Anniversary in Chicago

Last week Mitchell and I went to Chicago for our Three Year Anniversary which was February 11th. We took the train from Flint to Union Station on Tuesday the 10th. Our train left at 6:30 in the morning (which was early!) and it was about a 5 hour ride. It was Mitchell's first time on a train, and my first time on a train in America.

The train was very comfortable and relaxing, we even had a snack car on the bottom level of our car. It was amazing!

We got to Chicago around 11:30am and hailed a cab to our hotel, The Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers.

Our hotel was beautiful, the staff were wonderful and it was an amazing experience! They upgraded us to a suite for free for our anniversary, which was neat.

We had a dining room table!

That afternoon Alfred and Alicia came to hang out with us. We went walking around the city and went to get some Chicago Style deep dish pizza for dinner! It was amazing!!!!!

After dinner we walked back to the hotel and we played in the Club Lounge where there were snacks and drinks, computers and a massage chair.

We had a great time visiting with Alf and Alicia!

The next day was our Anniversary and it was rainy, windy and cold. We got up and had breakfast, then took a cab over to Navy Pier where we did some shopping.

When we were done shopping we headed back to the hotel to drop off our packages, then went walking (in the rain and cold). We ended up at a mall, where we bought a new game, then took a cab back to the hotel for some hors d'vours. We played our new game while we snacked in the club lounge.

After we'd snacked we watched TV in our room for a bit, then went back outside to explore some more. It was extremely cold so we didn't get too far, but we went to TGI Fridays and had some chicken and fries, then headed back to the hotel to call it a night.

Thursday morning we got up, had some breakfast, packed up and checked out of the hotel. We walked through chicago, into millenium park and downtown. We visitied the Bean, which was hillarious.

We had lunch at another pizza place called Pizano's (which was good but not as good as Giordano's) then we rode the L around for a bit.

We got off the L at the Quincy station and walked two blocks passed the Sears Tower to Union Station.

Union Station was pretty cool. I had seen it in movies and really wanted to spend a few minutes in the Great Hall, which was definately worth some pictures.

We boarded the train hassle free and headed back home. It was a fabulous time! A great anniversary!

Fun Table

http://www.microsoft.com/SURFACE/videos.html#gid=demos&vid=starwoodlaunch

We had two of these touch screen table computers (which are actually called the Microsoft Surface) in our hotel lobby in chicago. It was so much fun to play with. I've been searching online to see how much they are. They're only available for commercial use, so I guess we won't be getting one any time soon, lol. I think they're around $10, 000. But they are awesome! If I was rich I think I'd get one, lol.

Two More Days!

I just have to get through tomorow and Monday, then we're on our way! I'm excited about seeing Alfred and Alicia, I'm excited about riding the train with Mitchell, I'm excited about our hotel (it looks freaking awesome), and I'm excited about EVERYTHING! Pizza, cab rides, Navy Pier, coffee shop (in the hotel!), indoor pool, vacation, eating out, shopping and a magnet! We collect refridgerator magnets from everywhere we've been. Oooh, the hotel has a gift shop, so we'll get one there, like we did at the Sheraton in Nashville.

I wonder how much I'll miss Alex... I've never spent the night away from him before. It kinda scares me. I know he will be just fine. Just not sure how I'll be. We'll see.

Alex being held upside down and tickled.

And another one!

Can you find thirty (30) books of the Bible in this paragraph? Actually, there are 31 if you can find the variant of one Old Testament prophet's name.

There are 30 books of the Bible in this paragraph. Can you find them? This is a most remarkable puzzle. It was found by a gentleman in an airplane seat pocket, on a flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu, keeping him occupied for hours. He enjoyed it so much, he passed it on to some friends. One friend from Illinois worked on this while fishing from his john boat. Another friend studied it while playing his banjo. Elaine Taylor, a columnist friend, was so intrigued by it she mentioned it in her weekly newspaper column. Another friend judges the job of solving this puzzle so involving, she brews a cup of tea to help her nerves. There will be some names that are really easy to spot. That's a fact. Some people, however, will soon find themselves in a jam, especially since the book names are not necessarily capitalized. Truthfully, from answers we get, we are forced to admit it usually takes a minister or a scholar to see some of them at the worst. Research has shown that something in our genes is responsible for the difficulty we have in seeing the books in this paragraph. During a recent fund raising event, which featured this puzzle, the Alpha Delta Phi lemonade booth set a new record. The local paper, The Chronicle, surveyed over 200 patrons who reported that this puzzle was one of the most difficult they had ever seen. As Daniel Humana humbly puts it, "The books are all right here in plain view hidden from sight." Those able to find all of them will hear great lamentations from those who have to be shown. One revelation that may help is that books like Timothy and Samuel may occur without their numbers. Also, keep in mind, that punctuation and spaces in the middle are normal. A chipper attitude will help you compete really well against those who claim to know the answers. Remember, there is no need for a mad exodus; there really are 30 books of the Bible lurking somewhere in this paragraph waiting to be found. God Bless.

Can you find sixteen (16) books of the Bible in this paragraph?

I once made a remark about the hidden books of the Bible (merely by a fluke). It kept people looking so hard for the facts and for others it was a revelation. Some were in a jam, especially since the name of the books were not capitalized, but the truth finally struck home to numbers of readers. To others it was a real job. We want it to be a most fascinating few moments for you. Yes, there will be some really easy ones to spot. Others may require judges to help them. I will quickly admit it usually takes a minister to find one of them, and there will be loud lamentations when it is found. A little lady says she brews a cup of tea so she can concentrate better. See how well you can compete. Relax now. There really are sixteen names of books in this story.

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The Books are:

Esther, Titus, Amos, Peter, Mark, Luke, Kings, Acts, Revelations, James, , Numbers, Job, Judges, Lamentations, Hebrews, Ruth

Tower Building!

Alex and Grandma were building a tower this evening in the living room. It was cute, he kept standing on his tip toes even when the tower was only up to his chest, lol.