Wisconsin and Chicago fun

Here's the news from Wisconsin and the Windy City! I started out by flying into O'Hare and then took the eLtrain, a bus, and the Metra to get to Elburn, IL. My mom is not a fan of Chicago traffic, and since she was going to be the driver on this trip, I was happy to oblidge. I arrived in Elburn about noon and we then made our way up to central Wisconsin where my sister and her family live. There I finally got to meet my niece, Elsa, who is already six months old! Isn't she a doll? I think so. People tell my second sis all the time that she looks like the Gerber baby.

On these Wisconsin trips we always spend at least one evening at the farm. My sis's mother-in-law owns and runs a beautiful bed and breakfast in LaValle, WI called September Farms. If you, your friends, or family are ever in central Wisconsin I definitely recommend it to you. There is usually some livestock about along with some horses, rabbits, and a friendly dog and cat named Lucky and Mindy. It is not far from the Wisconsin Dells and sits right on the 400 Trail and a river, so there is access to hiking, biking, canoeing and kayaking. Lynn is also a good cook so you will eat well while you are there. All of the jellies, jams, and most of the veggies you would eat there also came right out of the garden, and kids are welcome. Now that I'm done with my plug (not kidding though, it is a really great place) we can get on to this picture of my precocious two year old nephew AJ. It kills me how aware kids are of cameras nowadays. Whenever he sees that little light come on he screws his face up into his version of a smile. It's sort of devilish. He's getting so big! He is talking so much, some of which you can understand and some of it is his own language. Regardless, he can say speak 3-5 word sentences, which I think is pretty good for his age. He also gets the concept of who his relatives are now. Since I don't see them very often, usually two times a year, he used to always look at me like, "Hmmm. You kind of look like my mom, and you kind of sound like my mom, but you are definitely not my mom." Now I am Aunt Sarah. Awesome.
My brother drove up to Chicago on Sunday to meet my mom and I at the IKEA. They have been renovating my granny's old house and needed to pick out a sink. It was nice to get a chance to visit with him, although it was all to brief. Just when he needed to take off, my friend Renee arrived with her younger daughter, Eva. You have often seen the older daughter, Lauryn, on my blog, although I know Eva has made a few appearances. Lauryn was busy camping with her uncle. That girl is ten years old and I swear she has a busier social life than I do! Anyway, us girls ran around downtown after my mom departed for Indiana. It was also an all to brief visit, but fun nonetheless. I'm lucky (and thankful!) that my friends and family liked me enough to travel the three to four hours (double that round trip) to Chicago to see me this go around. Around the Christmas holiday I will make all their lives easier by flying directly home to Indiana instead. My oldest sister is crazy busy with a recent job promotion, so I'll have to wait to see her until the holidays.

I also got to see my great friends Heath and Rebekah, again, all to briefly. They generously make space in their lives when I need a place to crash in Chicago, as I did Sunday night. They are both theatre friends and I love to hear about their lives in the Chicago scene. I did it for only two years and they do it all the time. Rebekah had an audition the next morning. Cross your fingers for her! I didn't take any pics of them, but as it was late evening I am sure they probably didn't want me to take one anyway! Rebekah is also a fiber friend though, so she appeared last August on the blog.

There was knitting. There was even spinning! But there are, as of this moment, no pictures of said knitting or spinning. The camera battery needs to recharge first. Then I will share some of what I have accomplished lately.

Tschuss.