Can’t tell you how much fun a cardio workout is on a trampoline. Unlike a regular class, where you’re packed in like sardines & given dirty looks by the regulars, there’s plenty of room to spread out at a Sky High workout. Everyone looks silly, is grinning with abandon & sweating like mad- there’s no way even a newbie will stand out.

Of course, in addition to the AIRobics classes, Sky High offers birthday parties, dodgeball, special times for the under 6 crowd, and lots of free jumping times.

Bonus: The First Tuesday of every month has special times for special needs kids and their siblings, at a reduced cost. Yup- some joy the whole family can participate in.

Check out this VIDEO from the NBC Bay Area news team to find out more about the special needs aspect of Sky High Sports.

Happy bouncing!

See some behind the scenes of the 2009 production below:

To learn more about the history of SGT, click here.

Thanks to all the people at Special Gifts Theatre for making this such an amazing experience for the children who participate and their parents, too.

Grease, Jr.- Special Gifts Theatre 2012

Hope you enjoy this video as much as I do!

Here’s what happened next…

And if you covet a “Staff” shirt as much as I do, or want to contribute to the Imagination Foundation you can find out more information HERE.

Have fun!

I know, I know, it’s super sappy, but I love it anyway…

http://www.hulu.com/embed/pnYIhkel1GFOTV2DzkWKlA/i93

We are asked every day… what kind of dog IS that?

We were wondering the exact same thing and elicited ideas from vets, dog trainers, dog walkers, neighbors, & strangers and WOW! there are a lot of opinions- lab, terrier, shepherd, boxer, great dane, pit bull, grey hound, plott hound and tennessee treeing brindle. She’s 10 months old now & has changed a lot, but might keep on changing still. What do you think she is?

So we decided to try the Wisdom Panel Mixed Breed Dog DNA test. This test has 185 breeds in it’s library, including Plott Hound, which is what we kind of thought she was and so did Chicagoland Dog Rescue, where we got her. Here’s a picture of a Plott Hound:

It’s just a cheek swab- easy as can be. After you swab your dog’s cheeks two times, you mail it off to the lab in the envelope they’ve provided. The hard part was waiting the two weeks for the results.

Are you ready? Do you have doubts? Hmmmm….

In the end, it doesn’t really matter what that mutt is, we just love her.

P.S. Happy Birthday, Mom- xoxo

Interested in learning more? Check out this article from the Chicago Tribune.

You can also contact Center for Independent Futures, an amazing organization dedicated to helping adults with disabilities and their families plan, support and sustain new ways of living in their community.

Let me introduce you to our newest little trouble-maker:

We first saw Zoe on Petfinder.com, a website that helps you find rescue pets in your area, based on your specifications. Lucky for us, the Schaumberg PetCo was hosting adoptees from Chicagoland Dog Rescue, and Zoe was one of them. We headed on over & there she was.

After lots of paperwork, Zoe came for a home visit. WE wanted to make a good impression, especially with Zoe’s foster mom & director of her case. There was another family also interested in her, so Zoe got to choose- which family would she like best? She picked us!

Originally a stray, Zoe came to us with intestinal parasites, a urinary tract infection and soon developed pneumonia, which she battled for 2 weeks.

Now she is healthy, 40 pounds, somewhere around 6 months and we think she’s at least part plott hound.

What’s your guess?

Here’s her success story posted on the CDR website.