ok, So I was extremely surprised to find another MMer living 90 miles away from me, right here in South Dakota.  I was SURE I had to be the only one, based on our rural nature.  So, first of all, who is from the upper midwest?  Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa area?  I had come across many people from Minnesota and one from Iowa.  Maybe we could all get together sometime!
Michele  

We live in Northeast Nebraska.  We are surpised as well to hear of  other MM folks here in the upper plains.  Our daughter had her surgeries one year ago and is doing great!

mark

Hello Mark,
Where in northeast NE are you at?  I am in Yankton which of course is in SE SD!  Look fprward to meeting you all someday!
Michele

I have been chatting with Nessa, from Brookings, SD and we decided that we absolutely MUST start organizing some kind of meeting for us MMers in the upper midwest.  Who is interested in attending and where would be a good central location?  Also, what is a good time for everyone?  Spring, summer????
Look Forward to getting together with you all!
Michele
Yankton, South Dakota

Hey Michele,

We live in a small town about one hour south of Sioux City.  A group meeting would be great.  Summer would probably be better for us since Josie is in school during the spring.  But we are open to anything.

Mark

I am a little disappointed more people aren't interested in meeting in the upper midwest...I now know there are quite a few.  My original intention was to see where everyone would be coming from and then pick a place somewhere central!  At this point, it looks like BBQ at Aaron's!  J/K!  If anyone else would be interested in attending, please make a note here so we can get an idea where people will be coming from!
God Bless You All!
Michele

Please let me know where more people would be willing to attend...
Omaha, Minneapolis, or another suggestion
June or July

There are some pretty cheap fares out of Omaha (I am told) if anyone from further away wanted to attend.  Pretty good selection of rooms, a great zoo, a couple casinos, and golf courses for those interested in that, and fabulous shopping.  But may be too far away from all the Twin Cities people??  Just thinking out loud here! Let me know.  

At this point, more interest has been expressed from the Iowa, Nebraska area, so we were leaning towards that direction!  

God Bless You All!
Michele

I haven't been in on this topic, but I live in Missouri. I'm planning on attending the Stanford picnic but would love to meet up with other MM'ers close to home. Omaha would be wonderful and you can get some cheap fairs on hotels and there are some wonderful places you can go to. I think late June or early July would be a good time in case there are others trying to go to the Stanford picnic. Omaha is about 4 hours drive from me. However, I am open to about anything.

Reagan

We do have a couple of MMers in school that requested the summer months, and August can be so blasted hot and humid here, I was thinking either June or July.  It would be wonderful to get as many people as possible to attend.  I was looking last night and Omaha has quite an array of prices for motels, depending on what you want to spend.  My sister lives in Florida and she has flown into Omaha for under $200, which might make it an option for those living farther away.  

Again, if anyone is interested or has any suggestion, please let me know.   ;)

God Bless You All
Michele

Michele, I would love to have the reunion in Omaha. My brother lived there for four years and I visited him often. One place you should go to is the Old Market Place. Please let me know when you decide when this might happen. I live in Iowa and am only six hours away.
Sharon

I was looking at some hotels right near the Old Market!  Some of them can be a bit more expensive, but not everyone would have to stay there!  
God Bless You All!
Michele
PS..Sharon...any suggestions for which weekend?
I am pretty open!  (occlusion joke!  Ha Ha)

Sharon, Reagan, Mark, Nessa, anyone else!!!

What weekends WON'T work..perhaps we should start there!

Just let me know!
Michele

I just checked and it looks like the Stanford picnic is 5/30..so I will assume not that weekend! I prefer NOT the 4th of July.  Amongst the 7 weekends, there has to be something that will work for us all!
Again, just let me know!
Michele, et al

June 6/7
June 13/14
June 20/21
June 27/28
July 11/2
July 18/19
July 25/26

Michele,  Yes I know the hotels by the Market Place are high. We stayed at a motel between the zoo and the Market.  All the dates you mentioned are okay with me. Just let me know the date the others decide on.  Sharon

In all honesty, the later in June the better. I am attending the Stanford reunion and also am doing a follow up TCD and follow up appointment with Dr. Steinberg. So I will be in Cali for about 4 nights. If I had a few weeks to recoup between trips, that would be great. However, I'm not the only one attending so whatever date picked, I would work with.

Reagan

Thanks Reagan!  Sharon is going to get some info from a friend/relative about a decent motel...and I will check with them for availability and go from there.  I hope to set a date soon so people can plan accordingly!  CAN'T WAIT TO MEET YOU ALL!!!!  ;)
Michele

It is looking like June 27&28 weekend.  I will get out more info as I get it!  If this absolutely won't work for anyone, please let me know ASAP!  Thanks....can't wait to see everyone!  [smiley=headbanger.gif]
Michele

Are we still planning on the Midwest Moyamoya trip? I havent heard anything for a while and was just wondering.

I would like to still do it, and have that weekend still open for it, but I didn't really get any replies after I set that last weekend in June date.  Who would still be interested or available?

Amy and I live in IL and not very far from Omaha NE. Are you all thinking about meeting there? That would sure be great!
      Christie

i live in texas so that is a little far for me to go

I am game for it also.

Reagan

I'm in IL, I'll go if the date is finalized.

We are tentatively planning on getting together in the chat here tomorrow evening at 8PM central time.  Anyone interested in the Midwest meeting please join us.  Everyone else is welcome too!  The more the merrier.   :)

New details for the.....
MIDWEST MOYAMOYA "MEET UP"
 We have planned this for (June 26, 27, 28), based on replies from those interested.  I am asking that anyone who wants to join us please send me an email with the following information:
 Days you will join us, number of rooms you will need, number of children in your group, etc.  
We must have this information for room planning.  We are leaning towards utilizing the Carol Hotel in Omaha, Ne.  Based on quotes received, available nearby attractions, etc.  This looks like the best bet for us (They have a website for those interested).  However, we need to have firm numbers regarding rooms before we can get a better price quote from them.  Nessa, the ultimate event planner (seriously [smiley=bow.gif]), is putting together a sort of itinerary of what we have tentatively planned (nap breaks included LOL).  Again this may be somewhat dependent on numbers, so please let me know.  There is a minimum number of rooms that will have to be prepaid (I think) before they will give much of a discount.  Thanks, and we look forward to meeting you all!!  We are stoked [smiley=sayyes.gif]!!! [smiley=headbanger.gif]      
 

Amy and I are in!!  Sounds like fun. IWe have never been to one of these meetings, can anyone explain what the agenda will be or do we know yet? Should we go ahead and reserve our rooms?
                          Christie

Hey all. I don't know if you are still planning the Midwest Moyamoya meet up. I had to stay in California a little longer than expected and change my flight arrangements. Unfortunately I won't be able to make it because I am going to be playing catch up with the finances. I am so sorry. I hope you guys enjoy yourself. After the Stanford Picnic, I have to say that it is great to meet other MM'ers face to face.

Reagan

If the midwest moyamoya get together is still on please let us know.  I thing there might be a few more people that are interested in getting together.  

Tracie

It appears this weekend turned out to NOT work for many people, and was a busy weekend for lodging in Omaha.  So, at this time the meeting is postponed.  Please watch for updates on when we will have the Midwest Meeting.
Michele    

thank you for the update. Please let us know when it is rescheduled.
                                Christie

I'm glad to hear that we still want to get together in the future. What about sometime when it starts to cool off? Could anybody possibly get away for a quick weekend somewhere?

Reagan

Hello, Do any of you that meet up have children with MM and if so how old? I would love for my daughter to have other friends with the same disease. Also, this may sound silly but is it ok for people with MM to fly? I would love to meet some of you but cannot imagine traveling with my daughter.  Danielle

Danielle,

I am an adult with Moyamoya. However, I fly to and from California and other places. The only things I am not allowed to do because of Moyamoya is the following: wear anything that constricts blood flow, take birth control, sky dive and roller coasters. I hope that eases your apprehensions.

Reagan

Most people do fly to and from their surgery, and there has been much discussion on this forum about flying.  As far as other restrictions, that seems to really depend on what your doctor has told you.  Many of us have been told not to take OTC cold medicines, diet pills, cough syrup, etc. Please discuss those recommended restrictions with your doctor.
Michele

http://www.moyamoya.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1236182108

I think this will get you to the flying topic!

Michele

How does Labor Day weekend sound for everyone?  I know that many of you have kids in school, but this would allow for an extra day for travel and the kids would not have school.  I would love to see everyone get together before we get into the colder more unpredictable weather of the midwest.  I see that you all have been discussing this since Dec. and thought that maybe we could make it happen at the end of the summer.  Let me know what everyone thinks.  Did anyone get to attend the picnic at Stanford the end of May? ::) 8-)

I attended the picnic. It was truly amazing. I can't tell you how wonderful it is to meet other people with moyamoya. It really creates a bond that lasts a lifetime.

Reagan