Happy Anniversary in the Windy City!

Ten years ago, I married the cutest boy in the world and Mark married the most stunning woman. OK, our real anniversary is in October but teachers can't just take trips whenever they want! So we celebrated our 10th a little early by taking the train to Chicago for 4 days. Sad that we live so close and have never been. Probably cause I always opt for Boston when I can. But Chicago turned out to be a great town and we will return soon, Z would love it and we promised to take him. Lots to do and just as Boston is all about beer, Chicago is all about food. Walked around 20 miles and still gained 5 pounds, my kind of town! Enjoy the pictures!

The Field Museum and the view of Navy Pier from it. Poor Chicago, they live on a Great Lake but get no cooling effects in the summer. It was hot!

The Crown Fountain in Millenium Park. The faces were a little creepy but I love that this is just one of many fountains in the city that you can play in. You just kick off your shoes and splash away or even get in your swimsuit. they expect it here, how fun!

Mark just had to find this eyeball sculpture. We found in on the very last day. Don't worry, it's not a permanent fixture.

"underground" at the Field Museum.

The happy couple.

That guy is made of Legos!

Just as our 5th anniversary trip was my Transcendentalist Geek trip to Massachusetts, this trip to Chicago was Mark's geek trip to pay hommage to Frank Lloyd Wright and architecture. While he suffered at times in Massachussetts, I enjoyed the architecture part of this trip. The river tour is a must-do.

This was the filming of Transformers 3 literally right outside our hotel. All that rubble is fake. See the stunt dude on the blue thingy? Bumblebee was parked right behind us but you couldn't stop and take pictures or security was all over you.

Sears "Willis" Tower

The Cloud Gate at Millenium Park. It's pretty cool at night too.

Summer Fun (and Pictures)

At long last the backlog of pictures has been downloaded and there were quite a few! So here's just a sampling to start. When I get a spare second I'll work on posting some more.

At Hartwick Pines. This "sculpted" guy was pretty buff, I had to have my picture taken with him! Check out those pecs!

Hiking in a stroller wore her out.

On our last day at Aunt Pat's, Z caught a nice size bluegill, his first all summer.

The boating incident. Mark's cousins bought a boat this year and they gratiously spent a whole morning tubing with the kids. On my ride around the lake, they decided to have a couple's argument about whether or not they had enough gas. Jill was right, we didn't. We stalled just yards from the marina, drifted into a nice family's dock and we waited for Uncle Duane to arrive and tow us to the marina. Except for the extreme heat, the kids had quite the adventure.

Ever tried the chocolate cheese at this place in Frankenmuth???

The Tall Ship celebration in Bay City. Always fun, the second time we've gone. If you get a chance, go! These ships are actually racing but they stop every so often for people to tour them. The one pictured above was used in Pirates of the Carribean.

Nature hike with Daddy!

Looking for agates at Whitefish Point.

Of course we did some geocaching, found just one though. Brimley had several listed but most were MIA. This is where we discovered that Z is the only one in the family allergic to poison ivy. After we visited the Sault Ste Marie hospital for his sprained ankle our first night there, he healed up and got poison ivy all over his legs. I didn't really get a picture but the poor guy swelled worse from that than the sprain!