A.N. Pritzker Elementary School

The U.S. education is in such a fine state that even a lil ole three-year-old like me has to hope and pray I'll get into a good pre-k class. Yes, that's right. Pre-k, not high school or college. Luckily for me I have a Mommy who dedicated herself to volunteering for Friends Of Pritzker, an organization that raises funds for the continued improvement of A.N. Pritzker Elementary's pre-k facilities.

As it turns out, Mom's hard work and maybe Dad's political rants paid off, when my first day of school arrived on Tuesday, September 29. Ever since, I have enjoyed my weekday mornings with Miss Russel and Miss O'Conner, until either Uncle Vino or Gigi & Papa arrive to pick me up for the afternoon.

I imagine I'll continue at Pritzker until it comes time for me to win a lottery, pass a test, or God knows what in order to- hopefully- go to a safe and good high school.

Harvest Time

I may live in a big city, but I still know how to pick tomatoes. I filled my dumptruck with plump fruit and my Aunt Megan used them to make a caprese salad. Afterward I chilled out in the grass.

Aina's 90th Birthday

My Great-Grandma, Aina, turned 90-years-old in September, which meant yet another visit to one of my Dad's- and by default my- favorite cities, Toronto.

It was my fourth time there and the best yet, as the entire family was along and we stayed in the historic Royal York. The place was huge, had a great little kids pool with a fountain, and a toy store in the basement. Plus, on the day we left they were filming a TV show, complete with gun shots. Awesome.

Some things were the same though. We flew Porter, visited Centreville- where luckily the workers were no longer on strike, so all the rides were running- and as usual the CN Tower seemed to follow me everywhere.

We ended the wekend with Aina's party. It was a beautiful sunny day that really complemented the smile on Aina's face, when her friends and family sang her Happy Birthday.

Little Drummer Boy

I've played drums a few times at Schubas, but the latest was by far the best. Old Fake, my babysitter Megan's boyfriend Colin's band, was supporting Free Energy and he let me have at them for a while after their sound check. Village opened the show and since that was a solo act there was no change over, so Mo- Old Fake's drummer- said I could go play his drums again. I performed in front an audience for the first time. They seemed to enjoy my cymbal dominated version of Twinkle.

Why We Live In Chicago

Dad is a huge fan of Chicago and even more so in September, when the temperatures are ideal and the sun shines the most. This September he or I were away three of the four weekends, so when the second weekend arrived and we were both in town, we made the best of it.

On the Friday night we met Gigi and Papa for a snack and a Lyric Opera performance in Millennium Park. Dad and I liked the greatest hits set and it ended early, so we got to walk around a bit.

Saturday night we headed to Belmont Harbor to check out Redmoon Theater's production of Last of My Species: The Fearless Songs of Laarna Cortaan. I had seen a Redmoon production before and this one had their great contraptions and interesting music, but it was on a much larger scale.

Finally, on Sunday we headed back to the Lakefront for a trip to the Shedd Aquarium. I hadn't been since they unveiled their remodeled Oceanarium and it's Polar Play Zone. I spent a good twenty minutes acting like a penguin and another twenty manning a submarine. I was none too happy when Dad said we had to leave and I gave the fish one heck of a show before I was finally dragged out of there. I passed out before we got back to the car and when I woke from my nap, Dad made sure to remind me that this weekend was why we live in Chicago.

Who Is That Tall Guy?

Dad saw Chrissy and Doug Rathbun, two of his cousins from California, for the first time in many years. They came to Chicago for a visit with their dad Hal, who is Gigi's brother and my dad's uncle. Family can be confusing. Needless to say my dad's cousins- my second cousins- have grown-up. Especially Doug, who is 6 feet 9 inches tall. I didn't even reach his waist.

Not Sure Why Dad Wouldn't Let Me Wear This To School

Oh. Hi. Oh.

My Midwestern Summer tour continued in late-July with my first ever visit to the somewhat great state of Ohio, where dad, Papa, Gigi and I crashed The Ribble Family Reunion in Vermillion. As a little girl, Gigi visited her grandparents often in Vermillion and says not much has changed, although her Grandfather's grocery store is now Rick's Cafe.

The Ribble's are an interesting and talented lot. Midwestern born and bread, but now strewn about the country, their current leader is Bill, is my dad's uncle because he is married to Gigi's sister Claire. The family meets on a fairly consistent basis and extend an invite to the Rucins, when it's in our extended back yard.

But enough of the back-story. The key points are: Lake Erie, what my dad called an "old school" playground, an ice cream shop, and Eli- the only other little boy. The perfect formula for a few days of fun.

Pitchfork 2009

Dad took me to my fourth Pitchfork Music Fest this year and it was the best yet thanks to The Flaming Lips and their balloons. On the other hand, MF Doom, was as bad as the Lips were good, so I decided to provide my own entertainment during his set by teaming up with my friend Alvaro for a festival rendition of Twinkle. Enjoy.

Is It Michigan? Is It Indiana? It's Michiana!

Our annual summer trip to Michigan, which usually lands in South Haven, moved a bit south to Michiana this year and I am still not quite sure if the little village is in Michigan, Indiana, or both. I do know it's close to Michigan City- which is actually in Indiana, had an amazing fireworks display and poor jailers, who allowed four men to escape while we were nearby. One of the convicts was caught just a little bit down the road at Chicago Mayor Daley's beach home in Grand Beach, Michigan. This lead to my daddy's trunk being searched on the way to the dunes and we enjoyed the rest of the few days there awash in beautiful weather and the sounds of police helicopters and boats.

The King Of Pop Lived Here

On the way to Michiana this July, Uncle Dave insisted we stop in Gary, Indiana to check out Michael Jackson's childhood home and am I glad we did cause it was pretty nuts. Michael died suddenly a few weeks prior to our visit and people immediately started flocking to his Gary home, where in tribute they started leaving insane amounts of miscellaneous crap, trampling the poor grass in the process. Check out the photos for the proof. The scene surrounding the tiny house, which miraculously held 10 people, was bananas. Police, t-shirt vendors, creepy super fans and little kids dragged by their gawking parents. Thanks dad!

Poop!

This picture pretty much tells the story. While at Wicker Park one day I felt the urge, so I told Mommy, who rushed me into the field house, where I pulled down my pull-up and dropped my first official number two in the potty. From then on it was underwear only and while I initially struggled a bit with the deuce, it's now a regular occurrence. TMI, right?

A Summer Night In Millennium Park

Millennium Park, the world's largest green roof, is easily one of Chicago's greatest attractions and on a recent- beautiful Monday night I managed to experience just about all it has to offer. Uncle Dave, Dad and I headed down around 6:00 PM to meet Gigi & Papa, who took the Silver Train (re: Metra) from LaGrange and brought some sandwiches along. Before we ate, I got to play in the Crown Fountain (shhh... I peed). Then I dried off before checking out Amsterdam architect Ben van Berkel and his UNStudio's new Burnham Plan Centennial Pavilion. What a great piece of public art. After some exploring, we at dinner on the lawn while listening to The Dirty Projectors and The Sea & Cake play Pritzker Pavilion, before walking up the new Nichols Bridgeway that leads to The Modern Wing at The Art Institute of Chicago. Our friend Chad joined us and Uncle Dave snapped a great photo, just before a security guard told daddy he could not have me on his shoulders. Stupid rules.

Dad's Day

Father's Day landed on June 21st this year, so it had to share the spotlight with Uncle Dave's birthday and the first day of Summer. Had I known of the significance of the day I would have let Dad do whatever he liked. However, I think he got to anyway, since he seemed to have fun at the park with me and enjoyed watching me play with the hose. In between he got to watch the White Sox and later we all enjoyed some cake.

Go White Sox!

Just a few weeks after attending my first Sox game of the year, I got to go to Sox Park again in early-June. It was my fifth game in only three years on earth. Dad must really want to make sure I root for the right team. Gigi and Papa came along on what turned out to be kids day, so I got to dance with a random dog and play in a moon jump before we headed to the awesome seats Chris Schuba gave us. I wandered around with dad and got as close as possible to the field, where the newest White So(x or ck), Gordon Beckham, signed my dad's Sox cap. When the game started I had a hot dog, then passed out in Gigi's arms, where I slept for a good five innings, not even waking up for the firework's after Alexei Ramirez's homer. Unfortunately, that was the only highlight for the Sox that day, as they lost to the Indians 8 - 4.

Toronto III

Once again, thanks to my birthday falling near or on Memorial Day weekend, I found myself in Toronto, Ontario Canada for my annual visit- my third- with my Great Grandma, Aina. If I keep up this pace, Canada may need to make me an honorary citizen. Free health care!
Gigi, Papa, Dad and I flew the wonderful Porter Airlines, which flies right into the downtown islands. We stayed at our usual spot, the Novotel Toronto Centre, which is just a block away from Aina's pad and the amazing St. Lawrence Market. We spent the weekend visiting, swimming, celebrating my birthday and walking the now familiar streets of Toronto. However, my favorite part was our Sunday visit to Centreville, an amusement park on Toronto's Centre Island. Dad and I got to ride the Log Ride, the Dragon Coaster, Centreville Train and Ferris Wheel. Plus I went on the cars and boat all by myself.
On the way home I was told that we'd be going back to Toronto in September for Aina's 90th birthday. My cousins and Aunt Lori and Uncle Dave will be along too. Can't wait.

I'm Three

Due to my annual birthday-weekend trip to Toronto (post coming soon), Mom and Dad had to throw my third birthday party a week prior to May 25, but lucky for me- and thanks to Dad- my favorite man from the sun, Gustafer Yellowgold, happened to be in town. He played an awesome 45 minute set at Schubas.
After the concert, a ton of my friends and their parents, plus my family, headed upstairs for snacks, drinks, sweets, presents and ice cream cake, which Dad and Mom got for me at Baskin Robbins.
It was the best three-year-old bash ever.

Aspiring Musician

Whenever I visit Dad at Schubas I always try to walk on stage and sing some songs. I like to practice these tunes at home using the too-large-guitar my Uncle Dave got me for Christmas. Have a look.

Dinosaurs Alive!

Wow!
Last Sunday, I had the best time ever at my favorite zoo, The Brookfield Zoo, where they have an awesome new exhibit called Dinosaurs Alive! There is good reason for that !. The dinosaurs are life size and look so real. The sound, eh, not so much, but who cares? I got to run amongst dinosaurs without fear of being eaten and got to dig for their fossilized bones. So cool. On the way to the carousel we saw one last dinosaur, the Ruyang Yellow River dino, which is the largest ever discovered. Daddy, Uncle Dave, Gigi & Papa and I took a carousel ride, then headed to my favorite permanent exhibit, the Swamp. I danced to the Cajun music and said hello to the alligator, one of the only animals left on earth, who can be traced back to the dinosaurs.