A Little Getaway

Since I can tend to over explain everything (sometimes ad nauseam), and a picture is worth a thousand words, I decided to talk less (but still some) and add a bunch of photos to share a WONDERFUL weekend we had while my sister was in town... Photos are "clickable" for larger versions.

With my sister in town from New York, and having a few days off (coincidently, a pretty rare combination) our family came up with an idea of all going "Up North" (A Minnesota term for heading off into the North woods). Our Uncle Greg and Aunt Marilyn have a very nice cabin, and were very generous in allowing us the use of their cabin for the two days that we were able to squeeze a trip to the cabin into.

With six of the seven of us going (#1 of 5 had to work), my sister and her two kids (my brother in law had to return to New York on Business), and my parents - we had a healthy group of eleven to bring up!

We caravanned it in two mini-vans - doing a little "mix-n-matching" of kids... (i.e. one of my kids took a turn riding with their cousins in their van). An idea I had helped make the trip fly by! We put an FRS two way radio (walkie-talkie) in each car - I think the kids spent at least half the trip up visiting on the radios, and the adults spent the other half!

We (of course) had to stop at the Milaca Unclaimed Freight store in... Milaca! MUF is the epiphany of what a closeout, refurbished, junk shop is!! They have EVERTHING there!! Toys, tools, gifts, groceries, furniture, paintings, ice houses, sporting goods, jewelry, heck... They have almost anything a frugal cheap dad with a bunch of kids (who seemingly always "hafta have that") could ask for!!

It was no sooner than we arrived that the kids were (faster than lighting) down on the dock, begging to get the fishing rods and tackle boxes out (from the very bottom) of the packed van so they could fish.

Unpacking, room arrangements, and lunch (hot dogs) took a little bit, but once these things were complete - it was time for FISHING! I took the boys out and the girls stayed back and did some swimming (which also included the task of raking the swimming area of weeds) and fishing from the dock.

Thankfully (having experienced it in the past) I went into this endeavor with the expectation that I WOULD NOT be getting to fish myself - whatsoever. It's better to tell myself that I would get NO time to fish, and find out that I do, then to tell myself I am going to get to fish, and then not get to...

The fishing was pretty good - lots of decent panfish (sunnies, crappies, and perch) and even a couple of small bass!The afternoon / evening went well - MOST of it was spent fishing rigging kids rods, baiting hooks, and taking fish off the hook. When the kids got impatient, we went back to the cabin and broke out the kayak!

After dinner (sloppy joes)- we all relaxed to the Beethoven movie (which all but the oldest kids had NOT seen - since the movie is older). Even my parents (who also had never seen the movie) enjoyed it.

I REALLY enjoyed the portion that I fell asleep for! Oh, and that was my dad you all heard snoring!

After the movie, we watched the sun set as a family of loons passed by the cabin (snapped a few photos too!). It was truly a picturesque finish to a wonderful day!

The next morning was met with an even more eager, and larger group of kids that wanted to go fishing! I loaded all but one into the boat, and we headed out.

The day was spent fishing, swimming, water play, exploring, more fishing, baiting hooks, taking fish off the hook, fishing from the dock, paddle boating, kayaking, row boating and anything else the kids could think up!

#5 of 5 was the only kid to stay back and not join us on the boat in the morning. Instead, she watched us from the dock with a set of binoculars!

The sister of the Father of Five doing "her impression" of removing a fish from a hook. (Loose the glove!)

Memere (mother of the Father of Five) joining in the fun too!

Now, that is boat load of kids. Had I been in any deeper lake - or a lake with better "gamefishing" I may have considered using the children as bait!

#5 of 5 in a floaty innertube thinggie

 

 

 

#4 of 5 on a Best Buy floating raft. My mom is a Best Buy retiree, and my cousin is a current Best Buy employee!

#5 of 5 with her cousin in the paddleboat. When legs are not long enough to reach the peddles, then sit on the floor and use your arms!

 

 

The boys - going on an exploration down the lakeshore...

#3 of 5 with #5 of 5 in the kayak together

 

 

 

 

#5 of 5 and her cousin collecting nature items for her Arts & Crafts. (She has already made two collages with the junk stuff she found!)

After seeing her daddy take all the kids out fishing in the boat, #5 of 5 wanted to have some one on one time with me. I serenaded her as I rowed her around the lake.

 

Father of the Father of Five with the Sister of the Father of Five - going for a paddleboat ride.

Yup. Woodticks were back this year!

 

 

 

 

I can not thank my Aunt Marilyn & Uncle Greg for the generosity of letting us use their cabin for these few days! Much of my childhood was spent at this cabin with MY cousins - it means so much to me for them to allow my children to spend time with THEIR cousins - doing the same types of things we did as kids. It's like watching my own childhood pass in front of my eyes!

We had such a WONDERFUL time! I can not think of anything that would have made these couple of days any better (except having my brother in law, and #1 of 5 with us). It was the most relaxing, and enjoyable time I have had in... well... in MONTHS.

Having my sister and her family live so far away - it's harder to stay connected with them. I want so desperately to make sure that my nephews have a connection with us, and with their cousins... Spending this time at the cabin helped create memories that will (I am sure) last a very very long time!

Before we headed out, we ended the day with a few different photo opportunities with all the cousins together.

This weekend will remain in my memory for as long as I still have it as one of the most memorable. The kids were all so well behaved, the weather was PERFECT, the fishing was great, the food - family - and fun were second to none.

Thanks EVERYONE. Thanks for making this happen!

The Force Was With Us!

Just a couple of quick photos...  We are exhausted.  More to follow.

 

Outside the Museum.

 

Entrance to the exhibit.

 

Inside the exhibit.

 

Admittedly not the best photos, but it's after 10:30pm and I have NOTHING left to give... This is what you get.

The Countdown Beginith..

God willing (no holdovers, sick calls, terrorist attacks, or "acts of God") - My summer vacation beings in just over sixteen hours.

As of Friday at 1500 hours (3pm) - I AM ON VACATION!!!! I do not have to return to work until July 12th at 0700 (7am).

This will be (mostly) a working vacation, and provide me an opportunity to catch up on some small yet nagging things that have been looming over my head for the past year or so.

Some of the PROJECTS on my list include...

About a day's worth of work to complete the DECK.
Woodwork and Trim in the basement
Removing a divider wall between our Kitchen and living room.
Help my Father in Law with prepping his almost-finished basement project
Oil Change
Garage Clean up
Closet project in #3 of 5's bedroom.
Closet Project in #2 of 5's bedroom.

But, it's not going to be all work... Nope.. I have some LEISURE activities planned too!

The Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination exhibit at the Science Museum of Minnesota
Use my newly obtained smoker to smoke up some pork ribs!
Trying to squeeze a little fishing time in with the kids
Get a "walk a day" in - perhaps up to two miles
Catch up on some movie watching.
Smoke some cigars while relax on the deck.
Quality time with Ron, Fez, East Side Dave, Earl and the gang (XM - 202 - Noon to three (eastern))
Catch up on some DRASTICALLY NEEDED sleep.

Oh, I am quite sure that there is more I will try to fit in. I'll be here on the blogsphere, and updating over the next

College of Wilderness Knowledge

Visit the new post over at Dad's Outdoor Journal!

A Family Wedding!

One of the major family events this season was the wedding of one of my wife's brother (or, as I like to refer to him as... my "brother-in-law"). I chose my summer work schedule around this wedding, as I was not guaranteed the ability to request the time off. By choosing the shift and the rotation I am on, I was able to have the two days prior to, and the actual wedding day off. (i.e. - able to help prepare for, and attend). The down-side was having to be back to work (and not able to get the day off) by 3pm on the day after the wedding. Normally, this would not be an issue, but since the wedding was held over 400 miles (about seven hours) from home - it would mean a quick turn around and long drive right after the wedding.

First of all, one of the BEST parts of this whole vacation (at least for me) was my lack of planning, or should I say the lack of planning required by me. For this, I need to thank my wife's sister (or, as I like to refer to her as... my "sister-in-law" (see a common theme here?)). Mary, I would like to officially thank you for all the work you put into the plans. You did an extraordinary job, and the accommodations were EXCEPTIONAL! I am planning on raising a cool frosty mug in your honor!

So, let's start from the beginning... As stated, all I had to do is show up (well, among a few other thinks like packing, driving and paying for our portion of it). When we left, I knew that we were going to be staying at a large "group" cabin for the first two nights, and (because of a previously made reservation) we had to check out of the cabin, and move to a local hotel on the last day/night.

By now I know you are all wondering / asking yourselves / begging me to "get on with the details" of where we stayed.

Unbeknownst to me (at the time) the cabin we were staying at is all part of the same "White Pines Inn". The White Pines Inn is made up of many components. But for the purposes of this blog entry, I will talk about the parts we utilized.

The "group" cabin we stayed at was one of the White Pines Inn Pine Creek Cabins. We stayed in "Knotty Pine #128"

The wedding itself was held at the White Pines Inn Wedding Canyon. This is an old limestone quarry that was drained, and redecorated into a beautiful setting. The Canyon has several wedding "stations", and are all very delightful.

The Grooms Dinner was held at the White Pines Inn Garden Canopy. (No link. Watch for a virtual tour option later.)

The wedding reception was held at the White Pines Inn Janssen Reception Hall (Again, no link - but watch for a virtual tour option later.)

As you can see from the map, The White Pines Inn Wedding Canyon (2) and White Pines Inn Pine Creek Cabins (3) are directly across the street from the State of Illinois White Pine Forest State Park (1). Don't ask me how, but the White Pines Inn Garden Canopy and the Janssen Reception Hall are actually located within the White Pines Forest State Park. It was very odd to see a private business held in a State Park. Very odd, yet very convenient! You see the "Minnesota" relatives of the Groom stayed at the Pine Creek Cabin, and a group of the Bride's family traveled from Tennessee, and parked their motor home at the White Pine Forest State Park.

Upon arrival at the Knotty Pine Cabin – I was overwhelming surprised! The cabin easily fit…
(2) My in-laws
(7) My family
(1) My wife’s sister (or, as I like to refer to her as…. My Sister-in-law)
(1) My wife’s brother (or as I like to refer to him as… My Brother-in-law)
--------------------------
(11) Total

The cabin had a full kitchen, a huge dining table (that sat eight), satellite TV, two bathrooms (one with a Jacuzzi tub), a gas fireplace, air conditioning, BBQ, and a giant fire ring outside the back door with an Adirondack swing. Sleeping accommodations included two bedrooms, one with a king sized bed (and its own bathroom) and another with two queen sized beds. There was a loft with two twin beds and a futon, and the two living room couches were hide-a-beds. There are a few pictures, a description, and a link to a virtual tour located HERE (on the Pine Creek Cabin page).

The next amenity we had access to was the White Pine Forest State Park (Links HERE and HERE). They had a (small) playground, a flowing creek, and a nice sized (and well stocked) gift shop (that housed "Max", the talking and waving Parrot). There were hiking trails and “species” forest (an indigenous tree of several species planted in a field, with signs identifying each tree’s species). We partook in several of the State Park’s amenities at various “down times” throughout our stay. The park was delightful.

After a quick “rehearsal” at the Wedding Canyon (more on that later) – we had the groom’s dinner held at the “Garden Canopy”. The Garden Canopy is an oversized patio, with (you guessed it!) a canopy covering most of it. It seats a large number of people, and has some nice accent lighting. At the far end is a bird bath that reminds me of one of those serenity fountains. It drew all the children like a magnet. We ate “my kind” of groom’s dinner. Hamburgers (served “California” style) and Bratwurst! (Any kind of “coarse ground” meat served in “tube” format is A-O-K in my book! I have a strong desire to experiment with trying to make my own “tubed meat” – but that is a post for another time.) I did exercise another act of “civil disobedience” while at the dinner. I will refrain from talking about here, but those present know what I am talking about!

(I think “Civil Disobedience” will be added as a label, as I seem to have a “disobedient” streak (when it comes to civil issues…) I despise people who feel their agenda comes before my personal (and legal) liberties… I do not want to taint this Wedding post with my libertarian rhetoric, so I will step off my soap box high horse and get on with the original post now…)

The actual wedding ceremony was held at the White Pines Inn Wedding Canyon. Again, this was an old limestone quarry, and was drained and decorated to facilitate some very beautiful outdoor weddings. They have a man made pond in the center of the canyon, and it pumps back up the hill, and creates a lovely waterfall from the one wall, and then a small creek from the waterfall, back to the pond. There are gazebos, tents, canopies, flower beds, small bridges, and water features all over the canyon. It is truly a memorable experience! It’s hard to describe. I suggest checking out this LINK, and viewing the pictures and the “virtual tour(s)”.

Finally, the wedding reception was held at the Janssen Reception Hall. This too was wonderfully rustic appearing hall. It had hardwood plank flooring, timber beams, and was decorated in early American Log Cabin styling. We had a great time at the reception, and we even got the boys to dance the “dollar dance” with their new Aunt (it was like pulling teeth to get Jonathan to do it, but he finally gave in.) My camera’s memory card was full by this time and (to Jonathan’s relief) I did not get any pictures to “blackmail” him with. As the evening started winding down, my wife’s father (or, as I like to refer to him as - (yup, you got it!) my Father-in-law) broke out the Arturo Fuente Curly Head Maduro cigars (a vastly superior cigar than I am used to smoking). This was a perfect “wind down” to the whole event. Several of us stepped out to the cool night air, and fired up the cigars, and sat around the benches, enjoying the cigars.

A little background story regarding the cigar ritual… During our first two nights (around the campfire) Joe and I smoked some Backwoods cigars I brought along. The first night, Benjamin (the 19 year old or “oldest-of-five”) joking said he wanted to try one. No one commented, and I heard nothing more from him about it. The next night he again said he wanted to try one. This time I bit, and offered him one. He nervously chuckled and turned it down. The other boys started teasing him about being afraid (in true “younger sibling pressure” fashion), and asking him over and over why he did not want to try one… I quickly shut them down, and in all seriousness told them that if he did not want one, it was not right to push the issue. (See everyone… Believe it or not - Once and a while I DO have moments of "positive parenting"…) That night after showering, changing into our “pa-jammies” and (literally) walking into the bedroom to crawl into bed, Ben called me out, pulled me aside, and whispered (in a nervous voice) if I could hold on to the extra cigar so he could try it the next night… I chuckled, and told him I would. When “cigar hour” arrived at the reception, his grandfather offered him one of the premium Fuentes in place of the little Backwoods cigar I had saved for him. He partook in the cigar(hisfirst),and seemed to have weathered his way through it. At first he produced very little smoke, and the cigar appeared to be drawing very slowly. I re-clipped the end, and took a couple of deep hits off his cigar to really get it going. After my attempt to “enhance” his cigar, Ben’s first drag was followed with a “whoa – that IS strong”. After the fact, when asked, he claims to have enjoyed it.

As cigar hour wound down, many guests were starting to leave. Towards the very end, my wife, carrying one sleeping daughter, followed by another daughter in a “zombie like” state joined us, and (as all good husbands can attest to) I got that “let’s move it along there big guy” look from my wife. I milked out the cigar as long as I could (then set it down in an inconsipcious place), grabbed the rest of our stuff from inside, said our goodbyes, went back outside (grabbed what was left of my cigar again) and took the last few hits off it as I walked out to the van. We all returned to the hotel, packed, and (because my brother-in-law, Ben, and I had to be back by Saturday afternoon) we went to bed so we could get an early start the next morning.

The next day started at 5:30am, and we were on the road by 6:05am. After an uneventful trip (and a few text messages from Bill) – I arrived at home by 1:30pm – with thirty minutes to spare before having to leave for work.

If you have not yet viewed all the "virutal tours" - May I recommend THIS PAGE.
Be sure to check out the following tours...

Pine Creek Cabin

Wedding Canyon - Main Ceremony Area

Wedding Canyon - Twin Bridges

Garden Canopy

Janssen Reception Hall

Now, a few final comments:

To the bride and groom (I do not know if they want their names posted here or not. I can always edit them in, but I like to err on the side of caution…) I’d like to say “Zycze Wam wszystkiego najlepszego na nowej drodze zycia.” (No, I did not have a stroke.) This is (translated from Polish) – “I wish you all of the best on your new road through life.” This is considered to be a traditional Polish wedding toast - at least according to THIS SITE. (And y’all thought I was fluent in Polish huh?) (My in-laws have a strong Polish heritage...)

The day (and weather) was beautiful, you both looked fantastic (as did M----), and speaking of M-----, he did a super job with all the busy activity going on! Honestly – everything fell into place just as it should have. From my perspective (as an observer), your wedding day was perfect! I hope it was all you hoped it would be, and I hope your marriage brings you all the happiness that ours has brought us.

We look forward to many years of celebrating birthdays, holidays, functions, events, and “just for the heck of it’s” with your family.

And lastly, I’d like to wish you just a very simple yet heartfelt “congratulations” to both of you.

Please enjoy a few pics from the trip and the wedding! (Clickable for larger photos)

This (incredibly long) post was written in honor of B, J, and M N who were joined in matrimony on 07-13-07.

Vacation - Part III / Sub-part D - Days 3 & 4 - FINAL ENTRY!

After a thunderstorm during the night, we woke to a cloudy wet morning.

Our plans were a visit to the Museum of Science and Industry, and possibly the Sears Tower if time permits - with a two hour road trip to see my brother-in-law, his fiancee, and their baby.

On our way to the MSI - the first thing we noticed is that you could not even see the top of the Sears Tower. It was clouded in. This realistically prevented us from visiting the SkyDeck for "observation" purposes.

We arrived at the MSI just as it was opening. We bought general admission tickets, and tickets to an early viewing of the U-505 exhibit. The U-505 was a Nazi submarine recovered during World War 2. The U-505 is a one-of-a-kind. There are only 5 U-Boats still in existence around the world, and the U-505 is the only one in the United States.

The U-505 tour was without a doubt the highlight of our visit to the MSI. In addition to the U-505, we saw the following other exhibits...

The Apollo 8 Command Module, Body Slices, The Chick Hatchery, Enterprise, The Farm, Flight 727, The Great Train Story, The Henry Crown Space Center, The Idea Factory, The Lunar Module, Mercury Space Capsule, NetWorld, Out of the Vault, Petroleum Planet, Prenatal Development , Robots Like Us, Ships Through the Ages, Toymaker 3000: An Adventure in Automation, The Transportation Zone, Walk-Through Heart, Whispering Gallery, and Yesterday's Main Street.

While watching the Flight 727 - we were standing next to a railing overlooking The Great Train Story" with a glass panel as the wall of the railing. Now, I knew that Zachary was afraid of heights, but not to the extent that I saw at the museum... Zachary would not even get close to the wall... He would have rather missed the exhibit than stand next to the glass wall. It took me sitting on the floor (no closer than 4 feet) and Zachary sitting on my lap (clinging tightly, and leaning away from the edge) to even get a glimpse of the display...

While the Prenatal Development exhibit is kind of creepy, it was really pretty amazing - They had actual human embryos at all different stages of development in jars. There was a note on the display saying that they understood that this display could be disturbing - but assured museum goers that the embryos were not destroyed for the purpose of the exhibit, rather - they were lost during pregnancy due to circumstances that beyond the control of the mother... (Natural causes, a car accident, death of the mother, etc...) It was not too bad until you got to the older embryos - up to the full term fetus...

I could talk about each of the exhibits, but that would be impractical... Again, let me say that we had a really good time. This is a very "interactive" and hands on museum, and I believe the kids enjoyed their time at the MSI.

We Left the Museum, and headed to Brian & Jessica's house...

Remember yesterday's interaction with Downtown Chicago traffic? Well, today was not quite as exciting, but noteworthy none-the-less...

I come from the Mpls-St.Paul metro area. It's a good sized city, with what I thought was a fair amount of traffic congestion... That was until I got to Chicago... We were again leaving at the 5pm "rush hour" time frame. The trip to my brother-in-laws was (according to Mapquest) supposed to take 2 hours. It took 2 hours alright.. 2 hours to get out of the city limits... I have never seen congestion in such distances.. as I did in Chicago... I am used to about 11 to maybe 15 miles of congestion at it's worst. This rush hour lasted for more like 40 miles... It never ended... It just kept going, and going, and going... And then there were the toll booths... which also slowed everything down, and put about a mile of backed up traffic every 20 or so miles... When we finally arrived at Brian's house - we had been in the car for over 4 hours....

Once we arrived, everything went well. We got to see Brian & Jessica, and Miles was up too! They had the BBQ ready for us, and we BBQ'ed hot dogs. It was good to see them again, and it was my first time to see their new house. I had seen video of the house - and it looked (on video) to be much smaller than it actually was. They had done some updating and painting, and the house was really starting to look nice! (Not that it did not before...)

We spent the night at Brian & Jessica's, and after a leisurely morning, having spent the morning with Brian and his family, we packed up and prepared to head back for home.

I had 3 more days off after getting home from Chicago, and that was spent doing some of the little chores that homeowners frequently procrastinate - and put off. It sure feels good to get some of them out from under my belt...

All in all Chicago was fun, spending time with my kids was great, spending time with my wife was a pleasure, visiting with Brian and Jessica was fantastic.. It was a great vacation - but, as with life... All good things must come to an end... (Including all these posts about my vacation...)

I'll sign off my Chicago trip entries with this thought that my wife and I shared as we headed down 169 from the Bloomington area... It is good to get away, but great to be home again...

Vacation - Part III / Sub-part C - Day 2

The plan for our second day in Chicago was our trip to the Field Museum and the King Tut exhibit.

We started out early enough to deal with rush-hour traffic and to allow for any "errors" in our directions. (Since we did not do a dry "test-run" the night before.) As we drove to the museum, we got to see the "EL" train. That was interesting - public transit that actually seems to work. We did eventually hit some traffic, but it was not terrible, and we did indeed make one wrong turn. I went SB on Lake Shore Drive when I should have gone NB. A simple turn at the next exit and back onto NB Lake Shore Drive found us at our destination with time to spare.

After trying to establish if "Soldier Field" was a baseball park or a football park, we parked under it in an underground parking ramp.

The building is old. The building is gargantuan. We entered, got "established" ourselves. (Tickets out and ready, bathroom stops before we get into any exhibits, and writing our cel phone numbers on paper for the younger boys (in case we get split up).

As we made our way down to the King Tut exhibit, we stopped off at the "Underground Adventure" http://www.fieldmuseum.org/ndergroundadventure/ . In this exhibit you "shrink" down to a half-ich in height, and burrow thru the ground. Everything around you is builtto scale, and you get to see the bacteria, small critters, insect, and whatnot that live underground.

From there, we stopped at "Inside Ancient Egypt" - a display of ancient Egyptian artifacts, small models of the mummification process, an ancient Nile river boat that was recovered, stones of the same size and weight of the stones used to build the Gaza pyramids (on skids and ropes for people to try and pull). It was a great way to "wet our whistle" for the King Tut exhibit.

On our way out of the "Inside Ancient Egypt" exhibit, there was (what I considered) one of the best displays of the museum - Apparently the Museum is in the process of expansion. While expanding, they had to dig for the foundation. The Museum has a small display of items found while digging for the addition. You see, when the Museum was built in the 1890's. When they built the museum, they brought in tons and tons of landfill (dirt, debris, etc). Now while excavating - museum curators are finding a wealth of "treasures" from the 1880's and 1890's. Medicine bottles, dishware, milk bottles, basically old debris, but it was very interesting debris... A slice of Chicago life in the 1890's!

We arrived at the King Tut Exhibit, and had to walk to the end of a long hallway with roped off lines. After working our way thru this line, we were issued our "Audio Tour" headsets, and went up a flight of stairs, where got into another queue line. This time we had a slide show of perhaps 20 photos from the discovery and opening of King Tut's tomb displayed giantly on the wall. When we finally made it to the front of the line we were escorted into a small, dark room, with three jumbo flat screen plasma TV's. The room was a "sallyport" (door on each side - only one open at a time). You are provided an initial explanation of the event, thanking the hosts and contributors, etc... They ask you to turn off all recording devices, cellular phones, and give you the warning about photography being prohibited. After the employee gives her speech, she starts up a (about) 10 minute movie that plays on the big screen TV giving you the background of what you are about to see. When the movie is done, the doors on the other end of the room are opened, and you stroll into the exhibit.

I would catagorize the display as "generational". You start out seeing artifacts from what is presumed to be King Tut's grandparents. As you work your way thru the exhibit you move from grandparents, to what is presumed to be his parents, then to artifacts from his collection. Overall, the exhibit was amazing. To think that you are face to face with handcrafted items from nearly 3000 years ago, and buried in the ground for just about the same number of years is awe inspiring. The ancient Egyptians made the tombs and mummified the dead for the eternal afterlife of the deceased. It's amazing to think that they were indeed correct (or at least for 3000 years so far). King Tut has lived on thru the discovery of his tomb and mummy.

I could get into huge detail here on the things we saw, what we liked, and what we didn't like - but I wont bore you with all that. We picked up a souviner book that goes thru a lot of the history we learned, and a two page spread on each artifact.

I would have liked to have seen more actual artifacts, but the display wasnicely sized, and the selection of artifacts was also nicely done. Overall,I would do it all over again if I had to.

While at the Field Museum we also took in the following exhibits..

Evolving Planet - Earth Sciences - Grainger Hall of Gems - Hall of Jades

There was more that we "did not get to see", than we actually "got to see"... It was an overwhelming place. By the end of the day - we were exhausted. The museum closed at 5pm and we on our way.

Just as we were getting on the road to go home, we made a hasty decision to try and reach the Sears Tower. We were (after all) in the shadow of the building... Sigh... That my friends - is where the story goes sour...

I love my small town driving. I have two spotlights in my town - and my work commute is mostly freeway, with only minimal city street driving and not many lights.

Now, as we left the Museum and headed downtown, I thought to myself that this wont be so bad. I don't have any directions, or know where to park.. But it's the Sears Tower for gosh sake... I drove along Lake Shore Drive until I reached a street that I could see the Sears Tower was on, and drove into the downtown area.

Remember folks... It's 5pm - on a weekday...

As I approached the downtown area we came to a Tee in the road. Left or right. I went right. Now I had to find another way to the Sears Tower thru the tangle of one-way roads, and the... the... um... sea of people.

Never in my lifetime have I seen such a mass of human beings - all walking in different directions. A constant stream of pedestrians in all directions - as far as the eye can see. Then there are the cars. Cars, Cars everywhere... Mopeds, and Vespa Scooters, delivery trucks, cabs, cars, vans, busses... It was what I consider hell on earth. Driving thru the turmoil of motorized and pedestrian traffic was all I could take.

If you left any space at all in front of your vehicle (any space AT ALL) a motorcycle would (from 3 cars lengths back from a different lane) drive between the stopped traffic and zip into the space in front of you (that was about 1/3 the size of the motorcycle). All to get ahead 3 car lengths ahead.

Refer to the picture for the following rant...

Traffic in the intersections... My god... Picture yourself as the first car in the far left lane of a one way road (stopped at the intersection) The light turns green, and you creep into the intersection a bit. then the police man in the intersection whistles at you and has you pull up to where s/he is at. Then because of the steady stream of pedestrians, you wait. In the mean time the cars behind you have also pulled up behind you, but because you are not moving they begin to honk at you. You look to the policeman to quiet the other cars down, but s/he seems impervious to the sounds. Ok... You tell yourself to ignore the honking and you wait... and wait... and wait for the flow of people walking thru the intersection. The stream that does not let up until (and even after) the light has turned red and then green for traffic in the opposite direction. But because there are still pedestrians blocking the road, you cant move anywhere. Since the light has turned green for "left to right" cross traffic, they feel they should "jackrabbit" into the intersection, and dynamite the brakes within a foot of the passage door of your car. Because you have not moved anywhere, they too start honking their horns at you. You look at the pedestrians in the street (blocking your path), then to the cars behind you (also in the intersection on a red - honking at you), then to the cars coming at you from your right - in the intersection on their green (but can move) - honking at you), and finally to the policeman in the intersection completely unaware of what is going on - before you loose your mind... After you loose your mind, you turn to the on coming cars to your right - give them the finger, turn to the pedestrians, and start pulling your car into the crowd (hoping not to squish one of them in the street), all while you are wishing you could stick your big fat "glow-in-the-dark-cuz-it-aint-seen-the-light-of-day-since-you-were-a-toddler" white ass out the back end of your car and show the drivers (honking behind you) just how close they can get to a full moon!!! Look close enough asshole, you may even see craters! Oh, and watch out for the volcano spouting black stinky lava you impatient bastard!

When now you have made it through the intersection, you can relax...until you get to next stoplight (one block away), and GET TO do it allover again... and again... and again...

Because we were in a "Downtown" area - we could not see the Sears Tower behind the other tall buildings - due of our proximity and angle. I could not see a horizon, I lost my bearings and was unfamiliar with the area. Face it... I was now lost.

And that was where I gave up... I continued driving around like this until I found my way back to Lake Shore Drive, and we called it a day. Happily (and much more relaxed), I headed back to the hotel.

Once at the hotel, I grabbed a brochure for the Sears Tower SkyDeck. The brochure had specific directions, where to park, how to get there, and many other interesting facts... Including the fact that I was within a block of the parking structure for the Sears tower at one point...

Oh, well... Maybe tomorrow...

Vacation - Part III / Sub-part B - Day 1

After driving almost all day, we finally arrived at the hotel without too much problem. We were all tired and hungry, so after checking in, we decided to try and find some authentic "Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza" and then try to get to the Sears Tower or the Hancock observatory that night. We checked the hotel room folder for any adds - and found a pizzaria that listed that on the menu.

Gianni's Ristorante & Pizzeria

When we found the restaurant, I was pleasantly surprised. I found it to be a quaint family owned Italian restaurant. This is what I love. I can not stand the "corporate" cookie-cutter restaurants where you eat the same thing no matter if you are in Seattle, New York, Miami, Minneapolis, Dallas, or anywhere. Inside Gianni's Ristorante & Pizzeria there was a small bar in the corner, and a few people gathered around that corner bar and TV screen watching the last game of the 2006 World Cup - France vs Italy. There was one other couple dining in the little restaurant. We were seated at a larger table in the other back corner.

Not sure what to expect, we placed our order for the Gianni's Special, and a small thin-crust cheese pizza (for Jonathan - the finicky pizza eater). The Gianni's Special was Cheese, Green Pepper, Onion and Sausage. When we placed our order, the waitress told us it was going to be "a while" - and the menu said it would be at least 45 minutes. Now this was interesting to me.

As we were waited, (and the time got longer) we decided to postpone the Sears Tower / Hancock Observatory visit for the night, and perhaps drive the route to the Field Museum (where we had tickets for the next morning) to make finding it easier (in the morning).

Now you need to know that it was interesting to me because I have (as a child) been to Chicago, and had "Chicago style deep dish pizza". It was the running joke in our family for many years. My memory of it was about a 5 inch thick "wheel of cheese" set into a pizza crust with toppings plunked into the bubbling mass of cheese. So, after having talked about my memory of what "Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza" was, my family (and I) were excited to see if this was unique to that pizza, of if this was actually what "Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza" is all about.

Well, I was close. My memory may have been distorted or exaggerated because of my impressionable youth. The pizza was not 5" thick. It was more like 1 ½" - 2" thick - and when you pulled a piece from the tray - the cheese and toppings strung out all over the place! It was a messy, stringy, cheesy, delicious mass of pizza!!

Michele ate one piece. Benjamin ate one piece. Zachary ate half of one piece. I'm a big guy. I can pack away food when I want. I ate one piece, and a half of the half that Zachary left behind, and could not put another bite into me. Heck, I had a hard time with the after dinner mint. Each piece came in at close to a pound.

While "Chicago style deep dish pizza" was not EXACTLY what I remembered it to be, it was quite a bit of what I remembered it to be. If anyone is "googling" this and reads this entry, and you live in or around the Franklin Park, Illinois area (yet have not tried Gianni's Ristorante & Pizzeria) - I recommend you give it a try!

Also (on an interesting side note) - The family employees (who had a heavy Italian accent) were very happy about Italy winning the World Cup that night! It was fun to watch them celebrate the Italian win! They apologized to us - we let them know that there was no need for apology - completely understandable!!

By the time we left Gianni's Ristorante & Pizzeria, it was later than we expected, and darker than we expected, and neither Michele or I wanted to be driving around Chicago in the dark not sure where we were going. We returned to the hotel (with leftover pizza in tow) and called it a night.

Vacation - Part III / Sub-part A - Pre-trip background

Here it is.. The real reason behind the vacation...There are a couple of good stories out of this trip - so I will break up "Vacation - Part III" into a couple of "Sub-Parts"...

Sub-part A - Pre-trip background.

Well over a year ago, I read an article about a King Tut exhibit traveling from Egypt for a traveling exhibit/event around the world. Chicago was one of the destinations. I had monitored the news for a while, and finally a site was set up where you could submit you email address, and when tickets were available, they would send you a reminder.

Jonathan was (at that time, and still is) very interested in mummies. This was a perfect thing for him. I originally told my wife about it, and told her I was interested in taking Jonathan. The trip started out as Jonathan and dad. That was well over a year ago. As time passed, the plan changed to Jonathan, Zachary and Dad, then to Jonathan, Zachary, Mom and Dad, and finally Jonathan, Zachary, Benjamin, Mom and Dad.

Months before the trip, my brother-in-law, his fiancé and baby moved to Sterling, IL (about 2 hours west of Chicago). The reminder email came, and the summer shift picks also came up. We picked a date, bought the tickets, and waited.

First of all - the tickets were VERY expensive... For the five of us, I paid over $160.00 for the General Admission, Underground Adventures, King Tut, and King Tut Audio tour package. But, heck... It's pretty much a once-in-a-lifetime event... I think the last time any of the King Tut Artifacts were in the US was in 1976. My parents never went, but my father bought some sort of souvenir book, that I remember looking thru over and over as a kid. I remember being almost hypnotized as a child. So.. we bit the bullet and got the tickets.

I started researching some of the other things that we can do while we are in Chicago...
There is the Field Museum (where the King Tut Exhibit was housed)
There is the Museum of Science and Industry
There is the Sears Tower
There is the Hancock Observatory
There is the Shedd's Aquarium
There is the Navy Pier
And that is only the tip of the iceberg.

We decided on the Field Museum, Museum of Science and Industry, a visit at my brother-in-law's house, with a possible stop at the Sears tower or the Hancock Observatory.

We booked a hotel, got our maps ready, got packed, and the day finally arrived. (This 4 day trip fell in the middle of my 16 days off (all those days I was getting all those other tasks done)).

End of Sub-Part A - Pre-trip background. Stay tuned for Sub-part B - Day 1.

Vacation Part II

Well, now that I have dealt with the CONSTRUCTIVE things I have done on my vacation, I I'll blog a bit about the non-constructive things I did.

First of all... The first several nights, I sat out on my new deck, drinking wine coolers, and listening to XM Radio - Here are a few of my favorites...

202 High Voltage - Opie & Anthony, and my new favorites - Ron & Fez.
150 XM Comedy - Stand up comedy
008 80's - 80's Music
009 90's - 90's Music
042 XMLM - Hardcore, Death, and Grindcore Metal

We also rented several movies....
8 Below
The Libertine
Failure to Launch
Just Friends
Pirates of the Caribbean (#1)

We got together with the neighbors for the 4th of July (They had a party with many friends) and then did our own fireworks display (both on the 3rd and the 4th).

We went on a couple of walks with the family.

I went to several of the boy's Baseball games.

I played a mean 2-day game of RISK (that is still going - set up on the dining room table to finish later) with the boys, and I played Monopoly Jr. with the girls.

And, on a positive final note, I got on a scale for the first time since February. Now, keep in mind that for lent this year, I gave up soda pop. I went 40 days without it. When I started up again, I have given myself a limit of 2 cans a day. (I used to drink about 5) and have made a conscious effort to eat a little bit "better" and a little bit "less". I also have been taking my break at work, and walking... It's about a mile. I knew I had been losing some weight. My "just fitting" pants are now a little big, and the next size down (which I could not button), I now can. Anyway, I got on the scale at my Brother-in-laws house, and discovered the number on the screen was about 15 lbs less then the number I had seen on the last scale I was on! WHOO-HOOO!! I lost about 15 lbs since February!!! Now I need to keep this up! I even feel better!

Vacation - Part I

Tonight is my last night of vacation. It has been one of the best vacations I have had in a LONG time. I had time away from work. I have had time to get a lot of projects around the house done. I had time to spend with my children, and I had time to spend with my wife, and even a little bit of time alone too!

Here is a list of just a few of the many projects around the house I got done:

1. Finished the spindles on the deck.
2. Repaired the sprinkler system.
3. Mowed and edged the lawn.
4. Repaired a broken light switch in the basement
5. Changed the oil in my car.
6. Sorted and put away lots of loose tools that have been hanging around the house.
7. Painted the front pillar.
8. Cleaned and vacuumed both the van and my "daily driver".
9. Cleaned and painted our bedroom.
(Our bedroom was the last room still in the "original" color. We have new bedding and
furniture for the room too! - about a year old - we just never got around to painting our room.)
10. Repaired, set and filled the automatic fish feeder on my aquarium.
11. Cleaned portions of the garage.
12. Cleaned all the debris from my deck building project that have been laying around the yard.
(Cut boards, sawdust, broken beer bottles, screws, nails, tacks, and staples, etc.)
(Now the kids can actually play under the deck!)
13. Replaced the finicky 3rd "cyclops" brake light in my car (that has been out as long as I can remember).
14. Tracked down my missing license tabs that I bought on-line and never received.
15. Repaired the drain in the bathroom vanity

Again, there were just some of the bigger projects I got accomplished. I will try to find my original "list" of things I wanted to get done on my vacation and compare the lists...

End of Part I - Part II to follow....

D.

Oh, yeah...

I also got the "King Tut" tickets ordered today... Pretty exciting... and pretty draining (of our budget that is...)

5 tickets ran over $180.00.

That hurts... But I hope (at least for Jonathan) it will be worth it in the end! I gueess $180.00 for a once-in-a-lifetime event is better than a few new video games... (But I am ssure the kids will disagree with me on that one!)

Vacation Plans...

Let's kick this Blog off with something good! A mini - vacation to Chicago for some Museum hopping. The King Tut exhibit is coming to town, and I want to take Jonathan to this "once-in-a-lifetime" oppurtunity! We are finalizing our vacation plans. This vacation has been in the works for over a year, when they (who is "they"?) announced the traveling King Tut museum tour. I checked, and the closest it comes to us is the Chicago Field Museum. It started as being plans for Jonathan and I. We then added Michele. Then the plans grew again when it was decided that Zachary too be joining us. After Ben completed treatment he was added to the list too. The trip went from 2 to 5. So much for some one-on-one time with the Jonathan. Sorry buddy, I did try, but we will still have a lot of fun! Anyway, as it looks now, here are the plans...

- - - - - - - - - - - -
Sunday - Leave Minnesota for Chicago in AM. A possible visit to the Hancock Observatory (top of Sears Tower) in afternoon / evening based on a recommendation from a co-worker who had just returned from taking her kids to Chicago. Then a hotel stay in Chicago for the night.

Monday - A visit to the Field Museum for the King Tut exhibit (and various other exhibits) or a visit to Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry for the day. (I went there as a kid, and can remember how cool it was even today!) Then another hotel stay in Chicago for the night.

Tuesday - We will visit the Museum that we did not visit the day before (The Field Museum or the Museum of Science and Industry). We will then leave for Brian's new house (about 2 hours south of Chicago) to see their new house, visit Brian and Jessica, and spend some time with Miles. We will be staying with Brian and Jessica for the night. (Thanks guys! That saves us some extra $$.)

Wednesday - We will be visiting Brian, Jessica and Miles for the day (He has the day off of work - I dont know about Jessica though). We will leave for home some time that afternoon / evening.
- - - - - - - - - - - - -

It's a busy little trip, but I think it's gonna be FUN!

Girls, I know that you will have fun with Grandma and Grandpa for these few days, and dont fret... We will have our own mini-vacations to go on too! (No boys (execpt your dad) allowed! (grin))

Love, Dad