March 21l 2021; Spring is Springing

 Lizzard Loves Spring. 

Well, I mean, I don't love the cold/rainy/windy parts of it. Nor "Spring Forward" into Daylight Savings Time. Dark mornings? No thank you. No, not at all. 

But the shockingly (& deliciously) sun warm days that rise out of nowhere to remind you that you won't always be cold. The trusty spring flowers pushing their way up through the melting snow, proving that anything is possible. The birds singing loud & proud songs especially in the early morning (aka right now). The ever present mud puddles available for the Bug & Henry Pants to splash in. The sense of starting over/renewal that always comes this time of year. The bikes coming out of their winter hiding place in the shed to trundle us along on adventures (mainly to the "bakery store" as we lovingly refer to Tags Bakery and local playgrounds). Digging in the dirt again - a slow preparation for planting our garden beds after Mother's Day. Planning for socially distanced Easter celebrations with BoBo & the Kearney clan. Daydreaming about travel beyond our area. Baking Irish Soda Bread with Lulu Bug. Occasionally running in a tank top, strange how quick it is to get out the door when you don't need to bundle up so much. Spring in our house also brought our first COVID-19 vaccination! Ice cream cones (with frinkles - duh) to celebrate Chris!**

Spring in the Chicagoland area is certainly not my favorite season. But I do find plenty to love about it. What do you love about Spring wherever it is that you call home? 

**Usually this list would include some spring break travel, but not for us yet. Travel is on hold until we have all those shots in our arms. Oh COVID-19. How you royally screw with so many things!

Friday Recap - 2/1/19 - The Mountains Are Calling & I Must Go - several days late!

I am a couple days late in posting this - our travel plans went slightly off the rails due to the polar vortex which descended on Chicago last week. Snow and extreme cold did not make for easy air travel! Our time in Colorado felt like a tropical vacation in comparison! One day Marg & I snowshoed up mountain only wearing long sleeved t shirts and leggings- so hats/gloves/coats! So yeah, pretty much the beach.

So this week's post is dedicated to fun with Chris, Marg, the Bug & her cousins!

Friday Round Up 11/23/18 - Thanksgiving

How is it possible that Thanksgiving was yesterday? I feel like it was just summertime & the fall truly flew by. I have been channeling my sister & already wrapped a bunch of Christmas presents - so I can't be in too much denial I suppose!!

1. Thanksgiving
Everybody gets up at 330 on Thanksgiving morning, right?? No? Weird. But if you like the first flight out - you need to be pushing back from the gate at 6am!! Thank goodness that Lulu continues to be a relaxed and go with the flow type traveler. No worries if we wake her up at 3:45am, seems to be totally fine no matter what we throw at her!

Beautiful sunrise as we climbed out of Chicago!

Cousin time + MomMom & PopPop time + aunt & uncle time = happy Lulu!!

Also there were 5 dogs at Thanksgiving - all of whom are smaller than Lulu.....which I think made her feel all powerful ;)

Oh, and a dinosaur visited our Thanksgiving - how about yours?!?!

Party popper crowns are always a huge hit!

Samantha decorated cupcakes that her mom baked - cute & delish!

Our little turkey cracks us up daily - Thanksgiving or not! Hope it was a food, family, & friend filled holiday for you!

2. Hopping 

Lulu's newest favorite thing is being on Chris' shoulders while he hops up & down. She gets a HUGE grin on her face, tips her head back, there is so much joy radiating from her!

She really enjoyed some hopping when Cody was in town too :)

3. Friendsgiving Slumber Party

It was simply indulgent to have Stacey & Cody to myself for dinner & a slumber party on Sunday! We've been friends since I was born - 36 years going strong! I tried the BBC recipe for pork & plums plus a so-so new sweet potato cranberry recipe. The star of the show was the apple galette I made using the crust recipe I learned at King Arthur Flour & Smitten Kitchen's filling. And obviously had Jeni's Salty Caramel ice cream on top.

Its easy enough to forget how much you miss something when you don't have it day to day or week to week. But what an incredible treat to have 2 of my absolute best girls over (together) with nowhere to be/no worries about getting home, and giving us hours of catch up time. Fire in the fireplace, cold outside, good wine & better conversation. It was just perfect.

4. Turkey Trot & Drumstick Dash

Lulu ran her first race on Sunday! She ran a 50 yard dash & seemed to love it! Big smile during her run :) Chris & I had a good 10K too, Lulu was a relaxed rockstar in the stroller!

If ever you find yourself wanting to run a Turkey Trot not on Thanksgiving Day (because for us - it never works for us to run on Thanksgiving!) we would strongly recommend the Lincolnwood Turkey Trot

Friday Recap 10/12/18 - Colorado Cousin Time, October Summertime, Chicago Marathon Spectating

Woof. This is late, even for me! Happy Wednesday that I am pretending is last Friday everyone!!

1. Colorado Cousin (& Sister) Time

A childhood friend of my brother in law died of cancer late in September. A terrifically sad situation given that he was not yet 40 & he & his wife have 3 little kids. A family to keep in your prayers if you have the inclination. My sister & her 2 girls are in Colorado to soak up some autumn in the mountains, but that leaves her without her usual overnight babysitter, who lives in Connecticut. So Lulu & I flew out to spend a couple of days with my sister & the girls & then a couple of days just with the girls so Marg could fly to Michigan for the memorial services and celebrations of her husband's friend.

Lulu & I had some weather whiplash (see #2 for an idea of the home weather we left) when we woke up Wednesday morning to 6ish inches of snow in town & upwards of a foot on the mountain!! It was fun & freezing & all around great. I do wish Marg & I lived closer so that we could see more of each other, but at least we get to see each other pretty often :)

Lulu has started to say her version of "Hennie" which is making my heart basically explode. As far as I know it's the first name she's really trying to say. Amazing what a few days of constant hanging out can do for Lulu's little brain!

2. October Summertime

It was crazy warm at the start of the week - I mean - over 80 degrees in mid October seems insane, right??

Sometimes public nudity is the only option.

The only choice for this weather was to walk to downtown Evanston, get ice cream & check out the renovated Fountain Square. It was a bummer that the square was closed all summer for the renovations - but I think it turned out really well. I imagine it will be a gathering place for community members long into the future. And for a city without splash pads - the splash friendly fountain is a huge bonus.

Waving to passersby :)

The memorial to veterans brings thoughtfulness and reverence to the space - but in a good way - I like that public spaces can serve so many distinct functions.

3. Chicago Marathon Spectating

Watching the wheelchair races & elite field is incredible

For the 2nd year, we brought Lulu to Lakeview to watch the Chicago Marathon. The weather was cool & rainy, not the best but certainly not the worst either! We got to visit with my wonderful friend from high school while standing outside her building & cheering on thousands & thousands of runners.

Hopping on the train before it was fully daylight :)

We cheered for Chris' colleagues, my friends & a veritable shitton of strangers!

Lulu is a really good sport - she rolls with all of our "adventures" 

Lulu doesn't like when I cheer loudly it turns out. Frightening. I guess I should've known that would be the case!! That aside - it was a fantastic day. An event that makes me well up & gives me goosebumps every time.

The rain didn't scare us away!