I put together a slideshow of Duck Derby pics. Click the link and then click the “Play” button at the bottom of the screen. Perhaps you can join us next year! Here’s a little preview in case you can’t see the slideshow:
Category Archives: Trips
Duck Derby!
Jenny’s final big project, the first-ever SWA Duck Derby, is now complete! We dumped 5000 cute rubber ducks with a SWA paint scheme into the lazy river at SeaWorld San Antonio and let them race 1 lap. Each one represented a SWA employee who had paid $5 to sponsor a new hire, providing a welcome message, t-shirt, and lanyard for them. In return, if the sponsor’s duck was among the first 25 ducks to finish, they won a great prize, such as a SeaWorld vacation package or Wii bundle. Jenny and her team worked on it for months, and it finally came together with great results. Around 200 SWA employees and guests came to cheer on their ducks and had a great time. One couple even made signs for their ducks, like those you’d bring to a hockey game for your favorite player. We were exhausted by the end of the day from the work and heat, but it was worth it. Jenny got a chance to sneak away and feed a dolphin before the race began, which was one of the highlights of the trip. I’ll have pictures for you soon. This weekend is NUTS with work, birthing class, our first baby shower, and limited amounts of sleep.
Vacation Time
We are back from Chicago after a nice trip. As usual, we met lots of great new hires, sold lots of stuff, and laughed a lot with our buds from People. This trip included a fun diversion between the new hire luncheon and the meeting that night: an unveiling party for Illinois One, our newest themed aircraft. Like the other state-themed planes, it bears an interpretation of the Illinois state flag. I actually like the plane’s version better than the flag itself. Click here to see what you think. They let us see the aircraft up close after the unveiling, so I grabbed a friend and had him take a picture that I’ve wanted for years: me in the engine.
In about 3 1/2 hours, our “vacation” will officially begin! Jenny compiled a big list of activities and goals, possibly more than we can achieve, but it’s good to aim at something. Thursday night is the Stars game. Friday is “productive day” when we wail on BB’s room and assemble some or all of his furniture. Saturday is video game day. Sunday is open. Monday is Fort Worth day, when we go hang out near Downtown. We might go to the Botanic Gardens and take lots of pictures while the flowers are blooming or the zoo and see the animals. Monday night we plan to stay at the Texas White House, a cool bed and breakfast near the gardens. Tuesday we might play in Fort Worth and then return home to relax.
Off to MDW
Jenny and I plan to leave for Chicago Sunday morning for the final out-of-town New Hire Luncheon and Message to the Field. The original forecast predicted rain and snow with a high around 40F and strong north winds. Apparently Chicago forgot that spring has arrived. Now they say the rain/snow will be done, but we’re still miss the PERFECT weather we’ve had here in Dallas over the last couple of days. We plan to return on Tuesday, run a CARES Spaghetti Dinner Wednesday night, and then start our “vacation” on Thursday.
In related news, the Stars have won their first two playoff games against the defending champion Anaheim Ducks IN ANAHEIM. Games 3 and 4 are scheduled for Tuesday and Thursday back in Dallas at AAC. We bought tickets to Game 4 to kick off our vacation. Woohoo!
The Boxes Report a Diversion
Holland America, despite what they originally told our travel agent, actually doesn’t allow prego women to sail past their 24th week. Since we’ll be at 24.5 weeks, we can’t go. They did, however, take our money and refuse to give it back. Our options are to cancel the trip and pay a cancellation penalty or reschedule for earlier (impossible) or later (either waiting 6 months after BB is born and taking him with us, or leaving him behind for 5 days). I just wrote up a nice dispute letter for my credit card company. Think twice before cruising with Holland America. Their ships and itineraries are nice, but their customer service isn’t.
As always, though, God has added a silver lining. First, we discovered the problem ahead of time instead of flying to San Diego and getting sent home. I might have gotten a bit ugly. And used some colorful language. Second, we’ve decided to use that vacation time to stay home and relax. No overtime for me, no appointments with other people, no problems. As far as you’re concerned, we are gone! We hope to work on BB’s room and the apartment, get lots of rest, maybe stay a night in a nearby hotel, watch movies, play video games, or whatever else we feel like doing.
I am also sad to report that my mom finally put our old white and brown chihuahua to sleep yesterday. His official name was Mickey, but we called him Mick or Mee-Mee. Mom took great care of him all his life, and he was around 15 years old, which is like 200 in dog years. After seeing his poor body slowly shutting down over the last several months, we finally all decided it was time to end his suffering. May he rest in peace.
In happier news, Sunday is Jenny’s 32nd birthday! We’re getting the family together Saturday night for dinner at Grand Luxe Cafe in the Galleria. I love how Jenny doesn’t whine about her age every time a birthday rolls around. She’s happy for an excuse to spend time with friends and family and enjoy cake and presents.
Babymooning
Before Jenny gets too uncomfortable, we are planning a “babymoon” trip just to get away and relax while we can. After much debate, we decided on a cruise up the West Coast in mid-April. We got a fantastic deal on Holland America for a 4-night cruise from San Diego to Vancouver with a stop for tea in Victoria. Check back in a few weeks for pictures.
Last night was CARES Poker Night. Our first poker night was a flop, with only one resident attending. We decided to try one more time, moving the event from Friday night to Tuesday night and adding a prize for the winner. It was so windy Tuesday that we couldn’t put up our sandwich board signs to advertise the event, and I was afraid we might not have anyone. However, we were happy to find that several people came, most of whom I barely knew, and we had a great time. Some came just for pizza, others just for poker. Jenny spent some time visiting with a mother of two young girls while her husband and I played. After teetering on the verge of elimination near the end, I got lucky on a few hands and emerged victorious. I might be tempted to gloat if I actually knew what I was doing, but this victory was definitely more luck than skill! Since I was ineligible for the prize, the runner-up took home the free Chipotle Burrito Bucks. Each event is a bit of a mystery. We never know who will come, how many, whether we have enough food, or even what to expect if it’s a new event for us. We can only make educated guesses and pray each event goes well.