A couple of months ago I did a parenting bootcamp on facebook through a high school acquaintance, Kelly Hutcheson.

She is a huge follower of Dr. Shefali’s Conscious Parent, and runs free monthly parenting boot camps to help other parents.

There is a big emphasis on stopping yelling.

I found it very helpful. It doesn’t matter how many books or classes I take on parenting, I find having constant reminders of how to do it better works for me. And giving it to me in small daily doses helps me digest it better.

One of the tips she gave was to start a ‘random act of kindness’ board. I’ll admit I didn’t manage to get it done during the parenting boot camp month. Eventually it made it on the wall and we are reaping the benefits of it every day.

I put any act I find kind on there, big or small. It is usually acts that the kids do, but when someone from outside of our family does it, I put it in there as well so the kids get a larger view of the world and how to interact in it.

Twins cleaning trash up in the park.

It has been a a great, positive influence in our lives so I’m sharing the tip with all you readers in case you want to do the same!

Saturday we discovered our heat wasn’t working which meant a cold few days before we could get the problem fixed.

One of the things we did to keep warm was to light the fireplace.

The kids were in shock. We have a fireplace?

Yes, kids. We have two.

We told them we were going to roast s’mores after dinner and afterwards one of them went to put on their shoes to roast marshmallows.

“Our fireplace is inside”, we informed them.

Another revelation.

In a weird Owen Meany moment, Aaron very kindly donated all the sticks that he has been collecting all year for our fire.

Note to self: Jumbo marshmallows are too big to make good s’mores.

The kids loved the fire, and even turned off all the lights when they were done roasting s’mores and laid down quietly, wrapped in their blankets, mesmerized by the flames for a amazing few moments.

The next day Aaron tried to open the fireplace to retrieve the sticks.

Did I tell you Ben has his first friend?

I know. I thought it would never happen either.

But as it turns out, the saying is true. There is someone for everybody.

And these two seems to truly like hanging out with each other.

Because for years I thought it would never happen for Ben, watching this friendship develop is the sweetest thing I have witnessed in a long time.

May it last forever!

Hope everyone had as much fun as we did on Halloween!

We started the morning at Jack’s school checking out the Halloween parade.

Jack as ‘Snake Eyes’

Spectators – another Snake Eyes and the Hulk

Then I spent the afternoon cooking and cleaning so we could have some of Jack and Ben’s friends over to trick or treat.

Our neighborhood rocks for trick or treating, we got about 5 full size candy bars on one block alone. Unfortunately everyone knows about it and it’s packed with kids every year. I spent the entire time in a state of panic that I’d lost my kids. Luckily some houses also hand out adult wine treats as well.

This year it was so warm we decorated our back deck for the kids to play on. Not sure if they used it at all, all know it that they seemed to be running around in a large circle, between the 2 floors of our house.

Checking out the newly decorated deck last night.

Ben’s new trick this year was to lay on the ground then sit up and roar when people passed him. He scared quite a few kids and even a few adults.

Judging by the sleep in the morning and the size of the candy bag, I think it was another successful halloween.

The Halloween fun has started already!

I loved the costumes today because I didn’t even have to ask them to smile for the camera!

This afternoon we took a walk around Armitage Street for a little early trick or treating.

Ben chose the costume he wore last year and he got just as many positive comments as he did before.

It’s was nice for him to be the center of positive attention for once, even if it meant we had to cover him from head to toe to get it.

Otherwise we had not one, but two Snake Eyes. After Jack picked it, Sam wanted one too.

And that leaves Aaron the Hulk.

We came home, pigged out on candy, and after that dress rehearsal are ready for the real thing tomorrow!

In case any of you readers are not living in Chicago right now, let me explain what is going on here.

The Cubs just made it to the world series.

Lucky to see the team earlier this season with our friends Darla and Jeff.

I know it’s a big feat for any team, but our team it’s a miracle.

The last time the Cubs got this far was 1945.

And the last time they actually won a world series was 1908.

Since there are only 30 teams in baseball, statistically speaking they have defied the odds greatly.

So you can see why Chicagoans are so excited about this possible win. Everywhere you turn you can see Cubs spirit. Either with the Cubs logo or the slogan “Fly the W” (W for the win). 

UBS Building

Navy Pier Ferris Wheel

Art Institute Lion

Some companies are going crazy about it. American Airlines is all in.

American Airlines Crew

Flights from Chicago to LA last week.

And check out Giordano’s stuffed pizzas right now.

And it doesn’t stop here! People all over the world are celebrating.

Some say the reason the cubs have not won in so long is because the curse of the goat.

Wikipedia says the story goes like this, “The Curse of the Billy Goat is the name of a sports-related curse that was supposedly placed on the Chicago Cubs baseball franchise in 1945 by Billy Goat Tavern owner Billy Sianis. Because the odor of his pet goat, Murphy, was bothering other fans, Sianis was asked to leave Wrigley Field, the Cubs’ park, during game four of the 1945 World Series.[1][2] Outraged, Sianis allegedly declared “Them Cubs, they ain’t gonna win no more,” which has been interpreted to mean that either the Cubs would never win another National League Pennant or else that they would never again win a World Series.”

Bill Murray at Wrigley -“I ain’t afraid of no goat”

Others think we are winning because of Theo Epstein, who helped the Red Sox make it to the world series in 2004, breaking their own ‘Curse of the Bambino”.

Either way, it is a very exciting time for Chicago.

Go Cubs Go!

Yesterday we went for a fall frolic at the Chicago Botanical Gardens.

Our idea for the day was to see the leaves changing.

And to check out our usual haunts like the sensory garden, where you can touch and feel the plants. 

To observe the wonders of nature.

Fish spotting

The kids idea for the day was to wrestle.

And run. Always running.

Luckily It was a gorgeous day to do all the ideas we had.

Hope everyone is enjoying the wonderful fall weather as much as we are!

Last time my father was in town he came up with a brilliant game for Ben, one that kept him in his room away from his brothers, one that kept him off the iPad, one that made him think.

He simply took his collection of miniature superheros, hid them in his room, and told him to find them.

We have been playing this game ever since.

So when Ben lost another tooth, the tooth fairy decided to join in the fun and play a round of ‘hunt for the superheros’.

Many were in plain sight, but they were so small and we have so much junk in our house I figured he would walk right past them. He saw quite a few though, I guess his mini superhero spotting has been keenly honed. Luckily he has done enough of these to know to follow the clues, not what he sees.

Some were not in plain view, too, but he managed to find them all without the usual help of his older brother.

When the tooth fairy had the idea, she didn’t realize he has over 20! She used it as an opportunity to get him moving, alternatively hiding them in the basement and the first floor. But that also meant she had to climb up and down the stairs three as many times.

First to hide the superheros.

Then to go back and put the clues behind them.

Finally to follow Ben around to watch him find them.

Finally Thor gave him an envelope of money. $10 dollars, all ones rolled up like a pimp roll, which he carefully counted out to $11.

About a month before the marathon, Adam realized he was not ready for the race he signed up for.

First a bout of tendentious then a month of non stop work on a deal put his training too far behind to catch up.

Secretly I started running longer runs. But I didn’t mention to Adam why. I mean, I’ve always said I’ve never wanted to run a race that long, right?

When I got up to 11 miles I realized I did not have the time to train or want to build up to another 14.2 miles.

I thought that was the end of that, but Adam came home from work one night and told me he was going to run the first part of the marathon then duck out near our house instead of finishing.

It sounded so unsatisfying.

I suggested I run to our house, the first 9.2 miles, and he finish the last 17. He agreed.

Team Calisoff was born.

Rookie mistake, waiting until the last minute to use the bathroom.

After seeing the start of the race, I now understand why he wanted to do part of it, even if he couldn’t finish all.

30 minutes of walking to get to the start. Can you see the start in this picture?

I envisioned a crowded run, the participants getting in my way and ruining the flow of my ear plugged zen.

But I never even used my ear plugs because submersing yourself in the sights and sounds of the run were all part of the experience.

And even though it was crowded, it wasn’t so bad that I was annoyed.

I saw so many great signs. So many fans making such an effort! I few ones that I remember, “If Trump can run it, you can too”, “Brittney Spears Survived 2007, you can Survive 26.2”, “The Kenyans are Drinking all the Beer”, “Worst Parade Ever”, “I like your Stamina, Call me”, “26.2 miles is a lot of work for a banana”, and a surprising number of fart and poop jokes.

I also ran past the ROTC spinning guns in unison, and had the pleasure of running through boys town which had a few stages of drag queens dancing for us.

And sweet moments too, like when I happen to look up and spot windows full of people in their nursing home with their ‘go runners’ signs, waving. I made sure to high five every single kid I saw standing on the sidelines with their hand out, looking at the runners hopefully.

I made it to 9.2 miles in good form to find my cheering section waiting for me with bells.

I handed the race number over to Adam and off he went.

We finished with a combined time of 4:26.

Adam arrived home covered in salt, walking funny, and wrapped in heat sheet foil.

Living in a place with four distinct seasons has the pleasant rhythm of distinct traditions.

October is such a great month. It is always about pumpkin patches, apple picking and Halloween.

Today we visited one of our favorite pumpkin patches for fall festival, Sonny Acres.

It is always worth the long ride out to feel like you are in a country carnival, complete with rides, animals, and fried foods.

This year we did the day hay ride. (Much less spooky than the night one.)

Day Hay Ride

We spent time in the Kiddie Koral, a playground unlike anything you’ll see in the city.

Then we rode some rides and saw some attractions.

We left with a box of freshly fried donuts as a souvenir, which Adam and I plan on running off tomorrow…