at the 48th Annual National Organization of Twins Club
National Convention!!!
Kim Erickson, Theresa Ernst and Jenny Rabuck had the wonderful
privilege of representing the Omaha Parents of Twins Club at this National Convention.
It was a wonderful Convention and we all had the "wicked good time", as the hosts the the MMOTA (Massachusets Mothers of Twins Association) encouraged us all to have.
We arrived in Boston Monday, July 21.
And we must admit our problem-solving skills were immediately put to good use as we realized that non of us had reserved the shuttle to take us to the hotel!!
Once we were all settled in we had a chance to try to get an understanding of our surroundings and of course immediately found "the mall" and our first of what appeared to be a never-ending number of Dunkin Donuts. Apparently their coffee really does keep, well at least Boston running.
That evening we had our first event; the Meet and Greet where we divided into small groups by the local college's of the area. We had a great time and started to meet some of our fellow convention attendees and began to hear about Convention fever. Many of the attendees have been coming 20, 25, 30 years+! The evening was filled with excitement including a team building game that was loads of laughs and fun. When two "colleges" tied, Kim Erickson was nominated by her fellow graduates to shoot little tykes basketball. Lets just say you shouldn't call her name if you are the captain of a team. Jenny Rabuck and Kim also tried hula-hooping.
Its amazing how you forget how to do this type of thing, great effort though by both of our moms!!
Wednesday morning was filled with Freedom, as we began our walk along the Freedom Trail with a stop first at Cheers (ok this is not technically on the Trail, but was still fun to see). Cheers is right next to the the Public Gardens and the Boston Common,which is a large park. There we took at peaceful ride on a swan boat in the park. The 1st stop was the the Park Street Church-A.K.A. "Brimstone Corner" as gunpowder was stored there during the war of 1812. Just behind the church is the Old Granary Burying Ground. This is where John Hancock, Paul Revere, Samuel Adams and the victims of the Boston Massacre are laid to rest. An interesting headstone is for a woman named Mary Goose" who is thought to be the actual Mother Goose. Our final stop that day was the site of the Boston Massacre at the Old State House.
We then attended the First Attendee Workshop and learned about the upcoming General Sessions and procedures for voting as delegates. Also, we met a new friend from the Des Moines chapter, Sarah LeClair.
Afterwards was the Opening Ceremonies, aka "Picnic in the Pahk," where we were treated to an entrance by the Lincoln Minute Men. The MMOTA (MassachusetsMothers of Twins Association)paraded in to welcome us all to their great city of Boston.
Colors were presented by the Lincoln Minute Men in costume from the Revolutionary War times. we had a sing along and skits from several groups. Charolotte, a 4 year old twin with a brain tumor sang "Take me out to the ball game". She is a recipient of support from the Jimmy Fund (for more information regarding the Jimmy Fund, visit their website at http://www.jimmyfund.org/). Christa Reed, new owner of Twins Magazine, and mother of twins spoke and requested photos for the upcoming calender. A little f.y.i., about 90% of the staff at the magazine has twins, so they can relate!
Following the Opening Ceremonies, songs were sung, including some with skits. We sang about a famous folk lore about Charlie riding the Subway in Boston to "Sweet Caroline" (one of Theresa's favorites).
Thursday morning we were off and running with our first general session as delegates. We were quite proud and honored to be representing our Club at the National level. One of the issues being presented and voted on was whether to raise the National dues from $9.00 to $12.00 per family, which did not pass. Some of the other issues covered during general sessions included; adoption of the2008-2009 budget, passing of the Bylaw Amendment regarding the terms of service and qualifications of the Endowment Chairman, and the election of officers.
One of the biggest announcements was the unveiling of Multiple Birth Awareness Month, which will occur in April 2009.State and local clubs are encouraged to spread the word and hold special events in their areas next April such as a walk, fair and having speakers as a way to educate and support the local communities.
When the general session closed, we attended a workshop and learned 10 secret tips on decorating from Jackie Davis from HGTV's Decorating Cents. 
Theresa Ernst and Jenny Rabuck then attended a workshop on Event Planning- Made Easy hosted by Wendy Desabye, CMP. While Kim Erickson attended a workshop on Creative Writing hosted by Kathleen Gilday.
During the general session on Friday morning, we heard from Lonnie Sommers, founder of Fetal Hope Foundation, spoke on Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome (TTTS). His daughters survived the syndrome by surgery performed in Tampa, FL and is also available at Texas Children's Hospital. In-Utero Fetal Distress is diagnosed more than Breast Cancer and causes more deaths than SIDS. Provide support and hope to save babies lives. For more information regarding the Fetal Hope Foundation visit their website at http://www.fetalhope.org/.
Following General Session, we were off to lunch with Jon Goselin from Jon and Kate plus 8. He gave us his answers to the top 10 most frequently asked as well as had some trivia for us. He was very funny and laid back-mostly enjoying his time to himself.
After lunch Kim Erickson attended the Understanding Development in Twins with Austim Spectrum Disorder hosted by Dr. Teresa Bolick from the Bolick House. Dr. Bolick provided infomration regarding some signs to look for by 6 months such as your baby should be using nonverbal communication and by 1 year pointing to things. Kim received the powerpoint used by Dr. Bolick at the workshop, which also includes the development house, which she will be presented at an upcoming general meeting. Information regarding the Bolick House can be found at http://www.thebolickhouse.com/.
Jenny Rabuck and Theresa Ernst attended the Twins in School workshop presented by Dr. John Mascazine. Dr. Mascazine spoke about working with teachers and school administrators to help them understand issues relating to the education and learning needs of multiples. This workshop will include a more hands-on approach to bring current information to policy makers and to arm parents with current research that schools and parents need to read. Dr. John Mascazine is the author of Understanding Multiple Birth Children and How They Learn, a book written with input from mothers of twins and educators, a copy of which was purchased for the Club and is available in our Library.
Friday night was party night where we showed our Team Spirit. We of course showed our Husker spirit by wearing our Husker t-shirts. Out on the streets of Boston, the Huskers even had some support with one firefighter shouting out his Husker spirit with a "Go Huskers!"
The final event of the conventionon Saturday night: The Banquet and the Installation of Officers.
One of the best parts of the Convention is meeting mothers of multiples. We were fortunate to meet Sarah LeClair from the Des Moines chapter and Kelly Helsip from the Brazos Valley Mothers of Twins from Texas. It was wonderful to learn about their Clubs and its activities. We look forward to hopefully working with the Des Moines Club in the near future, as well as keeping in contact with Kelly!!!
On Sunday we got to finish our site seeing with Jenny and Theresa visiting Fenway Park-home of the Red Sox. Fenway has some amazing history! At Fenway, they enjoyed sitting in the oldest stadium seats in the country, seeing the original score board still manned by hand. Don't think you can get seats to the Yankees/Red Sox game the week of the game-unless you're willing to spend $120 for each ticket! The stadium seats around 13,500 people but getting tickets is by lottery and many people who live there have never been to a game!
Kim Erickson spent her Sunday morning finishing the Freedom Trail and visiting such places as the site of the Boston Massacre, the Old North Church (remember one if by land, two if by sea), and Paul Revere's home.
We made it back just in time to take the last shuttle to the airport, which is where the fun began. As our flight was not scheduled to leave until 7:40 p.m. (and it was only 5:30 p.m.) we sat down to flavor some of the local cuisine (okay it was an airport bar with nachos), but in talking with some of the other people flying, we learned that no flights had left the Boston airport since noon due to the weather on the East Coast- WHAT????
Needless to say after two hours on the run way, a very bumpy take-off we were on our way to our new destination of Milwaukee and the Radisson Hotel (thank you Linda Epperson for your help in locating a hotel). The gate attendant was very welcoming in Milwaukee at our midnight landing time with a "Welcome to Milwaukee and the only connecting flight left is the one going to Madison".
We must say that we feel that luck shined on us twice during the situation, once was that we were able to change our connecting flight while in Boston- our sympathies to those who after landing in Milwaukee had to stand in line to do so and that after picking up our luggage the free Radisson shuttle was right there to take us to our new hotel!!
The next morning came quickly and the flight from Milwaukee to Omaha was quick and smooth. We all feel truly blessed to have been given this opportunity to attend Nationals, represent the Club, make new friends (both personally and as connection for our Club) and learn new information for us to share with our members.
