Bright and early Monday morning we picked up my son, Quinn and rode the train into Chicago. He always take the commuter to work. It made me so sleepy to hear the rhythmic sounds of the train on the track. Everyone was nodding off to sleep. We got off at the last stop which was downtown Chicago. I am sure we looked like typical tourists gawking at the really tall buildings. It is so busy there, people rushing around walking fast, not looking each other in the eye.
Quinn got us started in the right direction, which was east toward Lake Michigan. We were on our way to the Chicago Fine Arts Museum. It was about 10 blocks east and one and a half blocks south of the train station. It is a huge massive building with concrete lions guarding the front entrance. We had to wait a few minutes for the 10:30 A.M. opening.
Luckily, Sarah really enjoys viewing all the art works, like I do. We walked for two and a half hours and covered a lot of the exhibits. My favorite artist is Van Gogh, second is Rembrandt. It is impossible to see everything. So my next visit to Chicago, I will go back, God willing
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Sunday, July 10, 2010
We are back at Quinn's, but didn't get here until noon, because we slept so late. "Why?" you ask, because the party lasted so long and we got in very late. We went directly to bed and at five in the morning I was still ...AWAKE....I had drank four caffeine sodas (with rum). It was the soda that kept me awake. Honest. So over at Quinn's we all took a few naps that day.
Around 4:00 P.M. Sarah wanted to go out on the boat and fish. Quinn was all too willing to go. He loves to go out on the river. I went along too. Before we left Maureen quietly told me, after she checked the weather channel, that it was suppose to rain...not shower...but bad ass storm. Ha..ha..snort...ha... we all thought, and away we went. We went directly down/up the river to the fishing place that was the "No wake" zone, and threw in our squiggly worms. Okay, truth be told here, Quinn had to put the squiggly worms on the hook for us and then we dropped them into the water. We were in that spot for quite some time. Sarah had one bite on her line, but no fish. We had been watching the sky all this time and noticed that the sky had definitely changed to dark bluish gray...time to go color. We slowly moved out of the "No wake" zone and went full throttle back to the little pier. A few rain drops fell, no matter. No rain coats or hooded sweat shirts for us, the Vikings. We made it to the pier, Sarah had hold of the tall pole but was worried about her eye glasses and let the boat drift away and then as Quinn was calmly telling her, "Forget the glasses and grab the pier"! Actually, I think he was screaming that last sentence. Well, all hell broke loose with the rain...downpour...drenching cold...sheets of water blasting us. Sarah and I were trying to get out of the way of the rain, but had no place to go. Quinn was trying to get the boat back to the pier. We were all soaked and freezing. Finally, after my shrieking about a rain coat in one of the storage bins, someone threw me a small plastic bag with a folded plastic poncho inside. I had a terrible time opening the bag and retrieving the bright yellow poncho. I did manage to get it on over my soaked clothes and it did help with keeping the freezing rain from my already soaked body. After I tied the hood cord under my chin I wanted to "quack" like a duck, but decided Quinn would not think that was so funny. He somehow secured the boat and went to get the car. The rain, in the mean time, did not let up.
Anyway, he got the car to the ramp and rescued us and sent us to get inside the car. He loaded the boat on to the trailer and finally we were on our way home. Poor Quinn he was drenched, but still with a sense of humor. He did his, Maureen -"I told you so routine". We did have to laugh at the entire trip and what a great story and memories, but no fish!!!
Around 4:00 P.M. Sarah wanted to go out on the boat and fish. Quinn was all too willing to go. He loves to go out on the river. I went along too. Before we left Maureen quietly told me, after she checked the weather channel, that it was suppose to rain...not shower...but bad ass storm. Ha..ha..snort...ha... we all thought, and away we went. We went directly down/up the river to the fishing place that was the "No wake" zone, and threw in our squiggly worms. Okay, truth be told here, Quinn had to put the squiggly worms on the hook for us and then we dropped them into the water. We were in that spot for quite some time. Sarah had one bite on her line, but no fish. We had been watching the sky all this time and noticed that the sky had definitely changed to dark bluish gray...time to go color. We slowly moved out of the "No wake" zone and went full throttle back to the little pier. A few rain drops fell, no matter. No rain coats or hooded sweat shirts for us, the Vikings. We made it to the pier, Sarah had hold of the tall pole but was worried about her eye glasses and let the boat drift away and then as Quinn was calmly telling her, "Forget the glasses and grab the pier"! Actually, I think he was screaming that last sentence. Well, all hell broke loose with the rain...downpour...drenching cold...sheets of water blasting us. Sarah and I were trying to get out of the way of the rain, but had no place to go. Quinn was trying to get the boat back to the pier. We were all soaked and freezing. Finally, after my shrieking about a rain coat in one of the storage bins, someone threw me a small plastic bag with a folded plastic poncho inside. I had a terrible time opening the bag and retrieving the bright yellow poncho. I did manage to get it on over my soaked clothes and it did help with keeping the freezing rain from my already soaked body. After I tied the hood cord under my chin I wanted to "quack" like a duck, but decided Quinn would not think that was so funny. He somehow secured the boat and went to get the car. The rain, in the mean time, did not let up.
Anyway, he got the car to the ramp and rescued us and sent us to get inside the car. He loaded the boat on to the trailer and finally we were on our way home. Poor Quinn he was drenched, but still with a sense of humor. He did his, Maureen -"I told you so routine". We did have to laugh at the entire trip and what a great story and memories, but no fish!!!
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Hello all:
Today we returned to Quinn's after a terrible drive the night before to find our new lodgings. It took nearly two hours to drive to Naperville, IL. The GPS lady was led astray by Sarah...she didn't enter the correct address. After two phone calls to the hotel we finally dragged our tired selves into the new room and into our beds. The next day same return trip back to my sons. We couldn't take anymore of those miles so we changed motels for one much closer to Quinn's.
In the late afternoon Quinn and Maureen made a great meal. We were so hungry ( I was, anyway). So I ate like a little piglet. Then we went out on their boat and crused up and down the river waiting for the Cary Fire Department to put on their fireworks display. All the boats on the river anchored and waited for the sky to darken. The party began! It was the best fireworks that I have ever seen. Right over our heads wonderful lights and colors brightened the sky.
We had so much fun. Only after all the boats slowly made their way back to their night moorings
did we start back. It took us awhile to get back to our pier, but that was great because it made the night last longer.
Today we returned to Quinn's after a terrible drive the night before to find our new lodgings. It took nearly two hours to drive to Naperville, IL. The GPS lady was led astray by Sarah...she didn't enter the correct address. After two phone calls to the hotel we finally dragged our tired selves into the new room and into our beds. The next day same return trip back to my sons. We couldn't take anymore of those miles so we changed motels for one much closer to Quinn's.
In the late afternoon Quinn and Maureen made a great meal. We were so hungry ( I was, anyway). So I ate like a little piglet. Then we went out on their boat and crused up and down the river waiting for the Cary Fire Department to put on their fireworks display. All the boats on the river anchored and waited for the sky to darken. The party began! It was the best fireworks that I have ever seen. Right over our heads wonderful lights and colors brightened the sky.
We had so much fun. Only after all the boats slowly made their way back to their night moorings
did we start back. It took us awhile to get back to our pier, but that was great because it made the night last longer.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Friday, July 09, 2010
Hello all:
We spent the night in Springfield, Ill. at a great hotel. All of the places where we have stayed all have been nice and have passed my inspection.
We awoke this morning and decided not to go to the Lincoln Home. It was a tough decision, but it was for the good of the trip, besides we are tired. We have been driving for four days...today will be the fifth.
We are in Illinois (silent s). We are at my son, Quinn's, now. Sarah and I took a nice nap on their couch (2 seperate couches) and we feel so much better. Their neighborhood is a quiet, shady, small forest with all the houses tucked in to their little niches. So nice. So pretty. The Fox River is just a few blocks away. Quinn and family have a boat in their garage that they take to the river and launch, quite frequently, by the looks of their tans.
We spent the night in Springfield, Ill. at a great hotel. All of the places where we have stayed all have been nice and have passed my inspection.
We awoke this morning and decided not to go to the Lincoln Home. It was a tough decision, but it was for the good of the trip, besides we are tired. We have been driving for four days...today will be the fifth.
We are in Illinois (silent s). We are at my son, Quinn's, now. Sarah and I took a nice nap on their couch (2 seperate couches) and we feel so much better. Their neighborhood is a quiet, shady, small forest with all the houses tucked in to their little niches. So nice. So pretty. The Fox River is just a few blocks away. Quinn and family have a boat in their garage that they take to the river and launch, quite frequently, by the looks of their tans.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Thursday, July 08, 2010
Dear fans:
This evening I am writing from Springfield, Ill., my beloved home state.
We did Missouri today. We went to the Laura Ingalls Wilder home, where she lived with her husband, Almanzo, for sixty years. It was here, at Rocky Ridge Farm, where Laura started writing "Little House on the Prairie". She was then sixty-five years old.
When they first moved to Mansfield, MO., they bought 40 acres of land. A large apple orchard had been planted by the previous owners. It was their first cash crop. They eventually were selling and shipping, by rail, barrels of apples. Rocky Ridge Farm eventually grew into 200 acres. Almanzo first built a two room home for the family and as the farm grew and prospered, he slowly added more rooms, even a bed room in the loft for their daughter, Rose.
Missouri is such a beautiful state. Rich in lush green forests, very mountaineous, but the land is very rocky and I would assume difficult to cultivate. We were off the beaten path and I truely loved all the wild flowers that grew along the winding roads. We saw green pastures with cows and baby cows (calfs), herds of grazing horses. The countryside is such a vibrant contrast to what I am accustomed to seeing in the Southwest. I did not see one feed lot full of cows whose only shade was another cow. These cows had lots of pastures and trees. It was wonderful.
On our trek back to the freeway, from Laura's home, we drove through some great thunder storms. Lots of rain. It was great. It rained all the way into St Louis. We saw the silver arch, lots of traffic, but our GPS guide did her job and we made it across the river into Illinois (silent s ) Ha... Then suddenly over the great Mississippi (which we didn't see) the landscape was so level and flat. Corn fields grew in such strait rows far over the horizon. I love the crispy neat farms.
Okay, I am signing out now. Time for some TV to put pictures to the news stories we heard about. Lindsey Lohan the spoiled brat. Put her crying, baby ___ in jail for the total 90 days and then put her into a drug dry-out program for even longer. How can someone have it all and then throw it away and wine about how difficult it is for her to follow the judges rules because she has to work. (and make a few millon dollars) -Carly
This evening I am writing from Springfield, Ill., my beloved home state.
We did Missouri today. We went to the Laura Ingalls Wilder home, where she lived with her husband, Almanzo, for sixty years. It was here, at Rocky Ridge Farm, where Laura started writing "Little House on the Prairie". She was then sixty-five years old.
When they first moved to Mansfield, MO., they bought 40 acres of land. A large apple orchard had been planted by the previous owners. It was their first cash crop. They eventually were selling and shipping, by rail, barrels of apples. Rocky Ridge Farm eventually grew into 200 acres. Almanzo first built a two room home for the family and as the farm grew and prospered, he slowly added more rooms, even a bed room in the loft for their daughter, Rose.
Missouri is such a beautiful state. Rich in lush green forests, very mountaineous, but the land is very rocky and I would assume difficult to cultivate. We were off the beaten path and I truely loved all the wild flowers that grew along the winding roads. We saw green pastures with cows and baby cows (calfs), herds of grazing horses. The countryside is such a vibrant contrast to what I am accustomed to seeing in the Southwest. I did not see one feed lot full of cows whose only shade was another cow. These cows had lots of pastures and trees. It was wonderful.
On our trek back to the freeway, from Laura's home, we drove through some great thunder storms. Lots of rain. It was great. It rained all the way into St Louis. We saw the silver arch, lots of traffic, but our GPS guide did her job and we made it across the river into Illinois (silent s ) Ha... Then suddenly over the great Mississippi (which we didn't see) the landscape was so level and flat. Corn fields grew in such strait rows far over the horizon. I love the crispy neat farms.
Okay, I am signing out now. Time for some TV to put pictures to the news stories we heard about. Lindsey Lohan the spoiled brat. Put her crying, baby ___ in jail for the total 90 days and then put her into a drug dry-out program for even longer. How can someone have it all and then throw it away and wine about how difficult it is for her to follow the judges rules because she has to work. (and make a few millon dollars) -Carly
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Hello to all our fans: We now have eight or nine (two are us!) Anyway, we couldn't add anything to our "World Famous Blog" last night because we didn't have the Internet connection. So..Tuesday's Update...
We drove to Odessa, Midland and Abliene. The countryside is much like what we see in El Paso, great big desert...dry...hot except there are alot of oil wells pumping liquid black gold.
I cannot add pictures here, for some reason, they will not download to this site, but we will add another link, for your viewing pleasure.
We stayed last night at Sarah's Aunt Debbie's and Rich's home. It is in beautiful Corinth, close to Denton, TX. We had a few glasses of wine (I did)and a wonderful bar-b-qued rib dinner with all the trimmings. We had so much fun, Debbie and Rich!
We started off on our morning drive at 7:00 A.M. Way too early for me. After two cups of decaf coffee I finally woke up. The coffee didn't do it. It was the time of day.
We found some more terrible places to stop. Sarah needed more coffee so we left the turnpike for a surreal pit stop, and pit was what it was. The owner/manager was on the phone yelling in a foreign tongue, Pakastani or something. In the hallway by the bathrooms sat a toilet (previously used) something Sarah didn't see until she had left the ladies room. We are "PIT" magnets.
We both had a slight melt down, which I cannot go into details inorder to protect the innocent.
We arrived in Springfield, Mo.around 3:00P.M. and found our motel quite easily because our GPS really is good at it.
Springfield, Mo. is quite green, hilly and green because it RAINS here. What a concept, rain.
We looked up a knitting shoppe and spent some money. Had a delicious meal...steak, salad, no wine and now we are watching TV in our cool/cold room.
We listened to a news channel most of the day about the ordeal of the little girl who was kidnapped and later found at a car wash and now we can see the news and the sex offender killed himself...yes... good for all of us.
Good Night to All...And to All a Good Night
We drove to Odessa, Midland and Abliene. The countryside is much like what we see in El Paso, great big desert...dry...hot except there are alot of oil wells pumping liquid black gold.
I cannot add pictures here, for some reason, they will not download to this site, but we will add another link, for your viewing pleasure.
We stayed last night at Sarah's Aunt Debbie's and Rich's home. It is in beautiful Corinth, close to Denton, TX. We had a few glasses of wine (I did)and a wonderful bar-b-qued rib dinner with all the trimmings. We had so much fun, Debbie and Rich!
We started off on our morning drive at 7:00 A.M. Way too early for me. After two cups of decaf coffee I finally woke up. The coffee didn't do it. It was the time of day.
We found some more terrible places to stop. Sarah needed more coffee so we left the turnpike for a surreal pit stop, and pit was what it was. The owner/manager was on the phone yelling in a foreign tongue, Pakastani or something. In the hallway by the bathrooms sat a toilet (previously used) something Sarah didn't see until she had left the ladies room. We are "PIT" magnets.
We both had a slight melt down, which I cannot go into details inorder to protect the innocent.
We arrived in Springfield, Mo.around 3:00P.M. and found our motel quite easily because our GPS really is good at it.
Springfield, Mo. is quite green, hilly and green because it RAINS here. What a concept, rain.
We looked up a knitting shoppe and spent some money. Had a delicious meal...steak, salad, no wine and now we are watching TV in our cool/cold room.
We listened to a news channel most of the day about the ordeal of the little girl who was kidnapped and later found at a car wash and now we can see the news and the sex offender killed himself...yes... good for all of us.
Good Night to All...And to All a Good Night
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Good morning America!
Sarah has already walked on the tread mill for a half an hour. Carly stayed in bed....Bad Carly! We are off to Dallas and Aunt Debbie's house. Looking forward to seeing her. Relaxing...little wine...good meal...life is good. We just need to get there faster than we moved yesterday. Bye for now. Carly
Sarah has already walked on the tread mill for a half an hour. Carly stayed in bed....Bad Carly! We are off to Dallas and Aunt Debbie's house. Looking forward to seeing her. Relaxing...little wine...good meal...life is good. We just need to get there faster than we moved yesterday. Bye for now. Carly
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