PC BBQ

Tonight we had the church middle school youth group over for a summer BBQ. We grilled hot dogs & hamburgers, and then the group headed up to Rehm Park for football, ultimate frisbee, and sand volleyball on the new court.

This is a great group of kids, and it was a pleasure to have them around!

Hello Dolly

Kelsey's been hard at work all summer on the crew of the Oak Park/River Forest High School summer musical, Hello Dolly. This afternoon we caught the last performance, and WOW! We were blown away at the professionalism of the set, the costumes, and of course, the cast.


We weren't allowed to take any pictures whatsoever in the auditorium during the performance, but here's a couple behind the scenes glimpses.

If you've never been to an OPRF theater performance, go!

Yard Sale/Block Party

Today was our block-wide yard sale and we had plenty of stuff to contribute.
Don't worry about the fire truck in the background - it was all for fun!

Our block has a tradition of including a visit from the Oak Park Fire Department in the day's festivities. The kids get to aim the fire hose at the "fire" in the windows of a play house that's set up in the middle of the street.


Playing with the fire hose was the best thing that happened to Drew today!

This year we included a tie dye activity.

It takes team work to be able to pull off a movie in the middle of the street! Our artist neighbor, P.Mac, owns a fork lift. We rigged an old sheet on the fork lift and set up a projection screen in the middle of the street. Baird donated a set of portable speakers that were big enough to let the sound be heard for all. The movie? Wall-E. Absolutely perfect, since Kelsey's been on crew for Hello Dolly all weekend.

Sweet Memories

As I was sorting through boxes looking for things to sell at tomorrow's block-wide yard sale, I came across my purple shoes.

Straight from the mid-1980s, these shoes brought back a lot of fun memories.

When I showed them to Baird, he smiled really big and almost got a little misty eyed.

You see, I wore these shoes when Baird was first interested in me, and he used them in his opening line. More than 20 years later and he still remembered.

The air was thick with meaning as we both stared at the shoes, each of us remembering that very special moment. Drew sensed something and asked, "What's the big deal about a pair of really old, worn-out shoes?" Baird replied, "If it wasn't for those shoes, you might not be here."

"Huh? I didn't know shoes had anything to do with babies," replied Drew.

"But they have everything to do with us," returned Baird, and he gave me a big squeeze.

I got a little misty eyed.

* * * I love my family * * *

DS Play Date

One of Drew's favorite things about summer: I'm much more laid back about how much time he plays his DS. Drew and his best friend, SyMy, took a breather from playing outside. They were so into their games they didn't want to pause & look up for the camera!

A Day in the Park

We spent a gorgeous summer day with my friend P and her kids at Millenium Park.  We cooled off at Crown Fountain, stood under The Bean, and took advantage of this photo opp by the flower garden.

Millenium Park has become a favorite summer spot of mine, and I'm glad we got this trip in.

Handy (wo)Man

Kelsey's been spending her summer afternoons hard at work with the crew of OPRF's summer musical Hello Dolly.

When she signed up, we were told she'd be trained to use tools. We didn't realize how handy

those skills would be!

Our gutter's been leaking all spring and summer. Today Kelsey climbed up on the roof, cleaned out the garden that had been growing there, and calked the seam so it won't leak.

It's great to know there's a handy (wo)man in the house!

My Almost-Grown-Up Daughter

My Kelsey-Girl is growing and changing at a breath-taking rate.  Holy cow.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Between New Orleans, Cousins Camp and Pampered Chef's national convention, it's been a busy first half of July, so my birthday seems almost like an after thought this year. We did celebrate with our good friends S&J Renny at Carnivale in River North.

The first words out of Baird's mouth when we sat down: "You're not going to take a picture of every single thing you eat are you?"

Well when you put it like that...

I just couldn't help taking a picture of the beautiful birthday dessert. I gotta admit that I'm getting a bit spoiled by having all these restaurants make custom desserts for me!

The other thing about Carnivale is that I swear, they stole the dot design right off of Pampered Chef's Simple Additions dots plates and entertaining pieces, and plunked them on the enormous lights that hang around the dining area!

The food was terrific, the atmosphere was party-like, and the company was amazing. It was the perfect way to spend a birthday evening!

Chug a lug

She got this skill from her father. Her mother hates it. 'nuf said.

Cousins Camp

Cousins camp always starts off with a treasure hunt.

Drew's favorite prize got a lot of laughs.

The kids went to a working farm where they were allowed to hand-milk the cows.

Drew had to get over the smell of the place first.

This year's group photo, taken at the cow farm.

In Iowa, you get your learner's permit when you're 14.

Kelsey's been taking driving lessons from Grandpa since spring,

practicing safetly on the quarter-mile driveway.

Popcorn and movie night is a cousins camp tradition.

Kite flying's the best!

Thanks, Grandma & Grandpa Hunter, for this wonderful tradition,

and for all the great memories that go along with it!

12:34 and 56 seconds on 7-8-9

I've lived through a lot of special dates.
There was 8-8-88.
There was the turn of the millenium
And there was this afternoon - 12:34:56 on 7-8-9. I wasn't awake to catch the first round of this fun little moment, so I thought I'd pay a bit of attention this afternoon. But what was I doing at that exact second? Running around making sure the kids had all their stuff together so Baird could take them to cousins camp. They pulled out at 1:05pm, at which point I looked at the clock and realized I'd missed the magical moment.
Oh well. There's always 7-8-9 at 10:11 this evening to look forward to!

Reunited

When we got home last night, Kelsey was at the house waiting for us. Drew was dropped off a few hours later. This morning Baird drove up to Wisconsin to pick Erin up from horseback riding camp, completing the reunification of our family.

Kelsey and Erin have a very special bond, and they really missed each other this week while we were all separated. They were thrilled to be back in each other's lives again.

Heading Home

We wrapped up our trip to New Orleans with more beignets and iced cafe au lait. When it's in the 90's before 11am, it's just too darn steamy to drink a hot beverage!

We did some last-minute shopping in the French Quarter before heading off to the airport.

It was 101 degrees outside when we left New Orleans; when we touched down in Chicago the temperature was a chilly 69.

On the way home, Baird and I were talking of other trips we'd taken to celebrate various anniversaries over the years: Italy for our 5th; San Francisco at 9-1/2; Miami at 10-1/2. This trip was right up there with Italy as the best ever. Hands down, it was the most amazing food I've ever had. I'm starting to think that food vacations are the way to go!

New Orleans - 3rd Day

We slept in this morning since last night was a late night on Bourbon Street celebrating our 20th. We skipped breakfast and headed to Mother's for lunch.
Mother's is wildly popular with natives and tourists alike. It was one of the first restaurants to reopen after Katrina, housing some of its staff in FEMA trailors in the parking lot since their homes had been wiped out. It's a no-frills, good-eatin' kind of place. Even before noon the line was already out the door and a block down the street.

Baird had chawfish etouffee

I went with the fried shrimp po' boy sandwich

We took a swamp tour after lunch. I'd never seen anything like this before - it's gorgeous!

And yes, there really are alligators that swim right up to the boat.
This one was about 6 feet long.

Dinner was at GW Finns. The concierge made the reservations for us and thought that tonight was our actual anniversary and told the restaurant as much. So, we had our 20th anniversary dinner...again! More Service + 1 - I didn't even have to ask for the menu this time!

The crab and corn chowder soup was absolutely incredible...

...but the smoky taste of the Wood Grilled Gulf Shimp
with Melon Salsa and Chipotle Butter was off the charts!

Baird had Sauteed Mangrove Snapper Meuniere with Jumbo Lump Crab, Yukon Mash Potatoes, Asparagus and Crispy Capers. I ate his asparagus, which was perfectly prepared and had a wonderfully smoky hint to its flavor.

I enjoyed New Beford Sea Scallops with Crawfish and Creole Tomato Risotto and Green Bean Garnish. The scallops were perfect and the risotto was the best I've ever eaten.

We split a side order of Mashed Sweet Potatoes that included vanilla bean and bananas and were loaded with complex, exotic flavors. Our waiter truly loved us, as he slipped me the recipe before the night was over. I'm filing it away for Thanksgiving!

And our evening ended with another personalized dessert!

Happy Anniversary Baby!!

We started the day with a New Orleans' classic: Beignets at Cafe Du Monde. Several people had warned me not to wear dark clothing when I ate here and now I know why. My first bite resulted in a snowstorm of powdered sugar. I ate mine with iced cafe au lait since it was 87 at 10am this morning.

Spent the day walking around the French Quarter. This whole place is just magical and I now understand why people fall in love with this city.

We swung by Leah's Candies, which is right across the street from our hotel, for some freshly made pralines.

We celebrated our anniversary at NOLA. I remarked to Baird that going to New Orleans and not eating at an Emeril restaurant is like visiting Chicago and not looking up.


We were given a complimentary celebratory appetizer of a fried oyster and scallop ceviche with crispy garnish. I hate oysters, but this one was unbelievably tasty!

Then came the appetizer we ordered: pan roasted crab cake with smokey eggplant puree, feta cheese, kalamata olives, crispy spinach and citrus butter.

Roasted Garlic-Reggiano Parmesan Bisque with Basil Pesto.
It was so delicious I resisted the urge to lick the bowl!


Salad was Jumbo Lump Crab and Celery Root tossed in a Green Onion-Buttermilk Dressing, Roasted Beets, Spiced Walnuts, Arugula and Balsamic Vinaigrette

My entree: Garlic Crusted Texas Redfish Cooked in the Wood Burning Oven with Brabant Potatoes, Crimini Mushrooms, Bacon and Sauce Beurre Rouge. The crust on the redfish, combined with the sauce, was a brilliant mix of complex flavors that just about made me swoon.


Baird's entree: Hickory-Roasted Duck with Whiskey-Caramel Glaze, Buttermilk Cornbread Pudding, Haricot Verts-Fire Roasted Corn Salad, Natural Jus and Candied Pecans

A perfect finish: custom-made dessert!

NOLA specializes in "Service + 1," the idea of going above and beyond.

Because I wore a black skirt, I was given a black napkin so there wouldn't be white lint all over my skirt when I left.

At the end of the night came the biggest surprise of all:
I got to keep the entire menu from NOLA.
I also got to meet Chef Michael Ruoss, Chef de Cuisine for NOLA, and he signed my menu.

There's no better way to top off a perfect day in New Orleans than with an over-the-top meal at NOLA. And the perfect ending to the perfect day was going to Fritzel's European Jazz Joint on Bourbon Street to listen to live jazz until the wee hours of the morning.