Back to the "real world"

So I'm back in the real world after my trip to Chicago. The transition back is taking some time because we recently had a death in the family so my first days back were far from "normal". And just as a thought things were settling down, I've got another busy week ahead of me.

This afternoon, I'm taking my two youngest children to the doctor for "well-baby" check ups. You know what that means ~ shots! Yuck! My youngest daughter is scheduled to go back to school on Friday if everything goes well with her TB reading on Thursday. The school she's attending requires that "someone she knows" be with with her for her first two half days at school. Well, there's no one but me that can attend, so I'm going to be short some work hours this pay period. On top of that, we are short handed at work because someone else is out sick. Friday is also the Memorial service for our family member, followed by the burial on Saturday. My husband and I are making 75 CD's for the service so that will keep us busy the next few nights.

With all that said, I best be getting back to work. I'll blog again later. ;)

Great Day

Well my first day of training is over and I'm even more excited about working with Dynamite Sports than I was before. I also met the people of NSCA (www.ncsasports.org) and learned about their company and organization. That's another great group of people. We just finished dinner at a place called The Fireplace. I ate ribs and Alaskan King Crab Legs ~ awesome! I also watched the Championship Game of the WCWS for softball while we ate ~ such an awesome game! Well that's all I have time for right now - I'll be back later. SM

From Chicago

Aloha from the windy city of Chicago! I just arrived here yesterday and begin training with Dynamite Sports today. Yesterday the weather was perfect for someone from Hawaii. Unexpectedly, I wore the one pair of shorts I brought with me. We're dressing casual business for training so I won't be using shorts the rest of the trip. My brother-in-law picked me up from the airport yesterday when I arrived at 5:15 am (12:15 am Hawaii time). He then took me past Wrigley field before dropping me off at the apartment he and my sister-in-law have here in Chicago. My brother-in-law played baseball in college, and since I played softball in college as well, he just had to take the route past Wrigley to their apartment. Along the way I noticed so many of the buildings, just like in the movies, built of brick. My brother-in-law informed me of the Chicago city ordinance that requires use of building materials other than wood due to the historic Chicago fire. Such cool looking townhouses, flats, and other types of buildings that you don't see in Hawaii line every street. Another thing I saw here that you won't see in Hawaii are the "Advertise Here" postings on the sides of the buildings. I wonder how much it cost to "advertise there".

After sleeping the morning away yesterday, my sister-in-law and I drove to Target and K-Mart where I bought a few last essentials for my stay. I saw lake Michigan and the boats and yachts harbored there along the way. Once I had everything I needed, we went back to the apartment, picked up my bags, and rode the bus to my hotel, the Omni Ambassador East. On the bus ride we passed The Lincoln Park Zoo which my sister-in-law told me is free. We'll definitely have to come back one day with the kids. There's so much that they can enjoy here and they want to visit their Aunty and Uncle so badly because they are about the only ones in our family who haven't been here to visit my sister-in-law and her fiacne since she moved here from Hawaii over 4 years ago. Anyway, the Omni is nice and has a beautiful lobby area. I'll definitely take pictures before I leave. I won't really have time for sight-seeing. My husband came here once, but only for the weekend to help his sister move from one apartment building to another about a month ago, so he didn't really have much time to relax and enjoy the city either. We'll definitely need to plan an trip with the family so that we can stay for a while and enjoy the city.

Well...I'll be back later with more, but for now, I'm off to prepare for my first day of training!

Dynamite Sports Event

Yesterday I met Michael Nadal from Dynamite Sports. Of course, he looks a little different from his picture that's posted at www.DynamiteSports.com but I could still tell it was him when I first saw him. We had lunch at Todai Restaurant and got to know each other a bit by talking story over lunch. I know I can learn a great deal from Michael and Rick and definitely look forward to the experience.

After lunch we drove to Mililani High School for the Dynamite Sports event that Michael spoke at last night. I enjoyed seeing the coaches presentation again and also seeing the parent presentation for the first time. I believe the seminar affected many of the coaches, parents, and student-athletes the way that it affected me ~ the tools, resources, and information provided by Dynamite Sports is just awesome! I'm so excited about getting started and be a part of the of Dynamite Sports' mission of making a difference in the lives of young men and women around the country.