Gluten Free Heaven!

Larry was on his way to work on Saturday morning and sent me a text. He had seen a sign for a Gluten Free Expo that was going on in the burbs that weekend. I decided to check it out and went for a few hours on Sunday. Listened to a great seminar about the importance of supplements from a doctor from San Diego who specializes in gluten intolerance/Celiac disease, and went through the expo, tasting tons of samples, taking samples, and purchasing a few items. I'm already excited again for next years expo! Here is a picture of a bag of goodies I left with. I started sampling items today and have really liked what I tried so far!

Seattle friend came to visit...And I didn't take one picture

My friend Ava from my Ben Bridge days was in Chicago for a work event, and stayed an extra day to visit. It was so fun! We wandered around the city on Friday, shopped on Michigan Ave, had a midday drink at the Signature Lounge on the 96th floor of the Hancock, bought cupcakes from Sprinkles (most amazing gluten free cupcake ever!), watched hours of news, went to the local bar (Fat Cat) for a drink, visited the local bakery the next morning (Baker and Nosh), saw The Book of Mormon (the second time I saw it), and then I drove her to the airport...But not before another stop at Sprinkles. I didn't take one picture and am so mad at myself! We had a great time and I hope she will be back to visit when the weather is nicer. She had a horrible mix of weather that week; severe thunderstorm warnings, major flooding, warm and humid, cold and snowing, and then finally a clear day on the day she left. We were laughing about how times have changed...instead of spending a Saturday nursing hangovers, we were watching news and going to a Broadway show!

Washington, DC

Larry and I took advantage of his 10 days off and spent a couple of days in DC. We did A LOT of walking (we figured close to 12 miles over two days) and packed our days with sightseeing. Here is the list of things we saw:
-WWII Memorial
-Washington Monument
-Lincoln Memorial
-Jefferson Memorial
-MLK Jr Memorial
-Korean War Memorial
-Vietnam Veteran Wall
-White House
-Holocaust Museum
-Museum of American History
-National History Museum
-Ford's Theatre

I'm sure I'm missing something on the list, but you get the idea. We did a lot in two days. We also got to see my friend Jill and her husband (who happened to be there that weekend), and an old friend of Larry's. It was a great trip, and we really enjoyed the city!

 My favorite quote from the MLK Jr Memorial. We should all live this way...

The tower of books about Lincoln. I absolutely loved this, being a huge book lover!

Sunsets over the Columbia

We took a quick trip to Seattle and Pasco in March. I had a dentist appointment (have I mentioned I LOVE my dentist in Seattle?! If you need a name, let me know!), and I wanted to go visit my Grandma as it had been too long since I had seen her. We also visited two friends who had babies since my last trip. It was way too quick of a trip, but I was so glad we made it out there. My work schedule is totally ruining my ability to travel home.

 Sunset at Grandma's...I will miss this view

 Larry and I next to the hill I spent many childhood Easter's rolling down

 Being our usual selves

 Larry and I with Grandma

 I sure will miss this place. If only I would have had enough money to buy it...

 You can always count on me to do cartwheels on a curb

 Kristy and I with her babes

 Kat and I with Croix! Love that baby!

Larry and Dad off to China

Back in February, Larry and my dad took a trip to China. Larry had been wanting to visit Beijing, and I really was not interested in flying 12 hours each way to spend two days there. Thanks, but no thanks! My dad jumped on the opportunity, and off they went! They traveled in style in first class, stayed in a beautiful Hilton property using some of my points from work travel (Hilton Beijing Wangfujing), and had a great time. Here are some pictures of their quick trip.

 My dad and Larry in their first class accommodations

 Larry outside the Forbidden City

 The hallway in the hotel

 Dad and Larry at the Great Wall

Appetizers, anyone?! Snakes, scorpions, seahorses, tarantula, starfish, beetles...Take your pick!

#12- Complete!

I say this every time I write a post...Dang, I'm so far behind! Regarding #12 on my list of 30, I had full intentions of taking a picture of the stack of notes I wrote, and of course, no picture. Over the past year, I made a point to write more handwritten notes than I have in the past. There really is nothing better than receiving a handwritten note in the mail. I plan to continue sending notes through the mail to people.

#5- Complete!

Larry and I went and saw Joffrey Ballet perform "Human Landscapes" back in October. Am I that behind?! Yes, yes, I am. It was three ballets, Forgotten Land, Pretty Ballet, and The Green Table. We were so excited because Rahm Emanuel was a surprise guest and opened the show talking about Joffrey's involvement in dance education within the Chicago public school system. I felt very lucky to see him speak, even if it was just for a few minutes and not political.

Back to the ballet. The first piece was just okay. Pretty Ballet was just that, but as a former dancer and someone who sells and fits people for pointe shoes, I love to be able to see the line of the leg extending all the way through the foot. They had on SUPER long tulle skirts which completely kept me from seeing their feet. May sound crazy, but it drove me nuts! Either way, Victoria Jaiani danced it absolutely beautifully! The Green Table was incredible! It was such an interesting piece, and the dancers were all fabulous. To learn about the dance, click here.

My life pretty much revolves around ballet right now, but it was fun to go, relax, and watch (even though I was staring at their feet and trying to determine what shoe brand they were wearing!). Larry was a trooper, and unless it's a story ballet, I think I may have a hard time dragging him with me again!