Illinois, It's Been Real

First off, Bridgette's doing great. Nearly back to normal, except for that 6.25" incision thing. She and I recently had a wonderful weekend spending time with friends, making the most of this brief time back home to catch up with those we miss. It was a beautiful day, so I whipped up some grilled brats, burgers, and asparagus, while others prepared some salads, chips, and snacks, and we all enjoyed an adult beverage or two.

It's not easy playing host for a large group, and I usually have my better half to help me lift and move and general provide a respectable amount (likely majority) of labor. But too bad this time she got to claim "doctors orders" or some sort of rubbish. She said something about a "scar" and pain "meds" ... sure, whatever. And then she went so far as to suggest she was missing an entire organ. Psht! Unbelievable.

All joking aside, I actually had a great time running around, pulling out the yard games, and lawn chairs, and helping prep the watercraft death vehicle. I was lucky enough to catch the photo here of Brad.

Unfortunately, at some point, my own personal celebration of Bridgette's recovery caught the best of me, and I promptly found a bed to pass out fall asleep on. My sincere thanks to those that helped clean up and leave the place in excellent condition for us in the morning.

So what have we been doing since then? Well, Bridgette returned to Springfield to wrap up bride's and bridesmaids' dresses, and even managed to squeeze some insurance claims in there. I have stayed up north in Elgin to complete some graphics work for my father, and help lock down appointments with wedding vendors for when we all venture out to Idaho next week.

But before we leave for Idaho, my family is congregating for a reunion this weekend to celebrate birthdays (sister's and brother's ... maybe mine a bit?) and catch up before we all part ways, whether it's San Francisco, Atlanta, Boise, Chicago, or Paris. I've heard rumors that pinatas will be involved; stand back.

So expect more wedding-planning posts before we get back to the good ol' fun of adventuring across La France.