I Need Six!

Two seasons ago we took the boys to see the Bulls play the Clippers at Staples Center, but our fanboys have repeatedly expressed wanting to see them play at the United Center someday. So, after we booked our tickets to come back to Illinois to visit during spring break, the very next thing I did was check the Bulls' schedule. They were playing at home on Wednesday, 3/27 against the Heat and Easter Sunday, 3/31 against the Pistons. We were going to be downstate on Wednesday, so the Miami game was out (how much fun would it have been to watch them put an end to the win streak, though?!) But leave it to awesome Uncle K to find tickets on Craigslist for the Detroit game to surprise the boys!

Friends and Family

Thursday, March 28

My college roommate was also in Central Illinois visiting her parents, so she dropped by the house with her kids on her way back up to Chicago. Has it really been more than 20 years since our days together at the U of I?!

The kiddos!

Snow Much Fun!

Ever since we decided to come back to Illinois for spring break, J has been asking whether or not there would be any snow. We kept telling him that it was possible, but not to get his hopes up. He definitely got his wish! And even though it has been cold, considering how ecstatic the boys have been, I wouldn't have wanted it any other way!



Happy children = happy parents!



Midwestern Museums

This year we purchased a family membership for one of the museums near us, in part so that we could take advantage of reciprocal free admission to other science-technology museums when we travel. And since we're getting in for free, I don't end up feeling like we have to stay long to get "our money's worth"!

Herbert Hoover

Herbert Hoover. I didn't know much about Herbert Hoover before today, except that he was President of the United States. Oh, and that Archie and Edith Bunker sang "Mister, we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again." Now that the "All in the Family" theme song is running through your head, here are a few more tidbits about our 31st President that we gleaned from our visit to Herbert Hoover National Historic Site today...

• Orphaned at the age of nine
• A Quaker
• Was a mining engineer
• Led humanitarian relief effort to provide food for millions of Belgians during World War I
• First president born west of the Mississippi

You're Going to... Iowa?!

Before heading to my parents' in Central Illinois, we decided to take a little detour to Iowa. Iowa?! What's in Iowa, you ask? Well, one of the few things that would get this orange-and-blue Illinois alumnae to venture into the heart of enemy territory... a visit to Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, our last National Park Service unit left to check off in the state!

"Spring" Break

Even though spring officially began a few days ago, the weather here in Illinois is still firmly stuck in winter! After a week of checking the forecast and repeatedly warning son #1 that it was going to be cold, we finally convinced him to pack something warmer than just t-shirts and shorts. I'm sure he'll thank us later... 

In order to take advantage of frequent flyer miles, we booked a flight that arrived at O'Hare about midnight last night. Unfortunately, that put us on the 405 to LAX on a Friday afternoon... two hours of I-want-to-rip-my-hair-out joy. While waiting until it was time to board, R looked around the gate area and thought he recognized a guy there - turns out it was one of his friends from high school who was also flying back to Chicago with his kids. (This just reinforces why my husband is always scanning faces in crowds because somehow he usually will end up bumping into someone he knows!)

High school buddies (& their goofy children in the back)