Weekend without Lulu

This past weekend (Aug 21-23) Lulu went to "RAT CAMP"--a place where she hoots and hollers with her new staff members and the other RA's and residence life staff members from different areas of the campus to see which area yells the loudest (not surprisingly, she came back having lost her voice)...meanwhile, on the home front, Daddy and the kids had lots of fun.  On Saturday, we swam in the YMCA pool.  Carlita recently passed her swim test, so she can swim and go down the big slide all by herself!  Daddy is so proud of her (yeah, she swims like a dog, but she's swimming)!  And she loves that slide...she must have gone down it like fifty times in a row--the lifeguards were cracking up!  Sunday, we went to the Delaware Children's Museum--we had fun climbing, jumping, hanging, making art projects, playing with water, going down slides, dancing, playing with toy trains, and listening to a story...you name it, we did it.  Poor Daddy had a hard time keeping up with them--Little Lukey was motoring around like a locomotive!  In and out, in and out...and Daddy thought it was hard chasing after those marathoners!  After all that excitement, Daddy had to relax, so we spent the rest of the day reading books, coloring, and playing at home (Daddy and Carlita colored five big pages together).  All in all, it was a fun Daddy-kid bonding weekend!

Last weekend of freedom (at least for Lulu)

So Aug. 14-16 weekend we wanted to enjoy the last weekend that we could enjoy before residents move in and all the craziness starts. I flew back from an on-campus interview on Friday the 13th. Saturday morning I had to close my summer school operations. As soon as I was done, we packed up the kids and headed out to Cape Henlopen State Park in Lewis, DE. Usually it takes an hour and a half to get down to the beaches but today it almost took us two plus hours due to travel. But once we got there we were set. We splashed in the water and relaxed on the sand. Sadly, Carlita had woken up that day with a fever and a bad "woofing" cough so we only lasted two hours on the beach but it was worth the trip. We got home, went to eat at the dining hall, and was early in bed.

On Sunday, it was a rainy day so in the morning Luke and Karl went to church and Carlita stayed with me because she was sick. I did take her food shopping with me, and some other work shopping. But the evening came and it was time for Lulu to get back to work.

Summer is over for this family. We really took advantage of all opportunities to enjoy ourselves. Wish it could last longer.

Karl turns 31st

All our attention has been on our kids but Karl did have something to celebrate, turning 31 years old. Since it was during our Hershey vacation, his mom made a gourmet dinner and a three-tiered birthday cake. Carlita and I got balloons for him, and Luke helped out in eating the food. Watch the videos to join in the celebration.

Videos from Hershey Trip

There was so many memories made during our vacation in Hershey, PA. Check them out below and enjoy!!!

The first one is the family taking an amish buggy ride. Luke was passed out in the car so I stayed behind and watched the Strasburg Railroad train come by. Then we went on to the Chery Crest Adventure Farm where Carlita got to ride down a chute. 

Here Carlita is showing off her moves at the AACA museum.

Here Carlita is making up a story with Aunt Laura.

 In this video,we went to Fort Delaware and Carlita and Kenny were recruited into the ranks.

In this video Carlita and Aunt Fran help little Luke (the eagle) grow up with help from Carlita the raccoon. 

Here we are at the Butterfly house at Hershey Gardens. It was amazing to be surrounded by butterflies everywhere!

New Family Portraits

When the kids have their birthdays I always take them to Kiddie Kandids to get their birthday pictures and a new fmaily picture made. This year with Karl's fmaily in town they joined us in the shots. The pictures came out beautiful. I can't believe my little girl is 5 and my boy is 2. I'll be updated our logo soon but enjoy the slide show.

Job Searching and searching....

Some of you know this or not but Lulu (that's me) is on the job market. With the Doctorate done, I am ready to move on to a higher-level position that allows me greater influence on policy development and implementation. I'm interested in either continuing on in residence life or moving into instructional design with greater assistance to faculty in their curriculum development. I have been concentrating my search regionally, but after a discussion with my mentor I opened my search to locations Karl and I would be willing to move to. I have applied to over 40 jobs and now am getting phone interviews and just got a call for an on-campus interview. It’s an exciting time for the Luka family. We’re anxious on where we’ll be at but we’ll keep you all in the loop.

First weekend of August adventures

With the past weekends being spent traveling or away from home, we stayed close to home. In the morning we went to Painted Platypus, where we made our annual plates with the kids’ foot and handprints. After lunch with Luke taking a nap, Carlita and I went off to watch Toy Story 3. Okay everyone!! My new favorite movie. I was crying for the last twenty minutes of the movie. Carlita had to calm me down with “Mommy it’s going to be okay”. Pixar really knows how to pull at your heartstrings. I highly recommend this movie to anyone. Definitely will be in our gallery when it comes out on DVD. After the movies, we headed to the Bear YMCA. Karl and Luke joined us and after a few hours we returned home for dinner and sleep time. On Sunday, we took the kids to a state park called Alapacas in Wilmington, DE where a boundless playground exist. This was lots of fun for us, and then we went out to Chammps for lunch. We had to also go purchase new scheakers for  Carlita - she seemed to grow over now. She was just 10 and half and now she' wears a size 11 kids. We got two shoes: one blue/yellow that Luke can wear later and one with tinkie Bell with glitter and that lights up when you walk. Carlita also got two new pairs of shades - she was very excited about them as you can see in the picture.

Unfortunately for me, summer is over. Hall director training started Sunday evening and my free time will be taken up preparing my staff for opening and the academic year. We’ll be eating in the dining hall all month, but the kids and Karl will have limited access to me for the month. Welcome to August.

My girl can swim!!

We’ve been working hard with Carlita on learning how to swim. A major reason why we joined the Y this summer was the beach-entry style pools they have so she could go off on her own, but be confident in the pool. With the Illinois and Hershey vacations we were in the pool everyday and then all of a sudden she could swim. The next step was to help her work on the skills needed for her to pass to the “yellow” level at the Y so she could ride down the slide. She needed to swim across the pool and float for 30 seconds. Carlita was determined to make this happen, and this past Thursday, Aug 5^th Carlita got into the big Y pool and passed the test. I was cheering her along the side, and actually had other parents join my cheering. She was so proud of herself and she ran to the slide and rode it 20 times. It’s just so amazing to see these moments happen in your kids’ lives. This day will forever be cemented in my mind. My little girl is growing up.

Carlita plays T-Ball

Karl coached Carlita’s 4-5 year old T-Ball team this summer.  Karl did not have a clue what he was getting himself into when he signed up for this—kids running the wrong way, unable to hold up a bat, all standing in one spot and then charging together like a herd toward the ball….Carlita had some difficulty being patient, waiting her turn to hit, paying attention (“Honey, look!  Here comes the ball! Oh no!  Watch out!) and sharing daddy (she was often attached to my leg as I was trying to help the other kids).  However, she did love the snacks at the end of the game and the medal she got after the last game.  As for the game itself, not so much…

Lulu's Virtual World

Some of you may know this or not but I am a contributor to the SA collaborative online. I provide monthly commentary on all student affairs topics, but in particular technology application to our profession. Check out my postings.

Summer-time : time for renewal and new beginnings
Party Like it's 1999
Run as fast as you can - Aug. 14, 2010

I also had two articles published online in June in the Commission of Student Involvement newsletter, Interchange (p. 6 and p. 8). Get a chance to read them over. I will be working on a manuscript of my research to submit to some journals. I’m really excited for all these new endeavors that allow me to express and expand my expertise. Take some time to read these over and let me know your thoughts.

Highlights of Kaliher Reunion talent show

The long version will be available on CDs sent out to each family head. This video is a quick highlight of the talent show.

Hershey vacation 2010

We had a week long vacation in Hershey, PA with Karl's mom (Carlene), step-dad (Dave) and brother (Kenny). There was alot of adventures we took on so I'm going to give just highlights of what we did everyday. Enjoy the slideshow at the end of the post that includes ALOT of pictures we took of our trip.

Friday, July 23
The Oregon crew arrived into Philly. Karl went to get them and I took the kids direct from Newark up to Hershey. We arrived at the same time into Chocolate town and ate lunch at Red Robin. After lunch we got to our condo, the Suites at Hershey . Our room was gorgeous with two rooms with their own bathroom. Quickly we went to the pool to cool off and then to the shopping outlets right next to us. Early to bed for everyone since it was a long day of traveling.

Saturday, July 24
Since the weather was going to be in the 100s (YES!!! 105 was the temperature), we decided to go to the Indian Echo Caverns, where it's always 52 degrees.  Very nice on this hot day. The location of our condo was close to everything. We got to the caverns in 15 minutes. the kids got to play on the playground and then off into the caverns. We learned alot about them. After a hour or so, we headed back to our condo for Luke's afternoon nap. Carlita was back in the pool with Grandpa and Karl and I went to the outlets to shop a little bit. Aunt Fran then arrived in time for dinner and we planned out our next day's adventures. Kids to bed and some card playing for the adults.

Sunday, July 25
Today, again was going to be a HOT day up into the 100 plus degrees so we decided to go to the Antique Auto Club of America Museum . There we saw Betty White's Cadillac, the total collection of fords, the bus from Foresst Gump, and Muscle cars. the kids did have a bit of a hard time (they really wanted to get into those cars), and there really wasn't anything for them to do. I wished they had a car or a place set up for kids to play with cars. Would have made the experience much better.

We were done with the museum within an hour and decided to go on the Middletown-Hummelstown railroad.  The directions to get to there was challenging but we made it in town for the noon train. It was a nice 45 minute ride out to the caverns and back to Middletown, just in time for the heaviest rainstorm I've seen in a while. On the train, the conductor gave a narration of the history and folklore of the area and then on the way back there was music played on an accordion of old folk songs that I've never heard of. Once we got into our cars, we ended up getting detours trying to get back to our condos. A major accident happened at the exit we needed to take. After 45 minutes (which should have been 15 but that rain really messed things up) we got back to the condo for a late lunch, and Luke's nap. Carlita again was back in the pool.

Once Luke woke up and we had dinner, we headed over to HersheyPark for preview night. with your ticket you can enter the park three hours before closing the day before to get a head start on the rides. We split up in two groups. Everyone except Carlene, Luke, and I went to ride some coasters while we stayed in the Founder's Circle for those rides. the park closed at 10pm and then we headed home. Yes the kids stayed up but it was all worth it.

Monday, July 26
Our day at Hershey Park. We got to the park by opening (10am). We broke up the day into 3-hour periods since we were parking at Chocolate World which was free for the first three hours (really why pay for $10 a car if we have to come in and out). So the first three hours we went off to the water section, the Broadwalk. We had a blast on the Tidal Force. The kids and moms stayed in the Sandcastle Cove while the big kids tried to get on water rides. We soon realized that many of us won't be getting on rides today due to long lines. I really think amusement parks are all about testing your patience since you have to wait so long for everything. After our first three hours, we returned to the condo for lunch. Luke and Carlene were left behind and the rest of us returned to the park. Carlita really wanted to do the ferris wheel so we did that. Everyone else did more coasters, and then we did some rides in Mid-America. Karl wanted to do a water ride with Carlita, and after a hour wait they were able to go down the Surge. I don't think that was really worth the wait but it was nice for them to do.

Our three hours were up and back to the condo we went. There waiting for us was a gourmet meal to celebrate Karl's 31st birthday. I rushed out to get balloons, and the celebration began. The cake was made from starch and Karl got some cards.

Then we were off yet again to Hersheypark for our last three hours of enjoyment. I took the kids to Minetown while everyone else went on coasters. We all met up at the CoalCracker, a water log ride, and ended the night driving cars around the track. We were exhausted from this day of adventure so straight to bed we went back at the condo.

Tuesday, July 27
After yesterday we took the morning off and relaxed in our condo. Really with kids there's no relaxing. they are up at 7am so Karl and I took them to Starbucks and then the pool. We then decided to go to the ZooAmerica which was nice and easy to go through with everyone.

After the zoo, Fran and Luke took naps and the rest of us went to Chocolate World (finally).  We got to do the free tour and get a candy bar. Then we decide to make our own chocolate bar, which was so much fun to decide what to put into our bars and see it being made. We were all dressed up - I think we look hilarious - what do you think?

We then returned to Fran and Luke at the condo, had dinner, and Fran left for her NJ home. Bath time and then bedtime for the young ones, and the older ones card playing time.

Wednesday, July 28
Another day of adventure. This time to Hershey Gardens. You see we purchased a "passport" ticket to three places: ZooAmerica, The gardens, and the Hershey Story. The gardens were very beautiful and for me the highlight was the Children garden. One of the best gardens I've even see. We got to go into a butterfly house and be surrounded by butterflies (wow). There was alot of ways the kids could interact with the garden.

Then afternoon naptime for Luke, pool for Carlita, and lunch. In the evening we went over to Hershey Story, where we learned all about Milton Hershey and the town. It was a great museum, with great interactive components. But the best part was the Chocolate Tasting. We got to taste 6 different chocolates from around the world, ranging from 30% to 75% cocoa. Wow!!! Some of them were way too intense for us. Very interesting experience. Highly recommend to do that. Then back to condo, dinner, baths, bed time, card game, bed time for adults.

Thursday, July 29
We've experienced everything we could in Hershey so we went off to Harrisburg, Pa the state capital to go to the State Museum. An driving adventure to get there but worth it. This museum had a great kids' section while the adults (minus Lulu) went to check out the museum. There was a planetarium as well. I did take the kids on a 15 minute tour of the museum. Really there's no hope to read and look at things but to cruise right through. The museum is a hidden gem that I recommend to anyone.

After the museum, we returned to Hershey for a late lunch and Luke's naptime. We took Carlita, Dave, and Carlene for a bit of Karl's b-day shopping. Karl got three new pairs of shoes and a new suit from Calvin Klein (very nice!). Then we returned for pool time. Aunt Laura and Bob arrived and we had dinner outside in a gazebo. A great way to end our week in Hershey.

Friday, July30
After loading up and checking out, we headed to Strasburg, PA for an amish experience. We arrived at the Red Cabosse Hotel and Restaurant in time for an amish buggy ride. Luke was asleep so we didn't go on it. When everyone returned, we had a picnic and went to the little petting zoo on the proprety. Luke really liekd the chickens, and Carlita the goats.

After lunch we headed over to Cherry Crest Adventure Farm. We've been wanting to come here for a while. Carlita really wanted to do the maze and we tried to find all the lost pieces in there (a fun but LONG game). After 45 minutes the Luke family escaped out of the maze to go do some of the farm rides, which were cool. There's the obstacle course, the chute slide, the barnyard jump, and giant sling. We really wore out the kids (and the adults). Kenny and Dave did find all the pieces (they took 2 and a half hours to do so). Then we finally hit the road to return to Newark, DE. Home finally we ordered out pizza, did baths, and got to bed. Boy what a long day!

Saturday, July 31
Today was Carlene's 58th birthday. In honor of that, we took everyone to Fort Delaware State Park. This is a fort from the Civil War, and you have to take a ferry to get there from Delaware City. We got to experience a gun being shot off, and alot of re-enactment. Carlita and Kenny got to be "drafted" up for war, and we learned alot about Delaware's history.

We returned home, and while everyone took naps, Karl, Carlita and myself went off to get haircuts. We returned to get dressed to go out for dinner at the Stone Balloon Winehouse, my new favorite restaurant on Main St.  Dinner was rough with Luke since we woke him up from his nap. Karl and I took turns eating and taking care of him. We returned home, ate cake, and played cards.

Sunday, Aug. 1
In the morning, we went off to Kiddie Kandids to take family shots. shots of the kids turning 2 and 5 and group shots. I wanted to do this since everyone was here visiting. I think the pictures came out gorgeous - check out the snapshow.


The the rest of the day was spent getting ready for Luke's birthday party. More details on his party will be on a different post but today was spent getting ready for the party, having the party, and cleaning up. My boy is turning 2. Wow! we had a great cake and a pool party. We ate and hung around. It was a great day to celebrate together as our last day together. After the party, we had baths, and card playing.

Monday, Aug. 2
And finally the last day of the Oregon crew's visit. Up early to take the kids into daycare, and then Karl took his family to the Philly airport. It was a whirlwind of activity and adventures for the Luka family. Glad that everyone came out to visit us and we really got to enjoy each other and experience new things together. Below are the pictures from the entire trip. Enjoy! 

Click here to view these pictures larger

My boy turned 2

Wow! What a journey it has been to bring Luke into our lives two years ago. If you don't know you can catch up on his blog, http://lukaroobaby2.blogspot.com/.

Aug. 4^th. That’s the day Luke arrived two years ago. Life with two kids is ENORMOUSLY different than life with one kid. Luke was a much wanted baby. Karl and I worked hard to get pregnant a second time, but we found out that my tubes were messed up. Once I had a simple operation to fix them, we got pregnant right away and started planning how to introduce the new addition to our family. Then we discovered that I had placenta previa which meant I couldn’t carry full-term. Luke was supposed to be delivered late August, but my body had other ideas and I went into labor and had to deliver Luke through emergency C-section. Due to his early arrival, he developed Respiratory Distress Syndrome and had to spend the first 20 days of his life in the NICU. 

Below is a video of Luke's first days of life in the NICU and his homecoming.

We spent the first year making sure he didn’t get sick and doing a lot of doctor’s appointments. The second year of Luke’s life has been amazing. He learned to walk, eat on his own, and say a few words. He now looks like a little boy, not the sickly boy of 2 years ago.

So it came for us to celebrate Luke’s b-day. With Karl’s family in town we decided to host a party on Aug. 1^st, just a few days before the 4^th. The theme was Hot wheels. Luke loves cars so I was so excited to have this theme. I was able to send off invitations before we left for our Hershey vacation. Arriving back one day before the party, I ordered a great cake from Acme that had a racetrack in the shape of a “2” with a hot wheel car on top. On the day of the event I got balloons, the cake, and food for the party. With the party being held in the lounge of the hall we live in, the crew helped decorate with streamers and got all the toys set up in the lounge. Karl set up the pool out back and we got a big tent and chairs outside. Then the party began. Luke and Carlita were excited about the pool. The adults just relaxed. We had Samanta, Luke’s madrina, and Linda with Hannah (a friend from Luke’s daycare) there. My family couldn’t make it but it didn’t matter. We celebrated and enjoyed the company of kids and of our little boy, Luke. He got some very nice presents, even though I don’t think he really understood what was going on. Carlita helped him out though. What a good big sister.

We did celebrate Luke’s actual birthday with left-over cake on the 4^th. I made cupcakes for his school and he opened a few more presents. Samanta came over and we took a trip down memory lane looking over pictures of his birth and other memory items. Luke has grown so fast and I so adorable. We are blessed to have him in our lives and I am so excited to see how his personality keeps on developing.