Lots going on...

I think the Levi jeans post has definitely run its course so its time for a new post...

Last Thursday, Anthony and I went to a dinner at the law school for all graduating law students. It is hard to believe 3 years have gone by since we were sitting in that same Green Lounge attending the Welcome Dinner for incoming law students and now we are finishing up. During our 3 years here, we haven't done very many "law events" but we have hung out with other married students quite a bit and formed friendships with other couples who are "going through law school together". I will post more about life as a wife of a law student and law school after GRADUATION!!

Friday was such a beautiful day so I left work around 12:30 to spend the afternoon with my hubby. We ate lunch then headed out to the park across from our building with our blanket, snacks & drinks, books and baseball gloves. We spent several hours soaking up the sun, chatting and playing catch. Since the warm weather season is so short in Chicago, when it is nice out, it seems like the whole city gets out to enjoy the sunshine. Almost all the restaurants have outdoor seating and you usually have to wait longer to sit outside than you do to sit inside. That night, we went to eat at one of our favorite Chicago places, Spacca Napoli, with our friends Brian and Tracey. This is the BEST pizza you will ever eat!! The owner is Italian and they make Neapolitan-style pizza. He had a special oven flown in from Italy that cooks each pizza in less than 2 minutes. The ingredients are so fresh and local and the pizza is simply superb. We were all very full after each finishing our own pizza, but still headed over to Margie's Candies for a hot fudge sundae. This place has been around since the 30s and is always packed with all different kinds of people. Great way to finish off the night!

So, the moving process has begun! Saturday morning we had a lady come to our apartment to survey our things to see how many boxes we will need. She looked everywhere...even in those places you don't like people to see (storage, closets, etc.). It is so nice that the firm is packing & moving us; we are responsible for packing our clothes but that is pretty much it! Also, we shipped our car to Texas! We sent the car to Dallas so that Anthony can use it while he is there taking a review course for the bar exam instead of having to buy one right away. Since I use public transportation most of the time anyway, its not a big deal to be without one. Now that gas is almost $4 here, I have no problem spending my money elsewhere! Here is a picture of our car being driven away. We are putting a lot of trust in our driver Jim that he will get the car to TX as promised.

Saturday afternoon, we headed back out to the park to get some sun! The high was 80 degrees so we were thrilled to get these winter-white limbs a bit of color! It was so relaxing to be outside, laying in the sun, talking to Anthony. Saturday night we tried a new restaurant called Nacional 27 and it was wonderful. We love Latin food and they had great Sangria's. After dinner we headed to the symphony and enjoyed some fine music. What talented people!!

Sunday morning I was signed up to run in a 10k race downtown. It started at 8:00, so I headed down early to stretch, warm up, etc. Anthony met me at the finish line! The temperature dropped about 40 degrees from Saturday because it was absolutely freezing. I think the temperature by the lake was about 44 and the wind was out in full force. It was a bit hard running straight into the wind and dealing with the cold temps, but it still felt good to get out and run. I love that Anthony always enjoys coming to watch and cheer me on; it makes me feel good. Here is a picture of me about to cross the finish line and yes, I did pass this man before crossing it!
After the race as we were waiting for the bus to come we started talking about how great America is and how blessed we are to live in such a fine country. Its easy to forget that other places in this world are nothing like America, don't have the privileges and opportunities that we have here, and don't have the amazing amount of resources we have here. I always get emotional when the Star Spangled Banner is sung...they played it right before the race and of course, I teared up and got to thinking about our troops. 3 guys I know from high school are either currently in Iraq or about to go back, and I have so much respect for them (and all the others in the Armed Forces). Whether you are for or against the war, our troops need our support--they are serving our country and risk their lives everyday. Take the time to appreciate what you have been given and that you live in the greatest place on earth.