The Main Event

The main reason for the trip to Illinois at this time was to be there for my niece, Erin's, wedding. Remember the bachelorette party only a week before? Like many little girls, she's been dreaming of ... and practicing for ... this day for a long time. I was so glad I got to meet her fiance, Will, and his family the week before. He's a real sweetie and the whole family is very likable. So it was fun to celebrate with them all.

We left Rockford on Friday morning and took the direct route to Chicago. A little frustrating that almost that entire route is under construction! But we checked into the motel in plenty of time and started reuniting with other family. Jodi, Jess and the kids had come up and since we hadn't seen them in a week it was good to lay eyes on them again and know they'd made it safely. (You know how moms worry.) My sister, Karen, and her roommate, Diane, had come from Tucson and their room was just a few doors down. I was given the privilege of reading some scripture at the wedding, so Jerry and I went to the rehearsal. As has become the custom, all the out-of-town guests got to go to the rehearsal dinner and so we all started partying there. It was held at a really cool pub and the food, drinks and fun were great. Savannah found out that the flower girl was just about her age and so they became instant buddies.

The wedding was at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, so that gave us a morning to find something to do. It just so happened that Lego Land is at the Woodfield Mall which is about 5 minutes from the Double Tree in Arlington Heights where we were staying. It also happens that Emery is crazy about Legos! So guess where we went to kill a morning. My favorite display was the city of Chicago all done in Legos...from Navy Pier, Sears Tower and downtown to Buckingham Fountain. I loved it. After you walk through a good-sized area of displays, you can go upstairs to a big room where you can sit and build things with Legos. Jodi entered her cat in an animal contest...and she won (she was the only entry), so she got a paper hat. You can build cars and race them on tracks and ramps. While Emery was busy doing that, Savannah became very fond of a ride they had in that same room and she rode, and rode and rode.

Lots of fun, but then it was time to go to the wedding. We all went back and got dressed in our wedding finest. Emery likes to get dressed up and he loves wearing a tie. I bought him his first sport coat for Easter this year and he gets excited when he has a chance to wear that. He says he looks like a newsman in it. Savannah had gotten a very pretty new dress and she looked like a princess. (The newsman and the princess. What is this...a wedding or Halloween??)

The wedding was beautiful. The bride was beautiful. The weather was warm and little muggy when we went in and just as the bride started coming down the aisle we heard a little thunder. My brother, Chuck, said as they were standing in the back waiting, it did get stormy outside. He said Erin looked a little apprehensive. So he said to her, "You look nervous. Let's take a walk." She grinned and he walked her down the aisle. But after the service the storm had passed and it turned out to be a beautiful evening. The reception was at the Metropolis Ballroom in Arlington Heights. It's a really nice facility and there is a balcony along side the ballroom, so it was very pleasant to take your drink and go out there and visit for a while. Again the food was great, the place was great and it was fun. And I was so glad to be there. I know I've been using the words "great" and "beautiful" a lot, but what else can you say? That's what it was. They had a room for the kids to go into and play and eat "kid friendly" food and watch movies while the adults had a cocktail hour, introduction of the wedding party, toasts, etc. But once the dancing started the kids joined us and they had a ball. Savannah and Emery both love to dance and took full advantage of the festivities. The evening didn't end well for Emery, though. He was cutting a rug on the dance floor and a lady was jumping and jiving near him but lost her balance and fell on him! He was mad, embarrassed, and hurt his leg a little (but he wouldn't talk about it) and by then he was exhausted. It was late by that time, so we all caught the shuttle back to the motel. But that was the least thing we will remember about the wedding. The rest was lots of fun.

In the morning, the grooms parents invited all the out-of-towners who were staying at the Double Tree to breakfast. So we got one more chance to be together before we all headed back home in various directions. This is me with my big sister and my "little" brother. We don't get to be together very often any more, so this was nice. Jodi and Jess were determined to drive back home in one day. That's 13 hours from Chicago. We almost always break that drive up into two days now, but we drove through as well. It didn't feel all that bad, but we got home at 2:00 a.m. to find out we had no air conditioning! The unit had gone out and it was 4 days (in the mid to upper 90s) before we got a new one. Oh, well. Great vacation....now back to reality.

On The Rocks

I was very lucky to grow up with lots of first cousins. Two of the ones I was closest to were Melissa and Cathe. Melissa is my age and Cathe is a year younger. I would ride my bike to Melissa's and play on her jungle gym and borrow her Nancy Drew books (she had them ALL). And I would ride over to Cathe's with the Sears, Penney, and Montgomery Ward catalogs in my bike basket and we'd cut out paper dolls all afternoon. Great memories. It's been a long, long time since we'd gotten a chance to spend time together until a few years ago when, thanks to modern technology such as e-mail, Face Book, etc. -- we reconnected. In a somewhat strange coincidence they both live in Rockford, Illinois, now. In 2009 they got on a plane and came down here for a visit. We had a wonderful reunion and it was decided that it was then my turn to visit Rockford to see them next. The plans to do that last year fell apart, but when we were going to Illinois again this year, the Rockford visit was a MUST!

So on Wednesday morning we bid adieu to the fine folks in Sheridan and headed up route 39. We went first to Cathe's house. Melissa and her husband, Duane, came over for lunch. We sat in Cathe and Rum's newly finished sun room and enjoyed lunch, beautiful weather and a great visit. After lunch we went to Anderson Gardens. It's a gorgeous Japanese garden and, again, with all the rain they've had it was lush and beautiful. Later on, Cathe's kids and grand kids, as well as her sister, Jean, and her brother-in-law came over for dinner. (We're all about the eating.) It was so nice to get a chance to see her 4 darling grand kids in person instead of just in the cute pictures she shares. After everyone left, Cathe and I looked at photo albums and scrapbooks and I taught her how to play Monopoly Deal.

Thursday morning, the girls took me to a store called Gordman's. I'd never heard of it till Shirley was singing it's praises. Ken had a neat bug zapper fly swatter that they got there and I thought Jerry needed to have one. Plus...I heard it was just a really neat store. It is. The guys went out and hit some golf balls and then we all met for lunch (eating again) at BeefaRoo...a local favorite where they have -- tenderloins! :) Then Jerry went home with Duane and the girls took me to a really nice quilt shop in a big, old house. Lots of inspiration! Then we swung by and picked Jerry up and Melissa took us on a driving tour of Rockford. It's a very nice city with a lot to offer. I can see why the Wisconsin senators chose that as a "hiding" place while they were avoiding doing their jobs a couple of months ago.

On Thursday night it was Melissa's turn to show off her two adorable grand daughters...Amelia and Sofi. It's so nice to put voices and personalities with these cute kids that I hear stories about and just see pictures of. We had a very good dinner out on the screened-in porch on a picture perfect evening enjoying the view of their back yard. After everyone else called it a night, Melissa and I looked at a cookbook and I taught her how to play Monopoly Deal.

Before leaving town on Friday morning, we all went to breakfast at a Rockford institution...The Stockholm Inn. The (large) place is really neat and the food was wonderful. They like to go for the Sweedish pancakes with linginberries but everything that everyone had was really good. They've recently remodeled the bathrooms and the ladies' room was so cute we took pictures! Rockford is home to the original sock monkey and the Stockholm Inn proudly displays a large array of monkeys.

So after a couple of days of eating, visiting, sharing, eating, laughing and...did I mention eating?...we had to head on to the next stop. So glad Rockford was on my "bucket list".

Home for the Holiday

On Monday morning -- Memorial Day -- we left Streator and headed up the road to Sheridan. As much as I love visiting friends and family in Streator, it's when we roll into Sheridan that I feel I'm coming "home". We always stay with our BFFs Ken and Shirley. They had a cookout and we got to see their kids and grandkids and several old friends came over, too. The food was great, the people were great and the weather was great. In the evening we decided to go for a walk and burn off some of the brats, sides and adult beverages. There were 8 of us (4 couples) and we walked around town. Gotta love a small town where you can walk 8 abreast down the streets and only have to get out of the way of traffic (one car) once. :)

On Tuesday morning Shirley and I were visiting and Ken and Jerry had disappeared. Not surprising since neither one of them can sit still for very long. When they came back, I asked where they had been and they said "visiting". I found out they'd been visiting the lady that lives in the house we used to live in! Ken saw the look on my face and said, "Don't worry. I asked her if we could come back. I knew you'd want to go see the house, too." The people who have lived in the "home of my heart" where we raised our girls have made a great many changes to the place. A number of years ago I saw from the bottom of the driveway that they had taken our plain little brown house and painted it yellow with white trim and put a nice porch on the front. I loved it! This year we'd heard they put a landscape wall along the bottom of the sloped front yard that followed the curve of the driveway -- another great improvement! They have also added a sun room on the back and changed what was our living room to their dining room! The lady was so nice to take her time (twice) that day and let us come and see. My childhood home is a wreck and Jerry's is gone, so I love that someone is doing such nice things to the house I have so many fond memories of.

After visiting the old home place we went south to the little country town of Leonore. Again continuing my quest for tenderloins. Shirley assured me these were the best. I have to admit the girl knows her tenderloins. It was awesome! Since we plan much of our visits and travels around food, we had plans to go to a small country town north of Sheridan for "cheap chicken" for dinner. So we worked our way back up there by way of Ottawa first. We stopped and did some antique shopping. Jerry bought a neat old rake and we spent the rest of the trip packing and unpacking the trunk and back seat around it.

Then we went to a couple of plant nurseries. Illinois has had an extremely wet spring and early summer and although it's sad to see the water standing in the farmers' fields, everything is lush and green and beautiful. One of the nurseries is where we used to go for plants and it was great to see that it's still a thriving business. It may even have grown in the time we've been gone. I just had to buy a few things to bring home. So, along with the rake, we packed, unpacked, and tended the plants for the rest of the trip, too. The second nursery we went to is new to us. I don't remember the name of it, but it is laid out beautifully. Potted plants for sale are nestled among those same types of items planted in the soil and blooming and looking so inviting. By then it was time to go to the tavern and get the "cheap chicken". I don't understand how fried chicken is associated with the south when they have no taverns down here. Taverns have the best fried chicken and, again, Shirley knew what she was talking about. When I went to the restroom, there was a sign on the wall that advertised some upcoming events. Some time in July is the "Testicle Festival". Sure hate that we're going to miss that!!

Family Ties

When I returned to Streator on Sunday, we went to visit with Jerry's side of the family. Whenever we're in town his ex-sister-in-law, Marie, gets the nieces, nephews, spouses, kids, etc. together and we get to visit them all at once. Always a lot of fun. This year his brother, Curt, and his wife, Sharon, were there, too, so it was a nice get together.

After lunch and a nice visit with them, we went back to Bob and Joan's. They took us on a "tur" of south Streator to see where the tornado had gone through last June. The apartment building where they lived when they were first married is now gone. We walked around Oakland Park school grounds where they lost many of their big, old trees. Then we went for pizza and went back to their house and watched a movie. Spent one more night enjoying their hospitality (Joan puts a big Cunningham's chocolate whip on your pillow instead of a mint!!) before moving on northward.

Thanks for a great visit, friends and family!

Big City Bound

On Saturday I ditched Jerry for 24 hours. I left him in the capable hands of Bob and Joan and I went to Chicago to spend the day with Erin and "the girls" for her bachelorette party.

A few weeks before that, Linda and I were talking about travel plans, etc. for the wedding weekend. I told her I wanted to take some extra time either the week before or the week after to visit with some family and friends, but hadn't nailed down plans yet. She said that if I was in the area the week before, I could come help the girls celebrate at the Cubs' game. Well...I made my travel decision right then and there! I love the Cubs (I know...there should be a support group somewhere) and I've never partied on one of the rooftops before and it sounded like a grand idea. So that was the plan. It was windy and cold and rained in the 9th inning...the Cubs lost 9-0...and we had a wonderful time! :)

After the game, we met up with the guys who were doing the bachelor thing on another rooftop. Just a short time trying to talk in a crowded, noisy bar and we parted company with the "youngsters". Linda, her friends, Ann and Barb, Nan (the mother of the groom) and I went to get Linda's car and go downtown to the Embassy Suites where she had booked rooms for us. One of the wonderful things about getting older is that you get smarter. I have no idea how long the younger crowd hung out in Wrigleyville, but we had a great evening. Linda had gotten us tickets to see a play at the Shakespeare Theater on Navy Pier. Hmmm...a play--okay..."Shakespeare"?--well, let's see..."musical"?--try to keep an open mind. It was called Murder for Two and it was hilarious!! There are only two actors...one is the detective and the other is all 6 suspects and a couple of little kids. I don't know when I've seen more talented actors or when I've enjoyed anything so clever. If you get a chance to see it, I highly recommend it.

By the time the play was over, it had stopped raining. So we stayed on Navy Pier to see the first Saturday night fireworks of the 2011 season. All I can say is..."ooooo" and "ahhhhh". Beautiful. Then we walked back to our hotel and stopped to get something to eat. So there we were eating French onion soup and sipping margaritas (mine was a rum and coke) at midnight. Ahh...the good life.

I got up early and enjoyed a full hot breakfast at the hotel and then caught a cab back to Union Station and the train back to Dwight and was picked up by Jerry, Bob and Joan. Wow...I felt like I almost met myself coming and going on those train tracks. But what a fun 24 hour visit to a city I love with people I really enjoy. Nan, Barb and Ann were all new acquaintances even though I've heard enough about them to feel like I knew them. But they are all a lot of fun and once you meet them you feel like you've known them forever. So the following week at the wedding, I felt like I was seeing new friends again instead of meeting strangers.

Thanks, Linda, for inviting me to join you all for that weekend. It was great!

Two for the Road

Day two of our trip got us to Streator...finally. Most people driving from here to there take I-75 to I-24 to I-57 to Champaign, Il., and then take I-74 to Bloomington and go north on I-39. But when we get on I-74 just a little west of I-57 we turn north on state route 47. It's a decent road and even though it's only 2-lane it just feels nice to slow the pace a little after all the interstates and start to enjoy the familiar farmland. This year lots of those farmers' fields had standing water in them. As soon as we get as far north as highway 116, east of Pontiac, we start to see the wind farms. Even though the residents are now used to the sight of them, they still fascinate us. There were none of these when we moved away 20 years ago and now they are plentiful in that area.

When we got into town, we drove by the house where I grew up. It's in a sad state of disrepair. My mother always kept the place neat and pretty. But we didn't linger we went on to happier things...like the house of our friends Bob and Joan. They know that when I come to town I'm on a quest to eat pork tenderloin sandwiches. So for dinner they took us to a place that has good ones. Yum.

The timing of our trip was such that we rolled into town just in time to catch our sister-in-law, Sharon's, performance at Engle Lane Theater! She has been active in local community theater in Streator and Morris for many years, but we've never seen her in anything or seen any of the shows she's written and produced. Engle Lane began as a community playhouse in 1960 and has been going strong ever since. Last year it was badly damaged in a tornado on June 5th. They had their grand reopening in April of this year, so it was exciting to see the new facility. It's beautiful. The performance we saw was "Pop"...a very up-tempo revival of songs from the 50s, 60s and 70s. It was a real toe-tapper and I'm so glad we got to see it...and Sharon. Bravo!

On the Road Again

Day one of our trip to Illinois was the usual plan. Go about half way and stop for the night. We had made reservations at Cadiz, Ky.

When we're traveling, we like to stop at wineries along the way. Having made this trip MANY times in the last 20 years, we know where most of them are. But this time, we found a new one; Beans Creek Winery in Manchester, Tennessee. We stopped in for a taste and to get a souvenir glass (they were out of glasses...we'll have to go back another time -- oh, darn!). After tasting, we decided on a few bottles to take with us. Jerry asked about the name of one of them..."Bonnaroo White". The girl told us it was named after an area around there where they have a music festival. Okay. So that's cute. After I got home, I happened to see something on the news about a music festival called Bonnaroo! It's quite the thing. This year was the 10th annual 4-day festival held on 700 acres of farm land near Manchester. The main attraction is the music -- performed on multiple stages. But there are also tents like the comedy tent, "this tent", "that tent", "the other tent", the silent disco tent, the cinema tent and the Broo'ers Festival (breweries) tent as well as a graffiti wall, a giant slip and slide and lots and lots of food. It's been hailed as "The concert event of the summer", "Best festival", and "One of 50 moments that changed rock and roll". Wow. Who knew? We'd never heard of it. But I feel stupid now knowing the attendance is routinely between 75,000 and 80,000. That's a lot of people that know something I didn't.

But "stupid" is something I'm kinda getting used to. Farther down the road was Clarksville, Tennessee, home of the Beachaven Winery. We've been there many times and like their wines. But as we were nearing there, I told Jerry that we were too late. It was about 10 minutes to 5:00 and I didn't know their hours, but assumed that by the time we exited and took the short drive to the winery they would probably be closing. A little while later, it dawned on me that when I changed the clock in the car (and my watch) I set them an hour in the wrong direction! It was only going on 3:00 when we were in Clarksville! Duh!!

I shouldn't use the word "stupid". Jodi and Jeremy have told the kids it's not a nice word. Savannah and Emery call it the "SP" word. But when I was growing up it wasn't a bad word...just an accurate description. And like Forrest Gump says, "Stupid is as stupid does".

PS: If you're in the Manchester, TN, area but don't like crowds, you might try visiting the nearby town of Bugscuffle. It's a dot on the map, but the population is so small it's not even listed.

Table Rock

We enjoyed our first vacation of 2010 by going with Jodi and the kids to Table Rock Lake in Missouri. Jeremy had a fishing tournament there and the "school of York" just happened to be on spring break. We've been planning it for several months and Jodi was particularly excited about a week in a beautiful cabin in the woods down by the lake just relaxing. Well, we got off to a rocky start. After a LONG day's driving, we were tired and ready to get to the cabin south of Branson. Jodi found it on line and it sounded ideal. Two new cabins on this property boasted 600 acres of forrest behind. They didn't say what was in front! Poor Jeremy was exhausted after driving all night the night before and fishing all day. All he wanted was to get to the cabin and take a nap before we got there. When he arrived, he found the cabin "nestled in a dad-gum trailer park!!!" (His words). After having a no nonsense conversation with the owner and getting our money back, he had to find a place for us to stay that night...as well as all the next week. He found us a very nice suite at the Ramada for Saturday night. That meant we drove an additional 20 to 30 minutes. But once we got settled in, we got some sandwiches and the kids showed us how to relax in style.

Sunday morning was spent on the computer and phone trying to find a place for the week. Jeremy found us a cabin right in Branson. It didn't feel like we were in town because it was one of many cabins in a resort. But since it was very much PRE season for Branson, we about had the place to ourselves. This worked out well because the weather was less than cooperative and this resort had an indoor pool! So we went and got new bathing suits and the kids were in the pool for part of every day that we were there. The resort also had a list of daily activities for kids. One day I took them over to learn how to make tie dye tee shirts. They enjoyed that and got a great souvenir to take home. They were the only two there, so it was a good opportunity for hands-on instruction. The activity director told me she will have about 35 kids in there once the season is in full swing. Something to be said for pre-season vacationing!

It was nice for Jeremy to come home after a long (and cold!) day of fishing to home-cooked meals, a little time for Rummikub and even to relax with one of Savannah's "spa treatments". And since we were there for the weigh-in, Emery got to go up on stage and be "interviewed". He loves to have a microphone put in his face, so when asked who his favorite fisherman was, he proudly -- and loudly -- proclaimed, "Daddy!"

There is a Bass Pro Shop in Branson, but we went 30 miles up the road to Springfield, MO, to see the "grandaddy of all Bass Pro Shops". A shrine of sorts. While we were shopping there, I told the kids I'd get them a stuffed animal. Savannah lovingly chose a sweet baby puma cub. Emery, on the other hand, decided on a long, lanky monkey whose hands and feet have Velcro. It's been lots of fun seeing it hanging from everything possible. When we got back to the cabin, Savannah discovered that the clothes she had packed for her American Girl doll fit the monkey perfectly. After a day or so, Emery started calling it "King Julian". I asked Jodi who that was and she said it was a character from the movie, Madagascar. I asked if he looked like that and she said, "You know....he kinda does!" And King Julian is still hanging around.

It was nice to have a relaxing time with the family. Jessica was unable to get the time off from work and we missed her. (She stayed home and took care of the cats.) The week ended with another long drive home. We broke this one up into two days of driving, but each one felt as long as the one going up there. But it was great and we have lots of fond memories (and tons of pictures -- as you can tell).

Disney Review

We've been home from our Disney World vacation for over a week, but I was waiting for everyone to get their pictures uploaded/downloaded or whatever.

We had a great time. When you check in, you can get a button. If you're a newlywed you can get one that says, "Happily Ever After". Jessica and Savannah were wearing ones that said, "Celebrate". Someone asked Jess what she was celebrating and she said, "I'm not at work!" Since I'd never been there before, Jodi got me one that said, "1st Time Visitor". It was cute, but I didn't wear it out in public. Everything is so real there that I thought if they knew I was a "Disney virgin" they might throw me into a volcano or something!

Emery got his picture taken with "The Donald", among others. Savannah got her picture with Cinderella. And I got my picture taken with Goofy! Yes, it truly is a small world after all. My BFF Shirley and her family were there the same time we were...and were staying at the same resort! We all met up briefly one evening and then I got to spend some quality time having breakfast with her and Ken the next morning. That was great.

Disney was -- and always is -- mind blowing. Yes, it was hot and yes, it was crowded. But that's not what we'll remember. I so much enjoyed being there to see the kids and grandkids enjoy it and to go on the rides...especially with the little ones. They are at good ages now to go there. Because Disney is so good at what they do, the Kingdom (and all the rest) is truly magical. But as an adult you find yourself in awe of the vastness of it all and the behind-the-scenes workings. I kept saying, "I want to see some statistics about all this! I want to know how many acres, how many buses, how many employees, how much laundry...." It's just unfathomable. When I got home I did some research on line and found out the answers to many of my questions...and then some. So, here are some interesting stats on the happiest place on earth:

Walt Disney World covers 47 square miles.

Walt Disney World employs more than 54,000 people.

More than 230 buses transport guests around the vacation kingdom.

Nearly 2,000 miles of irrigation pipe are needed to water more than 3,500 acres of landscaping.

If you were to wash and dry one load of laundry every day for 44 years, you'd clean as much as they do in a single day.

If you stayed in a different room in one of the hotels or resorts on WDW property at the rate of one per night, it would take more than 72 years.

And...I don't want to ruin the mystique...but, did you know:

Cinderella's castle is not made of stone. It is entirely made of fiberglass!

Thanks, y'all for a great vacation trip!

PS: Oh, I almost forgot. There was a ride called "Soarin'" and Jess and I took Savannah on it. We should have thought more carefully about that. Jessica was embarrassed by all the yelling and crying and screaming...and Savannah didn't like it, either!

A Superb Vacation

I know...there's nothing worse than having to see pictures and hear stories from someone else's vacation. Well, I'm going to share with you anyway. (Hey, you can always hit "delete" and I'll never know, right?) We really did have a super time the last two weeks and it was one of the best vacations ever. With that in mind, I'd like to just jot down a few more superlatives:

Most beautiful scenery: Nickajack Lake...shimmering blue and surrounded by the rolling green hills of southern Tennessee, just north of Chattanooga. Breathtaking every time I see it.

Cheapest gas: In Mansfield, TN...$3.85 per gallon!

Funniest coincidence: Shirley and I got the same shirt (in different colors) to wear for the 4th of July!

Strangest quilt shop: Earthmans General Store and Quilt Shop in Whites Creek, TN. Advertised as "located in historic James Gang building (and) voted best hamburgers in Nashville." What can I say...that's exactly what it was.

Best belly laughs: Shirley's stupid jokes.

Best bargain: Rest stop #35 in Georgia. Jerry put his money in for a root beer and out came two!

Most delicious memory revisited: Wild black raspberries that we picked at Debbie and Chris' house. We ate heaping amounts of them over ice cream.

Best find: I went antique shopping with Shirley and Judy in Sandwich, IL and found a type setter's tray. The one in my sewing room is full and I've kinda been looking for another one. I've seen a few, but none in very good shape. The ones I've seen have run in the neighborhood of 30-something to 40-something dollars. I found one in perfect condition for $8.50!

Best pizza: Pizzeria Uno. The home of Chicago's deep dish pizza. We had to eat there...it was on my "bucket list". :)

Best travel companion: Jerry "I don't care, whatever you want to do" Simons. He wasn't crazy about going to Chicago...just had the impression from long-ago memories that it was a noisy, dirty, big city. He changed his mind as we walked...and walked...and walked and saw flowers, trees and grass everywhere. He also enjoyed the Cubs' game and was really impressed by Jerzey Boys.

Best reaction: My BFF Shirley's enthusiasm when I gave her a quilt that matches her new family room decor. She's been bitching about not having a quilt for sooooo long!

Most stimulating: We used our government "economic stimulus" money (plus a bunch more) to stimulate several local economies!

Most delightful weather: Who would think that Illinois weather over the 4th of July would be so ideal? If it were like that all the time, that would be a vacationers' mecca.

Most relaxing: Me and Shirley on the patio swing...trying to read but falling asleep. Taking turns napping and pumping the swing with one lazy foot on the ground.



Best repeat performance: Our third year in a row of touring with our friends, Bob and Joan. We've had some really great trips together.

And, finally, the best thing about a vacation: Memories to last a lifetime.

Anticipation

Anticipation can be such sweet torture. Waiting for something wonderful you know is about to happen. As a child, waiting for Santa to come; waiting outside of Rip's in Ladd to go in and get a table and get your fried chicken (it's an Illinois thing), etc. These days I find myself living in anticipation of our summer vacation this year.

If "home is where the heart is", then Sheridan, Illinois, will always be part "home" to me. We lived there for just 13 years -- but it was the home where we raised our children, where we made good friends and where I wanted to grow old. We've been in Georgia for 18 years now and I love our life here...but Sheridan will always be "home", too. Some of the good memories I have from living there were the 4th of July celebrations. They always have a great parade. Our kids got more candy on the side of the road on the 4th of July than they did Trick-or-Treating for Halloween! Those people know how to parade! Then, when Jerry coached the girls' little league teams, we would be IN the parade...and throwing candy. One year we had "Put Me In, Coach" playing the entire time. I will never forget that song. The only thing they do better than the parade is the fireworks. They are AMAZING...every single year. We haven't been back there for a 4th of July in 15 years, but it is on my mind -- and in my heart -- every year no matter where I am or what I'm doing. (This picture was taken while waiting for the fireworks on July 4th, 1993.) My BFF Shirley has forgiven me for the picture I posted here earlier, so we are re-invited to stay with them. Their house is on the parade route, so I should get lots of candy just by sitting in a lawn chair in the front yard.

We will be rolling into Sheridan on the 3rd of July and staying for a few days. "Timing is everything" they say, and we have timed this just right. Not only will we be there for the holiday festivities, but for some really good eating. Uncle Ken (Shirley's hubby) is going to Grill Master School in Denver in June. I'm sooo looking forward to finding out what he learned. I can just picture us sitting on their beautiful patio, sipping margaritas (did you know they are great with a shot of Amaretto on the side?) and sampling the Grill Mater's fare. I know the air is going to smell like "home" to me. Beyond that, I hope to see lots of friends that we haven't seen in too long and enjoy being with these fun folks again for a while.

That, in itself, would be a wonderful trip...and something worthy of anticipation. But that is only half of this year's vacation story.

Two years ago, our friends from Illinois -- Bob and Joan -- flew down here and the 4 of us drove to Charleston and Savannah. Jerry and I had been there before, but we enjoyed sharing it with friends. We all enjoyed these two beautiful, old, historic southern cities...and the B&Bs we found for lodging. So last year, we said, "Let's go someplace again." It was in the middle of summer, so we opted for a cooler destination and headed for the mountains of North Carolina. We went to the towns of Blowing Rock, and Asheville. Found two more really neat B&Bs and, of course, had to go to The Biltmore House. Another great trip. Two such nice vacation trips had us asking, "Where can we go this year?" I figured that it was our turn to travel north to meet up with them and decided I wanted to vacation in Chicago!

Growing up, I lived about 80 miles southwest of Chicago. But I had an aunt and uncle who lived in the city and we would go see them occasionally. It always truly was an "occasion". I can remember them taking us to Grant Park to see Buckingham Fountain lit up at night...and their apartment was within walking distance of the Museum of Science of Industry. I can still remember the first time I saw Colleen Moore's Doll House and went down into the coal mine. When our girls were in school, their 8th grade trip was to Chicago. Since I worked at the school, Jerry and I got to be chaperones the year Jess' class went (She could have done without that!). We stayed at the Palmer House Hotel, ate dinner at The Berghoff restaurant (now no longer open), visited China Town and went to a Cubs' game. Great times. Great memories.

Joan said that she and Bob had taken the train into Chicago for their anniversary this year and had a fun day. We agreed that Chicago is a neat city and would be fun to visit together. So we've been making plans. While looking at hotel accommodations, Joan said, "Too bad we can't get a B&B in Chicago...we've had such good luck with them." Well...we found one! We have reservations at the Gold Coast Inn B&B and we can't wait to see it. It is a renovated 1873 brick town home only a 10-minute stroll from the Magnificent Mile. We are envisioning ourselves eating breakfast while enjoying the view of the lush, 2-level garden.

For the past couple of years I've been mentioning to Jerry that I'd like to see a Cubs' game at Wrigley Field again before they tear it down...or it falls down. So we have tickets to a baseball game, too. And the Cubs are playing AWESOME this year. Keep it up, boys...I'm on my way! They're having a promotion that evening and the first 10,000 fans get a 1908 Cubs' hat. I plan to get to the park early. There are so many cool and wonderful things to do there that it was hard to decide. But among our planned activities are: strolling Navy Pier and getting a cheese burger ("Cheeburger, cheeburger...cheeps/no fries" for those of you old enough to remember the early days of Saturday Night Live), taking the architectural tour by boat, going to see Jersey Boys, and walking through Millennium Park. Those are our "musts" at this point...but we're leaving room for the Adler Planetarium, a walk over to Oak Street Beach, getting a deep dish Chicago pizza, or anything else that strikes our fancy. We will be taking the train in from Dwight, and that will be fun, too.

So we are going to bite the bullet and put $4.00 per gallon gas in the car and drive up north. Wikipedia defines anticipation as "an emotion involving pleasure in considering some expected or longed-for good event." Yep. I would say that fits!