Heroes on Deck: World War II on Lake Michigan airs Memorial Day Weekend

Over my 16 years as a freelance writer, I have written extensively on veterans and on World War II. I've had the opportunity to interview several World War II veterans during that time - some who served in Europe, some in the Pacific and some who served here at home. Every story is so different, but there are similar themes. I'm always blown away at how humble these men are and how they don't consider themselves heroes. Most of those I talked to lost friends during the war - and those who didn't come home are who they call heroes. So often they recall battles or situations with such clarity. The memories are still so vivid in their minds and it's been such an honor to be able to hear so many of them over the years.

Being a mom of five boys who all have an interest in the military and in World War II history, I was excited to bring them along when I got an invite to a preview of the documentary Heroes on Deck: World War II on Lake Michigan. Both their grandfathers are veterans as well as an uncle. And they have two cousins who are currently serving - one in the United States Marine Corps and one in the Indiana National Guard.

They've all been involved over the years in my efforts to recognize and thank veterans for their service. It's included starting a PTA program at their school to send off care packages to those deployed, "adopting" some individuals who were deployed, working with units in Afghanistan to send donations of shoes for orphanages near their bases and sending dog treats for K-9 units, taking them to welcome veterans home from an Honor Flight, arranging welcome home visits at the schools when local soldiers and marines came home on leave or returned from deployments, arranging for World War II veterans to visit local schools as guest speakers, working with a local organization in planting a tree and placing a marker in honor of a fallen marine from our town, starting a Veteran Appreciation Dinner with a local non-profit in our hometown and my son's school project of "Samples for Soldiers" where he collected small toiletry items to send overseas.  As a vice president and program director of our local historical society, I dedicated a full year of programming to World War II and the curator created exhibits covering the war. I've encouraged the boys and enlisted their help in doing what we can to support our troops. One of my boys is a current CAP cadet, a cadet program of the Air Force and some of the other boys have expressed interest in serving in the military when they get older.

They were all very interested in seeing the documentary. How often do you see teenagers excited about a documentary?

I knew just a little bit about military training being done on Lake Michigan, but didn't have any idea of the extent of it. Like the fact that around 15,000 Navy Pilots did their training to become carrier qualified on Lake Michigan before heading overseas. Or how big of a part Navy Pier, now Chicago's huge tourist destination, played in housing and training during the war. Or that there were dozens of planes that crashed during training exercises and remain on the bottom of Lake Michigan. Some have been recovered in recent years and I'd seen clips on the news as they were brought out from their watery residence, but didn't know any details beyond that. This documentary highlights the scope of this unlikely and at first, laughable, endeavor and how it affected the outcome of the war.

For anyone who has an interest in the military or World War II or anyone from Chicago, this is a must-see as we celebrate Memorial Day this weekend and as another year passes that these heroes are lost and their memories and stories fade along with them.

The screening of this documentary was part of the kick-off of fundraising efforts for the Naval Air Station Glenview Museum and the Glenview Hangar One Foundation. For more information on the foundation or to donate, go to thehangarone.org.

Heroes on Deck airing times:

Airing times are:
Thursday, May 26th at 9pm
Friday, May 27th at 3pm
Saturday, May 28th at 2pm
Sunday, May 29th at midnight
Monday, May 30th at 3:30pm
Tuesday, May 31st at 2am


Here's a link to a trailer on WTTW http://video.wttw.com/video/2365743085/

And an interview on YouTube with one of the producers

Dear Parents: Behave at Graduation

We're moving into graduation season and parents are understandably excited about the upcoming commencements. I, too, am excited for my son who will be finishing up his time in junior high and getting that 8th grade diploma before a much-anticipated summer break leading up to high school.

But with graduations comes a bit of dread, I must admit. You see, every single year the administration at the local junior highs and high schools asks that the crowd contain themselves as names are called and hold applause and screams of excitement until the end. It's done mainly so that every parent who is there has the pleasure of hearing their child's name called to invite them up for their diploma. Every year they insist that they'll enforce it. They threaten to remove out of control parents who disrupt the ceremony. They go as far as to have uninformed officers at ceremonies to remove disorderly attendees. But it doesn't happen. And everyone knows it won't happen. There are no consequences.

So, as they start calling names alphabetically, the parent of a student with the last name Adams shouts out a quick "Woot!" Then the name Calhoun is called and you hear longer cheers. A student with the last name Evans has a parent who screams and shouts a little louder. By the time you get to Johnson, it's an all-out free-for-all. Parents jump up and down shaking the bleachers, making shrill sounds that would shatter glass. By then the officers just smile and shake their heads. They can't remove them all.  They simply can't keep up. Sometimes the parents stand up, scream and shout and then leave on their own. They've seen what they wanted to see, so off they go.

So, it's just become acceptable to make a spectacle at a graduation ceremony and everyone else just has to accept it and put up with it. But, you know, it just plain sucks. Because by the time they get down to my son, with a last name that starts with an "S," I won't even be able to hear his name over the inconsiderate and ill-timed celebrations of other parents who disregard the rules. You've just spent years teaching your kids to follow rules at school and you can't get through an hour-and-a-half ceremony without breaking them.

I can think of a few ways to possibly reduce or solve the problem.
- Actually stop the ceremony and remove the first disruptive person so that it doesn't continue.
- Hold the diploma of the student whose parents cause a scene and have a waiting period before it will be released.
- Have parents sign off prior to the graduation that they'll pay a fine if in violation of disrupting the graduation.
- Have police enforce disorderly conduct charges.
- Or give in and allow an extra 10 or 15 minutes to the ceremony and give 4 or 5 seconds between reading names and let everyone do their clapping and cheering, so at least it's fair. Otherwise you have a good amount of the people patiently waiting and behaving themselves who have their evening ruined by a few dozen rude ones.

But, in my years of graduations for my own kids and covering them as a photographer and writer, I've yet to see a school that has figured out a way to avoid it or fix it - with the exception of the private school my oldest son graduated from for 8th grade where there were only eight kids in the graduating class.

So, I go into graduation season proud and excited - and also shaking my head at the inevitable and knowing the commencement will go from dignified and emotional to taking a sudden downhill turn to chaotic and insensitive and I'm not looking forward to that part at all.

Another Easter in the books

Holidays can kind of be bummer when you're married to a firefighter who has to work a 24-hour shift and is gone for the entire holiday. But, you can't be all bummed out and wallow in bed with a bag of Cheetos if you've got kids. So, these years where I've had to do it solo, I've tried to make it enjoyable for the kiddos.

Until a couple years ago, we almost always spent Easter with my inlaws. When my father-in-law passed away, it made holidays even more of a bummer. My mother-in-law has since moved out of state, too. And on my side of the family, each of my siblings usually does their own thing with their own in-laws. It's kind of gotten to be a lonely holiday as far as extended family. But...every year the Easter bunny shows up and leaves baskets of goodies and shows up in the wee hours to hide plastic eggs throughout the yard and I have traditionally cooked a big dinner. But last year, with hubby scheduled to work, I decided we'd have our big dinner the day before when we were all together and then splurge on brunch at the local country club. Hubby ended up getting the day off and we actually got to spend the day together, but I opted to keep the reservations. It was wonderful. And it got me a bit spoiled. When hubby worked on Thanksgiving, we did the same thing - our big dinner the day before and then I did a buffet with the kids.

This year, with hubby scheduled to work yet another holiday, I made a reservation for brunch at a favorite steakhouse. I've finally gotten to the point where I can take all of the kids out to a nice restaurant and actually relax. There were years and years of anxiety of eating out because toddlers and fine dining are a really bad mix or because we had to strategically seat certain kids apart from each other because we knew a fight would ensue if they were to close to one another. They've grown up to be pretty good guys. They know that it costs a lot of money for our whole gang to go out and are pretty respectful of me and one another...and their faces are often in iPhones when they can get away with it, which keeps them pretty quiet.

I knew that they'd probably want to sleep in and hang out in their pajamas in the morning, so I made an afternoon reservation. I didn't nag, but told each one that the dress code was nice jeans or khakis and some sort of shirt with a collar. All complied without complaint, except the one I least expected to. The youngest, who wears a dress shirt and tie twice a week to his 5th grade class walks in the kitchen wearing a Chuck Norris t-shirt and asks if he can wear it. I turned my head, gave him an "Are you kidding look?" and said "What do you think?" He returned to his room and pulled a Tony Hawk polo over his t-shirt.

Then we headed out to the van and my oldest discovered a little fun his younger brothers had at his expense - they had covered his truck in saran wrap. That was good for some giggles.

The ride was pretty pleasant. My 16-year-old drove. The kids filed in the back and left the passenger seat for me. Even after we got the restaurant to find out that they didn't have my reservation on their list - and waited another 35 to be seated, they were pretty good. A few jokes and laughs. I managed to get one shot of all of them standing together -- but only one out of five smiling. They ate like birds, making me question why I'd take them all out for a $185 meal. But it was a pleasant time. And I keep thinking that in the not so distant future, the kids will be scattering and we won't always be together on Easter. So, for now I'll take pleasant along with all the chocolate bunnies and eggs that they want to share with me. :)

Firsts and Lasts

I recently posted this on my Facebook page:

When it comes to parenting milestones, there's a lot of focus on the "firsts." Right now it is a lot of "lasts." This is the last year of the Cub Scouts for my last child. Today's the last Pinewood Derby with the last car that he made with his dad. In a couple weeks will be the last blue and gold dinner. And soon he will be finishing his last year in elementary school. My eighth-grader also has science fair today. The last science project for him and his last time in the science fair. And soon he'll finish his last day in junior high. And my last time of running back-and-forth from place to place with kids because they always fall on the same day. Bittersweet. But at a point it gets tiring and you are ready to move on to the next phase. Next year will be back to a year of "firsts."

We focus so much on those firsts and there's so much to celebrate about them. And then, POW! You're recognizing a "last" in your child's life. It's sad, but can be a relief. It can be both heart wrenching and exciting. But it is necessary. Necessary for them to move on and necessary for us to move on. But the firsts never stop coming. Neither do the lasts. Here's to an ending to one thing and a new beginning to another.

Why I didn't buy a lottery ticket this week

Everyone has been buying lottery tickets this week. The multi-state Powerball jackpot had risen to more than $1.5 billion. Yep, BILLION. Like you don't know that. Unless you are living under a rock with access to no media of any kind, you heard about the jackpot. And you likely went out and bought a ticket - or many tickets - even if you don't play regularly. Or you got in a big workplace pool. Or something like that.

And then yesterday I saw that a Facebook friend posed a question on her page. Who HASN'T bought a Powerball ticket? And why not?

A dozen or so people responded. I was one of them that responded. I typed in a simple "Nope." I didn't elaborate on why. I had to think about it for a minute.

When we were growing up, my mom always played faithfully each week - the same numbers. And she always told us that if she won, she'd split her winnings equally among her kids, so I guess I always figured I didn't need to play since she plays for me.

I've bought tickets for gifts over the years, but rarely buy them for myself. When I was working in an office I did put in a weekly five dollars into a pool with co-workers. One year the jackpot was huge and my friend, MaryAnn, and I chatted one day and fantasized about what we would do with winnings. We said that we'd gather up all the homeless people we could find in Chicago and take them to a fancy spa where they'd get make-overs. And we'd shop for them on Michigan Avenue and take them out for dinner at a swanky steakhouse and then put them up for a while in nice downtown hotel rooms. We'd donate some of it to schools and charities. We'd buy things for our family members. I don't remember us even discussing what we'd get for ourselves. It was fun to dream. It's always fun to dream.

But, this time as I heard about the prize money going up and up and up, I really didn't feel the urge to go buy a ticket. I really feel that winning an amount like that would be more burden than blessing. No one needs that much money. Even someone who plans to go a lot of good with it. First of all, your name would be publicized as being a winner and that would be the start of an unpleasant road. Giving it away would be fun, but can you imagine being inundated by requests and the consequences there may be by those who feel entitled to some of it. It would most definitely cause a change in lifestyle, but not necessarily for the better. It would give you more freedom, but would it all be worth it?

I'd love an extra million as much as the next person. It would enable me to make big improvements in my life. A new house, the opportunity to travel, the relief of worrying about how to play for my childrens' education. It wouldn't necessarily mean I wouldn't have to work for the rest of my life. It wouldn't mean that things would be perfect. But it would be more than enough to ease the daily stress of paying bills. Truth be told, we have enough. We work hard. We struggle often. But we have enough. We have a roof over our head, warmth in this cold weather, shoes on our feet, food in our bellies and a house full of sons (who don't always get along, but who - when the going gets tough -would be there for each other.) We have healthy children and the security of having our whole family here at home each night. We are far from rich, but have the things that a million dollars couldn't buy.

Half way there

Ya know. I think I've hit mid-life. If you look at the numbers, I have. I'm 42. I am most likely at the half-way point, give or take a few years. I intend on living to be a sassy old lady in my 80's who still dances on tables at weddings. I say this as if I have ever danced on a table at a wedding. I envision my old self as myself now, but way cooler.

This realization brings with it certain questions. Like have I learned from the first half? Have I accomplished what I set out to do? What's left that I want to do? Is it too late to do some things? Am I doing the things I really want to do or am I doing them for other reasons? What else do I feel compelled to do? What kind of legacy do I want to leave? Am I making a difference in this world? Have I done anything of importance? Have I failed at what I've tried to do?

I think I'm kind of feeling that I'm in this weird space where I accomplished a lot of what I wanted to do too early. A lot of people fall into volunteering later in life when they have the luxury of spare time during their golden years. I started getting involved in my community and doing a lot of volunteering in my mid-20's. Now I'm getting burned out on it.

I wanted to become an author and I've so far authored six books. I should feel accomplished having met that goal and gone beyond it, but I feel like maybe I should have gone about it differently. I feel like the books should have been more successful or that I should have done more to make them more successful. It feels like it was so much more work than it should be for such a small return. Everything feels like so much more work than it should be.

It feels like at this point in my life I shouldn't have to work this hard for everything, but I feel like I'm working harder than ever to keep up. I don't want to have to work as hard hard in the second half. I want to have the luxury of time to do more of the things I really want to do and not what I have to or what's expected of me. But, you know how goes...if you have the time to do what you want, you don't have the money for it. If you have the money to afford to be frivolous, you don't have the time for it. And there's the whole anything worth doing is worth doing well and you don't get it without putting in hard work and sweat and tears....yadda, yadda. I don't know what's in store for part two as I go along, but I look forward to do. There's both a peace at this stage of being more relaxed about things, yet also a sense of urgency of running out of time. It's time to put all the cards out on the table and decide what I want to keep in my hand, what I should be holding onto tighter and what I don't mind letting go of.

Moving on

Wow. Just wow.

I now have a 21-year-old.

And I now have a 16-year-old.

When people tell you that kids grow up in the blink of an eye, they're telling the truth.

My two oldest sons have both hit major milestones this month.

My two sons are 5 years and 5 days apart. I can remember so well the day I went from being a mom of one to a mom of two. I still had a week of work to go before maternity leave. But, as I got up to go to work that Monday morning, my water broke. Uh, oh!

While I was trying to scramble through the house between contractions gathering things I hadn't packed yet, all I could think of was that in an effort to get things all squared away at work, I had important confidential files sitting at home that I had been working on all weekend that had to get back to the office and spreadsheets that had to be finished. My wonderful friend and co-worker stopped by on her way to work so I could try and go over them as best I could in four to six minute increments until I'd have to stop and do some deep breathing.

Later that morning, following some difficulties during labor, my second son was born via emergency c-section. I wasn't awake for it, so the first glimpse I got of him was as I was being rolled down the hall after recovery and they brought him out next to me. He looked just like his big brother and his big brother couldn't have been more proud.

At that time, I had no inkling that the 5 year span between the two would mean that one day I would be celebrating such big birthdays for them at the same time.

Maybe it's my longevity as a parent or the fact that I went on to have three more boys after them, that the milestones don't seem to be hitting quite as hard as they once were. I can remember sobbing at first days of school and watching one pedal down the sidewalk on a bicycle for the first time.

This year it's less sadness and more shock that I now have a full-blown adult child that can legally do anything I can. It's less teary eyes about my son driving alone for the first time and more anxiety of him driving for the first time, combined with anxiety over the insurance bill along with relief that it may lessen the load on me of driving him everywhere.

It's part of life. It's part of parenthood. The kids are growing up and moving on. It's just more of many milestones. Sometimes those milestones mean taking a first ride on a bike, other times a first time driving a vehicle. Sometimes it is a taking wobbly steps across a room, others times it's wobbly steps after a grown-up beverage. It's never easy, but you get more used to it.