Wow!

Oh my goodness we have 42 families that are registered and paid. I have listed the last names which I received payment from. If you are not on this list and you paid, please let me know. If you are on this list and are not on the side bar on this blog please leave a comment with your children's names. Even if you do not have a blog, I would like to list everyone who is coming. If you do have a blog then please leave it in a comment so I can add it as well. Please e-mail me at murielcollison@hotmail.com if you are having any problems or questions.


The Gang
Elrod
Lloyd
Trawick
Hochstetler
Forscher
Morrison
Sapp
Struck
Segebarth
Ruley
Morley
Taylor
Bilbro
Glaser
Dubose
Morey
Cech
Prudhomme
Kitzman
Falk
Eckman
McLelland
Johnson
Cronauer
Serrano
VanSant
Burd
Edwards
Michel
Hyde
Hall
Raymond
Meyer
Floyd
Smith
Groh
Cicero
Boykin
Straw
Burns
Holland
Ghomeshi

Last Day for Registration!

Today is the last day to register soooo please do so if you are planning on coming. As of this morning, we have 24 families coming! I never imagined we would have that many families coming from sooo many different places! We are so excited.

On the side bar I have placed the names of all the children that are coming. If the family has a public blog you can access it by clicking on the children's names. PLEASE-if I missed a child or put just your family name, please e-mail me your children's names or any mistakes I may have made. If you have a blog and want it listed then please e-mail me as well. I have really enjoyed reading all of your blogs and "meeting" you before the big event.

In a few days I will be posting the hotel reservation information.

Have a Happy Halloween!

We are doing the best we can!

Those of us planning this awesome weekend have been asked why we are closing registration so early. I will explain the best I can and please do not be offended, we are trying to do something nice and have a fun family weekend. All four of us planning this event have families and very busy lives but we all love Kazakhstan and adoption and are very excited about Kazapalooza. The two of us who live in the Chicago area also work outside the home.

We have never planned something like this before and are learning very quickly that the type of event we want to have takes a lot of planning. Our hotel that I was able to get an awesome rate on wants my personal credit card to hold the block of rooms. If we do not fill 85% of the rooms we block off, I will be charged. This is scary to me but I am willing to do it because that is the only way to hold a block of rooms at a discounted rate in Chicago and trust me in Chicago $169 is a total steal especially for a hotel that all the rooms will be completely updated before we arrive. I want to block 20 rooms. We have so far 19 families coming and I know there may be a few additions and subtractions as the event draws closer. I am confident that we will fill all the rooms but I have to sign the contract with the hotel by November 6th. I feel that if people register then I know they are serious and completely plan on coming.

Additionally, we are planning a lot of fun little surprises that take time and money and we need to start some of the projects soon. As mentioned above, we all have families and some have jobs and we want to have plenty of time to complete our projects. The Holidays are fast approaching and before you know it, Kazapalooza will be here. We are also trying to arrange tickets to the Shedd Aquarium which we have to make reservations for and we get a better rate if we have a group. I am actually trying to get us qualified as a class field trip to get us a better rate. Again, this takes time, deposits and I need a rough estimate of people coming to see if we qualify for a discount. We would also like to have an entertainer at our program and this requires a deposit.

I do not want to go over everything that needs to be done because it is a very long list. We are not asking you to pay for your hotel now, we are asking you to pay $65 for your entire family so we can do everything mentioned above. Please remember that any additional funds will be donated to a charity that helps Kazakh orphans and we are open to any suggestions for a charity. Also please understand that we are not planning a picnic or a dinner, this is an entire weekend and it takes a lot of planning.

Thank you for your understanding and we hope to see you there.

Coast to Coast!

Yeah baby! We have 16 families coming now and they are coming from all over the country to celebrate the beauty of adoption! I am so excited. We have a family coming from California and one from Connecticut. How exciting is that!/? I really am looking so forward to meeting all of you. We are in the final stretch for registration so please tell all of your friends! If anyone needs to talk to me personally please feel free to e-mail me at murielcollison@hotmail.com.

Yaaaahhooooo!

We have 14 families coming so far! I am really excited. I am hoping for 20 families so come on guys, register!

Slideshow

Hello Families ☺ I am putting together a slideshow for us to watch during Kazapalooza. If you would please send me 5 or so pictures of your family to include in the slideshow that would be great! You can send me more up until a few weeks before Kazapalooza if you should have some that you would like added. I know it's early, but with two very energetic little ones, I'd like to be able to get started whenever I have time :-) I promise not to misuse or share pictures with anyone.

Also, if you could please indicate:

month/year you traveled
where to (region in Kazakhstan or other country if this applies),
family name (last name)
and names of children (all children – adopted or not)

E-mail:
Michelle
SpEduc8er@aol.com

Thanks ;-)

Shedd by default.

i just found our that the Shedd is walking distance from the hotel and the Museum of Sience and Industry is not. With small kids and car seats ect. we need walking distance so the Shedd it is!

Essex Inn it is.

Well, it looks like the Essex Inn is the winner. I had court in Chicago this morning and I stopped by the hotel today for a full tour! I am more excited then ever. The pool area is huge and has nice lounge chairs and tons of game tables. Connected to it is the outdoor patio which has gorgeous views of Grant Park. We will have our pizza party there Friday night and I think it would be a great spot to hang out. When I went to Guatoberfest during the down time many of the families hung out in our meeting room and it was so much fun!

I also picked up the menus for the onsite catering and I am excited about the options.

The hotel lobby is very nice and is literally accross the street from Grant Park. It is within walking distance to Millenium Park and many places to eat. The hotel provides a free shuttle to the Magnificant Mile shopping which is always nice. The hallways and outside of the hotel are a little run down but it was confirmed again today that all of the rooms will be completely re-done. They will look great. It is a perfect place for our group.

We will be going to either the Aqarium and/or Museum of Sience and Industry (so fun) and both are a little over a mile walk from the hotel. You can walk or take a cab. Please let me know if you prefer the Aqarium or Museum of Sience and Industry. I will leave it open for voting on the side.

http://www.sheddaquarium.org/
Admission adult $23, child $16 under 3 is free!
http://www.msichicago.org/
Admission adult $11 child $7 under 3 years old admission is free!

Also, we noticed that 21 families voted on the hotel but only 12 are registered. We hope this means more families will be registering. We would love to have you all come.

Time to vote again!

Alright after many hours and phone calls, I found another hotel option for less money. The Essex Inn is a smaller hotel with a fabulous pool and rooftop deck. They have offered us a rate of $169 per night for a double occupant (2 adults plus kids). They also have a special rate if you book by March 14th which is $159. The $159 rate is non-refundable and the $169 rate is completely refundable up to 72 hours in advance. Additionally, they have offered freee shuttle service to the museums, Navy Pier and the Magnificent Mile. Also they will get us shopping totes with coupons. They have a fairly reasonable (for Chicago) priced restaurant on site with all different types of food. They seemed much more willing to accommodate our needs then the Hilton. However, I read some of the reviews and was a little concerned because they all mentioned the rooms were out dated. It is an older hotel and is a little run down (I visited myself). I think my opinion of "run-down" has definitely changed since living in kaz for 8 weeks! Now The Sales and Catering manager has told me that in January of 2008 all the rooms will be completely re-done with new furniture, carpet, bathrooms, bedding ect. She swears this will be done. I want to know what you guys think. I like this hotel better because it is smaller and we can be more unified as a group and I feel they will work with us much more readily. I also love the pool and outside rooftop deck...I was thinking it would be the perfect place for our pizza party Friday night.

The Hilton is a nicer hotel though. It is a very large, very nice hotel.

The hotels are one block apart so basically the same location. Let me be clear though-the Essex Inn is not as nice as the Hilton. It is fine for my family but some people are really picky about their hotels. After the remodel it will be a 3 star hotel. Now it is a 2 star hotel.

Here is the website for the Essex:
http://www.essexinn.com/

Please vote on the sidebar. I will leave the voting open all weekend. Don't forget to leave a comment when you register.

Come on...baby don't you want to go...sweet home Chicago!

How do you like the music? I hope it inspires you all to come. I have gotten a few questions so I will answer them here. The main question is about waiting families. First off, we really want you to come! We do need to have a budget to work with and an idea of who will be coming so we really need you all to register. I know that money is tight and you all are uncertain about when you will be back but we can refund the registration fee for waiting families if you let us know 45 days in advance. This gives us enough time to do some quick re-arranging. If you are worried you will not know 45 days prior to the weekend then please remember that ALL extra funds will be going to a charity that helps Kazakh orphans. We already have a few charities in mind and are always willing to look at any suggestions. Of course we will provide a complete accounting to anyone who asks.

As far as the hotel, I am working on a better deal with another hotel and I am expecting the rooms to be less. I should know if we will be switching hotels in a few weeks. I want to check the place out myself and look at the rooms. Anyway, any hotel we go with you would book under our group "blocked" rate and would be able to get a full refund if cancelled within 72 hours so that should not be an issue.

Please know that we understand your positions and are doing everything we can to ensure you are included and feel comfortable.

After attending Guatoberfest I realized how much planning these events take and we really need to start as soon as possible and a lot of the planning hinges on our budget.

I have to say again, we are really excited to meet all of you and celebrate our gorgeous children and the gift of adoption. I leave you with this poem:

The Gift of Life
I didn't give you the gift of life,
But in my heart I know
The love I feel is deep and real,
As if it had been so.

For us to have each other
Is like a dream come true!
I didn't give you the gift of life,
Life gave me the gift of you.

Yeah!

We are so excited so many families are going to be coming. Just a reminder, please register by the end of the month. Also I put everyone who is coming on the sidebar even if they do not have a public blog. Please let me know if I missed you and you have registered.

Soo excited!

I am at Guatoberfest right now and am getting so many great ideas for Kazapalooza. I am so excited more families have registered. I will add their blogs to the sidebar when I get back. It is amazing to have a weekend filled with families celebrating adoption... it does the heart good!

Thanks

Thank you all for your comments. We will wait to the end of the month and see how many families we will have. We plan on having the event even if there are only a few families. It will still be a blast. We will also try to come up with a way to accomodate last minute additions since many of you will be traveling in the next few months. Have an awesome week and stay tuned.