Monday happenings

L had my car Monday morning so I got a lot done at home - laundry, trash, vacuuming, packed for an upcoming trip, pulled some weeds, went for a walk - all of that exciting stuff.

L and W went downtown and had more deep-dish pizza. This time they went to Gino's East.

They took an architectural boat tour on a beautifully clear, not hot day.

Nice picture.

Their last stop was the Museum of Ice Cream Chicago on Michigan Avenue.

While they were still out, Andy and I went to Allison's mahjong night ... and Andy won again! He picked a yellow duck as his prize.

Another new visitor

Another new visitor stopped by today. This time it was a red-winged blackbird! According to google, folklore says a red-winged blackbird as a symbol of protection, good luck and prosperity.

We often have male (red) house finches stop by the feeder, but I'm pretty sure this one brought a lady friend finch this time. Again, according to google, a house finch visit "is widely seen as a positive omen, traditionally symbolizing joy, harmony, and resilience. Because they are adaptable, cheerful songbirds that often thrive near human spaces, their presence is commonly interpreted as a reminder to find happiness in ordinary moments and bloom where you are planted." That's neat.

Seattle and Schaumburg

We had a pretty slow Sunday. Our first order of business was taking E and D to O'Hare for their flight back to Seattle.

L took my car and drive to fhe Schaumburg area where they went to Mitsuwa, the Japanese geocery store, Woodfield Mall ...

and visted with her friend, T.

I noticed our "ditch lilies" are blooming.

Uh oh. E left her keys. I didn't notice but she texted and said they were on the back porch. She was correct. Guess we'll be mailing those tomorrow.

Cousin C’s wedding

Saturday was Cousin C's wedding!

E was part of the bridal party ...

as was L. Andy was golfing (surprise) so I drove them downtown in time for their hair and makeup appointment ungodly hour of 7 a.m. At least traffic was light.

We had W and D with us and managed to get B and all got to the wedding on time. A true miracle. Traffic was ridiculous.

I didn't take any pictures during the ceremony but this was during cocktail hour. They changed the ceremony space into the reception space by moving in completely set tables. What?!?

The mariachi band - very, very loud.

All dressed up.

Beautiful table setting.

How cute is this? The salad had croutons in the bride and groom's initials. I haven't seen that before.

Delicious dinner.

The bride's family.

The girls with Aunt Allison.

Andy was pretty proud of this picture he took of the Rookery staircase. It's a popular shot, but this one was his.

Welcome party and more

L and W did a bit more sightseeing Friday, going to the Museum of Science and Industry.

They spent a lot Thursday for rides around the city so they purchased a weekly transit pass. It will let them explore more of the city and they have several days so buying the pass was a good idea.

They then went to the top of the Sears, I mean Willis, Tower. W repeatedly said he is scared of heights, but he overcame his fear for a fantastic view. We've had a lot of cloudy and stormy days but they chose a clear day to do this.

E and D arrived early Friday afternoon and are staying at the house. The girls and their men went to Pilsen Yards for Cousin C's bridal party dinner.

Allison, mother of the bride of course, with D.

Then we all met up, with B too, at C's apartment building for a welcome party. Our hosts.

The party was in a common area of their building with an outdoor patio. I think we were on the 32nd floor.

Which provided a great view of the lake and Navy Pier...

and the river in the other direction.

The kids.

and us.

Cousin S, his wife, E, B and D.

One surprise was that L's high school friend, N, lives in the building and knows the groom so he said it was ok if she joined the party so she and L could catch up.

Even prettier as it gets darker.

B took the el back to his apartment so we drove the other four home. It would have been a tight squeeze with four in the backseat so D took one for the team and rode in the trunk.

L’s touristy day

Andy drive L and W downtown Thursday morning so they could hit the touristy sites. First stop was the fun faces fountain in Millennium Park.

Nice picture by the lake. They walked from Andy's office to the museum campus.

They went to the Shedd Aquarium and she took some great pictures of dolphins jumping. They had an upclose encounter with a turtle.

They got into the Field Museum on our Founders Council passes ...

and we were able to get them into the Pokemon exhibit.

We took them to Lou Malnati's for dinner but stayed in Oak Park since we were expecting more severe thunderstorms (and because Andy had just driven them from downtown and we weren't going back).

There we are.

With our girl.

L is home

L flew home Tuesday night with W. Andy picked them up from Midway and took them to Allison's condo. Wednesday morning L texted wanting to know if they could have my car for the day. She drove me to work and then she and W went to Yorktown where he bought a really nice suit jacket to wear to Cousin C's wedding. We took them to Fitzgerald's for $5 burger night.

They had quite an interesting day when a severe thunderstorm hit the area and caused a lot of trees to break, many blocking streets. W said it storms in Florida but the palm trees are so flexible they rarely break so this was something for him to see. They picked me up from work and W met me at the door with an umbrella because it was raining. Aw!

This and the other tree were within blocks of our house.