In the summertime... (Part III: Chicago, the suburbs)

We left the city on Sunday and headed straight out to Lake Zurich. Elizabeth was on the platform waiting with open arms and it was a welcome sight and an extra welcome hug. I do miss my sister. My boy is two (!) as of 1 June and the celebration was postponed a month for our visit (I don't think he minded or even knew, so that's okay). It's amazing what technology can do - he knows us and loves us even though we're 4,000 miles away most of the time. The party was a smashing success and the birthday cake was excellent.



And everyone was feeling festive (well, I was):

 

After a great morning at the Chicago Botanic Garden with Elizabeth and Charlie, we got a visit with some friends from U-C on Tuesday. Rita kindly offered to host a long-overdue mini-reunion and it was tops to see Ben, Rita, Liz, Tom, Lillianne, Flora, Paul, Jess, and Jason, and to meet Little Andrew and Thomas.

 

On Wednesday, we finally got to see Kara and Brian's place, and then a belated Father's Day dinner. And then on to Orland. Elizabeth, Andrew, and I took Charlie to the OP pool on Thursday, where I proceeded to feel a bit sick due to the overwhelming amount of sun I took in: my body has fully acclimated to clouds and it simply doesn't know what to do with sunlight. It's a sworn enemy at this point.

Friday 4 July was the Kennedy family picnic and 4th of July extravaganza. The hotdog wagon was out in full-force and I got my second tamale of the trip!!! Also, a short bit of relaxing in the sun.

There is no way I could have fit every wonderful thing we did into this, as it was a super packed two weeks, so extra photos are on flickr if you're interested.

Saturday: homeward bound. (Not for Andrew, though - a week in Cambridge first.) Sunday: actual arrival home for Melissa. The cats sure did miss us. 

A quick jaunt down to Dublin for the day on Tuesday to meet with an old friend. Well worth the day and interesting to plug into the world of English literature academia.

In the summertime... (Part II: Chicago, the city)

Arriving in Chicago on Friday 27 June, we checked in to our hotel and I met Marisa for the afternoon: manicure and pedicure in preparation for the wedding the next day (the real impetus for our trip home (the wedding, not the mani/pedi)). We met up with the boys for an amazing Mexican dinner (the thing I was most looking forward to on our trip home, as I obviously can't get it anywhere nearby, and I have a sneaking suspicion that the whole island is Mexican-food-free). Andrew just reminded me that we found a lonely ten-dollar bill poking out of the jukebox next to our table, which was just waiting to defer the costs of our dinner: score!

Saturday was a whirlwind, as weddings often are: Marisa + Dave! It's been a long time coming, but these two are the best and there was never any doubt we'd come home to celebrate with them. I wouldn't/couldn't have missed it for the world. This was really the thing I had most been looking forward to on this trip (sorry, Mexican food!). Marisa was the most gorgeous bride I've ever seen, truly. And Dave looked class, too. These two looked like celebrities walking out at the reception.

And boy was the reception amazing. Great music, a night of dancing, excellent food (they even had the Tamale Spaceship come to feed everyone delicious tamales near the end of the night), and an opportunity to catch up with some very old friends. I gave a small speech, and I could never have said everything that should be said to these two - they're two of the best people I know and I really wish them only happiness for ever and ever. And I know they'll have it. It was a fantastic day all around.

Onward and upward (or more accurately, outward...) to the 'burbs and my all-time favorite boy: he's two!

In the summertime... (Part I: New York)

Two whole weeks in the U S of A. Warm. Wonderful.

We spent the first week in New York with the Hamiltons. Arriving at Newark on Saturday 21 June, we quickly headed to JFK to get Eric, too. Thanks, Mom & Dad! Not only did they pick us up, they had arranged an apartment in Williamsburg: well-located and very nice, and apparently owned by a man wearing a traditional Greek head wreath, but I can't confirm or deny that one. On Sunday morning we were up and at it. We went to the 9/11 Memorial Museum, which was certainly a sight (and a site) worth seeing. It was incredibly sad, but I'm very glad to have gone.

We spent the rest of Sunday taking in the city. A few train rides, Grand Central Station, a trip up Rockefeller Center for a view of the city. Then a short visit with an old friend. An all-around great day, capped by dinner with Andrew's cousin, David; a good friend by now!

 

On Monday, Eric left us and we started at the Museum of Modern Art - hooray! We saw "Starry Night" (again) and a truly stunning piece by my main man (Pollock). I could move in, I think. We caught a ride on the Staten Island Ferry to check out the Statue of Liberty and that is the way to see it. Truly an excellent first visit to NYC.

We spent the rest of the week back in Hamlin, catching up with family and, as always, being enthralled by Addy (Andrew's niece). I even snuck in my first visit (of a few) to Target. I couldn't have asked for a better week! We jetted off to Chicago on Friday morning. More to come and extra photos on flickr.