what i've got

I've talked about it here, in my column and other places I write:  you must love what you've got.  I really believe that it's the secret to life.  That being said, life doesn't always make it easy.  We all have constant curve balls coming our way, making our vision blurry and our thoughts collide.  But then something, anything, sets us straight again on the path we're meant to be.  For me, that path is loving what I've got.

The more time I spend with my family; wait - the more unencumbered time I spend with my family - the easier it is to stay on the path.  This weekend, even with holiday busyness, we had some time to just hang out and be a family.  For me these truly are the best of times.  And yes, the kids argued about silly things.  One threw a fit when a playroom sleepover was abruptly terminated.  Another fought the first of two annual attempts to get the child to wear clothing other than sweats.  The third stomped and sighed in shock when we had the audacity to request bed-making and wet towel pick up.  They're kids.

They're kids that frustrate me at times and push my buttons like no other humans could.  They're kids that shock me in both good and bad ways.  They're kids that make me cry hard and laugh harder.  They're kids for which I worry tirelessly, pray so hard and dream beyond imagination.  They make me beam with pride and ache with exhaustion.  They are our kids and for all their human faults, man do they deliver on joy.  Seeing them this weekend, dressed in their Sunday best and making me proud at every turn, I realized that all that matters is right now and loving right now.

I surely do love what I've got. 

laudery winnings

Talking about what we'd do with $640 million in lottery winnings was a highlight of our weekend.  I doubt the kids really even knew what the lottery was before the Mega Millions jackpot grew so large that they were hearing about it everywhere.  In an attempt to kill the hour drive to the city on Friday, we talked about what we'd do with a potential windfall.

There was lots of generosity and philanthropy.  Life would get better for everyone we love, for sure.  We would build a huge, luxurious lake house somewhere beautiful and warm and another somewhere mountainous and think seriously about where we wanted to live full-time.   Jobs would be quit and dream jobs would be created.  World travels would commence.  Financial worries would be a thing of the past.

I commented to Mike how funny it was that the kids threw out a few ideas, but didn't have the same intensity that we did in planning out our ideal financial life. It made us feel good that whether things are tight or not, they don't feel financial pressure, or at least not for too long.

Lately though, Riley has been paying more attention to how much things cost.  It's like, when I give them an idea of how expensive things are and try to help grow the roots of sound financial decision-making, she's the only one who actually hears me.  She thinks about it.

At the end of the day on Friday, just before the big drawing, we stopped to buy some tickets.  The girls were excited and even though we assured them that it was just for fun, they wanted to go in with me.  While we waited in the long line, I noticed that Riley's fingers, all of them, were crossed.  They were both a bit giddy, kind of jumping up and down.  I reminded them that the chances were EXTREMELY low that we'd win and Riley blurted out loudly, "But I want to move to Hollywood!"

Everyone in line burst out laughing.

"Listen, even if we win, we're not moving to Hollywood!" I jokingly answered.

"Alright then, North Carolina!!" she responded with her best Groucho Marx eye brow raises.

Needless to say, we didn't win.  But it took Riley a few days to believe in our loss.  On Sunday morning, she raced out to get the newspaper and compare our numbers with the ones in the paper.  Finally, she got it.  Not this time.  But what enthusiasm!  What confidence that the future holds great things!  They all have that and I love it.  And I have it, too.

After the loss sunk in, Riley sneaked over to my phone and texted Mike at the gym.

"We won the laudery, Mike!" she wrote.

"What's that?  A windfall of dirty laundry?" he responded.  (Um, when it comes to winning, we've got that category covered!)

playing hookie

After 18 years, I finally talked Mike into a day off for no good reason!  We hit the city on Friday, the kids' last day of Spring Break.  After a few awesome hours at the Adler Planetarium and bumming around the beach for awhile, we had to try out Big and Little's, a killer dive from Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network.  What a thrill it was to eat where Guy, one of our favorite celebs, visited!

This family of foodies even felt adventurous enough to try the foie gras and fries!  (Well, everyone but Finn, that is!)  I love trying something new, and I love it even more that our kids do, too.  Will I eat foie gras again?  Um, no.  I think it's safe to say that it was too much for this vegetarian-ish girl, even though as a food lover I felt compelled to try it.  But will we return to Big and Littles?  Absolutely!  The fish and chips was the best I've had and generous enough for Logan and me to share.  (And anyone who has eaten with me knows, I don't like to share!)  Mike had a sausage sandwich smothered in blue cheese - OMG.  And Riley and Finn devoured "the biggest and best burgers they've ever had!"

We shot over to Sprinkles Cupcakes to try the award-winner, but the city would not allow us to park and the line out the door was a bit of a deterrent.  Driving around the block for awhile, while I waited in the chilly air, near Michigan, right before rush hour, wasn't so appealing.  So we headed to our old fav, Molly's Cupcakes.  As usual, my namesake did not disappoint and we stuffed our faces with the most ultimate indulgences on the way home.  The winner?  A peach cobbler cupcake that blew our minds.  It's quite possible that it might be the best thing that I've ever eaten.  I'm serious.

Needless to say, a van full of very stuffed Anderson's headed west, chatting all the way about what we'd do with $640 million of Mega Millions winnings, should we be so lucky in the drawing at night. Man can we dream big!

Nothing better than a day like this with my most favorite people in the world!

an early, unexpected spring day

Last weekend, we visited Mom and Tony in Evanston for the day.  Mike's cousin Chuck and his family were in town from Ohio and we had a great time getting to know them better and running around at the lake.  The weather this spring has been nothing short of amazing!  Eighty degrees in early March is just unheard of, but we'll take it.  As a matter of fact, keep it coming!

flippin' at the flip'r invite

Riley chalked up some personal bests, placing on all events with a most memorable 2nd place on Floor and a 3rd place AA at the Naperville Flip'r Invite.  We're so proud of her achievements and all the hard work she puts in to this sport that she loves so much.  Looking forward to a nice six-week break before our Peoria road trip for the State Championship in April.

Here are a few shots of her GREAT meet!

Waiting for her awesome floor score -9.375!

Waiting to vault!

Happy with a 9.05 on beam - one of only a few 9's that day!

Assisting the announcer with the raffle winner...

Floor - 2nd Place!

  Third All Around!  What a great meet!

coverage of Help Haiti

Logan's class had a great Skype with Dr. Campbell on Friday at school.  I can't imagine how much they've taken away from this experience and the knowledge they've been given about how their money will actually help the people of Haiti.  I am so grateful to everyone that was involved. 

The kids were covered in our local paper, the Ledger-Sentinel on Thursday and are currently up on our Patch:  http://oswego.patch.com/articles/snapshot-churchill-fourth-graders-raise-300-for-haiti

Yay Logan! Next stop, Disney's Friend for Change!!

helping haiti

What started with a short story read to the class resulted in a big surprise for Logan's teacher.  After taking the next day off, she returned to school to find that her class was so inspired by the hardship and turmoil so many Haitians deal with daily, that they started their own impromptu fundraiser and on the first day, while at school, they collected $87!

Logan came home daily toting huge bags of change and cash, counted it and returned it to the principal the next day.  Within a few days, the halls of the school were lined with promotional posters, collection jars had been delivered to all the classrooms and the kids even stood outside school bathrooms to ask for pennies.  With no direction, operating on pure desire to help, these kids were accomplishing their goals!

As this evolved, I thought of only one person:  Dr. Sylvia Campbell.  I worked for her in Tampa during the mid to late '90's when she began traveling to Haiti annually to perform surgeries and give medical care to those in need.  That was before the natural disasters that completely ripped this third world country apart.  Nearly twenty years later, Dr. Campbell has gone to help up to four times per year with her organization, Village Partners International.  In Mombin Crochu, they've now built a small clinic to take care of patients.  They've expanded to visit other countries in need as well.

We keep in touch and I knew that she was currently in Haiti at the clinic on one of her trips.  After getting the okay from Logan's teacher, I reached out to her to find out if the class could make their donation to Village Partners International.  In my message, delivered to this small clinic across the world in real-time via Facebook, I reminded Dr. Campbell of a handmade, light blue paper rosary she gave me after her first trip there so many years ago, that still sits in my jewelry box today.  Who would've imagined that I'd someday have a daughter whose giving spirit would lead us back together, who would be inspired to help Haiti, too.

Through tears, Dr. Campbell responded, saying she'd be "proud and honored to be part of the children's beautiful hearts and spirits!"  The $300 earned by the kids in two short weeks will go to the organization's Food for Healing program, which provides meals for patients who typically don't receive any food. Not only does it promote healing, but it supports the local economy and provides jobs, too.

I am so proud of Logan's involvement in this!  And thanks to Dr. Campbell, who has handwritten a letter for me to give to each student and will likely do a quick Skype with the class, these children will have a true personal connection to how their efforts will make a difference in Haiti.

How lucky we are for our kids to have this experience at such a young age! Logan and her class have inspired me to find more ways to give to others in need and hopefully someday, to travel to Haiti to help in person!  When Dr. Campbell first went all those years ago, I knew it was something I wanted to do someday; now I know it's something I want our whole family to do.

To learn more about Dr. Campbell's and VPI's efforts, watch this you tube video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-u6CkvxH9s