2009 Chicago Air and Water Show!!

Mid August marked the begining of back to back to back visitors.  Mr. and Mrs. Ward came to visit on one of my favorite weekends! This weekend, Chicago hosted the 2009 Air and Water Show!! The Chicago Air and Water Show launched in 1959 with modest fanfare. It has since grown into the largest free air and water show in the nation, and it's considered one of the world's largest spectator shows. It draws more than 2.2 million people ever year! We walked down Oak Street to the lake. We had tickets to the Oak Street Bistro which has a fenced in area, a buffet, chairs in the shade, and air conditioned bathrooms. These amenities come in handy when 2.2 million people are vying for prime lake front viewing areas. Two years ago when Amy and I went to see the show, I had surprised her with these tickets, but unfortunately, the show had been cancelled due to inclement weather. This year, we took the Wards and it was great. Aerial acrobatics of both military and private planes including the C-130, F-15, F-16, A-10 Demo, B-1B, Apache Helicopter, Black Hawk Helicopter, KC-135, KC-10, C-17, and the U.S. Coast Guard Air and Sea Rescue, choreographed shows of the U.S. Thunderbirds, the U.S. Army Parachute Team Golden Knights, the U.S. Navy Parachute Team Leap Frogs, and of course the Blue Angels!! It was one of the few warm/hot days of this Chicago summer, so we moved our table into the shade, but still had great views of the planes and their amazing maneuvering capabilities. It was a great day, the food was good, drinks were cold, weather was beautiful, and we got to see a terrific show. All weekend you could hear the military jets practicing and buzzing the skyscrapers of the city. It was a great time, and I'm glad I got to see the show, after being so disappointed two years ago. We had a great time with Amy's parents. Other highlights of that weekend were seeing Jason Mraz in concert at the Pavilion at Northerly Island where he filmed his DVD. Mr. and Mrs. Ward went to see Jersey Boys while we were at the concert.  We also did the hop on hop off bus tour around the city with them where they got to go up in the Willis Tower and Mr. Ward tried chicken feet at Dim Sum in Chinatown for the first time ever.  That weekend, we also went to Art Smith's Restaurant called Table 52. He's a relatively famous chef, known as being Oprah Winfrey's personal chef for many years. He specializes in southern style comfort food and is renowned for his fried chicken. Yes, we went to a upscale restaurant in downtown Chicago and 3 of us ordered fried chicken, and it was awesome. He only serves that chicken on certain days, and it was very difficult to get reservations, but we are glad that we did. After a very filling meal, we went back home. Overall, I hope the Wards had a great trip. We had a great time showing them around one of our favorite cities.

IC Reunion 2009

For the past few years the second weekend in August has been reserved for the annual gathering of my Ithaca College PT friends. For the first few years after college we were getting
together a few times a year for weddings, but as the weddings became few and far between we made a vow to each other to schedule one weekend a year where we would all plan to get together. This year the DeSombres hosted our reunion in Seymour, CT.

I flew out of Midway on Thursday morning with Jen Yohnka and her two boys Sam and Miles. Neither Brandon or Jen's husband Bill would be accompanying us for the weekend, so I got to play the surrogate parent (or maybe playmate is more like it) to Sam and Miles. The boys did great on the plane, but as we sat waiting for a gate at LaGuardia we all got a bit antsy. To keep Sam from swinging his feet and kicking the seat in front of him, I took his stocking feet and started rubbing them. Well that did it. For the rest of the weekend every time we got in a vehicle Sam's feet would be in my lap and he'd request a massage.

By late afternoon about half the group was gathered at the DeSombres with the adults catching up and the kids playing in the yard. Jake was a trooper and easily shared his toys including the hot commodity of Bakugans. These Transformer like spheres that opened into robotic creatures when placed on metal or "gently" knocked into another object were new to me, but apparently a very popular toy.

As dinnertime approached we packed up and headed downtown to eat at Hot Tamales, a Mexican restaurant. Dinner was good, and we were all entertained by the Mariachi Band that serenaded us with "La Cucaracha" and "Guantanamera" as well as the kids' requests for "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" and "The Wheels on the Bus." Luckily Aaron was able to help out the band with the lyrics to the last song. It was fun for all, and the Premores were ready to fiesta!

The next morning we headed south to the beach on the Long Island Sound. Our crew was complete as Rachel, the Burns and the Whiteheads met up with us. We spent the day in the cool water jumping waves and giving boogie board rides. We made castles in the sand and watched two horseshoe crabs in what should have been a private moment for them in the surf. We had lunch at the picnic tables then the troops headed back to the water. They were quickly lured back towards the parking lot when the ice cream man pulled up ringing those recognizable bells. Everyone came running for popsicles and ice cream for a sweet end to the beach day. Pictures show Wyatt, Tom, Sam and Aaron in the water; Maddie with her blue popsicle face; Miles sporting Wyatt's sunglasses; and Jason and Joe manning the grill. We headed back to the house/hotel for naps followed by a cookout at Jason and Kristin's.

The next morning we headed out to The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk. The aquarium is one of the largest attractions in CT with over 500,000 visitors a year. Located along the Long Island Sound, the aquarium strives to preserve and protect the local waters and their inhabitants. They have a harbor seal pool with scheduled shows for feeding, sand tiger shark tank, loggerhead turtle exhibit and an intertidal touch tank where we could ask questions about the horseshoe crabs we saw the day before. We also got to see their penguins and my favorite the river otters. There were 25 of us with a 1:1 ratio of adults to kids with one extra adult. We had plenty of room to explore and I think everyone enjoyed the experience.

After everyone had their fill of the aquarium we headed across the street to The Brewhouse to fill our bellies. Feeling maritime-y, but not the least bit sympathetic for our new aquatic friends, I opted for the chowder and lobster roll. It didn't measure up to the Lobster Shack experience we had in Maine on a previous reunion, but that was a given. After lunch, the kids weren't the only ones ready for a nap.

The rest of the weekend we spent hanging out at the DeSombres. The kids played in the blow up pool with water slide and ran through the sprinklers. Cathy organized an obstacle course, Jen led Simon Says and Jason created some games of his own and followed up with the classic Duck, Duck, Goose! The troops were entertained.

Long gone are the days of staying up late and closing the bars. What we have now is a more meaningful kind of fun. Most of us have been friends for almost 15 years, and it has been great getting to really know everyone and their families, to watch the kids grow and see their personalities surface and develop, and to really appreciate the people we all have become. This year we got to meet Maddie, Addison, Miles, Benjamin and Joel. We missed seeing Kimmy, Brandon and Bill and the Darters who were preparing for the birth of their son Tommy which occurred August 19th. Our initial core group was less than a dozen, but our family has grown almost three times in size.

Next year we hope to find a house big enough for all of us (by my count that should be 33 if all can attend) so we don't have to be segregated and retire when the kiddos do. Maybe we'll need two houses, but as long as the adults still out number the kids I think we'll be fine. Hope to see everyone again before another year passes, but if not see you next August!

August Begins

Well, last weekend the girls came to visit, and this weekend Amy found out that one of her friends from college, Adam, was visiting with his girlfriend Kim. We wanted to relax for a bit and clean up the apartment, trying to keep low key as for the next few weekends we will have many guests. Friday night we met up with Amy's friends and had dinner next door at Rosebud.  We then went out in Lincoln Park for a few drinks. On Saturday we decided to try out the North Halsted Market days. Amy said that it was in "boys" town which is a predominantly gay part of the city. We got there and it was a little more flambouyant than I thought it would be. It was a very fun atmosphere, but most of the venders and booths were geared more toward the residents of the neighborhood with advertisements for the gay clubs and most of the bartenders shirtless and dancing in their underwear. I had never seen so many drag queens and buff guys in leather in my entire life. We made one lap, with Amy closely held the entire time, and we left. We walked to Wrigleyville where Amy got a really nice cubs t-shirt, and then we walked all the way home. Had a quick dinner, and then we went to see Harry Potter at the IMAX on Navy Pier in 3D. I had just listened to all the audiobooks in my car and felt the movie was good but a bit disconnected. The next day, Amy had to work, so I wrote myself a list of things that I wanted to accomplish, and then promptly locked myself out of the house. After going downstairs and realizing that there was a $20 lock out fee, I figured I would just bring myself to ESPN zone and imbibe $20 worth of food and beer and wait the 9 hours for Amy to get home. Alas, another weekend.

Next weekend Amy will be flying to CT for her reunion, and I will be staying at home to relax for a few days before our onslaught of visitors come for the next 5 weekends!! We love it though!!

Tiffy and Weenus Visit

We arranged our schedules so that we could have a 4 day weekend to spend with our first friends to visit us in Chicago. Our friends, Tiffy and Weenus (Sarah) are friends that we used to work with in Naples, FL 2 seasons ago. Since then, Tiffy has moved to NJ and Weenus has moved outside of Toronto, and we all haven't been together for years, so we were really looking forward to the visit. We picked the 2 of them up from the airport on Wednesday night, brought them back to the apartment, and with "Drunken Arnie's"(sweet tea vodka and lemonade) in hand, we gave them a tour of the building and the amenities. We sat out on the deck for a bit to catch up and reminisce about old times. The next AM we awoke to a pretty nice Chicago summer day.....80 degrees with a nice lake breeze. We decided to do a walking tour of the city....but first? breakfast at the Bongo room was needed! We have taken a lot of our guests to this place to sample their wide array of sweet and savory dessert pancakes. We walked the 2-3 miles from our place in river north, showing the girls glimpses of Michigan Avenue and the south loop, and we were all pretty hungry by the time we reached the restaurant. Pancake selections included strawberry cheesecake, lemon ricotta and oreo cookie, and we were all stuffed by the time we were done. With our stomachs full, we continued on with our walking tour of the city.

From the Agora project which consists of 106 headless cast iron figures, we walked east towards the lake through the museum campus. We saw the Fields Museum, the aquarium, the planetarium, Charter One Pavilion, and Soldiers Field from a distance. We walked north up the lake admiring the sailboats in the water, and then crossed Lake Shore Drive. We walked over to see the great Buckingham Fountain and then through Grant and Millennium Park to admire the many pieces of artwork that populate the parks....especially the "bean". From there, we walked downtown to see the Sears "Willis" tower. We walked through the theatre district on State Street, saw a tremendous line to go up to the skydeck, and decided to go another day. The sky deck just opened up a new outlook where you can stand in a little glass walled/floored room and view the city skyline from 104 floors up. Nevertheless, the skydeck is always busy but with this new addition, it seems like its even busier. We walked back through downtown seeing the "Flamingo" statue by Calder, the untitled Picasso sculpture that resembles an ape, walked through a loud group of protesters screaming about lowering their mortgage, and then walked back to Millennium Park for 2 o'clock happy hour. We sat, drank, and chatted over some nachos, while a band named "State of Man" got on stage. They were a pretty good rock band out of Atlanta and we ended up buying some of their $5 CD's.

After a few hours of drinking, the rain started coming down a bit, so we opted for a cab to take us to our next destination.....Gino's East for some deep dish Chicago Pizza. They usually take an hour to bake, so we sat there and drank for another hour until the monstrous deep dish pizza came. We all had our fill of pizza and then stumbled home, with stomachs full of pizza and beer. Weenus passed out almost immediately.....@9:15. Then Tiffy, after mumbling, soon also fell asleep. (Editor's note: Brandon wasn't too far behind them himself!)

The next day, we had plans that evening to Jammin' at the Zoo, a concert performed on the south lawn at the Lincoln Park Zoo, but Amy had to work in the AM, so she woke up early to see a few patients while the girls and I went to the Sears Tower ( I refuse to call it the Willis Tower) to check out the skydeck and new glass outlooks. We stood in line for about 30 minutes, watched a quick video, and were soon enough shooting hundreds of feet to the 104th floor of the tower. We walked immediately to the new outlook decks and stood in these translucent boxes, looking down and seeing the street thousands of feet below us. We took several pictures, walked a few laps around the perimeter to see the beautiful view from 360 degree perspective, and made our way back down. Amy got off work and picked us up a few blocks away in front of the Chicago Theatre on her way home. We stopped over at home and then decided on some margaritas and guacamole at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants, Adobo grill.(Not to be confused with the fast food chain Adobe Grill)

We walked by the ritzy Oak Street shops and north up Clark Street through Old Town finally arriving at our destination.....unfortunately it was closed until dinner service. We wanted to get some dinner before the show at the zoo, so we decided to go to Tapas instead but first a stop at the Goose Island Brewery for a sampling of Chicago's finest brews. Sarah and Tiff opted for the sampler while Amy and I stuck with our favorites. We had reservations at a highly recommended Tapas place called Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba so headed there next. We walked over and shared some peach mango sangria while waiting for the great tapas. The food was excellent from stuffed mushrooms to the Paella. It was a good restaurant. After dinner, we walked over the zoo to see the Pat Mcgee Band, Brett Dennen, and the headliner Matt Nathanson. We stood in the line and by the time we got into the park, the small grassy area in front of the stage was all full. We had to settle in the small area to the right of the stage where we could not see nor hear the music well. What we did hear was good, but overall not the greatest experience as it also started to rain during the last act as well. We were a bit disappointed with the concert so we left before it ended, braving the rain and getting a cab home.

The next AM we awoke late and then ventured to Chinatown for dim sum. We had our usual fare of Chinese a la carte brunch food and then walked around Chinatown for a bit to show the girls around. Afterwards, we drove home and then walked to one of the many festivals that occur in the neighborhoods around Chicago. We took the train north to the Taste of Lincoln Avenue. We got there, paid the entrance fee, and stood and watched one of the bands that was playing. We all started drinking and walked around checking out all the booths and listening to the many bands and stages they had along the way. It was a pretty good fest to check out, one of our favorites so far. Afterwards we walked around the Lincoln Park neighborhood. We walked to the Wiener Circle so the girls could try the infamous Chicago hot dogs, all beef Vienna hot dogs with pickles, tomatoes, onions, celery salt, relish, and mustard on a poppy seed bun. Next we hit up a favorite dessert spot, Molly's Cupcakes. It's a great place for decadent cupcakes with milk or coffee. You can play a board game while you savor or sit on the swing at the bar. Next, we walked until we found a bus to bring us back downtown so that we could experience Venetian night on the lake. We walked from the bus stop to the lake, found a quaint little spot on the water and waited until the show began. Dusk approached and soon enough decorated boats and yachts floated by of every shape and size. Some had terrific themes from Gilligan's Island to Michael Jackson's Thriller and had great music blaring with impressive decorations, some just had rich people waving from a million dollar yacht. After the boat show, the fireworks show started. Spectacular colors soon filled the air, even better than the 4th of July fireworks I felt. We started walking towards Navy Pier during the fireworks show to avoid the exodus of hundreds of thousands of people once the show was to end.

We walked north up the lake through the enormous crowd of people to Navy Pier. We saw the Budweiser Clydesdale horses on display and then walked down the pier to the famous Ferris Wheel. We bought tickets and soon enough, we were lofted 150 feet in the air, snapping pictures of a beautiful nighttime skyline of the city. We walked back towards the very end of the pier enjoying the view of the city and the sounds of the rock band playing Michael Jackson and Bon Jovi cover songs. We then walked back inside Navy Pier seeing all the touristy souvenir shops and walked to the free trolley stop to go back home.

The next day, the girls were going to fly back home so we decided to go to Wrigleyville to check out the bar scene and watch the game a bit. We had a quick bite at home for breakfast and took the train out to Wrigleyville. We walked around the stadium, commotion galore as there was a Cubs game on that day. We walked around the perimeter and finally decided on the Cubby Bear. We were seated inside as the game commenced, had some beers, had lunch and then took the train back to the house where we then proceeded to take the girls back to the airport.

Overall, it was a great trip and we were glad that the girls came out. We have plenty of other visitors coming so we will try to keep updating as much as possible. We are loving Chicago and are exploring more and more every weekend!