Right on Track...Stanhope Style: Chicago Trip

My Uncle Tom turned 60 this past weekend and my Aunt Jan threw a (surprise) party for him. He knew about some of the events of the weekend, but the surprise part was all the out of town guests coming to help celebrate. UT and AJ mean so much to me so it was important for me to go. Unfortunately Brad wasn't able to join us because he was out of vacation after our Disney cruise earlier this year and then he took vacation when Aubrey was born. So the 3 kids, mom, and I hopped a plane and flew to Chicago. The plane ride was easy and Alex and Abby thought it was so fun to fly again! Sweet Aubrey was awesome and didn't fuss at all on the plane.

We flew into O'Hare. I haven't been there in about 10 years and had forgotten how wild it is! Last time I was alone and it didn't seem so stressful. This time getting luggage for 5 people with 3 kids and 3 car seats was a bit of a challenge. Thankfully, my cousin Clark was there to help us out and made it so easy! AJ picked the kids and me up and showed us the way to the hotel while my mom and Clark got the rental car. As soon as we got to the hotel, my brother showed up in the lobby so he was recruited to help the kids and me upstairs with all of our luggage. Then it ended up being a party in our room! My grandparents, other cousin, brother, sister in law, niece and nephews all came to hang out for a bit. I'm happy we had a suite with two rooms so the kids could go ~~destroy~~ play in the other room while the adults got to chat.

That night we just got settled, took the kids to the pool, went to the happy hour and snacks downstairs, had dinner and crashed. The kids slept in the "living room" on the hide-a-bed. It was so cute to see them sleep in the same bed!

The next morning was one of the surprises for UT. Papa and Grandma and Grant and Vikki and Jack have been at UT and AJ's house since before Christmas so AJ suggested that instead of cooking breakfast again, they all head over to the hotel for breakfast. It wasn't real out of the ordinary, but part of me thinks that he knew something was going on. So as they arrived we were looking down on them from outside our room. After we knew they'd been seated, part of the out of towners started showing up to surprise him. Not only were all of the Okies there, but friends from several other states, too. Everyone just kind of trickled in one group at a time. Finally it was our turn to walk in and say hello. He was so happy!

Then everyone just hung out and had breakfast, drank coffee and chatted. One of the funniest pictures (to me) below is the girls hanging on my brother's feet. And of course Alex took a picture with Vikki, because he loves her. :)

Then of course there was more swimming, a grocery store run, a failed attempt at a nap for Abby, and getting ready for dinner that night. The dinner was at a really neat place called Cooper's Hawk. It is a restaurant and winery. There were wine barrels in our private room filled with wine! It was such a cool place and the food was delicious.

After dinner we went back to UT and AJ's house for coffee and the gift AJ had for UT. I am just in awe over what she had done for him. She has a friend who is an artist. They discussed the many parts of Tom's life and created an oil painting symbolizing the values he holds and the life he has created. It is just breath taking and would require an entirely different post to explain, which I will do someday.

The next day we had breakfast and decided to take a drive to the house Mom grew up in. She and the big kids got out for a picture!

Then we went back, changed clothes and headed back to UT and AJ's for another party. There were about 80 people at this party. The food was delicious and there was a couple that played music and sang songs. Toasts were made and all the kids were so well behaved! I was so proud of all of them for behaving so well at a grown-up party!

The next morning we had to let the kids swim once more and then we headed over to say one last goodbye. UT made the kids a snack and we wish we could have stayed longer!

When we got to the airport, we got the precheck, so we thought it'd be easier. It really wasn't. We still ended up having to take off our jackets and boots, and Alex had to take off his belt, so I'm not really sure it was any faster. Then we found out our plane had been delayed. It was fine, though. The kids really are great travelers and didn't fuss at all.