Grandma's House, Chicago & Public Transportation

Gabe was on Spring Break this week, so if you've been wondering where I've been, I've been relaxing and staying miles away from my computer (and my email, and everything else that requires my attention on any other normal day).

We just got back from a short trip up to Chicago. Just me and Gabe. And frankly, it was great! I am NOT saying that I didn't miss my little munchkin terribly, but I was glad that we were able to get away and invest a little time in our marriage. (Which, if you're not doing, you should!)

Caleb went to Grandma and Grandpa Myers' house on Thursday and stayed the night with them while Gabe and I went up to Chicago. According to the grandparents, all went well - I'm pretty sure there was fun had by all.

Here's a few shots from our trip. And a shout-out to my friend Jennie, whom without her Chicago travel advice, we would have been lost (or at least really broke). Jen, it went great, we had a blast, thanks for checking on us farm folk from the country. :)

Getting ready to ride the el - don't I look Chicago savvy?

I promised Gabe we could stop at Wrigley - he had never been (it was a sacrafice for the sake of our marriage)
We took the el and a trolly to Navy Pier and walked the whole thing. Gabe claims that if we had looked at how long Navy Pier was when we first got there, there was no way we would have walked the whole thing (we were a little tired).

The Bean! After Navy Pier we stopped at Millenium Park (via city bus). We were a little out of season, but the bean is still a sight to see!

The artsy side of me hit while we were walking around Millenium Park.

After Millenium Park we stopped for dinner to get some great Chicago stuffed-crust pizza. Then on to a comedy club for some evening entertainment. We had a great time! And in case you weren't counting, that was 4 different modes of transportation (car, el, trolley, and bus). The only thing we didn't take was a cab, and after the last cab ride I took in Chicago with my ISU roommates, I didn't mind skipping that option. It's a wonder we're alive!

Walker Reunion (Take 2)

We had a busy weekend again this weekend. All of the roommates from ISU converged on the Myers' household on Saturday to take a second try for a reunion. Last time the weather was just too crummy to get everyone here. But not this time! With the exception of Ben, everyone was here! We lucked out that the weather was nice enough to take the kids to ISU to run around. The men stayed home to hold down the fort and make sure that no NCAA madness was missed (I'm in third place by the way - but there's still more basketball next weekend). Here are a couple pics from the weekend:

You would think we would be able to save up enough $$$ to fix this. Here are the boys stretching their legs by Stevenson Hall.

Jennie and Caleb

The kids

The girls

Funny, I didn't take any pictures of the guys. They must have been holed up in the basement watching basketball. :) Gabe claims that the guys just had to take the pictures, so that's why they're not in any of them.

Extra Birthday Madness!

Let the madness begin! For those of you in the midst of all of this NCAA basketball hoopla, you'll know what I'm talking about. As of tonight, March Madness officially begins. The teams have all been ranked...let the games begin! Now I'm sure you're wondering why in the world I would care about watching a bunch of teams I don't know anything about play games for the next couple of weeks. Well, I'll tell you. There is an extra birthday on the line here.
So here's the scoop. A couple of years ago, Gabe suggested that we fill out a bracket together. Now I can assure you that I had no idea what I was going to do when I needed to fill out a bracket. I follow Illinois basketball, and that's the extent. However, there was a twist. We weren't going to fill out the bracket in the traditional way.
Here are the rules:
1. Each player gets to pick 8 teams
2. You earn points according to each team's ranking. Therefore, if you pick a #1 seeded team, you only get 1 point for every game they win. If you pick a #10 seed, you get 10 points for every game you win. If you pick #1's you probably won't get as many points, but they'll play more games. But if you pick higher numbers, you might get a lot of points out of a team that only plays 2 games in the whole tournament. Make sense?
3. At the end of the tournament, whoever has the most points, wins!

And the prize is....an extra birthday! You get dinner out, cake, and presents. Oh sweet!

So needless to say, my bracket is filled out! And I'm in it to win it! Gabe's parents thought this was such a good idea, that they join us in the festivities every year. Right before Thursday night, we all pick our 8 teams (in separate rooms, of course...we don't want our opponents knowing what teams we're picking) and then reveal our picks and strategies before the games begin. I'll keep you posted! And I'll be sure to let you know where I went to eat when I win my extra birthday!

Playing Catch Up Again

It's been awhile, so instead of writing big long entries, I thought I would let the pictures tell the story. I wish I could say that I have fabulous pictures from my Hearts at Home weekend, but sadly I don't. I didn't bring the camera to the conference, and Gabe forgot to take pictures of the kids (the Silders stayed with us) while the guys were watching the kiddos. So here's what I've got!

Aren't they so cute! We broke out the Easter outfits early for the church's anniversary. Hey, you've got to wear an outfit more than once to make it worth it!

The first bike ride of '09! And his helmet finally fits! Doesn't he look so adorable!

It's the Weeeee-ride!

Caleb has found a new joy at the playground. We've moved on from the swings and now love to go down the slide.

Hearts at Home: Real Moms, Real Jesus

Today I’d like to welcome author and speaker, Jill Savage. Jill’s recent book Real Moms…Real Jesus, just released, and I wanted to ask her about her real mom moments..

Jill, tell us a little bit about yourself and your family.
Mark and I have been married 25 years and we have five children. Anne is 24 and married to our wonderful son-in-love, Matt. Evan is 21 and married to our beautiful daughter-in-love, Julie. Erica is 18 and a college student at Heartland Community College. Kolya is 15 and in the 8th grade. We adopted Kolya at the age of 9 from Russia---the God story about his adoption is included in the Real Moms…Real Jesus book. And Austin is 12 and in the 7th grade.

Tell us about your newest book Real Moms...Real Jesus?
Real Moms…Real Jesus is a book designed to help moms understand that when Jesus lived on this earth he was fully God, yet fully man. We don’t often think about the fact that he was a human being and he lived the full human experience: pain, hunger, fatigue, frustration, betrayal, disappointment. He experienced it all!

There’s one verse in the Bible about Jesus that simply says “large crowds followed him everywhere he went.” Well, isn’t that the life of a mom? Large crowds follow her to the bathroom. They follow her to the kitchen. To the grocery store. She’s in high demand! And when Jesus lived on this earth, He was in high demand, too.

Why did you want to write this book?
Most of us long for a friend who understands. Yes, we need girlfriends who understand what our life is like. But we also need to understand that we have a friend who understands in Jesus. Too many of us think of God as being distant and unable to relate to our daily struggles. But nothing could be further from the truth! He understands and he wants us to build our friendship with Him. He wants to not only be our Savior, but also our Friend.

What do you hope your readers will gain from this book?
I hope that readers will gain a new perspective about their relationship with Jesus. I also hope to weave God’s truth into the daily life of a mom.

What unique elements will the reader find in Real Moms…Real Jesus?
Each chapter looks at some character trait in Jesus’ life that can help us in our life as a mom. In between the chapters are interactive vignettes that provide brief, refreshing glimpses into our real, messy, busy lives.

There are also questions at the end of the chapter for further consideration and suggested Bible reading in the book of Matthew. If the reader chooses to pursue the suggested reading, she will have read the book of Matthew completely by the end of the book!

There is also a leader’s guide in the back of the book so it can be used in a group setting.

This is a Hearts at Home book. What is Hearts at Home?
Hearts at Home is an organization that encourages, educates, and equips women in the profession of motherhood. Hearts at Home encourages moms through annual conferences, our extensive website (www.hearts-at-home.org), a free bi-weekly electronic newsletter, a radio program, and an entire line of books designed to meet the needs of moms all over the world!


Any closing thoughts?
I am very excited about this book! I believe that if a mom can strengthen her relationship with Jesus Christ, she will feel more equipped to be the mom she wants to be. I’m also offering an online book discussion on my blog beginning Tuesday, April 7. If you’d like to join us, you can subscribe to my blog at www.jillsavage.org.

I’d love to hear a reader’s thoughts after they read the book, too! You can connect to me through my blog at www.jillsavage.org.

Thanks, Jill, for taking time out of your busy schedule to share your real mom, real Jesus moments with us.

You can purchase your own copy of Real Moms…Real Jesus by clicking here.

And be sure to check out Hearts at Home, their conferences for moms, and all their online resources here.

Is it spring yet?

It might not be spring, but this family sure is acting like it is. We can't wait to get out and play in the warm weather!

Our first wagon ride of the year. It was a bit chilly, but I think he liked it. Oh, and Curious George came along to keep him company too.

Caleb and I went on a walk today because it was like 60 degrees out. However, he refused to leave the house without the milk jug he had been playing with (that's what he's holding in my sideways picture). He found it sitting next to our garbage to be thrown out, and wouldn't put it down. So we took a walk with it. I decided that it was one of those things that really didn't matter, so I said "yes, you can take it with you". And he held onto it the whole time - on the walk, on the swings, down the slide.

Daddy built Caleb a box to climb around in last night. He's a little wary about crawling inside himself, but didn't seem to mind when I actually put him in there. Thanks Daddy!

Curious Caleb

I just had to share this. So awhile back I was perusing our free OnDemand stuff for Kids. I came across a show that just said "Curious: I Can Do It". Since Caleb loves Curious George, I assumed that this is what I had found, so I clicked on it. Turns out it was not Curious George, but a show called Curious Buddies. Caleb adores this show. I think we have watched this specific episode at least 20 times. I have it memorized. He gets so excited when we first turn it on, that I decided that I must videotape and share it with all of you. I only taped the beginning segment, which is when he gets the most excited to see his furry friends. I hope you enjoy!