Keir and Lori went to their new house today so check on the painting and the closets. We met them over there and I got a few more shots of the house.
They are all excited about moving into their new house 
I put the rest at Keir and Lori's new house
We all came back to our house for lunch and then Keir and Lori left to run some errands and do some more packing. We kept the girls overnight and will take them back later this morning.
Ron and Carol and Rich and Debbie came to our place for dinner last night. It was warm but we sat out on the deck for wine and appetizers. We figured we won't have very many more chances. Jill made a fabulous dinner - stuffed chicken breasts with Vidalia onion fig sauce.
Such a wonderful place to go with kids. Kyle called Jill and said "I want to go to Navy Pier and ride the Ferris wheel". Lindsey said she didn't want to go but Kyle took her by the hand and told her "It goes very slow". He talked her into it and she loved it.
They both rode the train but Lindsey couldn't talk Kyle into riding the carousel.
Meanwhile Braden and Scarlett just watched.
I love the skyline views from the Ferris wheel
Last year we had two hibiscus bushes on the deck and by this time they were not looking very good - they just hadn't thrived. This year both bushes have been fantastic and show no signs of tapering off.
Actually it's been a banner year for all the flowers and bushes.
Amy had been shopping at a little boutique clothing store on Madison a while back. The owner asked her to model some of their clothes at a fashion show and last night was the night. We drove downtown and went to a bar called Plush. There were four models and the bar itself was the "walk".
It's hard to believe that Mom has been gone for almost three years. So much has happened in that time that I wish she could have been here for. New great grandkids, Lori and Keir finding a house out here... The picture is the one we had on the altar at her memorial service. Her favorite color was red.
We sure do miss her. This is the piece we had in the church bulletin when she passed away (written by my daughter Amy).
Nadine was born in Miller, Missouri as a twin. Her twin died before her second birthday as did an older sister; thus Nadine ended up as the second oldest in a family that included 2 brothers and 4 sisters. They all attended a one room school house, and Nadine would eagerly study by the light of a kerosene lamp. She loved school and loved learning. By 6th grade she knew she wanted to become a teacher and was determined to get the education that would allow her to pursue her dream. She was the only member of her family to attend college, and graduated from Southwest Missouri State Teachers College. Deciding to go even further, to get a Master’s Degree, she left small town life and courageously boarded a bus for Chicago, where she enrolled at Northwestern University in Evanston. To put herself through school, she got a job waitressing at Hill’s Tea Room. It was here that she met her soul mate, Arthur Hill, the man she would be married to for next 42 years. They were married on Valentine’s Day in 1942, and a few months later he was sent overseas to serve in World War II, where he remained for the next three years. She wrote to him every day and got jobs teaching in Kentucky, Oklahoma, and then back to Chicago. After the war, they were finally able to start their family and had three sons, Art Jr., Ron and Rich. They bought their first house in Fernwood, and then a second in Morgan Park where they lived for 14 years. Nadine started teaching again once her three boys started school and taught at Thornton Community College for 17 years before she and Art moved to beautiful Encinitas California in 1974. Still, she continued to teach, even taking computer classes so she could teach others how to use them. Her sons and their families loved to come visit “Grandma and Grandpa” every year. Her beloved Art passed away in 1984 and Nadine moved back to Chicago in 1990 where she would spend the next 14 years as an integral part of the lives of her three sons, daughters-in-law, Jill, Carol and Debbie, 10 grandchildren, Amy, Lori, Julie, Heidi, Kelly, Abby, Daniel, Deanna, Christy, Marissa, and her 5 great-grandchildren, Olivia, Mary, Patrick, Kyle and Lindsey.
And here is the link to the memorial pages we put up Tribute to Nadine Hill Happy Birthday Mom!
The weather was perfect today. We went to Sunday School and then church. I had to take pictures of the third graders getting their bibles. There seem to be about twice as many kids in church as there were a few years ago. That's a great trend. The church rose garden yielded this beauty today.
In the afternoon we bought some mums for the front porch and in front of the garage. Jill planted those while I cleaned up the pond and watered the plants in the backyard. Then we sat on the deck for a while before coming in to watch the Bears beat the Chiefs.
We are amazed at how well that red hibiscus bush is doing this late. The peach one is doing okay too but the red one is really pumping out the blossoms.
We decided to drive up to Lake Geneva today. We took Route 12 all the way instead of going on the expressways. Stopped for breakfast at an IHOP in Des Plaines and then drove on up. It was cool - in the fifties when we got there and 61 by the time we left. Nice day though with blue skies and sunshine. It was pretty busy but we found a place to park right away. Had a late lunch at Popeye's with a window table so we could look out over the lake.
Well, after almost seven years at Microsoft I finally ended up with an actual office. Jill and the kids were coming out that way so I suggested they stop by as none of them has been to where I work.
We all had lunch at Kona Grill outside and Scarlett was up at the table with the rest of them for the very first time
That evening I was back at the Kona Grill having dinner with my new Central Architecture Leadership Team.
So yesterday was a pretty good day.
It's been a great year for the yard and pond and all plants and flowers. With the cicadas, then the itch mites and a lot of construction around here we haven't been able to spend as much time in the yard as we would have liked though.
There is a lot of nostalgia stuff floating around - most of it not all that good. This site has a pretty good round up of stuff from the sixties. Turn your sound on.
http://moreoldfortyfives.com/TakeMeBackToTheSixties.htm
We had Kyle and Braden Thursday through Sunday. On Thursday Lori was out at the house with Lindsey and Scarlett. So, busy would be an understatement.
Friday night we went to dinner with the boys at Antonino's and then walked over to Stone Avenue Station to watch them auction off the little decorated elephants that had been placed around town.
When the bidding on one of them went over $9000 we headed for home.
Saturday we packed up the boys and drove two cars down to Dan and Amy's so we could stay overnight there. The weather was very nice so we got out to the playground, had breakfast outside at Hash Brown on Sunday and went to one of Kyle's favorite places - the fountain by Barbara's Bookstore. It was a great weekend and we had a wonderful time with the boys.
The other big news from the weekend is that Keir and Lori made an offer on a house in La Grange Park. They haven't come to terms yet but we think they will and naturally we are thrilled.
We met Keir and Lori and Dan and Amy and the grandkids up there today. It was a warm and very sunny day so hard to get good pictures. We had a good time walking around. The place has a bingo card for kids - whenever they spot something pictured on the bingo card they get to place sticker on that space. Kyle, Lindsey and Braden all seemed to enjoy the model railroad display.
Lots of gorgeous flowers and a glorious day
We watched Lindsey and Scarlett Saturday and Sunday so Keir and Lori could look at houses. Saturday they found two they like in Elmhurst and Sunday they found two they like in La Grange and La Grange Park.
Saturday we took the kids to Palmers for supper. We had planned to eat on the patio but found that it was too sunny so we ate inside.
Sunday Lindsey and I ran some errands and she wanted another look at all the little elephants on La Grange Road. 
Jill had to help out with a wedding so I had both girls for a little while in the afternoon. Naturally Scarlett woke up just as Lindsey was going down for a nap.
We had a good time; we love those kids so much. Lindsey's language skills are amazing. She can carry on a regular conversation.
Rich and I went to see the Bears play Cleveland. Great seats in the Cadillac Club. Beautiful day. Not a good game. They pulled the starters after the first series - 5 minutes into the first quarter. The second half was the 4th string QB - don't even know his name. The Bears lost to Cleveland, a really bad team. It's a nice evening but Rich warned that the 4th pre-seaon game is the worst one to attend. They don't want to get any of the starters injured.
