BACK ON MY FEET (BOMF)

Before moving to Chicago a friend of mine told me about an organization called Back On My Feet. If a remember correctly she sent me a job ad and told me apply for an open position in Chicago. I didn't apply for the job, but I visited their Web site to see what the organization was about.

A girl several years ago was running by a homeless shelter, as she often did, had an epiphany and the organization was born. (that's the short version) She began a running group with the residents at the shelter to give them hope about the future. The organization has spread to Philadelphia, DC, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, and two other cities Indianapolis and Dallas later this year.

The thought of volunteering with the group did appeal to me. However, I was extremely nervous about the ratio of residents to volunteers. For several months I put off attending the orientation. After I returned from my holiday break I made a commitment to myself to sign up. Now you may be thinking why in the world did you join a running group in the middle of winter? Good question. I don't have no a clue. After attending the orientation last week, I signed up to run on Wednesday mornings at 5:45 am. Volunteers are "required" to run at least one day (Monday, Wednesday, or Friday) a week with the group. My plan is to run two days a week.

I walked to the YMCA (near our apartment) on Wednesday morning. I walked through the doors and straight into a hug. At orientation we were warned that this is a hugging group. I was welcomed with open arms to the group. It was an exhilarating feeling. I had several conversations with the residents who told me about their efforts to get back on their feet and how the organization had helped them with jobs, etc. After a few exercises we were off to the streets. Residents had the option to run 2 or 4 miles that morning. All miles are tracked and milestones are recognized during the week. To be honest I thought I could only run 2 miles. The last time I ran outside was last November in Miami. I started running with another volunteer, also new, and a resident. When we reached the 2 mile mark I was ready to quit for the day, but my running partners kept going and so did I. We may have pushed our resident to far, but we kept up; he's only been running for a couple months now. I was impressed by his determination and spirit.

This was not at all what I was expecting. I have to admit, I've always been fearful of homeless people. I have no clue why, because I have worked in soup kitchens and lived in big cities where homelessness is prevalent. I've known about it my entire life. I think it's the unknown that scares me. I do realize these people are just like me and at one time had a family.

One of the reasons I wanted to join BOMF was to dispel my own myths. I was blown away by the people I met last week. I'm not naive enough to think that everyone in this stage of life are similar to the people I met, but I do have a better understanding. I'm really excited about this program. I think in the long run, I'm going to get more out of this experience then I thought.

Thanks Anne for the great recommendation.

Bathrobes

I spent the last 2 1/2 days in a fabulous hotel in Boston. One of the best things about staying in "luxury" hotel are the bathrobes. They are soft, comfortable, and warm. I'd walk around in them all day if I could.

Growing up I thought bathrobes were worthless. My parents had robes, thank God, but I hated them. I bought my first robe when I went off to college. I shared a bathroom with 30 other girls so the robe was a necessity. That robe stayed with me throughout college. I couldn't bear to throw it out when I moved into a duplex. I never used it, but it was still in good shape.

Preparing for my move to DC I thought as a "grown-up" I needed to have a robe. At this point in my life I probably didn't need a robe, but I can't you how useful it's been and how much I love it. I don't know the lifespan of a robe, but I think mines hitting the retirement age. A part of me can't bear to part with it, we've been through so much. I'm looking for ideas if anyone has a brand they recommend.

American Girl

Walking down Michigan Ave in Chicago you'll see large gigantic red bags dangling from the arms of middle aged women and their daughters/granddaughters. For those of you unfamiliar with these bags they have come from a little store called American Girl.



My first experience with AG was almost 19 years ago. Wow, I just aged myself. My mom had received this catalogue in the mail that was filled with dolls. And not just any dolls, but dolls with hair you could brush/style with beautiful clothes and accessories. It was love at first sight, until I saw the price tag - $88 for the doll/book. The whole starter collection doll/book/accessories for close to $110. I really wanted this doll called Samantha for Christmas, but also realized that $100 was a ton a money for a doll you played with. Christmas morning came and went, and no doll. After breakfast a mysterious package was found behind my grandpa's chair. It had my name on it. (My parents always found ways to surprise us with unexpected gifts ex. Nintendo with the power pad year before). I tore through the paper and found a box. Inside I was wishing it was the doll I so desperately wanted. I carefully opened the box to reveal the most beautiful doll I had ever seen. I gingerly removed her from the box and refused to put her down. Several of my other friends also received AG dolls as gifts and we scheduled play dates for our dolls.



During the course of the next year I continued to receive the AG magazines. To my surprise they unveiled a new doll the following year - Felicity. You guessed it, she was my Christmas wish that year. My parents once again tried to fool me into thinking that I wasn't getting a doll. I mean one expensive doll is enough right? The mysterious package once again appeared at my grandparents house and Felicity became the object of my affection that year. I continued to play with my dolls, but the play dates became fewer and fewer. I mean I was getting older and playing with dolls became less cool. However, those magazines still continued to come and with my mom's gentle nudging she continued to fuel my love of dolls.



That Christmas I received my third doll - Kristen. At the time there was only 4 dolls offered by AG. The only one I didn't have (and still don't) is Molly. I didn't play with Kristen much. In fact her hair is still in the same braids she had when she arrived Christmas morning. The dolls still remained a permanent fixture in my room, but now were shuffled from shelf to shelf to make room for more important things - stereo, Cd's, etc. I didn't receive any more dolls until I purchased one in 2003.



I randomly came across an AG magazine and flipped through it. They had introduced several new dolls since I started collecting them back in my youth. As I paged through I came across the "Girl of the Year" collection. AG was selling a new doll for only a year as part of a limited collection. I don't know what happened inside me, but I had to have this doll. Yes, it's a bit weird that a 22 girl wanted an AG doll. I received the doll (surprised the prices hadn't gone up) and proudly displayed my newest purchase on my desk. The next time I went home and found my other dolls and bought them back to my college duplex with me. Yes, my friends thought I was crazy and one of them said she felt like the dolls were watching her, but I felt like it brought me back to my care-free childhood days. Seeing as I purchased my doll days before she was set to enter the vault I began receiving the AG magazines again and the newest Girl of the Year" was introduced.



I mention this because I was home for Thanksgiving this year and my mom asked me if I wanted Lanie (2010 Girl of the Year) or a sewing machine. Easy answer right? I actually hesitated and didn't respond. I'm old enough now that I shouldn't want to continue receiving these dolls, but I do. The only one I'm missing is the very first one Lindsay. The only years they didn't have a Girl of the Year doll was in 2002 and 2004. I have the remaining six dolls, plus my original three. My mom has also started collecting her own dolls over the years so we have a total of 13 with my sister's doll.



The AG company has exploded. When I was little the stories didn't exist. You could only buy accessories over the phone or through the magazine. Now they have four stores (that's right, KC has it's own store now). The friends concept wasn't around but I feel that it has been incorporated nicely. They have begun retiring the dolls too. Lucky for me, I have all the ones that have retired except Felicity's friend Elizabeth.



My love of dolls was passed on to me from my mom. I'm so thankful she encouraged me to love dolls and I hope that one day I can pass on the experience to my daughter. If nothing else she'll never have too many dolls to play with.

Handmade Christmas Gifts

I really love Curly Girl Designs. I just found out she is from STL as she was featured on the news today. I checked out her blog and she is doing a giveaway on her blog. The contest is sharing your best or worst handmade gift that you have received or given.

So here is my story.

During high school my friends and I drew names for Christmas. I was always in charge of this process as I loved Christmas! This particular year I wanted to make my bestie a ”scrapbook” , so I rigged the process to ensure that I would pick her name. This was over 15 years ago before scrapbooking was a booming craft phenomenon.

I had been planning this gift for several months. Saving my double photographs (before digital) and searching through countless magazines for the perfect phases that described our relationship. Once I felt that I had the crucial items I began arranging my “book” (a three ring binder with report cover inserts). I carefully taped my photos and phrases to the computer paper (not acid free) with care. After completing the book I reviewed my masterpiece and beamed with pride. I was so proud of my gift and couldn’t wait to share.

My friend opened her present and loved the book, or at least that’s how I remember it. I do remember looking back through the book our senior year and laughing at all the crazy things I had included thinking they were cool years before.

Since then my scrapbooking “talents” have vastly improved. I still enjoying giving handmade gifts, but I often think I get more pleasure out of making the gifts than those receiving them.

My Mom

I decided to dedicate this post to my mom, who btw is amazing. Sadly I didn't always feel this way growing up. I was grounded, didn't always get everything I wanted, etc. etc. However, one of the things that will remain with me forever is how my parents (especially my dad) attended every sporting event I had. Anyway here is the real reason for my post....

I traveled to my old elementary/middle/high school last week to help my mom with her Annual Thanksgiving Feast. I used to help out with these in high school as a way to get out of class. There were some perks of having your mom teach where you went to school. The last one I attend was sometime in college over 8 years ago. I had mixed emotions walking into the school grounds that I had once dominated. About 50% of things were the same like the murals we painted Junior year, our Spanish teacher Mr. Hall who now teaches Spanish for the entire school K-12, and the dress code.

My mom has been teaching at TG for 18 years now. This year she is teaching kindergarten. My mom has only taught kindergarten twice in the past 18 years, so I was curious to see her in action. I've always been amazed at the amount of patience my mom has and how consistent she is with the kids. They don't get away with too much, but they also love her at the same time. Sometime after the Feast when the kids were working on blends (phonics for those public school taught kids) I sat back in amazement at the way she worked with the children. I've seen my mom teach before, but this was different. I had a new found respect for my mom and teachers in general. They have so much responsibility in shaping a child's future. I can now understand how schools have gotten so competitive.

The thing that amazes me the most about my mom, is her endurance and spirit. One time during spring break we were at my soccer game and my mom broke her ankle. She didn't let that stop her from going back to school and climbing the three flights of stairs to her room everyday or the time she had eye surgery and only took two weeks off. These kids are the light of her life. She was definitely born for this role.

Thanks mom for all you do!