Weekend Recap

It's over.

Man, why does it have to be over?

I guess the only thing good about it being over is that we are one day further in the dreaded Shred and one day closer to the end. Today actually delivered temperatures well above freezing and a nice, long walk with the jogger. And Mondays? Means swim days and Chipotle for dinner. It's sort of our Monday tradition. At least for the next three until they end.

This weekend, we were social and fun and those people who actually have adult conversation while dressed nicely and sipping libations. More weekend thoughts and facts:

• Ray tried haggis for the first time ever. And liked it enough to eat a decent portion.
• We brought B to our friends' house and put him down to sleep in their bedroom. When we left four hours later, he transferred just fine into his crib (until he woke 3 hours later for milk). 
• I forgot to breastfeed many times this weekend. B is just such a mover now and when he does feed, he's so distracted and ready to get up and move about his toys. I don't think I'll be feeding much past a year.
• We sipped both Johnny Walker Blue Label & Glenmorangie Signet and had fun doing it.
• Ate traditional Scottish food at our first Burns Supper, served by our new neighborhood friends. 
• Was reminded of my Scottish roommates I lived with for about 4 years before marrying.
• Went to both Whole Foods & Costco and left with tofu from both places {B loves his tofu}.
• Consumed far too many Costco samples.
• B was finally allowed in the fridge for a full inspection. He has been bolting across the floor every time I open it for anything ever since he learned to crawl. Every day, I shut him out with fury. This weekend, we turned it off for a few and let him have at it. He took out avocado because he loves his avocado.
• Bought a new basket for our living room from World Market. Those sneaky punks sent us a 49% off coupon and wouldn't allow us to use on the basket, but bought it anyway. They won at their own game. We placed it on the right side of the TV. The basket on left side of the console is from Target.
• Put B in his first pair of solid shoes and he tried desperately to shake them off. Keens, naturally. We're kind of hippies. He still doesn't quite fill out a size 4. Shrimp baby.
• Watched my husband be blindfolded and hit a man wearing a kilt with a newspaper (also see notes about Johnny Walker, Glenmorangie & Scottish dinner). Fun fact: my former roommate wore a kilt to our wedding.
• Made a reservation to take B to hibachi this week.
• Sat on Molly's couch at Costco.

So much more, of course. Photos from some of the above vignettes:

Road Trip! Milwaukee, WI

About a week ago we decided to book a hotel room for Milwaukee just because we can't sit still. It's just our thing. We need to be moving or traveling or something. We're definitely not homebodies. From the need to have me constantly walking him around the house and yard and everywhere, it doesn't appear B will be staying in one place very long either. We had been meaning to check out Milwaukee ever since last year when we made our trek North through Wisconsin and up and over to Isle Royale National Park. We drove through what appeared to be a beautiful city and figured we'd put it on the list as a short getaway for a night from Chicago.

Most of our adventures centered around beer drinking-- no surprise. Thanks to the Chicago fire of 1871, Milwaukee became a leader in beer production. And hey. We like beer. Cheers to beer tours! Our last beer tours were in St. Louis with friends, just before B came into the picture. And now, B is 4 months and exploring with us. We're just so humbled.

We drove out Saturday morning and headed to our first stop, Miller Brewing Co. We did the Anheuser Busch tour last year in addition to Schlafly and Ray had previously done the Coors tour in Golden, CO. That's still on my list, as is the New Belgium facility in Fort Collins, CO where they make my favorite beer, Fat Tire.

No stroller allowed. No problem.

Nearing the end of our tour, they took us into this musty cave and then dropped us off in this "inn" that served us our first free beer.

In the cave.

 Mural on the wall

 Girl in the Moon (Miller High Life symbol) and a couple amazing boys in the cave.

 In the inn with free beer

After our Miller tour, we headed downtown to the 3rd Ward and saw this driving down the road. Anyone ever ridden one of these? This is the first we'd seen them ever.

We drove around a bit after walking around the downtown area and found a nice place to have dinner. I researched on Yelp (always while traveling) and found an excellent Mexican joint, Corazon. It's on a pathway called the Beerline.

 El restaurante.

 After dinner we headed to our hotel and B showed off his amazing tummy time moves without crying.

Hey Ladies. I'm single. Want my digits?

We checked out of our hotel in the morning and headed to the lakeshore to walk around and explore. Along this path were some gorgeous homes. Just off the coast is a shipwreck and we saw a couple people paddleboarding and a few others scuba diving around the area. What caused the shipwreck? Intense smog from the factories. Gross.

 One of the cooler art sculptures we've seen. I'd like a replica of this.

Our second beer tour, Lakefront Brewery. It was awesome. Craft beer joints are always cooler than the big guys. And they give more (and better tasting) beer.

He'd rather be naked.

 On our beer tour

I don't understand my parents. They put me in ridiculous places and think it's cute.

After our beer tour yesterday, we headed across a bridge and to Brady Street where we entered this Italian market called Glorioso's and ordered a couple calzones for lunch. They were, hands down, the best calzones we'd ever had, all for about $12 total. It was right up there in ranks as Bay Cities Deli in Santa Monica, CA.

We heart weekends.

Are You Ready For Some Football?

Air Force wasn't. Ba-dum-ch.

Okay, in all honesty, we were really rooting for those Falcons since the husband is an alum. It just wasn't in the cards. So much that it was Notre Dame's highest scoring game in 15 years. Ouch. A very high scoring game and Air Force just didn't have what it took on the defense to stop them. I do believe there were three touchdowns in the first quarter alone by ND.

We drove from Chicago to South Bend and made it in time to see a little of the lacrosse scrimmage going on between the two teams. Ray played Division 1 for Air Force all four years at the Academy and we were there to check out their newbies. Nothing like a bunch of young, athletic men to make you feel old as the hills. We walked by the lacrosse bus later on and out of the crowd, one of Ray's former coaches called him out by name. It was really special. It's always awkward to run into someone from so long ago and expect them to remember you-- but he remembered Ray without drawing attention to himself. Definitely made this wife incredibly proud. We also caught the first half of the soccer game between UConn and ND. Both fantastic teams we enjoyed watching. No scoring, but tough teams overall.

We walked to grab some lunch and finally found our way to the football stadium. It just so happens we were sitting in the Air Force block of seats (aka: someone in the Springs purchased tickets and sold them at a higher price to us schmucks). There was an obnoxious couple next to us that had plenty of opportunities to cheer for those Irish since they scored so often. There were tons of cadets and proud Academy parents surrounding us in the stands. I think it's always so fun to attend Academy events or visit because it was such a huge part of Ray's life that I was not in the picture for. There was also a B-2 Bomber flyover before the game which was extremely cool.

Pretty special picture of myself wearing Ray's old number. That's the team in the background.

 Post-scrimmage

 Upside-down IRISH.

Just after the National Anthem, a B-2 Bomber flew over. It was incredible. Even more depressing incredible was that the pilot is a 2007 USAFA grad. Three years younger than us flying an incredibly expensive aircraft. Here are my pathetic attempts to take a photo using our crappy camera. I also was not prepared because I really didn't think they'd have a flyover at a game in Indiana. I sure was wrong. Can you spot the black speck at the bottom cable line?

 What about the even smaller speck here?

 Since my attempts were so poor, here's a real image of one. Awesome, huh?

Why some of these photos are so low quality is beyond me.

  Standing with Touchdown Jesus in the background.

 That's all she wrote...

Fall Schmall.

Fall is here my friends. I used to adore this season. Pumpkin smells, fun traditions, hot cider, cinnamon, apple pies, apple picking, light sweaters, new TV shows... who doesn't love fall?

 Take that, pumpkin spice lattes!

I'm dreading the seasons changing this year. I couldn't wait to get out of winter last year. It seemed to last longer than normal-- perhaps because it was our first Chicago winter or because it was the season my son died. There's no surprise that I wanted it to pass immediately. I find myself already wanting to decline (unsent, but expected) evites about visiting the pumpkin patches/farms like we did last year. I can't. My son should/would/could be sitting up on a stupid pumpkin and I should be trying my damndest to convince him that "mommy" was where he should be looking for a good shot through my fancy DSLR that has sat in the closet unused since we purchased it in November. I can't decline these invites forever, but I hope that next year I'll be visiting with kid in tow. I don't have a whole lot of control over those dreams, though.

I'm wondering what to do about Halloween. I had my baby shower on Halloween last year and arrived home mid-afternoon to a bunch of children lined up at our door for candy! I gladly handed out the chocolates and rubbed my enormous belly as I met neighbors and pridefully acknowledged that we were expecting our son in December. I had assumed we'd have a little squirrel or something all dressed up this year sitting in our foyer as I handed out candy to neighborhood children. Luckily I hadn't picked out an outfit in my mind yet. What now? Do I buy the candy and leave a bowl on the porch and allow those questionably too old teenagers steal it all? Just subject my wonderful husband to the madness? Go out for an early dinner so we're not home at all? Making plans to avoid other plans/events can be really exhausting.

I already addressed my boycott for the rest of the holidays this year. How the heck will I avoid the music? THE MUSIC. I can barely go there in my mind and yet, in about one month, we'll be seeing garland and twinkling lights strewn all over the stores. I might have to close our blinds for the entire months of November-February. Our neighbors left their lights and wreaths on their house until MARCH this year. Perhaps a friendly PSA will be helpful to remind them of their negligence.

Fall TV hasn't let me down yet, but I'm definitely dropping the X-Factor from the list. We're also enjoying some college football and watching the Bears games. We've lived here 1.5 years. It's time we start paying attention to their beloved Bears. We've managed to watch the first two of the season and will have to indulge in the Packers v. Bears game tomorrow. Also, since the husband is a USAFA grad, we're going to be driving to South Bend for a Notre Dame v. Air Force game in two weeks! I can guarantee we'll be dressed in Air Force paraphernalia and be the absolute minorities in that stadium.

And since we'll be in South Bend, I may or may not be requiring that we eat at one of my favorite fast food joints from LA for both lunch and dinner. Oh, and I might bring some home to eat later as well. Sometimes it's a wonder my husband doesn't realize how lucky he is to be married to a cheapskate like me. Hahah. There are no Del Tacos in Illinois. Or Baja Fresh. Or Fatburger. At one point they all existed here but were booted by the locals. Boo.

I also found a new love on our Whole Foods trip this morning. New record: 7 items for $23.55! I know, be impressed. I guess I'll also have to confess that I bought the Living Social deal $10 for $20 worth to spend. When you make Whole Foods half price, it all of a sudden becomes normal. Otherwise, it breaks the bank. I'm not a huge soft cheese fan, but do love Brie, mozzarella, and chihuahua cheeses. I thought this was delicious! Very exciting, new find! I know it's not new, but new to me!

Back to college football and the to-do list. I'm airing out the house, cleaning all the bedding, mending some loose buttons, and attempting to clean. I've been sick the last week and totally unmotivated. I finally have some energy back and will be putting that to good use. Then, date night with the husband. Totally overdue. Also, I have to mention something awesome. I love Born shoes, but the last two pair of loafers I purchased cracked at the sole in the same spot! Since it was defective and I really hate my $100 shoes breaking on me unexpectedly, I wrote the company an email about the manufacturing issue since it's happened twice to the same style of shoes. They asked me to send them the defective shoes and they'd replace them with a new pair of my choice for free! Well, the cost of shipping the old pair back to them... so around $10. It appears they no longer carry loafers, so I had to choose more Mary Jane-style shoes so I can wear them to work with respectable khakis, etc. I had to provide them with 3 options, so I did... I threw in the $200 pair of boots at the end just in case they happen to be out of the other two, knowing full well that they won't be. A girl can dream.

Safe, trusty, rubber sole.

 Ray commented how these are a bit granola. Um, yeah. Who do you think you married, buddy? ;)

Okay, let the fall cleaning resume!

Awesome Weekend!

Our weekend started off on Friday night when Ray played volleyball with a bunch of friends in the co-ed league he joined. They won 2 out of 3 games! They've played a total of 9 games so far this season and won 5 of them. I usually go watch his games and cheer them on. After volleyball, we headed over to our friends' apartment, Tommy & Alli, where we everyone but me helped them moving the last major items from their current place to their new place in downtown Naperville. We had a great time though it took us about 15 minutes to find the place (oh, the north and south indicators on streets actually mean something? Haha). Sure, we knew that. We just weren't putting it into practice as Liz and I walked all around the streets carrying boxes and pillows. Oh, and a bottle of olive oil. You know... just in case. Their place is sooo cute and reminds Ray and I a lot of our first apartment together (though this will be their 2nd apt. together since they married in early 2010). The walls are painted similar colors, the rooms have similar flow, the house is old (the live on the top level), and the wood molding in the house is all original and so charming. Needless to say, we loved the place!

On Saturday morning, we woke up and headed off on the 9:30 train downtown to see my cousin TJ's soccer game at Moody-- where he attends college. The forecast for the entire weekend was set to be rainy and thunderstorms. Well, they were right about that rainy part! We were decked out in our jackets, rainproof shells, and umbrellas. It rained for about 1.5 hours of the time we were downtown and then stopped. We decided to have lunch downtown before his game and found the address on the Blackberry to Frontera Grill. If you watched Top Chef Masters or are familiar with who Rick Bayless is... he's basically THE chef in downtown Chicago. He's all about using unique, sustainable, organic ingredients in his dishes under the Mexican food genre. In the summer, they serve "rooftop salsa" made from ingredients organically grown at the top of that skyscraper in a garden. There are 3 restaurants he runs that are all connected on one street: Xoco (lower end, cheapest), Frontera (middle), and Topolo (high end). We walked right past them on our way and had to trek back about 2 blocks. We had no chance of eating at Xoco because of the crazy lines going out the door in the rain but checked out Frontera. They sat us outside (though rainy, still in the 60's, warm and covered). Ray ordered the chicken tortilla soup first and another entree he loved. I ordered some veggie enchiladas and did not enjoy them. I loved the sauce and homemade corn tortillas, but the filling was eh, gross. Collard greens and beets, basically raw, inside my tortillas. No cheese, no beans, no normal vegetables. Blah. I would go back because the quality was great, but would not be ordering that meal again. Here we are and here are the meals we consumed...


We headed on foot (Moody is about 2 miles from Union Station) to TJ's soccer game. My aunt was already there along with TJ's awesome girlfriend, Pauline. We had a great time catching up, watching them win, and watching TJ score a goal. It was parent's weekend at Moody and all of the players gave roses to their parents.

 The team being recognized before the stands at halftime.

After the game, we hung out with TJ, Pauline, and Robin for a bit longer and had dinner with them in the Ukrainian Village. We tried a restaurant called Shokolad and had some wonderful foods. I had some pierogies, others had borsch (beet soup) and pelmeni (dumplings with meat). We shared a few desserts and hung out for awhile before heading back.

After saying goodbye, Ray and I checked the train schedule and realized that we didn't have another train to catch for two hours! We walked over to Michigan Avenue and down State Street to check out this sign in all its glory...

Then we headed into a mall on Michigan Avenue and walked around the Lego store. Baby W may have a few legos... I'm a fan. Here I am with Lego Woody from Toy Story. Ray had his moment below, too. Yes, he has his hand on that man's thigh. Oh my!

f

On Sunday afternoon, we carpooled to an Orchard in Malta, IL (DeKalb area), about 40 miles from our homes in the 'burbs. Here's the group in a photo...

Above are photos of Ray & Derrick holding Luke and Joel-- friends' kids. Below are photos of Kristi and Joel (mom & son) at the pumpkin patch where we attempted to find nice pumpkins without completely covering ourselves in mud.

Some great friends hanging out on the "hayride" wagon (no hay to be seen).

Post hayride shot of my amazing husband holding our iced cider (just like it sounds... basically a cider slushie... it was delicious and so were the donuts and caramel apple we bought to go with it!).

Llama.

A few fun and cheesy shots of the cutouts... Joel's is quite classic.

Our wonderful friends, Derrick & Liz, with Joel.

And finally... we bought a 1/2 gallon of fresh cider and hopped up in this chair for a photo before making the drive back to the 'burbs with our friends. It was a nice fall outing in some pretty nice weather! Like I said... the forecast said thunderstorms ALL weekend and we didn't have a single one until we got home that evening. It made for a great weekend to explore. We're excited to take Baby W back next year!