When we were at the family reunion, my sister gave pillowcases to my cousin Roger and his wife. I cut them out for Beryl and she sewed them while we were watching a movie back in July when we visited. Well, Rene loved them and as a thank you, she sent this t-shirt to both Beryl and I. I love it!!! Back when I was a teen, I bought a t-shirt at the state fair that said, "I'm Farm Grown and Illinois good" and I wore it out. 
Going from left to right, bushes 1, 3 and 4 needed to come out. Bush 2 is fairly new and looks great. My job was to cut the branches down so Chuck could dig out the base.
There is enough new growth at the base to leave it and see if it will take off. This bed needs lots of loving, but I am always up for it. I feel like I have muscle power to do it now!!
Portillo's in Vernon Hills.
She loves their cheese fries and craves them when not at home.
Chuck talks about their chili cheese dogs and usually gets two. I love their beef and cheddar sandwich, but after the indulgence of yesterday, I settled for my second favorite which is the chopped salad from Barnelli's. Yummy!!!
Wade was their Sag Wagon driver and followed them so if anyone got hurt or they had a bike problem, they had support. He also carried the extra water and snacks. Three years ago, when they did this, it was in the mid 90's and a brutal ride. This year the temperature barely reached 75 and was absolutely gorgeous.
Four gals then took off to Galena in another vehicle, (not the one pictured above) for some shopping, and lunch. I took this picture for my dad and cousin. It is a 1954 Farmall named Chelsea Lee after the guy's niece who was killed in a car accident. It is a real beauty!!
We like to stop at the observation tower along Route 20 and this year it is closed for repairs. Sad!!! So we snapped a picture with the incredible views in the background:
On to town. We found a quilt shop that was having a sale of 25% off all fabric in the store. I still needed more for the items I am making for the boutique. We had lunch at the DeSoto House which is the oldest hotel in the state of Illinois.
Before any store exploring, we decided to go on a garden tour. We went to Linmar Garden, which is privately owned by Hal Martin, an artist. He has been gardening the 3 1/2 acres around his property for the past 33 years. It had been used as an informal dump by many people and needed so much love. Well, he has made a masterpiece!! Pictured above is Sally, the garden cat. She doesn't live here, but shows up everyday at 11 and 2 for the tour. 
There are water features galore and Hal has had a concrete man working for him for the entire time he has lived there. That man is now 87 and still climbs the ladders and hauls things. He loves the work that he does. 
This gargoyle is the brother of the one that lives in my front yard!!
When they were excavating, they found a stone foundation and the historians in the area have determined that it is the foundation of the first African-American church in the state of Illinois. Hal had concrete planters built around the periphery and a water feature in the center. 
We ended the tour in the backyard on the patio. This is the view from there!!! 
We all ate together at 111 Main which was very pricey, so almost everyone had a sandwich. I was so full from the hamburger for lunch that was about the size of my head, that I just had soup and salad and many of Chuck's fries.
Don't want to zoom in too much to spoil the surprise, but I don't think it needs to be altered.
It will be in this color. Can't wait to see the beauty of the day!!!
I just couldn't do them. This morning before making coffee, I had to empty the dishwasher and reload it. It made for a very crabby mommy moment. I'll get over it, but I made my displeasure very evident to my hubby and daughter.
She is hating my obsession with the camera lately.
Isn't she just gorgeous? Her head could be shaved and she could dye her skin purple and she would still be lovely.
When I took the above picture, the manager scolded me for having a camera. I think maybe there is a rule about it. Well, unless I had hundreds of memory cards, I don't think I could have pirated this movie!! Reminds me of that Seinfeld episode where Kramer is in the movie pirating business. I don't have that kind of nerve!
Can you "teal" what color it was????
Jean wore a hat, but it wasn't exactly a Sombrero!!! I'll let you decide what part she was attempting to play:
Janet hosted and supplemented the normal Bunco crown with a cactus crown. (when you roll a Bunco, you wear the crown until the next person gets one)
The rolls weren't in my favor tonight, and I only wore the crown once:
Poor Hillary, she had the hardest time saying good bye to us tonight. 
Debbie provided some levity with the Disney princess cake for her and the girls:
Hillary, you will be missed.
Since moving to Lake County, I have seen Dr. Adriana Spellman as my Gyne. She cried with me when I was diagnosed with breast cancer, treated me for endometriosis and performed surgery in 2003. 
Last weekend, they formed a team of 10 and walked the 60 mile Avon Breast Cancer walk. They raised over $30,000 for breast cancer treatment and research. 
Surprisingly they really don't hurt, not like my upper back, my chest and my left arm!!
That is glass left over from an accident I had in February of 2006. I was coming back from taking care of my mom for a day and when I merged onto the Edens, a semi hit my side mirror, which flipped around and shattered the passenger side window. There were little shards of glass everywhere, but I thought that it was all gone. Amazing what remains after 3 1/2 years!!!
The closer clouds looked like a sheet that was folded very neatly, but the clouds on the horizon were swirling and growing menacingly. Chuck said it kind of looked like the scene from "Independence Day" when the aliens invade and destroy everything in their path.
We took the Des Plaines River Trail north from Independence Grove, which is so lovely. They have made the trail go under several busy roads. 
Our goal was to do 20 miles round trip, but at about mile 8.5, I hit a bit of soft gravel and wiped out. I am banged up and sore, but nothing broken.
Chuck was so encouraging for me the whole time and even though I was bleeding, sore and shaky, I rode 16.9 miles, which is basically 17, but I need to round up to 20, right??? I even rode all of the hills, which prior to my Curves workout, I would have never been able to do. Celia would have been so proud!!
