Carny Invasion

Well, another Fairbank Days has come and gone.  I am really glad that it is only 3 days a year.  Not sure how much more draft Coors Light I could handle.  I would say the weekend went off, for the most part, without a hitch.  The parade was nice, the carnival itself left a little to be desired.  Only about 5 rides, and only 1 food truck!  My wife had to wait in line for EVER to get her yearly funnel cake.  The car show had some amazing rides, much more than last year.  And it seemed like all day on Saturday, we narrowly dodged the rain.

The most exciting part of the weekend for me was when my favorite band from last year showed up.  They decided not to wait for any of the locals to guide them across the river to the island, and ended up sideways, with their suburban and equipment trailer completely soaked.  When they were finally pulled from the river and opened their doors, water poured out like crazy.  Then they proceeded to unload all of their dripping equipment and instruments, let it all dry out, and still played a great show.  They started about an hour late, but they got the job done. 

Now tonight it is back to reality for me, back to work.  Should be a fairly easy week, but you never know.  When you are shipping 1.5 to 2.5 million pounds of fresh pork, anything can happen, and usually does.  Well, so long for now. 

Guess Who's Back...

Small hiatus has ended and I'm back.  Vacation was an all around success.  We had a great time in Chicago with the kiddos and my brother-in-law and his girlfriend.  Finally got to take Evan to "The Bean" at Millennium Park, which was cool.  It was very sunny, and very hot that day and we walked for miles and miles it seemed.  Everyone was a champ about it.  We only had to piggy-back Kendall for a little while, other than that it was just fun to walk and people watch.

We finally, after what seemed like days, made it to the beach (Ohio Street).  The kids absolutely LOVED it, swimming in the lake, which appears to be a damn ocean.  Just a trip to have what looks like an ocean view on one side, and high rises on the other, very cool.  After a while, we headed out and went to Navy Pier and got some lunch.  Then we decided to try to eliminate some of the walking and hopped on board a River Taxi to get us closer to the train station.  It was a long day, a tiring day, but everyone enjoyed it and can't wait to do it again. 

That evening we decided to go to Home Run Inn Pizza.  If you have never had Home Run Inn pizza, I'm sorry for you.  If you can find one in the freezer section at the grocery store give it a try, you will like it.  Having one fresh from the oven, at an actual pizzeria, was awesome. 

More to come...

11 Days Off...and a wedding!

So, my second "vacation" of the year. I currently get 3 weeks of paid vacation per year, which is better than some I suppose, and not as good as others. Not a whole lot has gone on thus far, relaxing and hanging out with the family. Baseball and softball games and practices, grilling out more often than not, catching up on some movies and tv, and not getting enough exercise. We will be heading back home on Wednesday, and will be trying to pack tons of visits and plans into a smidge over 5 days. It will be our first trip home with our new dog, Raji (which could turn out to be pretty interesting). And he smells like absolute HELL as he has had a cast on his leg going on 4 weeks now. (He was a stray/abandoned, we took him in and are trying to fix his broken right femur bone, while giving him a loving family).

June 1st already?!? Can't believe how much faster time seems to fly by now that I'm OLD. The kids are so big, smart, becoming more independent. I love the way they are turning out. Evan is a mans man, loves sports, working out, but at the same time he is a big sweetheart. Kendall is, and always will be my little firecracker. Countless times every day I get the hands on the hip attitude and back talk from her, but I love it. It makes her. And I love them both so much. It is still a little crazy that there is another little Hughes fixin to make an appearance in 6 or 7 months! I'm excited because I think I am a better parent now than I was with Evan and Kendall (mostly through trial and error). 15-20 years ago, if anyone would have told me that I would be married, expecting my 3rd child, have a cat and dog and holding down a job with the same company for 10+ years, I probably would not have believed it. But here I am, here WE are. I love my family, and I wouldn't trade any of the things that happened in my life, good or bad, as it has all led me to here, now. Sometimes it's tough, but it is all worth it.