Illinois here we come!

After driving through eastern Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, and the most cornfields anyone could imagine, we arrived at Erin & Ryan’s house. They live in Arlington Heights, Illinois, which is a suburb northwest of Chicago. There was to be a neighborhood gathering at 5:30 pm, which we were invited to join. This is a regular Friday get-together with snacks, visiting, and cake to recognize the people with August birthdays. Afterward, we had pizza and salad that Erin & Ryan had ordered to their house. We also got to take showers, which was very welcome.

The next day, Saturday, we relaxed and since Erin & Ryan had just arrived back from their trip to Alaska, we shared photographs from our trips. In the afternoon, we decided to take a bike ride on a local recreational path. First order of business: check bikes. Erin is still riding the same bicycle she had in high school! And it had a flat tire. Ryan's bike is a similar vintage. Later, we walked to the Arlington Heights downtown area to eat at Javier's, a Mexican restaurant. It is a nice area, blocked off to traffic, and a lot of people seemed to be out enjoying this hot summer night. http://www.javiers.biz/

On Sunday on our way out of the Chicagoland area, we stopped at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore for a few hours at the beach. The great lakes look just like the ocean to the unknowing eye, with big waves, and sandy beaches. But off in the distance, you can see the Chicago skyline.