Holidays

I know - it's February!
Well, I'd still like to tell you about our holidays because we had so much fun this year with Penny and being home for a few weeks. 

P saw all her grandparents and was of course, spoiled rotten as any little one should be on their first Christmas!

Before we made the trip home we had a small Christmas at home with our felt tree and lots of wrapping paper!

Penelope loves jingles bells and got so excited when they were ringing.  She couldn't contain herself.

Some of the gifts this year included matching strawberry hats for P and me, fun stuffed toys, books, and if you look further down you'll see Gorman, a puppet animal that Nolan gave Penny for story time.

I made cookies this year when Nolan and Penny left for NV.  Shortbread snowmen, salt carmels, and my mom's famous espresso logs! Because of school, I stayed behind while Nolan and Penny flew to NV.  I was on my own for a whole 4 days and didn't sit to enjoy it much as I cooked/baked/cleaned my 4 days away.


When I arrived in Nevada, Nolan's family had a fun holiday party to Christen their new home in Sparks.  They'll be so close when we finally make our way home this year.

 Lots of gifts

Packing all the essentials

 I flew into the sunset!

 Penny and Grandpa Terry

 We were lucky enough to spend some time with my brother and his wife, Alicia who just had a little girl in October.  It was a joy to see the two cousins together!

 My Dad's side of the family!

In Las Vegas we visited Nolan's family who had 2 polar bears mounted and a gigantic great dane who LOVED Penny!

 

 

 Finishing the Holidays with some fun sparklers and our new little girls!

Chicago loves music...

I honestly can't believe how many concerts I've seen since I've lived in Chicago.

The number might be more than all the concerts I've seen before I moved here.  The number might have something to do with the ease of getting to the venues, the prices, and the vast amount of talent that comes through the big city!

Since being in Chicago I've seen:

Jason Mraz at the Aragon - Nov. 2008

 

 Slightly Stoopid at The Congress Theater - March 2009

Drop Kick Murphys played with The Offspring at the Charter One Pavilion - July 2009

 

Matisyahu at the House of Blues - Nov 2009

And that doesn't even count the number of nights I've spent at B.L.U.E.S on Halstead or the free festivals I've gone to at the parks.

Surviving the Midwest Winter

This one goes out to my SHORTY - who is moving to Michigan for the next 2 months, because she is a traveling speech therapist.

I feel pretty fortunate that I've lived most of my life on the west coast.

I realize that I have been spoiled with sunny Northern Nevada weather.  It's cold during the winter and it snows, but generally it's easy to manage as the snow melts because of the consistent sun.  I have had to change my habits to survive Midwest winters.

After the first snow fall I wear my snow boots all winter.  Because I walk to the train everyday it is imperative that I have traction and warm piggies!  I refuse to sacrifice my toes to look cute, also I am clumsy and will fall!  This year I've fallen twice (in one day!).  Last week was the first snow, so I've sported my boots all week!  I also incorporate long underwear into my wardrobe on a regular basis.  It's dangerous to be waiting on the train platform with one layer and a -2 reading on the thermometer plus wind chill.

So if you ever are nutty enough to live in the Midwest during winter time you will need the following:

1. Calcium Chloride ice melt - It goes on your sidewalk but doesn't ruin your hard wood floor if brought into your home!
2.  Cuddle Duds long underwear - The thinnest long underwear and so warm!  Moisture wick away from your skin and stretchy for comfort.
3. A can of spray De-icer -  Especially if you own a vehicle in the winter!  It's handy to have if anything gets stuck!
4. Extend handle shovel - This is a MUST only if you have a vehicle.  The plows will no doubt block you in your parking spot the morning you're late for work!

So, that's my 4 recommendations for surviving the Midwest winter.

Now, what to do for fun when your visiting us in Chicago during the winter... think - most of these things to do are FREE!

1. Ice Skating in Millennium Park 2. Christkindl Market  3. Polar Express Train!  4. Santa in Daily Plaza 5. Eat under the Christmas Tree in the Walnut Room at Macy's 6. 12 Bars of Christmas Pub Crawl 7. Light Festival and Parade 8. Zoo Lights!

This doesn't even cover half the holiday events in the city.  Consider the other sporting events, theater, caroling, and holiday tours also!

Come to Chicago so we can go play but make sure you pack your long underwear! 

Together We Can Make Good Things Grow

Campbell's has already raised their goal of $250,000, but you may still vote to preserve your favorite barn.

Learn about the barns Campbell's have committed to helping out. According to their website, Campbell's "will be preserving 5 barns as chosen by voters like you. It's part of our ongoing commitment to supporting the National FFA Organization to help develop America's future farmers and leaders through agricultural education."

*Voting will take place from October 1, 2009 to January 5, 2010.

Along with voting for a barn you may receive tomato seeds as a thank you for voting.  After you vote, a screen asks you to enter a code of a condensed soup you have purchased.  If you don't have any Campbell's soups in your cabinets you may use some of these codes below. 


P8039 – U6 – Cheddar Cheese
P5 – 25 – Chicken Noodle
P5 – 03 – Cream of Chicken
EST4C – 29 – Bean with Bacon
EST4C – 11 – Beef w/vegetables 


Mark the holiday season by helping future farmers and the possibility of growing some of your own crops!

Thanksgiving in a NEW state!

Most Thanksgivings I spend with family - travel to wherever they are. This year I am heading East when they are West.  

Nolan and I are visiting my mom's friend, Donna and her family in Tennessee.   Mt. Pleasant, Tennessee to be exact and I couldn't have come up with a better name of a town to visit than that.  Both Nolan and I are really excited to visit Donna and her family.  She has a whole slew of activities for the weekend and I am really excited to explore TN, a new state!


Some of the activities Donna has lined up:

• A Men's Golf Outing
• Rockettes Show on Friday night
• Shopping in Nashville (~1 hour north)
  
• See her daughter sing - Jen Mize

We'll be driving to Donna's from Chicago with our friend, Brian (Buddha).  We expect it to be an 8 hour drive, YIPPEE! 

We leave Wednesday and we'll be playing it by ear about when to return.

Emerald City

This is going to cover two topics today, in brief: "A year in Chicago" and more in depth "St. Patty's Day in Chicago."

A couple weeks ago marked a year that Nolan and I drove from our home, the West to explore the the Midwest. We have officially been here for 1 year and 3 weeks! The year flew by, what with the big move, new jobs, Nolan's new career move onto the river, our engagement, and the meeting of new Midwest friends and several introductions to soon to be family for both of us. We are truly blessed to have found one another and can't imagine a more exciting or better time in our lives than where we are right now!

That being said, we still have a great time exploring the city, St. Patrick's Day was NO exception. Chicago is filled to the max with fun green celebrations including, green beer, a green dyed Chicago river, a downtown parade, the South Side Irish Parade, and several small celebrations around the neighborhoods. This last weekend was in the 50's, twenty degrees higher than last year, proving to be much more of a pleasant experience!

This year Nolan and I celebrated by walking around, seeing the Chicago River and having some drinks at a few of our favorite watering holes.


The dying of the Chicago River is a fun event, no matter your vantage point, but I do have to say, last year's was pretty dang cool! (soon see last year's pictures below) This year we were walking along the streets closest to the river and finally planted ourselves on the Wabash bridge.


We were close enough this year to see the dye boat speed beneath us. The dye begins as an orange powder and reacts with the water to turn a florescent green. The day is full of nonsense! It's a great time to do some people watching!




According to Wikipedia, "Bill King, the administrator of Chicago's St. Patrick's Day committee, stated that "the idea of dyeing the Chicago River green originally came about by accident when a group of plumbers were using fluorescein dye to trace illegal substances that were polluting the river". [14]

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) outlawed the use of fluorescein for this purpose, since it was proven to be harmful to the river.[14] The secret ingredients used to dye the river green today are claimed to be safe and not harmful to the thousands of living organisms that find a habitat in the Chicago river. In 1966 environmentalists forced a change to a vegetable based dye to protect the thousands of goldfish that populate the river.[c[14]]"