Whirlwind Weekend

This weekend was one of the busiest but most fun-filled series of days we have had in quite a while.

It all began with basketball homecoming on Friday night.

As usual, I took up money and Jason announced the games.

Two of my former students, who also happen to be lovely young ladies, were part of the homecoming court.

with gorgeous Ally, who was 2nd runner-up

Syd (who got first runner-up) and her escort Jacob

After the game, as a chaperone for the senior trip, I helped with the homecoming dance, which helped raise funds to cut the cost of the trip for our seniors.

I arrived home by 11:30, and soon was asleep, but we were up bright and early Saturday morning for a special trip to Richmond.

Our best friends, the Jessops, were celebrating baby Luke's first birthday, and Connor had a blast with both Luke and his sister Leila.  We went early so the guys could watch the UK game and I could help Carrie-Nell prepare for the party.

As usual, we didn't get enough girl-time amongst all the work, but I think the boys owe us a spa day at some point.  :)

The party was adorable, with a sock monkey theme.  The food was simple and delicious, and I loved catching up with everyone, especially Carrie-Nell's parents who live in Alabama, and whom I hadn't seen in nearly three years.

The Jessops

We, unfortunately, had to cut out of the party early, but for a good reason...Jason and I had a rare, much needed, and romantic date night, all planned by my sweetie.

We dropped Connor off at Jason's parents' house, where we changed clothes and freshened up, and then we headed out for our night together.

Our first stop was Proof on Main, which I can now add to the list as one of the best restaurants I have visited.  The decor and atmosphere were unique, the lighting was beautiful, and the food was heavenly.  The restaurant is located right next to the lobby of 21C Museum Hotel, which houses an interesting (and somewhat bizarre) art gallery.

Jason ordered the bison tenderloin

while I had the Atlantic scallops.

We shared a dessert called soft chocolate.

After Proof, we walked the few blocks to our next destination, which both Jason and I were thrilled about.  Several months ago, he had purchased tickets for us to see "Fiddler on the Roof" at Whitney Hall.  He and I both love the play and the movie.

outside Proof, on our way to the theater

In college, I first saw it performed with the Begley Scholars at the Louisville Palace, and was in awe of the gorgeous theater, as well as the performance itself.  Jason's first experience seeing it was taking me to a dinner theater in Indiana.  Both of these experiences were wonderful, but the performance that night was the best I'd ever seen.  The gentleman playing Tevye simply made the show.  I sang along to every song (much to Jason's embarassment, I'm sure), laughed, and cried.  It was one of the best dates Jason has ever planned.  I knew there was a reason I fell for him.

We arrived home late, but stayed up even later talking and laughing with Jordan, Anitha, and Veronica.  It was a great night.

Sunday morning was spent with breakfast at Toast on Market.  Jason and I had eaten there once before, and immediately knew we wanted to return.  I had the Monte Cristo French toast (My camera was left behind, so I didn't get a photo.), which was savory and delicious. 

We headed from there to Sojourn, a place we love to worship when in Louisville.

Afterward, we met Jason's parents for lunch at Outback (I am drooling thinking of their cheese fries even now.), and after a quick trip to retrieve a forgotten Muno and blanket (leaving them in Louisville could have been disastrous), we were on our way toward home, where we collapsed onto the couch and enjoyed the last few hours of our weekend watching "The Princess and the Frog" with Connor.

There are times when I have a love/hate relationship with our busy schedule, but this weekend was one of those times when I love every second of our crazy, busy existence.  We are given one chance on this earth, and I hope Jason, Connor, and I are living it quite fully.

I Love Chicago

The above is true and simple.  I love that town.  You might say that Chicago is full of crime, the winters are terrible, and maybe you hate the Cubs (although my husband is a devoted fan, despite their struggles), but none of that deters me.  Let me tell you what I love about Chicago.  I love Millennium Park, Lincoln Park Zoo, Grant Park, Sprinkles, Giordano's Pizza, State Street shopping, and especially Pacific Garden Mission.  While, no, I am not planning to move there, one of the events I look most forward to every summer is the week my family and young folks from the OCYE spend working at Pacific Garden Mission.

If you are not familiar with PGM, it is a homeless shelter, although the Mission encompasses so much more than simply providing a night's sleep for down on their luck men and women.  PGM does provide just that, as well as delicious meals, but they also share the gospel before each meal, as well as provide Bible programs for the men and women who choose to stay for a longer period of time.  There are various other ministries within PGM, and you can read all about them here.

We first started volunteering at PGM nine years ago, back when the building looked like this:

In 2007, PGM was able to move into their new, much larger building.  Our first visit to the new building was astounding.  The kitchen and dining area were several times larger then at the old mission, and the accommodations meant PGM could help even more people. This is the mission today:

Our job usually consists of setting up and cleaning up from breakfast and lunch, sweeping/mopping floors, organinzing the stock room, cutting vegetables or meat for dinner, serving soup and sandwiches, and the occasional bed-making and bathroom cleaning.  It may seem like everyday, mundane work, but it is one of the biggest blessings of my life each year.  Obviously, I am reminded of my blessings, how fortunate I am to how a home, clothing, and food. 

However, what I didn't realize is that each year I would be blessed most by the people with whom we work in the kitchen.  Some of these men, the chefs and other workers, are familiar faces each year.  Men like Chef Turnbull, who has worked at PGM since before we started coming, who remembers our names every single year without missing a beat, and who hugs us all on the last day.

Then there are the men we meet who work in the kitchen as part of their participation in the Bible program.  These men are making strides to completely change their lives for the better.  PGM offers them a place to stay, an intense study of God's word, as well as resources to futher their education or other training for future job opportunities.  From these men I have learned more about love, sacrifice, and overcoming obstacles than I ever knew was possible.  I know for certain that while we are supposed to serve to be a blessing to others, they are the true blessings to us.

We do also have some downtime while in town. One of the most common themes of my blog (and my life) is my love of good food.  Chicago is a great place to find fabulous food.  See for yourself.  :)

The first order of business each year when we arrive at the hotel is to order Giordano's pizza.  It is heaven in a cardboard box!

My second favorite Chicago food spot is definitely Sprinkles.  Best. Cupcakes. Ever.

Ready to devour some cupcakes!

Amazing.

My favorite meal of the whole trip was this one: Voodoo Shrimp from House of Blues.  The sauce is spicy but the rosemary cornbread is sweet.

You should have known we made more than one trip to Sprinkles.  :)

Wednesday is the one day of the week that we do not work at the mission; we use the time to peruse the city.  Our first stop of the day was the (free) Lincoln Park Zoo.

The afternoon was spent at the Field Museum, and right before dinner we headed to Millennium Park.  This particular park is one of my favorite spots.  The fountains are such fun, and I love to people watch, so it's a joy to watch the children splashing and jumping. 

At the Field Museum with Sue the dinosaur

He has big feet, but not quite dino-sized.

And Connor's favorite party of the trip?

"meeting" Woody at Water Tower Place

It was an amazing week...see why I love Chicago? 

Food in NYC

As is most likely already obvious, one of my passions in life is food.  While this has definitely made weight loss a struggle, I refuse to deprive myself of every delicious food in life, simply because it isn't lettuce.  :)  This trip was certainly no exception.  There were several fast food stops on the way up and back (for time's sake), but once in NYC, there were at least three memorable meals (along with photos) that I want to share.

The first was a lunch in Grand Central Terminal.  One of the veteran chaperones suggested that Jason and I try the Oyster Bar's fare on the lower level of the terminal (If you haven't been there, Grand Central is full of shops, bakeries, and restaurants.).  Jason ordered a fish sandwich, and I chose the crab cake sandwich.  It was amazing -- moist, delicious, and the crusty bread was the perfect finish.

crabcake sandwich from The Oyster Bar in Grand Central Terminal

The second memorable food experience from this trip was also in Grand Central Terminal...yes, on the same day.  I saved room after my crabcake sandwich for dessert, specifically because I saw a sign for Magnolia Bakery (I had heard of how delicious the cupcakes were at this bakery before coming to NYC, and was determined to try one.).  I ordered a vanilla cupcake with buttercream icing.  The icing was a beautiful pastel purple, and was topped with Magnolia's home-made and hand-dyed sprinkles.  It looked pretty simple, but the taste was divine.  The icing was perfect, not too heavy, and the cake was perfectly moist but still light.  It left me wanting more, but I didn't buy another.  :)

vanilla cupcake with buttercrea

he last meal we had in NYC was most definitely the most amazing of them all.  We chose Carmine's, an Italian family-style restaurant, where you order together as a group, and everything comes out on huge platters for all to share.  There were six of us total, and we decided upon three choices, with a pasta added as a "base."  After much deliberation, we chose: fried calamari, chicken parmigiana, shrimp scampi, and penne alla vodka. 

The calamari was the best I've eaten...it was tender and less chewy than most I've tasted, and the breading was delicious.


fried calamari



tiny squid about to be devoured by Candice

I did not try the chicken, but that is Jason's favorite dish, and he says it was delicious, so I am taking him at his word.  It looks amazing.

chicken parmigiana



The runner-up for most amazing part of the meal was the shrimp scampi. I am a huge seafood fan, and this shrimp stood out not just because of the size, but the breading on top gave it an extra crunch and flavor that made it some of the best shrimp I've ever tasted.  Unfortunately, we dug in too fast for me to get a photo of the whole gigantic plate, but I did take a photo on my plate before I devoured them.

what was left of the shrimp scampi

The most amazing part of the entire meal was the part that seemed to be the most boring and unassuming, but it was the most delicious.  The penne alla vodka was exceptional.  I love marinara sauces, but I had never tried a creamy marinara sauce before, and now that's all I'll be looking for in the grocery next week.  The pasta was perfectly cooked, the sauce was creamy but still tomato based (not nearly as rich as an alfredo sauce, which is the cream-style sauce I am most used to eating), and it went perfectly with the other dishes we chose.  I went back for seconds on the pasta, and would have gone back for thirds if my stomach would have allowed it.

penne alla vodka

just some of the massive spread of food we had

Better than just the food, though, was the company on the entire trip.  As a chaperone, I was expecting lots of teenage drama and complaining about getting up early, but in fact, it was quite the opposite.  The students were wonderful to work with, they seemed to have a fantastic time at each stop; my colleagues are hilarious to work with and kept me laughing the entire trip; and any trip with Jason is made more entertaining.  :)  It was a wonderful week in NYC, one I won't soon forget.  More on the sights and sounds later...today was all about the food.