Does anyone know how you can share a calendar between a mac + a pc? Is there a certain program that will do that? Ideally we would like it to be able to sync automatically when either Chris or I add something new. Right now I run iCal between my computers, but Chris is working on a pc.
Suggestions?
there was an opinion piece in The Register Guard that addresses the insurance bill (HB 2918 - requiring insurance companies to cover certain kinds of treatments for pervasive developmental disorders) that Chris sponsored this past session (passed both the House and the Senate and now goes to the Gov). Read the complete story here.
Yesterday the Oregon Legislature ended it's 74th Session. A full story from the Register Guard here and the Oregonian here.
Chris and I can't believe how fast the time went.
This delightful photo was taken by photographer Lori Cain from the Statesman Journal. Simon was singing the ABC's into Chris' mic (turned off this time) while Rep. Mitch Greenlick cheered him on (and wanted to sing along with him) after the final gavel had dropped for this year.
Simon and I drove up to Salem and found out about half way there (as he was trying to take my photo as I driving) that the battery on my camera was dead. Seriously, such a bummer.
It was cool to be up there again. Because of my job (both my job-job and my mama job) I didn't really have the chance to go up and "hang-out" with Chris and see what his day to day was like at the capitol. I was there for the first day and the last day - which in reality was darn cool. And I did have lots of opportunities to watch the daily floor sessions online - loved that and loved being able to have conversations with Chris about the goings on when he came home in the evening (one of my favorite Simon moments yesterday was when we walked into the House chamber Simon exclaimed "just like on the computer" - he has watched some of the sessions with me to "see daddy.")
Hoping to get Chris to put together a little write-up about the session to share on here.
And now we adjust again. Chris will be around a bit more for the next few months until February when the legislature opens again for a one-month session. And then it will be time to run again (Representatives in the Oregon House serve two-year terms). Crazy schedule.
Looking forward to some family time.
Edited: If you live in/around Salem and have a copy of today's Statesman Journal you would be willing to send me could you email me ali @ aliedwardsdesign [dot] com.
One of the things we celebrated this past weekend was the passage of House Bill 2918. If made into law (needs to pass the Oregon State Senate and be signed by the Governor), basically states:
(that insurance companies) may not deny benefits to an individual who is covered under the plan because that individual has a pervasive developmental disorder
This is a giant step forward. The bill passed unanimously in the House 53-0.
Here is an article that appreared in our local paper this past weekend:
Speech therapy bill easily clears HousePublished: Saturday, May 12, 2007SALEM - Rep. Chris Edwards, D-Eugene, literally put a face to the issue of autism in the Oregon House of Representatives on Friday.
He did it by holding overhead an 8-by-11 photograph of his 5-year-old son.
Simon Edwards is one of the thousands of children with the disorder in a state that has more such diagnoses per capita than any other.
Before the House voted 53-0 to require health insurance to extend its coverage of speech therapy and other treatments to children with autism, mental retardation and other developmental disabilities, Edwards was among the legislators to speak on the bill.
"This guy, my son Simon, has autism," Edwards said while holding up his son's picture for the other representatives and guests in the House chamber to see.
Edwards is one of thousands of parents who could potentially benefit from House Bill 2918 if it becomes law. The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration.
The bill is intended to help families get medical insurance coverage for the therapies that would benefit children with autism, mental retardation and other "pervasive developmental disorders."
The bill does so by prohibiting insurers from denying benefits to an enrollee who has been diagnosed with such a disorder. Edwards said the bill was necessary because many insurance policies cover occupational and speech therapy and other treatments for people with a brain injury, for example, but not those with autism.
Edwards said his family had personally run into the kind of problems the bill is meant to address. His insurance paid only for 30 minutes of speech therapy a week for Simon, which Edwards said wasn't enough. He and his wife looked into paying out of pocket for additional therapy sessions. "I can't remember the cost, except that we couldn't afford it," he said.
Edwards said the bill was meant to aid thousands of families whose children are part of a rapidly expanding population of young people diagnosed with autism, yet are struggling to secure the kind of response that past epidemics, such as polio, prompted from the medical system and the government.
According to the Oregon Department of Education, among people between the ages of 5 and 21, Lane County has 673 residents with autism. Based on those and comparable figures for other counties, Tim Mueller, an autism-awareness advocate, did some calculations to conclude that Lane County's school-aged population included one person with autism for every 91 people. That was the second highest ratio among every county. Marion County had the highest ratio, 1-to-75, said Mueller, who is with the Lane County chapter of the Autism Society of Oregon.
I love you Chris. I am so proud of you and the work you are doing.
I grew up aware of politics. Interested at a distance. I could tell you who the President was and maybe a bit more than that about what was happening in the world. In college, after my failed attempt and realization that being a killer whale trainer at SeaWorld was probably not going to happen, I marched over to the English department and came up with my own major titled American Studies. If I wasn't going to be swimming with whales I might as well become an attorney (can you follow that logic?).
American Studies allowed me to focus on three main areas: American Literature, American History, and Political Science (with a bit of sociology thrown in for good measure). Loved it. It was all about reading and writing and culture and history and current events. It was at that time that I started paying a bit more attention. One of my favorite classes in college was called Politics and the Media. Loved learning about the dynamic between the two. That was back in 1996.
At no point did I ever really imagine I would be involved on a personal level.
Fast forward to this crazy last year. Politics and the workings of our state government are now a daily part of my life - at least from the stand point of asking a lot of questions each night when Chris comes home from the Capitol. I love hearing all about it and the crazy dynamics that go into government at this level.
Tuesday night I had the chance to go with Chris to the Governor's home (for those of you outside the US, the Governor is the leader of our state). We were invited, along with some of the other new legislators, for a small gathering to chat and talk politics and have a drink in a small group setting.
The kid in me was jumping for joy. Giddy is another good word.
After getting Simon all situated, we drove the short distance from the Capitol to the Governor's home which is called Mahonia Hall. When we got out of the car I had to make a decision: camera or no camera? I decided to leave the camera in the car. It felt instrusive and bulky and over-the-top. At the gate we were greeted by a secuity guard and then escorted to the door. We were lead into the house and seated in the living room where we met the Governor's wife Mary.
The other couple's arrived shortly after - there were four in all - and then the Governor arrived. It was interesting to be in his home, the place he comes back to after a long day, after going from meeting to meeting, dealing with failures and successes, after speaking on the phone with two different families who lost sons in Iraq this week. It is also the house that other Governor's of the past have come home to (it was built in 1924 by Ellis F. Lawrence, the founder of the University of Oregon School of Architecture). I felt a really big sense of gratitude to him that he opened his home to us - making us welcome - I am sure that is all part of the job, but I felt comfortable and warm and welcomed.
I think that is something that will become even more interesting to me as time goes on, that line between public and private - between the person and the job. Being there felt like a wonderful little gathering among friends - intimate and open. And then something would remind me that I was sitting right next to the leader of our state.
Cool conversation about the state of our state and our nation and other things of political interest. Totally enjoyed my time there. I had one of those moments, sitting next to Chris on the couch, of overwhelming pride. I peeked at him and smiled to myself, choked back some emotion, and looked around the room and almost had to pinch myself.
As we were standing up to leave the Governor asked me what I do...the million dollar question (I know some of you are laughing right now). Once again, how do I explain what I do? I laughed as usual and then told him. He had a priceless look on his face..."scrapbooking?" And then I said - are you ready for this - "I brought a magazine with me so I could show you just what I do. It is in the car" He had a big smile on his face and told me he would walk us out to the car so he could get the magazine.
You know I was loving it at that point.
We said goodbye as everyone was leaving and then he came out to our car, I grabbed the magazine. "Do you have a website?" he asked. Oh yes I do! I scribbled it on the inside of the magazine and flipped it to my article so he could see, really see, what I was talking about. A bit of joking ensued with Chris telling him how crazy (in a good way) it is this thing that I do.
God bless the Governor, he is such a kind, happy man. He has bright eyes and a keen takes a keen interest when you are chatting with him. He looked genuinely interested in checking it out, took the magazine in hand, said goodnight and walked back through the gate.
I am now officially Mrs. Representative Chris Edwards. What a day! We were up super early to make it here for the morning session. Simon kept his jammies on in the car and we dressed him once we got to the parking lot. He was not too sure about the whole thing. Excited that we were going to Daddy's office, but not excited once he saw all the people around. Once again, the video ipod came in very handy. A nice way for him to "chill" and experience something that is more normal for him.
During the morning session Chris was sworn in with the other Representatives. We got to sit along the side. Simon fell asleep on my lap before it began (which was a good thing), and I ended up laying him down on the floor in front of my chair. He was much happier down there.
The second session was the swearing in of the Governer. Lots of pomp and circumstance, but inspiring - especially his use of the word opportunity. We had the opportunity to sit with Chris on the floor this part. I took Simon out there long enough to snap a couple shots of him at Chris' desk and then decided that the side area was probably a better location for us - unpredictable behaviors are much easier to deal with from the side than when you are sitting right in front of the Governor, all the state-wide elected officials, past Governors, and current legislators. Again, the ipod is our saving grace.
After that session Simon headed back to Eugene with Grandma and Grandpa. I am hanging out here with Chris - enjoying checking out the capitol, chatting with people, and generally feeling excited about state government. It is amazing to think of the history of this place and all the people that have come before. So cool.
And can you spot Representative Edwards in this photo?
A good day. A long day. A proud day. A very proud day.
And now it is time to get to work.
Happy 2007!
We spent the night in Portland last night with our friends the Locken's. This was the second year of their kid-friendly party and again, it was perfect (especially the part where we get to spend the night). And we got to meet two-week old baby Sawyer. Sigh. Love that.
Now it is time to get back to reality. Back to work and to schedules and to a couple months of travel. I am making some big changes this year with my schedule. I have events scheduled for the first three months and then after that I will only be traveling/teaching for CKU's and at trade shows (+ meetings in Utah). I will miss meeting all the awesome people at store events, but this is the right choice for our family at this time. I am taking on some more responsibilities for the magazine that will enable me to be home more (doing more work from home). Look for some exciting things to come from me - including another book - later in the year.
I am really looking forward to hunkering down here and getting creative, challenging myself to take things in new directions.
Chris gets to move into his office at the state capital in Salem tomorrow. He has his office number, his desk number on the house floor, and his hour and 20 min commute (one way) to look forward to (excited to do a layout about the new numbers in his life). He will be sworn in on January 8th and immediately getting into his new groove. Can't believe it is all real.
Simon has one more week off before heading back to school and getting into his normal routine. This next year will see a re-evaluation of his diagnosis and in the fall, a potential move to kindergarten - depending on how it all goes (and what his teachers recommend). He has come such a long way over the last two years - it will be exciting to see what is next for him. One of my favorite things from this last night was comments from both Amy and Jason on how much he has developed - and how much more he is talking - since just a few months ago. Love that.
One big deep breath in and out. Here we go.
Wow. Wow. Wow. That's all I can say.
Amazing. Wonderful. Awesome. Ok, there's a couple more words.
Thank you for all the kind & enthusiastic comments and well wishes.
This is such a huge deal. Being a political newcomer and beating an incumbent is really tough. Chris worked so very long and hard for this with the support of such an amazing staff - I am so proud of him and all the people who helped make this a reality. And I am even more excited about the work that he will be beginning now - such an amazing opportunity to do good.
Today we are taking a deep breath. We are celebrating. We are planning. We are smiling.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
And yes, we are happy. Here are the midnight numbers. And this is Andi - Chris' campaign manager. She is amazing. We LOVE her. She did good.
DEM Chris Edwards 10,154 52.38%
REP Debi Farr 9,233 47.62%
One of the most amazing things I am facing right now is that, regardless of the outcome, our lives will be changed today in a big way. How often do you really know that your life will change? I was emailing with my friend Florence and she commented, "generally you can feel change coming and kinda creeping up on you - it's not often really such a tangible something." I am anxious. I am excited. I am trying to keep it all in perspective and know that whatever happens it will be for something good.
Thank you for so many supportive emails over the last few months regarding the election. One that I really appreciated came this morning from Beth who wrote,
"Even though I’m not a Democrat and I also don’t live in the state of Oregon, I’ve put Chris and his dream on my prayer list. It shouldn’t matter about party lines, but the true content of your character. His journey to this day has been crafted moment by moment, day by day – it is my prayer that the three of you enjoy this day to the fullest!!
This is no ordinary day, no routine moments – you’re all writing the story of your lives!! I hope this chapter is filled with joy!!"
So what's happening right now? It is 8:30am and Chris is out waving signs in the pouring (seriously pouring) rain in one area of our community. After that he will be back on the phones encouraging last minute voters to turn in their ballots. Tonight we will gather at the Lane County Fairgrounds where the returns will begin being announced at 8pm (pacific time).
I am planning to have updates throughout the night here on my blog. My sister also found this site which will begin having results posted after 8pm pacific.
Stay tuned.
