys needs sliding pants, too. We had this exchange (he's 12 by the way):

Me: Oooh, don't you need new baseball pants because you have a big hole in the knee?

Hot Rod: Yeah and they're getting way too short. (points to about two inches above ankle)

Me: You can wear your pants like Jim Thome and not Jeff Bagwell, you know.

Hot Rod: Thome doesn't wear his pants like that. I'm going to go look. *baffled look* He does wear his pants like that. Who's Jeff Bagwell?

Me: Great Astros player. Wore his pants over his cleats. I never understood how he ran like that.

Hot Rod: *google search & baffled look again* Wow, mom. Was he a good hitter?

Don't look so shocked, child. I know a few things about baseball. I haven't always been JUST your mom.

Helloooooo ... anyone there?

I really need to make this a priority again. Hello folks. I know, I know ... I said I would do this more frequently and then life got in the way. I was having thousands of hits a day, every day ... and then, whammy.

I got a full time job and everything changed. Not to mention the Facebook phenomena. That is truly when my postings started declining. I got FB and found myself immersed in it and my blog was almost completely replaced. I know what the allure of FB is to me: instant feedback without the worry (most of the time) of the trolls out there being jerks.

Anyway ... not that much as changed, other than I'm just really really REALLY busy. Here's the kids - yes they are enormous now, a few weeks ago. Little Bit was singing in a church performance. Hot Rod had the splint b/c we thought he had a buckle fracture on his wrist (it wasn't, fortunately) and there's my giant Pickle, who turns 17 in a few weeks. Funny how time passes before our eyes. I was looking at pictures of my parents' 50th anniversary party from 2007 and two of my favorite cousins have died since then. It broke my heart. We should really love those around us and never pass up the opportunity to talk to them. I regret all those missed chances now. Oh, and it is one of my friend's birthdays today. Maybe I'll text her some birthday wishes. Back to work ... I'll try not to be such a stranger and maybe I'll have something prolific to say next time. Just wanted to come back and say HI!